Prologue

Opening Author's Notes

This is that experimental fic I was talking about in the last two chapters of Collision Code. This one is going to follow some cliche lines, but hopefully I can break some tropes of the "Canon Reenactment + OC(s)" genre...
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Hey. I'm Azure Courage. I'm not surprised you don't know me. I hardly ever venture away from home these days, after all. But can you blame me? Each time I look at the moon nowadays, I almost get this ominous chill, and when I'm not doing unicorn things, I'm trying desperately to hone both my physical body and my magical talent for when that event happens. So the tale goes, it's supposed to happen on a year's Summer Sun Celebration...

It's a pretty busy life here in Canterlot. I've pretty much lived here, and have enough of a grasp on magic to learn additional spells aside from what most unicorns learn through basic education. However, I prefer trying things on my own. Never really saw the point in trying to go higher when my current skillset should work just as well.

Right, you're probably wondering why I'm named that. Well, I have a teal-ish coat, which is pretty close to blue. I also have brown eyes. Oddly enough, my mane and tail are a bit greener than my coat. As for the "Courage" part, I've been told I have that gleam in my eye, and I do believe it. After all, once I feel ready, I'm up for adventure. Why not? You can call me "Azure" for short. Always liked that part of my name better.

You're wondering about this, a lightbulb in the shape of a star, my cutie mark, right? I have a strategic mind, though it's more spur-of-the-moment than my cousin, who can strategize for days at a time. His mark's an entire scroll with indistinguishable writing on it. Though none of the three of us have been at war; his talent came out through playing Risk...I lose every time he gets serious. My other cousin has no real strategic talent like that. I think his talent lies in athleticism, which makes sense. He knows just enough unicorn magic to get by.

And when my two cousins are within each other's company, they are almost guaranteed to verbally argue. If they're really in the mood, sometimes they come to blows.I just don't get it. They act like foals half their age.

Of course, much like my parents, they dismiss my concerns and my need for honing my skills. Maybe I'm just chasing an old ponytale, but I don't feel like taking that chance.

This is a problem, though. Canterlot is far too noisy...then again, it's a big city. The noise pollution is getting on my nerves. I can't concentrate on my training with all this racket...

Good thing I've got a contingency plan, though...I think there's a rural setting not too far off from here..."Ponyville", was it? I've finally managed to pull together enough funds to move.

Right, you're probably wondering about how I managed to do that. Well, if I didn't have the strategic mind, I do have one other talent, though it's not my best. On occasion, I'm improvising poetry in rap form. It actually works better than you think it does. Yeah, Canterlot may be upper-crust, but if I resist the urge to add rhythm, it just becomes poetry. You'd be amazed at how much some ponies will pay for entertainment like that...

I digress, though. Point is, it's time for me to move out, and maybe, just maybe, I'll find a peaceful setting where I can find two things: quiet, for my training; stable livelihood, so I can keep training.
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The light cyan unicorn looked towards his belongings, and sighed. Today was the day he was finally going to live in peace and quiet in Ponyville, far removed from the hustle and bustle of Canterlot. He understood it was the capital city of Equestria, but still, the upper crust had to be some of the most obnoxious and rude ponies in the land. There were exceptions, though.

More to the point, none of the city jobs really interested Azure. Sure, some of the jobs in Ponyville, from what he could gather, were so menial that a pony that suffered brain trauma could probably do half of them, but he honestly didn't mind that too much. After all, his main interest was training to preserve the peace.

He almost wondered why none of his family members tried harder to talk him down from this ledge, given what was motivating it. In the saddlebag he would be wearing on the train, contained all the belongings he really needed right off: three books total. One dealt with magic usage in emergency battle situations, a handy little guide that, unsurprisingly, hadn't come in handy so far. Another dealt with martial arts, a gift from his older cousin, Crimson Blitz. The third and final one dealt with the legend he was currently trying to prepare for.

In short, the main reason he'd concentrated on bettering his power: Mare in the Moon. Azure was careful not to mention it around other ponies, lest they think he was insane and commit him to a psych ward. No matter how he thought about it, each time he looked at the moon, he couldn't help but wonder if it was true. Some nights, when he could look at it just right, he could have sworn he'd saw an especially ominous shadow reaching across its face...

No doubt about it, this move, if anything else, would at least knock some sense into him. Only his parents knew about it, and every opportunity they got, they would chide him for it. They probably thought he was joking about it. His cousins, on the other hand, did see his concerns, but did also dismiss it as an old ponytale.

With the Summer Sun celebrations in the past having gone off smoothly so far, to what his family had informed him, nothing was off about those. The night before, everypony would pull an all-nighter and then stay up for sunrise. Then it was about eighteen hours of fighting to stay awake afterward, a challenge that Azure certainly didn't fail at, but he also didn't quite excel at it either due to how often he'd overwork himself.

Also, within the saddlebag: the key for his new home, a small house located close to the brook outside Ponyville. It also contained a quill, a bottle of ink, and several pieces of parchment, upon which he would truly start his recreational writing binge. It'd been how he'd fed his income so far, that and a few odd stints here and there.

At the very least, house payments wouldn't be an issue. He was in such a hurry to get out of there, and all. If his gut feeling was correct, and so far in his life since he'd read that tale it hadn't been, this one would be the year, and with just one week before this year's celebration, he wanted to at least have some peace before the day came.

"Train leaves for another hour, so I've got time to kill..." thought the unicorn to himself aloud. "Parents knew this day was coming, but I guess it'd be bad form to leave without at least trying to wait up for them."

It was then, the spiky-maned pony turned to regard a knock at the door.

"They back yet?" he wondered aloud, setting the saddlebag down on his bed, the bed he'd slept in for eighteen years now. With a sigh, he trotted toward the door. "This is going to be a little hard to do..."

Using a small burst of magic, his horn taking on a cyan glow along with the afflicted door handle, Azure opened the door...

And found himself staring at two unicorns that were related to him, but weren't his parents. No. These were his cousins, essentially who taught him the ropes when it came to the martial arts he currently practiced when he wasn't training with his magic. Though bobbing on his hind legs was still a pain in the rump, figuratively and literally...

"Big day, huh Azure?" asked the one on the right, a crimson unicorn with a black mane and tail. Like Azure's, his was strikingly spiky, but more so than his cousin's in that his mane was far more upright than the blue or green unicorns' manes. "The day you finally leave the big city for some kind of adventure, I'm sure..." This unicorn was Blitz, the one that gifted him with the martial arts book.

"Yeah, and the day you leave to go mingle with ponies other than unicorns..." said the one on the left, a dark green unicorn with a spiky tail and angular mane. "Oh joy..." There was sarcasm in his tone.

"Oh, don't even start," answered Azure. "You know, Virid, that's ancient."

"More ancient than the tomes you've been going by for the past three years, Paranoia?" the angular-maned pony answered. Virid Strategem, the older of his two cousins, did not really care for earth ponies or pegasus ponies. Though he seemed like he could tolerate being around them, three times out of five, he'd make some snide comment about how his "race" could handle magic.

"That's enough, Virid, you know the score by now, and besides, at least we got to pass on something he could use." countered Blitz. "While I can't say I like his going by the ponytale, I don't think name-calling is really necessary. At least he isn't going around telling anypony who'll listen about it."

"So, you guys came to see me off?" questioned Azure, blowing past his older cousins' argument. "I still have about an hour left. Today, I'd figured I could at least try to take it easy...what with the Summer Sun festival coming up, though--"

"Azure, you know, you've been wrong the last three years..." Blitz continued. "Isn't it time to just face reality and come off the ponytale all the same? I can understand wanting to get out of here, but I just don't think the tale's as true. It is a bedtime story, after all."

"This year just might be the year," the blue unicorn stated aloud. "Like you so often reprimanded me during those spars, I shouldn't get complacent. Maybe you're right, maybe it is, but I hate taking chances on the unknown." For a few moments, Azure honestly contemplated telling these two what he saw in the moon recently when he chanced to be outside in the night.

It was strange, certainly. For one thing, he could have sworn he saw an ominous shadow within its face. Another thing, and though he wasn't an astronomer, he couldn't help but feel that somehow, the stars in the night sky immediately around the moon just weren't in their right spot. However, logic won out--he was somewhat sure his cousins were questioning his sanity by this point in their lives, and thus did not convey these concerns.

"Suit yourself, Azure," answered Virid. "So, Ponyville. I hear they don't use magic so much around those parts."

"That's right. There might be a few unicorns in town, though, but from what I can gather, it's mostly pegasus ponies and earth ponies." Azure responded, glad to see the focus was taken off one of the reasons for his moving. "Since the population is smaller, logic would dictate that it'd be quieter than here."

"Can't say I blame you. Sometimes even I want to just get away from it all, but hey, magic is magic..." Virid said, exhaling slowly. "Besides, for what it's worth, I hear the ponies there are not as stuck-up as here."

"Ironic coming from you..." said Blitz, whistling somewhat.

"What was that, Blitz, got something to say to me?" Virid immediately got up, and carefully moved to face the dark red colt that had dared to oppose his opinion.

"Nothing. I'm just saying that of all ponies in this town, you really shouldn't be complaining about others being stuck-up, Virid. Given your stance on the other kinds of ponies..."

"Uh, guys?" Azure tried to intervene, really not wanting his older cousins to go at it right now, even though he knew full well it was useless to try to get between them when they were about to go at it.

"So what, is that 'Blitz' for 'I want you to kick my face in as hard as possible'?"

"Guys...?"

"Maybe it is, but really, you're the one going to need to see the dentist after we get done here..." This was Crimson, now tensing up, as though ready for Virid to make the first move.

"C'mon, on moving day for me, really?"

"Quiet, Azure, something serious is coming up..." said the dark green unicorn in response, also beginning to tense up. "I'm gonna make you eat those words!"

Thankfully, before the two older unicorns could make this day bad for him, there was a knock at the door, followed by a feminine voice.

"Azie, you still home? Don't tell me you've already up and left us!"

"Mother...?!"

Almost immediately, the blue unicorn turned to his older cousins, who were now standing and whistling as though they weren't about to beat each other to a pulp. With an irritated sigh, Azure Courage immediately shifted his attention to his mom's voice.

"Yeah, I'm still here. Virid and Blitz are here too. Don't know why though..." Azure said. "Given they were on the verge of having it out again and all..."

"Oh c'mon, Azure, they've just got a bad case of sibling rivalry!" This was his father's voice. The door swung open, revealing two older-looking unicorn ponies. The mare had a mix of Virid's color and Azure's color, indicating whose side of the family Virid came from. Her coat was more green than it was blue, but her mane was the same shade of cyan, save for a few light blue highlights.

His father, the colt (obviously) had a mix of red and azure in his color scheme. While his coat was a light shade of red, he had a dark blue mane and tail, which had spikes in it, explaining where Azure got his from. They held a few bags, along with a small box.

"Good thing we caught you when we did, son, knowing you, you probably just couldn't wait to move out of here..." This was his father speaking again. "We actually have a parting gift to give you, something I think will fit you correctly."

The cyan colt's eyes widened, while his cousins merely watched. What did his parents give him? A written apology for all the times they ever mocked him in the past for taking his training as seriously as he did? Nah, he'd better keep dreaming on that one. Azure waited patiently, though he was trembling in place, wondering what it could have been.

His mother levitated the small box in front of him.

"Here, Azie..." Only now did Azure fully register what his mother was calling him, but he blocked it out, not really wanting to spoil the moment. "This is your gift. Go on and open it."

Taking the hold on his own, Azure wet his lips out of anticipation. The lid and bottom were seperated, and the light blue unicorn took a gander at what was inside.

It was a simple cloth strap, dark blue in color. The male cocked his head to one side, a little confused.

"Uh, what...?" He honestly wasn't sure what it was about this band, but the fact it was his parting gift sort of confused and intrigued the colt to no end.

"Turn it around, Azure..." His father said, breaking the short silence.

"Huh?" The cyan colt said, looking to the older one.

"You're looking at the wrong side..."

"Oh..." said the cyan colt, removing the strap from the box, and rotating it so he could see what his parents saw.

"...Courage..." he mumbled, looking at the word in perfect stitching on his parting gift. "My second name..."

"Son, whether or not this year's Summer Sun Celebration actually yields truth to that old ponytale has no bearing on what we, as family members, feel for you." His father finally began. "Yeah, sure, do I wish you didn't bury yourself into training and learning spells that really, only higher-ups in the military should know, practically? You bet I do. But that doesn't change that your name, 'Courage', is true about you in more ways than one."

"From the start, we'd expected you to do brave things, and well, even before you immersed yourself in myths," his mother cut in. "You weren't exactly the wimpiest unicorn in Canterlot."

Did he need to be reminded of all the wacky antics he and his cousins had gotten into when he was younger? When they weren't playing board games, they were off practicing urban manuevers. That was how Blitz discovered his cutie mark. That pony had to have been double-jointed or something; he'd managed to get up on buildings that Virid and Azure just couldn't, no matter how hard they tried. Not to mention, they did play an odd prank here and there, but those days were over.

"We can vouch for that, Azure," said Blitz, moving toward the door. "Not to mention, sometimes you'd make split-second decisions, and most of the time, they'd work out. We'd pull those pranks, and I can almost guarantee that we'd gotten away almost every single time."

"Over time, I guess that's why I have the talent I have now..." Azure said in awkward reflection. "Split-second decisions..."

"But 'Courage' is pretty much what defines you, Azure," his father finally said. "I can guarantee that most other ponies would have abandoned your cause long ago had they taken it up when you did. But no matter how much we tried to talk you down and no matter how much you were disappointed, you never faltered. It's almost like you're not afraid of anything."

Funnily enough, that wasn't true...ever since that one run-in with a beehive, he didn't take too kindly to bees anymore...not to mention that one foalhood camping trip to Colt Ridge...

"So, that's why you get this. Something simple..." His mother said. "Now, go on, Azie, and may you find..." Tears began to stream down her face. "Find success in whatever it is that you do from here on..."

"Oh gosh..." mumbled Azure, feeling his eyes get heavy with tears. Only now did he realize the monumental task he was about to do for sure. He started blinking, trying to push them back in, and yet he knew it was impossible. "You guys......"

He levitated the strap, and after fiddling with a few ideas, finally decided on a way he could put it on. The blue cloth was soon wound and tied neatly around his right foreleg. There wasn't much cloth trailing from the knot point.

It was a happy time, but Azure knew he couldn't stay long. After about twenty minutes, the cyan colt finally said farewell to his family members that he'd lived with for so long.

"See you guys, gotta get out of here!"

Azure Courage took off at a full gallop, running for the train station, with his belongings safely around his upper body.

"Don't forget to write!" Blitz yelled.

"Let us know how that ending goes!" Virid called out.

"...You two took what we were going to say," Azure's mother reprimanded.

With that over, the unicorn began dashing past assorted ponies, most of which were unicorns, but there were earth ponies within the city, heading for the train trip he'd hoped would bring a change to his life.

And by the grace of the sun princess, Princess Celestia, he was bound to get said change...

Chapter 1: Some Details May Be Exaggerated

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Chapter 1: Some Details May Be Exaggerated
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The train ride hadn't been the worst experience of Azure's life. Sure, he had to wait a few minutes after arriving for the train to Ponyville to actually get to its station, but once it arrived, it was pretty standard. Well, the cyan colt had only ridden the train once before, and that was really part of one of his cousins' pranks on him. However, the incident didn't leave a lasting impression on Courage, or at least, not that much of one.

The train arrived at the Ponyville station without much in the way of incidents happening along the way, though sitting down for the time of the trip wasn't the most comfortable thing in the world. At least the cyan pony had that martial arts guide to look through, otherwise he might have been bored on the way there.

Of course, now that he was in Ponyville, Azure was feeling restless. He wasn't at all about to just crash in his new home like he'd hoped he would. For one thing, he was in a new city, and he really didn't know his way around, or at least, not as well as somepony who was born there would. Another thing, he'd figured he'd check out potential jobs while he was about. It wasn't like he didn't have money to spare, but he honestly didn't want to take the chance of that running out. He levitated the picture of his new home in front of him, searching for it by surroundings.

It wasn't his vice by any means, but from what he could see of it now that he was in the city limits, it wasn't going to be that hard. For about ten minutes, he trotted along, seeing if the surroundings somewhat matched the home's surroundings in the photo. During this search, he almost felt like he heard something following him. He folded the photo and whirled, but saw nothing but a fading dust cloud.

"That was odd," mumbled Azure to himself, trying to get back on track. "Let's see...am I almost there yet?" He checked the photo again. "Yeah, looks like I'm about there."

After making a couple of right turns, and then trotting to a spot closer to the outside of Ponyville, he found a home that looked like the one in the photo. Once more, he levitated the photo in front of his snout, and smiled when he realized what he was looking at.

"Found it..." he said to himself, taking the key from his saddlebag and immediately using it to unlock the door. True to form, the place was at least adequately furnished. A bed, a few shelves here and there, and of course, a simple couch and rug. It was a relatively simple house. Also, something that Azure found himself a little fascinated by; even though the place was simple, more or less made of wood, and brick and mortar in some places, it did contain a refridgerator and a stove, though the latter probably wouldn't be touched since he didn't know how to cook...yet.

He set his saddlebags aside on the bed in his bedroom.

"Well, I can't complain about the lack of decorations here. It is technically new, after all." Azure thought to himself. Even the new sheets weren't all that special, a simple white cloth stretched over the mattress. "Man, could do with some kind of blanket...Oh well."

His ear twitched as he registered the sound of falling hooves. For some reason, they sounded like they were coming down four at a time, repeatedly. Azure turned towards the sound.

"Who's there?!" he called out, a little annoyed with the sound. Nopony, or nothing at all, was there. He just screamed into empty air. With a sigh, he turned back to his things. "I guess I'll find out."

Azure picked up on the relative silence outside his door that now prevailed. The nothingness was almost soothing. Nevertheless, the cyan colt knew he didn't have it in him to take it easy now. He was too excited. It was still a new city, and he needed to know his way around these parts.

"Guess I'd better go..." The pony said to himself. "Go look around town, see if there's anything somepony needs a unicorn like me for..."

And with that, Azure Courage once more left the safety of home, to explore Ponyville. As he left, he had the presence of mind to lock his door. It was an old habit that his father had gotten him into, and he was probably going to follow it for the rest of his natural life.

If the light blue colt wasn't in such a rush, he'd have heard the sounds of skipping hooves going up to his door. And, if he'd paid closer attention to that dust cloud from earlier. he might have noticed a poofy-shaped cloud...
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Azure actually decided to check out the area closer to the outskirts of town first, given that'd be where he did physical training if he couldn't find a way to in the privacy of his home. Besides which, some of the spells he used he didn't want to be used around other ponies anyway should he choose to practice magic. If there was a mountain nearby, which he doubted, he wouldn't mind it at all.

The pony found himself getting close to a forested area, which wasn't too far removed from the city. Suddenly, his ear twitched in response to a distant feminine voice.

"--get back here, please!"

"Huh?" Azure asked, turning his head in the direction of the sound. For a few moments, the cyan pony saw nothing, until he directed his eyes a little lower and saw a small rabbit, hopping furiously with what he swore was an angry look on its face. The cyan unicorn blinked twice, and realized what this rabbit might have been to somepony. So, before it could scamper on past him, the colt quickly focused his magic, and within a few split-seconds, the rabbit was hopping, but it was encased in a cyan glow, overexerting itself. Finally, it seemed to realize it wasn't going anywhere.

Azure brought the rabbit to eye-level with him. As soon as the small animal realized what had happened, he shot a glare so intense that it almost caused the cyan colt to break concentration, but with all of his will he maintained his hold, and looked in the direction where the rabbit had been scampering from. Within moments, he could spot a yellow and pink figure galloping rapidly toward him, doubtlessly a pony of some sort.

However, as the pony got closer, he realized that aside from being a mare, this pony was a pegasus pony, evidenced by the (closed) wings at its sides. And yet, she was going on hoof as though she'd done it her whole life, something that didn't bother Azure so much as it did leave him scratching his mane internally.

"Excuse me!" Azure called out, probably sounding a little ruder than he meant to in the process. The mare immediately snapped to attention, as though only just noticing the colt standing there. Almost immediately, she squeaked in surprise.

"I-I'm sorry, I-I was just..." her voice became inaudible at this point. For a moment, Azure took careful note of her appearance. Yellow fur, pink mane, which now that he got a closer-look at, seemed to frame her face in a heart shape. Her tail was half of the shape, and the same color as her mane. Overall, if he had to guess, she had a delicate personality to match that appearance.

"I was just going to ask if this little guy was yours or not," the cyan unicorn said nonchalantly, floating the small gray bunny in front of the yellow equine. Almost immediately, the blue-green eyes of the pony before him brightened, and she seemed to forget for the moment that Azure was a new pony in town.

"Oh, thank you!" The unknown pegasus immediately scooped the small bunny out of the unicorn's hold with her forehooves, and Azure physically stumbled from the sudden yank for a moment. "Now, you be a good boy and don't run away, Angel Bunny."

The rabbit said nothing, only folding its forepaws and appearing to sulk in place as she placed the animal on her back. She turned back to Azure.

"So, what's your name?" The cyan unicorn began to wonder if he should have asked. He wasn't here to suddenly start dating, by any means. Immediately, he blamed more of his father's values on that one.

"F-F-" She stuttered, suddenly once again unable to speak. This was until the rabbit thumped on the mare's back, causing her to immediately snap on it. "F-Fluttershy!" She said it at a louder volume than she intended, and the reaction caused Azure to look weirdly for a moment.

"I'm...Azure. Azure Courage." This was his response. "I just moved here to get away from the big city. Too much noise for me and all."

Another unintelligible reply from Fluttershy later, Azure quickly realized how fitting her name actually was. Well, he'd never seen her flying, so he could only deduce her name was at least half-true. She was shy, painfully so. Even the rabbit seemed to think so, for with another thump, the pegasus immediately spoke up. "That's nice. I take care of all the animals here in P-Ponyville. I-It's something I've done s-since I was a little filly..."

Clearly, this mare wasn't going to get out of her shell anytime soon, at least, not without that rabbit helping her.

"I see." Azure said. "Well, I guess I'll just be going along now. Guess I might see you around..."

"Y-yes, g-goodbye..." The meek pegasus awkwardly finished. Deciding to explore the surrounding areas later, the cyan colt left the yellow pony to her business, wondering precisely what the heck he just witnessed.

Well, I'm confused... thought the pony to himself. Which one's the pet, and which one's the owner? Meh, best not dwell on it.

The unicorn soon went back into town, deciding to get a good look at the town itself. After all, even though he'd be training out in the outskirts somewhere, he'd need to know his away around the actual city too, so he knew where he could purchase necesities when the time came.
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It was a signifcantly harder time finding his way around town. He didn't immediately retrace his steps back to his home, for one. Also, Ponyville was a lot bigger in person. For something that used the suffix "ville" in its city name, it sure covered a lot of land. Azure shouldn't have been so surprised by it, but hey, at least it meant he had some way to practice free-galloping should it come to it. As soon as he found his way around town, of course.

He was pleasantly trotting along, looking around and taking in all the sights he could for his first day. The cyan colt was regretting not having Fluttershy show him around, but given how he'd met her, he wouldn't be surprised if she didn't know her way around town as well as she probably should have. Not to mention, that bunny was probably the first animal to give him any real chills, but not because it was frightening in itself, but rather, its attitude was particularly unsettling. And the fact it seemed to have control over its owner refused to leave Azure's conscious mind.

Of course, the sensation of abruptly being studied broke Azure's stride and concentration. He stopped, feeling a pair of eyes looking his way. It wasn't the first time he'd felt that, but this sensation was slightly different from the previous time. After just a few seconds, he saw something, or rather, somepony staring at him.

What could he say? She did look proper. If she didn't speak with an accent, Azure knew he would have been surprised. Her purple mane looked as though she'd spent all morning curling it, and given where she was standing now-in the door of what appeared to be a salon, it wouldn't surprise the colt to find that she had done just that, if he cared enough to ask. Her body was snow white, and, judging from the horn protruding from her forehead, she was definitely a unicorn. Blue eyes stared him, obviously scanning him.

Is...is she checking me out, or...? "C-can I help you with something?" The cyan pony directly addressed the one that was looking at him, feeling somewhat discomforted by her staring.

"Oh!" She seemed to be particularly unaware she'd been staring, but judging from the lack of color on her cheeks, she either wasn't ashamed at this, or was surprised he'd noticed. Whatever the case, her eyes half-closed, revealing blue lids. Eyeshadow. "Actually, there is something I've need somepony to look at for a while now! Do you want to help me?" Her accent was clear, sounding incredibly...city-like, to say the least.

Azure immediately noticed she was batting her eyelids at him, but this was only a fleeting thing. There were two things in life that the cyan colt wasn't prepared for during his move. One of them was seeing a bunny able to control a pony. The other was feminine charm. With a heavy sigh, he gave up, hoping and praying that he wasn't about to walk into something more than this pony was letting on.

"F-fine..." He stuttered, trotting off after her as she lead him inside. What he saw inside, he realized was far different than a salon. It looked more like a boutique, a debonair sort of thing, far removed from anything "-ville" in nature. No, this was stuff he'd have expected to see in Canterlot somewhere, or at least some other big city. Why was this mare here of all places?

"Now, please hold on a moment, darling, I will be back for you in a moment..."

Azure swallowed. Again, he was never trained to handle feminine charm of this nature, so the pet name was pretty much new to him. Outside of 'Azie', but that was his mother's thing.

"Okay...what's your name?" The male unicorn didn't see the harm in asking the question. He knew he was going to be there for a while. The white pony immediately halted, and turned back to Azure, not really breaking her stride.

"My name is Rarity, and I am in charge of the decorations of this year's Summer Sun Celebration!" She sounded particularly proud of that last part. "Who are you? I haven't seen you in town before..."

"Oh, I'm Azure...Azure...Courage." He was hesitating, if only because he really didn't know what he was in for. Was she going to flirt with him until his coat and mane matched Blitz? He honestly wasn't sure. "I just got here. Looking around and all..."

"Oh," Her demeanor altered only slightly. The blue eyes of the pony softened somewhat, suggesting sympathy. "I apologize, I didn't mean to startle you. So tell me, Azure, where are you from?"

"Canterlot--"

The instant he said the name of the city, he noticed the mare's ears stiffen straight up, and once again her demeanor changed. He swallowed, not knowing the emotion he was detecting.

"My, my, my!" Rarity finally said after a few moments. "I've longed for somepony from that city to come into town to see what I do! This is perfect! You hail from the capital city of Equestria...where Princess Celestia's palace is!"

"Uh..." Azure said, once again at an utter loss for what to say. He quickly thought of something, however. "Yeah, that's true...so what is it you want me to look at?"

"Oh, that's right!" The snowy mare before him suddenly seemed to remember why she dragged him into her shop in the first place. "Here, follow me, if you would..."

The colt obliged, at least knowing that Rarity wasn't trying to lead him into something completely different. Soon, they were in a workspace of sorts. It looked impressive. Not only was there cloth, or what he could reasonably assume was cloth, in varying hues, but he actually could see a stash of gems in the corner there.

"So this is where you work?" He asked, pretending not to notice the precious stones. It was only now that he noticed the cutie mark this mare had. It was three diamonds...and given this room had a decent stash of them nearby, he'd assumed her talent had something to do with it.

"Yes," She was apparently trying hard to find something, and then her face lit up. "Ah, now I remember..."

Within moments, the light blue colt found himself looking at decorations--namely, ribbons, of a couple of colors, one of them being a dark purple color like the mare's mane. He blinked.

"So, what do you think? I believe I did a marvelous job, wouldn't you agree?"

He took a closer look at the decorum before her. Not really one to ruffle a pony's fur or mane, Azure decided to be good and just scan the ribbons again. And, to his surprise, he actually found them to look nice.

"They...look nice. Perfect for the celebration, I'd say," The colt said, hoping that Rarity wouldn't completely lose her mind and just start hugging him. The fact her face lit up like it did when he mentioned his hometown was incredibly off-putting, and he really didn't want to accidentally make a marefriend on his first day in town. Getting to know the locals wouldn't be too bad though, at least in hindsight.

"Yes! I knew it! I wholeheartedly believed that this was the proper direction to take the decorum!" The white pony's reaction lead Azure to believe that if this pony were more "Ponyville-like" in nature, she'd have jumped about and done a few frontflips in celebration that he liked her product. "Thank you!"

"Uh...so...is that all? I mean, I was just looking around town, this being my first day and all..." said Azure in response, feeling out of place.

"Oh yes, please, do enjoy the sights. If you need a suit or something, just let me know..." the white unicorn said, and the cyan colt flinched a little when she winked. He quickly made his way out of the store, and became lost in his thoughts momentarily as he trotted along.

This mare seems like an out-of-place princess...But...there's something about her I can't place, something that I wouldn't expect a typical princess to have. I'm sure I'm imagining it. Whatever the case, I'm not the prince she's looking for.

With that, Azure continued his self-tour of his new hometown, not completely sure where he'd go look at next.
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"How'd I end up here?!"

This was Azure's new question after about an hour or two of aimless wandering through Ponyville. He'd passed the same cake-shaped building several times trying to find his way around. Now, for whatever reason, he was somewhat lost. However, he didn't quite give up yet. It was late afternoon by now, judging from the sun's position. He still had plenty of time to find his way back home.

So I did get lost...I really should have asked one of them to help me out with touring me... The light blue pony thought to himself. Anyway, let's see...I left Canterlot at about noon, and I've been wandering aimlessly for the better part of four hours. The day is long, though, but not as long as it's about to get...

Azure wasn't sure why, but part of him preferred the intermediary seasons, spring and autumn. The days and nights were pretty evenly spaced. The winters were too cold for him, a sensitivity that stemmed from the fact he never really got out into snow when it fell in Canterlot. The summers, on the other hand, were very nice, but sometimes it felt like the night was just too short.

Caught up in his seasonal introspection, the cyan colt was not paying any further mind to the sky. If he was, he'd have noticed a rainbow blur above, doing fancy loops and tricks. And he certainly would have noticed when the blur changed direction and began heading right for him. His ears pricked up as he picked up the sound of rushing wind, and just caught a glimpse of something immediately right in front of him.

He gave a strangled gasp and immediately strafed left, almost stumbling over his hooves from the quickness he needed. Unfortunately, Azure's evasive maneuvers left him a little off-balance, and he fell over on his side, grunting in slight pain when his ribs met the unmerciful field below him.

"Ahahaha!" This was a feminine-sounding voice laughing at him. The colt immediately stood up on his feet, searching desperately for the source. An instinct, brought on by all those sparring sessions with his cousins in his foalhood, came back to him, and he looked up, seeing a rather amused pegasus pony with an interesting mane and tail. It wasn't just one color, but rather, it was every color in a rainbow. The pegasus looking down upon him also had a sky blue coat color. "Oh man, that was priceless!"

"That was you?" Azure asked, still completely tensed up as though expecting her to start rushing him again. "Ugh, watch where you're going! You just about hit me!"

"I did?" the mare on the cloud asked, pausing from her borderline obnoxious laughter to regard Azure's courage. "Isn't that the point? Though I guess I've gotta give you credit, nopony should be able to react that quick! Still caught you with your head down!" Then she went right back to laughing.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up..." Azure said. "Next time, I don't think you'll be able to pull that..."

"You wanna bet?" Now she was pulling the cloud up toward her, with a glare in her deep red eyes that suggested he'd just challenged her.

"Not particularly. I don't want to take idiotic gambles on my first day here..." retorted the colt. He'd hoped to make it very clear he just wasn't in a competitive spirit. Despite what he'd been spending the last three years preparing for, there was one thing Azure couldn't particularly partake in...showing off.

"So, what, you think I'm stupid or something?!" Now she really looked mad, immediately floating down to his level and staring daggers. While Azure was not at all intimidated by this, there was another thing he didn't want to do when entering Ponyville: start a fight, least of all with a mare.

"No...just haven't been feeling myself...I've already been frustrated today before..." Azure said, calling upon his talent of making split-second decisions. Most of the time, it was a life-saver, and other times, he'd be able to walk away from situations without gaining or losing anything. "I think we got off on the wrong hoof...my name's Azure Courage, and you are...?"

The rainbow-maned female was looking upon him now, with an expression that suggested she wasn't sure if she could buy the sudden reversal.

"Me?" she finally asked. "You're looking at the head of Ponyville's Weather Control, and the future Wonderbolt..." Just then, the pony rocketed away, leaving behind a rainbow blur as she did so, and executed a series of manuevers which the cyan colt had to admit were pretty impressive. This performance ended with her using the cloud she'd previously been using as a perch, and slamming into it with her back, causing it to disperse into several smaller pieces. "Rain-bow Daassshhh!!!"

Azure almost felt compelled to applaud, but he merely nodded, trying to keep his inner thoughts at bay.

Kch, showoff...

"So how 'bout that?! Bet'cha won't see anything like that out of most pegasi!" the sky blue mare boasted. All the newcomer could do was nod, not really in the mood to get her going again.

"I guess you're not interested in why I moved here, huh?" the colt asked, half-joking.

"Not really..." Dash said.

"Well, I'll shorten it. Canterlot is noisy, Ponyville is quieter by comparison." Azure answered, already trotting off.

"Hey, where are you goin'?"

"It's almost evening now, and I've still gotta find my way around the rest of Ponyville," the colt said, turning back to the sky blue mare. "This would be the part where I'd say 'see you around, I guess', but c'mon, you're hard to miss, speed or not."

And with that, the introduction ended, leaving Azure Courage to once again wander around aimlessly, hoping to the sun princess that he'd get home before night time came...
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"How did I end up here?!"

The sky had changed from blue to orange by the time Azure asked himself this question again. This time, he found himself hopelessly lost in a grove of apple trees, which provided him little relief. Maybe he was in a garden, at least, but whatever the case, the cyan colt was a little tired of wandering around.

"Man, really should have invested in a map or something...I don't even know where I am..." With a sigh, Azure pressed his back against a tree, and sunk into a sitting position. "Guess I'd better try to retrace my steps since leaving my new home..."

He tried desperately to remember basic compass directions that he traveled. He headed, south, if memory served, then east. That was when he met Fluttershy. He then changed direction, going into town, and somehow wound up in the company of Rarity. From there, he'd be lucky to remember any direction he went up until meeting Rainbow Dash. By this point, Azure distinctly remembered that he really should have tried to ask the sky blue mare for directions.

Far too caught up in his introspection once again - a lapse in consciousness one would think he'd learn wasn't precisely the best thing around these parts - he failed to notice the sound of hooves rapidly falling opposite of the tree. Had he noticed these, he might have peered around the bark in time to see something. Instead, he got a rather rude wake-up call, from yet another feminine voice.

"Yee-haw!!"

The amount of southern accent he could detect in the voice was enough to tip him off precisely where he could be. Before he could round the tree and see who made that bellow, the sound of hooves kicking a tree hard entered his ears, followed by a cracking noise coming from above. The colt's ears stiffened, and he dared to look up.

A cascade of red apples, probably as ripe as they were ever going to get, rained down unmercifully. It was all Azure could do; shield his head with his forelegs until the apples stopped falling. As soon as they did, the cyan colt began using his forehooves and began batting them away. He already knew he was going to have quite a few bruises that would result from being pounded by apples. As soon as he cleared through the fruits, he could hear that same female voice giggling at him. Turning, he saw the pony that likely caused the cascade of unmerciful fruit rain.

She wore a hat, probably a Stetson, that appeared to have held up quite well. The mare was orange-furred, but her mane and tail were light yellow or blond, and appeared to be tied off close to the end, rather than where the hair began. She had one of her hooves just starting to move toward the ground, indicating she'd just gotten over whatever laughing fit that had befell her. To Azure, it was obvious she was laughing at him after dumping a huge load of apples on his head.

Though he had to say, if she was able to do that in one kick, she was certainly strong.

"Sorry 'bout that!" said the mare at last, still trying to contain her laughter. "Really should watch where you sit though when you're on the orchard, especially since our family's annual reunion's comin' up and all!"

"I was on an orchard, huh..." Azure quietly observed, making a mental note to try and not nap under any apple trees while in Ponyville. He supposed that he might as well introduce himself to this pony as well, seeing as how he'd accidentally wound up on her family's farm in the first place. "Well, I'll keep that in mind for the future; anyway, I'm Azure Courage. I just moved here today, and--"

He paused, noticing the orange hoof extended his way. He raised his, and looked into the green eyes of the still chuckling pony, and really wished he'd picked a better place to try and retrace his steps.

"Pleased to meet ya, partner, I'm Applejack." The orange mare took a few moments, and said, "So you're lost, huh? Where're you from?"

"C-Canterlot." Azure was suffering from deja vu. Thankfully, Applejack did not go spacey on him like Rarity did.

"Oh, so you're a city pony," the orange mare observed, releasing the hoofshake. "Would explain why you got this lost..."

"Yeah, just trying to find my way home, that's all...I live close to the outer edge of Ponyville...do you know how I can get back?" The green eyes of the pony before him brightened somewhat as she processed this statement.

"I do," said Applejack, "I passed that house before once or twice while going into town to sell these here apples..."

"That's good!" responded Azure. "I'd been wandering around since about two o'clock, and...I got lost."

"Well, can't let'cha wander into anythin' else..."

She then began to tell him how to get to his home from where he was now. The directions were much appreciated, and indeed, Azure felt like smacking himself in the face, preferably with a large branch, for not realizing it sooner.

"Though, before I leave, I have one question...why are you harvesting at this time of day?" The cyan colt asked, really curious. "I get that farm work is demanding, but still...'

"The Apple Family Reunion is comin' up!" The orange mare stated. "Give it a couple more days 'n this farm'll be bustlin' with activity! The whole family's comin' up to Ponyville for the reunion..." She then began listing off, enthusiastically, all the apple-based food that the extended family would be feasting upon. It was probably also meant to be a Summer Sun Celebration union as well, but Azure couldn't tell. "Think you'll be able to come for a little?"

"Don't know, isn't it a family affair?" Azure asked. "At any rate, I really can't. I've got...other things, on my mind." He kept his tongue in his cheek about his "fixation" on Nightmare Moon. For all he knew, he was probably the only one getting ready for the potential of catastrophe to fall on this year's Summer Sun Celebration. Of the things he wanted to keep intact for his move to Ponyville, his explicit status as "mentally stable" was among the top of the list. If his family gave him flak for it, this pony would definitely do it too.

"I get it, you've probably got a celebration of your own..."

With nothing more than a nod, Azure began trotting away. "Well, I guess I'll be seeing you...whenever, I guess."

He didn't take more than twelve paces before hearing her voice call out to him. "Wait, Az!"

"What?" He circled around to face her, only to find that she was even closer to him that she was during the introduction. She seemed to be still very happy about something. More so, she was moving in for his head. Azure was completely at a loss for words.

I-is she...about to--? The cyan colt quickly shut his eyes. Oh man, Virid'd kill me if he saw th--

Chomp!

The pony's eyes shot open, blinking. He looked up to his horn, just in time to see Applejack bobbing for an apple that was impaled on it. More specifically, she was pulling the wayward fruit off.

"Can't let'cha go home with that on your horn..." Applejack noted aloud. Immediately, the cyan colt felt his face grow warm, and cursed the fact he wasn't gifted with red fur to hide it.

"R-right, you can't." Azure immediately turned away. "Thanks for the help...I've really gotta get back home..."

"See ya soon!" There was still a little bit of a giggle in her voice. The blue colt immediately began galloping, calling upon the directions the farmer mare had given him, while at the same time hoping that she didn't see the redness on his face. The last thing he'd wanted was to accidentally have charmed the farmer's daughter, or have given her the wrong impression.

Unlike Virid, he thought all the pony races had some level of magic to them, and believed that earth ponies like Applejack shouldn't have been sold short based on their lack of wings or horns. Besides which, he just didn't want to date somepony so soon. He doubted he'd ever be ready for it, though. More importantly, he was on his way back home. All he wanted to do was crash out...
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Thanks to Applejack's direction, Azure Courage had finally found his way home. The evening was still relatively young, but all the colt could do was try to rest a little. The first day had certainly been exhausting. He'd been introduced to more mares than he ever thought possible.

First, the incredibly meek Fluttershy, whose pet rabbit almost seemed to act like her backbone, given that it was the one shooting all the dirty looks.

Next, the glamour pony Rarity. It wouldn't surprise him if she started hitting on him, but hopefully the properness he could pick up on in her mannerisms and accent would intervene.

After that, it was the tomboyish prankster Rainbow Dash. She also really enjoyed showing off. He had this funny feeling that they would not get along.

Finally, it was the farmer pony Applejack, who was kind enough to help him find his way home...and be terminally misleading at the same time.

He didn't know why, but he had asked for their names. Maybe he just didn't want to give the locals the wrong impression on the first day? Whatever the case, Azure unlocked and opened the door to his home with the key that he'd stored under the mat, given he didn't take anything with him during his day-long tour of his new town.

The pony trotted in, seeing nothing in front of him or to his side. While he certainly expected the dark to be welcoming him inside-he did not turn on any lights in his home, after all-it felt somewhat unsettling all the same. For some reason, he once more felt like he was being--

"SURPRISE!!"

The sounds of what could only be described as one hundred colts and mares assaulted him, and from the sudden shock of it all-the loud voices, the sudden switch from dark to light, his trained reflexes took over, and caused him to springboard off the floor, executing a rather randomly-timed forward jump over quite a few surprised ponies' heads. His landing was a little less than spectacular, but thankfully, he did not appear to have landed on anything. He remained standing in that position, frozen while he assessed precisely what happened in the rather awkward silence following this manuever.

Wait...they said "surprise"...who's the wise colt behind this... "...how did...?"

He couldn't even get two words out before an unfamiliar voice greeted him. Wait, no, that isn't accurate. The mare to which this voice belonged to was already in his face as he opened his eyes after gathering himself.

"Hiiiiiiii!" she said. Azure took a couple steps back out of sheer surprise. Apparently this pony was responsible for everything, and one look at her made the cyan colt's former questions fade away. Her mane and tail were curled, almost like she'd been sleeping all day, a dark pink color. Her fur was a light pink color, contrasting this. Cyan eyes, glazed over with happiness of some sort, bore into his with all the sugar of several birthday cakes. "I noticed you were here, and usually I know somepony, but I didn't know you, and since I know all the ponies here, I realized you were new, so I followed you so I could set this all up! What took you so long?"

...Is...is this mare for real? Azure quickly tacked on "hyperactive party mares" onto the growing list of things he wasn't prepared for, and just as quickly explained himself. "Well, I didn't expect this--"

"That's why they call it a 'surprise party', silly!" the pink mare continued, completely unbothered by the fact she'd essentially broke into his house to do this, "And judging from how you entered, you've probably never had one before!"

"N-no, I haven't..."

"My gosh, you must have had a very boring life! No wonder you came to Ponyville!"

Azure was just about to point out the irony in the mare's statement when a familiar, accented voice called out to him. "Goodness sake's, Pinkie, give the poor pony some space!"

Was that...?! His head turned in the direction of the voice. Sure enough, there was that white unicorn, Rarity, over at the table. A look off into the corner of one of the rooms confirmed another pony was there: Fluttershy, true to her nature, and her name, she was off somewhere relatively quiet.

Before Azure could question what the heck was going on, another familiar, feminine voice called out to him: "Nice flip! Why didn't you do that earlier?"

Another quick turn of the head revealed that Rainbow Dash, that pony that "almost" barreled into him earlier, was also there, hovering above the heads of some of the partygoers. To Azure, it seemed like she thought herself "too cool" to stand on her hooves.

"I didn't see the reason..." Azure then noticed that somepony that he'd met earlier was missing. Applejack. Then again, when he reconsidered on that line of thought, he immediately realized that she was probably up to her hat in chores to be done before the reunion occurred. "That, and I had even less time to react."

"Yeah, yeah, excuses, excuses..."

And unlike you, I don't value showing off...

His train of thought was once again cut off by the pink party pony, "Pinkie", as Rarity called her, practically dragging him over to a table, which he realized contained refreshments. Namely, a lot of baked goods.

"Here, try this!" Pinkie squealed, immediately holding out, on her hooves, a small cupcake, topped with chocolate icing-at least, Azure thought it was chocolate icing given the color. Not wanting to be rude today, Azure took the item in his magical hold, and chomped down, the taste of sugary sweetness exploding in his mouth.

"Not bad," the cyan colt commented.

Okay, something's not right here. Call it being raised in Canterlot, but in all honesty, these ponies in Ponyville just seem...really, really nice. Rainbow Dash may be a jerk, but she's not nearly as much of one as Virid... thought Azure to himself, taking in all the sights. Huh. This town isn't as quiet as advertised, but...somehow, I think I can live with this...

"Azure, here," said Rarity. "Pinkie told me about your bedding situation not too long after you left. I hope you like it..." A white, rectangular box, encased in the blue glow of Rarity's magic, levitated down to Azure's eye level. The colt took it, feeling even more confused. "I did not have much time to put a design on it, so I went with a color that complements your coat..."

Wha--how long did it...how long were they waiting? Not wanting to waste anymore time, the unicorn male quickly opened up this box. He saw a red cloth, which was a complementary color. But it seemed to be folded up. As soon as Azure realized what he was looking at, something in his brain clicked.

A princessy sort of pony...with a generous heart...?! Is that what I was picking up on earlier? The cyan colt couldn't mask his surprise any longer. His eyes widened. ...The locals...they're...wow...

It wasn't that hard to thank Rarity for the gift of the blanket, but it was sort of hard to listen to her go on for a while about how she wished she could have put more of a design, but she was caught on such short notice that she didn't have time for it. Azure had to assure her that he actually preferred the simplicity of it; besides which, he already had a special item on his person tailor-made for him.
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The unexpected party had completely thrown Azure Courage for a loop. There wasn't a single doubt in his mind that Ponyville was worlds different from Canterlot. As the party drew to a close and clean up was made with the help of a few ponies, including, "Pinkie Pie", was her full name, Azure felt ultimately satisfied with his decision to move.

The town wasn't as quiet as indicated, but the locals themselves more than made up for it. They weren't so stuck-up and rude (or at least most of them were in this category, Azure still couldn't get Applejack and Rainbow Dash's respective encounters out of his mind; but even then none of them were that rude). Even Rarity had caught him off-guard. He usually didn't expect her type to be so...generous.

If any of the five mares he met today had to be the quirkiest he'd met in his life, he'd choose Pinkie, without question. That pony was something else. One second, he's watching ponies play Pin the Tail on the Pony, the next, his band is suddenly up around his eyes and he's the one playing it. Not to mention he swore there was a time the pink mare was walking on the ceiling...

Overall, he knew there was one thing he had to do: write his family about his move. This was simply too golden to pass up. He was glad he had some writing supplies with him.
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To my family:

It's me, Azure Courage. The first day in Ponyville was a bit awkward, in more ways than one! Let's see, first, I run into this pony and her pet. She was so meek the rabbit got mad! Next, I ran into somepony that I probably should have already known...and a unicorn, Rarity. She was generous given that her proper mannerisms usually would be seen back where you guys are.

I'm a bit embarrassed to admit it, but I got lost...meeting two more mares, Rainbow Dash, who I swear is a showoff; Applejack, who kindly pointed me in the right direction to get home...

Then we have Pinkie Pie. Quirkiest earth pony in Equestria, without a doubt. I swear she was walking on the ceiling.

You know, I moved to Ponyville for a little quiet, and after my first day, I don't know if it's going to be as quiet as advertised...but I'm okay with it. I can make do...the locals here are incredibly friendly. I really shouldn't have trouble finding a job before I run out of bits...

Well, that's it, really. Just wanted you guys to know how I was doing.

Oh, and if Virid is reading this, kindly tell him that there are more unicorns here than he thinks there is.

From Ponyville, My New Home

Azure Courage

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"Guess I'll send it in the morning," Azure thought, putting the letter up for now. He looked up to the night sky, and felt that same ominous chill he'd gotten whenever looking at the moon again.

Sweet Celestia, I hope I'm wrong. I really do. But...something tells me this year's gonna be it...this one's going to be the one that the ponytale becomes a living nightmare...A living Nightmare Moon, as a matter of fact...

"No use in worrying about it. I've just gotta be ready for when that day comes." Azure said aloud. "Still need to get a job in any case...better start looking for that tommorrow..."

And with that, the cyan colt known as Azure Courage went to bed, pulling the red blanket given to him by Rarity over him using his magic as he fell into sleep.
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The letter-writing thing won't be too common, at least, I don't think it will be. Wanted to introduce the canon main characters before cutting away...

Chapter 2: The Lavender Shut-In

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Chapter 2: The Lavender Shut-In
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It wasn't the most humdrum thing Azure had ever done, and indeed he knew the monotony that would come of it, but given that whatever happened tommorrow, he'd still need to live on. As it turned out, Ponyville had a repair shop, usually home repairs, but it also had been known to build a few constructs here and there. Of course, usually he worked from morning to evening, but tommorrow was the Summer Sun Festival. Since Ponyville was hosting the official festivities this time around, he only had to work until about noon. Plus, he'd have the following day off.

It was something Azure was grateful for, given that he had to mentally prepare himself for one of two things: either the long-prophesized return of Nightmare Moon, or yet another year of disappointment. If this year failed, Mr. Courage would consider the fact that the whole thing was just a ponytale much more seriously. After all, the last three years failed to yield any real results.

His workday had just finished. The company he was working for had just finished a brief job of sprucing up the town hall, where the festival would commence that night. Since the job did not require very much heavy lifting, Azure was left with more basic repair, deciding to forgo his magic, feeling his physical body could use a last-minute workout before he did any sort of meditation. He manually pounded nails into place, since such things are possible without magic, for the most part. Nopony seemed to know why, despite a lack of fingers, various ponies could hold things still with their hooves, and thus took it for granted.

It was a good thing he didn't have to hang around the town hall. Rarity had arrived about thirty minutes before he left, and she had been getting a little impatient on setting up the room decorations. That said, she did seem legitimately surprised that he was part of the team working there. When he considered how surprised Applejack was when he got the job, however, he realized that he shouldn't have been surprised that Rarity was.

Most unicorns didn't train their bodies as much as they did their magic control. With Virid and Blitz helping him along, however, his body was a bit stronger than the average unicorn. Just meant he didn't know that many spells compared to some unicorns out there. He could probably count how many he knew just by the spikes in his mane on one side, and even then he'd be lucky to reach seven.

He didn't count on making contact with those mares, but now that he did, he wasn't sure if he could avoid them forever. Azure began mumbling to himself, passively floating his hard hat above his head with the levitation spell.

"...still, can I really take it easy?" He ignored the sounds of hooves colliding with the ground nearby as he continued thinking, unknowing he was doing it aloud. His brain unwillingly took a trip down memory lane.

"C'mon son, this 'Nightmare Moon' manure again?"This was his father, on the second year he'd been incorrect. "You've gotta accept facts and stop chasing after ponytales."

"Everypony has hobbies Azie, but chasing after that sort of stuff borders on insane..." His mother's voice, on the first year he'd truly noticed something off about the moon. Admittedly, he didn't always follow Mare in the Moon to an "M", but on that year, he finally noticed the weird, ominous shadow in it. "There's other use for that martial arts besides chasing down that ponytale..."

"There's a strange shadow in the moon," his statements came under his breath. He wasn't yet aware of it, but his teeth were starting to show as his lips peeled back. "I can't be dreaming about that...I've seen it myself many, many times..."

"I can't help but feel 'Courage' was a misnomer, Az..." Virid's voice now came to him. "Really, sometimes I feel like you should have been named 'Cyan Paranoia'..."

"Darn it...am I the only one that sees that shadow, the stars appearing...misplaced, somehow...?" Azure questioned to himself again, his frustration suddenly starting to peak.

"Azure, really, even I'm starting to think you're being driven a little...crazy...by this..." Crimson Blitz now came to him. "I understand full well why anypony would want to know the spells that you know, and the martial arts we do, but seriously, it's just a ponytale. There are real dangers out there..."

Azure halted, his mane obscuring most of his eyes from view. Without caring if anypony overheard him or not, he issued a frustrated yell.

"Am I the only one that has a feeling that there's truth to the old ponytale?!"

Just as he finished yelling his sentiments to the skies above, the cyan colt felt his ears twitch. He stood straight up, almost dropping his hard hat in the concentration lapse. He set the object back on his head, quickly. His ears remained rigid, pricked straight up.

No doubt about it, he heard something off about his statement, and it wasn't the fact several colts or mares could have overheard it. He looked slowly to his left and right, and found that nopony seemed to notice or care that he'd just unloaded his suspisicons on the world.

Rather, it was something far more...interesting.

Strange...did I hear myself echo...? Azure thought to himself. With an internal shrug, Azure continued to trot along, mentally scolding himself for letting himself snap like that. He hadn't gone off like that before in the past. Was it something in the air in Ponyville that caused that outburst? Whatever the case, Azure Courage knew one thing.

There was something in the moon, and there was something about the space rock that demanded attention. Whether or not his attention alone would do much of anything, the colt did not know. But he knew that this year was "do or die" on the myth. If it showed, then he'd do what he could against the emerged evil. If it didn't, then he'd probably hang up the superhero cape.

But somehow, Azure knew that if it came to that, he couldn't leave Ponyville. For some reason, something was anchoring him to this city. Was it the friendly inhabitants within? Or was it those five quirky mares he'd met on his first day? The unicorn colt did not consider himself a player by any means-he only saw them as friends, and relatively distant ones at that.

Realizing he was getting sidetracked, Azure Courage picked up the pace. He needed to get some meditation in, to try and relax his mind.

Whatever would come of this day, would come, and he was going to be prepared for it, with the same courageous spirit that had earned him the band he wore proudly on his foreleg...
--------------------------------------------
It wasn't something that he'd seen most unicorns doing when trying to use their magic properly, and indeed, he didn't think anypony did this to begin with, but Azure had always had a soft spot for meditation. Usually, he would sit straight up on his rump and close his eyes. As his mind drifted into that familiar spot in semi-consciousness, his horn began lightly glowing the cyan color it usually took on when he used magic.

The cyan colt remained isolated on top of his bed, in this tranced-out state. Seconds, minutes, hours started blurring together without his knowledge. Before long, Azure had meditated clear into early evening. He might have kept this up for a few more minutes had it not been for something hyperactive and pink interrupting him...

"Azie, wake up!"

Startled, Azure fell over on his side, the light glow around his horn fading away very quickly. The thing with meditating unicorns is: if you startle them out of it, they tend to develop slight to moderate headaches. Thankfully, having Virid as a cousin somewhat offset this side-effect. His head still hurt, though.

"P-Pinkie...?!" He grunted, more out of shock. "How'd you even get in here...?"

"That's easy, silly, I used the door!"

"But...I swear I locked it..." Azure Courage tried desperately to remember if he had made sure to lock it. He had. So then how...?

"I used a spare key!"

...So is breaking into ponies' houses another one of her favorite hobbies...I could have sworn there wasn't one-- The cyan colt would have continued the train of thought a little further, but the pink earth pony wasn't having him be silent.

"Azie, there's a new pony in town, and I'm gathering up everypony I can to be at her welcome party at the library!" Pinkie confirmed, and began rattling off exactly how she met this pony. Of course, Azure stopped paying attention after "library".

Wait, hold on, isn't that the "abandoned" library? Is this new pony some kinda librarian? And does Pinkie make it a habit of breaking into every new pony's house to set this kind of stuff up? And...and...why the heck am I still thinking about this!?

"C'mon, Azie!" Pinkie finally said. "I want you to be there to welcome her!" Those happy, hopeful cyan eyes burned into his brown eyes.

"I-I-" Azure, for some reason, had been entirely resolute on not going, but for some reason, he couldn't bring himself to say it. "I don't know...I mean--"

"Besides," The pink pony continued on as though the light blue colt hadn't said a thing. "you can't spend the Summer Sun Celebration cooped on in here on your own! That's no fun at all!"

Where is this--

Abruptly, a pink hoof, by whatever force that allowed such an act, seized him by his own, and without much in the way of warning, the strawberry-colored free spirit was, by whatever force that allowed her to do so, dragging him along in a somewhat awkward hobbled gallop.

"H-hey...!" The colt was so lost for words at his situation that he couldn't think of any real viable counters.

"C'mon, it'll be fun!" Pinkie said.

From my experience, usually when a pony tells me something's gonna be fun, I get hurt somehow... The cyan colt internally considered, disregarding the fact he was being dragged by an earth pony to a party he wasn't too enthused about attending, but given Pinkie wasn't going to take "no" for an answer, he'd decided he wouldn't fight it.

"Pinkie, Pinkie, okay, I'll come..." Azure Courage finally said in response to being dragged. Under his breath, he added, "Since I'm not being given a say in the matter..."

"Yaaaaaaayyyy!!!" Pinkie responded, immediately releasing her iron grip on his hoof. "I'm sure she'll be happy to see you!"

Uh-huh. I'm sure she will...
--------------------------------------------
Azure Courage was suddenly unsure about the whole prospect of going to this party. He'd been hiding from view in the dark for the better part of what felt like hours watching the sun.

"Pinkie, are you sure she even lives here?" the cyan colt asked of the party pony in a whisper.

"Yeeessss..." whispered the party pony in response.

"It's been a long time since I started hiding..."

"It's only been forty-five minutes, Az!" A familiar voice said in the darkness, also in a hushed voice.

"Dash, what are you--"

"Same reason you're here...welcoming the new arrival, again!"

Yet Pinkie probably didn't have to drag you...wait, have they all seen this new pony?

"Um, she's right outside..." A soft feminine voice intervened. The cyan colt felt his ear twitch.

What the--Fluttershy? Before the colt could board this train of thought, however, the door opened. The other ponies quickly made sure they were out of sight as the orange light briefly flooded the darkened library. Then, total darkness once more flooded the library. Azure held his breath, waiting for when the lights snapped on, just as they had for him.

"Huh, rude much?" asked a male, young-sounding voice.

"Sorry, Spike," said a feminine voice addressing the male voice, "But I have to convince the Princess that-"

"Azie, I'm gonna move for the lights now," Pinkie whispered, cutting off Azure's eavesdropping with her muzzle pretty much inside his ear. "Get ready..."

It took all of the cyan colt's constitution to not say a word, but merely nod somewhat. Somehow, Pinkie understood the unseen gesture and began slinking in the dark.

"--a bunch of crazy ponies trying to make friends all the time. Now, where's the light?"

Just then, light flooded the library, and Azure, if only to not appear odd by comparison to the majority, joined in the other ponies in greeting the new pony...or ponies, whichever.

"SURPRISE!"

Streamers and balloons suddenly rained down from the ceiling. Azure would have pointed out that he didn't see either one at his welcome party, but given the higher ceiling in the library, decided against it as quickly as it appeared. He merely looked around the room, to see if he could spot other ponies he knew. Obviously, Pinkie was here, seeing as how she threw this whole thing. He could hear Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, and a quick check around the room confirmed they were in fact present. Off to his left, he could spot Rarity, who seemed happy. A gray pegasus pony suddenly bumped into him on the right.

"Sorry!" she quickly said, her voice sounding somewhat happy all the same. However, this wasn't like Pinkie's voice. This feminine voice was a bit less on the "I-just-ate-twenty-pounds-of-sugar" side.

"My fault, I was spacing...out?" He took a look at the blond-maned pony, and blinked.

The cyan colt didn't know how to put it into words, but there was something off about the pony's lemon yellow eyes...they seemed to be consistently crossed. Realizing he was starting to stare while he processed the pony's image, he realized he was looking at the local mailmare...what'd they call her, Ditzy Doo? Derpy Hooves? Azure Courage couldn't make up his mind either.

"Just tryin' to see if there's anypony else I know here is all," Azure quickly said, to try and break the silence before the cross-eyed pony could take his silence the wrong way. With a small sigh, he looked, and realized, to his surprise, that even Applejack had attended.

Wait, isn't she supposed to be in the middle of a reunion? How the heck'd she slip away? This was certainly even stranger than his first day in Ponyville, and from the sounds of this new pony, she sure didn't like other ponies. Azure would like to think he didn't think of others as a burden, but he was pretty sure on a subconscious level, he did. Is the new arrival really that much of a big deal? I understand she's come during a holiday and all, but still...

"Excuse me, darling," Azure's ears stiffened. He knew full well who was addressing him. A quick check on his left confirmed Rarity. "I'm sure you might be interested to know that the new mare in town is from Canterlot, like yourself."

Now that was actually somewhat interesting to know. But then again, he wasn't really interested in coming at all. He had expected a quiet evening of meditation, but Pinkie seemed oddly resolute on dragging him here, and he saw no point in fighting a useless battle.

"Huh, is that right?" Azure answered, in a somewhat matter-of-fact tone.

"Oh dear, Pinkie appears to be saving me the trouble..."

Azure looked back ahead. Pinkie was yapping away about the party planning, just as she'd done to him. Obviously, the mare she was talking to was the new pony everypony was talking about. Well, by "everypony", he meant the five mares that he unexpectedly met on his first day. She was purple in color, her mane and tail straight down with her bangs curling around her horn. Her similarly-colored eyes seemed to communicate absolute disinterest in what Pinkie Pie was telling her. Trailing along about five steps behind her was a creature Azure never thought he'd see up close in his lifetime.

It was a dragon, short in stature and bipedal, so obviously it was very young. Like its...owner, assumed the colt, he too was a shade of purple, and had a light green underbelly, as well as dark green "spikes" on his head. He had green eyes that showed interest in what Pinkie was saying. What could Azure say? He didn't expect this.

Nor did he expect to turn to his left to see Rarity no longer there, walking off to mingle with the other partygoers or whatever she was off to do.

Saving you the trouble of...what, exactly? Azure asked in his mind. He was about to yell out after her this question, but unsurprisingly, Pinkie interrupted his mental processes for the fourth time that day.

"Hey, Azure," This was probably the first time Pinkie had ever referred to him by the full part of his first name rather than the shortened name that just so happened to remind him of his mother's pet name. "This is the new pony I was telling you about! C'mon," Within moments, Pinkie was at his flank, and from the look that Twilight gave him, he could tell that she was both confused and annoyed at what exactly just happened. "Say hi to her!"

Wait, ...this can't be going where I think it's going, is it? Azure thought, starting to piece together precisely what Rarity said. The cyan colt would have loved to have done nothing more than get out of there then and there, but just like before when the others introduced themselves, there was something he couldn't place anchoring him in the spot. What it was, the cyan colt didn't care to know, but nonetheless, if this mare wanted to avoid making friends, then by all means he shouldn't even begin to consider troubling her.

Yet, he did anyway. Well, that, and Pinkie shoving him slightly forward helped.

"I'm..." he started, unsure on how to proceed. With a sigh, he forced himself to speak. "I'm Azure Courage. I moved down here from Canterlot last week."

He did notice that the mare's ears flicked up. Did he successfully gain her attention better than Pinkie and the others? Whatever the case, the purple mare didn't respond straight away, so the colt had to keep things going. Part of him wanted to ask what she was studying about, but he quickly dismissed it - he was about as studious as a sloth when it came to academic stuff, and anything she was liable to say was more than likely going to fly straight over his head. Like Rainbow Dash did about four days ago...

"Well, it was a matter of noise pollution really," Azure continued. And her ears went back to normal...okay, good sign, I think.

"Yeah, Canterlot can be noisy sometimes, but, well, I'm here on royal business..." the purple mare said. "I was sent by the princess to check on the preparations for the festival."

Now Azure's ears pricked up. Princess? As in, Princess Celestia...?

"You know...the Princess...?" If ever there was a time since coming to Ponyville that Azure was legitimately surprised...well, this would be the twelfth time. However, in terms of former Canterlot citizens, this would be the first he'd been surprised in a long while.

"I'm her most trusted student..." The purple mare blinked, and now looked as though she'd forgotten something. However, there was no mistaking she still looked annoyed about this whole thing. Not that Azure could blame her. "Oh, I forgot...I'm Twilight Sparkle."

...Simple name. Then again, I'm practically wearing both parts of my name... "Azure" from my coat, "Courage" based on the band on my foreleg... Azure nodded. ...Okay, we're introduced, now wha--?

With a sigh, the purple mare turned towards the punch table, leaving her small dragon looking a little confused at what just happened. He then looked up to Azure, and his eyes flashed somewhat in recollection.

"Wait...aren't you...?" he asked.

"Spike, c'mon," said Twilight. "Might as well enjoy it..." There was no mistaking how annoyed she was with it now, especially with that last part.

Nothing really happened after that for a few minutes. Azure had to stop and consider what had just happened anyway.

This mare is even worse than I was! She wants nothing at all to do with anypony! Then again, I guess that's Canterlot for you... he thought, shifting around in place as though slightly discomforted with what happened. But still, that dragon, think she said his name was "Spike", seemed to recognize me from somewhere... He blinked, and suddenly he felt enlightened. Wait, don't tell me he heard me screaming ear--

The sight of a lavender unicorn mare jumping an impossible height while bursting into flame at the same time snapped Azure from his thoughts. He looked up, and followed her with his eyes as she bolted from the room, tears streaming from her eyes.

"Aww, she's so happy she's crying..." Pinkie said, moving towards where Twilight left. In this instant, he realized what had caused Twilight's sudden need to run for cover. The pink earth pony was now holding up an open bottle of hot sauce. Approximately five seconds later, Pinkie did something else that Azure would find himself questioning: she took said condiment, grabbed a cupcake, and put the condiment on the confection, and ate that.

Apparently, he wasn't the only one that thought it was weird. Among some other ponies that were casting looks her way were the pegasi, the unicorn, and the other earth pony he'd met on day one.

"What?" she asked, looking from gawking pony to gawking pony. "It's good..."

...Sweet Celestia, she is weird... thought the cyan colt to himself. Anyway... Then, Azure crossed his eyes and smashed his hoof to his face in frustration. Ah, darn it, forgot what I was thinking about! Mentally sighing, the unicorn quickly turned his attention to the ongoing party. I wonder...is the guest of honor going to have a change of heart, like I did about this whole party thing?

Heck, I didn't come here expecting to find friends, yet...well, even though I keep them at a distance, I guess I can consider them friends, given that at least two of them are consistently bugging me - Rainbow to check out her moves when I can, Pinkie for things like this; I'm convinced Rarity is flirting with me half the time; Fluttershy, she does seem somewhat happy to see me on the rare occasions we meet; Applejack...well, given she asked about my job of choice, I guess that counts for something.

The colt turned back to where Twilight had left. Now that I think about it, it's sort of odd we met the exact same ponies one week apart...what's going on? I felt the same anchoring tug I felt when speaking with the others...I know I'm no player, but still, it's odd that these six mares would have this effect on me.

With a sigh, Azure realized he was still worrying about things like that. He'd figure that stuff out after tomorrow morning's turnout...if there was a morning to speak of.
--------------------------------------------
Azure Courage kept telling himself not to worry about Twilight Sparkle, that the new pony would eventually realize that fun was waiting for her just downstairs. However, as the sunset gradually faded into night, the cyan colt's hope turned to doubt. What was she doing up there? Napping? Ponies generally didn't go to bed on this particular night. His eyes narrowed and his jaw set.

Okay, Twilight, what are you up to up there? the unicorn growled to himself mentally. That's it. If the others aren't going to try and talk her down, I will. This is ridiculous! Yeah, I didn't want to be here either, but you don't see me complaining...much...about how Pinkie basically forced me to be here!

The colt's hooves moved slowly as he began following where he saw Twilight dash off to after the hot sauce incident. As he began to gain ground, abruptly, he felt a hoof poking into his shoulder from above. He turned, and looked up.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?" Rainbow asked, grinning. "The party's back here!"

"I'm aware of that," responded Azure, turning back to where he was trying to go. "But apparently, somepony isn't. And she needs a little reminder. Guess it's gonna be me."

"Oh, I see," Azure then felt a nudge against his side, and saw Dash grinning mischieviously when he turned to look. "Have fun..."

The cyan colt did not understand what the light blue mare was getting at straight away, but opted not to respond, recognizing the look she was giving him all too well. It was probably something reflecting her insensitive nature, anyway, and he did not want to give her the fuel she so obviously desired. Whatever she was hinting at, Azure did not want to know, but if it had anything to do with the birds and/or the bees, Rainbow Dash was lucky she was female.

With that, Azure quickly trotted away from the party. The noise was still very loud, even at the distance he was starting to make as he went up the stairs. As he ascended, he noticed with some concern that Twilight's baby dragon was descending the same stairs with a lampshade over his head.

The colt decided he did not want to know as he reached the top of the stairs, and started to analyze the situation as he quietly walked down the hall, belly close to touching the ground.

"Good thing Virid and Blitz taught me this one..." he mumbled to himself, essentially crawling down the hall. "Even walking slow gives off way too much noise."

As he shuffled his way along in this manner, on his right, he finally noticed a door left ajar on his right. After taking a moment to adjust the band on his foreleg so it was back to where it was before, Azure quietly trotted up to the door, forgoing his crawling position for the moment, seeing as how Twilight was moving away from him, looking out her window.

"'Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape, and she will bring about everlasting night'," he just barely made out. Azure barely withheld a strangled gasp from escaping his throat. Did he just hear her correctly? "I hope the princess was right... I hope it really is just an old ponytale..."

"Wait, so..." The mare's ears immediately flicked up, and she turned to see Azure, who did not falter in the least. "I'm not the only one tracking that?"

Twilight blinked, no doubt trying to verify if she heard him correctly. "Wait...what?"

"You just mentioned Nightmare Moon, didn't you?" Azure suddenly felt very stupid, now that he recalled that specific detail about how many years there were. The last three years really were a waste! "How the so-called Mare in the Moon is supposed to return this year?"

"That's right, but...I thought that I was the only one that...saw it coming..." Twilight said. "When did you first start?"

Darn it... "Uh...three years ago?"

"Well, I never really gave it any significant thought until recently... It seemed too odd for there to be a shadow in the face of the moon that just so happened to look like a pony..." Twilight responded. "Still...three years, and you say you're from Canterlot? How did you..."

"Only my family really knew what I thought of the 'old ponytale'." To Azure, he suddenly felt like a weight was lifted from his back. He finally had confirmation, at least, he believed he did, given that the Princess's star pupil also believed that there was truth to the Mare in the Moon. "You know, it's funny, really. They all thought I was insane to think it, yet they still gave me this..." He motioned to the band he wore. "as a parting gift before I got here."

"P-Princess Celestia," Twilight was completely taken aback by this, and from the look on her face, the unicorn colt had a pretty strong indication she was shocked at the information all the same. No, not the band part, the part about Nightmare Moon. "I tried to tell her something bad was about to happen, namely, the return of Nightmare Moon. She dismissed my concerns, and then sent me here."

"So then...earlier, right before the surprise party started...you were mentioning studying further."

"Oh, you heard that?" the purple mare asked sheepishly.

"I'm surprised the rest of the ponies here didn't..." Azure's ear twitched in response to a sound from outside the door, that sounded more like a strangled gasp, masculine in voice, than anything. Ignoring it, he willfully continued, "Whatever the case, what exactly are you looking for?"

"I want evidence to prove my case to the princess...or at least, that was my plan, but then everypony and their grandmother--and I mean that literally considering what happened at Sweet Apple Acres," Twilight grabbed at her stomach, as though becoming ill from the memory. "tried to make friends."

"You know, it sounds crazy, but one week ago, I went through something eerily similar to what you probably went through." Now that he thought about it, it seemed odd that this pony and him would have met the exact same five mares. Only difference is, he wasn't really in a hurry to get away from them as much as he was wanting to relax.

"You can't be serious..." Twilight's eyes widened.

"I met Fluttershy, and her pet bunny first. Lives up to her name, I should say. Rarity was next...wanted me to check those decorations, especially after I told her where I was from." Amused by Twilight's reaction to this, the colt kept right on going, wanting to see if her center of gravity would shift to her hanging lower jaw and bowl her over. Speaking of which... "Let's see, next I met Rainbow Dash, who just about bowled me over, but I think she was just messing around. Then afterward, I wound up in the orchard, met Applejack. Finally, I get home after a long day of meandering around the new town aimlessly, and find Pinkie Pie and a party waiting for me. Along with almost all of the above. Applejack was still preparing for that reunion she mentioned."

The purple mare remained thoroughly stunned by what the colt had just revealed. She could do nothing but stare for a few seconds, in utter disbelief.

"I-I...wow..." She finally gathered her composure. "It's strange that we met the same ponies...were you sent by Princess Celestia too?"

"What? No...I'm not connected to her in any way. I came down here of my own free will..." Azure said. "Should be almost time for the sun to rise. Think we'd better get to the festival."

"Wha--has that much time passed already?" Twilight looked visibly distraught.

"Even if I hadn't come up here, time would have still slipped from you, in all likelihood." The cyan unicorn shook his head slightly. "Anyway, it's a bit late to be doing research now. We'd better get to the festival, and whatever happens, happens."

With a sigh, and a look of annoyed resignation on her face, the purple mare relented. "Let's go..."

"Besides which," Azure said as Twilight passed him. "If it's gonna happen today, we'd better be there to see what comes of it..."

And so, the two unicorns followed the throng of other ponies trotting or flying their way to the festival. If any single one of them had a keen eye and/or chanced to look up, they might have been able to notice the stars drawing ever so closer to the moon, and the ominous shadow that decorated its face taking on a darker and even more ominous look.
--------------------------------------------
The turnout for the arrival of the solar princess was no less than spectacular. It was also not less than expected, Azure noted as he surveyed the room. This still wasn't everypony in Ponyville, however, indicating to the colt that indeed, not all of the population had managed to make it through the night. At the very least, he would be able to watch the sun rise.

As the minutes to sunrise passed, Pinkie was mingling with anypony that'd lend her even half an ear, telling them about how excited she was, and asking if they too were excited, before bouncing around to the next pony.

He looked around. Spike and Twilight were on his right, relatively close by. Fluttershy was over at a tree, preparing the birds. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were talking about something relatively close by, and Rarity was making a couple of last-minute adjustments to the decorations.

"Hey, isn't this exciting?" Pinkie was now in the spot directly between him and Twilight. "Are you excited, 'cause I'm excited, I've never been so excited..."

At this point, Azure instinctively began tuning out Pinkie Pie's rambling. He could probably count off times he'd seen the pink earth pony excited about something, and listening to her ramble on about how excited she was at this moment was something that the cyan colt decided he could have done without. He eyed the balcony, where Rarity stood off to the left, looking satisified with her handiwork.

Fanfare filled the ears of the ponies present, and all heads turned toward the aforementioned balcony. A tan-furred mare with a white mane and tail stepped up. She also wore glasses. It was Mayor Mare, the mayor of Ponyville. At least, that was her name as Azure was told, but most of the townsponies referred to her as "Ms. Mayor", so her real name could have been anything.

"Fillies and gentlecolts, as mayor of Ponyville, it is my great pleasure to announce the beginning of the Summer Sun Celebration!"

The sounds of cheering overwhelmed Azure for a split-second, even though he joined in somewhat, trying to blend in as he'd done for the past few years. As the mayor began her speech on the event, Azure continued to watch the sky, namely, the moon.

It was something he did for the last few years, ever since he'd started tracking the progress on the old ponytale. He wanted to see if the shadow changed. The first thing he noticed was that something wasn't quite normal. The mayor continued to speak, now going on about how Princess Celestia gave the ponies "the sun and the moon each and every day", but Azure no longer focused. The stars immediately surrounding the moon were lined up a little too good. It was certainly a strange event, but the cyan colt withheld a surprised gasp when the shadow in the moon altered physically.

Songbirds filled Azure's ears, and for a moment, his concentration lapsed. He blinked once, twice, to restore it, then he realized something had changed about the moon.

The shadow was gone from the moon's face.
------------------------
Twilight looked around at the hall, completely convinced something bad was about to happen. Azure was right next to her, his eyes firmly locked upon the moon. The eye that she could see was twitching, obviously anticipating something bad. Apparently, the ponies in the room were confused as well. Rarity went back behind the curtain, obviously to check if something was wrong. The gathered ponies were murmuring amongst themselves. Apprehension was choking the atmosphere of what should have been a bright celebration, and the purple mare gave a sigh.

"This can't be good..."

"Understatement of the year..." Azure finally whispered, sounding as though he couldn't believe what was unfolding before his eyes. "The moon, Twilight..."

She finally looked up toward the moon, just as Azure had been. Before she could process the fact that the moon's face was as blank as an unused notebook, the mayor spoke up again.

"Remain calm, everypony, there must be a reasonable explanation!"

I'm sure I can think of a good one... the purple mare thought to herself. Azure was still watching, waiting for something to happen, completely quiet. He looked beyond serious now, and his brown eyes were now scanning the entire hall for any signs of disturbance.

"Ooh, ooh!" Pinkie said, causing Twilight to turn to her, "I love guessing games! Is she hiding?"

Rarity, at this point, burst forth from the curtain, looking confused and afraid.

"She's gone!" she announced. Everypony gasped at once.

"Oh, she's good..." retorted the hyperactive earth pony. It was then, Azure finally made any real noise, a short snort of surprise. Right there, on the balcony, a dark blue fog was starting to gather. Pinkie yelped in surprise, seeing the dense fog. It was at this point, the worst fears of Twilight came to life.

The mist formed, and in a short flash of light, a new figure had taken the place where Princess Celestia was supposed to stand. There was no mistaking it: the black-as-night fur, the sky blue, flowing mane, the teal colored eyes, the blue helmet, necklace, and other royal decorum...the fact she had wings and a horn; the moon cutie mark...

It was clear who the newcomer was now.

"Oh no...Nightmare Moon!" Twilight whispered to herself. Spike, who had just a few minutes ago dismissed her concerns and told her to lighten up, immediately passed out from the excitement. Azure, on the other hand, still kept his look of utter concentration as he stared daggers up toward the balcony.

"Oh, my beloved subjects," the mare that was formerly in the moon began, a look of malignant pleasure on her face as she looked upon the confused denizens of Ponyville. "It's been so long since I've seen your precious, sun-loving faces..."

"What did you do with our Princess?!" Twilight quickly turned away from the malignant alicorn to catch Rainbow Dash just about to rush up to the alicorn. However, Applejack reacted quickly, clamping her jaws down on Rainbow's tail to prevent her from doing that. She said something trying to get Rainbow to stop trying, but whatever she said was garbled by the mouthful of tail hair, as well as Twilight's own anxiety. She turned to where Azure was standing, and realized with confusion that he wasn't there anymore.

"What," Nightmare Moon said with a chuckle, "am I not royal enough for you? Don't you know who I am?"

"Ooh, ooh, more guessing games!" said Pinkie, bouncing up and down in a manner most inconsistent with a crisis, "Um, Hokey Smokes! How about...Queen Meanie?" The incorrect name would have made Twilight giggle a little were it not for the seriousness of the situation, "No! Black Snooty! Black Snoo--" Applejack had taken control of this situation too, shoving a cupcake into Pinkie's mouth with a hoof. Her further guesses were muffled by the confection.

"Does my crown no longer count now that I have been imprisoned for a thousand years?" the black alicorn continued, sounding angry and insulted. "Did you not recall the legend? Did you not see the signs?"

Finally, Twilight found it in her to speak up.

"I did." she spoke up, loud and clear. All heads turned towards her, but the purple mare did not falter. "And I know who you are...you're the mare in the moon, Nightmare Moon!"

The statement sent shockwaves throughout the room. Everypony gasped, while the addressed mare only chuckled.

"Well, well, well, somepony who remembers me..." Nightmare Moon continued, a look of triumph slowly starting to take form on her features. "Then you also know why I'm here."

"You're here to...to..." Twilight swallowed hard. She couldn't find it in her to pronounce the words. In this instant, she'd really wished the Ponyville residents weren't so welcoming. If only she'd had more time to study...! The dark pony merely chuckled. There was a small murmuring off to her right. Rainbow was hovering, but was insanely confused at what she was seeing. Applejack was equally confused.

"What's that city boy up to...?" Applejack whispered.

"Don't know..." Rainbow responded, also in a hushed voice. Nightmare Moon took no notice of this conversation. Thunder crackled, and Twilight realized there was a storm gathering around the villainess.

"Remember this day, little ponies, for it was your last!" The thunder rumbled, and clouds momentarily gathered, obscuring the night sky as an ominous storm brewed around the alicorn. "From this moment forth, the night will last forever!" She became overwhelmed with laughter, taking her eyes off the crowd. Suddenly, Twilight realized she could hear something dimly against the chaos. Hooves rapidly hitting something...

"Not if I have a thing to say about it!"

The crowd of ponies gasped in utter shock, and Nightmare Moon snapped back to attention. Twilight's jaw hung agape and refused to budge for a few moments.

Azure, what are you doing?!

Sure enough, the cyan colt who had vanished had, by all accounts, managed to find a decent place to jump up off, and began rushing Nightmare Moon with a forehoof outstretched. The alicorn's eyes narrowed and she gained a smug smirk on her face.

A few moments later, Azure Courage was now suspended in the air, held in place by Nightmare Moon's magic. She couldn't see his facial expression, but from the way he shifted in the glow, Twilight could only guess he was rethinking his brilliant tactic. Nightmare Moon brought him down so that the two were face-to-face.

"Evidently, you do not have any idea what you're up against, contemptuous foal!" she yelled at him, giving him a strong toss into one of the walls of the town hall. Something-probably that strap Azure indicated earlier, flew off haphazardly into the crowd of ponies. The cyan colt slid to the floor from the height, and landed on his side, knocked for a loop at the very least.

What'd you expect to happen?! You tried attacking an alicorn, Azure...

Twilight couldn't believe what she'd just witnessed, but soon her instincts took over.

"Things are about to become worse..." she said, "a lot worse..."

Chapter 3: The Elements

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Chapter 3: The Elements
---------
Azure Courage lay out on the Town Hall floor, completely numbed. He couldn't just stand there, that much was certain to him, but he had to do something about the evil alicorn that had just come out of the moon. The key problem in his abrupt offensive? He was trying to attack an alicorn, the species of pony that ruled Equestria. Of course he should have expected to be telekinetically thrown through the air, but he very well couldn't have made his way to the flank of the mare in the moon for an indirect assault, which might have yielded marginally better results. It was the best he could have come up with in such a situation.

The cyan colt lay down in the midst of the chaos that soon followed his being thrown. He could still feel the pain in his left side where he'd made contact with the wall. At this point, however, he knew there was nothing he could really do against the mare. He'd need to bide his time and wait for a clearer opportunity to strike.

"Seize her!" the mayor called out. Azure kept his eye focused on the scene before him. Stallions, suited up in armor of gold, no doubt Princess Celestia's royal guards, immediately began charging Nightmare Moon, even though they did sort of see what happened to Azure. Not like he could blame them...they did have a royal duty to protect the sun monarch. "Only she knows where the Princess is!"

Sound reasoning, Mayor, but... To Azure's not-so-immediate surprise, the Royal Guards fared no better against the former moon monarch turned night dictator.

"Stand back, you foals!" With no demonstratable effort on her part, the Royal Guards that attempted their attacks were knocked away. With a laugh, the alicorn turned into a light blue mist and began floating away. Rainbow Dash had apparently shaken off whatever had caused her to hesitate, and charged briefly after her. However, Azure's focus quickly drifted to two receding purple figures.

Twilight, and a semi-conscious Spike.

If anypony knows how to stop that alicorn, it'd be her, the unicorn colt thought, getting back on his hooves with a stumble. His side still ached, but he did sort of bring it on himself. Just hope she can find it before Nightmare Moon can secure her place as ruler of eternal night.

And with that, the light blue colt quickly began moving after them, paying no mind to the throbbing pain on one side of his body.
---------
It hadn't been good for Twilight Sparkle. Spike was clearly fighting off sleep with every fiber of his being that wasn't already in dreamland, and he was losing that battle more pathetically than Azure had just lost his. Thankfully, she'd reached the library in record time. The baby dragon, her assistant, continued to babble on about how Nightmare Moon had to be stopped, when he wasn't snoring like a train. Finally, as Twilight tucked him into his basket-bed, he immediately fell asleep.

"You've been up all night, Spike," Twilight said gently to him. "You are a baby dragon, after all..." The sound of falling hooves nearby suddenly resonated within her ears, and she turned to see Azure, looking only slightly worse for the wear following his idiotic excursion, not winded, but looking as though he'd been running just as fast as she was to catch up to her.

A mix of emotions welled up in her. She didn't know whether to be frustrated or relieved that he wasn't seriously hurt. She trotted up to him, her voice sounding eerily neutral given the storm within.

"Are you okay, Azure?" Her question sounded slightly awkward, but it fit the bill.

"Yeah, it'll take a little more than that to keep me down..." Azure assured, wincing when he took a few steps forward.

"Good to hear," The relief was gone. Now, her frustration shone through. "Now then..." In a manner that she didn't know she had in her in the first place, she momentarily went up on her hind legs, and delivered a smack onto the back of the colt's head. "What were you thinking charging Nightmare Moon like that?! Are you insane?!"

"Not the first to ask me that..." Azure glared, rubbing the back of his head.

"And I won't be the last. She is an alicorn, you know..."

"What did you expect me to do, stand around and do nothing?!"

"It'd have been better than what just happened to you! At least that way you couldn't have gotten hurt!" She wasn't sure why she was arguing with him. More time was being eaten up with this. For that matter, why did she care about him so much? Granted, she wanted to save the future of Equestria, but as she'd always said before, that did not rest on her making friends. Outside of her family, Princess Celestia, and Spike, Twilight rarely ever spoke to other ponies, wrapped up in her studies. So why were these six ponies - the colt before her, and the five mares...?

"So what do you plan to do? Diplomacy obviously isn't going to work!" Azure called back. "Far as I see it, the only way that we're going to win--"

"'We'?" Twilight stopped.

"Obviously, a single pony isn't going to do much good..." Azure said. "But the only way that we can restore daylight--"

Immediately, the purple mare felt as though she'd been slapped over the back of the head. Yet Azure hadn't moved, and Spike was fast asleep. Apparently, though, Azure had the same realization she had.

"--is if we stop arguing and find a solution..." both said at once.

"As I was saying, what do you plan to do?" Azure asked.

"Oh!" Twilight immediately snapped into attention, uprooting five books at a time from the nearest shelf she could see. "Elements...elements..."

"You mean the Elements of Harmony, the ones mentioned in the tale, right?" Azure asked. "They did work before, but those could be anywhere!"

"The Elements of Harmony are our only hope right now, though..." Twilight responded, tossing the last set off to the side. "You really should have known that..." It was almost unconscious on her part, but it was still a valid observation.

If Azure wanted to retort, he didn't get the chance. There was a "whoosh" that filled Twilight's ears, and so she turned, seeing Azure looking up towards Rainbow Dash, who in turn was looking down at her, glaring daggers. However, soon, she turned her attention to Azure.

"You..." and she pitched her head back to Twilight. "and you...what's going on here?!"

The cyan colt addressed once more looked as though he'd been smacked across the back of the head, only this time, the blue mare throwing her head around didn't actually hit him, though from the look in her eyes, she probably had half a mind to.

"What are these 'Elements of Harmony' you're talking about, huh?!" She was obviously addressing both of them, going a mile a minute. "Why'd you go running away, huh?!" Now she was turning upon Azure. "I thought your name was 'Courage'...! And you!" Now she snapped back to Twilight, making the unicorn wonder why she hadn't developed a severe case of whiplash yet with all the head movement. "Why were you the only one that knew what was gonna happen? Are you a spy?!"

"Dash, I also knew about it too..." Azure cut in, and when Twilight turned to look at him with suppressed bewilderment on her features, he seemed just as surprised at himself for butting in. He then turned toward the door. "The others are coming here, too, huh..."

"Why didn't you say anything before?!" Rainbow now turned back towards Azure, who remained completely calm in the face of a mare yelling into his face.

"Really, Dash...ask yourself this. If either of us had spoken up about it before all this, what would you have done? I doubt you'd have been onboard. Like all the others that knew me back in Canterlot - so basically my mother, father, and cousins, you'd have probably laughed openly in my face." The frankness in the male unicorn's tone was unsettling, and for a few moments, Twilight wasn't sure what would happen next. The pegasus remained hovering for a few more moments, but before she could retort...

"Okay, I think we're all a little on-edge here, so I think we'd better all simmer down," A familiar, southern-accented voice said. Sure enough, just as Azure had pointed out, Applejack, along with Rarity, Pinkie, and Fluttershy had arrived. "Twilight, you seem to know what's goin' on here, and from what I just heard, Az has been watching out for this for a while, so why don't one o' you start tellin' us?"

Twilight immediately took over; partly because she was somewhat afraid Azure would slip on a detail somewhere. The fact these ponies all so quickly came to her aid was a little...unsettling, to say the least. And then there was Azure, who had brashly launched a frontal assault on an alicorn. The fact that he had done that without much in the way of a second thought refused to leave her mind.

"I read all about the prediction of Nightmare Moon," the purple mare resisted the urge to throw a snarky remark about how much of the prediction Azure read and how much he skimmed, "Some mysterious objects called the 'Elements of Harmony' are the only things that can stop her, but I don't know what they are, or what they even do!"

She could just see the cyan colt just about to throw up his forehooves in mock surrender when he stopped short, his jaw still hanging partially open. Twilight was just as surprised as he was. In front of her was Pinkie, holding the spine of a book in her mouth. When'd she have time to find it while she was--

"'The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide'," said Pinkie, still smiling as Twilight took the book in a magic hold, magenta overtaking the book. The purple mare didn't know what to say straight away, so she settled on the first thing that came to her mind.

"How did you find that?!" The question came out with such force that it almost made her jump. Apparently, she wasn't the only one thinking that, given Azure was still recovering from the fact she'd apparently found that book in the time it took for her to explain about the Elements of Harmony, or at least, what little she knew about it.

"It was under 'E'!" The pink earth pony sing-songed. The entire library fell silent, and nopony knew quite what to say to that, and for her part, Twilight hoped that everypony there would overlook the fact that she'd been gutting the shelves in search of the book.

"Oh..." Recovering from this mental lag at last, Twilight finally opened the book and began reading from the book. "'There are six Elements of Harmony, but only five are known: Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, Honesty, and Loyalty. The sixth is a complete mystery. It is said, the last known location of the five Elements was in the ancient castle of the royal pony sisters. It is located in what is now the Everfree Forest..."

There was a small pause.

"The Everfree Forest?!"

It was then, they realized somepony's voice was missing. Twilight looked, and with barely restrained exasperation she brought a hoof to her forehead.

"Were you even paying attention?"

"Six Elements, one of which is unknown, located in a dangerous part of Equestria convieniently not too far from here. The five known elements are at the castle within the forest." Azure responded, turning away from the window he was gazing at. "I got all of that, but...I could have sworn I heard something just outside..."
---------
It hadn't taken a long time for the seven ponies to reach the entrance, considering Equestria was facing a major crisis: no day. No sunlight for whatever crops. Eternal night would bring about more than just a massive satisfaction of an evil alicorn's ego. Azure knew that whatever happened in that forest would definitely put his name to the test. He certainly hadn't expected this turnout, though.

"H-here we are...the entrance..." Fluttershy announced, some of her meek demeanor mysteriously gone. The colt identified this as adrenaline more than anything, but hoped that it'd last until after the incident ended. This was a time to be strong. A silence hung over the group. The cyan colt took a few tenative steps forward. This was it.

"Whee! Let's go!" Pinkie was clearly eager for adventure. That pony was truly something else. No matter what, she almost always seemed to be able to face it with an honest smile, and an oblivious demeanor. Azure began to try to recall if he'd ever seen Pinkie even frown out of honest emotion.

"Not so fast," Twilight said, reaching out in front of the eager earth pony with a hoof. She turned to address the gathered ponies, looking as though she were in deep thought. "Look, I appreciate the offer, but I'd really rather do this without help, or at least, try to minimize it..." Her gaze eventually fell on Azure. With a sigh, she said aloud: "Namely, from somepony who would attack anything standing in his way without a second thought..."

"Oh, you mean me." The colt's reply was so full of sarcasm that he was sure Twilight was going to retort before long. As Azure quickly began trotting along, somepony just had to make her opinion known...

"Yeah, sure," It was now Dash's turn to sound as sarcastic as possible. "Sounds to me like you just want alone time with him..."

Once again, the implications of what Rainbow Dash was referring to flew right over his head. He remained silent while his brain cells worked to process the pegasus's statement.

"Rainbow, he did just attack Nightmare Moon. I'm sure he'd attack other things that stood in our way..." Twilight said, and from the sound of her voice, it sounded like she didn't get it either. It was only now that Rainbow's statement registered within the cyan colt's mind, and he breathed an exhale.

"Is it really a good time to be making that kind of joke..." Nopony seemed to hear his statement. Applejack immediately took control of the situation.

"Sorry, Twi', we ain't lettin' you and Az go in there alone." the orange earth pony said, firmness evident in her tone. "We're stickin' to you like caramel on a candy apple." The others gave a "hmph" of agreement.

"Especially if there's candy apples in there!" Pinkie cut in with something that barely had anything to do with the present situation. The colt sighed at this. They'd known him a week, most of which he'd spent at a distance from them; and they'd known Twilight even less time than that, and they considered them both friends.

I can think of a way that they won't do that, but I'm not gonna go there. Azure thought, and turned to face Twilight. "Might as well let them come. They're probably going to follow us anyway."

Twilight gave a sigh of acknowledgement, and did not say much more. Azure turned back to the others.

"I guess that's a yes..."
---------
The set of seven ponies trotted along, following a high road in the Everfree Forest. They'd been trotting along for the better part of ten minutes. Azure honestly couldn't tell how much time had passed since they'd started since the group had remained mostly silent. Even Pinkie, much to the cyan colt's shock, didn't say much. It was amazing what a crisis could do to a pony. However, the silence couldn't last.

"So, none of you have been in here before?" Twilight asked. Azure couldn't say he had. He'd never really gotten the chance to. There was one time he'd planned on it to do some training, but got sidetracked by something fairly quickly. That, and his first day here, he really didn't feel like hanging around the forest. Seeing the relationship between pet and owner was a little off-putting to the colt.

"Ugh, heavens no!" Rarity responded in her usual manner. "Just look at it, it's dreadful!"

"And it ain't natural," Applejack piped in, as usual. "Folk say it don't work the same as Equestria."

Azure's ears twitched in response to a noise. He kept pace with the group, not knowing at first what the noise was, but whatever it was had to be close. Real close.

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Twilight in response to the earth pony's statement.

"Nopony knows," Rainbow said, and at this precise instant, the colt heard another noise nearby. It was even closer, and a little more chilling than before. "You know why?"

"Rainbow, quit it," warned the orange earth pony.

"'Cause everypony who's ever come in has never come out!"

As if on cue, a loud crack suddenly echoed, and a few moments later, the cliff the seven were walking on gave way. Fluttershy and Rainbow immediately began to take to the air, aiming to help whoever they could, Azure assumed. He didn't think he'd need it, even as he fought to assert some dominance over gravity, back when he was freegalloping alongside his cousins.

"You just had to say it like that, didn't you?!" Azure yelled, though over the screams of the others, he couldn't tell who was saying what. He slid past Rarity, who was just being lifted up by her tail by Fluttershy, and Pinkie, who had Rainbow bearing down on her for the rescue. Applejack and Twilight continued to slide down. Applejack immediately grabbed onto an exposed tree root with her mouth, slowing her descent, but Twilight...

The cyan colt immediately threw caution to the wind. He managed to find some purchase among some rock formations, and began to jump from them, heading quickly. While the orange mare was holding her own, Twilight wasn't doing so good. She was getting a little close to the cliffedge.

It was then, Azure came to a split-second decision.
---------
Twilight was overwhelmed. One moment, the cliff they were walking on had been relatively safe, and the next, the cliff had quite literally turned on its side, and shook them all off like water. She couldn't see how well the others were doing; all that she knew was that the cliff's edge was getting close. The purple unicorn might have been more amazed that Applejack's hat didn't come off during all that if she wasn't distracted with the issue of survival.

It happened so fast that she wasn't even aware of what had happened straight away. Her lower body began to dangle, and Applejack was just now turning to realize she needed help--

Suddenly, she felt something push up against her backside, and with a startled gasp, she realized that her lower body had momentarily found purchase against the cliffside again. The mare blinked, then looked back, just in time to see a cyan form starting to fall down the cliffside.

"A-Azure...!" she called out after him, completely in shock from what she'd seen. A moment later, her rear legs once again slipped out from under her, but this time, Applejack caught her by the forehooves. "Applejack, Azure went over the edge...what...what do I do?" Panic set in. She couldn't tell what had happened to him, but Twilight was assuming the worst. Plus, it almost felt like she was about to be pulled over anytime, and would take Applejack down that nasty fall with her.

"Let go..." This was Applejack's response, which utterly startled her.

"Are you crazy? What about Azure? He clearly let go..."

"Listen here, Twilight, what I'm gonna tell you is the honest truth. One, Az is a little more physically capable than we give him credit for. Two, if you let go, you'll be safe."

Twilight blinked. She took a deep breath. Could Azure still be okay among the path below? Was Applejack telling her a truthful reassurance? There was only one way to know for sure...

The scream left her mouth before she was even fully aware of what was happening. She was sure that she would fall, and see something rather deformed as she hit terminal velocity right before her own grisly end came, but suddenly, her velocity was stopped dead in mid-air. She looked, to see Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash holding her safely.

Twilight breathed a sigh of relief, which turned into a strangled gasp when Fluttershy's grip somewhat loosened.

"Sorry girls, I'm not really used to holding anything more than a bunny or two..." the yellow pegasus apologized. She could hear Applejack making her own way down the mountain, but, for some reason, all she could think about was the colt that had evidently pushed her up just a little longer, allowing Applejack to reach her in time.

The group was on a lower route now, down from the broken cliff. Twilight reached the ground, looking around. The others already there looked worried too.

"Where's Azure?" Rarity asked. "Oh! I saw him go over the cliff! Is he...?"

"I wouldn't worry..." said Rainbow, now hovering a good deal above the group. The group fell silent, even as Applejack finally reached them, having jumped her way down the cliff. Suddenly, a loud rustling came from one of the trees nearby, like something was moving rapidly. A cyan figure suddenly bolted out from the upper branches of a tree not too far from where the cliff had fallen. Twilight almost couldn't speak. Applejack was being honest...

"I'm good..." Azure was breathing heavily, now in a sitting position. Since his back was to her, she couldn't tell if he was frightened, in the middle of an adrenaline rush, or both. He did sound oddly calm given that he almost fell over the edge of a cliff, though. The purple mare was right next to him in an instant.

"How'd you...?" she started, completely unable to articulate her words.

"There were some stepping blocks on the cliffside. I called upon freegalloping lessons I learned when I was playing with my cousins." Azure said, turning to her. Here, she'd noticed there was just a little dirt on his horn. "It was a lot harder than I thought it was, but thankfully I didn't fall too far from where I'd pushed you up before I found some solid ground I could use."

"I saw 'im movin' like that. There were a good mess o'ledges below."

"Momentum is everything..." Azure summarized. "Crimson Blitz taught me that much. He's better at this stuff than I am. I slipped a little on the way down, but I'll be alright..." His breathing evened out. "But hey, we're all in one piece. Best keep going."

The others all gave a murmur of agreement, and soon, everypony save for Twilight herself was walking in the direction of the temple again, or at least, that's what he thought.

"But...how did he...push me...?" Twilight asked.

"Like I said, sugarcube," Applejack responded, and here, the purple mare realized that her orange companion was still standing there. "He's a bit more physically capable than he lets on. I managed to turn to see you about to fall just as Az was goin' over the edge. He did lead with his head, but he managed to get one of his rear legs up below you and give you the push ya needed to stay on the cliff. Think he found enough traction in one of the crevices just next to ya."

Twilight took in all the information, but a single question loomed over her head.

"But...wasn't he scared of what'd happen if he fell?"

"I can't tell ya for sure, Twi', but we'd better catch back up to the others. From what he tried to do against Nightmare Moon, he might not be the easiest colt to give a fright."

Realizing that she was in fact wasting time worrying about Azure Courage's sanity, the studious mare quickly resolved to figure it out later. What she did know was, the orange earth pony that had helped her get to safety had emphasized her own honesty. Not wanting to read too much more into it at the moment lest she get distracted again, Twilight quickly took off at a gallop, taking off after Applejack and hoping to catch up to the others.
---------
I scaled down a mountain by the skin on my horn, and Rainbow Dash is acting like she did the best job... Azure thought to himself, adding to the list of pains he'd suffered today a headache from where he'd actually used his horn on the rock wall to slow his descent enough to help Twilight, as well as a slight pain in his left rear leg from where he'd slipped while managing his jumps.

"...and caught Twilight right in the nick of time!" finished Dash, once again recounting the tale of how she'd saved Twilight from falling with the aid of Fluttershy.

"I'm pretty sure that's hard to forget, Dash. We all have a functioning set of eyes." Azure said. "Save the stories for after this."

"Thought I'd repeat it for your benefit, since you were trying to figure out how to keep plants out of yours..." the rainbow-maned mare said with a cocky grin. The colt was just about to retort when he saw something out of the corner of his eye.

It was a large animal. It resembled a lion, with a black mane--Azure's mind immediately stopped upon seeing the lion body.

What's that creature doing here?! His legs momentarily refused to work. Whatever it was, it looked angry, and issued a terrifying lion's roar. Azure's eyes widened. Don't tell me that's a c--!

"That's a manticore!"

Twilight's voice broke Azure from his trace at once, and he shook his head to clear it of the haunting vision. It was a bad camping trip, that much was for sure. It was a day in his life that the cyan pony could honestly say he would not want to relive, least of all now. He took in the rest of the details as the beast roared again.

The thing had a red scorpion's tail, and it only had the one head. It also had red bat wings, but now that the colt knew what he was up against, he didn't need to worry anymore. The fear receded just as quickly as it had happened.

"We've gotta get past him!" Twilight continued on, having not noticed Azure's lapse. The cyan colt was grateful for this, but somepony unexpected had beaten him to the punch. He noticed the white unicorn, Rarity, running forward, and dodging a swipe from the manticore, rearing up and delivering a solid back kick to the manticore's face.

"Take that, you ruffian!"

Of the seven of us here, I'd have expected something like that from just about any one of us except Fluttershy and of course, Rarity. I just didn't expect her to have it in her. Crisises can really shake up a pony... Azure thought, pausing in mid-gallop. Wait, what am I doing?!

Of course, the cyan colt was met with a reminder of why he didn't think Rarity would play rough. The manticore recovered from Rarity's attack, and belted out a roar, peeling Rarity's mane back. A few moments later, the white unicorn's purple mane, normally finely curled, poofed out as though she'd used a hair dryer.

"My mane!" With that, Rarity immediately turned tail and ran. Azure breathed a sharp exhale as he realized he needed to get off his rump and start helping. There was no time for any distractions, especially not...

"Yee-haw!" This was Applejack, having gotten the drop on the enraged beast. She then proceeded to ride it as though it were some sort of rodeo. He didn't know what ponies rode at the rodeo, but if he had to guess, it'd be beasts simliar to a manticore. Azure blinked, and immediately took off at a run. He could have sworn he heard a weak voice calling out to the group, but paid it no mind as he gathered momentum enough to gallop on the sides of the tree. "Get along, little doggie!"

This spectacle went on just long enough for the cyan colt to get a good angle of his own on the raging beast. Which was a good thing considering that Applejack just got bucked off the manticore's back and sent flying. Her hat once again managed to stay on her head despite the fact she was being launched through the air.

"All yours, partner!" she said to somepony. A few moments later, a rainbow shot past Azure's vantage point, and began rapidly engaging the manticore. The beast seemed confused and roared even louder, swatting madly at the pony encircling it. Azure saw his chance, throwing all his weight into the jump.

Roll in the air, and... He began doing this action, and uncoiled perfectly, extending both his back legs as he tensed his rear for an attack, when he was forced to shut his eyes as he too was sent flying, a throbbing pain in the opposite side of where he'd been flung into the town hall wall earlier. A split-second later, he heard Rainbow Dash grunt, indicated she too had been hit. Azure realized he was about to hit the ground, and began spinning. By some miraculous force, he'd wound up on his feet, dragging them along the ground.

It was one of those things where desperate times called for desperate measures. The others began to gallop towards the raging beast, and Azure managed to gain control of his momentum again, and began charging after them.

Something yellow, formerly meek, and a pegasus pony, soon blocked their way.

"Wait!" she said, loud enough for them to hear. Azure skidded to a halt, obliging to the mare's command, though not knowing what the heck she planned to do considering she didn't do anything in the battle. The yellow pegasus quickly turned, and just as casually as possible, trotted up to the face of a roaring manticore. The cyan colt felt an instinct to charge in, but to his surprise, an orange hoof cut in front of him.

"I don't know what she's doin', but rushin' over there ain't gonna help..." Applejack said. "Sit tight, Az, much as I hate to say it."

The manticore reared back as if to attack, but to Azure's shock, Fluttershy began nuzzling the other paw of the beast. It looked down, almost shocked, at what the pegasus was doing. The look of anger in its vision was all gone.

"Shhh," the pegasus said, "It's okay." The manticore blinked, as though confused, before flipping up its paw, revealing, what Azure could barely see, a thorn jutting out of its paw, purple in color. Fluttershy winced. "Oh, you poor little baby..."

"'Little'?" Rainbow asked. Azure felt inclined to agree, but now he was confused. Usually, beasts didn't listen to reason...

"Now this might hurt for just a second..." The meek pony then proceeded to lift her hooves around the offending object, and gave a sharp yank. The manticore roared loudly, and everypony immediately feared the worst.

"Fluttershy!"

Just as quickly as their worry set in, it abated. The manticore's look of anger and confusion were completely gone. It looked absolutely harmless now, purring like a cat one-tenth its size.

"Awww, you're just a little baby kitty, aren't you? Yes, you are, yes you are..."

As the manticore rather sloppily licked her face like a dog, leaving her mane hilariously slicked up on one side, the others began filing past the soothed beast. Well, except for Twilight. She turned and inquired about what had just happened.

"How did you know about the thorn?" was her specific question.

"I didn't," was Fluttershy's response as she started moving toward the receding forms of the others. "Sometimes, we all just need to be shown a little kindness."

Twilight's facial expression eluded him at this point, but Azure realized he was wasting time worrying about what just happened.

Didn't stop it from nagging him to no end, though.

Okay, we're all fighting that thing, more or less, and then Fluttershy comes in and calms it? Well, okay, sure. Tack that one onto the "Things I Wasn't Prepared For" list. Azure breathed a sigh before falling into step with Twilight.

"Are you alright?" she asked again of him.

"Don't worry. I'm not out of this yet." he assured.

"You seemed a little spooked by the manticore when I caught up..." she asked.

"Ancient history, but I had the species wrong anyway, so it doesn't matter." The cyan colt quickly moved to defend himself.

"I've gotta ask...you risked your life for mine earlier, right? When you pushed me up a little?" Twilight asked.

"That's right," Azure responded, not at all knowing where she was going with this.

"Azure, aren't you scared at all of anything?" Twilight asked. The cyan colt had to stop and think about it. Of course he was scared. The cliff was falling out from underneath him and everypony around him who didn't have wings was sliding fast.

"A little," The cyan colt admitted. "Gravity is a pain. But I won't let fear stop me from helping a pony in need..."

She smiled somewhat to him, and then shook her head.

"I do not get you at all..."
---------
It had been another five minutes of continuous trotting along the path Fluttershy had opened up via calming the manticore. Azure wasn't quite sure what to make of it, but it did allow the seven of them to advance, so he wasn't going to let it ruffle his fur too much. Rarity and Fluttershy had also returned to their normal mane-styles over the course of the last five minutes, mostly because Rarity had used magic to restore hers and Fluttershy's back to normal.

Of course, the group was heading even deeper into the forest, into what could have easily been one of the swamps in the Everfree Forest. The colt did not know the interior of the forest, but whatever the case, it was getting real swampy, real quick. Rarity, of course, voiced her disapproval.

"My eyes need a rest from all this icky muck." Inexplicably, after Rarity said that, the entire forest went pitch-black. Azure couldn't see heads, wings, tails, or horns of anypony, not even his own. "Well, I didn't mean that literally..."

"Are you familiar with the saying, 'be careful what you wish for'--" Azure promptly walked into something firm face-first, adding to the headache he was suffering following saving Twilight from falling over. "Ow!" He reached up in front of him, trying to confirm what he hit, and felt something firm. "A tree...?"

He could hear the sounds of the others bumping into things, but more than likely each other.

"That ancient ruin could be right in front of our faces and we wouldn't even know it..." Twilight observed.

"I didn't just walk into it..." Azure said, trying to follow the voices of the others. He was bad with direction, so if he got lost in here, he'd never find a way out. If there was one thing the cyan colt didn't want Rainbow Dash to be right about, it was the whole "never coming out" thing. "No worries here..."

"I didn't see you there, my apologies," This was Rarity again, having just bumped into somepony else.

"Right here..." Rainbow Dash piped in, though that could have been anywhere considering Azure could not see a thing. She gave a sharp grunt, but for what reason, Azure didn't know, since he still couldn't see his own hoof in front of his face, much less a cyan pegasus pony.

"Oh wait, I think I stepped in somethin'..." said Applejack, and for a moment, the light began returning to the forest. It was just enough so Azure could see himself and maybe those immediately around him. Somehow, he hadn't gotten too far away from the mares. However, the lighting seemed a little off. The light didn't seem to be coming from above. Rather it seemed to radiate from around--

The trees suddenly came alight with a dim violet glow, and each of them, as Azure swiveled around while the others screamed in sudden terror to look at them, each were roaring and alive.

"It's just mud," The orange farmer mare confirmed her potential issue, then was caught off-guard like the rest of the ponies. The sounds of feminine screams filled his ears, but Azure wasn't in the mood to get caught flinching by animated demon trees. Quickly, he searched through the throng of purple glowing trees, trying to see if there was a way out of them. The cyan colt was pretty confident he could handle the trees; not only were they just that, plants, but they didn't really appear to be trying to eat any of the ponies, or otherwise make any physical attack.

The sound of a high-pitched giggle completely broke the sounds of terrified shrieks and Azure's concentration as well. Confused, he looked over, and saw what could have easily been Pinkie taunting the demon trees.

"Bleh, ooo!" The pink party pony proceeded to go back to giggling while making funny noises. If Azure didn't hang out with Virid most of his life, he'd have just assumed she was taunting the trees. They weren't attempting to attack in spite of whatever she was doing, however.

"Pinkie, what are you doing?!" Twilight called out, clear fear in her voice. "Run!"

"Oh, don't you see?" Pinkie asked.

Inexplicably, the pink party pony started to sing...

"When I was a little filly and the sun was going down..."

"Tell me she's not..." The purple mare's fear was instantly replaced with vague annoyance and strong disbelief.

"The darkness and the shadows, they would always make me frown..." The pink mare didn't even seem to hear the question.

"She is." This was Rarity, in an equal amount of disbelief.

Uh yeah, apparently this is now happening. Azure thought to himself.

"I'd hide under my pillow to hide from what I saw, but Granny Pie said that wasn't the way to deal with fears at all!" Pinkie continued to sing, an impressive rhythm in her tone. The cyan colt began to nod.

"Then what is?" Rainbow Dash asked, sounding skeptical.

"I can think of one wa--" Azure responded, though it wasn't his question to answer, evidently. The pink earth pony continued singing, as though he hadn't spoken.

"She said: 'Pinkie, you gotta stand up tall, learn to face your fears! You'll see they can't hurt you! Just laugh to make them disappear!" Still looking just as happy as ever, Pinkie turned to the nearest demon tree, and proceeded to laugh in a surprisingly normal way at it. The tree, utterly defeated by a mare laughing in its face, immediately reverted to normal, to the surprise of the other ponies, including Azure. For a moment, he wanted to join in the spectacle, with each of the mares taking turns laughing at the demon trees, but decided against it, watching with utter disbelief evident on his face.

"So, giggle at the ghostly! Guffaw at the grossly! Crack up at the creepy! Whoop it up with the weepy! Chortle at the kooky! Snortle at the spooky! And tell that big dumb scary face to take a hike and leave you alone and if he thinks he can scare you he's got another thing coming and the very idea of such a thing just makes you wanna...hehehe...hahaha...heh..."

"LAUUUUUUGHHHH!!"

Azure Courage didn't know what was more ridiculous: the fact Pinkie Pie improvised a song about literally laughing in the face of danger or the fact that the act actually worked.
---------
Twilight Sparkle did not know what to think of what just happened, but she had to say it worked. The darkness that was in the section of the forest had lifted, and the trees had returned to normal, no longer glowing that eerie, violet hue. Yet, within, even as the afterglow of the moment faded, her thoughts drifted to what happened just a few minutes ago with Fluttershy, and earlier still with Applejack.

It just seemed odd that these ponies had kindness and honesty, respectively, on their side, and used it to allow the group to proceed into the forest. Now Pinkie Pie had literally laughed away a lot of evil-looking trees, and had convinced the others to help in the effort. Her mind couldn't help but drift to those. Then there was Azure, who seemed ready to jump off a cliff if he could help somepony. That colt was truly a strange one (not as strange as Pinkie, but still).

The sound of somepony or something choking snapped Twilight out of her thoughts. The six ponies all got up, and looked over to the origin of the noise. They saw one last evil tree, choking on something, and Azure, turning to them with a neutral expression on his face.

"By the way, you missed one," he observed, as the tree hacked up a rather large rock and returned to normal, thoroughly defeated. "Just threw a rock down its throat with magic."

The silence was deafening after his statement. The cyan colt stood on his hind legs, and kicked his forehooves in an expression of confusion.

"What?"

"Well, I guess that's...another way to make danger go away..." Twilight responded, even more at a loss with Azure's behavior. She then realized she didn't hear him scream when everypony else save for Pinkie was frightened by the evil trees, nor did she hear him laugh in the face of danger in the manner perscribed by Pinkie.

"I'm sure he's laughing on the inside!" Pinkie observed, not even phased by the fact Azure didn't take her advice.

"Let's put it that way, Pinkie..." Azure responded, sighing.

"We'd better get moving," said Twilight, turning back in the direction of the palace, which was now just visible on the horizon. "We've got a lot of ground to cover if we want to get to the palace of the royal sisters in time to put Nightmare Moon's ambitions to rest."

The instant the words left the purple mare's mouth, she internally paused in disbelief. She did not break her stride whatsoever, but inside, she just wasn't sure anymore.

These ponies, all of them, have been nice to me. Obviously, they care about me...do I care about them? She'd remembered her reactions to Azure and Pinkie when they were up against something that might have gotten them seriously hurt or worse, as well as Rainbow when she'd been hurt by the manticore. I do. I wonder if I was wrong about my policy on friends...

Realizing she was wasting time worrying about it for the time being, the purple mare raised her eyes towards the group's goal: the place where the Elements of Harmony were last seen.
-----------
The Season 1 Episode 2 "re-enactment" had to be split into two parts; Chapter 4 contains the rest of it. And, even if you absolutely hate this, at least give me feedback in text form so I know where (aside from the OC + Canon re-enactment thing) I'm going wrong with.

Chapter 4: The Elements and The Spirits

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Chapter 4: The Elements and The Spirits
-------------------------------
By this point, Azure was convinced the Everfree Forest wasn't out to get the group just because they were there. The cliff was sturdy not two seconds before it fell apart and sent the non-pegasi sliding and skidding down towards what could have been a nasty fall. The manticore, once calmed, was, as Fluttershy called it, a "big kitty". Or maybe it was just grateful for the assistance. Then those trees...once laughed at or choked, they returned to perfectly normal plants.

There was definitely something else going on, but the cyan colt couldn't figure out what. He couldn't have been the only one thinking about this; surely Twilight or one of the others would have seen something amiss by now. The sound of rushing water quickly called him out of his processing.

"How are we gonna cross this?" Pinkie asked. It was a good question, certainly one that any one of them could have asked. The water was rushing way too fast. If anypony fell into that, no matter how strong a swimmer they were, they'd be swept away in no time by the current. And there wasn't a bridge in sight, not even a series of stepping stones that were easily visible or reachable in the roaring waters.

Azure's ears suddenly twitched in response to a distant sound. From the way the mares close by were looking, he'd guessed they heard the same noise he just did. It sounded like somepony or something was sobbing in utter distress. As the noise drew closer, the cyan colt noticed the waters were getting choppier and choppier.

What the-- Azure thought to himself, wondering what exactly was going on with the waters.

"Huh?" Pinkie asked. A small, narrow, purple object was suddenly visible among the waters. The sobbing reached its peak volume, and before any of the ponies present could fully realize it, all seven of them together were drenched in a few gallons of water. As soon as he wiped the water away from his eyes, Azure first looked to the others, and discovered that they were soaked, but unharmed. Then, he turned to the source of the crying.

It was a sea serpent, bawling about something that was utterly lost on the colt. His body was narrow and purple, and, to Azure's immediate surprise, his orange mane was rather well-done. "Well-done" was the last thing the pony could expect when it came to creatures like the one before him. There was something strange about the serpent, however: one side of his (well, he assumed based on the sounds of the serpent's cries) mustache was shorter than the other, the longer side curled off to one side in a handlebar sort.

"Oh, what a world, what a world..." he continued to sob, apparently unaware there were others nearby that could see him in the state he was in. Whatever the case, his rampant crying was disturbing the waters. Azure had approximately half a mind to give the serpent something to cry about, but he wasn't about to--

"Don't think about it..." Twilight whispered to him, extending a purple hoof in front of him. Before Azure could retort, she spoke up, turning to the sea serpent. "Excuse me, sir. Why are you crying?"

"Well, I don't know." The sea serpent appeared to stop crying, apparently having found someone to offload his worries on, which baffled the unexpecting Azure to no end. "I was just sitting here, minding my own business, when this tacky little cloud of purple smoke just whisked past me and tore half of my beloved mustache clean off, and now I look simply horrid."

Hearing the sea serpent's tale caused Azure's eye to twitch. The gravity on his left side increased tenfold, and with a creaking noise, he noiselessly and painlessly fell to his left. Partly because he felt stupid for not concluding the mustache was the source of his sorrows as soon as he heard the serpent's voice; partly because he felt the reason was absurd.

"Oh, give me a break," This was probably one of the few times Azure could say he fully agreed with Rainbow Dash, who had voiced her opinion with that statement.

"That's what all the fuss is about?" Applejack asked, as the cyan colt finally found it in him to rise back to his feet, wordless since the two mares had already taken the words right out of his mouth, more or less.

"Why, of course it is!" Rarity cut in, indignantly, only moderately surprising everypony else. "How can you be so insensitive?"

I can think of a few reasons why...

"Oh, just look at him," The white unicorn continued on, issuing a lot of statements that were met with sniffled or gasped affirmatives from the sea serpent. If Azure didn't know better, he'd almost say she was flirting with the serpent, talking about his "lovely luminscent scales", "expertly coiffed mane" and "fabulous manicure", all of which was ruined without the mustache half that had been torn off. The only reason why Azure even remembered any of it was because he found the situation so terrifyingly off-putting that he didn't know what was going on for a few seconds.

"Oh, it's true! I look hideous!" The sea serpent said in response to the snowy mare's sentiments. The cyan colt couldn't see Rarity's facial expression at this point, but he'd assume that, were looks capable of murder, the area immediately in front of her would be nothing more than a crater.

"I simply can not let a crime against fabulosity go uncorrected," Rarity said, going up on her hind legs. Azure had two things on his mind right now: one, he had no idea what she was about to do; two, he was wondering if fabulosity was even a word. A loud snap and a yelp from the sea serpent derailed Azure's train of thought entirely.

"What did you do that for?" the serpent asked, just before appearing to faint. Rarity wasn't paying attention, instead using the scale she'd apparently taken from the serpent's body, and taking it in a magical hold, royal blue in color.

"Rarity, what are you--" said Twilight, just as lost as Azure himself was. Unexpectedly, the unicorn in question turned the scale around, and in one clean swipe, cut off most of her tail. The cyan colt swore he didn't even know what was going on, but to make matters slightly less confusing, the white mare quickly tied the sheared-off purple tail segment onto the damaged half of the serpent's mustache. Azure stood, blinking, while he tried to process once again how this pony could be so willing to give when the moment came to it. First the blanket, now this...

The sea serpent came to, and immediately was taken by the gift of pony tail. He gave a rather effeminate chuckle, before responding, "My mustache! How wonderful!"

"You look smashing," responded Rarity, while the sea serpent gushed over the fact his mustache had been restored to its former luster. Well, if two-toned mustaches were a fashion statement among sea serpents. Azure didn't know, nor did he care to know what sea serpents considered beautiful.

"Oh, Rarity, your beautiful tail..." The purple unicorn lamented.

"Oh, it's fine, my dear." Rarity said. "Short tails are in this season. Besides, it'll grow back."

"So would the mustache," said Rainbow, though Azure could only barely pick up on that. He was far too distracted with a more engaging issue. Now that the serpent had stopped bawling its eyes out over its deformed mustache, the river had calmed.

"Look! We can cross now!" Twilight took a few steps forward, but unexpectedly, the sea serpent quickly made himself useful and formed a bridge using the length of its body.

"Please, allow me." he said. Azure recovered from the shock of the moment, not really knowing which way was right and left. Well, he already didn't know that given his absolutely terrible sense of direction, but it was even more scrambled.

Thankfully, the cyan colt was called back to his cognitive function before he became completely lost in thought.

"Azure, aren't you comin'?" Rainbow Dash said, the only one still in the air.

"Right, got it," he responded, quickly making his way across the sea serpent's back and falling into step behind the mares. There was something about the sea serpent's story that just fed his curiosity too. The trees did have a dim purple glow when they were alive...but for the life of him, Azure couldn't remember why the color was important.
---------
Twilight couldn't even remember how long it had been since the group had entered the Everfree Forest, but a short while after leaving the serpent, her eyes snapped up to catch a close, close glimpse of the castle that held the Elements of Harmony. She smiled so widely her face might have split were it not for the gravity of the situation.

"There it is!" she said, only able to contain her excitement due to the sense of duty she had instilled in her. "The ruin that holds the Elements of Harmony. We made it!"

There she was, using the word 'we' again! Yes, they did care for her, just as much as she cared for them, but after this, was she really going to ever be in their company again? Pushing away the intrusive thoughts again, the purple mare took off at a full sprint. She faintly heard a male voice grumbling incoherently, followed by rapid hoofsteps, but whether or not Azure followed her didn't matter.

"Twilight, wait for us!" Applejack called out.

"We're almost there!" The mare disregarded her use of the word "we" as she continued forward, paying no mind to where she was going...until her hooves failed to find purchase on the ground below her. As she chanced to look down and the familiar principle of nine-point-eight meters a second squared took over, Twilight suddenly understood why it might have been a good idea to slow down. She hadn't fallen more than two feet, maybe three, before something clamped down on her tail and arrested her momentum. Looking up, she couldn't quite see who saved her from falling this time, but before long, whatever it was that had her was backing up, away from the nasty fall.

It wasn't until her forelegs started dragging the ground a safe distance away from the fall she'd taken that whatever or whoever it was that had grabbed her tail had released their grip.

"What is it with you and falling off cliffs today?" asked Rainbow, having caught up with the rest of the group. Twilight whipped her head around, convinced that she had saved her, and yet what she saw, close to her still-extended tail, was Azure, sputtering just a little, probably recovering from the mouthful of hair he'd probably gotten saving her...again. The others were close by, Rainbow hovering in the air a few inches from the ground as usual.

"Well, now what?" Pinkie asked with a sigh. The bridge was out, and so far, Twilight couldn't see a direct way. That is, until she heard Rainbow Dash clear her throat and saw her look to her wings.

"Oh, yeah," Pinkie was also reminded of this. With no further words, the light blue mare quickly soared across the gap into the dense fog...
----------
Rainbow Dash was convinced that if somepony knew precisely what to do in the end, it'd have to be the new mare in town. Of course, that didn't change her thoughts on Azure. Back at the party, he was going up to where Twilight had run off to, saying he'd try to talk her down to the festivities. However, Rainbow loved to think she knew him better than that. Especially after the fact he'd more or less stopped the mare from falling down, twice.

Well, she couldn't let him have all the credit on that first one. He may have been able to manuever his way away from that nasty fall, but she still saved Twilight after she let go of Applejack's hooves, with a little help from Fluttershy, of course. The mare snickered slightly to herself as she took one of the downed ropes and began tying it into place. Somepony with that kind of physical skill, and an obvious egghead...it was so ridiculous a mismatch in her head that she couldn't help but chortle just a little at the thought. And seperated from the others, it was a perfect time for her to let out her laughter on the matter.

However, she still had a job to do: she had to fix the bridge so her ground-bound friends could cross. She landed between the two posts, and was just about to hover down to get the other rope to tie it back up, when a voice called out to her.

"Rainbow..." The voice was slightly gruff in nature.

"Who's there?" questioned the pegasus, immediately hovering back up to ground level. When the voice only repeated its call, the mare found herself getting a little angry. "I ain't scared of you! Show yourself!"

"We've been eagerly awaiting the arrival of the best flyer in all of Equestria," the voice continued, now sounding as though it were coming closer, not that Dash paid any mind to it.

"Who?" she asked, wanting to know why ponies would be waiting here, of all places, for the best flyer.

"Why, you, of course," the voice was growing still closer, but that was still the last thing on Rainbow's mind.

"Really?!" After saying this, her ego immediately kicked in, and she felt compelled to correct what she just said and did. She felt she sounded too underconfident in her ability, and wanted to rectify that. "I mean, yeah, me. Hey, uh, you wouldn't mind telling the Wonderbolts that, would ya? 'Cause, I've been trying to get into that group for like, ever..."

"No, Rainbow Dash. We want you to join us..."

Three figures seemed to materialize through the fog. All three were clad in the exact same garb, which looked somewhat similar to the Wonderbolts' garb, except darker in nature. They had black masks, yellow "goggles" of sorts, and the remainder of their costumes were black. What little the mare could see of their fur were various shades of blue and black. What could she say? Their costumes looked cool!

"The Shadowbolts..."
-----
Azure grit his teeth, really wishing he could see through the dense fog. He couldn't have been the only one wondering what was taking Rainbow so long to fix the darn bridge. Yet a quick check behind him revealed that, save for Twilight, the others had crowded around each other, and appeared to be conversing to pass the time. Twilight herself was staring off towards the other side of the bridge, appearing to be the only one focused on the grander problem beside him.

Then again, with all the crazy stuff that's happened tonight, guess it'd be nice to have a distraction... While the cyan colt did not consider himself a creeper by any means, he needed to do something to take his mind off the present situation. What was Rainbow Dash doing over there anyway? He may have manuevered somewhat down a cliffside, but he doubted he could have free-galloped his way across the bridge to see what was going on.

Unbeknownst to the mares behind him, one of Azure's ears flicked up as he began to tune in to the conversation behind him.

"It seems odd that he should have saved her twice in the same night," This was Rarity's voice, and the ear tuned in to the conversation twitched as it recorded the info.

"It can't be much more than coincidence," Applejack said in response. "Were it any one of us in the same situation, he'd have done the same thing, no question."

"Maybe, but he has stuck close to her all night too," said the white unicorn. "It really does make a mare wonder..."

Something about Rarity's statement triggered something in Azure's brain. He went through, mentally, the statements Dash had said to him regarding Twilight. Two of them in total. One: back at the party, that suggestive grin...and the other right before they entered the forest. It was only now that Azure fully understood what Rainbow and now Rarity were getting at back there.

Oh man, do they really think that I... Azure asked. Applejack is right, I'd have done the same for them if it were them in the situation...

"Rainbow, what's taking so long?" Twilight immediately snapped him from his thoughts entirely. Realizing he'd better quit listening in before the conversing mares became suspiscious, Azure immediately focused on the task at hand. "Oh no...Rainbow, don't listen to them!"

Azure's focus snapped up, but because the fog became awfully thick again, he could only catch a glimpse of Rainbow Dash conversing with some rather shady-looking individuals. The colt grit his teeth.

"What's going on over there...?"

"...I'm afraid I'll have to say no," Rainbow's voice eventually came over the fog, which seemed to disperse the instant she declined whatever she had declined. She took the other rope at last, and tied it securely into place. The cyan colt had absolutely no idea what had happened over there, and it certainly would have helped had he not allowed himself to become distracted.

However, whatever the case, it was obviously a cause for celebration, given the five mares around him were cheering. He'd probably have looked stupid not doing so, so he joined in somewhat.

"See, I'd never leave my friends hangin'!" the mare declared, not at all looking like she regretted the decision to pass up...whatever it was she did. The shady individuals snarled, and to his alarm, it looked like their eyes were glowing. A few moments later, they turned into purple clouds of mist and scurried off.

"So that's it, huh...?" asked Twilight to herself, though it seemed to be more to herself than anypony else.

"What's 'it'?" asked Azure, turning to her.

"Hm? Oh, nothing..." The purple mare responded, and all of a sudden, it looked as though she'd just noticed he was there for the first time. "We'd better get over there now."

And with that, the group once more advanced toward their goal: the ancient ruin.
----------
It wasn't that long a walk to the ruin. All they really had to do was cross the bridge. This was it. Twilight knew full well this was where the Elements of Harmony were last seen. The walls had crumbled, which in itself wasn't that surprising. The castle had to be a thousand years old, at least as far as when it was last occupied.

"Whoa," Applejack said, taking in the sight, taking a spot ahead of her. "C'mon, Twilight, isn't this what you've been waitin' for?"

It had been unsettlingly simple from there to find the Elements of Harmony. They were on the pedestals, or rather, the five known ones, anyway, undisturbed, untouched. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash set about retrieving the magical objects, which right now looked sort of like ordinary stones with weird carvings in them.

"The Elements of Harmony...we've found them..." Twilight wasn't even going to worry about the fact she'd used the word "we" anymore. Without these six ponies with her, she doubted they'd have ever gotten this far. Even if she had only taken Azure with her as per her original plan, she had a funny feeling the cliff would have been the end of it. His physical prowess and her magical talent combined couldn't have gotten them very far. She'd seen that now. She was abruptly called out of her thoughts when one of the ponies almost fumbled an Element. "Careful, careful!" Despite their magical nature, the Elements appeared...fragile, to say the least. At least, physically, they did.

"One, two, three, four...five..." Pinkie took a quick count. "There's only five!"

"The sixth element is a mystery," Twilight repeated.

"Then where is it? It's not here..." Rainbow cut in.

"The book said that 'when the five are present, a spark will cause the sixth Element to be revealed'." The purple mare lay down in front of the five Elements, trying to decide on what she should do to try and force the appearance. The room remained completely silent.

"What in the hay is that supposed to mean?" Applejack asked.

"I'm not sure," the purple unicorn admitted. After thinking about it for a bit longer, she came up with something, "But I have an idea..." She turned to the other assembled ponies. It was true, she couldn't have come this far without their help, yet she was sure this would be the part where those magic lessons under Princess Celestia would come in handy. "Stand back. I don't know what will happen."

Applejack nodded, and began to tell the other ponies to disperse. Six sets of hooves began working their way out of the room. Suddenly, one of them seemed to slow, falling out of the rhythm of the others. Eventually, the straggler stopped, leaving only five sets of hooves to walk out of the room. Confused, Twilight turned, and saw Azure, still standing close to the doorway, the others having followed Applejack's lead and left her to her business.

"Why are you still here?" she asked. "I'll be fine..."

"With your luck today, I'd figured somepony should stay behind and keep watch while you do your thing..." he responded, turning back to her with a neutral expression on her face.

Twilight narrowed her eyes at him. Who did this pony think he was? She was sure that anypony else could have saved her from the second fall, and that first fall wasn't even her fault to begin with.

"Do you think I'm always going to need saving?"

"Not particularly. But I'm sure you must have noticed the steady stream of occurences that have taken place since we started this whole thing. The cliff, the manticore, the trees...the serpent. Remember the mist he mentioned?"

"I've already figured it out, Azure," Twilight said, turning her gaze onto the five known Elements. "Nightmare Moon has been trying to impede our progress, and from the looks of things, I'd say her traps didn't go as she'd intended." Again, she was reminded of the other ponies' contributions. Azure put himself at risk, that much was certain. He certainly held some importance, but the mares she'd met just today...well, to say that they contributed as much as he did was underplaying their roles.

Applejack had given her honest reassurance when her mind was racing. Fluttershy had calmed a raging beast with kindness. Pinkie literally laughed in the face of danger and invited everypony to do the same. Rarity sheared off most of her tail and gave it to a crying serpent. And Rainbow Dash turned down...a leadership position, it turned out, for that shady group...the Shadowbolts. Twilight knew all their contributions held relevance, but for some reason, she just couldn't tie it all together, not yet. There was one missing piece of the puzzle, and she knew it couldn't have been Azure. Much as he had helped her specifically, something just didn't add up when it came to his involvement here.

Yet his statement on why he wanted to stay close certainly made sense. Nightmare Moon was probably going to try something else at this critical moment.

"Alright...I see what you're saying. Just be quiet while I concentrate..."
----------
Azure stood between the mares outside and the lone mare with the Elements. He was in a rather ruined room. He could see the others clearly from where he was because the walls around it resembled swiss cheese more than masonry. He could hear Twilight concentrating, mumbling something about that spark she'd mentioned.

Even if I'm not the one that lands the final blow, I've been waiting three years, and I'm going to see this through to the bitter end, the cyan colt thought as he took another look around. Twilight knows as much as I do we couldn't have gotten this far if it were just the two of us. If it wasn't the cliff, then it probably would have been the manticore that got us.

Heavy, heavy footsteps sounded nearby. It sounded like something was climbing up somewhere nearby. Azure Courage instinctively tensed up, prepared for anything. Judging from the growls, he'd figured it was probably another manticore. It made sense to him. The beasts probably nested throughout the Everfree Forest, after all.

The climbing steps stopped, and were replaced with normal heavy footsteps. They were unbearably close, and the colt could hear his heart beating in his chest again. First, when he was up against the manticore (and slightly before that when he thought it was something else entirely). After that, it was when the trees started growling. Yet, he knew he could control his fear.

A purple and black creature finally came into view. Azure's blood ran cold when he looked upon it. There was no questioning what had stepped right in front of him this time. While, like the manticore, it had a lion's body and head, it had a second head resembling a goat. And that tail was a gray snake, not a regular tail at all. It took slow, steady steps toward him, and Azure realized he was frozen stiff.

"C-chimera...?" The colt's eyes widened. This wasn't anything like the manticore, partly because it didn't look mad, but ravenous, just as it had that one night back when he went camping.
-------
"N-no...not this...!"

He was still very young then, and hadn't yet earned his cutie mark. It was a summer camping trip, not too long after that year's Summer Sun Celebration. Even as a kid, Azure had a tendency to explore on his own, and even though it was night and they were in a relatively unfamiliar part of the forest, like the idiot he was back then, he'd wandered off.

Of course, his impeccably horrific sense of direction was even worse than it was now, so as expected, the younger Azure Courage got lost. Yet this didn't scare him so much as it did frustrate him. However, that soon changed when he came across a snarling beast of a monster. And it wasn't a vegetarian...no, it was something far worse.

It was the first and only chimera he'd seen until now. It had a green snake for a tail, a silvery goat's head with antlers as gold as the rest of its body. It was actually a lioness's body, not that it really mattered to Azure. It was a traumatic moment for him. He stared death in the face, and for the life of him, he could not move away from the paralyzing stare of the two heads. It growled menacingly, an act which would haunt Azure's dreams for the rest of that year, and would appear sporadically in nightmares he'd had since then.
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Azure remained completely frozen, unaware that the chimera was now moving past him, slowly advancing toward Twilight. The others had not even noticed this.
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"What do I do...I'm too scared to move...Twilight's in danger...the others are in danger..."

Azure continued to be frozen as the chimera drew closer, licking its lips ominously. It was the first time in his life that the colt could say he was completely terrified of what he was looking at. The chimera drew closer, but abruptly, a crimson-colored blast of magic came from nowhere, and stunned the chimera. It turned from its would-be meal, and growled menacingly.

"D-dad?!" Azure asked. His father paid him no mind, and charged the chimera, who in turn charged him. His father put the best fight of his life against the creature, and instinctively the young colt turned away, afraid his father would die right in front of him if he kept looking. He could hear the sound of magic being used, and of branches breaking. He could hear the growls of the chimera, which sounded angrier the more it apparently got hit. Suddenly, the chimera gave a terrifying roar, and Azure instinctively shrunk.

"Son?" his father called. He refused to budge. "Son, get up! The chimera's gone..."

It was a blur. He didn't even really remember what he did after looking up to his father. What he could remember of the event was crying, sobbing near-incoherently, about how scared he was of the chimera, and how he did not deserve his name, a sensation that now replayed in his mind as he realized he still couldn't move past that old fear.

But then the memory fully returned, what his father said just after Azure had wished he was as brave as his father was.

"We did not mis-name you, son," his father said, nuzzling him. "Being afraid is nothing to be ashamed of. Fear is what makes us real ponies. The truth is, I was just as scared as you were."

"B-but...you didn't look scared..." said the younger Azure, looking up to his dad.

"The fear of losing you overcame the fear of that beast." his father said. "That's what 'Courage' is. You haven't really had an opportunity to prove your name, but aside from your color, you took after me. My name, son, is 'Burning Fortitude'. Fortitude is almost the same as courage. Both have next to nothing to do with bravery. It's about fighting your fear, being able to protect the ponies close to you when the moments counts. That's one case, anyway, but it's probably the one I've lived by the most."

"Huh...?"

"How do you think I met your mother?"
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Sweet Celestia, Azure thought, his legs starting to tremble less and less, and his face starting to morph from stunned to angry. That is what my name means...'Courage' isn't just being brave...it's overcoming one's own fear...no matter how bad it gets...Dad was right, the antics Virid, Blitz, and me got up to weren't much more than the feather that tickles the iceberg! No. It's defined by what I do here and now!

The cyan colt's ears stood on end as he realized he could hear the sounds of a singular scream.

"Get away!" Twilight screamed, more out of frustration than anything, though Azure could make out a measurable amount of fear in her voice. She also sounded confused as well, as if asking "what is a chimera doing here". It was enough.

He could hear the shouts of the others, but given he was closer, he had a good three second head-start on them. His hooves rapidly hit the ground. Sure enough, the purple chimera was staring down Twilight, or rather, the Elements she was in front of. Azure knew one thing and one thing alone: it was time to earn his name.

"Hey, ugly!" Using his magic, he seized the nearest piece of debris he could and flung it straight between the chimera's eyes. The chimera turned to him, and uttered a terrifying growl, one that would make each hair on a pony's pelt stand on end. Azure was not as affected as he would have been, a sense of duty now fueling his reserves. "Get away from her!"

He continued his rush, forgoing the fact he knew a couple of spells for the time being, and engaged the chimera directly when it jumped down in front of him. The chimera raised up on his hind legs, and slammed its forepaws down where Azure would have been had he not moved underneath the chimera and, once more using his horn as a lever of sorts on a rather large crack in the masonry below, sprang up onto his forelegs and slammed his rear legs straight into the chimera's stomach area.

Thanks again, Crimson, for that guide, though I've got to admit this is the first time I'm putting that move into practice... Azure thought, immediately wedging himself out from the crevice before the chimera recovered. That move obviously wasn't enough to beat it, and judging from the way the serpent-like tail lashed at him-a move he could barely dodge-it would take a bit more than that to run this thing off.

"Az!" This was Applejack, but for obvious reasons Azure couldn't look to confirm where she was. "You need help?"

"Think it'd be better for you to stand back--agh!" He was cut off by the snake-like tail again lashing at him, which in his position he couldn't do much about except dodge in the awkward position he was in.

"That thing's gotta be at least four times your size!" This was Rainbow Dash, who he could barely hear over the sounds of his own heartbeat and the chimera trying to get him again with its hissing tail. "C'mon, Az! Even I know a pony can't take it on by himself!"

Azure continued to keep his focus, dodging the concerns for now and decided on a course of action. He never really had control over the spell he was about to use, but given it was either that or get bit by a tail he wasn't sure contained venom, he'd take his chances with it. Magic surged into his horn.

First thing's first, getting under it was a mistake...so...here we go... His horn glowed a bright cyan as he made his next move. A split-second later, Azure had his wish granted...but not in the way he wanted. While he was out from underneath the chimera, now he was on top of its back. And the chimera, aware its new quarry was now on its back, began thrashing about wildly, aiming to toss the colt off. The furry ground undulated on him, and at the same time, he could hear the serpent tail hissing at him, as though ready to strike should he try to hold on.

"Darn it...!" the colt grunted. It was a hard decision to do, but since he couldn't recall if chimeras' tails had venom or not, it was better he get launched through the air. Besides, he did know a rather handy spell. If memory served, Crimson was the one that showed him it. Eventually, the chimera he was standing on bucked him high into the air, and sent him hurtling towards a very solid looking wall. However, Azure knew enough about gravity from freegallopping to realize if he turned himself into a pencil, he would be pulled down faster.

Well, technically that was Crimson's stunt, but he didn't need this spell anymore to pull out of it.

"Azure, what do you think you're doing?" Twilight asked. "Let them help you! You won't make it away from this!"

Already the colt's horn was glowing again as he focused on another spell that he knew. Unlike with the warp spell, he knew he had a decent handle on this spell, considering he'd done it successfully quite a few times in the past whilst freegallopping alongside his cousins. Immediately, his descent began to slow. He was going to the ground at a high rate, but it wouldn't be enough to take him out. As soon as he got back on his feet, firmly, he stood straight up.

"I don't want your help!" he finally said, loud enough for the others to hear. "This fight's a personal one for me, anyway. Stay back!"

"'Personal'?" This was Twilight again. "You can't be serious! That thing can eat you alive!" When the chimera finally realized Azure was alright, it started charging. The time around Azure seemed to slow, and by sheer luck, he'd dodged to the left, just barely eluding the attack. The beast he was fighting halted, but it soon turned to him. Clearly, this chimera wasn't as dumb as a pony could assume it was. Again, the concerns of the others made themselves known, but all six mares were shouting over each other, doubting his sanity.

You know, even though he might make a snide comment about how I'm suddenly a mare magnet, I could really use Virid's help right about now...but I've got to make a good split second decision about this... Azure thought, taking a deep breath. The chimera growled and charged again. Time seemed to slow around him. He could just hear the others telling him to move, but he saw his salvation behind him: an overhanging piece of ruin. Azure quickly ducked, and by some luck, the chimera was stupid enough to pass over him when he went prone. Rather than get back on his feet, the cyan colt quickly turned over on his back once again, pulling in his legs. The partial arch was rather thick. Perhaps this part of the castle once had a high-rising ceiling, but over the years, had deteriorated to this large open space with an overhanging wall. Whatever the case, Azure knew he only had one shot.

He closed his eyes briefly in focus. A few moments later, he used yet another one of the spells he'd learned with his cousins. It was an offensive repulsion spell-essentially the opposite of a barrier. It was the same spell that his father had used on the chimera, now that he'd thought about it. The glow around his horn changed from the translucent glow that usually accompanied a spell use, and became opaque cyan, just before a bright magic blast shot up at the arch, and scored a hit.

The arch cracked away and broke. The chimera halted its trajectory toward Azure, and looked up, seemingly stunned by the falling debris.

"Hit the deck!" Azure heard Rainbow Dash yell out. A few moments later, the sound of pound after pound of rocks hitting the ground was heard, and so was a growl of defeat from the chimera. Dust was kicked up, and rubble rained down as the ruins were violated by the vibrations of the desecration. The shaking and the noise continued for at least ten whole seconds.

The cyan colt wasn't immediately aware he was coughing up dust as he rolled back onto his stomach, and shakily rose to his feet. He saw the rubble he'd created, and looked around. The others were safe, especially the flight-oriented ones. The other, ground-bound mares began to rise to their feet, save for Twilight, who was still near the Elements, lying down. However, she did raise her head to acknowledge the fact the rockslide was over.

"That..." she started, in apparent disbelief at what Azure had just done. "that was utterly reckless!!" Though she sounded angry, she didn't quite show it. None of her facial cues quite matched up with it. In fact, she looked like she was thinking about something else entirely, dazed from the thought. He wasn't quite sure what was going through her head, but he did know he was glad she was safe.

The colt looked away, not quite sure where he was going with that either. He looked to the rubble again.

"At least none of you were hurt..." Azure observed, more to himself than anything.

Somepony gave a slow inhale, as though to ask what was going through his head when he did, but it turned into a sharp gasp. Azure's eyes shot open, and a few moments later, a torrent of purple mist shot forth from the rubble.

"Watch out!" yelled Fluttershy, all meekness absent from her demeanor for that short moment. The mist went past Azure, though as it did, he could have sworn it was yelling at him. In that moment, he realized who it was going for. He whirled around on all fours, just in time to catch Twilight and the Elements being engulfed in the mist...

Again?! How many times do I have to save you, Twilight? Azure thought. He closed his eyes in focus, as though trying to concentrate. This was something that his cousins had taught him to do; in the chaos of the chimera fight, he'd forgotten clean about it.

If he truly wanted to retain a better level of magic control, he would have to clear his mind. The colt was hoping that it'd help him track down where Twilight had been abducted. The colt's horn began to glow. As the others turned to a not too far off sound, Azure realized where they had been taken...
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To say Twilight Sparkle's mind was in a whirl was an understatement. One moment, she's staring down an oddly-colored chimera, which in turn was staring at the Elements of Harmony. The next, Azure comes in and fights bravely against the beast - it was a wonder how he came out of it without getting hurt. Well, at least at the time. When she saw the purple mist rushing at her, she understood the chimera's purpose...and who the chimera really was.

Pushing those thoughts aside for now, the purple mare struggled back onto her feet with a groan, just in time to see a familar face guarding the Elements. It was an angry-looking Nightmare Moon, preparing to charge with her head lowered. Twilight knew she couldn't do much in a direct confrontation. She had to blindside her, and try to get that spark working.

Though, just before Nightmare had abducted her, she felt...strange, when the others came in to support her. However, she had soon banished it. She really couldn't have afforded distractions at that instant, nor could she afford them now.

The two ponies charged each other. Externally, due to the size and species difference, it was a total mismatch. As stated before, the purple unicorn knew full well what she was up against from the word "go", and wasn't about to try and attack her back like Azure had done (technically twice, considering she had to have taken the form of the chimera). As soon as Twilight and Nightmare Moon were within inches of butting heads, Twilight called upon a teleportation spell, and warped herself to the Elements. She crouched down, trying desperately to do as she had tried to before all the interruptions: charge up the five known elements.

Her plan was to supercharge the elements, and the resulting spark, in her mind, would have shown the sixth Element, whatever it was. Then those elements could have been used to defeat her. A magenta glow surrounded her horn and the Elements as she shut out all distractions. Twilight could feel the magic flowing from her into the Elements of Harmony that were on hand, but something was wrong.

Her tactic wasn't working as planned. She tried to force more into her attempt.

"Just one spark...come on..." The mare mumbled to herself. "Come on...!!" Her magic continued to flow, but abruptly, something shoved her back. She couldn't quite tell what it was, but given it wasn't burning, she'd guessed it was a telekinetic push, sort of like what had been used on Azure. Twilight bounced against the floor once before coming to a stop. She looked up, in time to see Nightmare Moon flinching at the sight of the still-glowing Elements.

As encouraging as this sight was, it didn't last. The magic energy that Twilight had fed the Elements soon faded, and the Elements fell to the floor.

"But, where's the sixth Element...?!" Twilight asked, a mixture of despair and defeat welling up inside her. Apparently, this was all it took for Nightmare Moon to see her attempt had failed, for she began laughing, just as she had right before knocking Azure to the side and the Royal Guards out.

"You little foal!" she cried. "You're just as much a foal as that contemptuous upstart that tried attacking me! His heroics, and yours, were for naught!" With this, she brought her hooves crashing down onto the Elements, shattering them. "Now you will never see your princess, or your sun! The night will last forever!" Then, the evil dictator carried on laughing.

To say Twilight was in despair at this event was an understatement. That was their last hope that just got smashed into pieces. She did not just let down those other ponies; she'd just let down her teacher. It was almost too much to handle. The mare did not even remember being coated in a dark magical field of some sort, her loss of hope too crushing for her to realize she'd been captured.

Her ear twitched abruptly, hearing an all too familiar voice, masculine in nature and sounding angry.

"Hey, Nightmare!"

Twilight's eyes snapped open. When did she start crying? It didn't matter. Her eyes were so wide that they had started to hurt. Right there, in front of Nightmare Moon, was Azure Courage, looking even angrier than he had against the chimera.

Please...stop...Azure... she thought to herself. The Elements of Harmony have been shattered...it's over... Strangely, even as her mind admitted this, the very last part of her sentiment suddenly didn't sound right. Puzzle pieces were twitching in her mind, but it was a movement so faint that it might as well have not been there.

"You again?" Nightmare Moon asked, ceasing her laughter at once. "Come on, now, don't you remember what happened at the town hall? I don't know why your bravery is so unshakeable...I looked into your mind, little foal; I had expected the chimera to freeze you a little longer!"

Twilight's mind already began to go to work. Was that why Azure was so delayed? Because he was scared of the chimera? If he was, he honestly didn't show it...

"Courage is a little more than being brave; you're about to find out what I mean!" To Twilight's half-surprise, the colt immediately charged the moon dictator upon saying these words.

There's a difference between having courage and being brash, Azure! The cyan colt's effort was unsurprisingly in vain. The alicorn's horn sparked, a cobalt color. A moment later, Azure hit something along the lines of an invisible wall, and was sent flying away. He landed square on his side, and slid quite a few feet back. However, he rose back to his hooves, struggling just a little.

"Why do you keep trying?" asked Nightmare Moon, sounding amused.

"Because I know what happens if I chicken out and give up!" This was Azure, crouching down, and his horn once again taking on the bright glow it had taken right before he brought one of the walls down on the chimera. Several more blasts of magic went rushing at Nightmare Moon.

"Do you intend to stop me all on your own?" The evil alicorn still sounded incredibly amused by his efforts, her horn once more glowing. "Please. You can't even hope to touch me the way you are." All of Azure's laser shots were reflected by a shield that had appeared around her the instant it appeared his attack would make contact. Some of the shots reflected into the walls, blowing them out, while the others actually went back to the charging colt, who had to make the best dodges of his life since he continued advancing. However, one clipped him on the side.

He slowed down, grimacing in pain and slowing a little as he staggered on the afflicted limbs. The fur on his side was singed severely, and from the way he winced, Twilight assumed he'd also gotten burned by the passing blast.

"You aren't even worthy to clean the dirt from my helm much less lay a single hoof on me!" A storm started above, just as it had back at the town hall, and in a short moment, Azure was nearly struck by one bolt of white lightning. "Maybe you should bow before me!" Another bolt, another shaky dodge from Azure, who just barely avoided being struck down. "I might be willing to forgive you!" A third bolt cracked down right in front of the cyan colt, who halted his advance immediately.

He was soon wreathed in a cobalt glow, and lifted into the air. Nightmare Moon approached him.

"Being a knight in shining armor is so overrated." Had Twilight been paying less attention, she'd have thought the night princess was insulting her older brother, but that was beside the point. Azure dangled helplessly, though Twilight couldn't see his facial expression again. "Especially when there's no light in the sky except for my own!"

"That won't be forever," Azure said. "Sooner or later, you will meet your better."

"You don't appear to know the meaning of futility, do you?" Nightmare Moon responded. "I've destroyed the Elements of Harmony! If you didn't already hear, that means this resistance you're putting up is even more futile than it was already!" With that, she chucked the cyan colt a long way. Twilight felt herself choke as the despair came rushing back to her. Not only was she trapped in the magical barrier, but once again she was reminded of her failure. Azure took his sweet time rising to his feet, even as Nightmare Moon slowly began trotting toward him. His horn was alight once again, a cyan hue coating it. It glowed vividly as he continued his quiet focus.

"Even if you have destroyed the one thing that could supposedly defeat you, is there really any way that I can give up?" Azure asked, his horn still glowing, a look of complete inner focus on his features. Twilight could say one thing: she'd never expected such a look from him. "I will see this through to the end!"

"How noble..." responded the alicorn. "Making a last stand, hm? You must really enjoy exercising futility. Take your best shot, if you can."

Azure's face betrayed only the start of a smirk.

"With gusto."

An impossibly large laser rushed forth from Azure's horn, and suddenly, Twilight realized that the colt's laser wasn't even aimed at Nightmare Moon. It was heading right for her.

"What are y--" She started, unable to even finish, catapulted out of her despair for a brief instant by the sudden change. The laser made contact with the shield and vanished soon afterward, and only after a few seconds did she realize what Azure intended to do. While the initial impact did not appear to do anything, a crack appeared on the impact zone just a little while later.

He-he disrupted it...!? Twilight didn't know whether to be angry or thankful for this save he'd performed, since his attack could have just as easily hit her hard. Yet, he'd saved her, and that was all that really mattered. Until she'd remembered what Nightmare Moon just said. Oh right, it doesn't matter what we do...

The shield began to crack and break away. As soon as Twilight was free from the barrier, she began to fall. Calling upon her vast knowledge of spells, she too began doing the teleport spell. Most of the time, she'd been able to cast it without a hitch, and after a quick inhale, she cast it.

The purple mare found herself at the side of a collapsed Azure. He was breathing heavily, sweating from the exertion. She looked up to the angry-looking Nightmare Moon, who took a few steps back. The look of anger, however, was once again replaced with a look of malicious amusement.

"So you managed to save her, did you?" Nightmare Moon asked. "You foolish upstart, don't go thinking that things will suddenly turn in your favor now that you've freed her! I've already smashed the Elements!"

The dark alicorn paused, turning her back to them for a moment.

"Azure, are you alright?" Twilight asked.

"Fine..." he responded, trying to get back onto his feet. All he managed to do, however, was collapse again. "...Killer migraine..."

The purple mare had a sneaking suspiscion he was masking his physical pain, but he had just supercharged that spell just to free her. It was no surprise that he'd be out of breath from something like that after all that he'd suffered through.

Nightmare Moon suddenly whirled around to face them, her eyes alight with more malice than before, if that was even possible.

"I've rendered my judgment! You two little foals can join your princess!" Her horn began to glow. Twilight braced herself, completely ready for what was to come.

"Stop it right there, Black Snooty!"

The purple mare turned, caught completely off-guard. Right there, in the doorway behind them, were the other five mares. It was obviously Pinkie that did the speaking, judging from the voice.

..These five ponies...they've...come...Certainly they must have heard, and if so, doesn't that mean...

"We're not going to let you hurt our friends!" This was Rainbow Dash, looking as ready to fight as she had back at the Town Hall. This time, however, all five were just waiting to charge. "And I'm not going down without a fight."

Twilight Sparkle found herself surveying the five mares that had entered. Nightmare Moon had stopped her attack.

"Do you honestly believe you five will make a difference?"

Fluttershy's unusually fierce look diminished only a bit, but she did not appear to be backing down significantly. Seeing those five mares there gave Twilight new hope. Knowing these six ponies would be there for her in her time of need, even after how she'd treated most of them--

Something suddenly rushed through her, a warmth so indescribably blissful that it outdid even the greatest book she'd read up until that point in her life. With this warmth came a sudden awakening. The puzzle pieces clicked completely into place. Everything suddenly became clear to her.

"Nightmare Moon! Did you really think that you can destroy the Elements of Harmony just like that?" Twilight asked, coming back to her senses, her will to continue fully restored. She was just about as enlightened as she needed to be. "Well, you're wrong, because the spirits of the Elements of Harmony are right here."

"What?" Nightmare Moon asked, completely caught-off guard, taking a few more steps back. The fragments of the shattered Elements began to glow and fly about the room, towards the mares.

Twilight hadn't even considered the possibility until she was sitting down with the Elements, right after Azure went just outside the room. But it wasn't until she'd felt that surge she'd had not too long ago that she knew that possibility was the truth.

"Applejack, who reassured me when I was in doubt, represents the Element of Honesty!" The fragments of the element rearranged themselves, forming a necklace around the earth pony's neck. She continued to go down the list, in order of their occurence. Fluttershy's calming of the manticore allowed Twilight to see she was the spirit of Kindness. Pinkie's laughing...well, that lent itself to the Element of Laughter. Rarity's generosity, stunning as it was, outed her as the spirit of Generosity. Lastly, there was Rainbow Dash, "who could not abandon her friends for her own heart's desire", represented the Element of Loyalty. Those were the five known elements represented.

"The spirits of these ponies got us through everything you threw at us." Twilight finished.

"But, you don't have the sixth element!" Nightmare Moon shot back. "Unless..." Her gaze focused on Azure, who was struggling to his feet, looking to the others with an expression of wonder almost alien to him.

"Though he certainly has the spirit to get us through this, and without his help we couldn't have gotten this far," Twilight began. "Azure Courage is not a spirit of the Elements of Harmony."

"Then the spark didn't work! Why are you so happy?!"

"It was a different kind of spark that went off in my heart..." The purple mare said, turning to the other ponies, keeping an eye on the still-exhausted Azure, who was stumbling a little as he moved slightly away from the others. "I felt it the very moment I realized exactly how happy I was to hear you, to see you, how much I cared about you." It was something she'd never thought she'd say. And, in that moment of clarity, Twilight knew one other thing.

She was wrong to say the fate of Equestria didn't rest on her making friends.

"The spark ignited inside me when I realized you all are my friends! You see, Nightmare Moon," The purple eyes of the mare trailed up to the ceiling as she turned back to the alicorn, where something else was beginning to form: a tiara. "when those Elements are ignited by the spark that resides in the heart of us all," She wasn't immediately sure if that statement completely applied, considering the truth about Azure. "It creates the sixth Element, the Element of Magic!"

The sixth Element was her own element; she represented it. She floated close to the other mares she'd befriended that night, and all of them were surrounded by a uniform, white glow. Twilight knew the six other ponies she'd seen that day were going to be her best friends forever. Yet, even as the power of the Elements raged around her, and Nightmare Moon gave shrieks of defeat, the purple mare knew that the puzzle was not quite complete yet.

Azure's piece wasn't yet slid into place. If he wasn't a spirit of an Element of Harmony, then what could his role have been among the Elements...?

The power surged through Twilight's body. Her eyes shot open, revealing white pools of glowing light. Then, the mare's consciousness completely left her.
----------
Azure stirred back to consciousness. His head pounded like he'd just done his Twilight-saving stunts a million times in a row uninterrupted and then lifted an entire castle for a full minute with his magic on top of that. His vision eventually corrected itself. Though he was grateful to see the fact nopony aside from Nightmare Moon was harmed by the output of such massive magical energy, the way in which she was quite surprising. Yet, it made total sense at the same time.

The six of them all represented the Elements of Harmony. The fact that a pony could double as a spirit went right over Azure's head at the time, but somehow, it made sense, given what'd he'd witnessed from the mares during the escapade, at least, the five he'd known before this. Twilight being the spirit of the hidden Element, Magic, really surprised him. At least, until, now that he thought about who she was-the sun princess's personal student...it did make sense on that front too.

Even with the fact Nightmare Moon had been defeated; judging from the way she screamed as the double rainbow cannon was engulfing her, Azure couldn't help but feel just a little gypped. He'd spent three years braving jeers from his family members and preparing himself physically and magically, and yet the best he did was earn his name. These six, five of which hadn't even known that the Mare in the Moon was soon to return, had only just gotten into the myth and blasted her away. However, he wasn't quite right to feel that way.

So what am I then? Azure thought, looking over to the still-unconscious mares. Simply by becoming friends, they tapped into the powers of the old relics and defeated Nightmare Moon. It would explain why I felt pulled to them, at any rate. Still, though...makes me wonder what I am in relation to them, if anything? If I'm not an Element, then what am I?

The six mares began to move about, and only here, the cyan colt realized something: Rarity's tail had somehow been restored.

"Ugh, my head..." Rainbow Dash was the first to rise to her hooves, groaning.

"Everypony okay?" Applejack asked, the others finally getting to their own feet.

"Oh, thank goodness!" This was the white unicorn realizing that her tail was back at its full length, curled just as it had been when she'd passed it off to the serpent. She apparently started to hug her tail.

"Why, Rarity, it's so lovely..." Fluttershy said, her meekness all but gone at this point, though Azure had a suspicsion that she was more used to her than she was to him. Even after a week he'd struggled to get a response. He had a funny feeling it had to do with his gend--

"I know!" Rarity said, obviously still elated that her tail was restored. "I'll never part with it again!"

"No, your necklace..." the meek yellow pegasus said, pointing to it. "It looks just like your cutie mark."

It was only now that Azure could fully understand what the Elements of Harmony had reconstructed themselves into during Twilight's explanation. He'd paid almost full attention to the actual defeat and hadn't really noticed the details under after the effect. Sure enough, all five necklaces did bear the symbols in question. The tiara did too. The mares in the room took turns complimenting each other's physical element or gloating over their own, whichever fit their character more. Abruptly, all of them stopped conversing among each other, and all turned to the elementless colt, who flinched from the twelve eyes now focused on him. All six were, surprisingly, at a loss for words at the moment.

Certainly, it probably should have been awkward, considering he too did his part, but wasn't himself an Element.

"That just leaves...you..." Twilight said at last. "I...I don't know where you fit in here, but...you've got to fit in somewhere..."

After some quiet consideration on the part of the mares, it was Rainbow Dash who said something surprising.

"'Fit in', nothin'! Those moves he did on the chimera were awesome!" Surprisingly, the pegasus in question wasn't exalting herself directly. There was a collective murmur of agreement, somewhere during which Azure believed that he'd simultaneously wooed six females during his show of heroics. However, it was a belief that passed away soon enough. Good timing, since Twilight spoke up afterward.

"Of course, we couldn't have done it with you, Azure..." Abruptly, her expression changed, almost like she'd realized something. It was sort of like the look she sported right before Nightmare Moon had abducted her, but the look faded soon afterward, and she did not elaborate further. It was here, the cyan colt noticed something. With Nightmare Moon defeated, the ruins they were in; the hallway, seemed a lot lighter than it did before. Probably because the night dictator was defeated, meaning the sun could rise as it was supposed to...however long ago it was. The unicorn knew he'd lost track of time somewhere between the cliff and the manticore. No, before that.

"Reckon what ya said is true, Twilight," said Applejack, circulating back to the known factors in Nightmare Moon's defeat. "We really do represent the elements of friendship."

The purple mare addressed inhaled, as though to correct her new friend, but a new voice, one that Azure knew he should remember, but couldn't remember who it was, echoed throughout the scene.

"Indeed you do..."

At first, the group looked about confused, as though trying to determine where the voice was coming from. All of them chanced to look out the window at roughly the same time, and saw a faint white light heading right for them. Twilight seemed to know what was going on, as she had before. Not that Azure could see from his angle...

Of course, even if he wanted to ask what was happening, he didn't need to. Within moments, the approaching light morphed into a figure that, now that the colt thought clearly, he really should have seen coming, what with Twilight being her student and Nightmare Moon being her worst enemy and all that.

The figure in question was a white-furred alicorn, a stark contrast in itself to the dark blue that the evil one had sported. Also, her mane, like Nightmare Moon's, flowed, but in a more elegant movement rather than a wild storm. It was a mixture of colors, purple, green, blue...Magenta eyes scanned the scene. Her aura was all benevolence...for somepony that had probably been sealed up somewhere while Nightmare Moon was out doing evil.

"Of course, I have to admit, I didn't quite expect you..." It was not hard at all for Azure to guess who she was referring to. Of course, all the ponies immediately bowed to the reappearance of the sun princess, Azure included. Just from the corner of his eye, he could see Dash in one of her rare instances of being grounded as she too bowed down. She emitted such a presence that even Virid was compelled to bow, and he was one of the most disrespectful unicorns that Azure knew.

This alicorn was Princess Celestia, the exalted ruler of Equestria, raiser of the sun, and as Azure understood, Twilight's mentor. Azure's gaze was focused on the floor. If the princess didn't know why he was here, then all this really was one big happy accident on his part.

All Twilight could do right before the bow was gasp her mentor's name. It seemed like forever since the cyan colt had started bowing, but eventually the tension in the room relaxed, specifically when the solar monarch spoke again. Given that he could see the others had stopped bowing, he'd figured it was time to relax.

"Twilight Sparkle, my faithful student," Princess Celestia opened with, leaning over the addressed pony with a motherly affection that Azure found somewhat surprising. Briefly, he'd wondered precisely how long she'd been under her wing; and just as he'd considered that, he also came to the conclusion he'd known Pinkie Pie a little too long already since his mind's voice was chuckling to itself at the pun. "I knew you could do it."

Well, at least one of us wasn't being ridiculed privately... thought Azure as he recalled Twilight's first real conversation with him. They were both the only ones, to their knowledge, that had been worried about the upcoming incident, yet everypony else dismissed their concerns. The colt wanted to put a question to the whole situation, but he knew it wasn't his position to say anything; the princess seeming pleasantly surprised at his inclusion was enough for him.

"But..." The purple mare was at an utter loss for words at this, "You said it was all just an old ponytale..." The way she said it indicated that she had absolutely no idea what the sun princess was getting at.

"I told you that you needed to make some friends, nothing more." The sun princess said. Azure bit back an amused snort as he recalled precisely how cold Twilight was to the others at the party, and how she disregarded everypony but him later on--a fact which quickly bit the colt in the brain as he recalled what Rarity and Rainbow had thought about the two of them. "I saw the signs of Nightmare Moon's return and I knew it was you who had the magic inside to defeat her, but you could not do it until you let true friendship into your heart."

Azure Courage resisted the urge to breathe out, especially since he noticed now the monarch had shifted her attention to him. That benevolent demeanor did not diminish, but for a few moments, she said absolutely nothing. The cyan colt hesitantly bit his tongue.

"As I said before, I did not quite expect your inclusion, but given what happened, it is fortunate you accompanied them all the same." There was something in her tone that suggested there was more to this than she was letting on, but nopony really caught it, so Azure wasn't about to bring it up. He breathed a somewhat relieved sigh, though internally, he was still confused about his role in this, if anything.

"I was happy to help in any way I could," At this precise instant, the cyan colt was once again reminded that pretty much all of his helpful moments came when Twilight was in peril, but willed himself to remain stone-faced.

"You did much more than just help, Azure," said Celestia. Now this was different. She had just said she didn't expect him, so...

"What do you mean, exactly?" Wasn't that all he'd done since the eternal night thing began? Other than the chimera, and the move he did to set in motion Nightmare Moon's defeat, both of which being key contributions aside from making sure Twilight reached the ruins safely, he really felt like he didn't do a whole lot.

"Twilight already knows..."

Now Azure took a few moments to look at Twilight, who adopted a sheepish, yet bewildered demeanor.

"It was only a theory."

"It is true, you are not a Harmony Element, but there is a vital role you play despite that. You can not have harmony without courage." Again, her explanation almost felt vague, but it certainly fit. The others had their necklaces (Twilight having a tiara), and while his own little trinket didn't have any magical qualities that he was aware of, he was glad to have i--

A quick gaze at his left foreleg, where he'd tied his band, revealed something disheartening. His ears wilted considerably as he realized his parting gift was missing!

"M-my band!" This was Azure sounding as though the wind was knocked out of him. "I know I had it at the town hall!" How could he have missed not having it this long?

"Um..."

The sheepish-sounding voice wasn't Fluttershy. Right in front of his face, floating in front of him, was the dark blue strap of cloth. It was wreathed in a magenta glow, so it was obviously Twilight floating it. A few yards in front of him, Twilight looked almost awkward handing it off.

"Is this what you're looking for..." The mare seemed distracted with something on the back. "'Courage'...You mentioned this was your family's parting gift to you earlier, didn't you? You kinda lost it after you tried attacking Nightmare Moon at the town hall."

"Where'd you--?'

"I found it right before comin' up to the library," This was Applejack. "Been keepin' it in my hat this whole time. I can understand havin' somethin' like that close to your heart." There was the vaguest motion to her hat, and Azure found himself understanding, very briefly, what she was getting at.

"I see," Azure responded, relieved that his band had been found. "Twilight, if I can just--"

"Around your leg probably won't do...there's too much material here. It already flew off once while you were being reckless." The mare said, lowering the strap to Azure's eye level. Azure was just about to say something else when he felt the material slide under his mane, a bend in the fabric compensating for his horn. There was a knot tightly wound at the back of his head. Before he realized it, Twilight was done wrapping the band around his head. "I think this suits the band's purpose a little better."

Azure Courage suddenly found himself hoping that Rainbow Dash didn't see the fact he and Twilight both had headwear now suspiscious. Granted, hers was a magical object, his wasn't, but both did hold relevance to their place in harmony. Thankfully, that didn't come. What did come was statements of approval from the six mares. It was more or less along the same lines; they were all his friends now, and he could consider them his. Twilight made a comment about how his band--no, bandanna, fit, even though it wasn't magical, as he already knew, given his role among the mares.

Eventually, though, the sun princess cleared her throat.

"There is one last thing that remains undone..." she observed. "There is one other that needs to let true friendship into her heart..." She turned toward the direction where Nightmare Moon had been hit, and only now did Azure notice something, as did the others. The armor that the evil alicorn in question had been wearing was now shattered, scattered around a new, yet strikingly familar alicorn. Well, except for the part where she was now the size of the majority in the room.

Her fur was a light shade of blue, her mane very light blue. While the moon cutie mark was still present, and also seemed to be accompanied by the night sky now that her fur had lightened in color, this pony was somehow far different than the one she obviously had been for the better part of the night. How long had she been laying there? Azure didn't know how he could have missed her for this long, and a quick check on the others revealed that yes, they too had somehow not noticed.

"Princess Luna!"

The much, much smaller alicorn jumped with a timid, almost afraid-sounding gasp. Azure could perfectly read what was going on in those blue eyes: she was afraid the sun princess was going to banish her to the moon again; given what Celestia had just got done saying, however, that did not seem likely.

"It has been a thousand years since I've seen you like this. Time to put our differences aside." The cyan colt momentarily found himself amazed at how outrageously blunt (for a princess) the ruler was about the whole situation. However, what she said next made that make sense. "We were meant to rule together, little sister."

"Sister?" This was everypony else, though both of the royal sisters ignored this. Twilight quickly did a double take on what just happened, and rammed her face into her hoof, as though she'd completely forgotten something. She said something very quietly to herself, Azure only barely able to pick up the "book" thing. As soon as he heard the word, though, immediately the colt realized he'd forgotten that fact as well.

The tale did sort of say that the two princesses were sisters...

"Will you accept my friendship?" This was the white alicorn. Tension suddenly entered the room. It was true that Luna was no longer under the evil helm, but this probably didn't mean that she'd forgiven the past given what Azure remembered from the fable. After all, it was the resentment of the lack of nightlife in Equestria that gave birth to Nightmare Moon in the first place. Everypony that wasn't a princess found themselves leaning forward. In so doing, Pinkie leaned over too far, and her forehooves slipped, leading her chin to slam into the ground with a small squeak from the party pony.

Eventually, the tension in the room broke. The apparently purified Princess Luna completely broke down into tears. As the sisters had a rather tearful hug, the others in the room were treated to what kind of voice the re-instated Princess of the Night used.

"I'm so sorry! I've missed you so much, big sister!"

The others collectively winced. Hadn't the princess ever used her inside voice in her life? The sun princess, despite being point-blank relative to the borderline screaming voice her little sister just used, did not even flinch. However, the scene was still touching, and it was still enough for something heartwarming. A rather loud sob was heard on top of this, muting out whatever Princess Celestia responded with; it sounded vaguely like she was telling her to lower her voice just a little, though.

Azure turned his head to the left, seeing Pinkie Pie imitating a garden sprinkler and crying an impossible amount of tear-water from her yes. That pretty much summed up how touching the scene was, but just as quickly as she'd started, the waterworks ceased, and immediately the earth pony went back to being her happy self.

"Hey, you know what this calls for?" she asked as soon as she'd snapped back to her normal self.

"I have an inkling..." Azure mumbled. Nopony responded vocally, but everypony who heard him and knew Pinkie Pie personally giggled lightly. The rose-colored pony took in a deep breath.

"A party!"
----------
The victory celebration was relatively uneventful, Azure realized as he sat alone in his house that night. Well, there was a couple of things that came from this. One, Princess Luna was back to the side of harmony and would raise the moon again as soon as she'd recovered. Two, Twilight Sparkle was not returning to Canterlot as she'd initially hoped; seeing that her student now understood how cool friends could really be, Princess Celestia quickly allowed her student to remain in Ponyville to study the magic of friendship.

Had Azure not been involved in it, he might have scoffed a little at the notion of studying friendship. But seeing as how he paid witness to the whole thing, perhaps there was other aspects of interpersonal relationships that caused great magical power to be released.

Not that it really mattered to him. As long as he continued combining his magic with the martial arts he'd learned, he'd be ready to help the six mares as he had before. If he ever needed to again. With Nightmare Moon now purified back into the lunar princess, what was a pony that had prepared for that catastrophe left to do except go back to a normal lifestyle?

"Guess I should at least tell my family the news, if they didn't already gather..." Azure pulled aside a quill, an ink bottle, and a blank piece of parchment. "So they know the score, and all..."

"To my family:

I'm sure you're wondering why the night lasted as long as it did...Uh, yeah, guess who was right this year? If you don't know, Virid, I might have to hurt you next time I see you. As it turned out, Nightmare Moon came back! I can't take the credit for doing it all on my own. Those five mares, plus one more that just moved in yesterday were the ones that landed the last hit. I helped.

So anyway, you know, I really hope you guys apologize for the stuff you'd given me now. I may have been wrong three years in a row, but fourth time was the charm!"

"Gloating, are we?"

Azure leapt a solid six inches out of the chair at his desk, sprawling at his side. He looked, and saw the same princess he'd seen earlier that same day after Nightmare Moon had been defeated. White fur, flowing mane despite the total lack of wind in the room, magenta eyes...which, strangely, appeared to be more amused than anything else.

"P-Princess...?" His voice came out at a higher pitch than he intended. Shaking off his rather uncolt-like outburst, he continued. "Uh...if I may ask, how long were you behind me?"

"Just long enough to hear you'd been following Mare in the Moon for four years..." She didn't sound angry about that fact, not that Azure could tell anyway. "I am sure you had your reasons for it, though..."

The cyan colt was not at all sure what the sun princess was doing here in his home, and remained silent while he tried to process things as he rose to his feet. However, his processes weren't entirely working at full capacity considering he wasn't expecting it at all, so he waited for her to say what she wanted to say.

"There is more to what my student said earlier," said Celestia, answering the colt's unspoken question. "You see, it is true that harmony can not be attained without courage, but there's just a bit more to it than that. During my time inside the sun while Nightmare Moon was freed--" Azure inhaled, ready to ask how, when he remembered it did make sense in its own way, "I had been watching your progress, and I must say, I certainly did not expect this to come out."

"You didn't mention it earlier..." Azure thought aloud. "Why?"

"Azure Courage," Princess Celestia began. "while you may not be an Element Bearer, you are, however, a Protector of the Bearers."

The unicorn felt his heart skip a few beats. Granted, he'd spent most of the night protecting one of the so-called 'Element Bearers'--a certain bookworm came to mind, but...all six of them?

"That is, if you want to," she continued. "I'd noticed something during your part in the skirmish..."

Azure bit back the urge to grit his teeth.

If you indicate I have a crush on Twilight, I'm going to pass out.

"You had a certain ability to fight with your magic and your body, certainly a quality of any knight. And your role, 'courage', feeds into that role better than anypony. Had you not acted in defense of Twilight, the others would not have been able to defeat Nightmare Moon." The solar princess explained. The cyan colt exhaled a small sigh of relief.

"Okay, I'll do it," Azure said. "Even if you hadn't come out with the 'Protector' thing, I knew I'd wanted to keep helping. It may sound a bit weird for me to say it, but they're all my friends, and, as my father taught me long ago, courage is being able to overcome one's fears for the sake of others."

"Glad to hear it," said the princess. "I must take my leave now, but I must implore you to keep your role a secret. If I know my faithful student, she's bound to take it the wrong way, to say nothing of what the other Bearers would think."

"Wait a moment, before you go, Princess, I have a question...about Princess Luna." Azure said. It had been nagging at him ever since he'd seen her. She was a dwarf alongside her sister!

"She isn't quite used to the times," said the solar princess.

"Oh no, I meant...why did she...come out of Nightmare Moon's armor so...small?"

"Well, she is my little sister..." She seemed to giggle at this little pun she made, and Azure instinctively snorted a little and bit back the urge to shake his head. "Truthfully though, she isn't back to how she was before she became Nightmare Moon. I'm sure Twilight could have told you the very same thing, though..."

Her horn became coated in an amber glow.

"And please remember, keep your role a secret..." she repeated, teleporting off, probably back to Canterlot. Azure stood there, blinking, taking in precisely what he'd agreed to.

To protect the Bearers, who happen to be my friends...well, why not? I'd have fought all those trees if Pinkie hadn't cut in with her laughing in the face of danger, after all. And as for the secret thing, well, I am not going to tell anypony anyway. Virid'd joke about it 'til we're old stallions at the end of our lifespans.

"Guess I'd better finish my letter..." Azure said, though underneath the calm, collected exterior, his sparkling brown eyes betrayed his excitement. It wasn't quite the life of adventure he'd expected, but hey, he'd been wrong before. "A Protector of the Bearers...I'm sure they can handle themselves, but there might be some enemies that they won't be able to handle on their own. That's probably why..."

Realizing he was thinking aloud again and not wanting to risk Pinkie teleporting herself into his home unannounced, the cyan colt turned his full attention back on finishing up his letter.

"Seriously, apologize, Virid. Those Paranoia jokes were uncalled for. As for the rest of you, I guess we can put it behind us, right?

Still Living in Ponyville,

Azure Courage"

"Alright, I'll get this sent in the morning." The pony said to himself. "And I need to learn to stop thinking aloud when I'm alone. Guess I'll clear my mind, then go to bed..."

And with that, Azure Courage did just as he said he was going to do. He found himself struggling to go to sleep given the sudden excitement he'd went through. For some reason, all he could think about was the task he was assigned, and what had happened against Nightmare Moon. If he was to protect the others from things like that, then that was what he'd do.

That sort of thing was in his name, after all.
------------
For the record, no, Azure is not going to ever be a seventh Element. Technically, by virtue of what he is to the others, he IS, but on a literal level, he's not going to suddenly become a living magical nexus like the Mane 6.

Even though episode re-enactments will be in this, this adaptation of canon will contain things that will make Azure's "skill" useful. Otherwise, it wouldn't be until Discord where Azure would be seen fighting seriously, and we all know how that would turn out. If anyone says I'd make Azure win that fight, clearly you didn't read the last two chapters.

So after Nightmare Moon's defeat, you have Azure's role here, and the premise for this fic. I promise I'll get back on CC, but I'm still wondering exactly how well this stacks up. Leaving a downvote is alright, just tell me why you feel that way. Same for upvotes too. I want feedback.

Chapter 5: Azure's Letters to Home I

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Author's Note: Periodically, chapters like this will be made if nothing really specific could be done with an episode. I promise that this story will eventually have more originality woven around the adaptation concept. Yeah, kinda messed up by not having Spike in this first part, but...
Chapter 5: Azure's Letters to Home I
-------------------------------------------------
To my family in Canterlot:

You would not believe the day I had. No, really, I wasn't even fully aware of what was going on! And I don't even know what the "Grand Galloping Gala" is! Is that okay, for me, a colt from Canterlot, to not know? Twilight seemed alright with it...I'll get to that soon enough.

As it turns out, Twilight Sparkle is Princess Celestia's student--sorry, Most Faithful Student, to use her exact terms. That would explain the entire thing with the two tickets earlier. From what I can gather, the others I'd met on Day 1 were driving her absolutely crazy...
-------------------
Azure Courage was enjoying a day off from his job. It was one of those days where the country ponies didn't really have a lot to build, so he'd gotten off around lunch time. After that rain had passed, the cyan colt had decided to pass some time just by walking around town, seeing what he could do for fun around here. He wasn't quite sure what he'd do with himself. He knew he should have been training to protect the Element Bearers from potential harm, but he couldn't imagine what would harm them. Nightmare Moon was purified now, and had been happily living as Princess Luna (to his knowledge) for about five or six days.

On the verge of going back to see if he could write a rap about...anything, really, Azure suddenly felt somepony collide into him full force on his side, knocking the wind out of him. For some inexplicable reason, he and the pony that had run into him were sent rolling, straight into some bushes, through said bushes, and into a clearing. It was only here that the momentum stopped, and it was here that the cyan colt realized he couldn't see a thing.

"Oh gosh, Azure?!" Twilight's voice rang out, and a few moments later, the retreating purple chest of a pony came into view. She rubbed at the area where his horn must have stuck her, but thankfully, there wasn't a big puncture wound right there.

"Twilight, where's the fire?" Azure asked, now only annoyed that she'd collided with him. The look of concern on her face was replaced with one of frustrated terror.

"O-oh, oh no! Don't tell me you want the second ticket to the Grand Galloping Gala too?!" shouted the lavender mare. Azure was utterly confused.

"The Grand Galloping...what now?" It was quite odd that he shouldn't know. It sounded fancy enough to be a Canterlot event.

"Don't play dumb with me!" It was here Azure realized that Twilight was, inexplicably, at the end of her rope. "You probably want to go...to...to...to see what color you can spill that'll stain the most!"

"The word you used to describe me is 'reckless'," Azure retorted, only softening slightly. He was just irritated at the fact Twilight was accusing him of wanting something he didn't even know what it was. Did she honestly take him for a foal? "Not 'stupid'. What is the Grand Galloping Gala, or whatever you said it was?"

"You mean...you don't know what it is?" Her expression changed again, this time to one of utter bewilderment; clearly, she was caught off-guard by what he was saying.

"I don't know what it is, but it sounds too fancy for me. Whatever it is, I'm sure I have no interest in going." Azure said flatly. Now that he thought about the name, it sounded like something he didn't want a part of. Did he look like an effeminate sea serpent? Far before the cyan colt could react, Twilight was once again within leg's length to him, and inexplicably threw not one, but both of her forehooves around his neck, pulling him up into an awkward position with her, and squeezing him close like some kind of stuffed toy.

"Oh, thank you, thankyou, thankyou, thankyou!" Twilight squealed. The cyan colt had no idea what to think about the fact that she'd hugged him like this, but he did know one thing.

"Twilight, Twilight," Azure wheezed, patting her back to inform her of what she was doing wrong. "You're...hurting me..."

"The others have been driving me crazy about the other ticket! They all have good reasons to go, but I can't pick which one without hurting the others..." The mare continued to list what was wrong, a little wobble in her posture, but that was slightly because Azure himself was starting to wobble.

"Seriously, Twilight...I can't...breathe..." By now, the cyan colt had decided to conserve his strength, and let his hoof dangle at its side like nature intended.

"All I want to do is sit down and eat something so I can think hard about it, but I'm not getting any space, and--" Only now, the purple mare realized what she was doing. "Oh, gosh, I'm sorry!"

Azure flopped over like a dead fish, his chin and forelegs now resting against the crowd after Twilight inelegantly dropped him on his face. He tried to force air into his lungs before he passed out from a lack of it. He continued to idle out with his rump high in the air, not really sure what to say.

"Sorry the others have an interest in--wait, Rainbow Dash is interested in this?!" Azure finally realized what Twilight was saying. That tomboyish mare-interested in anything fancy?! He could certainly imagine Rarity being interested. Aside from Rainbow Dash, he was at least somewhat sure the others had good reasons, barring Fluttershy-he couldn't really understand why she'd want to go to a social event as big as it sounded.

"She says the Wonderbolts would be there." He couldn't see what Twilight's expression was, but something sounded off in her tone. If he didn't know better, she was calculating something, or--

"Oh. That explains everything." Azure said, starting to get back to his feet. "Well, I don't think the ponies chasing you saw where you went, so--"

A storm of voices in the distance immediately sunk that idea.

"Say, Azure," Twilight said in a very sweet tone, sweeter than he'd imagined her able to pull off. Bewildered, he turned to see the purple mare with an unreadable smile on her face. "Do you want to help me out?"

"I don't attack other ponies without--" Azure started, not getting what she wanted him to do at all.

"Of course you'd think that first..." The mare said snarkily, not even bothering to hide her impatience.

"Then what do you want me to do?" The colt responded, raising an eyebrow and closing his eyes to calculate the immediate odds, pressing a hoof to his forehead. "You've got about ten seconds before--"

He hadn't even been aware that Twilight's horn had started to glow, so he didn't think anything was wrong. It was only when he opened his eyes to announce his full assessment that he broke off mid-sentence to stare at his foreleg.

It was purple now.

"Wha--?" Azure looked at himself. He was almost convinced that Twilight had switched their bodies somehow, but the fact his voice didn't sound like hers, and as he examined himself, his body was still the same, just colored different--purple, to be precise. He looked to Twilight, who herself had not changed her color. She was examining him closely.

"It worked!" she said. "We're about the same height...if we're lucky, nopony should notice..."

The colt felt his eye twitch. Where did she get off--

"So, what, you want them to chase me?" Azure asked.

"That's right...when you lead them away from here, I'll run back to the library!" Twilight announced. "Now go!" She then proceeded to telekinetically shove the colt out from the brush. Perfect timing, too, considering that a rather large throng of ponies was rapidly approaching, and he managed to cross their path just before they were to enter it.

"Hey, look, there's the mare with the tickets!"

"Doesn't she seem a little...colty, to you, now?"

"Doesn't matter, she's got the tickets! Get her!"

It was only now Azure understood precisely what Twilight was talking about. If an invite, a ticket, to that Gala turned normally benevolent ponies into mindless zealots, then he definitely didn't want any part of it. The pony tried to do a very Twilight Sparkle-like jump onto his hooves, which failed since he had no idea how the pony moved about before she crashed into him, and proceeded to gallop in any direction, leading the crowd on a wild goose chase. He made sure to grab as many ponies' attention as he could, running wherever he felt he could.

The years of free-galloping did give him an edge. Thankfully, the crowd of ponies didn't seem to be able to tell the difference between an athletic colt and a bookish mare. Azure was still a little mad that Twilight had to go and change his blue fur without his permission. She should have at least told him what she was going to do.

This better not be permanent, Twilight! he thought bitterly to himself as he continued to lead the ponies about. Alleys, roofs, streets, dull corners, sharp corners, he gave the stubborn crowd a good chase. However, the crowd was starting to gain on him, especially since it appeared to have doubled in size since Twilight shoved him out of the bushes.

Gotta make a quick getaway! The colt found a bridge, with a rather calm river flowing underneath it. He decided to run across this bridge, and see if he could lose them in the "dangerous" Everfree Forest. Granted, if the other mares he'd been charged to protect weren't going to fall for that, it would at least thin the crowd. However, something unexpected happened. Another crowd of ponies, smaller in size than the first, slid into view, blocking his path. As soon as he got on the bridge, they too, charged.

The colt took a look back to the river, and quickly came to a decision. He leapt off the bridge, jumping into the water. Swimming wasn't exactly Azure's strong suit, but it was simple enough to fight the weak water by pumping his forehooves and kicking his back legs with all of his might. He hid underneath the bridge. Thankfully, the crowd of ponies did not seem to follow him. He surfaced just out of sight under the bridge.

He checked his hooves. The purple color was starting to fade back into the cyan hue it normally had. Azure breathed in and out as water dripped off his mane and horn, having gotten some adequate exercise during the chase. He continued to tread the water underneath the bridge, listening to the retreating sounds of hoofsteps. As they faded out, he grit his teeth in frustration.

"The things a mare can make me do...!"
-------------------
It's a good thing that Twilight's color change spell was only temporary, otherwise I'd be busting the door to the library down demanding she return me to my blue color. I was called "AZURE Courage", not "Laven Fearless" or whatever would have been my name had I been born that color! At least I got my exercise for the day.

Anyway, that was what happened to me. If there is one thing I can safely say Twilight is correct on, it is this.

The ponies in this town are absolutely insane.

Signed,

Azure Courage

P.S. I'm not moving back home. Don't entertain that idea.
----
With that, the pony set the quill down. He looked out to the night sky, taking a deep breath.

"Well, that was an interesting day, to say the least. Now if only I could find time to write about it earlier..." said Azure. "Maybe if I befriend the mailmare...nah, she has her rounds to do, and I've got mine."

The cyan colt stood up after hearing a knock to the door.

"Huh, wonder who that would be?" He stood up, adjusting his headband with his magic as he trotted over to the door. He then proceeded to open it, and saw none other than Twilight Sparkle standing there. "Oh, hey."

"You aren't...still mad about that whole 'turning your fur purple' thing, are you?" she asked. Azure felt his brow crease.

"Just let me know when I can turn your fur a fitting color..." he responded. "So, you came over here to apologize for that?"

"Well, sort of," Twilight fidgeted. "I just wanted to thank you for agreeing to help me."

"I never actually agreed to help you, but I guess I couldn't have refused." Azure said.

"Actually, there's something else I'm here for too..." Twilight reached into the small bag she'd had wrapped around her body. Within a few moments, a golden-colored strip of paper, a ticket, levitated into Azure's view. He took it in his hold, a cyan glow overlapping the magenta one for a few moments. He floated it down in front of him.

"Wait a sec, you're taking me? Didn't I say--" Azure asked.

"Actually, you see, I sent a letter to Princess Celestia about how she'd only sent two tickets, and how I couldn't decide between each of my friends. She'd sent eight tickets in less than a minute after I'd sent her a letter. There's one for each of us, including Spike." Twilight said. "Honestly, I'd imagine she didn't want you or Spike to be left out."

Azure gave a small nod, really glad he wouldn't have five mares giving him a hard time or ribbing him about Twilight taking him over them. The last thing he'd wanted was for Rainbow Dash to be teasing him non-stop about the purple mare.

"I get it. Well, I guess it'd be rude of me to not go." the cyan colt said in response. "If anypony expects me to dance, they're bound to be disappointed..."

Twilight gave a small giggle.

"I don't plan on dancing either..."

Both paused, wondering where that came from.

"Well, see you tomorrow, then," The purple mare said.

"Bye, Twilight," responded Azure. The door swung closed by Twilight's hold, and, once more secluded in the privacy of his home, the cyan colt took a deep breath. He began walking back to his desk so he could fold up the letter to his family and prepare it to be mailed tomorrow, when a sudden realization hit him like a train.

"...what just...happened...?"
------------------
To Virid Strategem:

Just so you know, the strength of an earth pony is not to be underestimated. Given the right situation, they can be rather strong. Take, for example, a friend who happens to be a mare, Applejack, member of the Apple family. A strong, yet graceful one, if I do say so myself. Well, except for the past few days in which she'd run herself ragged trying to harvest several acres' worth of apples.

Surprisingly, she's doing a good job with actually harvesting the apples. What's she call it, "applebucking"? However, the rest of the town's suffered. Rainbow Dash got catapulted into the library, the town got stampeded by rabbits, and about ten ponies got food poisoning from some cupcakes. All this according to Twilight; well, the second one speaks for itself anyway.

Why? Because Applejack was charged with helping Rainbow, Fluttershy, and Pinkie, and in the end, she was too tired to do anything except kick apples down from a tree. Twilight's tried to talk some sense into her, but from what I can gather, she's apparently too proud to accept help.

Her fortitude in light of all this evidence should be admired. Kinda like you and your monstrous ego Virid. Whatever. Point is, something's up again and I'm bound to be sucked into it, if last week's incident with the tickets is anything to go on.

Signed,

Azure Courage
---------------
It really had been a crazy few days, Azure recalled as he set down the quill again. Though he had been needed to repair some damages around town this week due to all the damages caused during the stampedes, he had some time off for the day. The first thing he'd decided to do was go straight home and write about the orange mare's stubbornness. It did remind him a little bit of Virid, and also proved that the green unicorn's magical hubris was completely unneeded as well.

Applejack had saved the town from a stampede of cows, with a little help from her dog, of course. The next day, when she went to accept her award for her effort, she looked absolutely beat, and from there, things that she was involved in just deteriorated, as he'd already noted in his letter.

"Now to put this in the mail," he mumbled to himself. "The mailmare shouldn't have been by yet, so..."

He quickly threw together the letter components, and went outside to his mailbox to put the correspondence in. Without a doubt, it was a strange day indeed.

There was some details he didn't note in his letter, though. The "Applejack too stubborn to accept help" saga had ended yesterday, but there was one small detail he'd omitted in the letter, because he overall didn't feel like messing with Virid any more than he was already...
------------------
It was about late afternoon the preceding day, and Azure had gotten off work not too long ago. Some of the workforce had been unlucky enough to come into contact with Pinkie's horrifically botched cupcakes (courtesy of a sleepy Applejack), and his manager had, thankfully, cut the day somewhat short. Of course, he didn't get a whole lot of time to himself after his shift ended. Not too long after he'd left his workplace, he'd run across Twilight, who asked if he knew where Sweet Apple Acres was.

He had confirmed that he somewhat knew where it was, but only because he'd gotten lost. She gave him some directions from his house to get there, so he wouldn't get lost on the way. Twilight had decided enough was enough of Applejack's ego, and resolved to talk her down no matter what. While Twilight went to get the others, Azure was going to go up and see if he could do any better than the studious pony could at making her accept help.

For his part, he knew Applejack was stubborn by this point: the mare could barely stand under her own weight, yet insisted on harvesting those apples all on her own. From the one tree she'd kicked down on him, he'd have to assume she was pretty darn strong all on her own. Then again, she'd probably been doing it all her life.

It didn't take him long to reach the orchard, passing by a rather large red earth pony with a short orange mane and tail. He had a worried look on his face. From what Azure could see, there wasn't that much left...on one side of the orchard. Azure turned to the much larger male on his left, recalling that this one was Big McIntosh, though most of them called him "Big Mac".

From what the cyan colt could gather, Big had gotten himself hurt pretty bad, and Applejack decided to basically harvest the whole orchard on her own since her older brother couldn't do it. And even with that workload, she'd decided to help out Fluttershy, Pinkie, and Rainbow Dash, which only ended in disaster since she wasn't sleeping.

"So, does she know--" Azure turned to Big, ready to ask about the condition of the orchard.

"Nnnope..." the larger male said simply, not even faltering with the straw in his mouth. Realizing he probably wasn't going to get many answers out of the stallion at present, Azure decided to head down there himself. Though some of his body ached from some of the lifting he'd had to do that day, he was still in decent enough condition to manage a quick gallop down to Applejack's location.

Even though the colt knew he had a horrific sense of direction, it wasn't too hard to follow the sounds of apple trees being struck, and a mare's tired, overworked grunts accompanying the sound. Well, it sort of helped that she wasn't too far off from where her older brother was.

Azure almost couldn't help but feel a sense of deja vu, but seeing as how there were only two trees left on this side of the orchard and Applejack was about to fall over tired at anymore, he knew for a fact there wasn't going to be any more fruit kabobs on his horn.

The cyan colt inhaled to say something, but found that he couldn't quite get the words out right away, as an old memory came rushing back to him.

It had been his first day in Ponyville, and Applejack had been kind enough to point him in the right direction, even though she knew him all of about three minutes, if that. Also, the colt did remember a rather awkward moment in which he thought she was about to ki--

Trying his hardest to keep himself from turning bright red at the thought, Azure inhaled again, this time, much more sharply than he had before.

"Applejack, we need to talk," the cyan colt spoke up. Applejack didn't even turn, though Azure couldn't tell if it was because she was focused on her work or incredibly tired. "Applejack?"

"I heard ya the first time," the orange mare beligerrently responded. "But if you're here to offer me help, I don't need your help! I'm just about done!" She continued to kick at the tree, shaking down a few stragglers.

Azure found himself debating on whether or not he should tell her then and there about the fact only half the orchards had been bucked. Thanks to those lingering thoughts, he was able to decide against it.

"You also haven't been sleeping trying to get everything done. It is that obvious." Azure responded, taking another step forward. He still wasn't sure why he wasn't telling her right now that the apples were only half done, but didn't bother. "Bunnies aren't cattle."

Applejack was not listening to him, slamming her back legs repeatedly against the so-called last tree, knocking down the apples within. After kicking it a good six or seven times, she stopped, breathing hard. She looked up to the branches, and immediately, her face broke into an utterly exhausted expression of triumph. The cyan stallion found that he didn't exactly have the heart to tell her that only half the orchard was harvested.

"I didn't need your help!" she called out, looking almost relieved. "I harvested the entire Sweet Apple Acres without it! How do ya like them apples?"

"Um," Azure almost jumped out of his fur at the voice behind him. He looked, and with surprise he noticed that Big was there. While he pondered how someone so huge could have moved so fast without anypony noticing, the larger stallion said more words. This in itself wasn't surprising, except for the fact he didn't say more than one word to Azure. "how do you like..." He turned and pointed to the unharvested half of the orchard. "them apples?"

Applejack followed to where her brother was pointing, and what came out of her mouth next was only describable as an incomprehensible garble of inquisitions and curses about the condition. Finally, with a beligerent, though clearly exhausted snort, the orange mare began trotting toward the other half, though Azure could see the cracks starting to form in her determination.

"Wait a sec...!" The cyan colt grunted, knowing full well if Applejack continued to work, she'd probably literally collapse all over herself at this rate, more mentally than physically. Big said nothing, though his eyes warned Azure to be careful.

"Move it, Az, I've still got work left to do!" The dirty look she'd shot him was beyond acidic, but Azure didn't falter long enough.

"I'm sorry to say it, but I can't let you through here!" Azure countered. "You're beyond tired, and it shows in everything you tried to do recently. I'm sure Twilight's already told you this--"

"And I told her what I just told you--" Applejack's eyes momentarily glazed over, and she looked like she didn't even have the energy to be stubborn anymore. "I don't--" Her eyes suddenly darted elsewhere and her face screwed up, "I don't need your help!"

What was that? The cyan colt thought. "I'm not so sure you even believe that anymore after what you just saw!"

"I..." Applejack faltered again, this time with a yawn, but there was no mistaking that something he was saying was starting to get through to her. "I can do this! Ain't nothin' I can't handle!"

"Except when you try to handle it all at once!" Azure cut off the pony's advance again. He was surprised Big hadn't said anything up to this point, though he suspected it was because he'd already had this argument. He was arguing with his little sister, after all.

There wasn't much in the way of statements. Applejack said nothing, the glare she'd been more or less shooting him this whole time slowly softening.

"You've taken on everything at once, and all you've done is overwork yourself," he restated, taking a few small steps forward. "I can fully understand wanting to keep your word to everypony, but you're just one pony. When you have friends like me and the others, you don't have to shoulder this burden alone. Giving help is good, but sometimes a pony just needs to accept it too..."

Inexplicably, with no more than a small groan, Applejack finally toppled over, dead tired. However, due to the way they were standing, Azure ducked, not realizing right away what that would do. Her chin fell onto the nape of his neck, and he stood straight up in alarm.

He couldn't well call this a hug or a catch. The fact she'd fallen asleep on him was no more than a happy accident.

"Um..."

Azure's ears flicked up at the feminine voice, and turned to see the other mares he'd befriended standing there with varying levels of amusement and/or confusion on their faces. It was Twilight doing the speaking again.

"Are we...interrupting something?"

The cyan colt tried his hardest to prevent himself from blushing as he turned away from them, looking to the fallen mare.

"I think she's ready to accept help now..."
------------------
To my family:

Guess I'd better take this story from the top. It gets complex otherwise.

Well, things started innocently enough. Pinkie was doing that thing where she flies in the face of physics and chasing Rainbow Dash all around Ponyville. Either that or Rainbow Dash was practicing for the Wonderbolts again. Hard to tell. Anyway, the two quickly realized that pranking is fun. At least, that's what I'm to assume...
-------------------
Azure Courage couldn't believe it: he actually had a day off from his job smack-dab in the middle of the week! It was mostly because there wasn't anything to construct or He decided to practice his martial arts in a normal fashion. He'd chosen a clearing not too far off from Fluttershy's cottage, situated not too far deep within the Everfree Forest. The pony did enjoy being solitary when it came to his training. Well, he wouldn't have minded a partner, but the only two he knew were miles away in Canterlot now, and he didn't feel like making the trek just for a spar. So he was stuck with basic shadow boxing, manueverability, and testing his spells out.

He had just gotten finished with a rigorous forest application of freegalloping, something made slightly harder by the fact he had to be mindful of woodland creatures this time when he tried to manuever through the trees. The cyan colt had made a few errors in his step, almost spraining one of his ankles in the process, but he'd managed to hold it together well enough to make it back to the clearing.

Next came maintaining his balance while on his hind legs, using his forehooves for attacking. It was incredibly hard at first for him when he first started practicing, but over time, the pain in his hindquarters went away. There was still some endurance issues--he couldn't adopt this stance forever, not that he could use it unless battling another pony. He hadn't yet found a way to magically enhance the use of the stance yet either.

After practicing his moves for a good five or ten minutes: a series of hoof-jabs and kicks more reminiscent of a bipedal creature than anything, Azure flopped down onto his four legs, breathing only a little from the exertion. As soon as he got his breathing under control, lightly exercising to cool down his physical body, he closed his eyes, sat straight up on his rump, and began meditating. The same dim glow encompassed his horn as he continued his magical ritual.

He did this exercise mainly to find his "center", to keep his magic under control; since he was a bit more of a physical unicorn, his horn wasn't always firing off spells left and right, excluding the levitation spell he often used to make things simpler for himself. This was a simple mental exercise, but it hadn't granted him total control over the sporadic nature of his teleportation.

As he remained in that sitting position, minutes seemed to melt by. More time might have passed by if not for an interruption. He didn't hear it coming, but he was called out of his meditation by cold water splashing copiously all over his face. Out of pure shock, he fell back onto his back, his forehooves pinned against his chest and his back legs stretched out.

His headband somewhat soaked, his horn and mane dripping water, he searched around for the culprit. Thankfully, he didn't have to look long. His first clue was the remnants of a rubber balloon not too far from his fully extended tail. His second clue was the sound of feminine laughter nearby. It didn't take Azure too long to figure out precisely where the pony behind it was.

Or rather, ponies: specifically, Rainbow Dash, hovering in the air and laughing hard; Pinkie Pie not too far off giggling away at his expense. Azure blinked back into reality, and began to roll onto his feet, keeping his calm the whole way up.

"By the way, girls?" Azure asked, his voice somewhere between composed and vaguely enraged.

The two mares, surprisingly, stopped laughing.

"That one was free. Next time, I'm going to get you back."

"You can try!" said Rainbow Dash in response.
----------------
So that was their friendship becoming closer, so Twilight said. Just wish they didn't have to interrupt my training session for the day to do it. Anyway, some time passed between then and now. Turns out Rainbow Dash had an old friend who happened to be a griffon. Gilda was her name, and apparently hating ponies was her game. She made no exceptions except for Rainbow.

I still haven't forgiven her for what she did to the fragile Fluttershy...
----------------
It was another day where there wasn't much for Azure to do construction-wise, so after carrying some bricks to a location and receiving that week's pay, the cyan colt decided to make his way home. He'd decided to take a route he was familiar with to get home. By this point, he knew his way around Ponyville, so getting lost wasn't a big issue. He was just about to get home, when he noticed Pinkie Pie looking down on herself.

Seeing her being sad about something, or jealous, or whatever she was, shook Azure somewhat. He would have never expected to see the pink party pony in any other emotional state than disturbingly happy.

Which explains why he was now with Pinkie at her workplace/home, the Sugarcube Corner. The pony had told him all about Gilda's arrival and how she was an old friend of Rainbow Dash's. And about how mean she was to her.

"You know, I'd just about expect that from my cousin, Virid," Azure said, sort of slouching over onto the table.

"Nopony could be that mean, but maybe I'm just being super-de-duperly judgmental of her," Pinkie responded, "But it's very reassuring to hear that somepony else thinks she's a meanie..."

The colt was just about to point out he didn't technically say that when two voices were heard approaching. One of them was easily identifiable as Rainbow Dash, given he'd heard her laugh plenty since he'd first met her, and the other, as the beings drew closer, belonged to the griffon, Gilda. The first instinct of Azure was to flip a table due to her close resemblance to a chimera, but his refined side won out.

Her front legs had claws similar to Spike's, only golden in color. Her main body was brown, and covered in fur, extending down to the tail with a dark brown plant shooting out of it. Her wings were also dark brown. She had white down feathers on her head, which looked like an eagle's head.

So that's Rainbow Dash's old friend...? Huh. Doesn't look that mean aside from the lion-like body.

Apparently, neither one noticed the light blue colt and pink mare sitting right there. Rainbow announced she had some stuff to do. Gilda, meanwhile, announced her intent to "chow down", and the two split. Apparently, the griffon hadn't a moment to lose. Within moments, she was near a vegetable stand, where Applejack's grandmother, Granny Smith, was browsing.

She was a light green, aged earth pony, whose mane and tail were gray-white with age. However, she seemed capable of hobbling about just fine on her four legs. The Apple family was known for its resilience--Applejack herself had taught Azure that firsthand.

Gilda then proceeded to slither her tail within the produce not unlike a snake. The pony didn't even suspect a thing as she took an inhale of flowers. Her eyes opened, and sure enough, the poor old mare went into panic mode with a scream kicking off the outburst.

"A rattler, a rattler!" she wailed, immediately making a break for it in the opposite direction. Azure couldn't help but notice the mildly amused expression on the griffon's face as Granny Smith bolted. "Head for the hills! Everybody forsake yourselves!"

The cyan colt felt his eye twitch. He was raised to show proper respect to his elders. Pinkie, meanwhile, preoccupied herself with trying to convince herself Gilda wasn't all bad after she scared the hay out of an old pony. The griffon, meanwhile, turned back to the produce, only to be approached by a white pony with a blue mane whose name Azure didn't know offhoof. Gilda turned to the mare, and made a snide remark.

"This stuff ain't fresh, dude," said the griffon. As soon as the pony turned her back, the griffon immediately reached into the vegetables, pulled out an apple, and immediately began to eat it on the spot.

That punk! That's called stealing, you know! Azure began tapping his hoof on the table passively, trying to maintain his patience throughout the ordeal, but it was unbelievably tough for him to do so now. He'd never hit a female, and from what he could see, Gilda was clearly so. He hadn't yet been completely provoked. Meanwhile, Pinkie was still trying to convince herself that the bird-lion would somehow give back an apple she'd ingested.

Azure's ear twitched at the sound of soft steps, heralded by a softer voice. He tried to quiet his anger at Gilda's disrespectful behavior while he looked over to see Fluttershy guiding some ducks, giving them specific directions. The crisis came when the yellow pony didn't pay attention to where she was going herself, and bumped into the griffon. Both parties stumbled.

"Hey." Gilda's tone screamed annoyance.

"Please excuse me," said the pegasus in sincere apology.

"I'm walkin' here!" This was the griffon, now becoming even more annoyed by the meek nature Fluttershy provided. From there, it got worse.

"Oh, um, I'm sorry," This was the pegasus now losing even more steam now if that was even possible. "I-I-I was just trying to..."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Azure could feel his jaw clench as his anger continued to boil. He tried desperately to get himself under control before he walked over there himself and did something on Fluttershy's behalf that would only aggravate the situation further. Gilda was now mocking Fluttershy openly. "Why don't you watch where you're going, doofus?"

Fluttershy could only squeak right now, "B-b-but, I-I..."

Gilda reared up to her maximum height, and roared ferociously at her. Fluttershy made a noise that could only be described as bleating, before she flew off, crying. The griffon said something else, but Azure was too busy being mad to care what she said. The pegasus was so fragile that not even Rainbow Dash would offend her with a prank; seeing her abused like that completely pushed the colt over the edge.

He didn't care that Gilda was female anymore, and he most certainly did not even fathom that the course of action he was about to take would spark an international incident. All that mattered to him was that Fluttershy got chewed out in a completely uncalled for attack, and there was a price to pay for that.

"Pinkie, please excuse me, there's some retribution that needs to be dished out..." Azure snarled, trying desperately to conceal his rising anger and failing miserably at it. He took precisely six steps before something clamped down around his tail and arrested his forward momentum after another two steps.

"Noh, Ashie, hold on jussscht a sechond here," Pinkie slurred as she tried to hold him back by his tail. To his surprise, she was actually able to stop him from moving. "Violensche ish noht the anshwer."

"You saw what she did, right?" Azure asked. "You know as well as I do Fluttershy's fragile as they come..."

Pinkie, seeing she'd gotten his attention, released his tail.

"I agree, Fluttershy can't hold up to abuse like me and you, but there's a much better way to solve that problem." The pink party pony said.

"What are you talking about?" The cyan colt was honestly confused.

"You'll find out......."
----------------
Turns out Pinkie's plan for payback was a prank-filled party. Gilda's true nature was exposed to Rainbow Dash when she went off like a cannon, and from what I could plainly see, looks like we won't be hearing from that griffon for a while. I think I've finally found someone worse than you, Virid. At least you tolerate other ponies that aren't unicorns!

So that's it from me, guys. You haven't written me back a whole lot. Hope the mailmare's getting this to you...

Signed,

Azure Courage

P.S.: Apparently Fluttershy's a year older than Pinkie Pie. I would have asked exactly how old they were by now, but I think Rarity would hit me if I tried.
----------------
Back in Canterlot, at Azure's old home, Virid and Blitz looked over the letters their younger cousin had sent since that night that had lasted too long. The only thing that he'd done that truly bothered them was rub it in how he'd seen it coming for years and was disrespected by his family for three straight years because of it. Virid read over the previous letter that had arrived, and could barely contain a chuckle from escaping his throat.

"Ha, well," the green unicorn colt said, folding the letter neatly. "Didn't expect good 'ol Azure to be a mare's stallion there."

"Virid, you're jumping to conclusions," reprimanded the red unicorn, running a forehoof along the spikes on the right side of his mane in minor annoyance. "I doubt Azure's going to play all of them like that."

"Yeah, but a couple of the letters seemed to hint at something," Virid retorted, smirking. "I mean, 'graceful and strong' in reference to a mare? C'mon, I know these things..."

"He also stuck up for one of them, jumped off a bridge for another, sat down with a third because she was feeling down, and respected the other two enough to not do things to upset them straight away." Blitz said. He turned away from Virid for a moment. "Unlike you, who would have probably pushed them away trying to make out with two of them at the same time..."

"Is that a challenge?"

"No, it's fact." With that statement, Blitz attempted to walk away, not in the mood to start a fight.

"I'm sorry," Virid headed off Blitz before he could completely leave the room, his jimmies clearly rustled. "but did I hear you wanted me to break off your horn and ram it down your throat?"

"No, I'm merely saying Azure isn't somepony who'd just try dating two mares simultaneously, let alone six." The red unicorn retorted. "And if you try, I'll break all four of your legs." Virid almost always managed to make him forget about any pacifism he'd had on his mind; a fact Blitz was reminded of as his body tensed in preparation.

"Hey, colts!" Azure's father yelled. "Take it outside!"

"And if you're so curious to see how Azie's doing, why don't you--" His mother continued, but Virid interrupted her.

"No time for that, fight time now!"

With that, Azure's cousins left the letters on the table, heading outside to engage in some good old-fashioned fighting...

Chapter 6: That Mare Is Not My Twin!

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Chapter 6: That Mare Is Not My Twin!
-------------
Things had settled down somewhat over the past ten days. Occasionally, Azure would be called into work to move heavy objects, and there was a couple of building permits still pending from the Mayor's Office, but other than that, work had been ridiculously slow. Why, today the cyan pony was lounging about his house, tapping his hoof on a desk. He wasn't quite sure why, but he was feeling especially restless.

The answer to why he felt the way he did soon came to him. It was somewhat dull around Ponyville nowadays, unlike the past couple of weeks where something popped up at just the right moment. Sure, he'd paid a few of his friends a visit from time to time, but he just felt...misplaced, somehow. That role that the Princess had given him seemed to be an empty badge he'd have pinned to his headband, if he had been presented one.

Azure eventually wrestled himself from the sitting position at the desk he used for writing, and stood on all fours.

"I need to do something active. Maybe then I'll be able to shake this restlessness..." he observed. The pony proceeded to walk over to his door and open it, and soon, he was walking the streets of Ponyville. His bad sense of direction wasn't nearly as much of an issue as it was on the first day; he was confident he could find his way back home if he retraced his steps.

His walk was going smoothly. He was debating on whether or not to go to the library, or go train in that clearing of his, when abruptly, his walk was cut off by a familiar face.

"Azie!" Pinkie said, appearing almost completely out of nowhere. How she almost always managed to get the drop on him, Azure would never know.

"P-Pinkie!" the cyan colt responded, almost leaping into air by reflex again out of surprise. "What gives?"

"There's this one-mare travelling show that came into town!" the pink party pony explained, immediately bouncing around Azure's personal space until she was in a position to lead him.

"Pinkie, I don't know," said the headband-wearing pony as Pinkie continued to bounce around him. "I'd really rather--"

He really should have learned by this point that the earth pony never took "no" for an answer. Thus, his protests fell on deaf ears.

"C'mon, it'll be fun!" assured the pink equine as she moved behind him and began to push on his rear end with her front hooves. Despite his attempts to gain traction on the road, he was utterly powerless to stop his friend from taking him for a ride. She soon weaved through a crowd of ponies in front of what looked like a stage in the middle of town, miraculously not hitting any of them.

Azure found himself biting back the urge to grumble as he drew ever closer to the front row, where, surprisingly, the others were waiting for him, varying looks of discontent in their features. Twilight looked the most uncomfortable out of all of them being there, but the others didn't look much better. Except for Pinkie, who still looked as excited as ever. Who was the colt kidding? If you took the air out of that mare's sails, you'd have accomplished depressing the indepressable.

Before the cyan colt could ponder on whether or not that was a word, the party mare spoke up.

"What'd we miss, girls?" she asked, with her usual energy level (read: high).

"Nothin' much, just somepony who thinks she's all that," said Applejack, and the others, except Twilight and Pinkie, gave noises of agreement to this. Azure wasn't interested in the recent development at all, but he felt compelled to ask.

"'All that', how, exactly?" Azure asked. Rainbow Dash inhaled, apparently about to give him his answer, when the pony he only now realized was on stage began to speak. This pony was wearing a rather elaborate outfit (well, the fact she was wearing one at all made it elaborate); the fabric was a light purple, decorated in yellow, white, and light blue stars. Her mane was a whitish-blue, her coat a light blue. Her eyes were purple. The kicker? She was a unicorn, like himself. If people were uninformed enough, somepony might have mistaken him for her brother.

"When all hope was lost," The amount of ego he could detect in her voice alone almost made Azure want to hoof-punch out somepony, but he was surrounded by mares, and he didn't hit mares. Well, there was Spike, but he had no real reason to want to punch him out anyway. "the ponies of Hoofington had no one to turn to, but the Great and Powerful Trixie--"

Oh, sweet Celestia, she's referring to herself in the third person... The pony's eye started to twitch, but saying something now wouldn't be right.

"--stepped in, and with her awesome magic, vanquished the Ursa Major and sent it back to its cave deep within the Everfree Forest!" Only here did Azure manage to realize that there was an elaborate light show above, but what he could make out of it depicted a bear and a shape that vaguely resembled a pony.

Azure exhaled roughly. He hadn't even been aware he was holding his breath.

While my friends and I did...what, exactly? Stopped Nightmare Moon? The colt thought to himself. And...what the heck's an Ursa Major? Sounds like some kinda constellation...

"Sa-sweet!" This was two unicorns inexplicably just down from Trixie (Azure pointedly refused to even give her the "Great and Powerful" moniker in his mental labels). One was short, stocky, and light blue with an orange mane and tail. The other was tall, lanky, and had the reverse color scheme of his friend. Or brother. Whichever.

"That settles it!" This was the shorter unicorn. Here, Azure realized they were definitely younger than he was.

"Trixie truly is the most talented, the most magical, the most awesome unicorn in Ponyville!" The taller unicorn said, erasing any doubt in Azure's mind that they had more cognitive function than the average...snail.

"No, in all of Equestria!" Scratch that, a snail's snips had more brain cells than these two put together. Implying she was above ponies that defeated Nightmare Moon was one thing, but the Princesses? Azure had half a mind to clock both of them then and there, but he was a lot older than they were, and thus paid that part of him no mind.

"How do you know?" Spike cut in, pretty much putting the questions that Azure had floating around somewhere in his mind out there. "You didn't see it! And besides, Twi--" Suddenly, in a brief flash of magenta, a zipper appeared on his mouth and shut. His words were muffled. The colt turned to the lavender unicorn mare, whose horn's glow was dying down. Azure felt his brow crease.

"Twilight, what are you--" Just before he could finish his question, he felt his lips pull shut. Confused, he looked down...

and saw the tab of a zipper hanging off the side of his muzzle.

That's mature...

"It's true, my enthusiastic little admirers," Trixie responded to the two younger unicorns' statements of admiration.

...then again, a mare who needs to have her ego stroked is far more immature. She's even worse than Rainbow Dash...

"Trixie is most certainly the best in Ponyville."

Well, at least she's not that egotistical... Azure, thankfully, felt a sigh of relief coming on upon realizing this. He didn't feel the need to suppress the urge to laugh due to the zipper on his lips when the only response that the showboating mare on the stage got was crickets chirping.

"Don't believe the Great and Powerful Trixie?" asked the blue mare in response to the otherwise dead silence of the crowd. "Well then, I hereby challenge you, Ponyvillians--anything you can do, I can do better."

Azure reached up to his jaw in an attempt to challenge her. He tugged on the zipper tab, every intent of mouthing off entering his subconscious. Virid had taught him something else besides the martial arts during their time together...

I can't stand this showboating--OWWWW!!! The cyan colt grunted as the zipper most unpleasantly caught on the flesh and fur around his mouth. Zipper's caught. Darn it!

"Any takers? Anyone? Hmmm?" Trixie did not appear to notice or care that a pony was valiantly struggling against the zipper that was on his mouth. "Or is Trixie destined to be the greatest equine who has ever lived?"

On cue, the mare's horn began to glow a violet color, and fireworks began to go off, coming from the mare's mobile stage. Fanfare also sounded from seemingly nowhere.

Unbelievable...I've found a pony with more ego than Rainbow Dash and Virid Strategem put together! Virid would love to meet this mare! Azure thought bitterly to himself as he continued to tug at the zipper that was still caught on his lips. Ow! Ow! Ow! Darn zipper...!
-------------
Spike didn't see the point in letting this mare talk. Twilight and the others stopped Nightmare Moon while he was basically unconscious for the whole thing, and from what he'd witnessed from Twilight earlier that day, even the smallest spell in Twilight's large skillset would be enough to show Trixie who was boss. Yet Twilight insisted that the others would apparently loathe her like they did Trixie, and resorted to using one of said spells to zip his mouth shut, and from what the baby dragon could see, Azure was also unsafe, given he was struggling against his own zipper.

The dragon was utterly at a loss with this self-proclaimed "Best in Ponyville", and had to make his concerns known. He tugged hard at the tab on his zipper, and unzipped his mouth near-painlessly.

"Please! She's unbearable!" Spike pleaded with Twilight. "Ya gotta show her! You just gotta!" He buried his face in his hands and began to sob in distress.

"There's no way I'm going to use my magic now, Spike," Twilight responded, turning to him. Azure apparently heard, and with his zipper only partway open, began to grumble incoherently, but Spike had a pretty good idea of what he was saying. The purple mare looked back to him and winced at the red spot on the colt's mouth from where the zipper kept catching. "Especially since--"

Trixie had apparently found somepony in the crowd to pick on for her suggested game. She was glaring straight down at Twilight, past Azure, who was still struggling to get his zipper open so he could probably gripe at Twilight properly for doing whatever it was she was doing.

"Hmm, how about you?!" she asked, sticking a hoof out directly at Twilight. The mare gulped, and hesitantly turned to face the stage.

"Well, how about it? Hm?" The self-proclaimed "Best in Ponyville" continued, staring down her selected mare. "Is there anything you can do that the Great and Powerful Trixie can't?" Just from the corner of his eye, Spike noticed Azure twitch just a little, having halted his attempt to get the zipper off for a moment.

"I--I--" Twilight appeared to be backed into a corner, completely running a blank.
-------------
Why isn't Twilight stepping up? Azure asked himself. She's the student to the sun princess herself, for crying out loud! He raised a hoof casually to the still-caught zipper, seeing as how Twilight wasn't going to take the darn thing off, and zipped it back up. One...two...three... He breathed deeply through his nose, and prepared to yank the tab with all his force.

"That's it, I can't stand--"

As Applejack began to intervene on Twilight's behalf, Azure gave the tab the hardest pull he could manage. This time, his attempt at unzipping his zipper worked, but it wasn't his turn to talk.

"--no more of this!" The orange earth pony began making her way to the stage.

"You show her, AJ!" Spike called out, apparently having abandoned his attempt to have Twilight go on stage. Azure still didn't understand why she was so hesitant. He wanted to go up there and do something, anything, that would show the showboat who was boss. The orange farmer pony, meanwhile, pulled off her hat, producing a rope...no, lasso, as she called it, and proceeded to hold it with her tail.

"Can your magic powers do this?" With that, the mare proceeded to twirl the lasso using her tail, and performed a series of rope tricks. Close to the end of her performance, she was actually leaping through the loops of her own lasso. Finally, the mare chomped down on an apple; the whole thing, topping off her performance.

Azure felt a little too compelled to applaud along with the crowd, but he didn't hesitate in doing so. Applejack unfurled the rope from her tail.

"Top that, missy," the mare said to the bemused blue mare on stage. Trixie only gave a small chuckle.

"Oh ye of little talent..."

Virid, I've found your mate!

"watch and be amazed at the magic of Trixie!" The unicorn's horn began to glow violet again, as did the rope. Eerily, a snake charmer tune started to play, and the rope, too, began to move, almost like a serpent. It would have been impressive...except for the fact that just about any unicorn with a functional horn could have moved a rope/lasso/string as though it were a snake.

But Trixie apparently wasn't satisified with just that. Applejack, hyponitzed by the rope's slow movements, wasn't prepared for when the magic-moved object proceeded to knock her feet out from under her in such a way she wound up on her back. The rope, meanwhile, immediately proceeded to tie all four of her feet together. Then, just to add further insult (aside from the fact that her apparently precious headwear was knocked off as a result), Trixie decided to jam an apple into the mare's gaping mouth.

Did she just hogtie Applejack? If Azure had sleeves, he'd have prepared to roll them up then and there. That was terrible. To make matters worse, the gathered crowd was both applauding and laughing at the single trick Trixie did to Applejack's...well, Azure lost count when she started hopping through the loops, but there was definitely more than one trick. Okay, that was unnecessary--

Applejack began hopping off the stage, having somehow replaced her hat on her head.

"Once again, the Great and Powerful Trixie prevails." Trixie said, apparently proud of what she'd done. Apparently, this pony couldn't count.

Keep it cool, Azure, you're probably the only one in this city that knows offensive spells. You don't need to seriously hurt somepony from nowhere...

"There's no need to go around struttin' around and showin' your stuff off like that." This was Rainbow Dash, hovering in front of the now hatless Trixie.

Then again, there's a battle of the egos about to go on...at least Rainbow Dash knows how to count.

"Oh?" Trixie asked, looking up to the hovering pegasus.

"That's my job!"

With that, Rainbow Dash immediately rushed off at the speed that she'd used on him when they first met. She turned into a moving rainbow as she approached a windmill. The pony proceeded to rotate around it at incredible speeds. Once she'd acquired enough momentum, the mare launched herself straight up into the air, allowing her to punch holes through several clouds as she ascended. She then sped back to the windmill, doing the same loops she'd done in reverse. Only as she made her way back to the stage did Azure see what that did.

It was after Rainbow Dash had landed. Carried by the velocity of the wind around her, the raindrops from within the clouds had followed her from the clouds to the windmill, back to the stage, where they proceeded to fall onto her. Just as the droplets finished their trajectory, the light blue mare opened her wings, causing a rainbow to form just above her.

For one of the few times since he'd known her, Azure Courage felt completely justified in applauding her efforts. Even if he had wings, he probably couldn't have pulled that off. At least with Rainbow Dash, she made darn well sure you knew two things: one, she was the one doing her stunts, and two...

"They don't call me 'Rainbow' and 'Dash' for nothing."

Well, that.

"When Trixie gets through with you, the only thing they'll call you is 'loser'." Trixie said, her horn taking on a violet hue. Before Rainbow knew it, the rainbows that were still around her began forming a spinning vortex. Azure felt a little motion sickness coming on just watching the rainbows spin all around her, so he could only imagine what Dash was going through. He could hear Dash calling out in confusion from within the whirling sphere.

Alas, the torture couldn't last forever. The pegasus was soon on the ground, headfirst, her red-violet eyes spinning around in their sockets. To make matters worse, she was suffering from severe motion sickness. She wrestled herself to her feet, trying her hardest to not throw up.

Incidentally, Azure found himself doing the same. Trixie was really starting to make him sick.

"I think I'm..." Rainbow weakly raised a hoof to her mouth as she belched. "...going to be sick..."

The cyan unicorn found his eye drawn to a black thundercloud that was slowly lowering itself behind Rainbow Dash.

"Seems like anypony with a dash of good sense," Trixie put special emphasis on the word "dash", "would think twice before tussling with the Great Trixie." Exactly two seconds passed between that and a lightning bolt coming from the cloud, striking Dash perfectly on the rear end. Azure felt vicariously insulted. That was two of his friends now that had been laughed at. And that last one was practically overkill.

Okay, you made your point by making her dizzy! Outrage surged through his veins faster than he could keep control of it. Was using that spell really necessary, at all? Azure wasn't even aware of it, but his legs were starting to move in place, his anger starting to exceed its bounds.

"Easy, Azure," The voice was so soft that Azure almost paid it no mind. However, the voice was also distinctive, so he turned to see Fluttershy. "Please don't go up there."

"Somepony's gotta put her in her place...!"

"With your style of diplomacy, you're only going to get yourself in trouble," Twilight came to life. "What kind of colt would hit a mare?"

"I wasn't going to--" Azure began.

"Azure's got the right idea," This was Spike. When twelve eyes turned to him, he immediately said. "I mean, the part where we need a unicorn to match her." Twilight suddenly once again became withdrawn at this.

"Oh, yeah!" Rainbow Dash immediately forgot all about Azure's alleged plan. He wasn't going to go up and smack Trixie, and besides, that's probably what she wanted him to do. He wanted to see if she could turn his martial arts against him like she had before. "A unicorn to show this unicorn who's boss."

That's exactly what I was about to do...

"A real unicorn-to-unicorn tussle!" Applejack cut in.

"Um..." Twilight looked completely hesitant now, looking from pony to dragon.

"Enough," said Rarity, loud enough for the others to hear. "Enough, all of you. I take your hint, but Rarity is above such nonsense," The white unicorn said. "Though Rainbow Dash and Applejack behave like ruffians, and Azure probably doesn't know any better,"

"Hey!" Azure cut in, now completely offended. First his friends think he's going to abandon a gentlecolt's code and smack a mare, even though by all accounts she was asking for it, and now Rarity was acting as though he didn't know better?

"but Rarity conducts herself with beauty and grace."

And since when does Rarity refer to herself in the third person? This was an honest question in the cyan colt's mind.

"Oooh," Trixie asked. "What's the matter? Afraid you'll get a hair out of place in that rat's nest you call a mane?"

Azure felt himself flinch. If there was ever a thing that he didn't ever want to do, insulting Rarity's mane was high up on that list. Not that he would anyway. She clearly took care in styling it every morning.

"Oh...it...is...on!" Sure enough, the white mare in question took complete offense to that insult, and began trotting up to the stage, while the blue unicorn mare looked on with a completely smug look on her face.

"You may think you're tough with your so-called powers," Rarity continued, her horn alight with a blue glow. "But there's more to magic than your brutish ways. A unicorn needs to be more than just muscle," Azure couldn't tell whether that was directed at him or Trixie after that earlier comment the unicorn made. "A unicorn needs to have style."

With this, the unicorn used her magic to create herself an elaborate ensemble. Her curled mane was now up in a bun. The actual clothing she was now wearing was made from the curtains. To create that sort of outfit in less than thirty seconds was nothing short of impressive. Of course, the audience thought so too.

"A unicorn is not a unicorn without grace and beauty."

"Rarity won't let Trixie get the best of her!" Spike immediately went into a tirade, prompting Azure to wonder if the little guy had a crush on the mare in question. "She's strong, she's beautiful..."

Of course, while the young dragon continued to list off Rarity's finer qualities, Azure focused on Trixie's horn. It was glowing violet, so whatever she had in mind wasn't going to be good.

The crowd gasped, and Azure flinched again. He didn't want to say anything, but Rarity's mane...oh Celestia, Rarity's mane...

"Quick, I need a mirror! Get me a mirror!" the mare in question wailed. "What did she do to my mane? I know she did something terrible to my mane!"

"Nothing." Twilight lied, flinching at the sight of it.

"It's fine." Rainbow assured, though the expression on her face betrayed reluctance.

"It's..." Applejack's face completely distorted, but she managed to get control of it. "gorgeous..."

"It's green." Spike said simply. When the others turned to look at him, he shrugged and asked, "What?"

Rarity's mane went from the bun it had been in to a literal slimeslick, and yes, it was a disgusting shade of green. You could have probably told Azure that somepony had decided to stick Rarity's head in a public restroom toilet and given it a few flushes and he'd have believed you. The mare gave a deep, disturbed gasp.

"Ugh, no! Green hair! Not green hair!" The white unicorn began, running past a green earth pony while crying. "Such an awful, awful color!" The earth pony took clear offense to this.

"Well, I never!" the pony grumbled.

Alright, that's three for three. This pony has the worst ego I've ever seen! Virid wouldn't be a good match. Even he knows when his ego's unwarranted...I think. Alright, I've had my fill.

"Alright, now I'm going up there..." Azure said in a low voice. "I've had enough of this." He began moving toward the stage.

"Azure, wait!" Twilight whispered. "Don't do something reckless!"

"Too late," the cyan colt responded. He knew he was beyond hope-none of his friends could have possibly talked him out of the action he was planning to do.
-------------
Twilight held back the urge to swallow as Azure practically stomped his way past her. She'd heard, from Pinkie, what had happened when Gilda scared Fluttershy. Azure so happened to be there with her, and just like now, he got unbelivably angry and had a look like he was about to strike. The purple mare didn't see Azure as diplomatic at all. This was either going to end with Trixie making Azure's limbs rubber when he tried to strike, or the colt in question proving he was the farthest thing from a gentlecolt.

After all, he did technically try hitting Nightmare Moon twice, but could he really be faulted for that? Twilight wanted to think so.

"Alright, I'm done with this!" Azure called out. Trixie looked down to him, bemused, just as she had been this whole time when dealing with the others.

"Are you next to challenge the Great and Power--" she started, but apparently the cyan colt was too angry to be courteous enough to let her spout her overconfident drivel this time.

"Yeah, yeah, Great and Powerful Trixie, we get it." The crowd gasped at the cyan colt's statement, but the blue mare on stage kept the same amused smirk on her face. "Like a broken record."

"Please, enlighten me," Still with that sickening, condescending tone, Trixie lowered her head towards Azure, who didn't even budge. Twilight wondered what made the display of ego so different from Rainbow's for exactly one fraction of a moment, but then she realized that Rainbow didn't brag about helping in the defeat of Nightmare Moon. Plus, she didn't do overkill when displaying her ego. "what do you think you can do better than Trixie?"

The cyan colt reared back and leapt, jumping up on the stage with enough force to cause some of the wood to physically tremble. Trixie looked down, almost amused, at the trembling stage.

"I may be a unicorn, but I know the importance of keeping my body toned."

Twilight felt the strongest possible urge to hang her head and apply her hoof to her face from how that sounded. The entire crowd fell deathly silent, while Trixie, for the first time, looked honestly unsure, but she managed to recover from Azure's statement quickly.

"Trixie is shocked that you would think of striking a mare!"

If the crowd of ponies could have gotten even more silent, they would have. Precisely two ponies could be heard booing, and it didn't take a genius to figure out who those two could possibly have been.

"Why does everypony think I'm going there?" Azure asked, sounding hurt. "I wouldn't think of laying a hoof on a mare." Twilight chose to disregard the fact that he had in fact thought of it, technically three times: twice with Nightmare Moon and once with Gilda; though she wasn't a pony, she was still female. "I can react at the turn of a dime if I need to."

The crowd collectively breathed a small sigh of relief, while Trixie spied something behind Azure. Twilight forced herself to look. It was the same apple tree where Applejack and the unicorn mare had gotten their apples for their stunts. Around one of the apples, a violet glow appeared.

"Is this so?" Trixie asked. Exactly one second later, the apple snapped from the branch. It drew closer to the colt's head at incredible speeds, and for just a moment, it seemed like Azure would take the hit. However, at the last second, Azure's ear twitched, and he hit the dirt. The apple kept going, but Trixie dodged the apple she'd thrown.

"Is that it?" The cyan colt asked, already rising to his feet.

"Please, don't be ridiculous!" Trixie began levitating several stage props, varying in size from small, harmless noisemakers to entire crates. "That was merely a warm up, now, the entirety of Ponyville will see exactly how agile you really are!"

The stage props soon began to orbit around Azure. Only the slightest bit of fatigue was visible in Trixie's features, though she didn't falter in levitating the objects at increasing speeds. A small noisemaker lunged for Azure's back, but Azure hopped to the right. A small board tried to knock the colt's legs out from underneath him. A few more objects came rushing at him, but he had managed to avoid every one, with maybe micrometers seperating him and the flying object.

A large crate began rushing at him, exactly as another loose board lying around came about under him. In a moment of what Twilight could only describe as a mixture of sheer luancy and perhaps agility, Azure took a leap, somehow landing somewhat on his hind legs, buying himself just enough time to get on top of the flying crate with just a little bit of stumble in his step.

"Whoa!" Twilight turned to see a clearly amazed Rainbow Dash, whose wings were opening at the sight. The purple mare bit back the urge to make a remark and turned back to watch the spectacle. Azure's body was clearly very toned given the fact most unicorns were known for using magic; like he'd belonged alongside knights in a militia or something of that caliber. He'd demonstrated his agility back when they were en route to the Elements of Harmony, but it still was somewhat amazing to see. Meanwhile, the crowd began to cheer.

The crate's trajectory continued, so obviously Trixie was still moving it. However, Trixie dropped the smaller objects and loose boards she was using, opting instead to levitate two other crates, both about the same size as the first one.

"Not bad, but Trixie hopes you're ready for a real ride!" Trixie called up to the colt, who looked around. At first, Azure had complete control over the three crates, jumping from one to the next, even when they were being slammed into one another with enough force to make a loud banging noise. However, this moment of triumph, as Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity had just learned, was not to last.

Azure made one more jump, and from the height he was at, Twilight could somewhat tell he was starting to become fatigued from having to more or less continously jump or fight for balance on the floating objects. However, the crate made a sudden movement away from him that the colt didn't have enough time to correct his trajectory, and thus, fell back to the ground while the crowd gasped.

The fall would have probably been more harmful had Azure not known that descent-slowing spell, but it was still a very hard fall, flat on his four feet. He still managed to hit hard enough he wound up flat on his stomach, but from the way he grunted sharply on impact, he was definitely still conscious and alive.

Twilight couldn't remember running alongside the others (minus Rarity, who was probably still trying to reverse Trixie's effects on her mane) to Azure's side straight away, but Fluttershy had managed to reach him first. In a soft voice, she addressed him.

"O-oh, no, Azure," she asked worriedly, "Are you alright?"

"Y-yeah," He was clearly shaken up from the fall, "I'm still ready to--" His face sharply contorted in pain as he fell back to his stomach after standing straight up. "Okay...no, I'm not." He turned to his left forehoof, which didn't look deformed, but it was still obviously the cause of his pain.

"O-oh, oh no, it is broken?" Fluttershy continued.

"P-probably just a sprain..." Azure said, his expression abnormally distant. He looked up to the crates. While the crowd hadn't laughed at him; even Trixie didn't really say anything, but continued to look smug.

"Well, now that that's aside," Either even Trixie had a limit to who she would taunt, or there was some semblance of pity within her, "will there be any other takers to Trixie's challenge?"

"Well, Twilight, I guess it's up to you," Spike called Twilight's attention, unfortunately, back to the problem. Trixie casually ran a hoof through her somewhat tousled mane (probably a result of the exertion to constantly move the objects). "C'mon, show her what you're made of!"

Twilight now wished she hadn't ran over to Azure's side so quickly. Now that she was out of the crowd-and Spike couldn't have said his statement any louder, she stuck out like the horn on a unicorn's forehead.

"What do you mean?" It was an effort to keep her voice steady. "I'm nothing special..."
-------------
Azure stood in a way that he could keep the weight off his hurt foot. It had to have been a sprain. He looked up to the stage again. He couldn't think of any other explanation.

Trixie moved the darn crate on him after he'd jumped. That wasn't worth bragging about. That was foal stuff. Currently, her only claim to fame was manipulating the things that the others created and turning them against them. The cyan colt had severe doubts that this mare even saw an Ursa Major let alone fought one, whatever that beast happened to be.

"Yes, you are!" Spike argued, even louder. The cyan colt did have to agree with that. The very first thing Twilight said was that she was Princess Celestia's student. She would have had to know a great deal more spells than anypony he could think of, save for an alicorn. "You're better than her!"

Trixie drew closer to the edge of the stage, apparently very interested in the developments.

"I'm not better than anyone." Twilight continued to deny it, in every way Trixie's opposite. However, even if she had commensurate achievements to the contrary of her statements, Azure had a feeling the purple mare wouldn't lord it over everypony.

"Hah! You think you're better than the Great and Powerful Trixie?" Azure could feel his ears pin back. He was really getting sick of this. She still hadn't done anything the others had-well, to be fair, she didn't have wings-and had only turned their talents against them. The blue mare's eyes narrowed at Twilight and the smirk got even more complacent-Azure couldn't tell how that was even possible, but it was. "You think you have more magical talent?"

The cyan colt would have loved nothing more than to have known a gender-bending spell. That way, he wouldn't have been breaking gentlecolt's code when he dealt his brand of justice. His jaw was locked shut, not due to Twilight casting a spell on his mouth, but because he was afraid that if he spoke with as much anger as he felt, he'd only make it worse.

I know for a fact she does, even if your hubris would blind you to the truth... He felt his teeth grind against each other, but he kept his face towards the ground, hidden behind the bangs of his mane so nopony would see how mad he really was. I take back what I said. Virid isn't this insufferable. I don't know why he and Blitz fight over the stupidest stuff...

"Well come on, show Trixie what you've got!" Trixie taunted, not adjusting her position. "Show us all."

Twilight visibly shrunk from the challenge.

"Who, me?" she asked, looking incredibly nervous. "I'm just your run-of-the-mill citizen of Ponyville. No powerful magic here." She had been backing away the whole time she was speaking, so now Azure could see her eyes dart behind her as she was speaking. "I...uh--I think I hear my laundry calling. Sorry, gotta go!"

With that, the purple mare turned tail and fled the scene.

"Twilight?" asked Spike, more confused than anything.

What the heck, Twilight? Seriously, what are you so afraid of? Did I miss something more important? Azure didn't know what to make of it either, but he was soon called back to his rage and had the feeling enhanced by Trixie's reaction. She was entirely smug in her demeanor.

"Ha!" She turned tail and began strutting her way backstage. "Once again, the Great and Powerful Trixie has proven herself to be the most amazing unicorn in all of Equestria. Huh, was there ever any doubt?"

Azure felt something tear within him. Gentlecolt's code didn't matter now. He could deal with Rainbow Dash's ego, and Virid's ego, because at least they had commensurate feats to back up their claims. This mare frustrated him endlessly since he arrived to her all-flash and barely-any-substance show-no matter what anypony or anyone would care to point out, all she did was turn her opponent's tricks against her. That wasn't even doing as they were doing-in Dash's case, he wasn't sure if there was a spell that would allow the user to grow pegasus wings. And of course, striking Dash with lightning when she'd already proven her point was disgustingly overkill.

As for Virid, even he knew when to knock it off...most of the time.

Paying no mind to the pain in his left foreankle that occurred when he walked on it, the cyan colt began clumsily limping toward the stage. The crowd was starting to disperse now, so nopony would see what he was about to do.

Of course, he forgot approximately four details. The friends that had stuck around to the end of the spectacle began holding him back. Two of them--for ponies that had just been subjected to the most humiliating treatment in a competition that Azure could think of, they bounced back quick enough to hold him back.

"Whoa there, sugarcube," This was Applejack. "We need to get that leg of yours checked out. Don't want it to get worse, do ya?"

"I'm just going to..." he set the bad foot down and gritted his teeth as the pain sliced through the afflicted limb. "...walk it off..."

"I know that look, Azie!" Pinkie cut in. "It won't solve anything..."

"Don't try to fight it, Az," said Dash, spinning him around a little too roughly. "We're taking you to the doctor's whether you wanna or not!"

He was outnumbered four to one, and was in no condition to fight if he wanted to harm any of them. Thankfully, even though each of the six mares had their moments, none of them had ever come close to angering him in the way Trixie just had. Arrogance was one thing, but potentially unfounded arrogance was another thing. First chance he got, he was going to have to ask Twilight some questions.

And why she didn't accept Trixie's challenge was not on that list. At least, not high up on that list.

"Fine..." The colt relented, releasing a deep sigh. He was going to try and remove the anger from his system another way.
-------------
It had been quite a bit since he got out of the hospital, and Azure found that even though he fell quite a distance, he was still restless. However, he couldn't do anything physically active due to the sprain in his left forehoof. He'd have to keep weight off it for a week, so there wouldn't be any freegalloping moments until then. He used his headband as a sling, holding the cast around his neck. It was incredibly awkward trotting about on three legs, but he wasn't going to put any weight on his bad foot when he limped from place to place.

After he'd been discharged from the hospital, it was already drawing close to evening. He awkwardly limped about, making for the direction of the library. Thankfully, the others had made their way to their respective homes after seeing him off. He didn't need them bombarding him with questions on why he was going there. Besides, he'd gotten angry on the behalf of more than just Twilight back when Trixie was strutting her stuff--or lack thereof.

What I just don't get is why Twilight refused to take Trixie's challenge... he thought, closing his eyes. She's got more magical talent than average...I mean, she's Princess Celestia's student! She would have to be some kinda prodigy to earn that title rightfully, and I can't picture Ms. Perfect as a cheater.

He continued, the library drawing ever closer, when a thought occured in his mind.

Was she scared of Trixie? Azure asked himself. C'mon, Azure, slap yourself for that right now. Nopony with a functioning brain should be afraid of her as she is now...
-------------
Spike still was in utter disbelief at Twilight's behavior earlier. She'd completely run off. To make matters worse, Snips and Snails, those two younger ponies from earlier, would not stop kissing up to her. It was enough to make the baby dragon want to throw up. He'd been Twilight's assistant for longer than he could remember, and he knew for a fact that what he saw Trixie do was a drop in the bucket compared to what he knew for a fact Twilight could do.

Plus, he didn't know what an Ursa Major was save for that illustrative show, but he'd had a pretty good feeling that what Trixie said didn't actually happen. With all this considered, the baby dragon set about on his goal to get Twilight to put that book down and listen to him...
-------------
Azure was now just outside the door. The colt was just about to go on his hind legs so he could knock with his good foreleg when he began to hear voices inside. He stopped, and went back to standing awkwardly on his three good legs.

"Twilight, would you please put down the book and just listen to me?" This was Spike's voice, still pleading with the mare in question like earlier.

"Didn't you see how they hated Trixie's bragging, Spike?" Twilight countered with another question. Azure couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at this. "If I go out there and show off my magic, I risk losing them as friends..."

Rainbow shows off quite a bit and we don't hate her guts for it...

"It's not the same, Twilight; you'll be using your magic to stand up for your friends!" Spike continued to argue his point.

"No, Spike, it's exactly the same..." Twilight counterargued.

So wait, the only reason she's declining Trixie's challenge is because we'd think of her as a braggart, somepony that needs her ego stroked continuously? Azure almost laughed at the thought. I absolutely can't see her doing that, unless she completely let the status as "Princess's Pupil" go to her head.

"C'mon Twilight," The younger dragon didn't budge. "Any one of these tricks, even the teeniest, would be enough to show up Trixie."

"I don't want to be seen as a bragger like Trixie," the purple unicorn wasn't in the mood to budge either.

Twilight, it only counts as bragging if you're up in everypony's face about it. You know, like Trixie?

The sound of magic being used from within sounded off, but Azure could barely pick up on it. He then heard a door slam on the inside, and he felt his face pull into confusion.

"But you're the best," Spike continued, the sound of a door opening entering Azure's ears. He had to remind himself that there was somehow a door on the inside of the library now.

"Uh, please, Spike, I said 'no'!" Her tone indicated that she wasn't moving from the library.

Okay, so to recap: Twilight knows more magic than Trixie-at least, logically she would if she were the Princess's student; we were all there when the Princess called her, and I quote, "My Faithful Student". Twilight thinks we'd hate her guts if she showed off. Trixie, despite not doing commensurate feats, acts like she owns all because of a story I'm convinced is a lie. And...and... Azure raised his good forehoof to his face after going up on his hind legs for balance. I have a migraine...

"If that's the way you want to be, then fine!" His tone indicated anger, and he slammed the door shut. There was a little bit of awkward silence on the inside. Azure couldn't tell if the argument was over, but he quickly, though clumsily backed away from the door when he heard footsteps approaching, no doubt Spike.

The door that he was just at soon opened, and lo and behold, Spike stood there, and as soon as he noticed Azure, his eyes shot open in surprise.

"Azure?" he asked. "Wait...w-were you listening in this whole time?"

"No," Azure quickly lied, "I just came to talk to Twilight about something..." And that didn't sound weird at all... The young dragon quickly pulled his face into an annoyed grimace as he looked back through the opening door.

"Good luck with that," he said, walking away. "She's as stubborn as she says you are..."

Azure stood on three legs, blinking, as he turned back to the library.

Why does Twilight talk about me with Spi--you know what, not important. I don't want to know. Azure thought to himself, beginning to hobble his way through the front door. I've still got other questions that I need answered before I can tackle Twilight's problem...
-------------
Twilight could not focus on the literature she was poring over. Spike's voice, and the actions of her friends earlier, kept replaying in her mind like a broken record. She tried her hardest to shut out the distractions, since she wanted to continue to read it undisturbed. The sound of the front door closing echoed throughout the library. The purple mare didn't even turn, her focus entirely elsewhere.

"Hey, Twilight," It was a familiar, masculine voice. Azure. "What do you have there?"

"Oh, Azure," she said, not turning to regard him directly. "what are you doing here?"

"Oh, you know," he responded, and his voice was that sickeningly sarcastic tone he often took with her. "I was in the neighboorhood and just decided to drop by."

"Look, I'm pretty sure I know why you really came, Azure, but..." Twilight turned as she spoke, and upon seeing Azure's new condition following his accident earlier with Trixie, she gasped. He was standing rather awkwardly on three legs, with his injured hoof in a cast, held up by a sling made from his band. "You broke it, didn't you?" Anger and concern flooded through her, causing her to glare in his direction. "See, this is exactly why you shouldn't show off your skills!"

"Whoa, take it easy, Twilight, it's just a sprain..." he responded, seeming oddly calm given he was the one that got injured.

"Oh, sure, just a sprain..." Twilight didn't know what it was about Azure, but he always managed to strike a chord in her. "You still showed off and got hurt! You're lucky if the others still want to be your friend after that!"

"Twilight..." Even after that, Azure remained as calm as he could stand to, though Twilight could see his face twitch in slight anger from her statement. "You make it sound like standing up for yourself is the same thing as gloating..."

"Ugh, you sound just like Spike!" Twilight scoffed, turning away from him. Why were the males she knew so intent to see her show up Trixie? She'd lose her friends, and to make matters worse, she'd fail the princess. The studious pony couldn't have either one!

"Twilight," Azure was being his usual stubborn self. He still remained calm, though his voice betrayed that he was starting to lose his patience. "speaking from experience, I know for a fact it's not bad to stand up for your friends, even when you're showing what you can do."

Twilight whipped around to the injured, sitting colt, shooting him a nasty glare that she didn't use on anypony else. Not even Spike got the glare. Azure was impossible.

"Then..." she started, trying to compose herself, "Then you should consider yourself lucky. Your friends could have easily wound up hating you..."

"What kind of logic--" Azure had finally lost his patience. He'd finally gotten off his rump and limped closer to her, a nasty glare to match hers plastered on his face. "Listen to me, Twilight. You honestly think the others are going to hate you if you use whatever magic you have at your disposal, even though you're sticking up for them? Even though I was jumping around, and as you say, 'showing off', the others didn't leave me with an injury. As a matter of fact, the others actually personally escorted me to the hospital...

"They actually cared more about me than what I'd done to get in that condition!"

Twilight felt her glare ease up. Azure was starting to make sense. It wasn't the first time, but to Twilight, it was a rare occurence.

"After they made sure I was going to stay until I got checked out, they left to check if Rarity's mane problem had altered any. No matter what you might think, there is a difference between pointlessly gloating, and backing up what you can say. I may have issues with arrogance, but I want to make something very clear to you. None of us hate Rainbow Dash even though she gloats whenever she gets the shot. Unless I'm mistaken?"

The purple mare couldn't believe it, but Azure was actually hitting the nail on the head.

"N-no...t-that's...I don't..." She stuttered out, caught completely off-guard.

"None of us do. That's probably because she's actually able to back up her gloating when she says it." The cyan colt continued. "I don't even know what an Ursa Major is, but I just don't think Trixie was able to take one on on her own. If you have the skills, no one's going to hate you for using them. As long as you don't go around boasting of them to anypony who'd lend an ear."

"I..." Twilight was still unsure. What Azure was saying made sense. Yet, he didn't have any idea how skilled she truly was. "I don't know..."

"Just think about it, okay?" With one final sigh, the unicorn colt hobbled away. Twilight turned from him. Just as she heard him opening the door with his magic, she turned to him.

"Wait, Azure," she said. Azure stopped and turned back to her. "When you said you stood up for your friends before..."

A smile betrayed the colt's features.

"Well, I stood up to a chimera for you, but you don't hear me bragging about it." With that, he left.

Twilight didn't need to be told that her mouth was hanging open in shock. She definitely had quite a bit to think about. With this in mind, she returned to the book.

"An Ursa Major is..." she began, starting to read the entry from the book she'd selected...
-------------
It had been at least two hours since he left Twilight's home, and Azure Courage felt like he had accomplished something. He may have still been wondering what an Ursa Major was, and he didn't get any of his spell questions answered, but he left with confidence that he had done a better job of convincing Twilight to show off her skills.

Night had fallen on Ponyville, and now the colt did not know what he'd do with himself until his ankle recovered from the sprain. He couldn't freegallop, couldn't really practice any martial arts outside of the moves he could do on two legs. Even doing something like galloping for the sake of doing so wouldn't really work with three good legs. Meditation would only fill his time so well.

Whatever the case, the cyan colt knew one thing: he was definitely in a vulnerable position. If trouble came knocking at the doorstep of Ponyville, or Twilight, or any of the others, he most certainly would not be in any shape to protect--

An earth-shaking impact and roar shook Azure out of his thoughts so quickly he almost fell backwards on his rump again. He hobbled back onto three legs and looked up. Another roar, another distant stomp. He grit his teeth.

"Oh no," he grumbled, hobbling just as fast as his three legs could carry him in the direction of the screams of terror and beastly bellows. Each time he fell flat on his cast, he would punctuate the action with the words "darn" or " manure". By whatever force that allowed him to do so, he'd managed to reach the scene soon enough.

What he was looking at fit the light show that Trixie had used earlier. He had faded in and out due to the ego he heard in her presentation, but he did get the gist of what an Ursa Major looked like: a bear. And what he was looking at definitely fit the bill. It was light blue, translucent, looked like the night sky, and was in fact an oversized bear. It made the chimera look like a dwarf. In short, it was huge.

So that's...an Ursa Major...?! Azure asked. It was here he'd noticed that the two unicorns from earlier, the ones that persistently kissed up to the self-proclaimed "Great and Powerful" mare, cowering behind Trixie while at the same time looking expectant. Oh Celestia, why did those two foals have to be so stupid?!

The Ursa was clearly angered, and was on a rampaging, smashing anything in its path: the stage from earlier, random buildings, and even the odd tree here and there. The first thought that came to Azure's mind; somepony was gonna have to stop that thing. The second?

And I'm gonna have to clean all this up with three hooves. Wonderful. thought the cyan colt to himself. Azure began doing a rare thing for himself: analyzing the situation. Analysis was usually left up to Virid, but he had to size up this threat. And this threat was quite literally tenfold his size. What do I do now, darn it?! Can't walk right let alone jump around like I will need to...and I don't even know if my magic will have any effect on this thing!

Darn it...it's my first real Protector job, and I can't even pull it off! Injured, and even if I were healthy, I doubt I'd do anything of worth... It was probably one of the few times in his life Azure Courage had ever felt true hopelessness. His jaw clenched as a mix of fear and anger began to swell in him. He didn't even notice right away when those two moronic foals from earlier pushed that egotisical mare right next to him.

"Oh, Great and Powerful Trixie," Azure was snapped to attention by the smaller, stockier colt bowing down to the boastful mare in question. "you gotta vanquish the Ursa Major."

"Yeah," added the lankier, taller one, "vanquish it so we can watch." The sentiment alone filled Azure with enough rage to smoke a whole stack of newspapers if he'd lifted them telekinetically.

"It took a lot of trouble to get that thing here," He didn't know who he wanted to clock first anymore. It was taking the knowledge that hitting anypony would not help matters any just to keep Azure from letting out a terrible scream akin to a dying pig being dragged down to the deepest pits of Tartarus...whatever that was. He'd heard Virid saying it at least once when he got mad, but he never figured it out.

"Wait," The sound of Trixie's voice brought Azure slightly away from his anger. All the ego that was in her voice before was strangely gone. "you brought that thing here? Are you out of your little pony minds?"

They're head over heels for you, Trixie. Can't you see that? Azure thought to himself, his anger still way too much. It was still eating away at him like acid.

"But you're the Great and Powerful Trixie," the smaller one said in response, clearly not getting the cause of Trixie's fear.

"Yeah, remember? You defeated an Ursa Major," the taller one said. The disgust at the whole situation utterly ate Azure alive. He'd defeated a chimera, but never once mentioned it to other ponies. In fact, if anypony was bringing it up, it was Pinkie Pie, and that happened so rarely it wasn't even worth considering.

"Uh...okay," The light blue unicorn said, sounding completely unnerved. "Stand back." That ego was back in her voice, but it wasn't nearly as obnoxious as before. The mare's horn became enveloped in that violet glow again, and within moments, a rope began to slither about, just as it had with Applejack. The rope lunged for the Ursa, and ensnared it.

Or rather, ensnared two of its claws together.

"Heh," That unforgivably huge ego was back on the forefront, and being reminded of everything that Trixie had done while acting all high and mighty caused Azure to feel a rush of rage that blasted through him like a lightning bolt. It burned like no other, and the cyan colt fought to keep himself composed, because he was dangerously close to losing his mind. "Piece of cake."

The angered pony tried his hardest to stand his ground, but he was aware his face was twitching like no other, and he could feel a vein throbbing on his forehead, right next to his horn. The anger only intensified when, unsurprisingly, Trixie's feeble attempt fell flat. As soon as the ursa snapped the rope off its fingers, it bellowed again.

Azure couldn't hold himself. If you could ever imagine a unicorn colt that looked ready to melt your head off with just a simple glare, that was exactly how furious he was now.

"Do you see now what your boasting has brought us, huh?!" The amount of anger in his voice was indescribable. "You came to Ponyville and gloated to anyone who'd listen to you! You humiliate my friends, publically, for the satisfaction of your ego! You go from town to town, harping on about how you bested an Ursa Major, in Hoofington!" He hobbled forward, the rage never leaving his eyes, but only his voice. The force of the step was so strong, the ground immediately underneath his good hoof chipped. "And now there actually is one here in Ponyville because your two biggest fans decided to test you out! They looked up to you based on a lie! Well, now it's time for the truth to come out!"

The cyan colt had utterly spent his breath. His throat hurt from how he'd screamed at them. He still looked angry enough to snap somepony in two if they happened to be brittle enough.

"You're wrong," This was the lanky one.

Why in the name of all that is harmonious do I even bother?!

"Trixie is great and powerful and can vanquish the Ursa Major, eh?"

Only now that the cyan colt had utterly spent his rage, his voice box burning (and he was sure he'd neighed at least once unintentionally, but he couldn't tell) from the screaming he'd just done, he could see clearly. And what he saw was an entirely different Trixie. What he heard next was a far different mare than the one that had done all the nasty things he'd just described.

"I...can't." Her voice was so full of guilt that it was difficult to recognize. Plus, it didn't help that she actually used first-person pronouns.

"What?!" This was both of the foals now, completely caught off-guard.

"I can't vanquish an Ursa Major!" Trixie repeated, loud enough. "No one can! I made the story up to make myself look better." While those two stooges repeated the words "made it up" in complete and utter disbelief, Azure had only one thing to say.

"...I knew it..." His voice was so hoarse it almost didn't even sound right coming out of him. The Ursa, apparently having had enough of this, continued its rampage, roaring louder. Azure felt the ground shake, and knew instinctively that he should probably move from the spot, like the other ponies in his vicinity were.

Instead, he did something somepony with a death wish would do. He turned to face the impossibly huge blue bear, and tried to figure out what to do about this beast with three legs. He never really ran from anything other than that first chimera he'd encountered. But he couldn't allow it to get past, not while he still drew breath. The beast raised its massive paw, and one pony screamed as the paw began to come to Azure.

It seemed like the cyan colt would be crushed underfoot, but Azure soon realized there was a magenta glow surrounding him, particularly since it was night and it was visible against the dark. His body jerked back, just as the Ursa's paw crashed down on where he just was.

"Are you insane?!" That familiar female voice scolded. Now that he was on his back safely away from the Ursa, Azure turned to see Twilight shooting him a small glare.

"You already asked..." he whispered, his voice box still sore from yelling.

The glare in Twilight's face vanished when she apparently remembered what was really going on. The Ursa continued to roar. The cyan colt watched as the mare that had just saved him from being crunched to death took a few steps forward, so that she was a step ahead of him. However, he could still clearly see the look of indecision on her face.

The unicorn sighed. How many times did he have to tell her...?
-------------
Twilight Sparkle knew what she had to do. Azure, even if he were healthy, couldn't even stand up to this, and Trixie just proved that she couldn't even handle it whatsoever. It fell on her to knock two birds out with one stone: show up Trixie, and get this dangerous creature out of town now.

She swallowed back a lump in her throat. All this combined was really making her anxious.

"Hey, Twilight," For somepony that really should only be whispering, Azure still managed to be loud enough to be heard. Then again, he was just behind her. She turned her head to see him with a smile, one that really shouldn't have been him, considering it was him to begin with; but also because she'd heard him screaming, presumably at Trixie. What he said next, though, utterly left her at a loss. "No matter what comes of this, remember this. We're still friends."

Did Twilight have to be told her mouth was hanging wide open? No. The sentiment probably meant more than it should have, but what he'd said to her made her feel reassured all the same, so it was good enough.

"Thanks, Azure..." she said in response with a smile. She returned her attention to the ursa and began. Her horn glowed as she began putting her plan into motion. This was going to take quite a bit out of her.
-------------
Azure had given all the advice he could know to give Twilight. Now it was all up to her. She was clearly deep in concentration. At first, he didn't get what she was up to. Suddenly, as the winds picked up, he could hear a soothing tune start to play. The Ursa Major heard this, and suddenly had a look on his face that indicated it was completely calm. In fact, it looked as though it was about to fall asleep.

"Nice use of number sixteen," Spike commented. The cyan colt didn't have time to figure out precisely what that statement meant, though, for as the Ursa began to completely calm from the music, he heard a deep, metallic groan. But the Ursa wasn't sitting on anything metal, so--

The sound of water gushing from something forced Azure to turn his head and look. A watertower had just been busted, the actual holder of the water opened. It appeared that there was a lid removed from it, but the resevroir that held the water was already moving towards a large barn.

What's she doing? The answer to his unspoken question soon came when the tower went into the barn, and the sounds of cows being milked soon filled Azure's ears. It was faint due to the distance, but those cows were definitely getting milked.

"Well, that's new," said Twilight's assistant, prompting Azure to wonder exactly how much magic potential the mare before him had. Her horn glowed even brighter and the glow around it actually seemed to get bigger. The soothed, sleepy-looking Ursa Major was lifted up by a magenta glow, and it was here that Azure understood the reason for breaking the watertower.

The watertower, with its top replaced, floated into the gigantic blue bears legs. It hugged it with all four of its limbs and began to suckle on it, almost like...

"Almost like a baby..." he whispered. He was too in shock from what he'd just witnessed Twilight to do to say anything else. His mouth was gaping. Twilight had lifted up that heavy, heavy creature, and done all that in basically one go. How magically attuned was this mare?

Twilight looked tired from the exertion however, in fact, almost as if she were about to--

He was at her side before he could remember moving there, propping her up to prevent her from falling. He used his good side, helping Twilight to stand up straight while she recovered from the obvious strain using so much magic had put on her.

The cheering of the townsponies exploded around them. As Twilight regained her balance, she turned to him with an exhausted smile.

"Thanks..." There was nothing more she could say to him, however, for her friends came rushing up to her.

"Unbelivable," commented Rainbow Dash. He had to give that mare more credit - since at least she knew where it was due.

"That was amazing!" That was Spike, giving the unicorn a thumbs-up.

"Heavens to Betsy!" Applejack exclaimed. "We knew you had ability, but not that much..." Twilight looked worried, which, for somepony being praised, made no sense to Azure.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," the purple mare...apologized?! "Please, don't hate me..."

Twilight, you are the only one I know that would apologize for being legitimately talented... The colt released a sigh, resisting the urge to cover his face with his good forehoof.

"Hate you!?" yelled all her friends at once.

"Why, whatever do you mean, darling?" Rarity asked, proving that was in fact her name for everypony she happened to like. Wait...like...Azure stopped himself before he could consider that thought more. Such a supposition was utterly ridiculous.

"Well..." Twilight started, sounding disheartened. Again, Azure wondered how somepony could be so modest. Then again, considering he'd had to put up with Trixie, this modesty was a breath of much-needed fresh air. "I know how much you all hated Trixie's showing off with her magic tricks, and I just thought--"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Rainbow cut in before the purple mare could finish her sentence. "Magic's got nothing to do with it! Trixie's just a showoff..."

Even more of one than any other pony I know... Azure mentally added.

"Most unpleasant," This, coming from the pony who looked like she'd been dunked headfirst into a swamp earlier that same day.

"All hat and no cattle," Applejack commented. That was a relatively new turn of phrase that the colt hadn't yet heard.

"So, you don't mind my magic?" The studious pony gained confidence with the responses she'd gotten.

"Your magic is a part of who you are, sugarcube," This was the orange earth pony again. "and we like who you are. We're proud to have such a powerful, talented unicorn as our friend."

"And after whoopin' that ursa's hindquarters," Azure didn't quite know if Dash's statement was accurate, "we're even prouder."

"You are?" Twilight asked, only to be met with affirmtive sounds from her friends. The cyan colt blew out another sigh.

"I told you so..." he whispered.

"Wow, Twilight," the young dragon began, "how'd you know what to do with that Ursa Major?"

"That's what I was doing when you came looking for me," she explained. "I was so intriguied by Trixie's bragging that I felt compelled to do some reading up on them."

"So, it is possible to vanquish an Ursa Major?"

"Well, you saw it yourself," Azure cut in, really feeling like the obviousness of the unicorn's feat was missed. "She was able--"

"Actually," Twilight cut him off before he could say any more. "That wasn't an Ursa Major. It was a baby, an Ursa Minor..."

The headband-wearing colt felt as though he'd been slapped, and his jaw almost hit the ground for the second time that day. Well, second time that day not out of rage, that is.

"That was a baby?!" Trixie squeaked, for once echoing Azure's thoughts verbatim.

"And it wasn't rampaging," Azure would have asked how, but Twilight wasn't giving him an opening. "It was just cranky because somepony woke it up."

Glares were shot in those two foals' direction, who looked elsewhere nervously.

"If that was an Ursa Minor," Spike began, looking worried, "then what does an Ursa Major look like?"

Twilight looked away from Spike, and her facial expression suggested she remembered something disconcerting.

"You don't want to know..."

Whether or not her statement was directed at him, Azure Courage did not know or care. He knew that the adult Major had to have been impossibly gigantic compared to its child, and realized with his current skillset, he would not be able to stand up to one on his own, much less defeat it.

"Huh." Trixie stood there, silently contemplating what Twilight was saying. Finally, she seemed to return to reality, but unfortunately, not in the way the cyan colt had hoped. "You may have vanquished an Ursa Minor," The cyan colt felt his anger silently stew within him at the return of the seemingly undamaged ego, "But you'll never have the same amazing, show-stopping ability as the Great and Powerful Trixie!" Smoke surrounded her, but it'd take a pony with no way of seeing whatsoever to see she was clearly fleeing the scene on foot. Azure was so enraged he blew out a sharp exhale and slumped forward such that his rump was in the air.

"Why do I even bother...?" Seeing an incorrigible ego had taken all the fight out of him, leaving him to silently stew in his rage.

"Why, that little...!" Dash was just about to give chase.

"Just let her go," said Twilight. "Maybe one day she'll learn her lesson." The purple mare then turned to the foals that started the whole mess in the first place. "Now, about you two..."

The two foals whose names Azure still did not know nor care to know looked very sheepish for a few moments, before, to the colt's slight shock...

"Agh, uh, we're sorry we woke up the Ursa Minor," This was the shorter one.

"We just wanted to see some awesome magic..." The lankier one explained. Like that wasn't obvious. Too bad their idol wasn't all that she was cracking herself up to be.

"Yeah, and the way you vanquished the Ursa Minor was awesome," It only occurred to Azure one second after the end of that statement that the foals were shifting their idolization to Twilight.

"We deserve whatever punishment you give us."

Un-flinging-believable... Azure thought to himself, not sure whether to feel pity for the foals or to be disgusted by their behavior anymore. Twilight looked to him for a moment, then back to the two that had brought the ursa into town.

"For starters, you two can help clean up this mess," she said, which caused relief to flood from the colt's body in the form of a sigh. He could not have possibly done all of the work with a bad ankle. However, what Twilight said next mystified him. "And...what do you think, Spike? Should I give them number twenty-five?"

What exactly is with the number thing...? He found himself wondering this as Spike responded.

"Oh, twenty-five! Yes," said the younger dragon with enthusiasm. His next sentence, however, left Azure even more confused, to the point he felt another migraine setting in. "And I think I deserve it too!"

Spike, what did you do to deserve "twenty-fi--" He couldn't even finish his sentence, for Twilight's horn glowed magenta once again, and one brief flash later, the two stooges that brought the ursa into town, as well as Spike, grew mustaches, to which they expressed gratitude. ...Oh. Still don't get it.
-------------
Even after standing in front of an Ursa Minor, Azure still felt restless. He had tried to go sit down and write his letter to his family so he could update them on what just occured that day, but he just didn't feel like doing anything. His mind was in another place. For some reason, that place was the library where Twilight lived. And, his body had followed his mind's calling. He was at the door right now, visibly hesitant.

Okay, yeah, I admit she's got a lot more magical talent than I thought, but c'mon, she's still the same pony as before... The colt thought to himself, swallowing. Azure Courage...you know it's in your name. You shouldn't be afraid of this...

After taking a deep breath to steady himself, he raised his good hoof to knock. However, the strangeness of the situation did not end there. Instead of Spike, who usually answered the door, it was Twilight herself.

"Oh, Azure," she said. There was something not right about her tone, but Azure couldn't place it. "What brings you here?"

Ah, darn it...

"Uh, I never really congratulated you for taking care of the ursa..." The cyan colt devised his reason, though in truth, he had no idea why he was back here.

"You don't need to thank me..." Her gaze became distant and soft as she modestly deflected his sentiment. "If anything, I should thank you..."

"Thank me? For what?" Azure was not aware of what he'd done that would warrant her thanking him. Other than the time where she turned him purple so she could get away from the other ponies.

"When I saw the size of that Ursa, I began to wonder if I could ever pull it off..." she said. "But with your kind words, I got the confidence that I needed."

A reply was already on the tip of his tongue, but he never got to say it due to Twilight's next action. Without warning, one of her forelegs shot out and pulled him into an embrace.

"Thanks..." she whispered. Azure didn't know what to say. Something began to stir within him due to this event, but once again, he couldn't quite place it. All that was certain was that his heart rate definitely elevated.

What did I do?? That was the only other thing besides an incomprehensible mash of words he could discern in his altered thoughts. The hug only lasted about fifteen seconds, but it felt a lot longer somehow. Twilight gasped as she realized what she was doing and stumbled backwards, and here, Azure realized there was a light shade of pink on her cheeks that definitely wasn't there before.

"Uh, um, again, thanks..." she stuttered out awkwardly.

"Y-yeah," His reply was just as awkward. He didn't know what that was all about. "No problem." He took a small step back in case she tried reaching out for him again without warning. "A-anytime you n-need me, I guess. So, I guess I'll see you around..."

"Y-yes, see you tomorrow..." The purple mare continued to be awkward, as though she didn't know what she'd just done. "You know, if that's what you want...um..." The silence was more deafening than Trixie's ego, which was saying a lot. "So, yeah, um, bye..."

Twilight shut the door, enabling Azure to turn around and head back home in the night. As he hobbled his way back home, he rubbed at his mane with his good hoof while standing on his hind legs.

"What...just...happened...?"
-------------
To my family back home:

Well, I'm now hurt and have to take a week off. Today was one of those crazy days. There was this egotistical unicorn mare that came to town that made any of Virid's magic-flaunting exploits look time. At least Virid doesn't brag openly about defeating creatures, let alone ones he never did to begin with. I tried to stand up to her and lost when she moved one of the flying objects. Got a sprain in my left foreankle for that.

Later, these two stooges, I'd estimate around Spike's age (read: Twilight's dragon assistant), decide to test Trixie, apparently, by bringing an ursa to Ponyville. Note that Trixie once boasted she could beat an Ursa Major. Well, the beast she fought was a big blue teddy bear compared to one...because it was an Ursa Minor. It got mad because it was woken up from its nap.

Thankfully, Twilight was able to stop it from breaking anything else. That mare is talented. Guess that's what happens when you're the princess's star pupil...

Well, that's it from me. Hopefully I'll do something to pass this next week, otherwise I will go mad.

Until next letter,
Azure Courage
-------------
Virid Strategem, reading his younger cousin's letter, felt his brow crease. What exactly happened in Ponyville that warranted these constant events? Canterlot may have been one noisy city, but despite its quiet nature, the city Azure moved to suddenly seemed a lot louder by comparison. An Ursa Minor attacked because two idiots decided to test some showboat?

"What are you up to, Azure? Why'd you have to get yourself hurt?" he asked. He re-read the paragraph dealing with Twilight, and held back the urge to smirk. "Oh, I see. Got a crush on her?"

"Virid!" This was Blitz, cutting into Virid's thoughts. "You mentioned Azure got hurt...care to explain what's in that letter?"

"Oh, nothing much, just another one of his 'stuff went wrong then got fixed by his friends' sort of things. He tried to stand up to a mare whose ego sounds so irritating I probably couldn't even stand her--"

"Means a lot coming from you," The red unicorn whistled.

"Please let me finish before you make me mad," the green unicorn snapped. "Anyway, he sprained his foreankle trying to freegallop on...well, I'm going to assume objects high-up."

"That's my thing," Blitz countered.

"Hold on: I'm not done...now these two fans, probably her only two fans in the whole town, decide to wake up an ursa's child and bring it to town, believing it to be an adult."

"Aren't adult ursas at least twenty stories high?"

"That's because this 'Trixie' boasted she could beat one. Turns out she couldn't even beat a baby ursa, and then it falls onto Twilight," Encased in a bright yellow glow, the letter from Azure floated in front of Blitz's nose. "the 'talented mare', to apparently defeat it."

The two cousins took a moment of silence.

"Huh. Maybe he does, maybe he doesn't," Blitz finally said. "But when you assume, Virid, you make an a--"

"So, I'm thinking about going down to Ponyville next week to visit..." The green colt said with an unreadable expression on his face.

"Virid, I know that look..." The red pony sighed. "I'll come with you. Somepony's gotta keep a lid on your antics."

"What's that supposed to mean, Crimson?"

"Nothing. We'll go next week to visit Azure and see what makes Ponyville so attractive for weird stuff to happen..."

Chapter 7: Redefined Sibling Rivalry

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Chapter 7: Redefined Sibling Rivalry
------------------
The week that Azure had off due to his sprain was not as boring as he thought it would be, but nothing could last forever. Though his headband had returned to his head, he had still been instructed to take it easy for a couple more days to be safe. The sprain itself healed fine, though, according to the checkup. The cyan colt was now on his way home, limping just a little on the appendange he sprained while trying to show up that showboat that'd come to town.

It was nice not having to take responsibility for that long, but tomorrow, he'd start up his work again. The unicorn couldn't wait. It'd mean he'd actually be doing something other than writing. Not that his writing wasn't noticed...

"Yo, Az!" This was a distant familiar voice: that of Rainbow Dash. He halted in his step, allowing her to reach him for a few moments. "I never really thought to ask, but after last week, I'm curious..." She hovered over him as he started to move again to his destination: his home. "Where'd you learn to do all that?"

This was new. He'd never really seen Dash take a positive interest in the talents of anypony else, except Twilight when she'd taken the Ursa Minor out of town.

"I think I said it before," Azure began. "But since I was young, my cousins and I would go freegalloping around Canterlot. I guess you could say I learned from them."

"Are they pegasi?" asked the light blue mare.

"No. They're unicorns, like me. Though one of them, I swear he can get anywhere without teleporting." Azure said. "But that's where I learned to do it. Why do you want to know?"

"I feel like I could use those kinds of moves in my flying somewhere!" she said enthusastically, but Azure already knew where this was going, trotting his way to home where Rainbow began talking about how she could potentially do that among the clouds. It was indeed natural for her to talk about using them in that way.

"You probably could. I for one would actually like to see what you could do." Azure responded. He looked up, squinting, when he got to the mailbox. For some reason, the mailmare who was at Twilight's welcome party was coming to him as fast as she could, even though she flew quite crookedly. As she drew closer, Azure realized she was holding a letter in her mouth.

"Is that Ditzy Doo?" asked Rainbow Dash, apparently seeing the approaching pegasus pony. "Huh, looks like she forgot a letter for you when she made her rounds this morning."

"Does that happen often?" asked Azure. "First time I've ever seen it happen."

"Actually..." The light blue mare never got to finish, for the gray female, still as cross-eyed as ever, almost flew straight into the ground in front of Azure trying to rush the letter to him. Clearly, the name Dash gave her seemed pretty accurate.

"I'm sorry!" She sounded only slightly distressed from the condition, the apology muffled by the mouthful of letter. "I forgot this in the bottom of my bag!"

"Don't worry," said Azure. "Pretty sure it's nothing important if it was at the bottom..."

"Don't be so sure," This was Dash not-so-subtly whispering into his ear. "She's been known to crash and scatter letters all about sometimes."

"Here, let me give you this too, as an apology!" The mailmare seemed relieved to hear Azure's sentiment, but nonetheless was reaching into her bag already. In a few seconds, she produced...a muffin? "I've got a few other letters I missed! Gotta go!" And just like that, the blond pegasus was off, flying about in her almost pitably broken way to her next missed letter. Azure had taken the muffin in his magic before she'd left, but he stared after her, blinking.

"Okay then..." he said, turning his attention back to the letter. He took a bite from the gift that Ditzy had just got done giving him, and only here did he notice who it was from. "Huh, Crimson Blitz sent me a letter."

"Who?" Dash asked, flying around to his front.

"My cousin. Easily the best out of the three of us at freegalloping." Azure said, opening the letter with his magic. He went inside, Dash actually bothering to land and follow him. He set the muffin down, and began to read the letter to himself. Just as he finished chewing the first bite, his eyes widened, and he swallowed hard. "Uh-oh..."

"What is it?" The light blue mare asked, walking up to him.

"Blitz and Virid are...!" Azure blinked, before rushing outside.
-------------------
Rainbow Dash did not know what to make of Azure's latest outburst. He dropped the letter from his magic glow and rushed out his door upon reading it, leaving the half-eaten muffin from Ditzy on a nearby table. The dropped parchment fluttered down to her hooves. Rainbow didn't really consider herself that nosy a pony, but she wanted to know what had the colt so worried. Especially when he let a loud "oh, hay!" upon reaching outside.

She managed to get a hold of the letter, and lifted it up so she could read it...
-----
Dear Azure:

Virid's curious about what's going on in Ponyville. He's coming to town in three days, and I'm coming with him. Maybe we can meet your friends too. We'll be here for most of the next two days, but we're due back in Canterlot after the second day. We're wondering what exactly you're up to.

Your cousin,
Crimson Blitz
-------
Rainbow read the letter again to herself. She giggled somewhat. How bad were his cousins if he was this worried about coming? Apparently, Virid was also one of his cousins, at least, that's what the cyan mare got out of his past.

As the mare wondered what exactly Azure was so worried, it occurred to her that the colt probably thought they were in town today. With a small grin on her face, Rainbow spread her wings, flying out one of the open windows, opting not to open the door...
-------------------
Azure galloped through the streets of Ponyville, trying to see if his cousins had already arrived. His first guess was to check the train station, to see if they were there waiting for him.

Don't be in the city already, don't be in the city already... he thought as his hooves rapidly struck the ground, completely ignoring the doctor's advice to take it easy to be on the safe side. In record time, he was at the train station, but to his chagrin, his cousins either hadn't arrived yet, or were already in town. Darn it!

He immediately turned around and began making a mad dash for the city limits again, still not following the doctor's advice. It wasn't Crimson he was worried about though. He was more worried about Virid and his tendency to run his gums. Even his run-in with Trixie hadn't changed a whole lot, even though at least he could take comfort knowing his cousin wasn't the most egotistical unicorn this side of Equestria.

"Bad, bad, bad, this is bad..." Azure mumbled, running around trying to find any signs of two unicorns slightly older than him. He checked the areas around the library and at Sweet Apple Acres, two areas he knew he'd mentioned in his letters. There was no sign of them.

I know they're here...where are they?! He continued to run.

"Hey, Blue Soap!"

This was a familiar voice shouting out an unfamiliar insult, just as he passed into the town square. Azure whipped his head around to see his cousins, complete with two days' worth of supplies, and as soon as he saw Virid's expression it was clear who made the insult.

"Oh, because I sprained my ankle..." Azure responded. "Virid, have I ever told you that you weren't a comedian?"

"It doesn't matter how many times you tell him," Blitz cut in. "You look winded, Azure..."

"I was looking for you guys." The youngest of the three responded, sighing. "Was not expecting you guys."

"You sent him a letter, didn't you?" Virid turned to Blitz with the question, after some silence.

"Clearly, he didn't get it in time, so does it really matter?" The red unicorn responded. "What, you didn't?"

"What, can't I surprise Azure unexpectedly for a change? No wonder you were wanting us to hang around the town square!" Virid responded. The blue unicorn hid the urge to facehoof. While he could put weight on his bad foot again, it was clear the green unicorn was going to attempt to drive him up the wall, literally, before this visit was over. Even with Blitz trying to keep him in check.

"I thought you were the strategist..." Blitz responded. "Anyway, Azure, care to give us a quick tour after we stop by your home?"

"Yeah. Don't want to stay in this boring old town square all day," Virid exaggeratedly stretched his legs as he said this. "And I don't want to keep this stuff on my back any longer than I have to."

"Right, well, I should be able to find my home just fine from here..." Azure responded.

Home, huh...well, this is better than having to risk running into the others, The cyan colt thought to himself as he began to lead his cousins to his house. But I've been wrong before...
-------------------
"You know, Azure," Virid said. "You did seem real nervous about how we were coming to town, given you were running around in your condition." He made a subtle motion to Azure's leg, as if he needed to be reminded that it did still have its cast on it for the next two days. "Don't tell me you're afraid of what'll happen if we meet your marefriends now..."

The cyan colt felt a vein throb on his forehead as he turned to face his cousin.

"For the last time, Virid--" Azure started.

"C'mon," the green unicorn responded, flicking a hoof dismissively. "I'm a nice guy..."

"Only when we're watching," reminded Blitz in a matter-of-factly tone. "Otherwise, you really become disrespectful."

"Oh, c'mon!" Virid said, for once not picking a fight with Crimson, a feat that the colt found utterly remarkable when he thought about it.

"The only consolation here is that the mare that had fans bring an Ursa Minor to town had even more of an ego than you do, Virid," Azure spat, disgusted that he even had to bring Trixie up as an example.

"Oh, like you weren't," His tone was mocking, but the implications were clear. "Showing off how you can move, that is."

Azure had since reached the door of his abode, and as he reached out magically to grasp the handle so he could open it, remembering that he had left it unlocked in his rush, he turned to Virid.

"Virid, I'm really getting sick of your--" the cyan colt began, having had his fill of Virid's brand of harshness already, but his cousins had apparently seen something behind him, Blitz being responsible and jamming his hoof into Azure's mouth before he could say anymore. With a single nod of the head from his elder cousin, Azure turned...

And saw all six of the mares he'd befriended assembled there, Rainbow with an utterly complacent smile on her face. Azure's eye twitched, and for a single second, he had honestly considered striking her, but thankfully, he was able to restrain himself.

"So these are your cousins, huh, Az?" Dash asked, and Azure swallowed. His expression turned dangerous, though none of the mares seemed to notice.

You have no idea what you've done, do you? Blitz is okay, but Virid-- Azure couldn't even finish his thoughts before Virid interrupted.

"Oh, so these are the mares from your letters..." Virid said. As Azure turned to him, he realized with utter distaste that the all-too familiar grin was on his face. When the green unicorn had that stupid smirk plastered on his face, nothing good for anypony he felt like teasing would come of it.

"Hello," Blitz cut in quick before Virid could make that fact public and make it sound like Azure was some sort of stalker, "I'm Crimson Blitz, and this is Virid Strategem. We're Azure Courage's older cousins. Nice to meet you."

If I'd gotten to choose who came down to see me, it'd be Crimson, without question. Virid...eeehhh... Azure thought to himself. Crimson never really took a teasing tone with me on Nightmare Moon.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," said Rarity.

"You must be...Rarity." said Virid, motioning to her.

"That is correct," the white unicorn responded.

"Alright, let's see if I got this..." Blitz raised one of his forehooves, once again keeping the green colt in check. "Fluttershy," he motioned to the mare at the back of the group, who shrunk away only a little from the motion. "Rainbow Dash," now it was the hovering mare. "Pinkie Pie," He motioned to the excited-looking one, "Applejack," The hat-wearing mare nodded as the red pony's hoof passed over her. "And...Twilight Sparkle."

"So far, so good..." said Azure, sighing.

"So, why are you two in town?" Applejack asked.

"Well, we're here to see our little cousin," Virid responded, already taking a step away from Blitz and Azure. "But there's something I'm here to do on top of that."

Ah, manure...! thought the cyan colt to himself.

"I hear that you're a fast flier, Rainbow Dash," Virid continued, stepping forward. "And," he inhaled, "Blitz over there is actually pretty fast too."

"What the..." Azure whispered.

"Virid, what the--" Crimson was caught off-guard.

"Oh, is that so?" Dash asked, fluttering over to Crimson.

"W-well," The unicorn faltered, not knowing what to do. "Yes, but--"

"Wait a sec," The light blue pegasus paused, before remembering something. "Az just got done telling me before he went lookin' for you, he learned how to freegallop from you and Virid over there."

"That's right, but..." Blitz sighed, apparently having found out that Rainbow's competitive spirit was impossible to overcome. "Fine. I might as well show what I can do while I'm here."

Azure could tell from his cousin's facial expression that they were both thinking the same thing: Darn it, Virid...

"It couldn't hurt to see how it'll play out," said Twilight, probably curious to see how his cousins were. At least, that was Azure's guess.

"C'mon, everypony, follow me," Dash said, already out the door in maybe a second. Not that Azure was timing her. "I'll find some good surfaces so it's fair."

As the ponies began to follow Rainbow's lead, Pinkie started hopping along, seeming to summarize the situation perfectly as she went.

"Oh goody!" she cheered as she bounced her way out of the door. "Rainbow Dash and one of Azie's cousins racing? This is gonna be fuuuuun!"

Azure felt a strange case of deja vu wash over him. He glanced to his cast, and grit his teeth. Usually, nothing good ever came of somepony telling him that, especially now that Pinkie started to say it. As he looked up, he saw the only other pony to use a similar phrase to him. Virid was looking at him with a crooked grin, the very same one he'd worn before all this.

"C'mon, cousin," he said, mock-innocently, "let's go see if your pegasus marefriend can stand up to Blitz's unicorn speed..."

Azure blew out hot air.

"Yeah..." His voice was so sarcastic he himself almost smirked at how it sounded. "Sounds like fun to me..."
-------------------
It hadn't taken the group too long to find a spot. Rainbow had taken the trouble of setting up a course on some hills not too far from Azure's home. There were a few rocks here and there which could be used as platforms for the unicorn involved in the race. Anypony looking at Crimson Blitz could tell he didn't want any part of this race, but he was going to do whatever it would take. Azure Courage was no exception, and of the things that could have happened during his cousins' visit, this was one of the bad things, but by no means the worst thing that could have happened on their visit.

"Alright, here's how this'll work..." Dash said, hovering down to a position on Blitz's left, who still looked like he didn't want to be here. "See that flag?"

The flag in question would require some sharp eyes to see, but Azure could just make out the form of a red flag a moderately long distance away. Funnily enough, Azure thought that Rainbow Dash was going to do at least twice that distance, but didn't want to point it out since she would see it as a challenge.

Blitz gave a short nod, still looking like he didn't want to go through with this, apparently hoping against hope that Rainbow would see through the expression and call this off. Azure knew better than to entertain such a vision.

"We'll race from here," Pinkie hopped up in time to put a blue flag between the two, such that Dash could motion to it. Azure knew the earth pony was excited to see how this would turn out, but hopping the distance Dash was indicating must have taken just a little wind out of her. "to there, and back. First one to do that is the winner."

"State the obvious some more, please," said Virid. Azure took a deep breath, trying to refrain from smacking Virid, particularly since he was on the side with the hoof in the cast.

"Alright, I understand the rules," Blitz said, shooting a small, barely noticable glare to Virid in the process. The look on his face changed into one of resignation. "So, care to start us off?"

"Ready..." Dash responded, forgoing any pre-race taunts, probably because she could at least see Blitz's hesitance. Then again, Azure was probably just making random guesses, and look where he was now. "Set..."

At this point, Blitz's horn began to take on a purplish hue, not like Twilight's or Trixie's.

"Is that allowed?" Applejack asked.

"Of course it is," responded Virid with a bit of snideness in it. Azure felt his bad hoof twitch, and with all of his reserves he fought not to smash his cousin over the back of the head with it.

"Go!" Dash flew off, a rainbow streak the only indicator of where she was. Blitz took off, a mix of purple and red as he began to gallop, bouncing onto the rock nearest to him and launching himself off. Though Blitz didn't leave such an identifiable trail as with Rainbow, he was leaving afterimages, though that might have been the spell.

Azure was stunned to see Blitz able to keep up with Rainbow Dash. He didn't think there was that much room for improvement on his speed spell. He knew he'd had it, but not like this. Apparently, Twilight didn't expect this either. As he turned to see her, she literally appeared to be taking detailed notes about what was going on.

Actually, Twilight...This is normal for you. thought the cyan colt as he went back to the race. Blitz's quick-moving body soon began to catch up with Dash's streak, maybe only a few yards or so behind. Blitz kept bouncing off of rocks to try and close the gap, and as they neared the checkpoint, the unicorn's tactic appeared to be working.

"I-I don't...believe it!" This was Fluttershy, recognizable to Azure-except for the volume. It was a bit loud...for her, anyway. The others turned to look.

"No, this is really happening..." Virid said. Azure felt his forehoof start to twitch again at this. He didn't feel like having to explain his cousin's behavior...especially considering four of his friends were not unicorns.

Blitz bounded off the rocks as the two made their way back, actually seeming to get the lead for maybe a fraction of a second. However, Dash, flying a straight line on the way back, soon overtook him. Blitz fought to get into the lead, galloping straight for the finish. However, his efforts to get ahead before Dash crossed the finishing line were in vain. The mare crossed a second and a half before Blitz did.

Blitz skidded to a halt just after crossing the finish line, kicking up dust.

"Hah! I won!" the mare gloated. "And I wasn't even trying, either!" She didn't even really seem winded by the effort it took.

"Heh, Azure was right from his letters," Blitz expressed, seemingly unphased by the fact he'd just gotten beaten. "You really are fast."

Virid couldn't withhold a snort, though Azure knew he had no intention of doing so anyway.

"What's so funny?" Twilight asked, apparently not seeing the harm that Azure saw in it.

Twilight, don't...!

"Nothing..." Virid said. "So, what else is going to happen?"

Azure breathed a sigh of relief at the green unicorn's rare display of restraint on the matter. Perhaps there was hope yet of this visit turning out good after all...

"So, about your family's farm, Applejack..." interjected Blitz, hoping to cut off the green unicorn before he could mouth off any more. "Think you could show us that next?"

The orange farmer mare smiled.

"It'll be my pleasure," she said, already preparing to lead the way.

Thank you, Blitz... He was internally grateful that not only were his cousins at each other's throats, but Virid seemed to be keeping a lid on his bias, and Blitz was trying his darndest to make sure it stayed that way. Just keep this up...
-------------------
The group had eventually made their way to the family farm, surprisingly, with very little comments from Virid. Except when he caught sight of that mint green unicorn that moved into town from Canterlot not that long ago. The one that always went off about "humans"...whatever those were, Azure did not care to know. Virid was about to announce his version of not caring to know, but thankfully, Blitz was able to pull him back in line.

Dodged a few arrows there, Azure said. And the day's still young...how long can Virid go...?

"Welcome to Sweet Apple Acres!" Applejack said, marked enthusiasm in her features, as soon as they'd arrived at the farm. Azure remembered that he hadn't really toured the property that much to his memory. He'd only been in two or three parts of the orchards and passed through the main buildings. As the group went to the orchards, Blitz looked around, and let out a low whistle.

"You take care of all this by yourself?" he asked, sounding genuinely impressed.

"Oh, I can't take all the credit," Applejack declined. With a nod of the head, she motioned towards...her brother, Big Mac, who was in the middle of harvesting apples. "I do have help."

"So that explains it..." Virid spat under his breath, but Azure definitely caught it.

What the--Virid!! the cyan unicorn thought to himself, shifting a little. Deja vu was starting to set in again, and he found himself hoping this wouldn't be a repeat of last week.

"So, while we're here," said Applejack, apparently not hearing Virid, "how 'bout I show ya some Apple Family hopsitality and treat ya to some of my granny's trademark apple pies?"

Virid seemed eager for this, and Blitz appeared to not want to ask twice. Azure felt his brow furrow.

Please tell me you're going to try harder, Virid... Azure thought. Else, they really will hate you...
-------------------
Twilight didn't know why Azure seemed so on-edge. Aside from Virid's snort and setting up that race between Blitz and Rainbow, both of his cousins seemed nice enough. Then again, the purple mare had thought similarly about Gilda, and then she blew up during her welcome party...But these weren't griffons, and they certainly didn't seem ill-tempered.

No more ill-tempered than Azure could get, anyway. Even their table manners were better than the colt in question. Blitz, Virid, and Pinkie had partaken in the hospitality, and enjoyed their pie, though Virid really seemed to be getting into it. Azure was watching his cousin with rather suspicious eyes, but for the life of her, the mare just couldn't see what had her friend so worried about his cousins.

"This is actually pretty good," Blitz said, finishing up his pies.

"Shucks," Applejack interjected. "If ya think this is good, you should check out the sweets at Pinkie's bakery." In response to her name being said, along with her place of employment, Pinkie started hopping around.

"Oh, yes, yes, yesssss!" she started hopping around, catching Virid off-guard. He got up, and looked to Azure. "I have the most suer-duper yummy treats you can imagine!" She continued to hop about, practically listing items.

"She always like this?" Virid asked. Notably, his blue eyes were shining just a little, but Twilight couldn't figure out why.

"Yes..." Azure responded, sounding only somewhat relieved.

"I have never been the kind of colt to turn down sweets," said Virid, with any evidence for Azure's constant worry absent once again, "Lead the way."
-------------------
Azure Courage was somewhat relieved to see that the next stop of the tour wasn't going to be something terribly obvious. The colt withheld a sigh.

The Sugarcube Corner... The cyan colt thought. If ever there was a way to be Virid's friend right quick...well, he might just behave himself here...

Virid, upon arriving at the place, appeared to start drooling with a completely numbed expression on his face as he looked at all the sweets. Azure tried not to laugh at Virid's complete weakness here.

"Hey, Az," Dash whispered. "What's with your cousin there?"

"If I had to pick one of Virid's strangest traits," said Azure. "It'd have to be his sweet tooth." It would make more sense if they knew how much of a jerk he was, though...

Pinkie immediately hopped behind the counter, and in no less than thirty seconds, had managed to serve each pony and the baby dragon their own cupcake, complete with uniquely covered frosting for each one.

If Rainbow Dash is among the fastest fliers, Pinkie Pie is among the fastest workers. thought Azure to himself as he started to take a bite.

Blitz took a bite, chewed a few times, and held the food in his cheek as he turned to Pinkie, "You mean this is your bakery?"

"Oh, no, this is Mr. and Mrs. Cakes' bakery!" Pinkie said, her mouth full, causing Blitz to wince. "I just work here, and live upstairs from here too!"

"Works and lives in a bakery," Though his mouth was full, Azure could just make out Virid's statement. "How appropriate..."

Azure just about choked on the wad of cupcake he had been about to swallow. Thankfully, he managed to get it down the correct pipe.

Oh, thank Celestia nopony heard that... he thought to himself as he noticed the lack of reaction in the other ponies...except Blitz, of course, who flinched when his ear twitched. He and Azure met eyes, and once again, it was clear they were both thinking the same thing.

"Oh, goodness!" said Fluttershy, again, louder than one would expect since she was meeting new ponies. Her meekness began to return as all eyes turned to her. "I n-nearly forgot to feed the poor animals in the forest!"

"Why don't we tag along?" Spike asked. Azure wanted to scream a negative to this, but he couldn't find it in him to do so, since no one had heard any of Virid's negative comments. "That way you could show Azure's cousins what you do."

"Oh, um, I guess so," The yellow mare's voice volume decreased a bit more, but it wasn't an issue for Azure. "I mean, if they want to..."

"I don't mind," said Blitz. Virid was apparently still in the middle of a post-cupcake euphoria and likely didn't hear what was said, judging from the absolutely blank expression on his face.

Azure could feel his breath shortening just a bit as the tour was set to continue, with Blitz physically dragging Virid from the store, who made no attempt to resist.

If we can just get Virid past Fluttershy's job without much in the way of comments, we should be safe...right? Azure said. Celestia, we're over halfway past my friends' various jobs...and Virid can't seem to keep his comments to himself! How in the hay did nopony hear him?!
-------------------
Twilight hadn't the foggiest idea why Azure would want to hide his cousins from them. Sure, Virid had a nasty tendency to garble gibberish with his mouth full, but they still seemed like a far cry from Gilda. Actually, comparing either of them to Gilda would be an insult to either one of them. Yet, as they got closer to Fluttershy's cottage, Azure looked positively uncomfortable the whole time. He looked like he was going to be sick. Or pass out, whichever.

Rarity reacted to his obvious discomfort before anypony else could notice.

"Azure, darling, you don't look so good," she said, concern evident in her tone. "Are you sick?"

"N-no," The cyan colt was catapulted back to reality, apparently having no idea how he looked to anypony else. "Just...might be walking on this bad foot of mine too much..."

I've seen you play against worse odds, Azure, thought Twilight to herself.

"I see," the white unicorn said, apparently not seeing it the same way the studious mare did. "Well, do try not to push yourself too much."

"I'm seriously hoping I don't have to..." It was barely a whisper, but Twilight caught it. Her ear twitched, but before she could ask Azure what it was about his cousins that had him so worried, the group had arrived at Fluttershy's day job. Several of the animals appeared to be waiting for the meek mare, who suddenly seemed to be...less so now that she was in her natural element, so to speak. She began to feed them.

"So you take care of all these creatures?" Blitz asked.

"Well...yes..." Fluttershy responded, with a strange lack of shyness. Either she'd adjusted to Azure's cousins just that quick or it was the fact she was doing what she did best that made her so much less shy.

"Impressive," commented the spikiest-maned colt while looking around, "I can tell from the quality of this place you do this well."

Twilight blinked, but she didn't miss the lightest shade of pink on Fluttershy's cheeks. She didn't falter from the compliment though. Abruptly, Azure looked as though he were about to choke again while looking straight at Virid, but Twilight couldn't see any cause for concern.

"Huh, you say something?" Spike asked, turning to Virid. The green colt noticed his question and responded.

"I said 'I wonder how long it takes to feed them all'." Azure once again looked like he was going to pass out, which made Twilight tilt her head in confusion.

Did I miss something...?

"It really comes down to how many animals show up for lunch," Again, Fluttershy sounded unusually more confident in the company of animals.

"What kind of animals do you feed?" Twilight's brow furrowed. Now that she thought about it, Virid's tone sounded a bit...forced, while Blitz sounded a little more natural asking. But that thought was soon banished upon the next event.

"Well...um," A little bit of that meekness returned. "There's the birds, the rabbits, the raccoons, the--"

A loud growl erupted, and almost immediately, Virid leapt straight up, turning around, coming face to face with a bear that did appear to be roaring. Yet, nopony else except for Blitz moved a muscle. Virid's horn began to glow an amber color as he prepared to attack.

"Why you--!" he growled, sounding an awful lot like Azure.

"Wait!" Fluttershy yelled. Virid winced, cancelling his attack. "He's not trying to hurt you..."

"What in Tart--" the green unicorn began, but Fluttershy didn't pay any attention to him. Now that Virid was actually looking at the bear, it appeared to be rubbing at its eyes. It wasn't roaring. It was actually yawning.

Virid almost attacked an innocent bear. Why does that not surprise me? Twilight thought to herself.

"I told you not to yawn behind ponies like that," The yellow pegasus scolded. "They might get the wrong idea." The bear looked ashamed of itself, and the look on Virid's face was priceless, like he'd just sat on a tack, but didn't want to alert anypony of his displeasure. "It's okay," She began to rub the bear behind the ear, fluttering up to its eye level to do so. "Now, off to eat with you."

Azure and Blitz both looked at each other, apparently at a loss for Virid's behavior. Twilight felt her mind began to work again at Azure's endless discomfort with the prospect of the girls and herself meeting them.

"Guess..." Blitz began, while Virid recovered from his mental lag after being stunned at Fluttershy's ability to tame animals. "Guess all that's left for us to visit is Rarity and Twilight." Azure seemed relieved to hear this, but for what reason, Twilight did not know. "So who's next?"

Twilight felt that she had to interject.

"I don't really have a job..." she explained, only a little bashfully. "I'm still a student." That did bring into question how she was able to live, but nopony seemed to bring it up, so that subject was dropped.

"I guess that means you're up, Rarity," Blitz said, not allowing Virid to get a word in edgewise.

"I was hoping to save the best for last," Rarity started. "But if you insist..."
-------------------
Azure Courage felt relief washing over him now that they were moving to the unicorns' respective parts of the tour. Well, it couldn't quite be called a tour, given that nopony was pointing out the town hall or any other locations of interest. Still, it counted as a tour given his cousins were visiting his friends' houses, which more or less were scattered around town.

Amazing! We might get through this before Virid really starts flapping his gums! he thought, estatic at the thought of the mares not finding out about Virid's...bias. The group eventually arrived at the Carousel Boutique, and Azure found himself recalling his first meeting with Rarity. At the time, she'd just passed over him, until he'd mentioned the city where he was from. Then she, rather enthusiastically, showed him the decorations for the (crashed) Summer Sun Celebration.

"So this is your shop?" Blitz asked.

"Indeed," Rarity responded, taking the lead of the group, a slightly boastful tone in her voice. "And the best fashion shop in Ponyville."

Isn't this...the only one, in Ponyville...? thought Azure to himself. Blitz and Virid looked around at the various dresses and that kind of stuff, but it was the former who spoke, while the latter seemed to be distracted by what appeared to be a covered dummy.

"These are really well-made," said Blitz. Rarity merely closed her eyes, reopened them halfway, and whipped her hair around gently in response to the compliment. "You really know how to bring out the details..."

Rarity spotted what Virid was about to do to the covered-up dummy, just as the amber glow of Virid's horn began to light up again.

"Ah-ah-ah-ah!" she scolded, "no peeking, Mister Strategem, that one is still under development."

Well, I've never seen her react that way before... Azure thought to himself. Then again, I've only been here two other times after I've first met her. The cyan colt decided to drop the subject before he dwelled on it.

"Now then, before we move on, would either of you gentlecolts," The cyan colt was, mercifully, able to hold back a snort at the thought of Virid being a gentlecolt, "like to try on something more...pleasant?"

Blitz lifted his head and spoke again.

"Thanks for the offer, but I'm going to take a pass on it..." The red unicorn now seemed sort of uncomfortable that he'd had to do most of the speaking. "What about you, Virid?"

"Yeah, I'm...not interested either." Virid showed perfect restraint in turning Rarity's offer down, which was to be expected of him given that bias of his... "So, guess that leaves us with Twilight..."

Azure breathed out a sigh, trying his hardest to not be noticed by the others. Virid had managed to get through the others' lifestyles without much in the way of incident. At least, not ones that the others could hear.

"So then...here we go..." Twilight said, sounding only slightly bashful at the prospect. With that, the purple mare turned, and began to lead the others to her home.
-------------------
"Wait, so...you live in a library...?" This was Blitz, unmistakably confused about it.

"For me, there really isn't any other place I would be..." Twilight answered. Azure supposed he shouldn't have been surprised by Twilight's admittance, but now he was starting to wonder how many books total the purple mare had read. He would have been up to ask about it, but after what happened post-Trixie's running away...it just didn't feel right.

"Yeah," Spike cut in with a little laugh. "She actually spent more time in the Canterlot library than at home!"

Virid stood blinking. "Wait, you're from Canterlot too?"

"So that's how you became...her student..." Blitz cut in again, sounding impressed.

"Well," Twilight looked sheepish again, "yes, that's part of it, I guess."

Still being modest, Twilight? Azure thought to himself.

"Sometimes, somepony can be in the right place at the right time..." Twilight's eyes half-closed, and for a moment, her expression grew distant.

Azure felt his eye twitch and hoped nopony caught what she was referring to. The memory of the hug she'd given him after Trixie left town came flooding back, and just for a few moments, he felt his face heat up.

"You know, Azure--" Virid started, turning to him at precisely the wrong time. "...you didn't...mention where she was from..." His voice gradually degenerated from somewhat friendly to confused. "What's up with you?"

Darn...! thought the cyan colt, trying his hardest to restore his poker face.

"Uh...!" Blitz quickly moved to interject again, "I guess the fact she was from where we're from just slipped your mind when you wrote your letters?"

"Y-yeah...!" The cyan colt snapped back to attention, while the girls apparently noticed Twilight's own discomfort. "Uh, so...yeah, those are my friends...I guess we can head on home now..."
-------------------
Twilight couldn't believe she'd slipped like that. Thinking about that hug, even now, still managed to get her face heating up. But why? Yeah, Azure had managed to get her spirits up when she was in doubt, but any one of her friends could have done the same. She did say that somepony can be in the right place in the right time, and Azure just so happened to be that pony. Yet...somehow, Azure's reassurance stuck out. She didn't know what it meant, but it sure flooded her with...something she didn't understand.

"So, Virid, Blitz," Applejack began, as the group of ten got close to Azure's household. "How was your first visit to Ponyville?"

"I like the place. Quieter than Canterlot. Just the reason why Azure moved here," said Crimson, very simply, very quietly. Virid said nothing, but he trotted ahead of the group, acting as though he hadn't even heard the farmer mare's question.

"Hey, Virid, what about you?" Rainbow asked.

"Oh..." said Virid, turning to the others. His expression seemed different from the nice pony that had been in attendance earlier. He seemed...angry? But why? Rainbow hadn't done anything to him. "well..." He hesitated. "Uh, I like the place, yeah. Got that bakery...the farm...yeah, Azure's..."

Why is he floundering about...? Twilight thought to herself.

"Oh...well, uh, yeah, Azure's made some good friends," Virid seemed discomforted, but not at what he was saying. "Just wish all of them were...magic users...oh, never mind, I'm just..."

Twilight didn't remember a time she'd seen Azure move so fast. That nervous look he'd had back when the others were enroute to Fluttershy was back, but as he passed the others and moved forward, the purple mare noticed something about his posture that wasn't quite right. And it wasn't the cast still on his foreleg. It was something mental.

"Just what are you tryin' to say, Virid..." Azure's voice indicated anger, like there was a line that was crossed. Twilight didn't get it at first, until she reconsidered his last line.

Magic users? She thought to herself. Does he mean...!

"Just the truth," The green unicorn's voice indicated surprise. "That unicorns are better than pegasi and earth ponies."

There was a collective gasp from the group, and Azure lowered his head, as though ashamed of his cousin's statement. But Virid wasn't done. He sounded so sure of what he was saying that he didn't even flinch when confronted with four--technically, five counting Spike, non-unicorns.

"I mean, maybe they would only seem like a waste if not for their numbers..."

"Why you...!" Dash growled, about ready to attack, but Applejack once more stopped her, and made the subtlest motion toward Azure, who seemed even worse off than before. But was the green unicorn colt done? Twilight listened, her anger growing. This pony was making other unicorns look bad by association. Not even Trixie was this bad about her magic. Yeah, she gloated endlessly about her exploits, but she wasn't like this...!

"Virid!" Blitz called out, apparently also cross.

"The Earth ponies aren't anything special," At this, Applejack took offense, and looked about ready to rush in. "And a couple of spells render pegasi pointless." Twilight found herself wondering what Virid was referring to, if only so she could add those spells to her skillset, while Rainbow became even more livid. Fluttershy, meanwhile, squeaked.

"Twilight...?" Spike asked. "What's that feeling called where you feel like you've been somewhere before, because I feel like I'm having a case of it."

"Deja vu, Spike," Twilight replied neutrally. "And yeah, you're right. I feel like I've been here before too..." If only Virid could turn around and say he was joking. But his tone, his confident posture, his unquaking face...he sounded so sure of himself. Like he knew how the world worked.

"Now, I'm not saying these lesser ponies should disappear..." Virid closed his eyes. "I'm just saying they'd be better off as one of us..."

Crimson looked over to the cousins of blue and green. He seemed worried about Azure. And upon taking a second look at his posture, Twilight guessed why. His chest was heaving. He was hyperventiliating like she hadn't seen him before. Not even Gilda and Trixie managed to do this to him.

"Take it back..." It was almost a whisper, and Twilight searched among the mares that Virid took special care to offend, but all of them looked equally shocked. Rarity looked shocked too. Azure's body had evened out, and abruptly, Azure looked up. His horn burst into a bright cyan glow. While this wasn't new, the way the glow was flowing was not the gentle flow that a unicorn's horn usually exhibited. It was more like a roaring flame, representing pure anger. "Virid, everything you just said...take it all back!"

Crimson seemed surprised by what Azure was doing, but while Twilight hadn't seen Azure so furious before, she knew he wasn't in any condition to be up to his usual combative behavior. She took a few steps forward.

"Azure...!"

Before she even realized it, the red cousin was right in front of her, cutting off her path.

"No..." He said. "He knows what he's doing..." The way the colt's orange eyes settled seemed to indicate he knew better than she did about Azure's behavior. "I've never seen him this angry...his eyes were actually glowing a little..."

Virid had been initially shocked at Azure's talking back, but he soon laughed right in his younger cousin's face.

"What's my little Blue Soap going to do about it?" He leaned downward, as though mocking him, but Azure wasn't having it.

"Something I wished I'd done before..." Azure continued. The glow on his horn didn't fade. It was still glowing erratically, as though the unicorn was trying his hardest to restrain himself from just attacking his cousin. "Virid, I challenge you." His head lowered, and though he was still on a leg he shouldn't be putting so much weight on, he took a combative stance.

"A duel? Do you really think you have a--" The cyan colt made it clear he was utterly fed up with his cousin's manure.

"And if I win, Virid," Azure continued. "You have to apologize for everything you said."

Virid frowned, taking a step forward in line with his cousin.

"And if I win, Azure..." he began. "You leave here and come back home to Canterlot with us."

"Virid, you can't expect him to do that!" Crimson scolded, but neither of the colts were listening to him.

"I accept your challenge," Azure said, to the surprise of the others. Twilight couldn't hold herself from gasping, but Pinkie once again gasped in an exaggerated manner. "I'm not going to lose..."

What...what are you doing, Azure?! Twilight didn't know what to do. She'd never seen a family feud like this, and for the life of her she didn't know how to stop the chain of events from moving any further. Do you realize the conditions you've agreed to?! You're my friend! I don't want to......
-------------------
The group quickly moved to a clearing, surrounded by trees. Twilight realized that feeling a sense of deja vu wasn't exactly prevalent anymore. While Trixie was a braggart and did bring harm to the friends that tried to prove themselves against her, all she did was cheap tricks. Virid...she hadn't seen what he was capable of, but since he was about to pull an Azure on a bear, and the fact that her friend stated he'd learned what he knew from his cousins...

This was an entirely different situation. Yet...Twilight couldn't help but feel she'd been in a similar spot all the same. Just without the "duel". Nopony, not even Blitz, could say anything as the two dueling unicorns stared one another down. Only now did the others understand why his cousins visiting was such a big deal for him.

"It wasn't you he was worried about..." Twilight whispered to Crimson. "Has Virid always been...?"

"A jerk?" The red unicorn responded, not even flinching. "Yeah. Azure must have been worried, given he looked like he was running around before running into us at the town square. I guess he must have felt something like Virid's outburst was going to happen. He was the only one objecting to Azure's move here, for obvious reasons."

The purple mare felt a small pang of sympathy for Azure. None of her family members objected to her sudden move to Ponyville, and if they had, it certainly wouldn't have been on the grounds the green colt had. Virid must have been pretty vocal about his...bias, since before Azure earned his cutie mark, if not even before that.

Silence reigned as Azure and Virid stared each other down once again. For one, his residence was on the line. For the other, it was his bigoted pride.
-------------------
Azure Courage found himself in a place he didn't particularly want to be in, but after what Virid had just said, in front of all of his newer friends, he didn't care anymore.

I take back what I thought last week. Virid and Trixie...the perfect match! he thought to himself. They're both bigoted unicorns that take delight in what they do!

"Alright, Soap," said Virid, his horn taking on its usual amber glow. "Draw!" Two shots of magic energy shot from his horn, which Azure easily dodged, though he tried to keep weight off his bad foreleg as he did so.

Forgoing safety for the moment, Azure charged in close, aiming to try and overwhelm Virid's defenses. The unicorn smirked.

"I'm Virid Strategem, cousin!" As Azure tried to go for a back kick, he felt his back legs shudder, hitting something other than a pony. As he staggered forward off balance, he managed to get a look behind him, just in time to see a fading layer of orange magic energy. "You think I don't know what you're up to?"

Another laser, but it was clearly intended to graze Azure's side. The colt grit his teeth as the heat of the blast passed him, singeing his fur. He finally managed to get his balance back, and managed to jump straight around, with a little help from the gravity spell.

"Posture all you want, Virid, I'll show you why magic isn't everything!" Azure yelled, rushing in again.

"You're not listening to me, Soap!" His cousin screamed back, preparing to attack him head-on, his horn taking on its usual glow. "You can't win like this!" A large laser blast began rushing for him. The cyan colt immediately began to focus magic into his horn, somewhat easier given how angry he was wiht his opponent right now, and formed a barrier, bouncing the shot off into the distance.

"I've listened to enough of your manure all these years, Virid!" he shot back, his shield fading. "I'm not going to lose!" He began to return fire, and this time, Virid actually bothered with dodging. However, when Azure managed to get in close, they both got on their back legs, taking up martial arts poses of sorts. Azure tried to avoid using his bad leg in this struggle, but he didn't need to worry about it for too long.

After exchanging a few hoof-punches, rather than use his martial arts pose for further physical attacks like Azure, Virid did something completely different. His eyes and horn flashed an orange color once more, and he thrust both of his forehooves forward. A devastating current of what felt like solid air pressure slammed straight into Azure's chest, and he coughed as he was thrown off his back legs and landed on the ground, still with more sporadic coughing.

He could hear the others gasping as he hit the ground side-first. Thankfully, by some moment of luck, he'd landed on his right side, the side that didn't have the leg sprain.

When did he learn to do that...?! Azure thought, struggling back to his feet. It was only for a split second, but Virid definitely used magic just then to throw him off the bad balance he already had. I know he's magically biased, but I didn't know he'd extend it to his martial arts!

Virid lowered back onto his four legs, watching his cousin rise to his feet, a complacent look on his face. Azure kept his head lowered as he contemplated his next move.

"Give up, Azure," The green unicorn said, simple as that. "You can't hope to beat me. I'm all about strategy, while you just make decisions at the turn of a dime. You're far less physical than Crimson over there, but in the end, it doesn't matter. Magic will always be there in the end!"

Azure raised his head, his eyes and horn glowing as they had before when Virid was mouthing off, and a moment later, he warped. He was in range and landing a single hoof punch straight to the unicorn's snout before he even knew he was doing it. While Virid remained stunned from the attack, Azure manipulated his body's weight using the gravity spell once again, planted his forelegs into the ground, and delivered a back kick straight into his cousin's chin, lifting him off the ground and making him land on his side.

The others erupted into cheering, but it was devastatingly short-lived.

"You used magic just now, you know..." Virid said smugly, seeming to be only slightly hurt from the attack. "I thought you were going to prove to me magic wasn't everything!"

"Shut up!!" The cyan colt roared, becoming even more angry, as his horn's glow became slightly more sporadic, and his eyes appearing to become completely cyan. He rushed over to his cousin, blind with fury. "I've had enough with your bigoted manure already, Virid!"

Virid got back onto his back legs, and began exchanging hoof punches with Azure, but this time, it appeared he was actually trying to engage just a bit more in physical combat. The cyan colt landed a hit in Virid's chest with his bad foot, but while he winced from the slight pain the contact caused, Virid's horn began to glow again, and this time, Azure saw the glow appear on the hoof doing the punching. The hoof actually stopped short of completely hitting him, but there was no mistaking the explosion of air that pushed him back again. This time, Azure was knocked flat on his back.

"Bigoted, is it?" Virid asked, resuming his tirade. "I guess you didn't hear me before! Magic makes the other two types of ponies utterly pointless! With the proper training, as Crimson and you prove, a unicorn's body can become toned, similiar to that of an Earth pony! And with the right spells, a Pegasus pony can become utterly obsolete! I'm surprised Twilight hasn't found one yet given all the books she apparently reads..."

Azure struggled back to his feet, feeling his anger grow. How could he say these things? These six had all proven their worth back during the fiasco with Nightmare Moon, wings, horn, or otherwise! They'd proven their worth in the letters he'd sent his way! Why was Virid being so impossible?! And roping one of his unicorn friends into his anti-pegasus and anti-Earth pony tirade...?!

"If not for their numbers, the waste of space wouldn't be so bad, but seeing as how they are...they can't harness magic actively..." Virid said. "They have no worth. Come back to Canterlot with us, Azure. You should be able to find balance there..."

"You seriously believe what you're saying...?" He didn't know why he wasn't yelling. He could feel his insides literally burning with anger. His fury was about to boil over, but he remained absolutely quiet.

"You've known me, how long, Blue Soap?" Virid asked. "I've always believed this..."

Something...broke. Azure slammed his bad foreleg on the ground, not even caring if he irritated the sprain anymore. He was beyond his limits, further than Trixie had managed to push him. It made Gilda's screaming at Fluttershy seem utterly petty by comparison. To think somepony could be so hateful...and to think said pony could be his own cousin...It made him sick!

"You fool!" Azure raged, his horn sparking with new life. The fire that had coated it, while still blue, became even more robust, his anger overflowing. As he opened his eyes, nearly the whole eye was glowing. He was beyond furious. "Whether you care to admit it or not, these ponies are not worthless! I won't ever be like you, Virid! I need them...I need them all! You've read my letters! I've shown why each one of them has their worth! But you ignore it in place of your magical bigotry!"

Without realizing it, the cyan colt shot off a laser, landing square between his cousins' forelegs.

"Magic use has no bearing on whether or not a pony is worthless! Yeah, sure, Crimson can increase his speed. Yeah, maybe you can change your magic to physical attacks! These six are the best of friends a pony could ask for!" The cyan colt prepared to charge again, his horn sparking as he levitated fallen twigs and rocks, obviously preparing to launch them. "And that's why, Virid...that's why I won't lose to you!"

The twigs flew at Virid, who easily dodged, but the loose stones (if they could be called stones given their size) began to rain down on his head and body, Azure telekinetically slamming them past him like hailstones chucked down off of clouds by pegasi. The hail of pebbles, though, was only a distraction, for Azure rushed Virid, as though jousting. Rather than making contact with his horn, the cyan colt threw his shoulder into his cousin's chest area, pushing him back. He continued, once again winding up in an exchange of punches. Azure's strikes actually seemed to be landing more, and it seemed like Virid couldn't find an opening.

However, what Azure failed to realize in his rage: his cousin had more focus than he did. As the two began punching one another stupid, Virid's horn began to glow an amber color once more. Though the occasional hit did land, the glow did not falter too much. He struck Azure with the pony equivalent of a backhand across the snout, and extended both his forehooves once again, which glowed vividly orange.

"Have it your way, Azure!" He called out, expelling a large amount of magical energy through his forehooves. Already on horrific balance due to the fact he wasn't as used to the stance as, say, Crimson, Azure was helpless to avoid the crushing blow to his chest, which sent him flying backward, more so than the previous attacks.

It was clear to the onlookers that the attack was meant to finish the duel. Azure continued to fly back, even after hitting the ground not once, but twice. His backward momentum didn't stop until he hit a tree. His eyes opened, but quickly half-closed. He tried to get up, but he couldn't, thoroughly thrashed by the repeated abuse. As a matter of fact, his vision seemed to get darker.

I...I lost... Azure thought to himself, his anger finally abated. I...don't...believe...this...

The cyan colt felt his consciousness begin to leave him. A final thought went through his head.

Sorry...girls... It looks like I wasn't strong enough to defend your honor...

With that, Azure Courage lost consciousness...
-------------------
The glare of sunlight finally shone against Azure's eyelids. He opened one eye, feeling completely sore and defeated. He saw a hospital sheet right below him, and assumed the worst, closing the eye he'd just opened.

Great. Virid hit me so hard he's caused me to be hospitalized...again. the cyan colt thought to himself. At least he had the decency to take me to one after taking me out of Ponyville...

Azure clearly remembered it. Virid had used a strange new combat spell he didn't even think Twilight heard of, and one that he didn't see in the guide Crimson gave him either. It was this...pressure, that allowed Virid to continuously slam his cousin back. He'd allowed himself to get too lost in his rage, becoming, just as his purple friend would so often remind him, completely reckless.

And look where he was now: beaten and in pain, lying in a hospital bed in Canterlot. The cyan colt tried his hardest to avoid it, but he became overcome with emotion, staring to the orange glow coming through the closed blinds. The sun was setting now, but that fact seemed almost trivial. At the same, it seemed oddly symbolic. He blinked, and his vision blurred. His cheeks suddenly began to feel moist. He didn't even need to deny he was crying.

"I'm sorry, everypony," he whispered to himself. "Sorry, Tw--"

He couldn't finish his thought. The door to his room slammed open. He grit his teeth, believing it was Virid barging in like that, and held further tears from dripping from his eyes. The last thing he needed was for that egotistical pony to see his opponent crying.

"Azure!" This was a lot more voices than he expected to her, all sounding more effeminate than he expected. All of them were familiar, too. Confused, he rolled over...and saw the six mares he'd befriended more or less upon his move. Spike was there too.

"W-what..." he began, completely stunned. "What are you all doing here?"

"Makin' sure you were okay, sugarcube, what else would we be here for?" Applejack asked, only succeeding in making the cyan colt even more confused, and yet...happy to hear it.

"Wait...so," he started. "You came all the way to Canterlot to see me?"

"No!" Pinkie giggled, immediately moving to the side of Azure's bed facing the window, and yanking down on the drawstring, revealing a very familiar landscape under the glow of Celestia's sunset. "You're still in Ponyville, silly!"

"B-but..." While relief washed over Azure, his confusion refused to abate. "I-I lost. I don't get it..."

"Virid started walking toward you, and we all thought he was going to pick you up and carry you off!" Dash started. "Blitz looked like he was going to pick up where you left off..."

"But strangely, Virid didn't take you. He simply told Crimson to come with him, that they were leaving," Twilight finished. "I don't know what he was thinking..."

Azure found he suddenly couldn't meet any of their eyes, least of all Twilight's. Something suddenly overcame him. Seeing Virid's behavior, being reminded of his ways, struck a chord within him.

"You were right..." he said, just loud enough for them to hear. He draped his casted forehoof over his eyes, trying to hold himself from crying again. "I'm rude, spiteful, impulsive, and a total jerk...I'm no better than Virid..."

"No, you're not!" This was all of them yelling at him, the surprise from which almost launched him clear off the bed he was laying on.

"What...?" he asked, uncovering his face and looking straight to them. It was confusing. It seemed like only yesterday Twilight was berating him for being reckless. And with most of the others, he didn't quite get off on the right hoof either. So why were those qualities suddenly so...good?

"You're true blue, Az," Rainbow said, before quickly reflecting the compliment back onto herself as well, "just like me!"

"Rough around the edges, but soft in the center," commented Applejack.

"Crunchy on the outside, but sweeeet on the inside," Pinkie added her two cents.

"You are like an iron pony with a diamond heart," This was Rarity essentially saying what Applejack and Pinkie said in her own words.

"Just like a turtle...a cold hard outer shell, b-but a soft, warm heart..." said Fluttershy, more or less stating the sentiments of the previous three in her own unique way.

"We saw the real you today, Azure, and now we understand why you act the way you do..." Twilight began to wrap up the circle of compliments. "And we're glad to have seen it."

Azure blinked. Emotion suddenly overcame him, and feeling that something was going to begin streaming down his face, immediately lowered his head and headband so that it would be hard for them to see his eyes.

"Azie, are you alright?" Pinkie asked, taking a few steps closer. The cyan colt felt his body twitch, and moisture begin to stream down his face. He fought for control over it so he could look at each of them again.

"Just...sweating a little..." Azure responded, trying to get control over it. Applejack let out a low chuckle.

"Say what you want, partner," she said, "that sure don't look like sweat to me..."

The cyan colt looked up, already aware he was going to blush, but what he saw in each of the mare's eyes as he managed to look to each of them was quite...strange. Each one of them had a strange glint in their eye that they usually didn't have when they looked upon him. Well, except Rarity, she'd definitely looked at him like that before. And Pinkie seemed...unusually focused for some reason. Even as Azure's natural reaction to Applejack's statement kicked in and his face heated up, a single thought ran through his head.

What exactly did I do...?
------------------------------
Dear Princess Celestia,

Today, Azure's cousins, who taught him how to be reckless, stopped by Ponyville today. But after their visit, I can see what he had to deal with growing up. It's no wonder he's so...rash. I can't say I understand him completely, but I can see now he's certainly a lot deeper than his demeanor suggests. I suppose the lesson I learned from today is that even the roughest of ponies can make the most irreplaceable of friends.

Even if you don't always agree with them...

Your faithful student,

Twilight Sparkle
----------------------
"Done!" cheered the purple mare as she finished her friendship report. "Just on time, too! For a moment, I was sort of worried I wouldn't get that done on time. It's a good thing Virid and Blitz showed up..."

"Why?" Spike asked, turning to her, a bewildered look on his face as he did so. "You wanted Virid to act like a jerk today?"

"Well, no," Twilight faltered, "I'd rather not have heard his bigotry, but--"

"And, 'a lot deeper than his demeanor suggests'..." the baby dragon continued, changing quickly into sarcasm mode, "Mm-hmm. You know, if I didn't know better, I'd say you were--"

"Please, just...send the letter, Spike," The studious pony said, turning her back to him. She breathed out a sigh of relief when she heard him send the letter via his fire breath.

"Oh, don't lie to me, Twilight," She couldn't help but notice her assistant sounded just a little bitter. "I saw the way you all were looking at him in there." He then made a motion with his claw which suggested he was going to make himself sick. "And you always talk about how stubborn Azure is..."

"What?" Twilight asked. "Even though I know part of the reason why he is, Azure Courage is still a very stubborn stallion, and sometimes I wonder what he'd consider attacking! You saw his reaction to the Ursa Minor! He didn't even move even though he was injured!"

"You usually call him a 'colt', or if you feel like calling him it, a 'foal'..." Spike responded, still with the sarcasm, but this time with a rather confident smirk. "I think we're done here..." He began to walk over to his basket, and proceeded to climb into it, pulling himself under the covers. "Good night, Twilight..."

The purple mare stood, blinking, trying to understand what her assistant was getting at. Eventually, she decided not to pry further, believing him to just be running his mouth. With this, Twilight decided to curl up with a book she'd been reading through, and began to read...

Chapter 8: Danger in the Shadows

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Chapter 8: Danger in the Shadows
-------------
For Azure Courage, it had been the most tedious waiting period of his lifetime. The past three days had been the dullest days he'd had since coming to Ponyville. All he had to do in the hospital was to literally lie in wait until the doctors discharged him. The food there wasn't exactly top-rate, which the colt supposed was standard for all hospitals. Of course, one of the nurses was kind enough to inform him why they were detaining him for so long even though the checkup only added a few cuts and bruises to his medical record.

As his luck would have it, Twilight Sparkle had kindly informed the doctors, and the nurse had so politely quoted: "to keep him detained until you're sure he's completely healed this time". Which, given that all he had to do was wait for his cast to come off and most of his cuts to heal up, was still three days more than he would have liked to stay. Yet, Azure found he couldn't particularly find fault with her approach this time, and thus resolved to not go by the library, instead going straight home.

The cyan colt had found it only moderately odd that despite the time of day, none of his friends were out and about. Even Rainbow Dash didn't seem to be up to her usual tricks on this particular afternoon. All signs pointed to one thing, but the pony didn't really want to think it'd be going there. Yet, as he neared his abode, that feeling diminished.

"Alright," he thought, trotting casually up to the door as he opened it with his magic. He stepped over the threshold. The very instant the sound of the door closing entered his ears, light flooded his eyes, and he jumped around, a combative reflex that would probably never leave him...

"Surprise!!"

...no matter how many Pinkie Pie parties he'd attend in his lifetime. This time, there was a gigantic banner that read "Welcome Home, Azie", notably with Pinkie's personal name for him written down upon it. The crowd in his home was far less than it was during his welcome party, only containing the six ponies, Spike, and a handful of other ponies he'd seen around town.

"You know, I really should have seen this coming..." Azure commented, brushing off a spare streamer with the hoof he'd had in a cast for ten days. "So, Twilight, was this why you wanted me detained?"

"No..." Twilight said in response. "Knowing you, you might have hurt yourself more before the three days were up."

"Thought that was your reason," answered the cyan unicorn as he strode over to the refreshments, ready to commence the party in earnest. "Though I have to ask how you always seem to get into my house to set this up, Pinkie...I'm not even home this time and you manage to get in..."

"You left the door unlocked in your rush!" Pinkie's tone and features suggested she'd briefly become serious over the matter. Azure spaced out, trying to remember if he had locked his door after Virid forced Crimson and Rainbow to race.

He most certainly forgot.

"Oh..."

"Don't worry about it, though!" The pink party pony immediately switched back to being her usual cheery self, "We made sure to keep your house closed off while I planned this!"

The cyan colt nodded his head. "Ah, thanks."

"Hey, now," Rainbow said, interrupting the conversation. "I thought this was a party!"
-------------
It had been a good two hours since the blue pegasus mare had gotten the party officially started. While nowhere near as festive as Azure's welcome party or Twilight's, it was clear Pinkie paid very close attention to what she was doing when she threw these parties. It was impressive how a seemingly unfocused pony could be so meticulous. That pony was a phenomenon. If the colt didn't know any better, he'd almost say she had some form of magic of her own.

Though, there was one thing that was sort of off about one of the partygoers. As he glanced to his left, he could see Fluttershy trying her hardest to remain relatively out of sight, even with the much smaller crowd accounted for. But that wasn't what was weird; he'd known from the start that she was very meek and tried to live in seclusion. No, what was off about her today was the fact that she looked awful. Her eyes looked bagged, and she was slightly dishelveled, almost like she hadn't slept a lot recently.

What's up with Fluttershy? thought the cyan colt to himself. She couldn't have been that worried about me that she'd lose sleep over me...right?

Azure quietly poured himself punch, keeping one eye on the sleepy-eyed mare. Her eyes began fluttering shut, and she began to wobble. He took a sip, prepared to rush over and stop her from falling flat on her face should she completely lose her balance. Thankfully, the yellow pegasus was able to halt herself from dozing off on the spot with a shake of her head, but it was clear she was desperately trying to stay awake.

Gosh, she's barely able to stay awake... the pony thought to himself, taking a large drink of the punch. Definitely been losing sleep recently, but over what?

Deciding he wasn't going to find out just standing around and watching her wobble, he decided to finish the cup of punch he was drinking, and walk over to the sleepy mare, to see if she'd tell him what's wrong. Before he could finish making his way over to her, Rainbow flew over to Fluttershy first.

"Hey, Fluttershy, what's with you?" Rainbow asked. "You look like you haven't slept in days."

Fluttershy formulated a reply, but Celestia help him, Azure couldn't hear her. The rainbow-maned pegasus's brow furrowed, apparently unable to hear her clearly over the din. She landed on the ground next to Fluttershy, the side opposite of where the cyan colt was standing in relation to the meek mare. Azure grumbled, trying to be subtle about approaching them so he could better tune into their conversation.

"C'mon, Fluttershy, you're gonna have to speak up just a little so I can hear you," The blue mare had ironically lowered her own volume so as not to potentially embarass her friend. "You can tell me..."

"Well," Even at the dangerously close proximity Azure had to be just to pick up on this, Fluttershy's words were a hassle to make out. "It's just...there have been these strange noises at night, and sometimes, I feel like somepony's watching me. I-I lie awake all n-night, Rainbow."

"How long has this been going on?" Dash asked, a dangerous tone in her voice.

"A c-couple of nights," responded Fluttershy, sounding almost terrified by the tone were it not for the deep yawn she released after that clause. "The night after Azure's cousins left..."

"Why didn't you tell somepony?" asked the much tougher mare.

"I...I didn't want to worry anypony," Azure almost loudly put his head down on the table from how that sounded, but was able to keep his composure.

You live close to the Everfree Forest, the cyan colt thought to himself. Were it not for your ability to handle even large and dangerous animals, I'd be worried about you. All the same...something's fishy...

"C'mon, we're friends, remember?" responded Rainbow Dash. There was a flat tone to her voice, one that indicated that there really wouldn't be any other way. "I'll sleep over tonight and keep watch for you, okay?"

"Oh...um, if you want to..." Not that Fluttershy was capable of refusing with force in the first place. She gave another yawn. As Azure tried to return his focus to the party while shifting away from the mares so they wouldn't know he was eavesdropping, his mind began to wander as he pondered what was going on.

If Fluttershy's worried about the wildlife, this might be a job for me... thought the cyan colt to himself. Overall, I'm one-for-three on the Protector business...If this is as bad as it sounds, it's time for some redemption.

The party was still going on, and Azure Courage gave a small nod. For now, he would enjoy this party. However, once the others were gone, he would go to Fluttershy's cottage and investigate these strange disturbances...
-------------
The party carried on well into the night hours. By the time it was over, it was nearly midnight. Spike and Twilight were the first to leave, though the dragon did groggily voice his objections even as he was yawning. Applejack was next, saying she had stuff to get back to on the farm in the morning and couldn't be up much later. Rarity objected to the idea of staying past midnight, citing her need for beauty sleep. Other partygoers left one-by-one. Pinkie was the very last pony to leave after helping Azure clean up his home.

"Alright, finally," mumbled the colt to himself. "Now then, it's time to go over to Fluttershy's and see if there's any disturbances. It's basically midnight, and I'm wide awake. Let's do this..."

He'd packed very few things into his bag, but what was there was essential to the night. Admittedly, he was a bit nervous. The whole reason Rainbow had gone over there in the first place was to make sure Fluttershy could sleep. Azure knew he'd feel out of place, especially if there wasn't anything to the meek mare's fears.

With his mind made up, the cyan colt left his home, making doubly sure to lock his door before heading for Fluttershy's place. As he left the general vicinity of Ponyville, the unicorn felt a chill rake up his spine as the weather changed from manual to automatic. The moon was blocked out by the clouds, darkening the path to the cottage further.

Fluttershy's scared of her own shadow, or at least more than likely... he thought to himself. How is she able to stand being so far from the others? Even with all the animals to keep her company, I mean...

He didn't notice how different the forest looked at night until now. He lowered the volume of his steps and crouched down slightly as he trotted along, attempting to stay out of sight of whatever was out there.

So far so good, he thought to himself. Just about there...

His ear twitched as he heard noise among the trees, close by. He grit his teeth and slowed down a little more, getting even closer to the ground to try and avoid being seen until he was at the meek mare's abode.

Looks like I'm not alone out here...

The path seemed to get even darker now. A glance to the moon revealed that it had been almost completely blocked out now. However, he could see enough to discern Fluttershy's cottage, just up ahead. He got off the ground, but continued to slowly walk towards the structure. The lights were off, indicating it was probably already quiet there, but Azure couldn't leave it at that.

If I take a peek inside, maybe Dash'll still be awake...

He finally managed to get close to the house, but before he could pick into the window, he heard a faint grumbling. As he turned to the source, a dark shape suddenly bullcharged him, knocking him straight out of his bags. In a moment, he felt two blunt objects which felt like hooves pressing against his chest. It was so dark he couldn't see the identity of his adversary, but even so, he had been attacked first.

He raised his forehooves abruptly, tossing his assailiant off of him. He managed to roll onto his hooves, unable to see the horn on his forehead let alone anything else. The shape charged him, and Azure counter-charged, only to once again be sent into a rolling frenzy. This time, the colt was on guard and had pinned his assailant to the ground at the base of a large tree. He cocked his forehoof back, preparing for another hoof-punch.

The moon's light suddenly lit up the scenery, the clouds no longer obscuring the light source.

"A-Az...?"

Azure looked down, and his jaw almost hit the ground when he'd realized what he'd almost done.

"R-Rainbow...?" he asked. For a moment, neither one spoke.

"Rarity was right..." responded Dash to the new position with a rather crooked grin. "You are rough..."

The cyan colt flinched and blushed from the comment, especially considering that he was pinning her to the ground. Quickly, he backed away from her, allowing her back to her feet.

"W-why did you attack me?" he asked, trying his hardest to shake off the rather awkward comment.

"Thought you were the thing scaring Fluttershy at night..." she responded. "What were you doing here?"

"I was going to peek into her window--" He halted, but Dash's face told him that he had in fact chosen the wrong words. "Not like that!" Azure defended at a much louder volume than he intended to. Rainbow managed to get over to him in record time to jam her hoof into his mouth to quiet him down.

"Keep it down," she whispered. "You have no idea how long it took to get Fluttershy to sleep!" She glanced towards the house for a few seconds longer, then, seeing that there was no sign of movement or otherwise, sighed in response. "So how'd you know about her problem, then?"

"I overheard you two at the party," Azure didn't even bother asking how she didn't notice him moving towards them so that he could hear the problem better. "I was worried about Fluttershy too."

The look Rainbow Dash gave him was almost comparable to Virid's, just without the jerk undertones to it. She playfully nudged him.

"Awww..." she started. "You're just a big softie, aren't you..."

Azure flinched again.

"Maybe..." he said, trying to hold himself from blushing. "Anyway, I came over here because I thought I could help out, see what's been bothering Fluttershy at night."

"A team up, huh?" Rainbow looked like she was honestly considering it. "Alright..."

The blue pegasus pony quickly flew her way over to a window, and nodded, flying back to Azure.

"She's still asleep," she confirmed. "Alright, you stay down here, I'll go into the air..."

"Not really sure how it could have worked any other way..."
-------------
Rainbow Dash and Azure Courage split up the responsibility of watching out for whatever it was that was scaring Fluttershy awake. The minutes turned to hours as they continued their stakeout, forgoing their own sleep schedules for the night. As the two had to fight off sleepiness, both realized something important.

They never asked what time the disturbances started...
-------------
"Alright, two days of careful observation on the Element of Kindness. It is true, she is the farthest from the town..."

The voice was but a whisper in the wind, coming from a hooded figure not too far off from the ponies. The body type was definitely that of a pony, four legs with hooves coming out of the cloak that covered its body. A dark blue horn protruded from the cloak, same with the end of a messy, unkempt, almost black tail.

"I understand, Master, but she is not alone on this night. ... Yes, the Element of Loyalty is also present on this night. There is one other that just joined up. Are you sure there are only six Bearers?" The voice was distinctly masculine, the kind that would send chills down your spine if its owner ever snuck up behind you and held you at knifepoint. "And all of them are mares? ... Understood. He should be no threat to us..."

A navy hoof reached up for the hood of the cloak, and the figure quit crouching down, straightening up to his full height.

"Commencing Operation Flood..." His hood fell back as he lowered his forehoof, revealing a black mohawk for a mane. His horn began to glow a blue-black sort of color as he began setting whatever plan this "Operation Flood" was into motion...
-------------
Azure rubbed at his face, trying to fight off sleep for the fifth time that night.

"C'mon, stay awake," he grumbled, standing on his four feet again. "Hope Fluttershy's getting better sleep tonight with Dash and me on the case..." He began to pace back to the cottage to begin his rounds again, all the while wondering if the event was going to happen while he and Rainbow were here, or next night.

Just as he was starting to doubt that whatever was scaring his meek friend in the night would show, he heard a small, slight noise, like a twig breaking. He whipped his head in the direction of the noise, and saw two yellow glowing orbs in the night. At the very first glance, they appeared to be cat eyes, but when the eyes continued to glow, Azure realized this was not the case at all. The eyes appeared to be no more than maybe six inches off the ground, and they appeared to be studying him intently.

"So, it was just you making all this noise and scaring my friend?" he asked aloud, staring toward the twin pools of gold. The cyan unicorn continued to hold his ground, now wide awake from the stimulus.

"Az? Find somethin'?" This was Rainbow Dash, landing next to him. "Oh, just a little critter?" She sounded amused, to say the least. "That's what made all these noises?" She began to take steps forward, all confidence. "C'mon, let's take this thing back to Fluttershy so she can see there's nothing to be afraid of..."

"Sounds simple enough..." Azure said, taking smaller steps forward. The glow of the eyes brightened, and a weird sort of noise, like a distorted cricket's cry, could be heard. The glowing made Azure feel uneasy, particularly when the glow appeared to change colors for a few moments. In those short moments, he could have sworn he'd saw the eyes change a dark blue sort of color. "Dash! Back off!"

"Wha--oh!"

Rainbow's remark came when the eyes began to multiply in number. Two became four. Four became eight. Eight became sixteen, and after that, Azure lost count. It looked like there were hundreds of eyes, all uttering that same distorted cricket's cry. The first guess the colt had was "overgrown crickets", but something about that assessment didn't seem right.

Azure cast a look back to Fluttershy's cabin, to discover that the light in her room was on, and he could just vaguely make out the shape of a terrified, yellow pegasus.

"So these were the things keeping her up all night..." Azure said. His horn provided a little light as he lit it up via focusing his magic. "Dash, I hope you know how to fight."

"Heh," Her wings opened as she looked back to him with a tired, yet cocky grin. She balanced almost perfectly on her back legs using her extra appendages as leverage. "Just try not to slow me down..."

The area grew dark again as the moon light was blocked by a passing cloud. The only light that Azure could see was the cyan glow of his own horn. As little as the light was, it was refreshing to at least see the area around him a bit better.

"Try not to hurt them too much," Rainbow said, "You know how Fluttershy feels about animals..."

Darn it, completely forgot about that... thought the pony to himself. Most of my spells might not do me a lot here...
-------------
The horde of what could only be described as eyes charged. Here, Rainbow and Azure could see that these things at least had some shapes. Rainbow immediately took wing, but kept close to the ground to see if she could assist Azure any. Had Azure not been that physical of a unicorn, playing defensively would have been a bigger issue. Thankfully, he was able to move a bit with a little help from the gravity spell. He reduced his weight, allowing him to jump higher and farther, as well as make good use of the forestry. Yet, they didn't seem to be following him, at least, not as much as he'd wanted. They were also chasing Rainbow around, but it seemed like they seemed to be targeting her.

Neither one could think much of it, both preoccupied with keeping them away from the cottage where Fluttershy lived. Azure launched off another tree, but slipped on the landing and almost fell flat on his face from the effort. He quickly pumped life back into his horn in time to jump to his four feet, facing the creatures accosting him, and putting up a barrier using his spell. He couldn't make out their features any better with a transparent cyan shield in front of him.

"Az! You alright?" Rainbow asked as she rushed past him, chased by the creatures. He could just make out their shapes. "Ugh! These things are relentless!"

"Tell me about it!" the stallion countered, as the creatures against him began to slam into his shield, causing cracks to appear in the surface of his magical barrier. "Sucks when I can't even attack them!"

The blue mare had evidently had enough of trying to stay close to the ground, and began to gain altitude. However, both ponies involved in the skirmish were equally surprised to see the vague shapes the creatures had alter. The ones chasing Dash either turned around and went for Azure or, in a display of frightening ability, grew wings from their back areas and began flying up towards the pegasus.

"What the heck are these things?!" yelled Rainbow, leading the ones still chasing her on a mad dash around the night skies. Meanwhile, Azure's shield began to show stress fractures, and with an extra burst of magic, he was able to repair it. However, the reinforcement made his restored shield almost worthless in half the time it took the first time.

"They're everywhere...!" grunted the colt, his horn glowing like a calm flame and his eyes just starting to glow. "I've had just about enough of this!" This was loud enough for Dash to hear.

"Az, we can't hurt them!" she yelled. Fluttershy said nothing to contradict this, so Azure was forced to hold his ground. He was still in a bad spot, considering there had to be at least fifty of them chipping away at his defenses.

"Speak for yourself, these things clearly aren't looking for a friend!"

His shield shattered, and Azure was forced to use the teleportation spell as the creatures of the night began growing close, their strange, glowing eyes doing little to help their bad image as they all rushed the spot he had just occupied. By some luck, his spell didn't backfire as it usually did when he tried using it in a pinch, but he was still not in the best of spots, given he had warped himself not too far from Fluttershy herself. Thankfully, he was still at least a good distance from the front door of the cottage.

Rainbow continued being chased around, leading them through the clouds in front of the moon, but any attempt she did to try and shake them either flat-out failed, or actually attracted more wing-growing creatures to the chase. She flew next to Azure, getting up on her hind legs, gritting her teeth in annoyance.

"This sucks..." she observed. "There's too many of 'em!"

"I noticed..." Azure said, his horn still flaring like his anger was. Once again, he wasn't doing a very good job of what he was appointed to do. And the fact he couldn't actually attack like he could a chimera was only irritating him further. Plus, all Azure had to go on were vague shapes, and the creepy glowing eyes.

This all changed however when the moon emerged once more from the clouds. The bright glow shone upon the creatures for the time. Fluttershy gave a noise that vaguely sounded like a bleat crossed over with a loud gasp. Rainbow gave a sharp grunt, and Azure made a similar noise.

The three ponies were faced with creatures that they all doubted Twilight could identify. They appeared to have short, stubby pony legs connected to an insectoid body. The eyes had no visible pupils, though the glow was diminished by the moon's light. What made them even more freaky was that they had irregular fur patterns, almost like an outline of the grooves in their insectoid body. Their bodies were black, but with the moonlight now hitting them, they could see clearly dark blue patches of what resembled fur in these grooves.

"What kind of monsters are these things?!" Azure yelled, not knowing what they were, and at the same time feeling bad about underplaying Fluttershy's fear. Dash held similar feelings about said terror, but said nothing.

"Those...those aren't animals at all..." This was Fluttershy, recovering from her shock. Her statement was almost like a bell to Dash and Azure's ears.

"You hear that, Az?" asked the pegasus.

"Sure did..." the unicorn responded, lowering down somewhat and allowing himself to drop his restraints. As one of the creatures tried to rush him, Azure decided to shoot a blast in its direction, which worked a little too well. The magical laser hit the insectoid ghoul square in the chest, piercing straight through its throax, eliciting a sharp, almost cat-like howl of pain.

"I think you just overdid it!" Dash yelled, hoof-punching away two of the creatures that had flown away. However, she had still held back. Azure eyed the obviously dead if not fatally injured creature while executing similar manuevers to Rainbow. However, he saw something that made him question what exactly these things were.

The monster he'd blasted suddenly burst apart, like some kind of smoke bomb, a mix of dark blue and black smoke emanating from the vanished corpse.

"Are these things even real?" Azure asked aloud, trying to keep his guard up. He used a momentary shield to deflect a claw attack, which looked strangely magical. But these things clearly had no horns. "Rainbow, don't hold back!"

"What?" she asked, turning to him, almost catching an attack to the stomach area had she not hopped back so now she was more or less back-to-back with Azure.

"I don't think these things are real..."

Rainbow said nothing, oddly flying away, leaving Azure to hop backwards off-balance on his hind legs. However, the creatures followed her once more. However, she turned around once she got enough height, and extended her forehooves outward, catching seven or eight in her dive and using their bodies as a cushion for the impact. The ghouls, upon impact, all exploded in a puff of black smoke.

"They're not even alive!" concluded Dash. "Fluttershy, you might wanna look away...we're about to make a mess..."

"O-okay..." Fluttershy stuttered, shutting the door to her cottage, and warily watched as her friends threw down with whatever those creatures were.

Azure began to demonstrate more of his agility, using magic to enhance his performance just a little so he could get a leg up on his adversaries. Two approached him in a perfect manner for him to crush their heads in with a back-kick at full power. He quickly whirled around, his horn alight with magical fury.

"Get out of here!" he commanded, as though the creatures would actually listen, firing off several lasers, most of which actually hit their intended targets. The others merely whizzed off into the horizon.

Rainbow once more took up a ground-bound bipedal martial arts pose, again using her wings as leverage. Her posture was far better than that of the wingless Azure, and it showed when she was not only able to attack with her forelegs as though they were human arms, but able to throw one-legged kicks using her wings to keep her balance.

Not that the other one involved in the battle could pay attention to such skill anyway. He was far too busy with the ground-bound ones. The ones with wings that were coming after him were blasted out of the sky by laser bolts, turned into puffs of smoke.

"Hey, Az!" If Rainbow was sleepy, her tone did not suggest it at all. "How many you got so far?"

"This isn't a contest, Rainbow!" responded Azure, "And even if it were, I would have lost count!"

Too distracted from the mare's comment, the colt found one of the little monsters on his face. If he'd been attacked, it didn't register right away. The creature, dumb as it was, speared itself on Azure's horn, and caused itself to burst into smoke. However, the attack fueled Azure's anger, and his eyes began to glow slightly again.

"Alright, enough is enough!" he declared, firing off another volley of laser shots, hitting his designated targets. The numbers of the minions were dwindling fast now that Azure and Rainbow were no longer holding back.
-------------
Far away from the three ponies, the same colt was galloping away, heading through the Everfree Forest, farther away from Ponyville than a pony living there would dare to go.

"Master, Operation Flood has failed. ... Yes, I know, but that unicorn that was there, and the Loyalty Element both are surprisingly capable. They're defeating the Shadow Ghouls! ... I'm already making my way back to base. ... Yes, of course. I am always at your disposal..."

The navy blue unicorn, seemingly talking to himself, made his way through the forest, moving further and further away from the crime scene.
-------------
Azure Courage could not stop panting. It had taken a ridiculously long time to settle the attack, and he was winded, even with the fact he had backup. Rainbow Dash, in a rare sign of showing fatigue, was also notably drained, panting from the effort.

"That took long enough..." Rainbow said, sounding annoyed. "Hey, Az, you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine..." Azure tried to blink, but he felt a sharp pain right next to his right eye. He turned to Dash, a bit concerned. "Hey...do I have...something on my face?"

"You should probably get that cut of yours...checked..." she responded, yawning deeply. He could see the bags under her eyes as she passed him.

"And here I was hoping to not get injured the second I got out of the hospital..." Azure grumbled groggily, laying down. "Twilight's never gonna let me hear the end of this..."

"I hear ya..." Dash wasn't in the mood to be playful, evidently. She was far too tired. As Azure passed out from the need to sleep overpowering his every nerve, one last thought occurred to him.

I protected Fluttershy and...well, I guess Dash, from those things, but what were they? They aren't natural, obviously, so who...sent them...?
-------------
Fluttershy cheered, but for her, the cheering was mostly internal. Her friends were for the most part, safe. She didn't see any glowing eyes outside, and from the looks of things, the coast was clear. She'd opened the door, but what she saw was something she didn't quite expect.

Rainbow and Azure were asleep right next to each other, probably almost touching while facing opposite sides. She gave a sigh. She wasn't known for her strength, but she had to do something, especially since the colt had suffered yet another injury to add to his growing medical record.

Mustering up every ounce of strength she could find, she'd managed to move the two sleeping ponies indoors. They didn't even stir once when they were moved, though Azure briefly grumbled something when he was being touched for the first time. Now they were on opposite sides of her couch, each one taking up the arm rests as a pillow of sorts. Neither seemed to mind the change, both more or less snuggling up to the fabric.

After making sure Rainbow had no further injuries, she turned her attention to the cut near Azure's eye, just below it. It wasn't too deep, so Fluttershy knew she could do something for it.

When she tried to apply the disinfectant, Azure gave a sharp grumble in his sleep, and made a noise that sounded suspiciously like "Mom" in the process. A couple more dabs and more sharp grunts from the colt later, Fluttershy applied a bandage to the cut, knowing it would heal with a little time.

The yellow pegasus suddenly felt something she hadn't the past two nights. Security. A freedom from fear. Her friends had chased off those ghouls on her behalf. She fetched a blanket for the two, and draped it over them, taking care not to wake them. With a sleepy yawn, Fluttershy headed back for her bed, turning off the lights as she went.

"Thank you..." she whispered, looking back to them one last time before going back to bed herself. The mare went back into a restful, well-deserved sleep, knowing she at least did as much as she could in such a situation. All the same, a small feeling welled up in her, but it was soon suppressed by her good nature.
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It wasn't until about ten o'clock the next morning that Azure managed to wake. He woke to something other than cold dirt. As he rubbed at his eyes, he realized there was a pad, a bandage there that wasn't there before, where he'd gotten injured the night before. He did remember fighting a lot of ghoulish inscets and passing out from the effort. He looked, and realized he was on a couch, under a rather soft blanket.

Wow, even for a couch, this is very comfortable... the cyan colt noted to himself, not sure whether or not it was because he hadn't slept for half the night or if the couch was really that soft. It was no bed, but it certainly could have fooled him. He rose, and saw, curled up at the other end of the couch, Rainbow Dash. She didn't appear to have any signs of first aid applied to her.

Did Fluttershy move us...? he thought to himself, recalling passing out on the dirt right next to her somewhat clearly. He still felt a little sore from the previous night's fight, but otherwise felt perfectly fine with getting out from under the blanket. Azure debated on who to check on first, but he'd figured that of the two pegasi mares, Fluttershy was a far lighter sleeper. So he decided to check on her later.

Sure enough, when he trotted over to the side of the couch Rainbow had completely crashed out on, she at least appeared to be out cold. At the very least, she was still snoring when he looked at her. The cyan colt decided to check on the real reason why he'd done all that he had in the first place. He only felt slightly sleepy, but that was slowly wearing off as he trotted about the cottage.

A door opened, and a well-rested Fluttershy stepped out, a comparatively smaller yawn coming from her mouth as she did so. She no longer had the bags under her eyes. Of course, she retained all of her other usual traits as well, for when she first saw Azure up and about, her first reaction was to gasp in surprise and back up a few steps. However, she quickly calmed down when she realized who it was.

"Oh, um, good morning, Azure," the meek mare stuttered.

"Good morning, Fluttershy," the colt continued. "Sleep any better tonight?"

"Um, y-yes, thanks to you and Rainbow," Fluttershy responded. "Are you still sore?"

"Not really," Azure responded. He was glad that Fluttershy and Dash were both safe, but he was troubled by what had just happened. Those creatures weren't even natural. When they were defeated, they turned into smoke...

"Oh, um, is Rainbow still asleep?" asked the shy pony again.

"When I looked, she was..." responded Azure. "Anyway, I have some things I need to check up on before I go back to work. I've been off for ten days now and I'm sure the boss won't be too happy with me." And neither will Twilight...

"Oh, um, okay," said Fluttershy, seeming concerned. "Oh! Um...t-thank you for staying..."

"It's no problem, really," Azure responded. I'd have done it even if I wasn't asked...

"G-good bye..."

"Yeah, see you around..." The cyan colt said, taking his leave. He trotted past a still dozing Rainbow Dash and left Fluttershy's cottage, taking his belongings with him. After taking a few looks around to make sure nothing else was going to come rushing out of the trees, the unicorn male began making a beeline for the library. He knew Twilight would find out about what happened, but for the life of him, Azure couldn't see a way around it.
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The cyan colt galloped through town, already dreading Twilight's response to his bandaged cheek. As he moved about, saddlebag slapping his side as he went, he could hear the ponies talking about what they saw last night.

"Hey, did you see the light show in the Everfree Forest last night?"

"No, but I could hear all the sounds. Sounds like some ponies were doing something strenuous, I'm sure."

"Wonder what it could have been..."

Azure grit his teeth and kept moving, trying to block out the chatter.

Jeez, looks like we weren't the only ones up all night... he thought to himself. I can only hope Twilight didn't see it... He knew full well she was going to chew him out again for being injured, just like when the Ursa Minor came to town, when he'd attempted and failed to show Trixie who was boss.

With a sigh, Azure knocked on the door to the library, wondering why it had room enough for somepony to live in it. To his relief, it was Spike who answered the door.

"Oh, it's you, Azure," He immediately took notice of the bandage on his cheek. "Jeez, what is it with you and getting yourself hurt?"

"It was unavoidable," Azure quickly defended.

"I'll bet..." Spike responded. "Why are you here? You know how Twilight gets when you get hurt..."

No one would know better than you... Azure thought to himself, immediately suppressing an urge to cop an attitude. "There's something I need to look up."

Before the small dragon could properly make use of his confusion on the matter, Twilight's voice could be heard.

"Who is it, Spike?" she asked, sounding like she was getting close.

Azure began to turn away so that Twilight wouldn't immediately see the new bandage he sported when she took Spike's place at the door.

"It's your coltfriend," responded the purple reptile snarkily. If Azure had taken a drink, he would have sprayed it from his mouth in response. Thankfully, the unicorn had enough control over his composure to not lose it over a simple childish comment like that.

"Spike, how many times have I told you to stop saying that?" Spike disappeared from sight with this comment. Twilight sounded annoyed, which was a red flag for Azure, but he couldn't turn back now. He could only turn his head and hope that Twilight wouldn't see the bandage. Soon, the purple mare replaced Spike's position, and appearing not to notice the fight that Azure wasn't maintaining eye contact for once, asked, "Oh, Azure, what brings you here?"

"I...actually, I came here to look up something."
---------------
Twilight blinked. For a moment, she wasn't sure if she heard Azure correctly.

"What?" she asked, completely caught-off guard by the statement.

"I said I came here to look up something," Azure responded. The purple mare's mouth nearly hit the floor at the comment, but she shook it off.

"O-okay, what is it? Maybe I'll be able to find it..." The mare stopped. "Come on in, then..."

Azure fidgeted abruptly, and moved his saddlebag to the side of his head facing away from her.

"Okay, I'm coming..." He sounded nervous, more so than he usually would be given the situation. He bumbled his way in, keeping that one side of his face hidden using his bag as a cover. Twilight couldn't see why he was, unless Spike's comment--

"Azure, you don't need to be so...shy..." She commented. Even commenting that the cyan colt was acting shy was awkward. "Is this about what Spike said?"

"N-no..." Azure stuttered. "I just...came here to look up something...specific...It's hard to describe, mind if I take a look around?"

Twilight continued to study Azure, but seeing as how he wasn't here to attempt to start an argument with his usual stubborn antics, ultimately decided against prying into whatever it was he was being so skittish about.

"Um, okay, I guess it's alright..." The fact that Azure was looking for a book was surprising in itself, but Twilight wasn't about to question it. If it was a secret hobby of his that he didn't want getting out, who was she to pry about it?

The cyan colt nodded, and made tracks quickly for the reference guide section...
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Azure Courage could not believe he'd managed to hide his injury from Twilight that long. Either she was that confused that he actually wanted a book, or she didn't feel up to questioning it today. As for Spike, he was surprised the baby dragon didn't do anything to prevent his showing. Then again, he probably found the sight of somepony who stood up to a chimera and tried to stand up to an Ursa Minor while injured appear skittish to be absolutely hysterical, given his age.

I don't know why I'm looking here... The cyan colt thought to himself as he scanned the books, making sure to occasionally raise his slightly filled saddlebag if he felt he was about to pass into Twilight's line of sight with his injured side. This is a public library in a quiet town...I can't imagine this library having something on what I'm looking for...

He passed into the third aisle of reference guides, and began furiously scanning the shelves, book-by-book. All the while, he began to wonder if he looked anything like Twilight usually did when she was looking for a book. Thankfully, he didn't have to chase that thought long. He saw a book spine that looked...promising.

Summons: The Guide to the Creatures...? Azure thought to himself. Worth a shot...

He quickly reached out to it with his magic, dislodging it from between two other books. He quickly flipped it open telekinetically, stopping only briefly on the pages that had pictures. Azure was just about to give up when he saw a very detailed sketch that looked similar to the creatures that he and Dash had fought the preceding night.

"Yes!" he quietly cheered to himself, beginning to read the entry.
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Name of Summon: Shadow Ghoul
Type of magic: Dark
Description: This creature is spawned from an alternate dimension. These creatures appear to be amalgamations of insects and ponies rolled together. They can grow wings and have an innate magic ability, including the ability to slash with claws made of pure magical energy. Though their strength is painfully low, they can easily overwhelm you with numbers. Of note is their glowing eyes. They seem to change from yellow to a different color when commanded.
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Azure felt his heart stop for a few seconds, from the sheer weight of the realization that reading the entry put on him. This was a summon? This easily accessible? More importantly, since they had to be called from another dimension...

No...this would mean somepony...or something, is summoning them...

"Azure, what are you looking at?" Twilight asked, apparently happy to see he'd found a book all on his own. Immediately, the cyan colt slammed the book shut as he turned to her, forgetting an important detail in the process as he moved it to his opposite side. As soon as she saw the injury that he'd worked so hard to hide, she gasped, and she immediately became angered and worried again, but her face mostly displayed anger. "You got hurt again, didn't you?"

The cyan colt wanted to argue the point, but decided against it. He didn't want to worry her any more than the cut already had.

"You were out fighting, weren't you?" She asked, trotting over to him. "I knew you couldn't go long without getting yourself injured! Why do you insist on putting yourself in physical danger?!"

Making up for lost time, Twilight? he thought to himself, trying to bite his tongue and not focus on the fact she was berating him on something she didn't even know half of.

"It was just an accident, I swear," Azure fought to keep a straight face as he blatantly lied about what had just happened on the previous night. He moved the book into his saddlebag, but Twilight noticed.

"What are you doing?" she asked, sounding awfully suspicious. The unicorn colt swallowed.

"Oh, just borrowing a book from the local library, that's all," He didn't care if he sounded like he was mocking her in saying this reply. "I'll be sure to have it back before you know it!"

Azure Courage quickly beat it out of there before Twilight or Spike could stop him, making rapidly for his home. Work could wait just a little longer...
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Twilight Sparkle watched in outraged disbelief as the very colt that attempted standing up to an Ursa Minor despite having a sprain ran from the library. She stood in the doorway, watching him gallop at full speed away.

"What is his problem...?" she asked. Her eye twitched. "I have to find out..."
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The unicorn colt proceeded to run home. Because he was so used to the topography of Ponyville, Azure didn't need to worry about direction as he sped towards his home. It didn't take him long to cross, the extra book in his bag and all, though sometimes it would slap his ribs and cause him to wince a little.

How does Twilight carry books around anyway? Even as talented as she is, she can't possibly levitate them everywhere she goes... the cyan colt thought to himself. The bag slapped him in the side again, causing him to scowl in irritation. How does a pony live with this?!

Azure managed to get to his door and unlock it. Somehow, in all the chaos of last night, he hadn't bent the key when he'd dropped his bag after Rainbow Dash tackled him. He needed to see what else he had a chance of being up against, if the opposition was summoning such fiendish creatures.

"Hey, Az!" This was an all-too familiar voice, given that he'd spent quite a bit of time in its company just the preceding night. The male pony gritted his teeth in annoyance.

That's right, I can't keep something like this from all of them given how close I am... Azure thought to himself. He turned to see the mare who shared his fur color descending from a nearby cloud, fighting for composure. He was just able to pull himself together from the latest unexpected intrusion when she'd landed right next to him, notably on her four feet.

"Oh, hello, Dash," It was taking a lot of effort not to inform her that she was starting to grind his gears by hanging out near his house when a crisis was about to occur. First his cousins, and now this latest incident. "Why'd you stop by?"

"Never got to thank ya for the help last night," She shifted into the same martial arts pose from last night, wings open to provide herself leverage. She proceeded to shadow box with the air. "Me and you, we whooped those things good!"

Azure felt his eyes pop out of his skull; of course, if either one of them would be in the mood to boast about it, it would be her. He waved her down with a forehoof.

"Keep it down on that, would you?" he asked. "Don't want anypony else listening in. You kinda need to know about what we faced too, anyway..." He reached into his saddlebag, while Rainbow studied him with a curious look. "I got a book from the library today..."

The look Rainbow gave him was nothing short of confused. "You...went to the library?"

"Why does everypony have that reaction?!" he thought aloud. "I'm not an avid reader, but even I know when to hit the books...and I found our..." he coughed awkwardly. "...little friends, in this book I just borrowed..."

Before Rainbow could recover from her shock and issue a remark on the subject, he produced the Summons book he'd just "checked out".

"Here it is," he said, turning to the picture he'd found of it and turning to show the mare before him. "Look familiar?"

Rainbow squinted, and couldn't quite contain a gasp when she saw the insectoid beast from the night before. Her eyes trembled in a way Azure didn't expect to see right away, and for a few moments, he was honestly afraid of what would happen.

"These things can only be called here from where they come from...?!" she finally said as she finshed reading the entry. Her face became twisted in fury, and she looked like she was ready to punch out somepony. "Who would want to hurt Fluttershy?!"

Azure tried to formulate an answer, but he never got time to.

"What?!" This was a familiar voice. The unicorn and pegasus both turned to look, just in time to see a highly unamused Twilight Sparkle step out from behind a nearby tree. "I should have guessed something was up from way you were acting!"

Manure on a shovel... Azure thought to himself, turning to face Twilight.

"What?" Dash turned to Azure, and laid into him next. "You mean you didn't at least tell Twilight what happened?"

"She was already pretty upset about the cut..." the colt responded. "Didn't want to worry her further..."

"You're starting to sound like Fluttershy," Rainbow pointed out. Azure immediately realized exactly what his error in judgment was. Well, aside from the fact he already just figured out there really wouldn't have been a point in trying to keep it a secret for long. He was trying to keep something that could be a sign of a much bigger problem under wraps. "But it was a lot bigger problem than we expected..."

"Yeah..." the cyan colt sighed. He supposed it wouldn't be too hard to keep his role a secret from them. However, this would probably get the others tensed up. The fact that somepony could be so low as to target Fluttershy had curdled Dash's rage and had brought Twilight to the point of stalking Azure all the way home just to figure out the problem. "Alright then, Rainbow, Twilight, you two should come in. There's a lot to talk about, after all..."
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"...And that's what happened last night at Fluttershy's." Azure finished. The last twenty minutes had been Rainbow and Azure taking turns telling their account of the events the preceding night had brought about. Twilight Sparkle was utterly stunned. She'd thought that the cyan unicorn was just being his usual reckless self, but there was more to it than that. Somepony was summoning creatures for the sole purpose of hurting her friends?

"I-I don't believe it..." Twilight responded. "But why? Why would somepony target Fluttershy?"

"I don't know!" Rainbow sounded completely outraged. "She's never done a thing to others! Why would they send those ugly things after her?"

Azure remained silent, clearly troubled by what had happened. That stalli--colt, colt, was truly something else. No matter how much he got hurt, he'd always be ready to jump right back into violence at the drop of a hat. His determination to help the others out...

"Man!" The blue mare continued. "If I ever find the pony who called those things, I swear I'll...!"

"Dash, I don't think we can do anything about it..." Azure finally started talking. "Whoever summoned those things either lives around here, or is long gone by now."

Twilight felt compelled to speak again, but she didn't know what to say to the colt's statement.

"What--what makes you so sure?" she asked.

"For one thing, he or she didn't come at us directly," Azure said. "They instead opted to flood the area surrounding the cottage with those Shadow Ghouls...If Fluttershy hadn't identified those as not animals..."

"Wait, you actually went five minutes without attacking something?" Twilight questioned, honestly surprised.

"And that's a surprise because...?" Then the cyan colt went back to being that stubborn, sarcastic unicorn she so often clashed with. Twilight prepared to retort, but Rainbow cut in.

"Whoa, whoa, easy there, you two," she said, landing between them. "There's plenty of time for you to have your...quarrels... later. Right now, we've gotta figure out what to do about those monsters..."

Twilight didn't like the way she put emphasis on the word "quarrels", especially since she had a very smug grin when she said it. However, Azure was quick to pick up on this.

"Yeah, it's not like we can afford to play nice with such a pony willing to summon those things..." The colt raised a hoof subconsciously to his face. Twilight really couldn't argue with him there; she was merely surprised that he didn't attack the ghouls straight away.

"In any case," said the studious pony. "Shouldn't we warn the town about something like this? This is something important..."

"Actually," Azure said, sporting a serious look on his face. "that's the last thing we should do..."

Twilight glared at Azure, not even bothering to demand an explanation. The look alone should have produced one, and a quick look at Rainbow confirmed that she too wanted to know what was going on in that head of his.

"If everypony were to know at once, there would be panic among the citizens. With panic comes chaos, and the town only becomes an even easier target." The unicorn colt responded. Twilight couldn't think of a response straight away. Azure was never one to fool around in situations like this, though most of the time his actual response to the situation was, in her opinion, incorrect.

"Shouldn't I at least tell Princess Celestia about it?" The purple mare asked. "This is something she should know...I mean, we got attacked by a summoning spell..."

"If you feel you have to, do it, but the less that know about it the better. I don't think telling her now is the best move to take. As for anypony else, I need you two to promise me to keep quiet about this as well. We don't know anything else about what happened, nor do we know who could have sent those after us." The cyan colt continued. He was showing a sense of logic and reason that seemed almost alien to him. Had he not shown this side right before the Ursa Minor attack, Twilight wouldn't have believed he had it in him now. It was rare for him to be correct on something.

Still...can something like this be kept secret from friends?

"Alright, for now, I'll keep it to myself," Twilight responded. "But if this happens again, I'm going to inform Princess Celestia of exactly what happened."

"I think that'd be best if this happened again," Azure's response came. "What about you, Dash? Gonna keep this under wraps?"

Rainbow looked honestly unsure if doing it was the right move. She gave a sigh.

"I can't say I like this idea, keeping this whole thing a secret, but if Twilight's going to, I'll do this." Rainbow started. "I'll go see if Fluttershy can keep this secret too."

"Alright then," Azure said, seeming relieved to hear that. "But we need to keep an eye out. Dash, you can handle the air. You can fly fast enough..." Twilight wasn't sure if she was imagining the briefest, faintest shade of pink on the pegasus's cheeks or not at the comment, but she didn't get time. "I'll keep down here and look along the ground."

"What about me?" Twilight asked, feeling left-out all of a sudden. Azure turned to her directly.

"You're the spell expert...and given how the book that gave me the answers I was looking for existed in the library..." He motioned to the summoning guide he'd earlier borrowed from the library. "Think you can find a spell that'll help take care of those things faster if they show up again?"

"I'm sure I can find something if I get enough time..."

"Alright, I guess that clears that up..." Azure said, getting up. "Now, I really need to get going. Told my boss I'd be in today at some point, and I've already been out of work ten days as it is..."
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As the three ponies left Azure Courage's home for their respective destinations, an ominous feeling crept up on each of them. Who would want to call such vile creatures from a different dimension for the purpose of causing harm to other ponies? Why was Fluttershy targeted? There were so many questions in their heads, but none of them could find an answer...

Chapter 9: Eye of the Dragon

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Chapter 9: Eye of the Dragon
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It had been three whole days since the attack of the strange creatures. So far, Azure Courage had been able to keep his part of the secret, and from the way things were around town, the pegasi and Twilight had been able to follow suit. Other than the fact he was patrolling for a while after work, there wasn't a whole lot changed to his routine. For his part, the cyan colt definitely felt restless day by day.

He'd just finished another day of assisting on the current building project and still had a bit left to do before he was completely caught-up with all the work he had left to do. The boss didn't seem so happy with the fact he had those two foals to help out for the designated week of absence, and after returning to work, Azure understood exactly why.

One, they weren't nearly as physically capable as he was, so obviously heavy lifting was out of the question; two, they had to struggle to do any form of magic whatsoever, making levitating the stuff Azure did impossible for them; three, they became almost comically inept at what they'd done two days after Twilight had assigned them their punishment. But when it all came down to it, the unicorn hoped that those two at least had the brain cells between them to learn their lesson.

With all of that considered, Azure Courage had been putting in a fair amount more work than usual, so he was starting to get a little sore from the daily work. However, he still had another job to do, so he couldn't falter too much. He began trotting along, wondering where to patrol along the ground first. Of course, just as he made his selection and opened his eyes following this deep thinking on matters, he'd noticed something strange.

"Am I imagining things, or is it darker than usual out here?" he asked himself, looking around as he continued. His mouth curled into a half-hearted snarl as he considered the implications.

Did I miss something or-- His thought stopped mid-consideration as he chanced to look up. A long, black cloud of smoke stretched across the zenith of the blackened sky, seeming to come from a mountain not too far off from Ponyville. What the--?! Is that...!

The memory of the Shadow Ghouls and what they broke down into returned, hitting Azure like a train. He recalled the smoke they'd turned into when defeated.

Could that be another attempt at...! He quickly turned towards where he knew the library was, and began galloping for it. Twilight's gotta know what that is better than I do! Best not jump to conclusions!
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As Azure made his way for the library, he continued to glance up at the sky.

These dark clouds are getting me on edge... he thought to himself. I have a bad feeling about this...

The cyan unicorn continued his trek, not bothering to speak with any of the other ponies. But they definitely seemed to have noticed the mess long before he had.

"Definitely missed something...!" he grunted to himself. "The one day I spend most of my workday indoors!"

He finally managed to reach the library after a good five minutes, but what he saw was unexpected. He didn't find just Twilight and Spike, but all the other mares he'd befriended were there, too. Given what had happened half a week ago, Azure felt on-edge.

Is this as bad as it looks? The colt thought to himself. They look like they're about ready to storm out to war! Did that secret already get out? Is that the cause of this smoke?

Twilight turned to regard him.

"Oh, Azure," she said, sounding unusually stern. "You're just in time."

"What's this all about? I just got off and the sky's dark..." Azure responded, a question already on the tip of his tongue. Before he could properly pose it, though, the purple mare was able to speak again.

"There's a dragon that made his nest up in that mountain," She motioned with a forehoof to a mountain that the cyan colt could now see was pouring smoke from its face. "His snoring is causing a lot of smoke to fill the sky; if this continues, all of Equestria will be shrouded in the smoke."

Now that he knew what was going on, the cyan colt gave a small sigh in relief. He lifted the hard hat he was wearing off his head, and casually let it drop to the ground.

"Just a dragon, okay," he said. Only now did he notice Twilight fixing him with a completely stern, yet moderately unsurprised look.

"Only you would be happy about a dragon threat..." she said, unblinking.

"Oh no, I'm not happy about it at all," he responded, dropping his voice in volume so that she was the only one who could hear him, "Just rather it be this than some other thing..."

Twilight backed away for a moment, at first not completely understanding what he was talking about. Thankfully, it dawned her just as she blinked. She made sure to whisper to him in response.

"I see what you mean; I thought it was something like that too until Princess Celestia sent me the letter telling me what it was..." She sighed again. "So, just so you know, we're going to go up on the mountain and persuade the dragon to nap somewhere else..."

To say the cyan colt couldn't help but ask was an understatement.

"Now, when you say 'persuade'..." he started. Twilight shot him a look of utter frustration and disbelief.

"Of course your first response is to resort to violence," she scolded.

"Well, how else are you going to convince a dragon to move?" Azure defended his style of diplomacy with a speed he hadn't quite expected of himself.
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"If we simply explain to it what its snoring is doing, it might realize what it's doing!" Twilight called back, looking more and more angry with Azure the more they spoke about it.

"If it cared enough about what it was doing, it wouldn't have moved so close!" Azure screamed back, looking straight into Twilight's eyes. It was a full-blown argument brewing. To say Spike was surprised about this would be only half a lie. Truth be told, he had somewhat expected them to be at odds given how often Twilight referenced the colt's stubbornness, but not like this.

"Oh, wow..." Rainbow said, pressing a hoof to her face. "Spike, you were right...they're really going at it..."

"She's always calling him stubborn," Spike grinned in response, looking back. "But I didn't think Azure felt the same way..."

"Why should I have expected a peaceful resolution out of you?!" Twilight screeched. "You still wanted to resort to violence after you got that sprain!"

"How was I to know it was just a baby?!" The cyan colt responded.

"You're always taking on things bigger than you are, even when you're hurt!"

"Is there really any other--"

"Alright, alright, enough is enough, you two!" Applejack had moved quickly, rushing up to the two feuding unicorns and grabbing them both by the nape of the neck. "In case you haven't noticed, there's still that--" she turned them both roughly to look at the smoky mountain again, "--to deal with! Save your...fightin' for some other time..."

Both of the unicorns looked to each other after Applejack released them, and a look of understanding both passed over them at the same time. Arguing really wasn't helping matters at all, yet they were arguing it out over whose approach was better. The feuding unicorns immediately turned a bright shade of red and looked away, looking more angry than flustered that the event happened the way it did.

"Well," Twilight said shakily, "Guess I'd better...plan the shortest route, then..."

Spike wanted to laugh so hard, but given what he was tasked to do in Fluttershy's place, he didn't quite feel up to it. He had so many animals to take care of...
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Azure Courage turned to the group's eventual destination, trying not to look in Twilight's direction straight away until he properly calmed down following that rather heated discussion. Seriously, if he hadn't resolved to use violence during the Nightmare Moon fiasco, there was a very good chance that there wouldn't be a day to save now. Not to mention those Shadow Ghouls...

And yet she focuses on when I got hurt... the cyan colt thought to himself. Dragons don't get that big when they're fully grown, do they? I mean, Spike's considered a baby, so...

His ear twitched when he heard what could only be described as the sounds of a timid shuffle. Confused, he turned, and saw Fluttershy, looking especially uneasy, approaching Twilight, who appeared to be very engrossed in her work.

"Um, excuse me, Twilight?" the yellow pegasus asked, "I know you're busy, but--"

"Uh-huh," the purple mare said, Azure unsure if that even qualified as a response. "Well, we could go this way," It wasn't even clear if she was actually listening.

"If I could just have a second..." Fluttershy continued, still awfully quiet for somepony trying to get another's attention.

"Uh-huh," Twilight didn't even appear to be paying attention, continuing to gaze upon the map. "No, we can't go that way..."

Twilight, Fluttershy's got a problem, you might want to pay attention... thought Azure to himself, watching the two mares.

"So, um, I was thinking that, um, maybe," The pegasus continued, but at this point, the colt was utterly convinced Twilight wasn't paying so much as a silver of attention to her. "Maybe I should stay in Ponyville?"

Azure wasn't too stunned by this; except for the fact she had been present to assist in the defeat of Nightmare Moon. What was one dragon compared to that dictator? He didn't quite get the reason for her wanting to bail out when she was clearly there for them before, but didn't press the issue.

"Uh-huh," Another non-committal sound from Twilight, pretty much confirming to Azure that she was not paying any attention.

"Oh, good!" Fluttershy said, apparently taking the purple mare's statements to heart. "I'll just stay here and--"

"Wait, you have to come!" Twilight said, cutting off Fluttershy midsentence as she finally put away the map. The mare in question froze as the studious pony quickly shifted her attention onto her. "Your way with wild animals will surely come in handy..."

Not sure if a dragon counts... thought the only male pony present to himself as he watched the antics.

"I don't think I--" Now that the meeker mare had her friend's full attention, it was suddenly very hard for her to get a word in.

"Oh, and don't worry about your animal friends," The lavender unicorn motioned toward Spike with a forehoof. "Spike's got it covered while you're gone."

"Leave it to me!" said the much smaller dragon, turning his back on some of the creatures in question. The creatures quickly took the initiative, starting to run off. "Oooh! Hey! Hey! Wait!" He began to frantically chase after them.

Azure winced, his mind clouding with doubt. That's not very reassuring...

"I don't think he's up to the task..." Fluttershy said, echoing Azure's thoughts on the subject. "Maybe." Only now did she notice that Twilight did not appear to be paying attention. "But...but..." This was followed by a sound, similar to a whine.

Well, that was cute...wait, what? The colt thought to himself upon hearing it. He blinked, trying to shake off whatever that little mental outburst was. Thankfully, he didn't get to dwell on it too long.

"Are you sure you want Fluttershy to come along?" asked Rainbow, flying down in front of Twilight, "I mean, that pony's afraid of her own shadow. She's just going to slow us down!" This sentiment certainly made sense coming from her; Azure could not picture the blue pegasus taking much of anything slow.

"Oh, she's just a little bit nervous," Twilight defended her decision. Azure wasn't too convinced, but again, it was understandable given the magnitude of what they were about to do. "Once we get going, I'm sure she'll be fine."

"It's not like anypony can be that prone to--" Azure never got to finish putting in his two bits on the matter. Fluttershy squealed, and the cyan colt turned, expecting to see something worth her squealing over...and saw her backing away from her own shadow before leaping into a bush. Uh...okay...never mind...Azure felt his eyes widen and his jaw drop from the display of fear. She sure didn't show this side often enough...

"Alright girls," Twilight called out to the others, turning to them, and everypony who was still ready to move toward the mountain snapped to attention in their own ways. "Move out!" The ground-bound ponies ran, while Rainbow Dash started to fly. To Azure's surprise, Fluttershy was in the way, and despite her best efforts to protest (read: quietly and meekly, ending with a scream), she was just picked up and carried along with them.

Something in Azure's head clicked, and instantly whatever momentary concern he had was replaced with mild frustration.

"Am I chopped hay?!" he snarled. "Alright, I'll show what I can do here, just watch!"

He took off at a full sprint after them. He didn't know Blitz's speed spell, but he did know enough to move about on certain topography...it was how he'd saved Twilight from falling, after all...
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Rainbow Dash couldn't believe that Twilight had insisted on bringing Fluttershy along. Sure, the hopelessly meek pony was a great friend to have, but in a situation like this, she was near useless. Even after she'd proven that she was afraid of her shadow and had to be carried half the way to the base of the mountain, Twilight insisted that the yellow pegasus would come in handy.

As the mares began to reach the foot of the mountain, Rainbow had been on the verge of voicing her concerns again, when the others below her (except for Fluttershy, who had been bringing up the rear for the better part of the trip) skidded to a halt and had stupefied looks on their faces. And when Dash looked, she was quick to mimic.

Azure Courage, that male unicorn that almost always seemed to know exactly how to move and when to do so, was sitting at the foot of the mountain waiting for them, and from the looks of his face, it seemed like he had been waiting for a short while.

"Azure," This was the first time she'd ever used his full name since she'd met him, "how in the hay did you get here before us?" He had to have some secret to it, he had to, the mare reasoned to herself as he got to his feet.

"I ran." His expression was so neutral and his tone was so flat that Dash almost wanted to clock him. Almost.

"But..." Twilight immediately started fiddling with her map again, and after studying it for a good ten seconds, she turned to him. "I don't see any shortcuts here...are you sure you didn't teleport?"

Azure now seemed to look angry, but he didn't seem to be in the mood to argue his case out with words this time. He trotted right up to Twilight, and after looking at the map, he motioned to an area on it that was off the path that the mare had insisted upon the whole way up.

"Right there."

"But that leads to a lake," She said. "Not just any lake; a lake with a fast moving current...how did you cross it?"

"There were rocks sticking up from the water. All I had to do was jump across. Then from there it was a five minute walk," Azure responded, still seeming angry that she'd doubted his ability to run the whole way there.

None of the mares could possibly think of how he could have done it, but there wasn't much time for it. A loud, roaring sound shook the area. Fluttershy gave a loud gasp, and when Dash next saw her, she was right behind Azure, who seemed mostly unaffected by the noise.

"Whoa," Rainbow started, at a loss. "What was that?"

"That is what it sounds like when a dragon snores," Twilight said matter-of-factly.

"It-it's so...high," Fluttershy squeaked, trying to peek up from behind Azure. The rainbow-maned mare floated up ahead of them.

"It is a mountain," It was her turn to say something matter-of-factly. She immediately turned away. "I'm going to go up there and check it out..." She tried to fly straight to the peak, but something clamped down on her tail and halted her from ascending as quickly as she'd like to. She turned, and saw Applejack once more holding on to her tail.

"Hold on now," Applejack said as soon as she let go. "I think we should all go together. Safety in numbers an' all..."

"Plus," Azure said, his eyes sending a different message. "We never know what could be ahead..."

Rainbow picked up on what the colt was referring to, and relented.

"Oh, all right," she said, very annoyed at the fact she had to slow down.
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The ground-bound ponies quickly began to climb up the steep mountainside, none of them having a significantly hard time. Twilight had definitely picked the correct path for all of them to take straight up the side. Azure had to hand it to her, she knew exactly what to do with that map. If he wasn't so used to needing one every time he'd entered somewhere new, he'd never have been able to figure one out without scratching his mane for a good two minutes.

Even Rarity seemed to be taking the hard work in stride, casually speaking of what she knew about dragons.

"I hear the only thing that sparkles more than a dragon's scales are the gems they use to build their nests!" The white unicorn said. "If I play my cards right, maybe I could convince him to part with some."

For some reason, Azure found himself unable to get the image of Rarity trying to work her charms on a beast out of his head.

"Welcome to my cave, Rarity," Pinkie spoke in a strangely guttural tone for her, clearly imitiating a dragon. "Care for a diamond?" The others broke out in laughter, for the most part; Azure couldn't hold himself from smiling.

"Girls, this is no laughing matter!" Twilight scolded, immediately taking most of the fun out of the moment. Azure could not withhold a glare entirely. But he could at least respect her committment to-- "Fluttershy, you're the expert on wild creatures, what do you think the dragon will be like?"

There was no response. The unicorn colt's ear twitched at the utter silence. The others started to look around, to see if they could find her. She wasn't even on the mountain.

"Fluttershy?" The purple mare asked again. Eventually, he felt his ear twitch again, and he looked to a bush. The yellow mare's head soon became visible, as she finally popped up out of said shrub.

"Hey, what are you waiting for?" Dash asked, looking back to her. "An invitation?"

"I think I have one in my bag!" Pinkie responded, and Azure couldn't hold himself from looking. She dug through one of her saddlebags, and withdrew a party invitation. As if that wasn't weird enough, confetti shot out of it, covering Rainbow in it. The colt felt his eye twitch.

"Please tell me you're not inviting the dragon to a party..." he said, making no effort to correct his twitchy eye. He didn't even care it was Pinkie Pie he was talking to; the idea struck him as so odd he almost slipped off the cliffside from even considering it.

"Why not?" The pink party pony seemed utterly oblivious. "It would be fun!"

Azure cringed. Pinkie, every time you've told me that so far...

"It...it's so steep..." Fluttershy said, looking up to them. Rainbow Dash sighed, sounding even more peevish on the matter of having to wait.

"Well, it is a cliff," the blue mare pointed out. "You could just, oh, I don't know, fly up there!"

She's afraid of heights too...? Azure still couldn't hold himself from twitching his eye slightly. We'll be here all day! Even if it's Fluttershy, she seems suddenly...jumpy...

"C'mon, Fluttershy, flap those wings!" The pink earth pony began to demonstrate how using her forelegs, a sight which almost made Azure's sides split when he first witnessed it. Thankfully, the urge passed soon enough.

"Uh...okay..." This was her quiet response. She slowly opened her wings, and started to flap them as Pinkie instructed. It took her a bit of time to start getting off the ground, but it soon seemed like she'd be able to fly her way up the mountainside. That is, until the dragon gave another terrible snore. She gave another whine, and her wings snapped shut with an audible sound, causing her to fall and land perfectly in the bush.

The colt's mind began to work into overdrive, while Rainbow Dash applied her forehoof to her face, and Twilight complained about the lack of time the group had for things like this.

Even against Nightmare Moon, she wasn't like this... Azure thought to himself. Something triggered in his brain as he recalled that extended night; something he'd almost overlooked were it not for his own reaction to a creature from that day... What if she's...?

Azure snapped to attention as he looked over to see Applejack rummaging through Twilight's bags.

"What are you doing?" Twilight asked of her.

"I'll need this if I'm gonna take her around the mountain another way," she said, already starting to look at the map that she just withdrew.

"Wait." Azure spoke up loud enough for them to hear. "Think I'd better do it..."

"Az, you're gonna get yourself lost if you try to do it!" Applejack argued, and the cyan colt felt himself lose wind almost immediately.

"Not if I take the map," he responded. There was another loud snore from above, and Fluttershy gave a sound that was easily considered a goat bleat, her body seeming to stiffen completely. Azure's brows furrowed. "Please, let me do it..."

"Around the mountain?" Dash asked. "That's going to take forever!"

"I know how to use a map!" Azure asserted, starting to become angry. His horn glowed with a bit more vigor as he rudely grabbed it himself using his magic. He scanned the paths, making note that Twilight had marked the group's planned path on the map. After giving it a thorough scan, he made sure to memorize the directions he'd just mapped out. "Here, take it back. We'll catch up later."

He could feel them staring at him. Admittedly, he did have a poor sense of direction in new places, and while this cliffside was a new place for him, if he knew the geography well enough through a map or a tour, he usually didn't have so much trouble finding it. The dragon gave another loud snore, and this time, Fluttershy looked so stiff she could have passed for one of Rarity's dress dummies if not for the hair and expression.

"Guess we don't have any other choice..." Twilight finally relented. "Let's go, girls..."

Azure finally began to slide down the mountain as the other mares resumed their climbing. He approached the fallen mare, trying to figure out exactly how to take her along around the path he'd memorized. With a sigh, he took her by the tail as gently as he could, and began to drag her along the path, trying to be as gentle with it as possible.
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Thankfully, Azure's directional memory wasn't as bad as Applejack made it sound. He recognized the topography from the route he'd taken on the map. To make matters slightly better, the meek mare seemed to have recovered enough ability to stand up straight again, but still seemed so scared that she had trouble doing something as simple as walking.

The long way alone was bad enough; Azure knew he could have scaled the roughest of cliffsides, but due to his own curiosity, he'd decided to do this. The least Fluttershy could do was attempt to walk. It felt like it really was going to take forever, and with time as short as it was. And with the others, especially Applejack, making it seem like his sense of direction was poor, his temper wasn't exactly the greatest either.

"Look, Fluttershy," The colt finally said, his patience starting to reach its limits as he trotted in front of her, "I can't push you the whole way up there..." The meek mare immediately looked away, as though ashamed.

"I-I-I'm sorry..." she stuttered out, already seeming to feel bad about the fact that they were taking the long way on her behalf. The unicorn immediately flinched.

Nice job, you're so brave you made her almost cry, Azure thought to himself, immediately backpedaling. "I-It's not that I'm upset about it..." An idea came to him, but he was a bit unsure it was going to hold up like most of his other decisions usually did. However, it was the only thing he could think of given the time constraints. "But how about..." And it was going to sound painfully awkward no matter how he tried to say it. "How about I carry you the rest of the way?"

Fluttershy didn't seem too taken aback by the offer, other than the very tiniest of blushes on her face.

"Oh, no, you d-don't have to go to that trouble," Azure looked the other way as she took a couple of soft steps forward, somewhat relieved she'd turned him down on that one. "I-I can walk just--" The dragon snored once more, and Fluttershy once more gave a small squeak, and exactly one second later, he felt the weight of a fully grown pegasus mare, slightly quivering from obvious fear, come down on his back. Her forelegs latched around his neck in a manner not unlike a collar used as part of the harnesses he'd occasionally had to wear as per his job.

"Fluttershy...?" Azure found it a little hard to breathe, and it certainly wasn't because he had an extra pony to carry.

"I-if you insist..." she stuttered flatly, and as Azure turned to look at her, her head just poking over his shoulder, she gave a bashful smile.

With this exchange over, Azure found he was able to ferry other ponies his age on his back, but because it was still a mare he was carrying, the colt felt a little awkward. Of course, after that last snore, Azure had to make sure his suspisicion was correct; it was sort of the reason he'd wanted to walk with her in the first place.

"Fluttershy, while we're here away from the others, mind if I ask you something?" He continued to face the path ahead, but it was clear to the mare he was questioning he was looking at her.

"Oh, um, sure..." she responded, and Azure found once again her grip was a little too tight.

"Why, exactly, are you so afraid of dragons?" The cyan colt made sure to be as gentle as he could in his tone; even Rainbow seemed to want to be gentle with her. He'd just about broken that rule earlier when his temper flared to her, but Azure would argue he'd recovered from that. "I can understand being afraid of one if it was attacking, but you seem to be afraid just from thinking about them."

He felt Fluttershy completely freeze for a moment, pretty much confirming his hypothesis then and there, but as he continued to move along his path, she unknowingly began tightening her hold on him as she finally responded.

"Well, it's because they're big," Azure felt himself start to choke, "mean," He could have sworn he heard one of his upper vertabrae pop, "and scary!" She was literally putting him in a sleeperhold now without realizing it. It wasn't until he'd coughed that the yellow mare realized what she was doing, and quickly loosened her grip. "S-sorry..."

"It's okay," Azure rubbed at his neck unconsciously, wondering if he was going to have bruises from where she was before long. "Sounds like you've got some phobia of them." With a small sigh, he decided to at least let her know what the score was. "It's nothing to be ashamed of, really. I know what it's like to be that scared of something."

He felt Fluttershy look up in disbelief. It was a bit awkward since he had to duck down a little so she didn't hit her head on his, but she was definitely surprised to hear this, judging from the way she shifted.

"B-but...you're one of the bravest ponies I know..." she stuttered out, surprise very evident in her quiet voice. "What...what are you afraid of?"

"I'm afraid of chimeras, truth be told." It was a little awkward considering he'd never told this to anypony. Not even his cousins knew to his knowledge, and he was around them more than his father, who knew the incident all too well.

"B-but...you fought one...when Nightmare Moon appeared," Fluttershy continued. "I...I...don't understand..."

"Yeah, I did." Azure said. "I didn't show it at the time, but deep down, I was still scared out of my mind..."

"H-how...?" The meek mare seemed completely confused. In this moment, the colt realized he felt like his father must have on that fateful day.

"Well, it was because of you and the others, really," Azure said, looking up slowly. "At first, I saw it, but I couldn't move. I was terrified by the mere sight of it. But, the thought of it hurting any of you...it pushed me forward, and motivated me to do what I did that night."

Fluttershy moved her head down so she was next to his neck again, allowing him to stand up straight.

"I-I wish I could be that brave..." She sounded sad again.

"I'm going to tell you what my dad told me," Azure finally said. "Courage has nothing to do with being brave. It's about standing up even though you're scared. That's why I could fight through my fear..."

The words seemed to trigger something in Fluttershy. Her grip tightened again, but it wasn't a choking grip. In fact...Azure didn't even know how to describe said grip. It felt...strange, to say the least, certainly stranger than when she started riding on his back.

"D-do you think I could ever have courage like you?" she asked, her voice in a low volume even for her. Her head seemed to be pressing up against his neck a bit tighter than it should have been.

"Sure of it," Azure felt his own voice lower in volume. "Maybe even more than I do..." That last part was almost to himself. He raised his head again after briefly lowering it to gather his thoughts. He could see the forested path become more mountainous, so he knew he was getting reasonably close.

Was that much distance covered during this conversation?
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Rainbow Dash could sum up her entire mental landscape in one simple word: bored. She'd been waiting Celestia-knows-how-many minutes for Azure and Fluttershy to catch up. The mare knew she probably could have arced over the mountain several times by this point after the others had managed to catch up to her. Why Twilight didn't at least continue up the mountain further at a slower pace, Rainbow didn't get, but it was clear the others were starting to get impatient.

"Whoo-hoo!" Pinkie chirped, "I win again!"

The ground around the mare in question and Rarity was surrounded by finished tic-tac-toe games; Pinkie having just won another one. At first, it came as mild amusement when Pinkie won about five in a row, but her constant victory was actually starting to get ridiculous and...boring.

"That's thirty-five games in a row," the white unicorn scoffed, "Best out of seventy-one?"

"Look, they're almost here!" Twilight said, having caught sight of two approaching figures.

Rainbow turned, clearly agitated. "Told ya it was going to...take...them..." She trailed off, unable to process what she was seeing straight away.

"Uh..." Applejack couldn't process it either. It was certainly odd enough that Azure had volunteered in her place to take her around the mountain, but the fact Fluttershy was holding on around his neck and literally riding him to the others was...

Rainbow tried her hardest to keep herself from snickering when, only now, did the unicorn colt realize what could have been weird about that positioning when all eyes were on him. His eyes widened to the size of dinner plates.

"This is not what it looks like..." Azure responded, looking from mare to mare. Rainbow almost snickered, but it didn't mean she wasn't grinning.

"Sure it isn't..." replied Rainbow. It was clear Azure wasn't in the mood to argue (which was funny given what happened before they actually left), so he merely rolled his eyes and looked to the meek mare on his back. C'mon Az, if you put the moves on her, I won't mind...a lot...

"Think you can walk now?" He was as blunt as possible, and Fluttershy could only nod straight away.

"Oh, y-yes..." Fluttershy stuttered in response., climbing off his back. She seemed able to walk, so Rainbow gave a small scoff.

"Alright, let's get going already!" she declared, starting to hover off after the trotting ponies. However, her attention was soon drawn to something else of interest. Applejack stood next to Twilight, who, for some reason, appeared to be spacing out. The farmer pony was waving one of her forehooves in front of the studious mare's face.

"Twi, you in there?" she asked. The unicorn snapped to attention after a few seconds.

"S-sorry," responded Twilight, "I was just...thinking about something. Let's go."

She's been focused all day on this... Rainbow Dash didn't get it quite yet, but decided not to pursue it further, flying off after the others.
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Fluttershy didn't quite get what had happened during that trip around the mountain. It was clear enough to Azure that she was afraid of them; why else would he have opened up like that? In addition, when she'd been riding on his back, she'd felt safe even with the knowledge of the dragon, whose lair seemed to be getting closer and closer the further up the group went.

Her renewed vigor soon faded, however, when the group approached a gap on the path. One by one, all her friends hopped over the gap, but Fluttershy could not bring herself to follow. In addition, her wings were still unable to open. Instinctively, she clung onto a nearby rock, as her fear of heights kicked in.

"Your turn, Fluttershy," Twilight said from across the jump.

"But...it's...so...wide..." All the confidence she'd felt while riding atop the unicorn's back had faded away as she stared toward the gap. She looked to her friends again, who were more or less waiting on the other side.

"C'mon, Fluttershy, we should be much farther along by now," the purple mare said again. Fluttershy looked over to Azure, who closed his eyes and sighed. The message wasn't immediately clear at first, but given that he actually stood up to a chimera despite his fear as he said, the meek pony was able to deduce he probably wanted her to do the same. But she knew they were nothing alike...

"You could just leap across," Applejack pointed out. Fluttershy walked to the edge of the gap and looked down.

"I..." She started, but as soon as the dragon gave another one of its terrible snores, Fluttershy felt shivers rake up her body, and she instinctively backed away from the edge of the gap. "I don't know..." Her fear was starting to hinder her, just as it had been from the start. Somewhere deep down, the mare realized she wished she was back on top of her friend's back.

"There's nothing to be afraid of!" Pinkie was leaping back to her side cheerily, demonstrating how easy it was. "It's just a hop, skip and a jump!" She then jumped back across. "See?"

The pink party pony, inexplicably, started singing again. She'd done this once before in a crisis, when everypony except for Azure and herself were scared stiff by the possessed trees. As she sang, she continued to hop back and forth.

"It's not that very far
Just move your little rump
You can make it if you try with a hop, skip and jump!"

"We don't have time for this," Twilight commented.

"I don't see you doing anything..." Azure responded, dropping back into a sarcastic tone. The purple mare turned to him, looking even more agitated.

"I don't have time to deal with your tone right now," the studious mare said, clearly not wanting another argument. Meanwhile, Pinkie continued to sing the same three words, repeating them six different times as she continued to leap back and forth, ending on the opposite side of the gap once again. The song certainly lent her enough confidence, and Fluttershy once more stepped forward. She started to walk towards the edge, and closed her eyes.

"O-okay..." she said as soon as she reached it. "A hop..." She hopped straight up in place.

"That's it." encouraged Applejack.

"You've got it," Twilight offered.

"You're almost there!" Rarity said.

"Skip..." Fluttershy left the ground and began jumping towards her friends.

"Just don't look down," the purple pony said. Having closed her eyes up to now, Fluttershy opened her eyes and went against her friend's advice. As she descended into vertigo-induced panic, she gave a squeal. She felt as though she would fall, but the gap was really that small.

Her forehooves and back hooves were stuck on opposite ends of the cliffs. Rainbow Dash gave a groan of disapproval.

"I guess I forgot to jump..." the meek mare quipped.

After Rarity and Pinkie pulled her forehooves while Rainbow Dash pushed her forward, Fluttershy was back on solid ground again. With that incident over, the group continued forward, though the meek mare once more found herself wishing she could have been as bra--no, courageous was the right word, as her friends were.
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Isn't this going to get any easier? Azure thought to himself as the group continued around the mountain. They were getting closer to the top, and each time the dragon snored, it seemed like it was getting progressively louder. He knew his luck, however, was pretty shoddy when it came to crisis management being easy. Speaking of which, he was about to receive more bad news. The gang reached a cliffside, which by itself looked pretty rocky.

"Let's keep it down," Twilight whispered, and even if she hadn't explained why, he probably would have figured it out on his own. "The map says this is an avalanche zone. The smallest peep could cause a rock slide."

Of course, this did wonders for Fluttershy's emotional state.

"An...ava...ava--" Twilight shushed her; apparently, Fluttershy talking in her normal tone was going to be enough. If the meek mare could just remain quiet for this part of the mountain, the group would probably avoid a rock slide. If there was a pony he could pick that he knew couldn't stay quiet long, it was Pinkie Pie. He kept one eye on her, just in case she started mouthing off.

However, his concern was wasted; even the party pony knew when it was prudent to keep the noise level down. Azure sighed as internally as possible; it seemed like things were finally going to go his way.

His ear twitched, in response to an unseen wind. A couple of seconds later, he heard a completely unfamiliar shriek coming from a very familiar pony.

"AVALA--" Applejack reached out and forcefully shushed the unusually loud mare before she could finish her statement. What was the cause for her outburst? Azure could barely notice a leaf floating off her back at the distance he was from her. The colt looked up, same with the others, as they waited for something to happen.

It was quiet. Not a rumble to be heard. Everypony let out a sigh of relief.

That could have gotten ugly real fa-- A loud quake was heard above, and Azure grit his teeth. "Manure...!"

Sure enough, as a delayed reaction to Fluttershy's squeal, the rock slide that Twilight warned of began. It was a storm of loose debris, raining down. Immediately, Azure's horn lit up.

I can not get a break, ever...! The other ponies scrambled to get away, and Azure leapt into action, shooting whichever rocks he could see to try and thin the danger somewhat. Even so, it was still not easy for him to avoid the ones heading for him. Through his perhiperal vision, he could see an incredibly large rock starting to head for Fluttershy, and pinned his ears back. There was no way he could blast it away in time unless he charged up a shot...

"Not today!" he yelled, immediately rushing through the storm of rocks and over to the frozen mare. He did the only thing he could think to do at the time. His horn once more glowed cyan as he began to lift Fluttershy to make his task just a little easier. The mare seemed unaware she was starting to float. Azure skidded to a halt, sliding just underneath the floating pony. He quickly set her down on his back, forgoing the gentleness for a moment. Azure continued to run. As the debris finally started to stop, there were piles of rocks everywhere, but there was an especially large one just up the path. The colt could just barely see Applejack saving Twilight from a similiar situation, and sighed somewhat in relief.

Can't be in two places at once... he thought to himself.

"Everypony okay?" Applejack asked, as soon as the debris was raining down. Seeing as how the rockslide had already happened, there probably wasn't a reason to whisper; at least, the farmer mare didn't when she'd asked.

"Thanks to you, I am," Twilight responded, rubbing her head against the orange mare's in response in thanks. Azure stepped forward, and Fluttershy had apparently recovered from her lag, because her grip was once again tightly wound around him.

"Guess it's for the best," he mumbled when all eyes turned to his resumed carrying of the meek mare. "At least it'll be easier for her to move..."

Rarity, who had lost her scarf and hat she had been wearing up until the slide, shook the dust off her fur. It soon covered a very excited-looking Pinkie.

"Whoo-hoo!" She started hopping up and down, clearly not bothered by the fact she could have been crushed into paste, "Let's do that again!"

"I'll take a pass on that..." Azure mumbled to himself. It seemed that nopony was going to draw attention to the colt carrying Fluttershy again because of their own issues. The white unicorn of the group scoffed, and began digging through her belongings.

"This is why a girl always brings extra accessories," she said, pulling out a different scarf. After putting it on, she sighed again. "Oh, please tell me I brought the matching tiara that goes with this!"

"Uh, I think we have bigger problems than making sure our hair bows match our horse shoes..." Dash floated down and motioned to the gigantic pile of rubble that now blocked the chosen path.

"S-sorry..." Fluttershy said with a sigh. Azure wasn't sure if she was imagining things or not, but he felt her grip slacken just a little bit.

"Aw, it's no big whoop, sugarcube," Applejack tried to console the obviously upset mare.

"Yeah, we just have to..." Twilight sighed, clearly not at all happy about the way things turned out. "climb over..."

"At least we shouldn't need to worry about another avalanche..." Azure commented, starting to climb. Except for Rainbow Dash, the others started to climb up the mountain. It was a bit harder since Azure had to lift an extra pony, but it wasn't anything he wasn't incapable of handling.

Azure noticed out of the corner of his eye a small pebble, but didn't do much about it. However, it apparently bounced in such a way that it so happened to bounce off Fluttershy and not him.

The mare in question let out a tight squeal, and Azure had to quit moving so that he could maintain his balance. The others turned to look, but the cyan colt was far more worried by the fact that the mare he was ferrying was squeezing him tighter than he thought possible. He felt an unusual tension in his chest, just below where her forelegs were crossed.

SQUEAK.

Azure's eyes widened. The others completely stopped what they were doing, also transfixed at the sound that had just come out of his mouth.

"D-did I just...squeak?"

It wasn't even like a squeal that got cut off halfway because of lack of air. It sounded like somepony had crammed a dog toy down his windpipe and left the squeaker intact. The tension eased, and the others began laughing. Fluttershy loosened her grip, and the cyan colt kept right on climbing, blushing the whole way up.

I really hope they all don't start trying to make me do that for fun...
----------------------------------------
It had been unexpectedly hard to make it over the rocks. Well, going up was the easy part, but Azure soon found out that trying to keep his footing when he had an extra pony on his shoulders to worry about was easier said than done. Even his sure-footed cousin probably couldn't pull it off. It was taking a significant effort to not simply slide down the avalanche, which would have caused both himself and Fluttershy to collide into Rarity, who was having similar troubles getting past the rocks. That in itself may have caused another embarrassing squeak to issue from his lungs.

Seriously, why'd I squeak? I've been squeezed half-to death before... Too caught up in his introspection, the cyan colt failed to find traction, and found himself painfully sliding on his belly the rest of the way down. The others, who by this point had either flown over or climbed over the pile safely to the other side, all turned to him, worried.

"I'm fine..." Azure confirmed, getting back on his feet. Rainbow Dash shot another glare at the mare he was ferrying, making it all too clear she blamed her for all the slowdowns. Which, while certainly true, wasn't exactly fair. It sort of surprised Azure when he'd thought about it: the two seemed to know each other quite well judging from that incident a few days ago, but Rainbow didn't know about her biggest phobia of all? The group continued for a few more yards when the mare began to speak again.

"Still think it was a good idea to bring Fluttershy along?" she questioned of Twilight, turning to her.

"We're about to find out," Twilight walked a few more feet, then stopped. "We're here."

Azure turned his head as he reached what the studious mare was referring to. What he and the others saw was a gigantic crevice in the mountain. Out of this cave, black smoke was pouring into the atmosphere. It was clear this was where the dragon had chosen to sleep. The colt turned back to Fluttershy, and made a small subtle motion for her to climb off his back. After some hesitation on her part, she managed to rise to her hooves, just as Twilight began to go over her plans for the monster within the mountain.

"Rainbow Dash, you'll use your wings to clear the smoke," she started. The cyan mare gave a nod of approval and began to fly up into the black clouds.

"Pinkie Pie and Rarity, you two will distract the dragon in case things get a little hairy in there," The two mares in question gave nods of approval, though the pink earth pony was holding a rubber chicken, which squeaked as she squeezed it. Azure gave an involuntary shudder from the memory of his own recent squeak. He then wondered exactly what she was going to do that.

"Applejack, you're ready with apples in case the dragon attacks..." Twilight continued, and the orange mare briefly chucked two apples into a nearby rock to demonstrate. Azure almost completely fell over, not only feeling left-out again, but not knowing exactly what apples would do to a dragon.

Of all the--

"Okay, seriously?" Azure had done his best the whole trip up the mountain to pretend the argument from earlier hadn't happened, but now he really had to protest this lapse of judgment on Twilight's part. Even if she didn't like it, she had to at least know he'd had experience fighting large creatures too. "I mean, no offense, Applejack, but what can apples do to a dragon?"

"You really can't wait to attack something, can you?" Twilight asked, turning to him, wearing that same expression from the foot of the mountain.

"Oh no, you're not bringing that up this time," Azure responded, taking a step forward. "I didn't come all this way just to stand here and look pretty!" There was clear sarcasm in his tone. Or get turned into a squeaky toy, for that matter...

"Alright, if it comes to it, you can help out Applejack," Twilight's expression changed, seeing how serious he was about it. "But it shouldn't come to that, because Fluttershy will do what she needs to do to wake him up, and between the two of us, we should be able to get him to understand why he needs to go." The purple mare began to walk up to the cave. "Is everypony ready?"

With the exception of one voice, the entire group gave a grunt of approval. The purple mare began to trot into the cave, apparently not noticing a second set of hooves hitting the ground next to her.

Azure felt his eyebrows lift, and he looked over to see Fluttershy doing her best imitation of an ostrich.

"Uh..." was all he could manage to say before Twilight realized somepony was missing and walked out of the cave.

"Come on, come on," The studious mare responded to Fluttershy's response to her role, pushing her head from the ground and trying her hardest to push her to the dragon's cave. "We have to do this!"

Rainbow Dash came flying down, and began to help push, but surprisingly, the yellow mare wouldn't budge.

"We have to do this now!" Twilight continued to make her case as Rarity and Applejack joined in on the effort. But it was no use; Fluttershy was practically a living iceberg. "Every second the dragon sleeps is another acre of Equestria covered in smoke!" Pinkie Pie joined in to the effort, and Azure could only watch in awe as the meek mare successfully walled the efforts of five others in an attempt to push her.

Sweet Celestia, fear is a great source of strength... The cyan colt thought to himself. But it's how you use it...

"I-I-I can't go in the cave," The yellow pegasus stuttered out, which caused all five of her friends to fall over.

"Oh great," Dash complained, hovering into the air and crossing her forelegs. "now she's scared of caves, too..."

"I'm not scared of caves, I'm scared of..." Fluttershy's jaw appeared to lock, and she mumbled. Azure blinked, realizing she was having yet another panic attack.

"What's that, sugarcube?" Applejack asked, stepping in closer.

"I'm scared of..." The mumble was slightly louder, but only Azure knew what she was trying to say.

"What?" Twilight asked, taking another step closer.

"I'm scared of dragons!" Again, Fluttershy proved she had a volume louder than "inside voice", proclaiming to the others for the first time her fear of the huge beasts.

"But Fluttershy, you have a wonderful talent with all kinds of animals!" Twilight responded, clearly confused.

"Yes, because they're not dragons," Fluttershy defended. It sounded flimsy, but Azure wasn't about to point it out. He could fully understand what it was like to have a phobia, but that was as far as it went.

"Oh c'mon!" Dash argued, clearly irritated by this confession. "You walked up to a horrible manticore like it was nothing!"

"Yes, because it wasn't a dragon..." It was basically a repeat of what she just said, but the unicorn colt could see the stress forming through the cracks again.

"Spike is a dragon," Pinkie pointed out, "You're not scared of him."

"Yes, because he's not a huge, gigantic, terrifying, enormous, teeth-gnashing, scarp-scale having, horn-wearing, smoke-snoring, could eat a pony in one bite, totally all-grown-up dragon!" Fluttershy practically wailed this information as she gave even more details than she had before when alone with him. The dragon apparently wasn't disturbed by the exclamation, giving out another loud, loud snore which caused the mare to buckle and cave in on the ground.

"But if you're so afraid of dragons, why didn't you say anything before we climbed all the way up here?" Twilight asked.

It really wasn't that obvious? Azure privately wondered to himself, preparing to come forth with the knowledge. Even considering it's Fluttershy we're talking about--

"I was afraid to..." said the mare on the ground, earning a facehoof from Rainbow Dash.

"How was that not clear to everypony?" The cyan colt had quietly watched this up to this point, but now felt the need to elaborate further. The others turned to him, blinking, but Twilight spoke up.

"Wait, how did you know?"

Azure found he couldn't come clean about his fear as easily as he thought he could. "Because she told me..."

"And you didn't tell us...why?" Now that anger in her voice was back once more. How many times today did she...?

"At least I thought to ask about it..." The others immediately realized when he did it, but none of them chose to point out that was why he'd carried her up all that way. The glare from Twilight intensified, but Azure noticed it was a bit more than usual.

"Then why didn't you ask her in front of us?!"

Darn it, I'm having trouble coming clean about my own too...

"She just said she was too afraid to tell you!" Azure shouted back. Twilight's eyes opened, and the others seemed disturbed by this fact. Rainbow looked a bit more disturbed than the others.

"B-but then...why did she tell you over the rest of us..." The purple mare finally asked after some silence.

"Because..." The pony found himself once more unable to speak directly about why she had done so, "Because I know what she's going through..."

Twilight returned to an argumentative mode again.

"How could you, of all ponies, know what she's going through?!" The others seemed to agree, though Applejack seemed a bit angered that she was taking this tone again at a time like this. "You're ready to attack anything that moves! On a moment's notice, no less!"

Do you really want to know? Fine, but you'll have a hard time believing it too! Azure scowled as he considered her statement. He really wanted to tell them now...

Before he could find a way to share this information with the others, Applejack once more stepped between them.

"All of us are scared of the dragon," said Applejack, trying to actually reassure Fluttershy while at the same time cutting off any further arguments.

"I'm not!" Rainbow yelled back, almost indignant at the notion.

More intimidated since I don't know how big exactly one is... thought Azure to himself, recalling how it'd felt when the Ursa Minor came to down and he was powerless to act.

"Almost all of us are afraid of that dragon," the orange earth pony re-stated. "But we've got a job to do. So, get on in there with Twilight and show that dragon what you're made of." Despite the strongly supportive tone of her voice, Fluttershy didn't move from her prone position.

"I-I-I just...can't..." Fluttershy rose to her feet, turning her head down, apparently ashamed of her inability to do what Azure himself did. Azure merely closed his eyes and sighed as she began to walk away.

If there was a way to pass on my courage, I'd do it. But sadly, all I can do is give advice. he thought to himself. But with Fluttershy out, Twilight's approach should still be doable, right?

Twilight seemed nervous now that Fluttershy was unable to help her out, but she continued to stand tall, turning her attention back to the cave.

"He probably just doesn't know what he's doing, right?" She sounded honestly unsure of herself when she asked herself this. The others didn't seem sure; Azure himself could only cite Spike as an example of a dragon being able to exercise sound judgment, but he also knew that he didn't know a thing about dragons other than what he'd seen Spike do.

Twilight swallowed hard, beginning to once more go into the cave alone. Azure started stepping forward after her, and within moments, all of the still-in ponies were crowded around the entrance of the cave. It was a dark cave, but within it, one could just make out the gleam of what vaguely appeared to be treasure, covered by a hulking mass, no doubt the dragon.

"Mr. Dragon?" Even so, Twilight was having a hard time seeing, bumping right into the mass. Azure couldn't see what was going on straight away, but when the mass flipped over, the others could see a little more clearly its treasure trove and more importantly, its size. The thing was definitely huge, bigger than an Ursa Minor for sure. And it was only lying down scratching at the scales on its stomach.

Smoke poured from the nose that Twilight had bumped into, no doubt where the offensive smoke was coming from.

"Excuse me, Mr. Dragon?" Now that the mare had apparently seen the dragon she'd bumped into, she looked up toward it. The dragon continued to seemingly ignore Twilight, but just as it seemed that the mare would have to try harder to get it to wake, the eyes of the dragon opened, and the eyes were yellow. Azure almost had a flashback of the Shadow Ghoul invasion, and instinctively, he felt himself get on guard. Yet, even as the dragon turned his attention to Twilight, clearly not amused at having been roused from his slumber, it didn't seem like it was going to attack.

"Oh good, you're awake," she observed, taking a few steps back to allow herself some breathing room. "Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Twilight--" The dragon yawned, and Twilight suddenly looked dizzy. Azure was just about ready to dash into the cave to see if he could do anything, but the dragon continued to not attack.

That is one bad case of morning breath... Azure found himself wondering how its breath smelled like, since it almost made Twilight pass out from the scent.

"Ugh, Sparkle..." She finished, coughing while covering her snout with a hoof. "and my friends and I are residents in Equestria, Ponyville to be exact." The dragon turned to look at them directly. Azure didn't budge too much, even when the yellow eyes focused on him. He gazed over to the others, and saw that they were standing their ground, especially Pinkie, who looked about ready to hurl a party invite his way.

One wrong move and I'll do...something... Azure wasn't quite sure what he'd do if the dragon decided to get violent, given the size difference. Even with six of them here, it would have taken a true miracle to take this thing out with force.

"We've come here to ask you to find another spot to take your nap," Twilight continued, at which point the dragon turned its attention back on to her. "It's just that you seem to be doing an awful lot of snoring, and every time you do, you send out a terrible cloud of smoke."

He wasn't sure if the dragon was being disrespectful or not by snorting smoke directly on the mare, who coughed from the fumes.

"Equestria just can't survive a hundred years of dark haze!" She continued, trying to argue her case to something that could, as Fluttershy had so eloquently put it earlier, "eat her in one bite". "You understand, don't you?"

Whatever look that the studious pony had on her face seemed to work. The dragon got up and stretched, just like anypony would have done in the morning if successfully woken up.

"So you'll find another place to sleep?" There was hope in the mare's voice. But Azure soon realized it was foolish to think it'd be that easy. The dragon then immediately fell back over, assuming a napping position. Now, this time the dragon was being discourteous, snorting a nostril full of noxious smoke directly on to Twilight, and sending another blast of black fumes straight out the mouth of the cave. Everypony started to cough, Azure included, when the smoke blasted them as well.

"Well, that went about as well as I thought...!" the cyan colt hacked, raising a forehoof over his snout and trying to choke out the noxious concoction. On the bright side, the dragon didn't start attacking, so at least it wasn't too violent.

"So much for persuading him..." Rainbow Dash had also caught a lungful of smoke.

"What now?" Applejack asked, having just as much of a hard time breathing as the others. The smoke finally cleared, but the others still coughed a bit more.

"Obviously, this situation calls for a little pony charm. Allow me." Rarity declared, and Azure immediately facehooved.

Well, I saw this coming... the cyan colt thought to himself. He lifted his head up, ready to see how well the whole flattering a dragon thing would work out, when he noticed something from the corner of his eye. Towards the edge of the cliff, behind a very large rock, was Fluttershy, still looking down on herself as she peered out from behind it to see what was going on. ...I thought she'd have left for Ponyville by now...

Azure closed his eyes in thought.

This is Fluttershy you're talking about, Azure. Even with all that meekness, she's still capable of being a friend. Maybe she just wants to see if we can do this. He thought to himself. I have a feeling this'll just be like a broken record, but...I've got to talk to her once more... The unicorn couldn't place it, but he'd felt a similarity to her now, ever since her phobia first came out. Plus, he still had his Protector role to carry out. With the others busy watching how Rarity's attempt at charming the dragon was going, Azure walked over to the rock. She'd since hidden herself behind the structure again, and he peered around it.

"Fluttershy?" To his question, she looked up at him for a moment, then back down, rubbing a hoof on the ground. "So you're still afraid, aren't you?" He walked around the rock and out of sight.

She gave a soft affirmative, looking away from him entirely for a moment.

"It's not your fault," Azure said, attempting to be reassuring. "A fear as deep as that can't be overcome in one night."

"Y-you did..." she stuttered in response. While it was true, it was a bit unfair given what else had been going on that night.

"I'm sure you could face your fear if you just gave it a try..." The colt decided to be a little stubborn about it, but he never let the gentle tone leave his voice. He tried to be convincing about it, but it fell flat.

"I-I can't..." Fluttershy looked away ashamed again. "I just don't have as much courage as you..."

Azure raised a hoof to his head, rubbing at his mane.

How can I get her to believe in herself enough...? He felt his headband come loose a little, and began to readjust it, when something hit him. He remembered the reason why he'd been given it. Then, something stood out even more than that.

When his fear of chimeras had started, he'd been corrected that he'd still deserved his name, despite the fact he'd been too scared to stand up to the beasts at the time. It was that memory of what his father had told him on that day that allowed him to stand up to one years later and pave the way for Nightmare Moon's defeat.

She never got the help she needed, but I did... Azure said. He began to finish taking off his headband. I just hope it isn't too late...

"Fluttershy," Azure started, hoping his tactic would work. "You want to know my secret to having such courage?" Already he knew Applejack would see right through this, but she was too busy paying attention to whatever was going on in the cave. Fluttershy snapped her head back to him, and her eyes sparkled. He could see her wanting to turn it down, but perhaps it was her want to help her friends that motivated her next answer.

"This band was a gift from my mother when I was younger," He'd hoped her fear would mask her memory of what the memento really was as he floated it over to her and began to wrap it around her head. "I'm sure that if you wear it, your courage will finally be unlocked. My mother cast a spell on it to help me become the way I am now."

"B-but..." Fluttershy stuttered. She seemed doubtful, even with this "information". "D-do you really think it'll work on me?"

"Of course I do," Azure nodded softly with a smile. The mare's mouth twitched as though she were about to in return, with a slight pinkening of the cheeks. The cyan colt's ear twitched as he registered a new voice.

"It's time to stop wasting time!" This was Rainbow Dash declaring something she'd probably already been declaring half a dozen times over. "I'm goin' in!"

"That can't end well," Azure said aloud, turning his attention back to the mouth of the cave. "I have to get back out there now. Remember, don't worry about being afraid of the dragon, that headband will help you overcome it!"

Without even checking to see if Fluttershy would follow him, Azure dashed out from behind the rock, hoping nopony would notice straight away the dark blue band missing from around his head. Despite the fact he wore it all the time...

He'd managed to get back to the others just as Twilight pleaded with the flying mare to not do what she was about to. There was something about how she'd expect it more from Azure in there too, but he wasn't about to argue now.

"Get! Out!" This was obviously Rainbow Dash screaming at the dragon, followed by the unmistakable sound of a hard kick. Judging from the disgruntled grunts and the subsequent sneeze, it was an attack straight to the dragon's nose. It didn't seem to have any real effect on the dragon other than waking it up, and boy did it sound mad. Apparently, it also looked mad as well, since even Dash didn't want to mess with an angry dragon. "Heh, sorry."

The apology wasn't going to cut it. The dragon roared audibly, and Azure had to move quick since the force of the roar alone sent Rainbow flying backwards, directly toward the others. While he'd managed to jump clear, the others were sent flying like bowling pins on impact. They didn't get a whole lot of time to recover from the apparently painful impact, given that the sound of the dragon on the move was very audible. The others began to scramble, trying to find a place to go, but Azure didn't follow.

I've got to try something...! he thought to himself, already focusing magic into his horn for a charged shot. It wasn't exactly the best option he could have done, but given the others didn't seem to have any other ideas, he decided to settle on his opening course of action: running bravely to the front of the cave and doing...something, to get its attention. The dragon's...arm, slammed down on the ground, causing the mountain to tremble. Azure figured it was probably trying to intimidate him. He looked up, just in time to see a large, bright red dragon's head poke out of the cave.

It was clearly mad, and though the colt knew he wasn't going to make the situation any better, he couldn't see any other way. The instant the dragon poked its head out, he shot his blast to him, but the dragon easily avoided in the attack, and Azure froze up, seeing how easily the large creature dodged his charged shot. The dragon made a move as though to attack.

This is going to hurt...a lot... With one flick of a claw, Azure's nerves overloaded with pain as his feet left the ground. Knowing he'd probably be completely sent over the side of the mountain if he didn't act quick, he lessened air resistance and used a gravity spell to slow the resulting fall, allowing him to land without breaking anything this time. The impact still knocked whatever wind he had left out of him. Azure struggled back to his feet, not knowing what to do next, especially since the monster was massive, dwarfing the Ursa Minor in size when it stood in a bipedal position.

He gazed to the others, and saw something he didn't quite expect completely. The others had huddled together, and even Rainbow Dash looked petrified; the very same pony who had assisted him in the Shadow Ghoul attack; the one that had said she wasn't scared of the dragon, was scared out of her mind. But the biggest fright of all was yet to come. The dragon reared back, taking a deep breath, and Azure felt as though he were standing in an infinite tunnel.

Is that thing gonna breathe fire...?!

Thankfully, his hypothesis was proven wrong as the dragon shot out a very strong puff of smoke. It was still enough to send the five mares back, slamming them into a rock hard enough to cause it to crumble. The other five writhed around, groaning, and Azure felt his heart skip a beat when Fluttershy, still wearing his headband, popped up, looking to the dragon.

"Bad, bad, this is bad!" Azure grunted, already going towards the mares before the dragon decided to attack Fluttershy too. In that instant, though, something changed. The meek mare in question saw what had happened to her friends, who were still struggling to stand from the impact. She looked to them, and though Azure was focusing for another attack, the meek and gentle pony's demeanor completely changed.

"How dare you..." She looked up to the dragon. Azure hesitated, hearing the tone of her voice. The dragon turned to her. "How dare you!" Her wings shot open, and she was up in the air faster than Azure had ever seen her move.

"Fluttershy--?!" Azure couldn't even speak more. He'd completely stopped his movement, ceasing his focus on the attack, staring in disbelief as Fluttershy moved into eye level, landing on the dragon's nose.

"Listen here, mister," She sounded angrier than he'd ever think possible from her, and even more stern than...actually, she'd never sounded especially stern before, but right now, she definitely was yelling...and at a dragon, her biggest fear, no less; talking down to it as though it were a foal. "just because you're big doesn't mean you get to be a bully!" The sight was so stunning Azure couldn't even come up with anything to say. Even the dragon had lost steam upon having the meek mare glare at it. The others managed to get back to their feet, just as surprised at the sudden growth of a backbone.

"You may have huge teeth, and sharp scales, and snore smoke, and breathe fire, but you do not, I repeat, you do not! Hurt! My! Friends!" This was followed by the sharpest, angriest glare that Azure had ever witnessed anypony give. Not even Nightmare Moon's sneer compared to it. The colt's mind had blanked out. "You got that?"

W-what...what...? Just as it dawned on Azure that he should have been more ready to attack again, the dragon ducked down as though in fear, leaving the colt thoroughly confused and yet...impressed.

"I don't believe it..." He whispered to himself.

"Well?" The dragon flinched again when the mare asked him again, her tone still that stern, almost commanding tone.

"But...that rainbow one kicked me..." The dragon said, as though it justified it; which, by all rights, it probably did. Rainbow Dash seemed a little proud to be mentioned, as she smiled and nodded.

"And I'm very sorry about that," Fluttershy's tone eased back into the one she'd used on the manticore. "but you're bigger than she is and you should know better than that. You should also know not to take a nap where your snoring could become a health hazard."

"But I--" The dragon continued to attempt to explain, sounding as though he had a perfectly legitimate reason to snore smoke.

"Don't you 'but I' me, mister!" Fluttershy gave the dragon a stern look once again, still using her inside voice. "Now then, what do you have to say for yourself?" When no response came, the yellow pegasus used her commanding tone. "I said: what do you have to say for yourself?"

The colt continued to gawk, especially when the dragon, confronted with the mare's anger, began to break down and cry, showering the ponies below with tears. Azure was too off-put by the sight to even bother with trying to keep himself dry, impressed at how things turned out.

"There, there," Fluttershy had once again returned to her normal tone, and seemed completely calm once more. "You're not a bad dragon, you just made a bad decision. Now go pack your things, you just need to find another place to sleep is all."

With that, the mare got off the snout of the obscenely large beast, who hurried to comply with her request. The mares cheered, but Azure wasn't quite at ease just yet. He kept an eye on the dragon as he slowly made his way toward the others.

"You did it, Fluttershy!" Twilight congratulated, "I knew you could!" As the celebrations amped up, the dragon emerged from its cave with more treasure than Azure knew he'd ever see in his lifetime, and began flying off into the distance. The dragon mumbled something to himself, though, and by pure luck, the colt caught it.

"First rats with yellow eyes run me out of my first cave, and now a yellow pegasus makes me leave my second?!" He grumbled under his breath. "Yellow just isn't my lucky color..."

"Rats with yellow eyes...?" Azure's memory returned to the fight with the Shadow Ghouls. Could it be...?!

He began trotting faster toward the others, wondering about the conditions that the dragon was trying to tell Fluttershy.

"When did you become so brave, Fluttershy?" This was Rainbow Dash, sounding genuinely curious.

"It wasn't bravery," corrected the mare in her completely normal, "inside voice" sort of tone. "It was courage."

Only now did the others seem to notice the headband around her head.

"Hey, wait a sec," Applejack raised a hoof to point at it. "Ain't that Az's headband?"

The others took a closer look, and some of them released a small gasp when they realized it, turning to him.

"...did I miss something...?" Twilight wondered aloud to herself, but Azure couldn't really fault her for it given the fifty-foot reptile she had to worry about.

"The headband has a spell on it," Fluttershy "explained", using the tale that the cyan colt had spun on the spur of the moment. "It helped me have courage like him." She smiled. Azure sighed to himself, knowing it was now or never.

"Actually," Azure said, cutting in. "I kinda made that part up..."

"W-what?" Fluttershy seemed confused by this admission, while the others remained silent.

"The band had no magic," Azure responded. "I received it right before my move. It's just an ordinary band with my virtue sewn into it." He smiled. "Standing up for your friends against that dragon which you feared so much...that was all you." He reached out and touched her shoulder, to which the mare flinched a bit. "That was from inside you."

The yellow pegasus's mouth opened wide and her green eyes began to sparkle.

"Y-you mean...I had courage all this time?" Fluttershy asked, to which the others all agreed. She smiled wide and blushed a deep rose color.

"C'mon, everypony," Twilight broke up the victory celebration. "Let's go home..."
-----------------------------------------
It didn't take near as long for the group to get back down the mountain, partly because Fluttershy was no longer slowing them down. They were able to take all the shortcuts they couldn't before as a group. Eventually, the group reached town again, and after saying their goodbyes and thanking Fluttershy for coming through in the end, the ponies went their seperate ways.

Azure reached his home, content with what had occurred. His body was a bit sore from being chucked through the air like he was, but other than that, he hadn't gotten hurt. The others who had been pushed into the rock hard enough to break it, surprisingly, didn't have any serious injuries of their own.

"This day was pretty interesting..." the colt commented, lying down on his bed. "Even Fluttershy can lose that meekness, that gentleness, when her friends are threatened...I just wish it didn't have to come to all of us getting hurt for her to make the dragon cry..."

But his thoughts soon returned to the dragon's parting words, how it had complained about being forced out of its caves previously.

But if that dragon was referring to the Shadow Ghouls... He was troubled, his brown eyes reflecting this. It should mean we can relax; the one that summoned them isn't anywhere near here...Yet, I can't. I can't relax knowing that.

A knock on the door disrupted his concentration. Azure rose from his bed and began making his way to the door. He'd opened it, to see Fluttershy, with a sea of critters behind her, all heading toward her home. The meek mare seemed to have evened out completely, and was her usual gentle self again. The mare was still wearing his headband around her head.

How'd I forget...? he asked himself.

"Oh, Fluttershy, what brings you here?" The pony asked.

"A-Azure, I'm sorry," she whispered, reaching up for the band with the slightest blush showing on her face. "With all that happened, I-I'd forgotten to give this back to you."

"Oh, thanks," Azure levitated the band from her hoof and began to wrap it around his head, back where he'd had it before he gave it to Fluttershy. "Y-you're not mad that I lied about it, are you?"

"N-not at all," She said. "If you hadn't, I'm not sure I would have been able to face my fears like that..." The mare seemed unusually sheepish all of a sudden, even for her, turning from him as though she were about to leave, yet couldn't bring herself to.

"I knew you could do it," the cyan unicorn continued, not bothering to point out her shyness. "Like I said when we were going around the mountain, you have more courage than I do. You even gave me a little scare up there!"

The mare said nothing, seeming to blush more at his comment. Azure felt awkward to stand there, and didn't quite know what to do.

"I...guess I'll see you around..." Azure responded, starting to back away so he could re-enter his home.

"W-wait...Azure..." Fluttershy's voice was barely a whisper. Azure stopped, and was caught off-guard for the umpteenth time that way when her snout entered the space of his cheek, and he felt the unmistakable moist pressure of a pair of lips against his cheek. Her face was bright red now, and after she'd pulled away, she looked away. "T-thank you..."

Azure didn't need to be told he was blushing a reddish color now. He watched the mare turn around and start flying away back to her home, once again moving faster than he expected her to. The colt watched her retreat, blinking. Once the shock of the event wore off, Azure smiled, and looked after the mare's direction.

You're welcome, Fluttershy...

The cyan unicorn went back inside his home, still confused about what had just happened. Sure, he practically carried her most of the way up the mountain, and had given her the drive she'd needed, but--Azure decided not to dwell on it further.

"Like heck Virid's hearing about the dragon that decided not to kill the lot of us on the spot." Azure said aloud. "After what he did during his and Blitz's visit, it's going to be a little longer before I'm writing about any of our adventures..."

With this in mind, Azure went back to his bed, lying down and preparing to meditate.

Chapter 10: Breaking One's Code

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Chapter 10: Breaking One's Code
--------------
It was amazing how fast things moved in Ponyville. Five days had passed already between Fluttershy's scaring of the fully grown dragon, and she'd returned completely to her meek demeanor, with no evidence at all to show she'd caused such a snarling beast to break down crying. Of course, with some of the more recent happenings, the weekly rain that was supposed to come along last week had been cancelled, and thus, a massive storm was being orchestrated to make up for lost time.

Which is why Azure Courage had a day off; though he wasn't going to spend the first part of it indoors. There were so many trees in town to prune, and everypony was pitching in. Some were using their magic to snap off branches, others were pulling them off with ropes, and some others were just snapping them off manually.

However, the colt had a radically different approach. After making sure the trees were clear, he decided to use the branches to be pruned as target practice for his lasers. His horn lit up, and he began launching magical energy at the large branches, snapping them clean off. It wasn't too hard to find the correct amount of power to snap a branch without scorching it too noticably or failing to snap it off, period.

Though the entire town was pitching into the effort, Azure had managed to do quite a few trees on his own. A crowd of several ponies had crowded around him to watch him snap the branches off another tree using the offensive spell he'd been taught. As he finished, there was some applause for his effort. However, a very familiar voice soon cut into the "celebration".

"Do you really have to do it like that?" Azure turned in the direction of the question, and saw none other than Twilight Sparkle standing there with a mildly skeptical look on her face.

"I was told to take down the branches," he responded, "Nopony told me to do it one way..."

"Ugh, you are impossible to argue with," Twilight said while rolling her eyes.

"I'm the only pony you argue with that I know of; and you seem to enjoy doing it on a daily basis, too." Azure stated.

"I wouldn't have to if you didn't have--" Twilight continued. Azure didn't really feel up for arguing on this matter, though he had to admit it was tempting.

"Shouldn't you be finishing up preparations for the storm right about now?" Azure asked, looking up. The clouds were gradually getting darker as the weather patrol agitated the clouds. He'd estimated it would be about twenty minutes before the storm started at this rate.

"Oh, right," Twilight said, turning around, but keeping her eyes on him. "Just don't stay outside when the storm starts!"

With that, she left, leaving Azure alone with his thoughts. He didn't quite know why, but something in him was telling him to do that.

"Right..." Azure lied, already knowing he had other plans for today's storm.

With the Shadow Ghouls potentially behind the dragon incident, as well as the fact Azure wasn't sure if whoever sent them was no longer a threat, the pony had been feeling a little restless lately. He couldn't keep up just meditating forever.

Training out in this big storm? Why not? The unicorn thought to himself, starting to get on the move for a training spot on the outskirts of Ponyville. He had to be careful to avoid Twilight's notice, given that she could probably be anywhere helping other ponies with their own clean-up efforts. He tried to trot about as nonchalantly as possible. The other ponies seemed to be wrapping up the cleanup efforts and heading inside. The clouds above seemed ready to burst with fresh rain at any moment.

As he considered what exactly he was going to do while in the storm, his ear twitched. At first, he didn't get it, but after a couple of seconds, he realized the sound he was hearing was two feminine voices bickering.

There's an argument, and neither Twilight nor me are part of it? Azure thought to himself, blinking. I guess I can try to take a look...

He followed the voices, and as he got closer, he could hear the words slightly more clearer, but was still having a bit of a hard time making it out over the rumble of thunder above. However, he managed to see the argumentative ponies in question.

If Azure could say he was surprised, he'd have been lying. Rarity, the fashionista unicorn, was apparently arguing with Applejack, the headstrong earth pony. From the looks of it, it was about the tree branch disposal they were doing. Azure could see where their contention could come from. He had saw the radically different approaches they had taken to pruning the trees.

Applejack physically tore them off using more of the lasso manipulation; Rarity...well, she didn't seem to be tearing them off so much as sculpting them magically. Azure felt as though he should stay out of it, but thankfully, he didn't get a say in the matter. The clouds above seemed to open up and cry, sending everypony not already in a home running for cover. The colt quickly made his move, making sure to dodge the library when he galloped to the outskirts of Ponyville for his training.
---------------
Lightning was already splitting the sky and Ponyville had become dangerously dark when Azure found his spot. It was a clearing, surrounded by several paths lined with trees. The trees were dripping, and Azure's mane and tail were already sagging with excess moisture by the time he'd found his spot. He was soaked down to his skin, and his headband felt saggy with all the water it had absorbed. Yet, despite the fact he felt like a used washcloth, Azure felt ready to train.

"Let's see," Azure said, more to himself than anything, as a sheet of lightning split the sky and turned it a bright white color. "Everything's got to be pretty slippery..."

He recalled a detail from the dragon incident. When he had been climbing over the rocks with Fluttershy, he'd lost his footing, and though he hadn't injured the pegasus when he'd slid down the rocks on his stomach, he still slipped to begin with. So, with this in mind, Azure arrived at a decision.

"Looks like I'm going to try and work on my traction. Should be pretty slick, and challenging..." The cyan colt stated, more to himself. Thunder sounded loudly above his head, but Azure didn't blink. He took a ready stance, and began running, already feeling his hooves slipping about on the grass and mud beneath him. It was rough on him, but Azure figured he couldn't have it any other way. He noticed that at the rate he was going, he was going to collide with a tree.

Azure began to apply the brakes, digging his hooves into the ground and skidding along through the moisture and mud. He was going to see if he could stop himself before he could hit the tree, without using magic. If he'd used the gravity spell to increase his weight, well, that'd be cheating in this case.

The colt continued to slide, and still had more than enough momentum to have the tree knock the wind out of him upon impact. He fell to the wet roots, soaking his still somewhat-dry stomach fur a little in the process. A gust of wind blew by, and Azure heard some snapping above. He looked up, seeing small twigs being hurled by the air current heading for him. He wrestled to his feet, and just barely managed to avoid the storm, though one of the twigs did poke him in the knee.

Let's try this again... Azure continued, already on course for a different tree. He tried to mimic the speed he was running at, but the slick ground was making it a little difficult for him to find his momentum. He once more tried to skid to a halt. He forced more weight into his hooves. His hooves managed to dig into the mud just a little, but it wasn't nearly enough, and he still managed to hit his side on the wood, once more drawing pain from his ribs.

Darn it... he thought to himself, trying to once more get back to his feet. Most would have been discouraged when a flash of lightning went overhead, but it only fueled Azure's desires to pull ahead. Just think, every day would be kinda like this if you hadn't been as ready as you were for Nightmare Moon...

Thunder crackled loudly above as the colt rushed back to his feet. The rain pounded his body as he took off running again, water dripping off what felt like each individual hair by this point, adding to the already slippery conditions. Azure had to force some of his weight down on his feet just to be able to run straight with all the moisture, but he wasn't about to abandon his training now.

As lightning split the sky, Azure could see he was starting to approach a third tree. He grit his teeth and once more slid, applying the brakes and forcing as much of his natural weight as he could down into his hooves. The mud didn't give way straight away, but as Azure continued to approach the tree, he continued to press down as hard as he could in his posture, and the mud gave way. He started to dig in, finding some level of traction. His hooves were up to their ankles in the mud on one side, but his momentum was not slowed enough.

He bumped the tree, just enough to give his body a small jitter and cause a slight soreness, but certainly not sufficient enough.

"Now that I know how to do it...I think it'll be good to try again."

Though his training was ill-advised by Twilight, she didn't have to find out about it. As the minutes blended together, lightning slit the skies open, and thunder crackled and roared above, the mud started to cake on his feet, and his stomach from where he would occasionally fall over after slowing to a stop. However, Azure tried to take his training a step further.

After about twenty minutes of trying to gain some ground on traction, he decided to start freegalloping through the trees, taking a roundabout route through the foilage. The mud that covered his legs and stomach made it hard for him to get his usual traction that he'd had when the trees were dry. Azure leapt forward toward one of the wet trees, aiming to bounce off it as he usually would were everything not so slick, but what happened instead: he slipped down the side and faceplanted into the mud at its base.

"No pain, no gain..." Azure struggled back to his hooves, and rushed forward again, mud now caking part of his mane, headband, and horn, as well as some parts of his face. He wasn't quite able to see a good deal in front of him except when the lightning flashed. However, the cyan colt was confident he'd be able to navigate his way through the storm...
---------------
Rainbow Dash could sum up her mental state in four words: bored beyond all reason. Ever since finishing up on the storm meant to make up for lost time, she'd been idling out on her cloud home, listening to the sounds of the storm. Though most ponies would be content with this, the blue mare knew one thing about herself: she wasn't into that kind of stuff like Twilight was. She'd have rather been doing anything but waiting for the rain to subside.

The lightning made practicing stunts dangerous, and ever since a very close brush with it; so close in fact the mare had no idea how she'd dodged it, she wasn't exactly up for risking it again. The rainbow-maned pony considered herself a daredevil, but she wouldn't be able to become a Wonderbolt if she'd gotten hit by an errant bolt.

However, she had to admit not being able to fly about like she wanted was boring and dull. The pegasus almost fell asleep listening to the sounds of her boredom.

I hate rain... she thought to herself, starting to doze off. What else is there for me to do but--

The sounds of what could have been anything slapping something wet tickled her ears. Rainbow's ears pricked up, and with her curiosity piqued, she gazed out over the clouds of her home, which today had also been used to create the storm. It was so dark she couldn't see it, but she could have sworn she'd heard it--

The sound replayed again, and this time, the flash of lightning illuminated the ground below. She squinted, but for that instant, she could have sworn she'd seen somepony. The sound grew closer, but was drowned out momentarily by the boom of thunder. The lightning soon flashed again, and this time Rainbow was able to see a certain colt, caked with so much mud he looked like he'd been swimming in it, running along.

"Was that...Az?" She stood up, alarmed, yet not completely surprised by this development. "What's he think he's doin' out here in a storm like this?"
---------------
Azure had changed up his training tactics slightly. Since he was no longer in an obstacle course, he decided to practice just sharp turns and braking. Of course, much like with his attempts to avoid hitting trees, this wasn't exactly getting any easier. The area around him only seemed to be getting darker, and the rain seemed to be falling even harder now. He was pretty sure he could have passed for a pony-sized washcloth if not for the mud splotches all over him, the way he knew he looked.

And the ground becoming even less sturdy was not helping any, either. He had to throw all his weight onto his hooves just to make significant forward progress, and it was a wonder how he'd been able to keep his momentum up this high. The lightning flashed above, and thunder crackled as Azure tried to sharp turn to his left, only to wind up slipping out of the ground and winding up with even more muddy splotches on his left side.

"C'mon..." he grunted, wrestling himself to his feet to try again, running forward, this time trying to brake and go right. This time, he somehow managed to slip and fall straight onto his back. He'd managed to find an especially moist spot. He rolled back to his feet, continuing to grunt encouragement to himself as he continuously attempted, paying no mind to where he was going.

"One more time!" he called out to himself, launching himself forward and preparing to break again. Something in him forced him to look in the direction he was going as he tried to brake left, and lightning flashed. His hooves continued to slide along through the mud, but as that lightning flashed, Azure resisted the natural urge to panic.

He was careening toward a cliffside, and the unicorn was not finding sufficient traction to slow down. Sure enough, he went flying off the edge. Gravity started to assert itself, and Azure chanced to look down just as another brilliant flash of lightning filled his vision.

Even if I slow my descent down, I'll just be trapped down here 'till tommor-- The feeling of his body halting in mid-air unceremoniously jolted him out of his thoughts. What in the-- Something had caught around one of his back legs, stopping his descent. He looked up, and the lightning flashed again. Though it was only for a second, he'd know that mane color anywhere.

"Rainbow Dash?" Azure asked, his voice wavering only slightly from the near-death experience. The mare looked down to him as she began to ascend.

"Are you out of your little pony mind?" Dash asked, fixing him with that all-too familiar stare.

"You sound just like Twilight right now, you know tha--" His sentence couldn't quite finish, for his ascent stopped and he flopped around like a fish as the sudden stop jerked him around.

"Do not give me a reason to drop you," Rainbow responded. He could tell from her tone that she was only half-joking, but deciding to err on the side of caution for a change, Azure opted to spout more sarcasm when he was out of her hooves and back on semi-liquid ground.

However, Rainbow was not content to simply drag him away from the ravine. She continued to fly until they were under the shelter of a large tree. The colt was finally set down on the ground, where he rose to his hooves.

"Thanks, Rainbow," Azure said, breathing in and out just a little to ease the anxiety his near-death experience had caused him. "That might have gotten ugly..."

"What the hay were you doing out here?" She sounded angry. He didn't want to remind her again she sounded like Twilight, since, while they were away from the ravine, he knew that Dash was likely to attack him.

"Oh, you know, just going for a run..." Azure said, sounding as innocent as he could put up with sounding in the situation. However, while Dash wasn't as hard to lie to as Applejack, even the blue pegasus knew when something was up.

"I'm...not buying it." Dash crossed her forelegs while being bipedal, still hovering. The cyan colt could see her Twilight side coming out in full force, but he wasn't about to bring it up again. She was physically capable of smacking him across the face if he did so, so he kept the same look for as long as he could stand to. However, the gears in his head began moving again, and only after this did he get that he wouldn't be walking away from this.

"Alright, fine," he sighed, "The reason I was out in the storm was to practice traction control, since everything was slippery." It was also the reason he was currently blanketed in mud.

That, and I'd be less likely to be interrupted by a water balloon...

The mare's glare eased away after a few seconds, and she landed on the ground at last, standing straight up.

"Why didn't you just say so?" She sounded unusually excited to hear it, but it was so subtle Azure didn't pick up on it until she continued to speak. He couldn't help but notice Rainbow sounded...impressed, in a rare display for her. "I didn't think anypony would actually come outside in a storm like this..."

"So then, why are you out here?" The cyan colt asked, wondering if she was just out enjoying the rain when he'd almost fallen down. For her part, it was literally her being in the right place at the right time.

"I saw you runnin' around from my place." She made a motion to something in the distance. It was only when the lightning flashed that he could see what she was pointing to. From what he got to see of it for that small speck of time, it looked...like some kind of castle.

"Guess I wasn't keeping track of where I was going," Azure was once again reminded of his inability to keep a sense of direction. He began to walk again, intent on finishing his workout. "Well, thanks again for helping me out back there. I'll be sure to keep an eye out this time..."

It took Rainbow Dash a few seconds for her to realize what he was doing.

"Seriously?!" she asked, flying in front of him faster than he could blink. She cut off his path, causing him to stop walking forward and look up to her again. "After what just happened, you're going to keep running in this storm?!"

You really sound just like Twilight, Dash...

"Well, why not?" Azure asked. He wasn't quite sure why Rainbow was so concerned straight away. She was the one that attacked the dragon first, not him. "Just because I almost fell down a ravine isn't an excuse to call it quits. I've got to get out of my comfort zone and push myself further." Just as he finished saying this, he could have sworn the mare was looking at him strangely. Of course, he soon abandoned that train of thought.

Rainbow Dash was easily the most athletic out of the mares he'd befriended. After that incident over at Fluttershy's, Azure had to admit he was starting to get curious. Curious to the point he was about to put a question he'd been thinking about for a while now to her.

"Hey, Rainbow, why don't you join me?"

The mare's expression scrunched up as though confused further by this question. It was clear she did know some limitations.

"You really have a horse shoe loose, don't you?" Right before the lightning lit up the sky again, Dash landed. "I'm like a lightning rod in this storm. I can't fly in these conditions!"

"So don't fly too high..." Azure responded. "You did manage to avoid the lightning when you were saving me from falling, maybe if you stay low, you won't get hit."

The pegasus took up a gesture of thought. He could tell by the gleam in her eyes she was sorely tempted to...

"Fine, I'll play," she said. "But only if I get to pick. Knowing you, you'd probably do something dangerous." He wasn't sure if she meant for him to hear it, but under her breath, she commented, "you rough pony, you..."

"Anything done in this storm would be practice..." Azure noted aloud. "Alright, I'll let you pick, so what do you want to do?"

Rainbow Dash took a few steps forward.

"Let's see..." she took a gesture of thought, lifting off so that her feet were just off the ground. "...how about..." There was that gleam in her eyes again, and she was smiling crookedly, so Azure could guess she was making him wait for--

Her forehoof suddenly pushed forward. Azure braced himself for the inevitable hit. But none came. Confused, he opened his eyes, and got a hoof to the nose for his confusion. It was a gentle tap right on his snout. He fully expected Dash to say "two for flinching", but what she said next left him even more confused.

"Tag," she said, immediately turning around and flying away at an almost purposefully slow pace. "you're it..."

It took forever for Azure to shake off his mental lag following that, and for a few seconds, he swore he felt himself blushing. His feet pounded the slippery ground, and just as he began to catch up to her, Dash increased her speed.

"Hey, get back here!" the colt called out, running forward. It wasn't completely what he'd expected, especially considering Rainbow's nature, but he wasn't about to complain.

Trying to keep up with her in these conditions on its own was going to be a punishing exertion in itself. And by the end of this, he was certain he was going to be completely coated in mud. But it would be worth it. Doubly so if he could make her eat her words for a change.
---------------
Rainbow Dash was initially skeptical about her friend's sanity, but he did sort of make a challenge she found herself, surprisingly, unable to refuse. It had surprised herself that she was willing to put up with the storm just to hang out with a pony that clearly had more screws loose in his head than she thought.

Only after the dragon incident had been resolved did it ever occur to her that she had pulled an Azure and mindlessly attacked something. But hey, that was taking Twilight's terminology, and she was no bookworm.

She heard the wet slapping of hooves against the ground, and sure enough, Azure was having an especially hard time attempting to keep up, yet he was clearly determined to try. Who was he kidding? He didn't know the same magic Crimson knew. Not to mention, she was actually trying a little less. Even having to fly so low, she probably could have outpaced him the whole storm while avoiding becoming a lightning rod.

However, this wasn't to say the sight of the colt running after her covered in mud wasn't just hilarious, it was also--

"C'mon, Az," she taunted, even as the last flash of lightning briefly illuminated the forest again. "You're not even making this a challenge!" It soon became dark, and though she could still hear his hooves hitting the ground, she couldn't make him out except for a darkened shape several yards behind him.

"You know, this isn't exactly fair," Azure complained, though he didn't halt his forward momentum. "I don't have wings...and you do."

Rainbow felt herself smirk. Sure, she shouldn't have to listen to him complaining, and had a majority of a mind to call him out on it, but the colt did have a point. Besides, while she wasn't exactly fond of being ground-bound, she still had quite a bit of running ability to her. She halted, and almost snickered when Azure slid completely past her. She landed on the ground, feeling the water on the ground tickle her hooves only slightly.

"Fine, have it your way," she said. "But you still can't catch me!" To prove her point, she immediately took off at a running speed. It wasn't nearly as fast as her flying speed, but she could still hold her own in a footrace. Though there was one other besides Azure she felt she could compete with...

"We'll see about that!" In all the time she'd known him, the only time Azure had ever indicated any sort of aggression was--well, actually, whenever presented with a clear threat to himself or his friends (usually the latter more than the former), he almost always got aggressive. Well, that and when he had those hilarious arguments with Twilight.

But the aggression that Rainbow heard in his voice as he took off after her was different, and something that, if you had told her he had this side to him at the time she'd met him, she would have quite viciously told you otherwise. When she'd first met him, he literally had no interest in competition, judging from what he'd said.

But now, running in the pouring rain with lightning and thunder above, hearing him shout like that was almost--

Rainbow's ears twitched as she heard the pounding of his hooves stop. Then, she heard a hard "thwack", almost like something heavy bouncing off a tree. She turned her head around just as lightning filled the sky again, just in time to see Azure Courage, hooves outstretched, ready to tag her back.

"Uh-oh!" she gasped, more out of shock than anything. The mare quickly dug her hooves into the ground, managing a sharp turn to her left, managing to get out of the colt's way, leaving him to unceremoniously drop to the ground and slide along. She turned to him, and as soon as he turned to face her, she wanted to laugh. Now his whole chest was covered in mud.

"Nice try, Az," Rainbow taunted, already about to start moving again. "but you ain't going to touch me without my consent."

The lightning flashed above, and the look on Azure's face was priceless.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked, clearly not getting it at all. Subconsciously, Dash found herself wondering if this was his "studies".

"Just a joke, Mr. Muddy," Her taunts continued, almost laughing again when Azure's face lit up when she reminded him of how coated he was in wet dirt. "Now, c'mon, you're still 'it'."

"Not for long!" He soon was again, chasing after her. After at least a minute, the sounds of his hooves slapping the wet ground faded. Rainbow kept moving, her hooves already covered in mud, but after noticing this, she eventually stopped, looking around for him.

"Az?" she asked, looking around. Her guard was up, especially when she thought she heard a hoof splash in a puddle. "Oh, I get it. Tryin' to sneak up on me, huh?"

"You could say that," he responded, but the way he echoed made it hard for Rainbow to pinpoint her location. "I was trying to find traction, but I suppose sneaking around in the rain works too..."

Rainbow grinned fiendishly, not that Azure could see it from whereever he was.
---------------
Azure watched his quarry patiently, aiming to tag her while she wasn't looking this time. He had managed to find a way to hide within the foilage, and grinned to himself when he saw he had a straight shot. He could see he was exposed to her, due to the fact he could see her full body, but if he moved fast enough, he'd finally be able to tag her back.

"That's creepy, Az," Rainbow stated, sounding exclusively creeped out among everything else. The colt felt his eye twitch.

"Stop mixing my words!" He yelled, pointing a hoof at her, forgetting in his carelessness he forgot to direct his voice upwards to cause an echo. Rainbow turned to him just as the lightning flashed, and from the look of pure amusement on her face, he knew he'd given himself away. Of course, she was toying with him when she said that...

"Got'cha!" She said, immediately running off again. Azure snorted in frustration.

"Alright then!" he called after her. "I'm not going to play nice anymore..." He began trying his tactic again, chasing after her.

She had noticed he'd stopped following her and slowed down. If he could just get her to do that again, he might be able to tag her, and get her to chase him for a change. Regardless of how many times she teased him in this storm.

With this in mind, Azure realized something else as he continued to set up his hiding spot again. Rainbow had literally played mind games with him there, causing him to snap at her and reveal his position in the process. That was, by all accounts, a tactical error on his part, but if he could just remember to keep his cool and make her lose hers, he could catch her.

"C'mon, this isn't hide and seek, you know!" Dash called out, having come to another stop, annoyed. Azure creeped around, grinning somewhat. He had her right where he wanted her this time.

"True, but you never really laid down any ground rules," He made sure to call out to her, throwing his voice skyward so he'd echo in the storm again.

"Alright, I see what you did there," the blue mare said, moving around a little. "But you aren't gonna catch me."

"You know, I didn't get to say it before," Azure continued his brilliant tactic, moving around in the shadows while managing to keep his voice echoing so she couldn't pinpoint him. "but you're acting an awful lot like Twilight today..."

He managed to find his way into a bush, just as the lightning flashed. Dash looked like she'd slap him if she knew where he was.

"How about you say that to my face, Courage, and I'll show you exactly how much like Twilight I am!" she shouted, clearly having lost her cool on the matter. Azure grinned as he saw the statement worked, and saw no reason to stop the conversation now.

"See, that's the Rainbow Dash I know," he continued to throw his voice, trying to figure out how to get her off-guard from here. If she looked at the bush he was in, she probably wouldn't have been able to see him inside it even if the lightning flashed, but if he moved too soon, he was bound to get seen again.

"If it wasn't so dark, I'd be able to find you by now!"

"Funny, a friend of mine would have been able to pick me out by now..."

"What does that have to do with this?"

"Just making conversation," Azure said, forgetting to throw his voice as thoroughly as he had before. Rainbow Dash turned to his direction and slowly walked to him, though it was clear she wasn't quite sure if he was there. If he moved, he'd definitely be found out now.

Turn around, Rainbow, turn around... thought the unicorn to himself as he began to subtly adjust in the bush. One of his hooves touched a hard object, and he picked it up. After a while, he was able to see what it was. A rock...? Hmm...I think I can make use of this...

He prepared to flick the rock out so she'd turn completely away from her, watching her carefully. Lightning flashed, and Rainbow instinctively turned around behind her to make sure he wasn't sneaking up on her that way. The thunderclap above covered the noise of Azure's forehoof moving. He flicked the rock out, managing not to clip Dash with it. The rock made a small splashing noise in a puddle behind Rainbow, causing her to turn completely around.

"I can hear you movin'!" She said, starting to back away slowly, no doubt preparing to run away should Azure pop out. Well, he was, but not from that direction. However, his tactic didn't work out completely. She was still not quite moving toward where he was.

She's gonna make me work for it... he thought to himself, trying to be quiet as he adjusted in the bushes. Azure had to be extra careful, since she still was moving toward him and the slightest noise would tip her off. The blue pegasus mare continued to back toward him at an angle. He couldn't quite see her except when the lightning flashed, so he was going to have to make an educated guess. However, the lightning flashed again, revealing she was in position. He prepared to reach out for the tag like a leopard about to pounce.

"Looks like I'm gonna win this one, Az..."

The lightning flashed, and Azure made his move, launching forward with a hoof outstretched. He felt his forehoof collide with something firm. Dash barely moved in response, though she gave a surprised gasp. Azure stopped as well, keeping his forehoof where he'd landed it as he spoke up.

"Tag, you're--"

The sentence completely broke off in his mouth. At the proximity he was now at to her, he could quite plainly see what he'd performed was a tag, but where his hoof was caused him to start to blush and he didn't quite know how to react for a few moments. His cyan foreleg was extended, extended perfectly to a spot just behind the cloud with the rainbow lightning bolt; her cutie mark, which now had a small trail of mud going through it where he'd pulled his hoof back somewhat. The lightning flashed again, and he saw that Rainbow Dash was fixing him with a piercing glare and a smirk.

"You perv..." Strangely, she didn't sound as mad as he expected, but still...

Azure flew back faster than he expected to, and landed square on his back, scooting backwards slowly away, already aware he was blushing a bright cherry red at that moment.

"I-i-it--that--it was an accident, I swear!" He was stuttering more than Fluttershy did; he was that nervous. Rainbow began to advance toward him at a painfully slow pace to match his own retreating pace. In all his life, Azure had never been this skittish around another pony. But now here he was, backing away from Rainbow Dash because he'd accidentally gotten a feel for her--

"And here I thought training was all you were interested in..." she casually observed, still with that tone she'd taken with him.

"I-it's not like that!" Azure responded, his face becoming even redder and warmer as his embarassment at what had happened magnified.

"So you aren't into mares?" Her tone changed to playful, but the colt didn't even care about that.

"No--wait, yes, I mean..." All his life, Azure had relied on his talent of making split-second decisions, which had mostly helped him, but there was no way he could think straight in this situation! He was completely flustered and couldn't get his thoughts straight--no wait, his thoughts were definitely straight, but--

"Well then, I'd better get you back for that..." Lightning flashed again, and now Rainbow Dash was ready to pounce. Azure feebly tried to roll over and start running, but it was too late. The two ponies tumbled over each other, but when it was all over, the blue pegasus was definitely on top. Azure was helpless, pinned below a very rough mare.

"Got'cha now..." she giggled. She brought one of her forelegs across the front of his chest. At first, Azure didn't get what she was doing, but as soon as she applied pressure...

SQUEAK!

"Ugh..." Azure gasped.

"Found your squeaker..." Dash said playfully, still pinning him to the ground. Azure threw his head back, convinced he was as red in the face as Big McIntosh right now.

Someone kill me... was all he could think, hearing Rainbow laughing at the whole spectacle. Both of them were now covered in various patches all across their bodies with mud, and both were soaked thoroughly now, dripping with excess water. He continued to look away, thanking all the powers-that-be that it was just the two of them around to witness that spectacle.

Then, something happened. Rainbow Dash's laughter was halted by her own sneeze. Azure immediately snapped out of it. How long had he been chasing her? The colt raised one of his muddy hooves, aiming to push her off if he had to.

"Uh...think we'd better get out of the storm before we both get sick..." The cyan colt suggested, also really wanting Rainbow off of him before she squeaked him again.

"Hmm, guess you got a point," she said, fluttering her way off of him before once again landing on the ground. She rubbed at her own nose. "Now...where are we?"

Azure looked around at this question, and grit his teeth when he realized he hadn't been keeping track of his surroundings like he'd thought he'd been.

"Good question," he said. The colt wasn't sure if it was the fact he'd just had a mare on top of him for accidentally violating her, but he found it awfully hard to think. "Now what?"

"Guess we just gotta keep moving until we find something familiar..." Rainbow immediately took the lead, keeping at a moderate pace, not fast enough to be considered running but not slow enough to be considered a trot. Azure followed, trying to keep pace. It was only when lightning flashed and he saw the mud smear he'd created that he realized he was behind her.

"Hooves to ourselves, now," said the blue mare, as though she were capable of reading his mind. Azure grit his teeth and felt himself blush again. His ear flicked when he realized something else about that accidental touch.

"Uh..." Azure started, sounding uncomfortable. "You...aren't going to tell the others about what happened are you?"

"Maybe..." The pegasus giggled, though the sarcasm was clear. The unicorn nevertheless sighed in slight exasperation. As if the fact she had been teasing him nonstop since he'd accidentally touched her...

It was relatively quiet for the trip back, but two minutes later, the ponies eventually started to see more light breaking through the trees.

"Hey, I think I see something up ahead," Rainbow pointed out. The two continued onward, when another flash of lightning filled them. It was enough for them to see that it was in fact Ponyville they had managed to navigate their way back to. Azure grinned.

"Good, we can get to my house from here," he said, already starting to take the lead. Meanwhile, Dash smiled somewhat. "Let's go..."

"You know," the pegasus continued. The unicorn's ear immediately flicked up. "I don't usually do this on the..."

Azure whipped around just as another lightning bolt went off, throwing an acidic glare her way. Though the light died down immediately afterward, the mare put on the sweetest of smiles and chuckled lightly.

"Alright, alright," she said defensively. "Man, oh man, aren't you ever sensitive..."

Thankfully, Azure's sense of direction had momentarily been shaken free of its rust for the night. The colt managed to find his way home, and unlock his door using the key he'd stored under the mat. Ordinarily, Azure would have wiped his feet, but given the mud was on both him and Dash in large patches, especially following that little wrestle they'd had, he'd figured it would be pointless at this point.

He threw open the door, both ponies immediately stepping inside. The temperature in the home was warmer than outside by a slight amount. Azure didn't know if it was rainwater or mud that was dripping off of his body, but he didn't really care. He needed to warm up the house fast or being inside wouldn't do much good. He began making his way over to the fireplace, taking off his muddy, soaked headband as he went.

"Feels good to be out of that storm..." Rainbow observed, shutting the door behind her. The fire roared to life before Azure, filling him with warmth.

"This should make the place warmer..." he observed, already starting to feel the effects.

"Now, there's just one other problem..." The colt turned to the pegasus mare, who, as he was so reminded, was now coated in mud just like he was. If that wasn't washed off, it would start to smell awful.

"Right...well, um..." Azure found himself floundering about again, but he managed to get control of it, "If you want, you can use my shower..." At first, she didn't seem to believe what he'd said, but a smile lit up her face soon afterward.

"Thanks." Rainbow said. She began trotting towards the bathroom to do just as suggested, but then she turned around. "No peeking..."

Azure merely scoffed and rolled his eyes. She wasn't going to let him live that down anytime soon, was she?

That, and most of the time we're basically naked anyway, so what does it matter? the colt thought to himself. He heard the water start running, and nodded. To help with warming up, he'd have to prepare something while she was in the shower. As he went about his business waiting for his turn, he thought about the circumstances in itself. Good thing nopony was out to see us, that could have started some rumors...
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Rainbow Dash stood in the colt's shower, washing away all traces of mud from her blue coat and rainbow mane and tail. She had to admit, Azure liked to play rough. What he'd done was clearly an accident, but still, the way he reacted to accidentally touching her like that was hilarious. And somewhat cu--

She banished those thoughts from her mind, trying to keep her mind only on washing the clumps of mud from her fur. The hot water allowed her to get warm quick as it ran through, chasing out the moistened soil and rainwater that was in her fur. It didn't take too long for her to get clean, and as soon as she was, she turned the water off.

Much better...I needed that...

The mare managed to get herself somewhat dried off before returning to the area with the fireplace. It had taken her all of ten minutes to get herself cleaned up and dried, but Azure seemed ready with a mug of brown liquid which, judging from its scent, was coffee.

"Here, drink it," he said simply. "I'll go clean up. Hope you didn't use up all the hot water on yourself..."

Dash was too caught off-guard by the offering to refuse or offer her own commentary on the colt's statement. She stared at the mug, blinking. It was coffee, which she barely drank, but under the circumstances, she supposed it couldn't hurt.

"Az..." she mumbled, taking a sip of her drink as he went to the bathroom. "Hm, maybe Rarity was wrong about you..."
---------------
As Azure Courage let the water run over his body, washing away the evidence he was out in the rain, he had plenty of time to think. He was more covered in mud than Rainbow was, and had been outside longer. The colt cleaned himself, thinking about what had happened during the storm.

That was actually a lot of fun... thought the colt to himself. Thought I'd be doing it alone, but I'm glad Rainbow decided to join. Even if it was something as simple as tag.

He remembered the feel he'd accidentally copped while going in for the tag-back.

Though I could have done without the awkward moments...

He finally cleaned the last patches of mud from his fur, and stepped out to dry himself off. Still alone as the storm raged outside, he continued to think.

Though, come to think of it, Rainbow isn't so...playful, when the others are around... Azure thought to himself, recalling not only what had happened during this time, but also when they were over at Fluttershy's on the night of the Shadow Ghouls. He stood still for a few seconds, allowing the clean water to drip from his mane for a few. Best not to worry about it.

Just as he finally chased the last bits of water off of him, a startling thought came into his mind, accompanied by the loud boom of thunder.

Can't expect her to fly home from here with that storm raging above... the pony thought to himself. The realization sunk in, and he blushed slightly. L-looks like I've gotta ask her to stay...and hope she isn't going to tease me...This is Dash you're talking about, Azure...

Azure stepped out of the bathroom, heading back for where he'd left Rainbow, just a little hesitation evident in his step.

Alright, Courage, you can do this. You can do this. You can ask a mare to stay in your home for one night. You can...you c-- He halted, and realized these pep talks weren't exactly going to get him anywhere. D-darn it, just don't faint...

"So, Rainbow, I was thinking..." Azure started as he felt the warmth of the fireplace reach his body again. However, he didn't get to finish when he heard a very loud snore. "...Dash?" He continued to walk, the words breaking off in his mouth.

The mare was already curled up, fast asleep, a drained mug of coffee nearby. She apparently didn't respond to stimulants, or the whole game of tag had left her more worn out than she cared to show. Either way, Rainbow Dash appeared to be sound asleep on the floor. Azure blinked slowly, sighing in relief at his good fortune.

"Guess this makes it easier on me, then..." he said to her. He started to trot for his room, when he stopped, and looked back. The floor was uncomfortable. Though she seemed content to just sleep by the fireplace all night, Azure just couldn't leave it alone. With a sigh, he trotted over to her, and focused magic into his horn, being careful not to wake her up.

I'm sure were the roles reversed, she'd do the same for me... He lifted the mare carefully, quickly moving her from the fireplace to the comfort of his own bed. After placing her down on the bed, she moved the blanket over her, which she moved to accept in an almost blind fashion.

You know, when she's sleeping, she really does look cu-- The cyan colt immediately interrupted his thoughts, and blushed horribly from the thought. --uouch...Guess I'd better sleep on the couch, tonight...

As he took a spare blanket to the room with the fireplace for the night, Azure gave one last look to his bed, and the mare that now occupied it. He gave a smile despite his best efforts to resist doing so.

"Night, Rainbow Dash. Thanks for the help..." he said, though he was aware she couldn't hear him. He went over to the couch, and pulled the covers over himself, using the armrest as a pillow. He only understood why the mare in question fell asleep as he made his attempt.

The exertion of having someone to run with him had in fact made him more tired than he realized after all.
---------------
The storm had halted at some point during the night. The clouds were allowed to disperse, leaving the sky clear in time for the morning sun to rise. The town dripped with fresh rainwater, and there was quite a bit of mess throughout the streets and surrounding areas. The sun continued to rise. At some point early on in the morning, the light came in through Azure's window.

As the sun rose higher and higher into the sky, the rays of light eventually shone on Rainbow Dash's face, causing her to scrunch her face and stir beneath the covers. She tried to regain her sleep, but with a sigh, she began to rise back to her feet, displacing the covers, rubbing at her eyes sleepily.

As soon as she actually opened them, however, she was met with a rather odd sight. She had remembered crashing out on the floor next to the fireplace while Azure had cleaned up in the shower. So why was she here?

"How'd I get...?" she started, quietly, to herself. She noticed there was a sleeping pony, no doubt the owner of the house, snoring softly, on the couch. As soon as she realized what had happened, Rainbow realized she felt her heart rate rise just a little bit. "Az...let me sleep in his bed?"

She began trotting towards him, being careful not to wake him. There was something in the back of the female's head telling her to wake up the unicorn colt, but something else was forcing her to ignore her calling. Eventually, she reached the area directly in front of him, and just looked upon him, thinking about not only the preceding night, but to her days before she moved to Ponyville.

"Jeez, why do I tease him so much...?" Rainbow quietly wondered, more to herself than anything. "I mean, sure, sometimes, it's funny to watch him react to it, but still..." There were other colts in her past, three of which stood out prominently in her memory. They were the most titanic of jerks that Dash could say she had ever encountered. Most others she either didn't get to know too well or were in about the same boat: jerks.

"He's..." Dash started, her volume abnormally low even for Fluttershy's standards, "nice..."

Her eyes stopped on his open mouth, and she found she couldn't move her gaze. The blue mare felt herself start to blush, and almost against her will, she began to move forward.

Oh gosh, what am I doing... The pony thought to herself, unable to stop herself. Her heart was beating faster and louder, her face growing redder and redder. What am I doing, what am I doing whatamIdoing...

Her snout was almost touching his, the air from his nose tickling hers, and try as she might, all Rainbow Dash could do was freak out over what she knew was going to come.

Knock, knock, knock.

The sound of somepony knocking at the door was heard, and Rainbow gave a startled, quiet gasp as she took four steps back from the colt she'd nearly kissed subconsciously. The knocking repeated, and Azure stirred just a little from the noise. Against her better judgment, the mare figured she'd answer the door.

When she opened it, she was met by the bookworm that Azure had been comparing her to all night.

"Good, you're--" Twilight started, stopping short when she noticed it was Rainbow that answered the door. "R-Rainbow...?" The purple mare blinked, before her brows furrowed, clear confusion in her features. "What are you doing here?!"

The cyan mare winced and checked behind her to make sure the male unicorn was still asleep. Then she looked around to make sure nopony else was around.

"Keep it down, Az is still asleep..." Rainbow said as casually as she could in this situation, which wasn't very much. She closed the door, leaving it slightly ajar.

"If he's asleep, then why are you here?" Twilight asked, now seeming even more confused.

"Well, uh..." All of a sudden, Dash found herself unacceptably, incorrigibly sheepish when confronted with the subject. She fought for control over her composure as she tried to relay last night's story. It failed, leaving her cheeks heating up. "I spent the night..."

The unicorn's face blanked out, as though she didn't quite understand what she heard at first. The look on her face was priceless, but Rainbow wasn't really able to laugh in the position she was in, as much as she wanted to.
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"You did...what?!"

The sound of a familiar feminine voice admonishing somepony startled Azure, causing him to leap off the couch and land flat on his stomach, knocking the wind out of him. He groaned and rubbed at his eyes sleepily with a foreleg as he looked up.

Was that...Twilight...? he thought to himself, shakily getting back to his feet, both from the rude awakening and the impact. He looked over, seeing that Dash had gotten up before he did. Then, he turned to his door, noticing it was slightly ajar. He noticed her, and who else but the purple unicorn, talking outside. Oh, this can't end well...

He walked quickly over to the door, opening it completely and poking his head out.

"Hey, what's going on?" he asked, still sounding like he just got up.

"Apparently," Twilight said heatedly, "I was interrupting something..."

"Interrupting...something...?" Azure responded, not picking up on the cause for her anger straight away. It wasn't until he saw a rather embarassed-looking Rainbow Dash that he finally got it. "Wait, y-you mean...you t-think that we--!" He tried not to blush too, though he felt like he'd gotten slapped for just being in the presence of the cookie jar, never mind actually having a hoof in it.

"What exactly should I think!?" Twilight continued, seeming to be a little too offended by the implications alone. "I come here to ask you for help with the clean up only to find Rainbow Dash spent all night with you..."

Azure sighed. Given the choices, he'd have rather been yelled at again for being reckless than having done something else entirely. So, with that in mind, he looked over to Twilight and began to speak.

"I can explain," The cyan colt said as calmly as he could manage given his previous embarrassment at the accusation. "I was...actually out in the storm after everypony else went inside."

"You went out in that storm?!" Twilight asked. "Ugh, why am I surprised? It's you I'm talking to!"

"Can I finish my story?" Azure asked, slightly indignant that he was interrupted. "I was practicing keeping my traction. The wet ground was essential. Anyway, I didn't watch where I was going carefully. Almost fell down a ravine. However, Dash saved me from falling at the last second."

Twilight seemed to perk up upon hearing this. She glanced to the pegasus, who asserted that the story was true.

"After that, I asked her to join me in this, and she suggested we play tag," Azure's features didn't show it, but he was glad that Dash wasn't about to bring up the accidental grope now. "We played for quite a while, but eventually it got too cold for us and we found our way back to my house first, so we took turns cleaning off the mud."

"Of course, I wasn't about to ask her to go home in weather like that, but she'd already fallen asleep while I was taking my turn, so I just let her sleep." In my bed.

"Oh, I see..." Twilight looked embarassed she'd gone off about that other issue. "Well, um, sorry about that..."

"It's okay," Rainbow responded, looking better now that the purple mare had accepted the truth.

"No harm done," Azure said. Though I am surprised that you'd jump to such a conclusion...

"Well," There was no mistaking she looked slightly hesitant to leave now, "I'll just...go back to helping in the cleanup effort. So um, come help when you can." She trotted off, leaving Azure slightly confused as to what was going through her head. After rubbing a hoof against his mane, he decided to let the subject drop.

"So, hey," Rainbow sounded unusually skittish, which was a first for her, as far as Azure could tell, anyway. He turned to her. "I'm going to go. Thanks for letting me sleep over."

"It was the least I could do after all the help you were," responded Azure, thinking nothing of the mare's emotional fluctuations.

"Yeah, last night was fun," She spread her wings and began to lift off. She kept her eyes on him, and a very familiar competitive grin filled her face. "Let me know if you ever need help again."

"I'll be sure to do that," Azure responded, a warm smile crossing his face. Only now, did he notice that Rainbow's grin changed. It was...strange, coming from her. There was some sort of memory flashing across those reddish-violet eyes of hers.

"And um..." Again, shyness was visible in her demeanor, and she looked discomforted by this fact, patting her front hooves together as though she didn't understand why she was being the way she was. "Thanks."

"For what?" Azure raised a brow, not really knowing what it was he'd done. A feeling of deja vu was starting to surface, but for the life of him, he couldn't place it.

"For..." She seemed almost hesitant to explain it as well. "For being so nice to me. Most of the colts I'd met before were jerks." The cyan colt felt his eyes widen at this. One, that Rainbow Dash had bullies; two, because she never really opened up like this to begin with. "Sure, you're rough around the edges, but you're a nice pony deep down. 'True blue, just like me'..."

He wasn't sure if he imagined the shade of rose on her cheeks before she flew off at top speed, no doubt heading back to her home. He was far too distracted with a more basic truth.

"So...was she only acting like that earlier..." Azure said, more to himself, "because she felt comfortable around me?" Heat tugged at his cheeks as he considered the implications of his statement. "She must not have had many nice ponies back where she'd come from." Subconsciously, he remembered the teasing, and he felt the embarrassment lessen as he looked back up to where he could see a rainbow blur, receding to go back to her home.

"You're welcome, Rainbow..."

With this in mind, he turned around, heading back into his home, to prepare to assist in the clean-up efforts.

Step one: Wash off the mud from this headband.

Chapter 11: Foresight, Hindsight, No Sight

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Chapter 11: Foresight, Hindsight, No Sight
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Azure Courage finally had a day off, and he was definitely going to enjoy it. He was on his way back from his clearing, having finished some physical training and meditation in relative silence. No creatures or ponies disturbed him this time, allowing him to practice in peace. The cyan unicorn walked back home, feeling only a little sore from the exertion on his body.

"Mail should have been delivered by now," he mused to himself, seeing his home on the horizon. Azure trotted forth, reaching the mailbox. "Alright, let's see what we've got here...bill, letter from parents...unmarked letter?" Deciding to resolve those two matters later, Azure decided to take care of the letter with an unmarked sender.

Against the logic we in the human world would use, Azure opened the scroll, and instead of the expected tragic event, the unicorn colt was met with a rather strange-looking scroll.

"What the heck is this?" the colt asked himself, looking at the parchment to see if he was in fact reading it right. The paper appeared to be covered in bumps in a strange pattern. The pony cocked his head to the side as he glared at it. "I can't decipher anything...what is this?"

After staring at the paper a few moments longer, it occurred to him precisely what he was looking at.

"Braille?" he questioned aloud, more to himself. "Is this braille?" After squinting at the letter some more, he realized something simple. "I can't read this!"

He looked over in the general direction of where he remembered the library to be.

"But I think I know somepony who can..."

Azure quickly broke into a full gallop, making rapidly for the direction of where he believed Twilight Sparkle was holed up...
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Twilight Sparkle did have a lot of things on her mind. What would today's lesson bring on friendship? The last one she'd learned was a slightly different take on what Azure and his cousins had taught her. While Rainbow Dash and Azure were out being reckless--

The purple mare suddenly didn't like the way her magic pulled on the page that she turned as she found herself thinking about that again, but continued to read her book, dwelling on the events of that stormy night.

Applejack and Rarity had been caught out in the storm, but unlike the colt, their being caught out in the rain wasn't by choice. Of course, they had been too wrapped up in their arguments to notice the storm was about to start. Twilight didn't want to admit it, and she did not, neither in what she said to them about their arguing, nor in her letter to Princess Celestia describing what she'd learned that night, but watching those two argue was almost like--

There was a knock downstairs. Twilight's ears perked up, but that was the only sign she gave that she'd heard it.

"Spike--"

"Got it!" Spike called out, and exactly two heartbeats later, the door opening could be heard. The dragon's tone instantly changed to a slightly playful one. "Oh, Azure, come to visit Twilight, huh?"

"Yes," Azure sounded unphased, probably because the baby dragon had been bringing up that issue whenever possible. "I need her help with something, is she around?"

"Twilight, Azure's here to see you!"

As if Spike needed to announce that. She continued to read her book, almost unaware of the sneaky thought that she was worried about her mane looking presentable for him. A few moments later, the all-too familiar colt was in her room. Twilight did something somewhat rare for her: she actually looked away from her book for the moment, looking to Azure.

"Oh, Azure, what are you here for?" she asked in a friendly tone, all manner of argumentativeness just not there.

"I just received a letter," Azure said, levitating an open scroll behind him. "And it's in braille..." He showed the letter in question to her.

Twilight's brow furrowed. Why would he be receiving a letter in, of all things, braille? She supposed it'd come out eventually, but still, it seemed odd to her.

"You're in luck," she said, walking over to him to take the letter from his telekinetic grasp. "I know how to read braille..."

"You know somepony that's blind, too?" the unicorn colt asked, pretty much sealing why he had received a letter in the writing style to begin with.

"Oh no," Twilight said, levitating the letter onto a nearby desk and preparing to transcribe. "I just figured I'd need to know it at some point..."

"Didn't you read the entire section of books for the blind back in Canterlot?" Spike asked, poking his head into the room at that moment, apparently having heard all of that.

"Whole section...?" Azure asked, sounding a bit more disturbed than impressed at that revelation. It wasn't that those books had any real information she didn't already read in common script, but the ones that were different were...sadder than normal. "Anyway, what's the letter say?"

Twilight's horn glowed, and rather than lifting up the letter, she telekinetically traced her magic among the bumps, translating the letter as the colt wanted.

"It says..." she started...
-----------------------------------
Dear Azure,

Long time no see, Azure! I've heard a lot about what you've been doing in Ponyville from your cousins and thought I'd visit to catch up on old times. I should arrive on the day you get this letter. Sorry I couldn't give you a bigger heads-up. I've been busy too, you know!

I can't wait to see you and meet your new friends.

Your friend,

Silver Espada
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Azure's brow furrowed, but he wasn't surprised to hear the name.

"I knew it'd have to be him if it was a letter in braille..." he mused aloud.

"An old friend of yours?" Twilight asked, apparently having figured it out for herself.

"Yeah, known him for years, even before I started following the whole 'Nightmare Moon' thing..." The cyan colt could remember all the time that he had been able to spend with his old friend back then as he closed his eyes for a few moments. He opened them, to see a rather sad-looking purple unicorn.

"It must be hard for him, being blind..."

"Actually, he's never let it bother him," Azure said. He immediately felt as though he should elaborate, but decided against it, fearing she'd get mad if she figured out that he and Silver actually shared the same hobby of freegalloping. "He lives a normal life."

Twilight's look of sorrow at the truth didn't go away.

"You'll see it when he gets here, Twilight." The cyan colt assured. "You'll see he's just like all the other ponies."

The purple mare still didn't look fully convinced. She put the letter aside before speaking again: "Well," She glanced up to the clock on the wall. "He should be arriving soon."

"I don't think he said exactly when he was going to arrive..." Azure recalled aloud.

"Oh no, I just...memorized the train schedules," Now she seemed slightly sheepish to admit this, but the cyan colt knew his next comment would make that emotion show a little more clearly.

"Is there anything you don't know, Twilight?" The cyan colt asked.

"If there is, it won't be like that long..." Spike commented, again proving he was eavesdropping.

"I should be going to meet him at the station," Azure said. "You want to come along?"

"I need to..." Twilight looked to the book she'd pushed aside when he presented the letter. "finish this book first, I'll meet him later."

That seems odd coming from the friendship student... The male unicorn decided not to press the matter any further.

"Thanks for the help with the letter!" Azure called back, already out the door and making his way to the train station.
------------------------------------
Azure began to slow down as he got closer to the train station. He knew he'd arrive in due time to be able to catch Silver's train without much of a wait involved after running a good deal of the distance between the library, and thus slowed a lesiurely trot.

"Wonder if he's still into freegalloping..." he mused to himself. It had been the day before his move out when he'd last seen Silver. He was still the same as ever back then, but still...a lot could change in two months. Just look where he was now.

Of course, Azure Courage, when caught up in his introspection, paid less attention to his surroundings. His ear flicked as he only just caught a nearby disturbance, just before a sudden blunt force plowed into his side, sent him rolling, and--pinned him to the ground face-up? The colt opened one eye to see a rather smug-looking blue pegasus mare atop him, with a very familiar rainbow color to her mane and tail.

"Pinned ya again," she said in an amused tone. Her hoof began moving to an all-too sensitive spot on his chest, and the colt found himself panicking. If Silver found out about that--

"Please don't squeak me..." Azure quietly responded, leaning his head back. Rainbow merely laughed openly, and backed off of him on her legs rather than levitating off him.

"Alright, but just because I owe ya one..." Dash referred to the night of the storm, "So where're you off to in such a hurry?"

"I'm going to the train station," Azure responded, getting to his hooves and continuing his path. The pegasus immediately started hovering as she followed him.

"What for, you goin' somewhere?" The fluttering pony asked, keeping pace with him.

"No," the unicorn said flatly, following the course to the station. "I'm going to wait for an old friend of mine to stop by. He's coming to visit, catch up on old times."

"Wait, isn't he from Canterlot?" There was a slight hint of skepticism in her tone. He turned his head to her in time to receive her question. "What's he like?"

"You remember Virid, don't you?" Azure almost threw up upon mentioning his cousin's name. The very fact he came to the city and did what he had done still sent sharp thorns through the pony's bloodstream. Yet, his posture and facial cues didn't betray this as he kept a level expression.

"Kch, don't remind me..." She once again folded her forehooves in disapproval. Her rose eyes lit up in realization, and she hovered in place, her face taking on slight anger. "Wait, so he's--"

"The exact opposite, Rainbow." The cyan colt continued with a slight sigh. "He's everything Virid isn't. Basically, you're likely to get along with him."

"Say," The blue mare continued, now appearing geninuely interested in the new arrival. "Mind if I tag along to meet him?"

"Well, he wanted to meet all of you anyway, so no harm in it, I guess." Azure responded, beginning to think to himself about what he knew about Silver. He was blind, but you wouldn't have guessed it straight away considering who was his foalhood friend.

Should I tell her or the others about his being blind...? he thought to himself. No. Silver wouldn't like it if--

"Wait, this the pony you were talking about during the storm?" asked Rainbow.

"Yeah, he's the one," Azure responded. "Could never hide from him in hide-and-seek. He'd always find me no matter where I was."

"He must have good eyes," the mare commented. "Probably be able to see me coming on a moment's notice."

She was undoubtedly referring to their first meeting, when she'd almost run into him as a practical joke of sorts. The pony did not pay attention to that. With a sigh, he turned his attention back to the matter at hand.

"Well, you could say that," he responded.
------------------------------------
Rainbow Dash had to say this much: Azure didn't seem nearly as nervous as his old friend's visit as he did the visit of his cousins. And even then, it wasn't really Crimson he was worried about. At the very least, he wasn't noticably nervous as he was then. The two continued their trek, nearly reaching the station, when Azure came to a full stop.

"Hold it..." he said, seeming to look off to one side. A few moments later, the familiar, yet distinct, voice of Fluttershy reached Rainbow's ears.

"Angel, wait!"

The pegasus fully turned to see not only Fluttershy running after the small rabbit that always seemed to be a handful, but Pinkie Pie as well. Despite the inherent seriousness of the situation, she appeared to be having fun with the whole situation, thinking of it as nothing more than a game.

"Not this again..." This was the colt grumbling to himself as his horn lit up in a cyan light. A moment later, the same glow enclosed Angel and lifted him into the air. The unicorn brought the small animal to his eyes, and spoke directly to it, as though it was going to understand him. "Why do you always have to give her a hard time?"

The rabbit didn't respond vocally, though it definitely gave off signs of an attitude problem, crossing its forepaws and sticking its small bunny tongue out at Azure in a gesture of disrespect. The colt could only shake his head in response.

"Oh, thank you," Fluttershy said, sounding like it wasn't the first time Azure had done this same thing. Vaguely, she began to wonder when he had the chance to do it the first time, but nothing more could be said when Pinkie Pie spoke up again.

"That was fun!" she chirped, going back to her usual style of moving about: hopping around like...a bunny.

"You know, Fluttershy, you should really try putting a leash on that rabbit of yours," Rainbow commented. It seemed a little harsh, but considering that it had happened before...

"N-no..." The yellow pegasus, unsurprisingly, refused. She always loved the animals to be free of restrictions. As long as they didn't hurt or startle anypony, of course... "I-I could never do that!"

"Well, no time to chat," The blue mare began to fly forward, motioning to Azure as she went. "Me and Az are headin' to the train station?"

"Are you going on a trip?" Pinkie was just about to launch into a tangent given how excited she sounded and looked.

"We're going to meet a friend of his," Dash headed it off before it could start, "He's coming into town for a visit."

Pinkie gave a sharp, exaggerated gasp in response.

"Ooh, a new friend?!" she exclaimed excitedly. "Can I come? Can I, please?"

"Sure..." Azure said, already moving forward. "He wanted to meet all of you anyway."

The group began to move forward again, but the colt stopped, looking back toward Fluttershy.

She's so quiet compared to Pinkie, it's almost like she's not even there... Rainbow thought to herself.

"You want to come too, Fluttershy?" the colt asked.

"Oh...um," The meek mare looked to the bunny on her back, who adapted an angry stance in response. "Okay," The yellow pegasus picked up the pace until she was in line with the others.

"Looks like Applejack and Rarity are busy today, huh..." Azure observed as the trek to the station came to a close. Dash scoffed; the white unicorn was more worried about style most of the time. As for Applejack, farm work did seem demanding enough.

"I don't think they get, um, too much time off. S-sewing can be very demanding," Fluttershy responded.

Azure now looked at Fluttershy, and remarked: "And we all know how tired Applejack got trying to harvest all those apples..."

The memory of Applejack on Azure's neck in that awkward embrace didn't amuse Rainbow Dash nearly as much as it used to, but for the life of her, the pegasus mare could not discern why.

The four ponies and bunny eventually reached the train platform. As they waited for the train that was supposed to have Azure's friend on it, the blue mare found herself getting more and more bored with just idly waiting for the event to happen. Plus, the last time somepony with a common background to Azure came to town...

"I'm sure your friend's a nice colt," Dash started non-chalantly, "but exactly what kind of pony is he?"

"Well, he's a world viewer, you could say." Azure looked toward the direction of Canterlot, where the train would be coming from.

"Meaning...?"

"He doesn't judge a pony on what they are," the unicorn colt continued, continuing to look down the tracks. "but who they are on the inside."

"What's he look like?" Pinkie chirped in question, stepping forward just one step.

"Well--" Azure started, but the train whistle blared, gathering his full attention. The train eventually reached the station completely, slowing to a complete halt. Ponies of varying color, size, shape and type began filing out from the doors, and Rainbow and Fluttershy both lifted into the air, trying to get a glimpse of the mystery pony.

"Is that him?" The pink earth pony began to motion to just about every single colt that trotted their way from the train. "Ooh, is that--no, is that him? Azie, is that him?"

The male didn't answer, looking through the crowd slowly. Suddenly, he blinked, seeming to lock on to something.

"D-do you see him?" Fluttershy asked, noticing the change in his posture.

"Yeah," Azure responded, seeming ready to do something. "Just stay back for a second, okay?"

Rainbow Dash blinked, but didn't get the chance to voice her question when the colt reared back and jumped on top of one of the train cars. After taking a few moments to stabilize himself, he took small steps forward until he was directly above one of the doors.

The crowd of ponies exiting the train had thinned out. One last pony began to exit the train, and as he stepped out, the mares all began to wonder if this was the one Azure was talking about.

He was a unicorn, judging from the horn protruding from his head, which, much like the rest of his body, was a neutral blue. It was notably different from that of that one showmare and her own blue. However, his mane and tail were a pure white color, and his cutie mark appeared to be three arcs stretching from the base of his leg toward his tail. Like Azure, strangely, he too had a slight spike in his mane, but it was more like a kick out in the back. His tail was a bit on the stubby side, too.

However, none of that in itself was too strange. What was strange, though, were his eyes. Or rather, the fact they were obscured by a simple pair of black sunglasses. The rainbow-maned female almost wanted to scoff. Only she could make sunglasses look cool!

"Is that him?" Pinkie pretty much motioned directly at him. The pony stopped, but he didn't seem to notice her.

"If it is, then I don't know what Azure's doin'..." Rainbow went back to the fact her only decent male friend so far in life was currently on top of one of the train cars. The blue and white unicorn stopped, looking around as though expecting to see somepony there. Azure suddenly reared back, and the others withheld a gasp as he leapt from the car, seeming to attack him.

However, unexpectedly, the shades-wearing pony leapt forward, diving out of the way and turning to the surprised-looking cyan unicorn.

"Nice try, Azure," the white-maned pony chuckled. "But I saw you coming a mile away..."

"Nice to see you haven't changed, Silver," said Azure in response, bumping forehooves with the newly identified unicorn. "So how are things back in Canterlot?"

"Freegalloping isn't any fun without a partner," the introduced colt continued, walking toward Rainbow and the others at the headband-wearing one's lead. "Other than that, same old, same old."

"At least you're still into it," The cyan pony continued, walking up to them. "Now, you said you wanted to meet my friends, so here they are."

He made subtle motions towards each of them as he called their names.

"Rainbow Dash."

"Hey there!" The mare felt herself become slightly miffed that Azure disallowed her usual intro, but decided to let it slide.

"Pinkie Pie."

"Hiii!" The pink earth pony squealed. Rainbow could have sworn he saw the new pony wince, but decided not to point it out.

"And Fluttershy."

"Oh, um, h-hello..." It was a meek greeting, but certainly not one out of the ordinary for her.

"Well, nice to meet you all," said the other blue pony in the area, "My name's Silver, Silver Espada."

The name sounded a little strange, but it fit well enough. More importantly, he seemed nice enough, just as Azure had told her. Which could only mean one thing...

"So, Silver, you and Az have been friends for a while, right?" The look she had on her face was mischievious, and as soon as Azure caught it, he had the most priceless look on his face imaginable. "You wouldn't happen to know any embarrassing stories about him, do you?" A smirk appeared on her features as she awaited a response.

"Oh, you have no idea," said the silver-maned unicorn, causing Azure to jump, which was even better. "but we make sure not to tell anypony else..."

"Well, there's that," Azure resumed smiling. "And I have dirt on him too..."

"Well, there's that too," Silver joked in response, eliciting laughter between the two. It was clear the two had gone way back, from the way they laughed together.

"So, now that you're here, how about we show ya around?" Rainbow Dash asked, blowing past her disappointment that Silver's dirt on Azure wouldn't be so easy to obtain; then again, if dirt was that easy to get from a friend, were they really loyal?

"Sounds great," The visitor responded.
------------------------------------
Azure Courage felt good that Silver's little secret wasn't going to come out. None of the mares seemed to be questioning the fact he walked around with shades on. Not even Rainbow Dash seemed to be bothered by it, though the colt knew better than to believe she'd let another pony wear shades like that. Except for that one local disc jockey...

"I see why you moved down here from Canterlot," Silver commented, "It's a lot more peaceful than Canterlot."

Debatable.

"So when can I meet the rest of your friends?" asked the darker blue unicorn.

"Oh, ooh, ooh!" Pinkie interjected, seeming to just randomly zip next to Silver with her statement. "You can meet Rarity next! Her shop is really close!"

"Rarity...Rarity..." he mused in response. "The one that owns the fashion boutique, right?"

"Yep, that's her!" the party pony continued, already zipping down the path. "Follow me!"

"She really has a lot of energy," Silver observed, following after her along with the others.

"Yeah, sometimes too much to handle," Azure chuckled in response. Internally, though, he was fretting only a little bit.

Uh-oh, Silver the blind meeting Rarity the fashionista? How's Silver gonna keep that fact hidden? the cyan colt thought to himself. It didn't take too long for the group to arrive at the Carousel Boutique. Though he didn't show his worry, he pretty much knew that at some point Rarity would have to ask him to look at something. Then again, Silver could do that and give empty comments well enough--

"This is the Carousel Boutique, where Rarity works!" Pinkie had enthusiastically called out Ponyville's landmarks in the same fashion she had before. Once more, she used her inexplicable ability to seemingly teleport herself around to introduce things. Silver looked up at it, though the shades once more hid where his pupils were pointing at. It did nonetheless make it look like he was looking right at the building.

"W-what do you think?" Fluttershy asked, taking a few steps closer to Silver as she asked. Azure felt his ear twitch, but he didn't see too much wrong with the picture, other than the fact it took the colt a bit longer to get the pegasus to be less skittish around him. Silver smiled only slightly, but the cyan pony didn't really see wrong with his darker blue friend's mannerisms.

"Looks great," the blind pony commented, keeping up the facade of not being disabled.

The door opened soon afterward. Sure enough, Rarity had taken notice of their loitering and had come outside to see them.

"Excuse me, why are you all standing out here?" she asked to know.

"We were showing Azure's friend your...shop..." Fluttershy responded. The snow white unicorn spotted the newcomer for the first time, and she had a weird glint in her eye. He didn't quite get it straight away until Rarity gasped and more or less zipped over to Silver.

"Such...such a lovely mane color..." Only now did Azure get what she was doing. She was checking out the white mane of the newcomer, apparently seeing an opportunity to style it. And boy, oh boy, did Silver look uncomfortable being caught in the blue eyes of the--well, he couldn't see her, but he did look uncomfortable. Eventually, Rarity made her way back in front of Silver, who once again appeared to maintain eye contact through his shades. "And who, may I ask, is the owner of such a mane?"

"My name is Silver Espada," The sunglasses-wearing pony responded, bowing slowly down in a manner of respect. Thankfully, his shades didn't slide off his nose. "I'm Azure's friend, from Canterlot. I'm stopping in town for a visit."

"Such manners," Rarity did a sort of pony courtsey, "If Azure neglected to tell you, my name is Rarity and I must say, I do not see a mane color as lovely as yours very often. Would you allow me to style it?"

Silver's brow furrowed as he thought about the situation. The cyan colt winced only slightly, not noticable by anypony nearby as he considered the fallout.

They're going to find out if he does it...

"Might as well let her do it, Silver," said Rainbow with just a little huff in her voice. "She doesn't take 'no' for an answer..."

...well, there's that too...

"Uh," Silver spoke up, just a little hesitant in actually speaking about it. "I guess there's no harm..."

"Splendid," The white unicorn perked up, "Please, follow me. I have just completed my latest dress design, so it won't be too long."

The fashionista proceeded to lead the group into her shop, towards the back. Silver didn't look around as he stepped in. Azure decided to take a look, to see if anything had changed. Unsurprisingly, it looked just about the same as ever. Then again, he was a male, so it was entirely possible any major changes escaped his notice.

However, there was a major alteration that could not go unnoticed, even to the densest of ponies. For one thing, Applejack was actually visiting the Boutique. Stranger still, she was wearing a dress, not even one fitting for her character. It wasn't the girliest dress Azure had ever seen, but it was the girliest dress he had ever seen on a farm girl, especially the orange farmer before him. And she did not look happy that some of the others had seen her this way.

"Applejack?" Rainbow Dash asked, in just as much disbelief as the cyan colt felt. However, the disbelief soon turned to stifled laughter as she processed what it was she was looking at. "What are you wearing?" She raised a hoof to her face as she flew up, and Applejack looked about ready to...do something, Azure was sure.

"Oh, Applejack was just assisting me with a dress. She had the proper measurements I needed and just happened to be the perfect model for it." Rarity explained, while Applejack looked as though she were ready to hock a loogie. "That will be all, Applejack. You may step down now."

Applejack took the dress off as carefully as a mare in a hurry to get out of her clothes could, with an almost exhausted-sounding "finally" muttered under her breath. She stretched a little, indicating she'd probably been in the same pose for quite a while.

"So you're Applejack, huh?" Silver took a few steps ahead of the group, looking up to her to make sure she couldn't see the eyes behind the shades.

"That's me, and you are...?" Applejack only seemed a little unnerved that the newcomer already knew her name.

"I'm Silver Espada, Azure's friend, from Canterlot." The dark blue unicorn greeted, this time opting for a hoofshake. Azure watched as Applejack stepped forward to take the offer, and held himself from laughing when the visiting pony winced just a little, having not quite expected her strong grip.

"Nice to meet 'cha," Applejack said, her expression becoming friendly. Only here did Azure notice how different the mare looked without her signature Stetson on, but that was soon corrected when she located said hat and replaced it. Rarity, meanwhile, had been putting away the dress that the farmer had been modeling, and turned to Silver.

"Over here, if you would," she said, guiding him to her working area. Rarity located her usual working glasses and put them on, preparing to work. It seemed like Silver might have been able to keep his secret. Until, at least, she noticed the shades, and with a raised brow, extended a hoof. "Oh no, I simply can not style your mane with those sunglasses in the way."

Silver released a small sigh, and his horn lit up with a dark blue glow. The glasses floated off his face, but he had shut his eyes. Azure understood why in an instant, but the others...

"What's wrong, too shy to look a mare in the eyes?" Rainbow joked, not at all knowing the problem. The colt flinched just a little from the joke, but didn't say anything.

"Oh no," the colt said, playing it off. "I just want to be surprised."

The sentiment pleased Rarity, who went right to work styling his mane and tail. It wasn't as long a wait as Azure had thought it would, but even so, it was still boring even given what was at stake for Silver. After about fifteen minutes of styling the white hair, the snowy mare pulled back, pleased with her work.

"Voila," she exclaimed, reaching out to levitate a small mirror in front of Silver. "Now open your eyes and tell me what you think." The colt noticably frowned for the first time since he got here, and Azure knew there likely wasn't going to be any avoiding it.

"Uh, can I put my sunglasses on first?" said the pony, not really wanting to open his eyes.

"Oh no, darling, I simply must see how well it goes with your eyes..." she responded, removing all other options from the table from play. There was a small silence.

"Well, I guess they were bound to find out sooner or later anyway, Azure," Silver observed, mystifying everypony except for him.

"Find out what?" Applejack asked. A moment later, Rarity gave a sharp gasp. The others couldn't see Silver's eyes, but the unicorn could, and she moved a hoof to her mouth.

"Oh...oh my..."

"What's up?" Rainbow questioned, immediately alarmed. As the mares began to hastily trot forward, Azure slowly trotted forward, already knowing the cause of Rarity's concern. Soon, all ponies stopped moving, and looked into the eyes of the newcomer.

While everypony's eyes were usually bright, colorful, and lively, Silver's eyes were milky and pale, barely recognizable as blue. They did not have the same life to them as the others. The others stared agape at the now smiling pony.

"Looks like it's out in the open now," Azure observed calmly, while the mares merely gaped at the blind pony.

"S-so he's...?" Fluttershy was at an utter loss for words.

"Yup, I'm blind," responded Silver, as though it were no big deal. Well, it wasn't to him, but nopony said anything. From the corner of his eye, he could see a very regretful-looking Rainbow Dash, probably about that whole "mare in the eyes" thing. "So what? You don't have to feel bad for me. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. It really doesn't bother me."

"H-how long have you been...b-blind?" Fluttershy asked, only slightly relaxed. The other mares had relaxed too, except for the pegasi. Fluttershy due to natural shyness, Rainbow Dash due to that little crack she'd made.

"Since I was born, some kinda defect or something," It was almost like the colt was describing the score to an athletic event instead of a life-changing condition. "Probably easier on me to be without sight from the start, than to have it and to lose it."

As the others began to ask the blind pony more questions about his condition, Azure felt a hoof at his side and saw a very embarrassed-looking rainbow-maned mare. She inclined her head to a spot over a little further away from the others, and the colt followed her lead.

"Why didn't you tell me he was blind? Even after I made that joke..." She sounded honestly regretful that she'd said what she had to Silver.

"Would you have treated him the same had you known?" asked Azure in response. Rainbow's ears twitched, and she fell silent for a moment, unsure of what to say.

"I...uh..." The mare was clearly unsure of what she would have done differently if she had known from the beginning.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure it didn't bother him," Azure made an honest attempt to reassure her, putting one eye towards his rear to see if Silver was listening in. He appeared to be still answering questions, but the colt knew a little better than that.

"How do you know?" Dash asked.

"Well, did it?" The colt responded, not looking directly at Rainbow. The blue pegasus was just about to retort when something unexpected happened.

"Not at all," Silver spoke up, loud enough for him to be heard at the distance they were at.

"Wait, you could hear us?" Rainbow asked, sounding just a little in disbelief.

"Yeah, I have ears like a bat, so I can hear what others can't." the dark blue colt continued, finally getting down from the chair. "Look, I'm serious. I have been blind all my life and I've still lived a normal one. I just want to be treated like everypony else."

"Alright, but I have a question." Dash was clearly still skeptical.

"Ask away," Silver responded.

"You were walking around town without any help. You even avoided Azure when he jumped off the train." the blue mare continued. "How?"

"Oh, this part's cool," The dark blue colt motioned to his cutie mark, "Most ponies don't understand what this means. It's three soundwaves. You could call it luck-my specialty is sound-based magic. I taught myself over time to be able to send out low-frequency sound waves. With my hearing, I can hear them just fine, though you wouldn't be able to notice. The sound waves bounce off solid objects and come back to me."

"Sounds complicated," Applejack responded to the explanation.

"It took me a while to get it down, but now that I do, I can do anything a pony with sight can do, and even some things they can't do." Silver continued.

"L-like what?" the meekest of the group asked. The blind pony took a few more steps forward before turning to Azure.

"Hey, Azure, why don't we show them what we used to do?" he asked, turning to him.

"Alright, I guess it'd be the easiest way...free-galloping it is, then." Azure responded.
------------------------------------
Fluttershy honestly couldn't lie to herself. Only the colts seemed utterly sure that Silver was as capable as Azure was in terms of physical ability. Yet, there was a tiny part of her that was curious of her friend's blind friend. The group continued to be lead by the two colts, towards what could have been a more urban spot in Ponyville. The houses seemed to cluster together. It was safe to say that she hadn't been in this part of town before.

"Wait, so you mean that Silver's gonna do the same wall-jumping thing you do, Az?" Rainbow asked, sounding just as surprised as the others were. It seemed normal enough. After all, if the cyan mare happened to be stricken blind--it almost made the meek pony want to cry from the mere thought of it.

"Yes, that's right," Azure said, looking back only slightly out of one brown eye. He already seemed to be scanning for something, but there couldn't have been any danger here. Then again, the mare considered, one could never be too careful, and no matter how many sweet moments he had, he was still aggressive by nature.

"He taught me how to once, a little after I started with sound magic, and I'd been doing it ever since." Silver responded, also looking around as though he could see anything, when it was obvious he couldn't. "Looking for surfaces, huh, Azure?"

"Wait a moment," Rarity intervened. "You two are actually going to do that here?!"

"Just like in Canterlot," Azure came to a stop, in what could be considered the "bulb" of a cul-de-sac. It might have been one of the few openly urban structures within Ponyville. Fluttershy felt herself blink, and everypony except for Pinkie exchanged openly confused glances. With Pinkie, you usually couldn't tell. "Off the walls, on the roofs..."

"Is..." Fluttershy started, almost shocked at herself for being the first to speak. "Is that allowed?"

Azure and Silver both laughed openly.

"Oh, no, it's not," the blind pony said, "You wouldn't believe how much trouble we got into for that."

"On the occasions where Virid and Blitz weren't also around, I'd be the one taking the heat while you got off easy for being blind," The cyan colt chortled, pretty much sounding as insensitive as possible. Nopony really got the chance to point this out.

"Not everypony can be lucky as I am," the dark blue unicorn responded. Watching the two laugh together about it even though Azure was completely insensitive to Silver's disability really softened the blow, so even if Fluttershy had been the kind of pony to forcefully scold another for such an error, she couldn't have, and indeed, neither Rainbow nor Rarity seemed to be in the mood to call Azure out on his grievous vocal miscue.

"Alright, Silver, here's what we're going to do..." The other colt nearby responded, motioning to a home on the group's left. "A good-old free-galloping race from that house on the left..." He moved his forehoof until he was level with a house on the opposite side. "to that house on the right." He waited a bit after lowering his foreleg, either realizing Silver didn't see the endpoints or waiting for him to do...whatever. "Got it?"

Silver remained quiet. For a few moments, his horn noticably lit up in a dark blue, but immediately after the bright glow died down, the pony in question nodded.

"Should be fun. Who's going to give us the signal?"

"I'll do it!" Rainbow's voice was free of any doubt, though Fluttershy knew her better. There was something in the way her wings flapped that suggested she wasn't completely at ease with the idea of a blind pony jumping around as Azure did, but her voice communicated strict interest. She flew over to the start line, and the two colts quickly made their way to the post.

"I hope those two know what they're doing..." Rarity commented, clearly still skeptical.

"This is Az we're talkin' about, Rarity. I'm sure he knows his friend's capability better than we do..." Applejack cut in.

"We gotta have faith in Azie's ability to judge!" Pinkie said. "He's gotta know Silver better than we do! They've been friends for a long time!"

It seemed strange coming from Pinkie, but stranger still was that the babble she spouted was correct.

"Alright, on your mark!" Rainbow barked at the two male unicorns, who did as the mare said. "Get set..." Silver's horn briefly sparked to life again, probably his sound-based magic once again being cast to confirm where everything was. "Go!"

The two equines thundered past the mare. Though it was obvious they weren't as fast as Blitz was under the spell, it was still fast. Azure definitely had a leg up in terms of speed, considering he quickly scaled onto the roof. Silver seemed to be taking it slow, as he did the same thing, thus falling behind. In a way, this race was a battle of quick thinking versus somewhat planned routes.

Fluttershy didn't understand why, given she didn't know Silver for more than an hour, but she found it hard to root for Azure even though she'd known him much longer. Not that she was the kind of pony to openly cheer anyway...

The two ponies continued jumping from roof to roof, sometimes barely making the jumps, and seeming to exchange taunts of sorts, though it was hard for Fluttershy to hear exactly what they were saying to one another.

"Impressive," the white unicorn said, though the comment definitely seemed to be more toward Silver than Azure. Yet, at the same time, Fluttershy realized nopony had ever seen Azure in a more natural freegalloping environment. The times he had, he was either bouncing off walls in ruins, off trees in the Everfree, or off crates due to Trixie.

"What is?" This was a familiar feminine voice. The others all turned to see Twilight standing there, and she didn't seem to understand what was going on.

"The race," said Rainbow, simply as possible. She indicated, and Twilight's eyes widened.

"Don't tell me that's Silver?!" The purple mare sounded somewhere between appalled and surprised, though definitely more of the former than the latter. There were also traces of confusion in her tone, as though she only caught how exactly the darker-hued male was holding up.

Silver jumped at full speed, heading for the last building on the right, aiming for an upset victory as he sailed right over Azure's head. However, as luck would have it, it seemed like the blind pony's calculations were off, and he soon began to lose ground. Fluttershy, along with the others, gave a gasp, but Twilight quickly shuffled ahead of the group and her horn quickly lit up, bright magenta. A few moments later, Silver's body halted from falling.

The mares not having to hold the colt in place immediately ran over to the scene, as Azure landed perfectly on the last roof. He looked up to Silver, and though Fluttershy couldn't see his expression straight away, when she got at the right distance and angle, she could see a grimace starting to take form on his face.

The blind pony fumbled within the magenta embrace, and soon came to a very intelligent conclusion.

"Uh...am I floating?"

"What is wrong with you?!" Twilight scolded, causing both of the colts to jump, but surprisingly, Azure actually jumped more than Silver did, even taking into account the latter was being held still and gently lowered to the ground.
------------------------------------
To say that she was furious was an understatement. Truth be told, Twilight Sparkle had no idea why she was this mad straight away. Then she happened to recall what she'd just witnessed and had to do, and as she set the blind pony down, she turned that fury on Azure.

"Okay, I know what you're thinking," The cyan colt said, "but this is not what it looks like..."

Does he honestly think he can--?! The purple mare refused to believe that. There was no way Azure Courage, easily the most reckless pony she knew, could be that stupid...then again, given what just happened--

"Looks to me like you just let your blind friend jump off a roof!" Twilight exploded, laying into him with a scolding.

"Okay, so maybe it is what it looks like..." Azure continued, motioning to Silver with a hoof, "but it was his idea to show the others his free-galloping skills..."

"Oh, sure, blame the blind pony," he said, with a tone so dry it--

"Not helping!" Azure yelled back.

"Don't blame him!" Twilight took a few steps forward, completely furious with what she had just witnessed now. "You're supposed to be his friend! What kind of friend are you; being this insensitive towards Silver's disability?!"
--------
Silver Espada could not believe what he was hearing. He knew of the others well enough from Azure's letters as well as Crimson and Virid's own experience in Ponyville, but from the sounds of how Twilight was yelling at Azure, it seemed strangely natural. Even the stuff she yelled at him about wasn't anything new; the blind colt had gotten plenty of comments similar to that, so it was easy for him to shrug off the mare's concerns.

Sorry, Azure, not gonna get into this... Not that the dark blue colt could have if he wanted to.

"Say, does this happen a lot?" Though he couldn't see at all, the passive use of the "bat-ears" spell as Azure called it informed him that the other mares were close by, enough to carry on a conversation without him having to shout halfway across the cul-de-sac they were in.

"More than you think..." He didn't even need to see Applejack's facial expression to take a guess as to how she felt about their continous arguments. Her tone changed, and she commented, "Well, this is the first time it's been this one-sided..."

Silver turned to face the argument, which had finally allowed Azure some breathing room. He capitalized.

"Look, I'm not a total idiot," Azure said, "I know he's blind, but he's just as capable as I am at free-galloping."

"Capable?" The fury in Twilight's voice wasn't even close to exhaustion. Due to his enhanced hearing, Silver could just pick up on a slight hoarseness in her tone that the others didn't seem to notice. "If I hadn't shown up, he'd have crashed straight into the wall! Then what would you have done?!"

It was an obvious guilt trip, and everypony could see it. Well, the blind colt could hear it. Nevertheless, if he had crashed into the wall, Silver knew that Azure knew the two of them had laughed it off.

"Come on," There was just a little bit of frustration in his friend's tone, "there has to be some way I can show you he's just like everypony else..."

"Well?" Twilight asked after a few moments of silence.

The silence was deafening. There was a noise, which sounded like a hoof step, but it was more like a tapping. It took a quick scan to confirm that it was Twilight tapping her hoof on the ground, waiting. Silver felt his ear twitch, picking up a subtle "whoosh" of pegasus flight nearby.

"How about this?" This was the voice of Rainbow Dash entering the scene.

The subtle noise of magic use filled Silver's ears next, and the sound of paper gently ruffling followed.

"Hmm..." Azure said, beginning to read the flyer aloud. "Come to the first ever Ponyville Triathalon...a race composed of three events, running, swimming, and rock climbing..." The next statement was more under his breath, but Silver could just hear what he was mumbling about, "Huh, it's in about two hours from now, today...interesting..."

"Azure, I know that look..." Twilight said. "Oh, no, you are not thinking what I think you are..."

Silver wouldn't know "that look", or the reason for prior arguments, but he'd figured it probably had something to do with Azure's conflicting personality with Twilight. He'd only known the mare for at most two minutes, and already he could discern the differing traits they exhibited.

"Hey, Silver, could you come here for a second?" Azure asked.

"I heard..." the blind colt responded. "What's up?"

"Since we had an interruption, how about a rematch at the triathalon?"

Chapter 12: Never Look Down, Never Look Back

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Chapter 12: Never Look Down, Never Look Back
---------------
Twilight Sparkle knew it shouldn't have been a surprise. Azure Courage just didn't seem to be the kind of pony to learn without some pain intertwined into the experience. And he had always struck her as the dense type. Yet, the fact that he would so casually ask somepony who was blind to compete in a physically demanding competition like that was nothing short of insensitive and idiotic.

"Y-you've got to be kidding, Azure!" Twilight began to wonder if this was precisely how the colt felt after he dealt with Trixie's impossibly huge ego. "Didn't you hear a word I just said?"

"Didn't you want proof?" Azure asked dryly, apparently having caught a second wind due to Rainbow's interference. "It is a little much, but--"

"A little much?" The studious pony intervened. "This is a full-on competition! As if what you were doing here wasn't bad enough--"

"Twilight."

The mare halted, turning to Silver. He couldn't see her, yet he appeared to be looking right at her through his pale, lifeless-looking eyes.

"O-oh, sorry, what is it, Silver?" Twilight didn't know why, but she felt uncertain and awkward looking him in the eyes.

"Let me compete." There wasn't any evidence he was unsure. The mare felt herself become utterly speechless. Didn't Silver care at all what he was doing was dangerous, especially for him? He couldn't see, so how was he to see the stuff he had to do? "You wanted proof, right? If I should get hurt, you can yell at Azure all you want, but if I manage to make it through the race, I want you to drop the subject."

"S-Silver...!" She wasn't going to back down. There was no way she was going to let this happen so easily.

"I'll sit this one out," Rainbow said, and all heads turned to look at her. "So you can have more of a chance to prove your point."

Twilight felt as though she'd been dropped straight on her head. What happened? Did she somehow use a spell that messed with everyone's minds? What was she missing?

"I'll join in, too," Applejack announced, looking up. "Should be interestin'..."

Applejack, too?! What'd I miss?! The purple pony's mind raced. Did it have something to do with Silver's cutie mark? What was going on here?!

"Well, I guess it's settled then," Azure said. "We've got about two hours left, so I guess we'd better be ready..."

"Wait--wait a minute," Twilight was too shocked by what had just happened in the past minute to process what had just happened. In the short time it took for Rainbow to fetch that flier, Azure had invited Silver, who was completely blind, to the competition, Silver accepted; Rainbow actually stayed out of the competition; and Applejack wanted in, too...?

"I wouldn' worry 'bout it, Twilight..."

Startled from her thoughts by the farmer mare, the purple pony jumped slightly.

"O-oh, Applejack, I didn't know you were still here..."

"Listen up, sugarcube, I think it's safe to say that Az and Silver both know what they're doing," The orange mare said. "I'm gonna keep an eye on 'em, so you don't gotta worry. But I don't think that'll be needed."

"How can you be so sure?" Twilight asked.

"I can tell when somepony's lyin' through their teeth, Twi," Applejack responded, "And neither one seem to be lyin' about what Silver can do. Up until that last jump, Silver was actually doin' good."

The purple mare could guess that Applejack was being honest. It wasn't the first time that the farmer had offered her reassurance when she was in doubt.

"Alright...but I don't like it..."
---------------
Silver had retrieved his sunglasses from the Boutique shortly after the group had left to prepare, more or less, for the upcoming triathalon. Azure would likely either be warming up or meditating, whichever he felt was more necessary to do. The blind colt didn't quite get how meditation would help out in a physically demanding competition, but whatever Azure did for his training seemed to work.

As for why he was now wearing his shades? Only the ponies at the Boutique at the time and Twilight actually knew he was blind, and the group had agreed to keep his blindness under wraps until after the event, regardless of the conclusion. Silver decided to explore Ponyville, turning down the purple mare's offers of assistance. If Azure hadn't attempted to stand up for him again and sparked another argument, the dark blue pony felt he'd have never managed to slip away.

He used his magic to send out his soundwaves, creating a mental map of where he was. It wasn't too uncommon for him to do this. He knew it'd be more useful for him to do this on the track so he knew what he was getting into, but the blind pony wanted to go in just as his condition stated: he would go in with just as much knowledge as Azure and Applejack would likely have of the track; no knowledge whatsoever.

The pony continued to walk about, realizing he'd walked into a forested area. As he sat down and prepared to send out his sound waves actively for a brief moment, his ears picked up a sound, a soft, feminine voice. If it could be called that: it was a rhythmic sound, almost like a song of sorts.

"That voice..." Silver mumbled to himself. "It's...beautiful..."

Since he was young, Silver didn't have sight to rely on. He couldn't even see the ground he was walking on, nor could he see the reference books he'd used. Before he learned Braille, and even before he'd met Azure, his parents and other friends would always have to read to him. Even then, the colt had never liked the extra pity that came with being born blind.

He'd always relied on sound. It was his talent to use sound-based magic. It was how he'd coped with being blind. Since he'd met Azure, it had felt like his whole world had opened up. He'd made mental maps of every single place in Canterlot, and he would continuously free-gallop alongside his friend with sight. It felt...liberating, almost like his lack of sight didn't matter.

Now that he'd heard this beautiful voice, Silver Espada began to quickly move along, following his ears. His sonar spell went off, allowing him to scan the area. The foilage seemed to lessen, but his spell detected something else. He could sense birds gently fluttering in the direction he was heading, and as he drew closer to the song, he could make out more of them, seeming to gather around them. He slowed a very slow trot as he realized he was very close to the sound and began to piece things together.

Feminine voice...small animals...forest... Silver thought to himself. Fluttershy...?
---------------
Snap.

The definite sound of a twig breaking nearby shook all sense of rhythm from the mare's nerves. Images of what had happened with the Shadow Ghouls on that night suddenly refused to leave her mind. The song broke off in her mouth, and, terrified, she began to call out.

"W-w-who's...there?" she questioned, sounding and looking scared.

"Don't be scared," The voice was relatively new, but she'd definitely heard it earlier today. She turned to see a blue colt with shades and a very familiar white mane. "It's me, Silver."

Seeing that it was just the blind pony calmed down the pegasus's nerves, but it did raise some questions.

"Oh, S-Silver..." Fluttershy sighed in relief, "W-what are you doing here? I thought you were--"

"I was trying to map out the town, but I guess Azure's bad sense of direction is contagious..." Silver was clearly the kind of pony to make light of an otherwise debilitating condition. The yellow mare found herself wondering if she'd ever understand it. "I wound up in the forest. I decided to keep mapping things out, and then I heard this sound I'd never heard before and tried to find it..."

Fluttershy felt herself blush just a little, and didn't bother to try to withhold herself from doing it, given Silver couldn't see the effect his words had had on her.

"Y-you heard me...singing...?" The yellow mare had sung to the animals on some occasions, but it seemed to come more with the job than something she actually needed to do. Very rarely did she have to sing an animal to sleep, but she excelled at that when it was required. She couldn't get how good Silver's ears were, even given he'd avoided Azure's surprise attack.

"Yes, I did..." Silver began. "It was beautiful..."

Fluttershy instinctively turned away from him as her blush intensified, hiding her face behind her pink mane. It wasn't like he could see it, but the fact he was so upfront about it and the fact he'd heard her singing to the animals, and called it...that...

"I know we just met and all, Fluttershy," Silver continued, with only a slight bashful tone in his voice, "but can I ask you a favor?"

"W-what kind of favor?" asked the yellow mare, turning back to him, her blush refusing to completely go away.

"Could you...sing that song again?" The blind colt asked. Fluttershy had only been flattered like this once before, when Azure had given her his headband way back when she'd managed to stand up to a dragon on her own. Usually, she sang more to herself or animals. She'd never had to sing to another pony before, least of all having a colt request she sing to him.

"A-are you sure...?" She was in utter disbelief, and every visual cue on her body showed it. "D-don't you need to get ready for that t-triathalon?"

Silver plopped down on his rump. Though Fluttershy knew he was only wearing the dark glasses to conceal his pale eyes, the mare suddenly felt as though he were looking straight at her, even though his eyes were non-functioning.

"I've got time..."
---------------
"Hey, Twilight, over heeeere!"

The purple mare snapped her head around to see Pinkie and the others (except Applejack, and for some reason, Fluttershy hadn't shown up yet either) gathered in the stands. Twilight, along with Spike, began to make their way to the group, having been greeted by the hyperactive party pony.

"So Silver's dead-set on doing this?" Spike asked as they found their seat. Ever since she'd returned to the library following the second argument with Azure, Twilight had been worrying almost constantly about what would happen during the triathalon.

"Yes, Spike, but..." Twilight responded.

"I can not say I am fond of this myself, Twilight," Rarity began, looking down to the field where Azure and Applejack, along with other ponies, were either waiting patiently or warming up. Both the unicorn colt and earth pony mare were bothering to warm up along with a few others, while the remainder of the ponies in line stood almost completely still. "but it should not be a surprise that somepony who grew up with Azure should have some of his tendencies..."

"Still, shouldn't there be some limitations? Even if he does have sonar magic..." The purple mare still had her doubts. Azure had spent most of the argument explaining exactly what Silver's cutie mark meant. It stood to reason that the colt would know his friend's talent, but Twilight still couldn't wrap her head around a blind pony doing the same stunts that the headband-wearing male was capable of.

"I say we just wait and see," Rainbow was, surprisingly, opting to sit in her seat. "Az may seem crazy sometimes, but he hasn't made a really bad call so far..."

Twilight felt herself blink. That sounded suspisciously like praise.

"Say, where's Fluttershy at?" Spike asked, looking around.

"Now that you mention it," Rarity responded, looking out over the heads of the spectators, "you'd think Silver would have been one of the first ponies to show up given how much he wanted to compete..."

Twilight inhaled, fully ready to praise Silver for coming to his senses, but Pinkie gave a loud gasp.

"Look! There they are!" She cheered, motioning to a place not too far behind the other competitors. Down that path, Silver, still wearing his sunglasses, was walking alongside Fluttershy, the latter of whom seemed almost too adjusted to his presence. Twilight blinked, in slight disbelief over what she was witnessing. The others exchanged confused glances as Silver and Fluttershy parted ways with a simple exchange of words, though the mare couldn't decipher what it was.

"Ooh, Fluttershy, over here!" said Pinkie, standing up and waving to her as the shades-wearing pony went to join Applejack and Azure at the start line. The pegasus looked up towards them, and made her way over to them. The studious pony could feel the awkwardness in the air when the meek female reached them.

"Um...Fluttershy?" asked Twilight, feeling as though she had to know. "Were you...with Silver, all this time?"

Now that the question was out there, the weight of the awkward felt a little more intense. When the mare questioned flinched and blushed a little, it didn't feel any less awkward. Especially since the others, save for Pinkie, were looking at her with some intent of getting an answer.

"Um...y-yes..." the meek mare finally responded.

Twilight felt herself blink, and she exchanged looks with the others. They either looked amused or mildly concerned, and the purple mare found herself wondering exactly what the blind pony had been up to after he left the boutique...
---------------
Azure Courage continued to warm up. Up until recently, he'd been wondering where Silver was. While he wasn't into serious competition, he'd have to do this here, at least for his blind friend's sake, just in case something did happen to go wrong. That, and now that Applejack was competing, the cyan colt had a funny feeling he needed to stay vigilant in the first place.

Not thinking too much of why Fluttershy had arrived with the blind pony in tow, Azure continued to stretch.

"You two ready?" the dark blue colt asked, getting his attention as well as Applejack's. Both turned to regard him, having halted warming up upon his arrival.

"You bet," This was Applejack, taking a moment to adjust the hat. Recalling the fact the hat had managed to stay on her head while Trixie had hogtied her, Azure looked over to Silver.

"I know you're wearing the shades to hide your eyes, but how do you plan to keep them on your face?" asked the cyan colt. The addressed equine adjusted his shades with one hoof.

"Not a problem," he said, "Here, take a look." He turned his head, revealing a black elastic band going around it, making the shades function more like goggles than glasses. "I asked Rarity to do this so they wouldn't come off so easily."

Azure couldn't see a design flaw, and Applejack didn't appear to find fault with it either.

"Well, let's hope it works," The cyan colt turned toward the starting line. "Now we'd better take our marks, this whole thing's about to start without us."
---------------
A male earth pony stepped out in front of the racers. The pony appeared to be taking the role of an announcer. He had a slicked-back mane and tail, both two-toned a deep blue and a light yellow. His body was the same color as wheat, a golden-brown sort of hue. The pony's dark green eyes looked around the racers, and then turned to address the crowd. Twilight squirmed just a little in anticipation, knowing that the triathalon was about to begin.

"Welcome, everypony, to the first ever Ponyville Triathalon!" The announcer said, to which the crowd gave the obligatory cheer. "Today, the competitors will start with a simple 10-kilometer run,"

Twilight felt herself cringe at the fact such a distance could be considered "simple".

"followed by a 5-kilo swim through fast-moving rapids!"

The purple mare only winced further as a single thought coursed through her, silently vowing to voice it as soon as the announcer was ready to start.

"After a ten-minute break, the racers will have to scale that mountain to make it to the finish!" The announcer motioned to the distant rock formation, and the studious pony almost let her mouth hang agape long enough to catch a fly in it. That thing had to be about sixty meters high! Yet, her primary concern for Silver's racing, aside from the fact he shouldn't be able to see where he was going, was something more basic than anything else.

"Does anypony think Silver can swim?" Twilight asked quietly so nopony else except for her friends could hear. The others, even Pinkie, winced just a little at the question, but said nothing. The announcer raised a hoof slightly as he turned back to the racers, twenty in total counting Applejack, Azure, and Silver.

"Alright, racers, on your mark..." The group of ponies, mostly earth ponies, though there were a couple of unicorns in there aside from Azure, took more ideal racing pose.

"Get set..." The earth pony raised his hoof higher, some of the more athletic ponies tensing up at this.

"Go!"

The twenty racers quickly took off, thundering down the track, going down the first leg of the race. Silver seemed to be falling behind at first, which in Twilight's mind made some sense; he would logically need to in order to not bump into the other competitors. However, the blind pony began to pick up speed, surpassing some of the stragglers and reaching about eighth. Azure and Applejack had taken off at a decent speed, winding up almost tied for fourth. Of course, within a minute or two, the racers began to leave Twilight's field of vision. Rainbow and Fluttershy started hovering, but even they apparently lost sight of the three of them.

"Man, this stinks," Rainbow sulked. "Can't see them anymore from here!"

"We could always wait for them at the finish," Fluttershy pointed out, as some of the other spectators got up from their seats to do just that.

A lightbulb went off in Twilight's head. She thought she'd never get to use it after her move to Ponyville, but she had something the group could use for live spectating.

"I have a hot air balloon we can use to watch from above!" The purple unicorn said.

"Twilight, do you think it can hold all of us?" Spike asked. The baby dragon did raise a good point: typically it only carried the two of them when it was used.

"I'm good with flyin'..." The blue pegasus said, flapping her wings.

"I-if weight will be an issue, I'll fly too..." The meek mare added.

"Well, I guess it should be able to hold all of us..."
---------------
Azure Courage thundered down, keeping one eye out for Silver since he'd fallen behind early on. While understandable, if Silver got hurt, Twilight would really let him have it, so he had to at least keep his blind friend's position in mind while trying to pull ahead. Some of the weaker ponies had already started falling off after about three minutes in, and now the crowd of twenty had narrowed to fifteen. The cyan colt could feel his legs starting to hurt, but it wasn't anything he couldn't handle. He looked over to his side, just in time to see Applejack pulling ahead.

The orange farmer mare cast a quick look back to him, flashed a small smile, and immediately began to pull further ahead. While the colt was busy recovering from that, on his opposite, a familiar white mane and tail began pulling past.

"Ugh, c'mon!" Azure grumbled, urging himself silently to go forward.
---------------
The throng of racers continued to pound through the running portion, more stragglers running completely out of stamina and pretty much falling out of the race. By the time the running portion had ended, there were only twelve left of the original twenty, though the five who fell behind were starting to try to catch up.

Surveying the situation from above in her hot air balloon along with the others, Twilight searched the course, trying to find her friends. She began to look around, eventually catching sight of them close to the river.

"They're about to start the swimming portion!" said Twilight, pointing to the gurgling river below. They were to swim five kilometers through that. From the height the group was currently at, none of them could make out exactly how the river was moving, but the remaining racers all began to go into the water, and began swimming.
---------------
Applejack did not dare stop moving in the water, even for a moment. The water was moving fast, and if she were to go underwater for even a moment, her hat would likely be swept downstream, and she couldn't have that. Azure didn't seem like the kind of pony to be a strong swimmer, and as she checked behind her to check, she could see the colt struggling just a little with the rapids, but he was still managing to gain on her somehow. Some of the ponies tested the water, and were just a little iffy on going in. As she continued her brief survey, a sudden feeling of alarm went up inside of her.

Silver seemed to be missing, and she couldn't see him at the other bank. She knew he wasn't too far behind Azure, and in fact he had actually managed to pass him at one point. The swim didn't take too much longer for Applejack, and she was able to get to the other side, the foot of the mountain not too far ahead. Azure followed not too long after, behind a lean, tan-furred earth pony who seemed to be incredibly adept at swimming.

"Az, Silver ain't anywhere!" Applejack called out to him as he got his footing on the shore. Azure immediately snapped his head around, searching for the blind pony.

"Ah, manure," Azure immediately put one of his soaked hooves to the bridge of his nose in agitation, looking ready to dive back into the raging waters. "Don't tell me he got swept away!"

The headband-wearing colt took a few steps forward, and crouched low, clearly about to jump back in, when suddenly, he blinked.

"What's that, moving below the surf--"

The fact he sounded slightly nervous wasn't lost on Applejack straight away, but the thought that he was nervous at all didn't even register with the farmer mare when a familiar, dark blue colt broke the surface, Azure instinctively ducking down further as the figure soared over his head.

"S-Silver?!" Applejack stuttered. "Were you divin' in that river?" The fact he was able to swim was impressive in itself given his condition, but being underwater while doing it.

"Remember, I specialize in sound magic, but it wouldn't have done me much good above water. I can't swim unless I dive down." Silver responded. "You wouldn't believe how long it took me to get it right."

"I didn't even know you could swim!" Azure called out, pretty much confirming that there were some things about his blind friend that even he didn't realize.

"And here I thought you of all ponies wouldn't underestimate me, Azure..." The blind colt clearly wasn't hurt by the comment; it was clear he was trying to sound it for comedic purposes.

Applejack gave a sigh of relief.

"Guess we'd better move on to the foot of the mountain for the climbin' portion of the race." she interjected. "Got about ten minutes' rest before we can start again..."

And with that, along with the others that had made it past the swimming portion, Applejack, Azure, and Silver went to the so-called "rest area" at the foot of the mountain, waiting for the race to start again formally.

The farmer knew she could have used the rest, and though Silver and Azure didn't seem it, she could tell there was fatigue under each of their outer shells. The ten minute break would definitely benefit the ponies that made it through the previous events.

"Huh, looks like it's down to us plus six others," Azure noted aloud. "Nine climbers..." He appeared to be scaling the mountain. The blind pony stepped a few steps forward.

"I'm going to see what I can map out of the mountain before we have to continue," Silver said. Applejack didn't really see it as cheating, given that the other runners appeared to be sizing up the rocky surface. Azure said nothing in response, but he gave a short nod.

"Do what ya need to," the farmer mare said, adjusting her hat.

The blind pony walked toward the foot of the mountain, and began looking up towards the mountain, no doubt about to use that magic of his to do his job. The hoofsteps of another pony could be heard, and the orange pony looked up to see Azure, who looked back without flinching.

"Hey, Applejack, what exactly made you want to enter this triathalon anyway?" Azure asked. "I mean, you saw Silver out there, and I'd think you'd know if either of us were lying...and I've never seen you as the competitive type..."

The farmer pony inhaled somewhat. She knew she was a terrible liar; even if she was lying to none but herself, it would still come through. Her body would literally not let her do that.

"Well, part of it was so I could keep an eye on Silver so Twi wouldn' worry so much..." Applejack responded. She blinked, and felt herself hesitate a little, but didn't see any harm in telling him why else. "And...I never really got to thankin' ya."

Azure blinked, obviously confused. "Thank me...for what?"

"D'ya...remember what happened last applebuck season?" the farmer mare responded, feeling only slightly sheepish at having to bring it up. A light passed through the colt's brown eyes, and for a few moments, his eye contact faltered.

"Well, I remember what happened when you more or less agreed to accept help..." the cyan unicorn responded, sounding just as awkward as it felt to bring it up. But there was no taking it back now. She had remembered Rainbow Dash, quite openly telling her that when she and the others had arrived, they had seen her crashed out on the colt's neck, much to her embarassment. If Apple Bloom had ever heard of that--

"Oh, yeah..." Applejack reached up, rubbing her neck somewhat. "Sorry about that."

"Not that it bothered me," Azure interjected, "I'm just glad I was able to reason with you before you ended up getting hurt or something..."

"Still, I felt that I needed to repay you somehow," She wondered why she was acting this way because of his favor. Twilight had attempted to do the same thing herself, and though it had crossed her mind to do so, she'd never really gotten a chance to thank her for her effort, other than when the others were on the farm and--

"There's no need for that," The unicorn continued. "I helped you because you needed it." He took a step forward. "I don't need anything in return. If you ever get in trouble or need help, I'll be there. Remember that."

His voice sounded sincere. At the very least, Azure didn't seem to be lying when he said that. And the way he said it, or the way he worded it, whichever way, made Applejack's heart suddenly skip a few beats. Her face heated up, and she was aware she started blushing.

"Well, uh..." And now she felt awkward again, more so than when she heard she'd fallen on him in that position. "I'm going to...stretch my legs before time's up..." She turned away, hoping that the colt didn't see her blush, leaving Azure Courage very confused.
---------------
Silver Espada had been scanning the path ahead, trying to determine faster routes. Nopony seemed to be questioning it, considering they didn't know he was blind. He had most of the upslope of the mountain panned out, and was just about to turn away, when his sonar spell picked up something just out of range.

Huh? the blind pony thought to himself, looking upward. He tried to take a few steps forward, trying to see if he could extend his range a bit more upward. He focused his magic into his horn, and was just about to try again...

"Silver, it's been about nine minutes," Azure interrupted. "Better take your place. The race is about to re-start."

"Oh, right," said Silver, the question of what was up that far on the mountain still bugging him. However, he decided to let it drop as he went back to the starting position.

It was probably nothing, the dark blue colt thought to himself, still just a little uneasy because of that.
---------------
Above, Twilight and the others were surveying the race, which was about to start. Twilight counted about twenty-five seconds until the race started up again, and apparently, the announcer had been on the move since the race began, seeing as how he was just walking up in front of the remaining racers. The other ones had been more or less dealt with, saved from exhaustion and possible drowning.

"It seems Silver is handling himself quite nicely," Rarity commented. The balloon had held the ponies just fine, with Dash hovering not too far from the basket.

"Alright, so far he's been able to swim and run without much difficulty," Twilight responded. "But there's still the mountain climb to go."

The silence was deafening in the basket, but the purple mare still wasn't convinced. However, the fact Silver swam alone was definitely impressive enough.

"Alright, it looks like you nine ponies are still in this!" the announcer called out as the time ticked away until the final event started. "The others have been taken back to Ponyville to rest, so don't worry about them. In a few short seconds, you nine will climb up this mountain. The first one that makes it is the winner! Don't worry if you fall; if you can get back up, you can probably try again!"

The remaining seconds ticked away as the announcer stepped off to one side to allow the ponies to go thundering past him when the time came.

"5...4...3...2...1..." the pony counted off the remaining seconds. With a thunderous stomp, he cried out, "Resume!"

With that, the nine ponies began their charge straight to the foot of the mountain, and hooves met rock as the ponies thundered up the mountain. From what Twilight could see, the slope was a little steeper than when she and all her friends scaled up one side of the mountain to try and get to the dragon quickly a while back. The remaining ponies, however, seemed to be able to handle it, which was understandable given they survived the previous two events.

The purple mare looked down over the edge of the basket, as did the others, watching the nine struggle to keep their footing while maintaining a steady pace. Twilight was studying Silver intently, watching out for hazards...
---------------
Silver's lack of sight had enhanced his hearing most of all, which had always worked to his benefit, though his other three remaining senses weren't anything to be looked down on either. He could feel the rock trembling under his hooves, and he could feel his body fighting to maintain traction. Azure and Applejack definitely had more of an edge on him at present, but he was still leading a few of the other ponies, so he wasn't doing too bad.

The slope of the mountain was at least 45 degrees, judging by the feel, but the blind pony reasoned it could be slightly more than that. He sent out another sonar wave, and a chill resonated within him as he received the same feeling he'd had when at the foot of the mountain.

There was a loose patch not too far off from the top of the mountain, and the colt felt his breath hitch when he realized each pony's hooves were shaking up the foundation of the mountain, which in turn was rattling the loose rocks above even further. It was only a matter of time before--

The sonar spell, along with Silver's more-than-average sense of touch, picked up a shift in the rocks below. He slowed down just a little, keeping pace. He looked up, past Azure and Applejack, who were now tied for first. Immediately, the blind colt realized what was about to happen.

"Oh, no!" he yelled, immediately picking up the pace.
---------------
Azure Courage was determined to pull ahead of Applejack, in the second half of the climb heading to the top of the mountain. The two had been almost neck and neck for this last part. Though Silver was left behind, he knew that Silver had proven enough of his capability that it wouldn't really matter if he won it.

"Azure! Applejack!" Silver yelled, his voice sounding more concerned than normal. Azure stopped first, and Applejack skidded to a halt a few feet up from where he was. "Rock slide!"

As if on cue, the ground immediately at his feet began to tremble. Azure chanced to look up, and saw some small rocks beginning to rain down from the peak. Immediately, the colt was overcome with deja vu, and as the other ponies took notice of the falling rocks, pandemonium broke out on the mountain side. Those further down immediately turned tail and broke for the base of the mountain.

Those further up immediately dove for cover as the rocks rained down. Silver, Azure, and Applejack, now further ahead of the pack, were in a precarious position, and the rocks seemed to be gradually getting bigger as the rockslide increased.

"Why didn't anypony think to make sure this wasn't an avalanche zone?!" Azure called out over the pounding of rocks.

"No time to get worked up over it now," Applejack called out to him, barely audible over the rubble, "Just stay on your hooves and keep movin'!" Precisely three seconds later, he heard the feminine grunt and whipped around to see the farmer in a most precarious position. From what the pony could assess, she'd apparently slipped on the latest landing she'd done, and was now in a state of shock as a granite blob was heading for her head-on--

Before he even realized it, he was directly in front of the earth pony, facing it at an angle perpendicular to her, and took the rock dead-on in the side. He didn't even realize he'd used a gravity spell to slow the rock so it wouldn't just completely obliterate the side. Pain resonated from the impact, but the unicorn didn't feel anything more seriously hurt other than the fact he definitely got the wind knocked straight out of him.

He hit the ground, trying to assess further damage. The rock that had been about to hit Applejack had lost its remaining momentum. Not even caring if it was against the rules by this point, Azure quickly forced the rock to roll off to one side, safely down one side of the mountain. He panted slightly, trying to get back to his hooves. The shaking had calmed down a bit, but rocks were still falling.

"Az!" Applejack had finally recovered from her lapse, and helped him the rest of the way up. "Are you okay?!"

"I'm good," the cyan colt groaned, definitely having felt better. "Only hurts to breathe..."

"Look out!" This was Rainbow Dash's voice, clearly audible and getting louder.

Azure looked up, and gasped when he saw the biggest boulder of all heading his way. Instinctively, he began to focus magic into his horn, knowing full well he wouldn't have the time to shoot a blast big enough to attack it.

A loud noise suddenly filled Azure's ears, low in pitch yet enough to have him reaching for his ears with his hooves. A few moments later, the boulder shattered into pebbles, which fell almost perfectly around them in a dusty rain of sorts.

"Are you okay?" Silver asked. The cyan colt looked up, though one of his eyes instinctively half-closed from the pain, to see his blind friend, seemingly unhurt from the rockslide, looking down to them. The shades still seemed attached to his head, hiding his pale eyes.

"Silver, did you--what kind of spell was that?" The cyan colt began to wonder if this was how Twilight felt whenever she heard of a new spell.

"You weren't the only one trying out offensive spells," Silver responded. "Though I can't use my sonar spell while doing it, well, I basically increase the frequency of the sound when I fire it. It leaves me completely blind, but it works."

"Like an opera glass..." Azure mumbled to himself.

"Well, racers," the three ponies looked up to see the announcer, peering out from the top of the mountain with a megaphone in hoof. "The rockslide was a rather...unfortunate accident, but the race is still on..."

"Oh you've got to be--" The cyan colt straightened up, but pain shot through his injured side and he fell again. "Ugh...I don't think I'll be able to finish this race..."

"Az," Applejack said simply, looking to him carefully. "don't push it."

Azure felt himself blink, and wondered what exactly had gotten into his farmer friend.

"If ya don't think ya can finish, just don't." The orange mare said, turning back forward. "Silver, you still up?"

"Yeah, looks like it's just you and me..." Silver's horn briefly sparked, indicating to Azure he was likely re-activating his passive sonar spell.

Before Azure could say anything in his defense, the two ponies began to charge to the top of the mountain, rapidly closing the distance.
---------------
Rainbow flew up to Twilight, a smug expression on her face.

"Did you see that, Twilight?" the blue pegasus gloated, apparently doing Azure's job. "Silver actually saved 'em..."

The purple mare was stunned by all that she'd seen happen. While she couldn't hear them, it was obvious Silver had been able to "see" the rock slide coming before Azure or Applejack did. Then, Azure actually leapt in front of Applejack using what little time he had to prevent the rock from destroying him using his magic. Then the blind pony had managed to shatter the rock with his own magic.

And now, it was just the blind unicorn and the apple farming earth pony, into the closing moments of the race.

"It's gonna be close!" Spike called out, looking sorely tempted to lean over the edge of the basket.

A pony crossed the finish line, but Twilight blinked and missed it. However, the expressions of her friends told her all she needed to know about the outcome. The unicorn knew now that she had been wrong all along about Silver, judging from what had went on below, as well as the announcer's cry.

"The winner of the first ever Ponyville Triathalon is Silver Espada!"

The crowd that had since gathered below gave thunderous cheers of approval. Azure, who had more or less walked his way up the rest of the mountain despite the obvious pain he was in, arrived just in time to see the ceremony.

"Alright, I think we can start landing now..." Twilight's horn began to light up in its usual magenta color as she prepared the balloon to land.

"...there's just one thing I'd like to say before we get done here," Silver announced, reaching one hoof up to his face as he stood in the center of the "finish area". A moment later, the shades were off his head and the colt opened his eyes to the audience. The sound of a hundred ponies gasping was the sound of utter shock. The ponies all gawked much as others might have when they first found out. The milky blue eyes of the blind colt "met" with the crowd, and a smile broke out on his face.

"Yeah, I'm blind," Silver bluntly stated, turning around so they all could hear him. "No big deal..."

The crowd cheered even louder, while the announcer found himself momentarily at a loss for words. And as the crowd's noise reached peak levels, the purple mare found herself unable to withhold a smile. Silver had legitimately earned his victory today, in more ways than one, and the studious pony felt she had learned something from all this...
----------------
Dear Princess Celestia:

Today I got to meet an old friend of Azure's, Silver Espada. It turns out, he's completely unable to see, and relies on sonar magic of sorts to get by. I had my doubts about his ability being close to Azure's when I saw the two up to their old tricks (from what I gathered from the colt himself and the others), but after his performance at the triathalon, not only being able to keep up with Azure and Applejack, but being able to swim and even save them when needed...I was completely wrong.

Just because your friend is disabled doesn't mean they need to be treated as such. Silver's lived his whole life being blind, but it clearly hasn't affected his ability to live. They can still be dependable ponies when you need them the most!

Your faithful student,

Twilight Sparkle
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The rest of the day passed without much further incidents. There wasn't enough time for a big party, but Pinkie particularly insisted on it anyway. The sun was starting to set, and soon it would once again be night. The two colts, the headband wearing Azure Courage, and the blind Silver Espada were on their way to the train station after the mares got to say their goodbyes.

"You sure have some great friends," said Silver.

"Yeah," Azure responded with a small nod, "Though they can be a hoofful sometimes." And draw the wrong conclusions...

"Hey, sorry about the arguments with Twilight," the blind colt said, turning to him, his shades still with the custom fit from earlier. "Never seen somepony react like that to me being blind..."

"It wasn't that you were blind, Silver," the cyan unicorn responded, "It was the fact you were blind and doing the same stuff they know me to do. Anyway, she and I argue...a lot, but we're still friends..." It was easy enough for him to admit. She didn't seem to have any real issues with him unless he was up to something dangerous.

"Yeah, they are all one-of-a-kind..." the blind pony observed. After silence reigned for a few seconds, Silver turned to him, looking as though he were gazing straight at him. "So which one do you plan to date?"

Azure stumbled, the weight of Silver's words causing him to lose all motor skills for about five straight seconds, during which he eventually fell over. The blind pony raised an eyebrow to this reaction, having heard the whole thing.

"W-what are you talking about, Silver?!" the cyan colt asked, getting back to his feet, caught completely off-guard by the question. "We're just friends! I don't plan on asking any of them out!"

"So you're saying you don't have feelings for any of them?"

Against his will, memories began returning. When he'd first met Applejack, he could have sworn she had been about to--and then she'd fallen on him when she was that tired...and then of course, there was Twilight hugging him out of nowhere after Trixie had split town--

"N...no..."

"You're a horrible liar, Azure..." Silver said, picking up the pace.

"What makes you so sure?" Azure picked up the pace, the two colts almost to the train station now.

"Well, I have a few reasons for that..." the dark blue colt responded. "First of all, I specialize in sound magic, and I have sensitive ears on top of it. I could hear your heartbeat speed up just a little when you said no."

"Wait, you heard my heart beating?" He hadn't even been aware his heart had sped up when he had those recurring thoughts.

"It's something I taught myself to do recently," Silver said.

"Ok, so you've also learned to be a living stethoscope which can let you see what others really feel," The cyan unicorn responded, now feeling uncomfortable. "Any other reasons?"

"I can't say how different they are around you since I wasn't alone with any one of them without you around, but a pony's heart doesn't lie."

"Now you're sounding like Rarity..."

"Well, she's right," Silver said. "For instance, when Twilight was arguing with her, I noticed her heart wasn't into it. When Virid and Crimson or other ponies argue, their heart rates alter just a little bit. Her heart rate was slightly different..."

"Wait, whoa, you think Twilight likes me?" It was infinitely harder for Azure to ignore the hug she'd given him after the whole thing with the ursa. "T-that's just...no...we're just friends..."

"Well, maybe I'm wrong on that," Silver continued, and once again silence reigned. By the time the blind pony spoke again, the two were up on the platform, waiting for the train that would take the visitor home. "But then, tell me, why'd you flirt with Applejack."

Azure heard the sound of glass shattering and he wasn't sure if it had come from him or if he'd lost control of his magic momentarily and broke a window nearby. His jaw nearly hit the ground and he stumbled again.

"Okay, I wasn't flirting with her!" the colt protested, at a louder volume than he wanted. When other ponies turned to look, Azure flinched slightly, but continued anyway. "I was just trying to let her know I'd give her help if she ever needed it..."

"Words are powerful, Azure," Silver said, turning to him directly. "What you say and how you say it can have a big impact on somepony. You might not have meant it that way, but Applejack certainly thought you did..."

"Wha--?"

"Her heart rate jumped up..."

"We were racing," Azure bluntly stated. "Of course it was abnormal."

"Whatever you need to tell yourself, Azure," said Silver in response. The cyan colt was just about to argue again, when the train's horn blasted his thought process away. The blind pony, in response, immediately began walking to the platform, Azure following.

"Azure, life has a funny way of throwing you curve balls. Take my word for it." Silver said, removing his shades with a levitation spell and turning to him. They revealed the same non-functioning eyes that the others had found so intriguing. "From what I heard from Crimson, you didn't even come here looking for friends, and though six of the seven happened to be mares, you have new friends now all the same. Maybe you don't think of them that way, but did you ever think they thought that way about you?"

The memory of the awkward moments he'd had up until then refused to leave his mind. Twilight's hug, Applejack's blushing back at the foot of the mountain, Rainbow Dash...Fluttershy... Azure was struck silent. Was he really that oblivious? Could Silver...?

"It's up to you if you want to believe it or not," Silver said as the train came to a stop, replacing his shades as he turned to prepare to board. "At least take the time to notice how they act when they're around you..."

"Hey, what about you?" The cyan colt asked, suddenly curious. The blind pony stopped. "Have you found anypony like that since I left?"

Silver slowly turned, his pale eyes once more concealed by his shades.

"Maybe..." The dark blue male unicorn smiled, walking into the train. Azure followed his friend until Silver took a seat inside, and stood outside the window while Silver appeared to look at him through the pane.

"Well, aside from the argument and the rock slide," Azure said, breaking into a grin. "It was fun, Silver, glad you came along."

"Heh," Silver said. "Yeah, it was. Maybe next time we'll see what other trouble we can get into."

The two old friends shared another laugh, capping off the visit as the train's horn blared again. Azure remained at the station to see the train retreat into the sunset, and as soon as he lost sight of the train, he began to go back home. With a sigh, he began considering his blind friend's parting words.

Could Silver be right...? I mean, sure, they're mares, I'm a colt...but did I say too much without realizing it? A blush unconsciously coated his cheeks. And...do Twilight and Applejack...? And Fluttershy too...? Rainbow...? Have I really...?

Azure Courage trotted his way home, his head full of uncertainty, doubt, and embarrassment as he considered what exactly he might have sown...

Now that he'd known them for longer than a month, could all his friends really have feelings for him after getting to know him...? The colt hadn't even considered the possibilty, but now that Silver had pointed it out, he found himself unsure...

Chapter 13: A Topsy-Turvy Day

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Chapter 13: A Topsy-Turvy Day
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The days had once more settled into monotony following Silver's departure. Azure Courage hadn't forgotten his friends' parting words, though he didn't quite see what his blind friend had been getting at. The others didn't seem to act any differently around him than they usually did. He didn't see any evidence that they harbored any other feelings than friendship. The colt had resolved to leave it as "heat of the moment" until he could see more evidence that the dark blue pony's readings were true.

Azure was hard at work on the latest job, which admittedly wasn't hard; he was assisting in building a few extra houses a fair distance from his own home. From where he was, he could just make out the shape of the library several kilometers away. The male unicorn continued to work, using his physical body to move some more lumber into place.

The pony unwittingly found himself compelled to look toward the entrance site. One of the ponies that the boss had sent out for some reason was rushing back to the workplace, looking completely flustered and...frightened?

Azure raised an eyebrow quietly, but said nothing, continuing to move the lumber. He had just gotten the shipment where it needed to go, when abruptly, the voice of his boss cut through the scene.

"Everypony, drop everything and go home right now! You know the reason!" The colt, known for outsizing him in both muscle mass and height, usually sounded tough and intimidating, but right now, he sounded distinctly threatened. The cyan pony felt his jaw unhinge in utter disbelief, and immediately closed the distance.

His boss had to look down slightly so their eyes could meet. His boss had dark blue eyes, and was a physically imposing earth pony with a green-gray fur color and a dark red mane and tail, slicked back yet slightly messy all the same.

"Yes, Courage?" And he always insisted on referring to the workers by their second name as well.

"What exactly is the reason we need to drop everything and run, sir?"

His boss blinked, but he remained impassive all the same.

"You'll find out soon enough if you stay out here like this!" The boss said. "Move it!"

The male unicorn blinked, but nonetheless obeyed his boss's advice and moved out of the construction side, noticing that, as he went, the townsponies were nowhere in sight. Ponyville was a quiet town, but even so, there were several ponies always out doing something. However, right now, not a single one was in sight.

The pony used his magic to lift his hard hat from his head as he continued, utterly perplexed at the town's behavior, rubbing at his mane with a forehoof before continuing his trek, replacing the helmet as he went.

"I don't get it," Azure said flatly to himself, "What's got everypony so nervous?"

Snap!

The cyan colt grunted as he felt something grapple tightly around his back leg. However, his eyebrows lifted in mild alarm when he realized what it was.

"A lass-" The rope tugged hard and jarred him straight off his feet. "-oh!" He was completely in mid-air for most of the journey. When he finally hit the ground, he did so belly-first, which knocked the wind out of him since he was minimally prepared for such an event. Eventually, he was dragged inside a place that felt familiar, but the lights were very dim. As soon as he was safely inside the open door, Pinkie zipped in front of him and slammed it shut.

Before Azure could even fully process he was now in the Sugarcube Corner after being dragged who knows how many yards, the feeling of having rope around his ankle left him, and he turned around, to see the others save for Twilight and Spike also huddled in the dark inside. There was another pony too, a short filly, no doubt early school age, no more than ten-ish, there too. Her body was a cream-yellow, her mane and tail a reddish pink, the former of which had a pink bow in it. Her eyes were a reddish-orange, and she had no cutie mark.

"Sorry 'bout the rope, Az," Applejack said, storing the rope she always seemed to have on her under her hat. "but we had to get'cha in here quickly..."

"You know, if that was an issue, you could have just called me over..." Azure said, getting back to his feet, adjusting his headband.

"That's what I told her," piped in the younger pony, with a very familiar dialect in her tone. More specifically, she had a Southern accent, just like Applejack herself did. Azure blinked, trying to figure if he'd ever seen this one before. He soon found he did remember the pony's appearance, but not her name.

"Wait, Applejack's your older sister, right?" he asked of the smaller pony, who appeared just a little indignant to be remembered in this way.

"Yup," She recovered quickly from this, but in her eyes Azure could still see the childish indignation of being recognized through one's older sibling. The cyan colt had been the youngest of the three cousins, but he couldn't remember a time in which he was in their shadow. "I'm Apple Bloom."

"Nice to meet you," The unicorn quickly tried to blow past the fact he'd known the much quieter Big Mac since last applebuck season and restore focus on his confusion: why the ponies seemed to be so nervous today. "Now, can somepony tell me why--"

"Oh no, Twilight and Spike are out!" Rainbow Dash called out. "We need to get her in here now!"

"Get her in here for what?" Azure asked, utterly at a loss of cognitive function at seeing the normally brash pegasus acting like that. "What's going on?"

Apparently, today was "Ignore the Confused Ponies Day", since the colt's questions were being ignored.

"Get her attention, Pinkie, quick!" Applejack called out. The cyan pony felt his eye twitch, and he rubbed at his temple in irritation, while the party pony scurried over to the front area to do just that.

We stopped Nightmare Moon and helped each other out since then. So why are they all so worried? Apple Bloom actually looks less worried than the grown mares in this room!

"Ya mean ya didn't see her?" asked the small pony, the only one not ignoring his concerns right now.

"See who?" If there was ever a time Azure found himself completely frustrated with his friends...well, Twilight almost always frustrated him during the arguments; but this would definitely be one of those times when they'd done so as a group.

Before Apple Bloom could give him a straightforward answer on that, the colt suddenly found his attention completely diverted to something just inside the building. Namely, a shaft of bright light, coming from a flashlight. Now he could see, clearly, in the darkness, a wincing Twilight and a terrified-looking Spike. Pinkie was the one holding the flashlight, obviously. The others began to move closer to the spectacle, and Azure followed, not knowing at all what was going on, only that the two purple newcomers were, like him, completely unaware of why the town was in the middle of a meltdown.

"Who?! The zombie pony?" Spike asked from atop Twilight's back.

"Z-Zombie pony?!" Pinkie said, apparently just as afraid, shining the flashlight under her own face. Azure almost scoffed at the thought. If it was just one of those, it really wouldn't be an issue. However, if those inane conspiracy theorists from Canterlot were in any way right about a zompony apocolypse--

The smaller dragon immediately freaked out, and hugged on to Twilight's neck. The cyan colt felt himself wondering why the mare didn't squeak from the sudden compression. However, it seemed to be a thing only for him, seeing as how Twilight didn't squeak. Pinkie had since turned off the flash light and had begun moving around in the room.

"Spike! There are no zombie ponies!" The unicorn scolded. Spike appeared to climb off her back now, and was now standing on his legs. After recovering, Twilight sighed, and looked up, though it was clear she couldn't see in the dark. Azure could barely see her or the others, but he knew they were all there. "Pinkie, what are you doing here alone in the dark?"

"I'm not alone in the dark," The party pony replied, sounding completely normal for an earth pony that was in abject terror two seconds ago.

Pinkie Pie followed this up by opening the curtains, allowing some light into the room. Now Azure could at least see the others clearly, though it would probably still be hard to see if a pony was inside through one of the windows.

Twilight realized the others were there with a gasp, looking around the room to make sure that everypony was there.

"Okay then," she started, still seemingly off-guard. "what are you all doing here in the dark?"

"That's what I want to know..." Azure mumbled aloud.

"We're hidin' from her!" Applejack had since moved next to the window, motioning with a hoof to something obviously outside the window. At this, everypony crowded around the pane. Azure could just make out the outline of a hooded figure in the distance. He couldn't much see what she was doing, but she appeared to be tapping at the ground with a hoof. She appeared very ponylike, but when she turned, the male pony saw a pair of yellow glowing eyes, and felt a very weird sense of deja vu.

While the others save for Twilight took to gasping and looking away, hiding out of the window's "sight", Azure took the time to realize something. Even if those eyes were the same as Shadow Ghouls, none of them seemed to be popping out to wreak havoc when the mysterious figure did the same thing. Plus, if this figure was supposed to be behind them in the first place...the colt didn't even want to think about that prospect!
--------------------------
Twilight looked back to her friends, utterly at a loss. The only one that didn't appear to be afraid of this strange pony was Azure, but given his actions since she'd known him, well, of course he wouldn't be. Plus, he was only there for a week when she'd moved in. Nonetheless, watching her other friends that normally displayed some level of courage hide away from the cloaked newcomer wasn't what one would call inspiring.

"Did you see her, Twilight?" This was Apple Bloom, climbing onto Spike's head to get her attention. "Did you see...Zecora?"

"Apple Bloom!" scolded the older sister. "I told ya never to say that name!"

There was the sound of somepony shifting next to her. Only now did Twilight realize that Azure was still looking out the window. The annoyed look on his face wasn't exactly alien to him, and the purple mare found herself shutting out the urge to kick him in one of his forelegs in hopes he would stay put while she tried to figure out what was going on in a rational and diplomatic matter.

"Well, I saw her glance this way..." The studious pony started, intent on getting the situation resolved.

"Glance evilly this way!" Pinkie interrupted, invading her privacy and leaning on her. Given the situation, the purple mare found it entirely reasonable to gently push her off of her before resuming her statement.

"...and then a bunch of you flip out for no good reason..."

"More like the whole town..." Azure mumbled, though Twilight didn't feel like encouraging or humoring any violent behaviors right now. If anypony were to organize a lynch mob...

"No good reason?!" Applejack exclaimed, completely drowning that thought out before she could entertain it any more. She pulled her sister closer to her with a forehoof, who seemed almost embarassed from the additional contact, "You call protectin' your kin no good reason? Why, as soon as my little sister saw Zecora ridin' into town, she started..." Even though Apple Bloom was now at about hoof's length away, that didn't stop the orange mare from demonstrating her younger sister's reaction, "shakin' in her little horseshoes..."

"Did not...!" Apple Bloom tried to respond through her sister's shaking her, but it was clear that Applejack wasn't listening.

"So I swept her up," the older sister demonstrated by pulling the foal off her feet and putting her on her back, "and brought her here."

"I walked here myself!" protested the smaller pony.

"For safe keepin'." retorted the hat-wearing pony sternly.

Apple Bloom got down off her sister's back on the opposite side, before standing next to her, looking her elder sister dead in the eye.

"Applejack, I'm not a baby!" Now she was indignant. It wasn't like Twilight couldn't sympathize on the grounds that she was the younger sibling, but she couldn't sympathize because her older brother and her didn't have any especially big fights over who had what say, especially in a supposed crisis like this. "I can take care of myself!"

"Not from that creepy Zecora..."

"Wait a sec..." Twilight's ear twitched as Azure mumbled to himself again. "Have I been here before...?"
--------------------------
Azure just couldn't dismiss the situation. He'd more or less stayed out of the conversation while Twilight tried to sort things out, but there was something about this whole situation that just gave him a horrid sense of deja vu. He'd watched this "Zecora" intently for the entirety of the conversation that Twilight had with the others, and so far, nothing was happening. Shadow Ghouls weren't popping out, nothing seemed to be happening, not even a tendril of smoke that would possibly indicate any sort of magic.

"I seriously feel like I've been here before..." mumbled Azure. "Just...different, somehow."

"She's mysterious..." Fluttershy whispered in response to Applejack's sentiment.

"Sinister..." Rainbow Dash continued.

"And spoooky..." Pinkie added, with her usual tendency to stretch vowels and words when she needed to.

The first one made sense, but the other two...meh, the only thing she has is those glowing eyes, and nothing's happened yet... Azure bit his tongue, not wanting to tell the others about the Shadow Ghoul attack. That would just add fuel to the fire, he feared.

Twilight looked out the window again, and Azure suddenly got pushed forward as the others once again crowded around him. He thought he'd be squeaked again, but even though there was seven ponies and a dragon crowding together around the window, the conditions for that weren't filled.

The distant figure of Zecora reached up with one hoof, revealing golden hoops on the foreleg in question. She let the hood down, revealing what looked like a mohawk for a mane. In addition, she appeared to have stripes running down her mane and forelegs, from what Azure could see. Also, her neck had the same golden hoops around it, and she had large golden earrings.

The others, save for Twilight, gasped openly in fear and drew back again.

"Will you cut that out?" she asked, clearly at the end of her patience.

"Just look at those stripes!" Rarity continued as though Twilight hadn't said anything. "So garish!"

"She's a zebra..." The studious pony announced as though it were common fact.

"A what?!" Everypony in the room shouted. Even Azure had to join in, since he had no idea what one of those were. Even so, she seemed ponylike save for the mane style and stripes. And the golden hoops.

"A zebra, and," Twilight drew closer to Rarity as she continued, "the stripes aren't a fashion choice, Rarity, they're what she was born with!"

The white unicorn looked like she was about to be ill, and with a dramatic sigh, she fainted dead away. As soon as the alabaster fashionista was sprawling on the ground in a heap at the thought of stripes being natural, something that had been disconnected clicked in the colt's head.

"Wait a minute!" Azure shouted, a rant on the tip of his tongue. "Don't tell me you all--"

"Born where?" interjected Applejack, as though he hadn't said anything.

"--forgot about--" The male unicorn tried to continue, bringing up what he considered a good example from the past he hoped the girls could relate to.

"I've never seen a pony--" The farmer mare wasn't hearing any of it.

"--Virid's remarks on--"

"--like that in these parts--"

"--everypony in the room--"

"'cept...her!" Applejack behaved as though he were literally a ghost, just a talking head that had a mute button. Not that he knew what one of those were. The way she cringed indicated that she was still in fear of the zebra.

"--not to mention when Silver--"

"Not now, Azure, I know what you're going to suggest..." The purple mare said, acting as though he wasn't offering anything useful. Azure felt both of his eyebrows raise up in alarm in frustration. "Anyway, she's probably not from here, and she's not a pony. My books say that zebras come from a faraway land. But I've never seen her in Ponyville."

Are you kidding me?! They completely ignored what I had to say about Virid's visit and Silver's visit?!
-------------------------
"Where does she live?" Twilight asked. It wasn't that she thought Azure was going to voice his own fright, but that was the exact problem. The pony would not know of diplomacy if it walked up to him and smacked him right across his snout. He'd have probably gotten the others to face their fears in the exact wrong way.

"That's just it...she lives in..." Applejack began, "the Everfree Forest!"

At this precise instant, there was a massive crash coming from the next room. It sounded thunderous, and everypony jumped. However, Twilight could see into the kitchen clearly, and had discovered Spike had knocked over some things while trying to sneak snacks.

"Spike!" the studious mare scolded.

"Uh, sorry," the dragon responded from the next room.

"The Everfree Forest just ain't natural," The farmer mare continued. "The plants grow..."

"Animals care for themselves..." Fluttershy piped in.

"And the clouds move..." Rainbow Dash contributed.

"All on their own!" All three finished at once. This in turn caused Rarity to faint again.

"And that wicked enchantress Zecora lives there doing her evil..." Pinkie hesitated, apparently trying to describe something she hadn't even seen yet (which was pretty much par for the course save for the strange conditions in the Everfree Forest). "stuff!"

So descriptive! Twilight thought to herself, yet said nothing else, waiting for the party pony to make her own arguments.

"She's so evil I even wrote a song about her!" The pink earth pony began anew, preparing to sing.

"Here we go..." Rainbow Dash said with a sigh, apparently having heard this song at least once before.

"She's an evil enchantress, she does evil dances," The pony jumped up high towards Rainbow Dash, followed by seizing what quite literally looked like thin air while staring off into space, "if you look into her eyes, she'll put you in trances!" The pony's eyes started to swirl in what was supposed to be a hypnotic matter.

Twilight had to give Pinkie credit on something: her choreography was unbeatable, best in Ponyville if not all of Equestria. However, the fact that Applejack was visibly trembling while Apple Bloom wasn't was nothing short of sad in the purple mare's eyes.

"Then what will she do? She'll mix up an evil brew, then she'll gobble you up in a big tasty stew..." While Apple Bloom finally dislodged her frightened sister's grip, Pinkie made her way onto a table, climbing up as she sang the final part of her verse. "So...watch out!" She leapt up onto her hind legs and stretched straight up into a "terrifying" posture. She started to pant from the effort it took to sing that much.

After silence reigned in the Sugarcube Corner save for the panting earth pony, Twilight finally had to say something important.

"Wow, catchy."

"It's a work in progress..."

"This is all just a lot of gossip and rumors..." Twilight started. At this point, however, things only seemed to get worse.

"You know, girls, it just occurred to me," Rainbow said. "We've got Az in town now..."

"What?!" The studious mare immediately whipped her head around at the pegasus's statement, while silence reigned.

"Oh yeah, that pony will attack anythin' if he's got half a mind to it..." Applejack responded.

"You know, I am right here..." Azure mumbled nonchalantly, his tone so devoid of any emotion it was hard for the mare to understand what was going through his head...like every other time he'd ever done something.

"So maybe we can get him to scare that evil enchantress away before she gets somepony!" Pinkie cheered.

"Girls!" Twilight had to cut this off before it got too far. "Don't encourage him! Azure may have a reputation for attacking indiscriminately when it comes to it, but--"

"Actually, I'm with Twilight on this one," Azure cut in. The purple mare didn't even notice what he said straight away, but she could have sworn she heard a pin drop between his last word and when she started to speak again.

"Not now, Azure, I'm trying to--" Only now did she fully realize what he said, and fell completely silent. The entire room was quiet, and the only sound that could be heard was the sound of the others breathing in shock.

"What?!" Spike called out from the other room, setting off a chain reaction.

Everypony, save for Azure, began to repeat the phrase. Even Twilight herself had to say it; the fact he was actually in agreement with her instead of against what she had to offer was absolutely unexpected.
--------------------------
Azure Courage had observed Zecora passively since he was made aware of the zebra's existence, and at the point he was at, he had concluded that the others were being no better than Virid. The only difference is, Zecora techincally wasn't a pony. But by looks alone, the only difference between her and an average pony was the golden rings and the stripes covering her body. And she hadn't done anything harmful in the time she'd been around...

"What?" The cyan colt asked. "Is it really that shocking that--"

"Yes." Pretty much everyone in the room agreed at the same time.

"Anyway, I can't scare her away..." Azure replied. "For one, I don't hit mares--"

"But you attacked Nightmare Moon without so much as a second thought!" protested Rarity. The male unicorn raised one forehoof.

"And it was pretty much confirmed that she was going to bring about eternal night from the outset, so there wasn't a need to hold back..." The cyan colt said. "And--"

"What about Trixie?" Spike asked from the other room, apparently having seen his first outburst after Twilight fled on that day. "She's a mare, and--"

"Well, she was crossing lines you don't cross with me. And it didn't help she was being smug about it too," Azure replied, feeling himself get angered just by the mere memory of that day. "I guess I'd better amend what I said. I don't hit mares, unless there's convincing grounds for me to do otherwise...and before any of you bring up about how she's not a pony, save for the strange garb and stripes, she looks enough like one to me..."

"Have you seen what that...zebra, does?" Pinkie asked.

"All I've seen her do is poke the ground with a hoof, but I can't tell what she's doing. However, nothing bad seems to be coming of it..." Azure responded. "Anything else I'm not getting?"

"She comes into town once a month," Rainbow Dash cut in.

"Then she lurks by the stores..." Rarity finished.

The cyan colt closed his eyes and facehoofed.

"You know, there's one other reason I'm not buying into all this, but if you don't remember the incident, I'm not going to remind you about it," he sighed, turning away. "Twilight's right, this is just all gossip and I haven't seen a thing that would suggest I'd need to take action. And, frankly, I'm a little insulted right now you brand me as a pony that would attack anything and everything if somepony tells him it's bad."

Azure started to move to another room.

"Azie, where are you going?" The pink earth pony squealed.

"Don't tell me he's goin' outside!" Applejack asked. Azure heard a subtle puff of air, and his eye trailed behind him.

"I'm not," The cyan colt said, "Just going into another room so I can gather thoughts. Yes, I have those." As he walked into the next room over, he could see Spike sneaking sweets and generally playing with pots and pans, completely distracted now, or at least appearing the part. It was apparent, however, he had been paying attention, for when the baby dragon took notice of his entry into the room, the little guy had only one thing to say.

"Jeez, Azure, what's with you today?" Spike asked. "Agreeing with Twilight, ragequitting...are you sick?"

"No, just disappointed they'd forget Virid so easily..." Azure responded.

"Virid? Oh, your cousin...what's he got to do with this?" The smaller dragon didn't see the point. And neither did the cyan colt.

"Oh no, I think I'll wait. I'll wait to see if anypony else tries to make the connection..." The cyan pony responded, plopping down on his rump out of sight of the doorway.

He listened in to the conversation. Twilight attempted to pick it back up by saying that all of Zecora's activities could have been friendly. It sounded like Apple Bloom also wanted to join in on the conversation, but the adult ponies were apparently blocking her out. The other ponies weren't listening to the studious pony either, the repeated rumors making Azure want to seize the nearest pot and chuck it through the window in sheer frustration.

The cyan colt closed his eyes and tried to keep focus.

Seriously, girls, of all the ponies in this town that would know to treat others a bit more fairly...

"I am sure there is an explanation for everything Zecora does. And if anypony here were actually brave enough to approach her, she would find out the truth..." Twilight said, echoing his thoughts almost exactly.

Inspirational, Twilight, but too bad none of them will let you do it... Azure felt compelled to look towards Zecora again through the nearby window, and noticed some movement out of the corner of his eye.

The figure was foal-sized, yellow, and had a red-pink bow in its mane. It was Apple Bloom.

"She snuck out...?" The colt whispered to himself. "Better keep an eye on this..." The pony looked behind him, to see Spike still messing around. "Psst...psst...Spike!"

"What are you up to?" he asked.

"Just some foalsitting," Azure responded, quietly. "Listen, I'm going to sneak out too, in case anything happens. Think you can keep quiet?"

"...why should I?" Spike asked after some silence.

"If you don't tell them I snuck out too, I'll make sure to grab you some gems next time I go on one of my long runs..." The cyan pony responded.

If there was one thing Azure felt he could count on, it was the insatiable "gem tooth" Twilight's assistant possessed. From the way the dragon spaced out and began drooling from the thought of having an extra snack, the male unicorn felt he had the bribe secured, but he had to err on the side of caution, a feat which he did rarely.

"So do we have a deal?"

"Yes!" Spike whispered.

With the conditions agreed on, Azure immediately turned to the window and opened it with his levitation magic. After slipping out of the window without much incident, he shut it behind him, and, staying low, began to sneak after Apple Bloom, hoping he could catch up to her before anything happened, and, more importantly, hoping to find out more about the zebra that seemed to be the object of meaningless gossip and harmful rumors.

After what I've seen, I just can't think Zecora's bad at all. Azure thought, quickly trotting after Applejack's little sister. The glowing eyes and cloak are the only things I can see working against her, but the Shadow Ghouls might not have been entirely unknown when they appeared; Fluttershy and Rainbow both lived here long enough...!
--------------------------
Apple Bloom literally could not believe the actions of the ponies older than her. Or at least, most of the ones older than her. More specifically, her older sister's reactions to the mysterious..."zebra", as Twilight called her, had left her at a loss. And of course, the young filly wanted nothing more than to believe she was contributing to the conversation, but Applejack had shut her out.

Ever since she'd departed the Sugarcube Corner, she had quietly tailed Zecora, not trying to get too close just in case her friends happened to be right about it all, but all the same, she wasn't exactly convinced those rumors were true either.

"Guess Twilight was right..."

Apple Bloom nearly squealed and jumped out of her fur from sheer shock at hearing a familiar, masculine voice that wasn't that of her big brother. She turned to see Azure, who had crouched down next to her. He turned to face her directly.

"I really am a bad influence on foals..." he said.

"Az...!" The foal whimpered, sounding disappointed. "You ain't gonna...take me back, are ya?"

"No," said Azure. "I said it before, I am on Twilight's side, and from the sounds of it, so were you. Honestly, I'm disappointed nopony brought up my cousin..."

"Why would they?" Apple Bloom asked. "Are you related to a zebra?"

"No," the colt responded. "But I know a pony who'd make all of that stuff they'd said back at the Sugarcube Corner...oh, I don't want to even repeat what he said to them..."

"Why not?" The yellow filly wanted to know exactly what Azure's cousin had said.

"It's not important," Azure deflected, "What is important is getting to the bottom of this, so...well, hey, if any of those rumors play out, I'm right here. And if they don't...well, I was bound to get yelled at anyway, so...why don't we go see what's up with Zecora before she goes in the forest too deep?"

Apple Bloom nodded. With, as her sister had called him recently, "the most headstrong and reckless of ponies" at her side, she felt a little more assured that nothing was going to happen, particularly since he'd caught up to her right when she'd reached the edge of Ponyville and was about to enter the forest. Of course, they'd almost lost the zebra's trail, and had to run after her to catch up.

By the time they'd caught up to her, the foliage had grown thick and blocked the sun, giving the place an ominous feel. Also, there were blue plants all around, but none of them seemed to be directly in the way, given neither pony nor zebra trudged directly through them, and it almost seemed like Zecora was taking special care to avoid them.

"I guess I'd better say something..." Azure said, taking a few steps forward. He inhaled, preparing to call out to the zebra--

"Hold it right there!" The voice forced Apple Bloom to halt dead in her tracks. The sight of a lasso snapping around both of Azure's back legs and yanking him backwards into the air was almost funny in its own right, and the filly couldn't help but watch as the unicorn sailed over her head and to the left, slamming back first and upside-down (somehow) into a tree and falling headfirst into the blue flowers.

Applejack rushed forth immediately afterward, with a "And you! Get back here right now!"

Apple Bloom felt herself get scooped up onto her sister's back faster than she could gasp. Zecora, seeing this, offered up her own two cents on the incident...
--------------------------
"Beware! Beware you pony folk!" This was a new voice, probably Zecora, speaking up. The accent wasn't southern or posh, nor did it sound like anypony Azure knew, so he assumed it was the zebra. Not that he could see from where he was. "Those leaves of blue are not a joke!"

Leaves of blue...? Azure thought, beginning to look around from his upside-down position, in a great amount of shock and pain from being chucked through the air like that. He looked up towards the trees, trying to figure out what exactly the rhyme meant--

"Y-you keep your creepy mumbo-jumbo to yourself, ya hear?!" Applejack totally sounded threatening and not threatened when she said this, and this in turn triggered three of the others to join her in screaming at Zecora, drowning out Azure's thoughts on the matter.

Darn it, I lost my train of thought...thanks girls, thanks... The male unicorn thought to himself, trying to get back to his feet quick before he got reamed out for letting things get this far. Eventually, he managed to get to his feet, and discretely freed his feet from the snare of the lasso using his magic. If there was one thing he didn't want to deal with, it was a furious sister...and three or four of her friends.

"Beware! Beware!" Zecora began to fade out, spouting her warning over and over again.

Azure began to walk away slowly, hoping that nopony would notice his disappearance. He still wanted to have words with that zebra, if only so he could prove that there was nothing to fear, but right now, he wanted to keep from being henpecked.

"Yeah, back at ya, Zecora!" Rainbow called back, "You and your lame curse are the ones who better beware!"

That didn't sound like a curse at all, for the love of Celestia... Azure grumbled mentally.

"And you!" Applejack called. Azure put his head back, and thankfully Applejack was scolding her little sister. "Why couldn't you just listen to your big sister?"

Apple Bloom's reply to her big sister was almost unintelligible, but she sounded guilty.

"Who knows what kinda nasty curse Zecora could have put on you?" The orange earth pony continued.

"Just like in my song!" Pinkie piped in, starting to sing the same song she had earlier.

"And you!"

It was obvious from the tone and volume she was now talking to him. Azure stopped dead in his tracks, looking over his shoulder.

"Don't you run, Az!" Applejack yelled. "You know what you did!"

"Snuck out the window while you were arguing and followed Zecora?" The cyan colt asked, only vaguely sarcastic in his tone.

"No, ya let Apple Bloom follow ya'll out here!" The farmer continued to scold away.

"I didn't!" Azure protested.

"He's tellin' the truth," protested the indignant foal, "I left on my own, Az was just..."

"Hush," Applejack commanded. "Az, you oughta be ashamed of yourself! What if you'd been put under a curse?"

Before the situation could escalate any further, Twilight butted in with her own two cents.

"You guys, there's no such thing as curses!" The studious mare exclaimed. Rainbow Dash quickly flew down even lower, flying right at her while going through strange blue flowers.

"Well, that's interesting to hear coming from Miss Magic Pants herself..." The blue pegasus said, tapping Twilight on the horn with a forehoof.

"My magic, real magic," The purple unicorn continued, "comes from within. It's a skill you're born with."

Again, explaining why you could have saved us some trouble a few weeks back when Trixie came to town... Azure thought to himself, but continued to say nothing.

"Curses are artificial, fake magic," Twilight continued. The cyan colt briefly wondered if he'd ever heard about any sort of curses that came out of spell books, but he couldn't think of any. "It's conjured with potions and incantations; all smoke and mirrors meant to scare. But curses have no real power, they're just an old pony tale."

Azure blinked a few times.

"Well, that's...one way of putting it..." the cyan pony responded.

"Just you wait, you two," Applejack finally stated, "You're gonna learn that some pony tales really are true..."

The cyan colt briefly wondered if this was how his family members felt about his fixation with Nightmare Moon. The only difference between that and this was the ominous shadow in the moon. He rubbed at the bridge of his nose in irritation.

"I can't believe any of this..." he thought aloud to himself. "The others, I can understand, but Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy...they really should know better."

"Why them, Azure?" Twilight asked.

"Remember that incident a few weeks back after I got out of the hospital, the one where I had that scratch on my face?" Azure continued. "I noticed that when she glanced over at us, her eyes were yellow, just like the Shadow Ghouls' eyes were."

"But nothing happened," The purple mare responded flatly. This time, the cyan unicorn sighed, and as soon as he did, she immediately lit up in realization. "Oh..."

"I didn't see her do a thing that could be considered bad..." he continued. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go blow off some steam. I'll revisit this whole thing later when the others aren't paying attention, because this whole situation is ridiculous."

"..." The mare seemed honestly at a loss for words, and her face showed it.

"Twilight?"

"Doesn't this day seem...strange, to you?" The purple mare asked. "I mean, you're not attacking things, the others are making you look completely rational and I'm actually agreeing with you more than usual about a crisis..."

"Of course," Azure responded. "Hey, maybe you should come with me. We are on the same side, after all."

"We're going to have to do this first thing tomorrow morning before the others wake up..." Twilight responded. "If they knew what we were going to do, they'd freak out..."

The cyan unicorn couldn't hold himself from laughing.

"Yeah, Twilight, now I'm scared..."

"Wha-why?" The studious pony asked, looking concerned.

"We're about to work together without arguing with each other for five minutes first..." Azure smiled, and Twilight returned the smile. "See you then."

The two ponies parted ways there in the forest, though both unicorns completely failed to notice the blue leaves Zecora spoke of. The leaves in question were not on those of trees, but rather at their feet as they trotted right along through blue flowers...
--------------------------
It wasn't until night that Azure could finally return home. He had to run for several kilometers, freegallop like a colt possessed, and even meditate for at least an hour before he could finally say he got all his frustrations with his friends out of his system. He laid back on his bed, feeling completely tired and having just gotten cleaned up in the shower.

"You'd think after what Virid said, they'd try to treat other ponies right." Azure thought to himself. "Yeah, Zecora's not a pony, but she looks like one to me."

The cyan colt pulled the covers over himself and went back to staring at the ceiling.

"I really hope that once we get through tommorrow and talk to her for the first time, the rest should fall into place..."

With that, the colt fell asleep, resting his head upon the pillow and drifting off...
--------------------------
Azure Courage woke to a new day when sunbeams hit his face. He groaned and rolled inelegantly to his right, and was surprised to find the impact completely de-winded him, and it actually hurt a little more than normal. He tried to wrestle his way back to his feet, but for some reason, he felt sluggish, more so than he usually did. The feeling worsened when he realized he likely overslept.

"Agh, overslept...at this rate Twilight and me won't be able to do what we gotta do..." Azure grunted to himself. "C'mon...body...work with me...I know it's the morning..."

The colt groaned as he finally got back to his feet. Confused as to why he felt his legs lightly vibrating under his body weight, he looked down, and gasped at what he saw.

His ribs were showing, and he could see bones somewhat clearly under his fur and skin. The unicorn quickly made a beeline for the bathroom so he could get a look at himself in the mirror, hampered by the fact his body was trying its hardest not to implode on itself.

"Oh...sweet mother of Celestia..."

Azure's brown eyes went wider than dinner plates at what he saw. At least part of him wanted to laugh, but the other part was so confused and afraid that he wasn't even sure what to make of it. Though he didn't feel the part, his body looked as though he hadn't eaten for days if not weeks. The muscle mass he'd built up over the years appeared to have been stripped directly from his bones. His legs were as spindly as deer legs and he generally looked...scrawny wasn't even able to describe it.

"...Guess I'd still better head to the library..." Azure thought. "The heck happened to me...? I felt fine last night..."

He closed his eyes and tried to think to himself.

Stay calm, Azure, "leaves of blue are not a joke" doesn't sound like a curse...And she was saying "beware"...I didn't see anything that would indicate a spell was cast, no smoke signals from the Everfree while I was out... The colt opened his eyes, and began limping towards his front door, his body already rejecting the fact he was standing up. I need...to get...to the library...

Deciding to forgo being physical whenever possible, Azure used magic to open his front door, lock it, then he began the slowest sprint of his life to the library, aiming to find out what had happened with the others.

"Darn...spindly...legs...!"
--------------------------
Normally, it would have taken Azure Courage anywhere from seven minutes to ten minutes to run the distance between his home and Twilight's, but in his unexpected condition, it took him a total of twenty-five minutes to do so. When he arrived, he could see pandemonium: the door appeared to have been knocked in, and there were a few impact sites around it, like something hit it. He could see shelves upon shelves of overturned books through the doorway, and he could see a couple of the other ponies gathered.

By now, Azure was out of breath and barely able to walk straight, but by some miracle, he was able to get ever closer to the door.

"It's a curse, I tells ya!"

The voice sounded familiar...yet very high pitched. Azure blinked.

"Was that...Applejack...?" he wondered aloud, the curiosity fueling his reserves just one last time for him to charge forward. The instant he crossed the threshold, the others took notice of his condition, and there was a collective gasp.

"A-Az..." Rainbow Dash sounded horrified. "Is...is that you?"

Azure looked up, so he could see what exactly was the cause for concern. Rainbow was caught in a stepladder, and there was something wrong with her wings. They looked...inverted, to say the least. He looked over to see a miniature Applejack, who was perched on her little sister's back, and cringed when he saw it. Rarity looked more like a dog than anything now; her fur, mane, and tail having grown to an abormally shaggy appearance. Twilight's horn was limp now, and covered in blue spots.

To his surprise, Pinkie hadn't yet said anything, but as soon as Azure caught sight of her struggling to say something coherent, he understood why. Her tongue had blue spots on it as well, and with every word she struggled to speak, she blew raspberries due to her tongue being swollen.

"I can't even stand like this..." Azure fumbled as his legs nearly gave out on him. It was only now that Azure could see who hadn't yet been affected: Apple Bloom, and...

"But Fluttershy..." Twilight analyzed. "seems just fine!"

"Yes, there doesn't seem to be a thing wrong with her," said Rarity, not looking at anypony, not that she could with her hair the way it was. Fluttershy appeared awkward as the focus went onto her, away from his own emaciation.

"Fluttershy? Are you okay?" The purple mare asked, trying to get to the bottom of it. The yellow pegasus only looked away. "Is there something wrong with you?" Now she nodded, hesitantly. "Would you care to tell us?" She looked away again, a sign that she did not want to. "So you're not going to tell us?" Again, she nodded, all without saying a word. "Yes, you're not, or yes, you will?"

Fluttershy attempted to shake her head no, but faster than Azure's eyes could track, the miniature farmer pony was on the table next to her, aiming to put an end to the speculation.

"Good gravy, girl, what's wrong with you?!" Applejack exclaimed. Now the pegasus realized she was backed into a corner, and evidently, did not see any way she could get out of this without talking about it.

"I don't want to talk about it." The voice was clear, masculine, and definitely not Fluttershy. The voice was so unfitting Azure had to hold on to something nearby so he wouldn't completely lose his balance.

So all of us save for Apple Bloom were affected...and...wait, wasn't there some strange-- Azure tried desperately to get his train of thought chugging along again.

Spike snorted in laughter, breaking out in a full-blown fit a few moments later.

"This is hilarious! Look at all of you!" he exploded.

Darn it, derailed again!

"We got..." he motioned to the shaggy Rarity, "Hairity," Now to the helplessly caught Rainbow Dash, "Rainbow Crash," The tongue-swollen party pony, "Spitty Pie," Now the bit-sized Applejack, "Apple Teeny," Now he motioned to him, "Azure Stickly,"

The nickname he picked out for him nearly drowned out the "Flutterguy" name he gave to the poor pegasus whose voice got tampered with, and he made a mental note to himself.

Mental note: find out what did this, throw Spike into it... Azure thought to himself, angrily, And at this point, I don't care if it's a curse.

"...I got nothin'..." Apparently, Twilight's name wasn't easy enough to work with to give her condition a strange name. "Twilight Sparkle...I mean, seriously, I can't even work with that."

The laughter that followed sounded almost alien to Azure, but Twilight was definitely laughing in a sarcastic manner.

"This is no joke, Spike," Twilight scolded, as her horn flopped around more, "Now start looking for more books so I can find a cure!" With a half-hearted groan, the baby dragon went off to do as she asked. Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash was struggling to get out of the step ladder. Azure could see now her wings were definitely just messed up from their placement alone. He wasn't sure if the wings were supposed to be rooted like that...

Eventually, the blue pegasus was able to dislodge herself from the ladder.

"I think we'll find a cure to this curse at Zecora's place!" she announced as soon as she was airborne. Now that she was, Azure winced again when he realized her hovering looked just about as broken as Ditzy Doo's was.

"It's not a curse!" The purple mare quickly leapt on the defense, saying the words so quick and going over to Rainbow's location so fast that it almost appeared that the force alone blew the pegasus back into another wall, where she once again crashed.

"I agree with Dash!" This was Applejack, still with a very noticable height problem and southern accent, "We'll go to Zecora's and force her to remove this hex!"

"It's not a hex either!" Twilight argued.

What kind of curse or hex would cause somepony's friend to start laughing? Azure thought to himself. Plus, Apple Bloom had been there with us, and yet she doesn't look--

Apparently, the mares decided that now would be the best time to argue, once again cutting into the colt's thoughts and making it impossible to hear his own thoughts with all the tumult the bickering was causing. Azure sat down and began pressing his spindly forelegs against his ears, trying his hardest to shut out all the voices, while he did something rare for him: trying to think things through.

It wasn't always his first instinct, but considering his instinct was telling him that the zebra did not mean any harm right now, he couldn't do much else but think, but the girls were all arguing and made it impossible for him to think for two seconds about all the things that had happened over the past twenty-four hours.

Leaves of blue...zebra lives in Everfree Forest...the leaves aren't a joke...there's got to be something she had been trying to tell us but we couldn't hear her over all the other stuff--

Too caught up in his introspection, Azure felt himself be lifted straight off his rump by...of all ponies, Fluttershy, sent flying back into an empty bookshelf.

"Ow...!" he groaned. Meanwhile, he heard Spike snicker.

"Sorry..." The yellow pegasus responded, still with the deep, masculine tone in her voice. Azure flinched and tried his hardest not to laugh at how it sounded coming from her.

"Rarity's hair!" Rainbow blurted out, and Pinkie began to inspect the offensive locks, much to the white unicorn...dog...thing's displeasure.

"Oh...! Oh! Pinkie, what are you doing?" Rarity protested as the pink earth pony stuck hoof and face into the hair. "Ah, really...aah! Haven't you ever heard of personal space?!"

"Nope..." The pink mare sputtered through her tongue.

"Okay, I just started paying attention," Azure groaned, trying to force himself back on his feet despite the fact his body was a lot weaker now, "What's going on...?"

"Apple Bloom is gone, too!" Twilight cut in, completely ignoring Azure's comment.

"I bet they went after Zecora!" Dash said, still hovering in a pitiably broken manner.

"Well, we better go find them," The studious pony said, throwing a brief, if somewhat hopeful, look in Azure's direction. "C'mon, everypony, let's go!" She began to lead the others out at a fast trot.

"Oh dear," Rarity said, trying to move forward. However, Pinkie was standing on one of her locks, making it impossble for the shaggy-haired pony to even move. "Oh, this is so unseemly..." The party pony released her hold, with the white unicorn making a squealing noise as she nearly fell forward. Azure began to walk as fast as he could, though his weakened body was already crying for rest by the time he made it to the door from his position.

"Hey, a little help here?!" Rainbow Dash pleaded, scraping along the ground while flying upside-down.

"Oopsie!" Fluttershy said, still in that unfitting-as-Celestia man voice that couldn't possibly pass for a curse no matter how much the others wanted to believe it, "Sorry..."

Azure turned away so that he wouldn't be caught laughing, only to see Rainbow fly into the door above and slightly in front of him, with an "Ow!" punctuating the impact. After recovering from this, she quickly flew out of the library.

Paying no attention to the others behind him, the cyan colt began to follow where he could see the others running to. Rainbow Dash was still flying in a broken fashion, trying to keep up. Pinkie and Fluttershy, running out after him, quickly got ahead, and thus Azure urged his weakened body to speed up, hoping he could catch up to the others before they completely left him behind...
--------------------------
"Really, girls? Really?!"

To say Azure Courage was in a bad mood was only a slight understatement. Right now, the pony was livid. First, he was ignored when Zecora first showed up, then, he was scolded by Applejack during a particularly topsy-turvy day. Fast-forward to next morning, and now he was a stick, weakened to the point that Fluttershy bumping him hard could lift him off his feet. With a crisis now in full force, the ponies had completely left him behind. He was now lost in the Everfree Forest, and almost completely out of breath.

If a bird so much as tried to nest in his mane, it'd probably cause him blinding pain. He wasn't sure if the others had managed to find Zecora's place yet, but he was hoping somepony would find him, rather than something. He'd hoped that the purple mare could try to talk some sense into his friends, considering he wasn't there to back her up at all.

The cyan colt slowly walked around, trying to keep his ears open for anything that might hurt him so he could try to find a spot to hide from it as soon as possible.

"I can't fight a punching bag in my condition let alone any monster!" Azure exclaimed, looking around. "This really sucks!" He snapped at a loose rock with a forehoof and sent it flying, but the impact hurt him a little. "Ah, darn it all!"

Hobbling about on three legs, the pony moved around, trying desperately to find his way back to where he could see the others again. Eventually, the pain in his forehoof dulled down and he went back to weakly trotting along.

"Az! That you?" The voice was distinctly young. Azure snapped his head up to see Apple Bloom, with a set of filled saddlebags, on her sides, practically running towards him. "Ya shouldn't be out here like that! Something's gonna get ya..."

The cyan colt withheld himself from blinking and being mad for the moment.

"I really should be asking you the same thing. The others left looking for you..." Azure said. "They're going to find Zecora's place before long..."

The filly's ears wilted just a little.

"Uh-oh, I think I'd better get back..." Apple Bloom said. "C'mon, I'll take ya to her!"

"Did she tell you what was going on...?" Azure asked, weakly stumbling after her.

"Course she did, I told her what happened to ya'll, now we gotta get movin' before they get there first so we can explain things..."

"Sure...now mind telling me what she told you?"
--------------------------
Twilight Sparkle didn't want to believe it, but after what she'd witnessed in the past few minutes after entering the Everfree Forest, it looked like the majority of her friends were right: Zecora was an evil sorceress, and she had been about to eat Apple Bloom! The smaller Applejack had somewhat gotten control of the near-flightless Rainbow Dash, and had heroically crashed her all around the zebra's home, upsetting anything in her path. The whole time, the zebra had been uttering something in a foreign language. At least, until Rainbow Dash, now without a rider, began sailing about randomly, spilling the cauldron onto the floor.

Zecora's reaction did not help her case any.

"No! Ponies, you know not what you do! You've gone and spilled my precious brew!" the zebra scolded, using that same rhyme scheme from the preceding day. The studious pony was having none of it.

"We're on to you, Zecora," warned Twilight. "I didn't want to believe you cursed us, but the evidence is overwhelming!"

"You made me look ridiculous!" added Rarity.

"You made me sound ridiculous!" said Fluttershy, still sounding as masculine as all the other times she'd spoken today.

Pinkie sputtered something completely incoherent, not that it wasn't hard for Twilight to figure out what she was trying to say.

"You ruined my horn!" The purple mare finished.

"How dare you!" the zebra raged, completely indignant at the accusations. All the evidence pointed to them, so in the unicorn's eyes, all Zecora was doing was spouting denials. "You destroy my home, destroy my work. Then rudely accuse me of being a jerk?"

"You put this curse on us, now you're gonna uncurse us," Rainbow said, wearing the muzzle that Applejack had put on her to try and steer her properly.

"It is unwise to venture down this road," Zecora continued to speak with her poetic speech, "Your actions will make my anger explode!"

The unicorn, along with her friends, had shrunk back when she spoke her warning, but Twilight could not come this far only to get defeated now.

"Where is Apple Bloom?!" the purple mare demanded, stepping forward and proceeding to do something she never thought she'd do...but then again, seeing as how Azure wasn't here to do it, she lowered her head and went in for a headbutt, but Zecora defend. The pony and zebra pushed against each other--

"Zecora! I think I found all the things ya asked for..." This was a familiar, feminine, and young southern-accented voice.

"Ah, darn it...we were too late," And an exasperated-sounding male voice. All heads turned, and Twilight felt her mouth hang agape at what she saw just outside the door to the hut.

It was the stick that had once been Azure Courage...and a perfectly safe Apple Bloom, who appeared to have her saddlebags on her, which seemed to be filled up with...something.

"Az?" Rainbow Dash asked, sounding just as confused as Twilight felt. "How'd you get here before...?"

"I didn't...you all left me behind..." Azure looked around from outside the cabin, as though he didn't want to set foot into it straight away. "Uh...wow...heh..." He looked so amused by the sight of the six ponies' handiwork that it was hard for Twilight to refrain from running up and kicking him. He shook his head, applied his forehoof to his face, and looked up with an almost exhausted look on his face. "Who's the reckless one now?"

"This is not the time, Azure," the purple mare spat in annoyance.

"I'm fine," Apple Bloom assured, stepping a little further into the cabin while Azure rested by the door. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because Zecora is an evil enchantress who cursed us and was gonna cook you up into soup!" The conviction in her voice was no less than what she felt was necessary. All the evidence pointed to it. Zecora had sent Apple Bloom out for ingredients to her own soup in which she was the main ingredient!

A few tense moments passed, before both Zecora and Apple Bloom broke out laughing.

"Et tu, Sparkle...?" Azure calmly said, sounding only slightly sarcastic.

"Oh, Twilight," the small foal chortled, "did those silly fillies finally get in yer head? You know there's no such thing as a curse..."

"Apple Bloom, sweetie, you can't just stand there and tell me this," she motioned to her friends, who were lined up right next to her now, "isn't a curse."

"Oh, please, let me do it..." That reckless unicorn cut in, hobbling into the cabin on his spindly legs with Apple Bloom quickly trotting by the lined-up ponies. "This whole thing with us being like this...isn't a curse..."

"If you will remember back, the words I spoke were quite exact," said Zecora. At this point, Twilight's memory immediately whisked her back to when she had said what she had before all this started happening.

"Beware, beware, you pony folk! Those leaves of blue are not a joke!"

"It was a warnin'..." Apple Bloom cut in.

"I had noticed it during the chase yesterday, but in the chaos that followed, it slipped my mind. I hadn't thought about what was on the ground...at our hooves..." Azure said, as though he were reading the headlines. "I had avoided it at first since I had followed Apple Bloom, but when a certain somepony decided to throw me through the air, I landed headfirst in the stuff..."

"We all walked right through it except Apple Bloom since she was riding on Applejack's back at the time. It's called 'Poison Joke' and it...well, it turns you into a living joke." The cyan colt continued. Twilight felt herself become embarrassed as she considered what she and the others had done...and what they'd said about him. She looked to the others, and remembered that her horn and Pinkie's tongue were coated with blue spots. "When you all left me behind, I wandered about, lost, and that's when I'd found Apple Bloom, unhurt, with those ingredients she's carrying now. Speaking of which, the cauldron? Yeah..."

"If I didn't know better, young colt, it would appear you like to gloat," Zecora intervened, no evidence of malevolence in her smile.

"Well, this wouldn't be the first time..." Azure's eyes looked away, and seemed to be focusing on something else. Twilight really wanted to know where the mistake was made here. The fact that Azure was right the whole time was bad enough, but the last two days had been...absolutely backwards.

"But what about the chanting?" Fluttershy asked, sounding just as lost as the studious pony felt.

"And the creepy decor?" Rarity added.

"Treasures of the native land where I am from," The zebra began, looking to two knocked over masks behind her and Apple Bloom. "This one says hello, and this one says welcome..."

"Not welcoming at all, if you ask me," the white unicorn stated, looking toward them, or trying to, through her shaggy fur streams.

"The words I chanted were from olden times. Something you would call a nursery rhyme."

Azure looked away, clearly mumbling something to himself.

"And the cauldron wasn't for me," Apple Bloom continued, having set aside the . "It was for all these herbal ingredients." She went over to a podium and toward an open book, Twilight following her over to the picture book which had pictures of the ingredients. "The cure for poison joke is just a simple old natural remedy. You just gotta take a bubble bath!" The younger sister was holding her coin-sized older sister in one hoof now.

Twilight glanced over the pages, not understanding how she could have missed such a thing.

"But I tried to find a cure in all my books and couldn't find anything," she questioned aloud. "What book has this natural remedy?"

Zecora walked up, shutting the book.

"Here is the book, you see," the zebra said as she did the above action, "Sad that you lack it in your library."

"Actually..." Twilight said, her ears folding down. If she didn't already feel ashamed of her conduct, she certainly did now. "I do have this book, but I didn't look inside because the cover was so...weird..." She regained her memory of a book she'd forced Spike to throw aside earlier, as the zebra re-opened the book on the table. "Supernaturals: Natural remedies and cure-alls that are simply...super." The only one that didn't look embarassed was Azure, but he didn't have a reason to be other than being seen in the condition he was in. "I...I...I'm so sorry, Zecora," She'd gotten caught in the moment and fully realized it. "I had the answer the whole time, if only I had bothered to look inside."

With a good-natured chuckle, as though the group hadn't wrecked her hut, the non-pony looked from joked pony to joked pony, saying "Maybe next time, you will take a second look, and not judge the cover of the book."

The lesson hit the purple unicorn like a train. Of course! Silver, a blind pony, she had judged because of his disability, and...he was connected to Azure. Twilight turned to the cyan colt, who hadn't said anything up until now.

"Az, ya seemed pretty mad back there in the Sugarcube Corner," Applejack remembered.

"Oh no, I wasn't mad, just...disappointed." Azure said. "It might have been something we all wanted to forget, but...I grew up with Virid. He said some pretty mean things to the non-unicorns here in this room. How he was ready to deem them worthless because they didn't have horns?"

Twilight blinked once, then twice. Pinkie sputtered something unintelligible, but it was likely something relevant.

"It was more or less the same thing here, just on a town-wide level," the scrawny pony continued, weakly walking around. "I was surprised to see you all were still ready to judge another. Like I said, leaving aside the stripes, she looks enough like a pony to me..."

The room remained completely quiet as Azure walked over to Twilight.

"...And, uh, one other thing about the Sugarcube Corner..." he continued. "How I'll 'attack anything if I had half a mind to'...apparently, I'm not the only one..."

The purple mare suddenly found herself wondering if she'd given Azure something he could fall back on during their arguments. She grit her teeth somewhat and tried not to think about that action as she turned back to Zecora.

"Zecora? Would you be kind enough to make another batch of the herbal bath?" the studious pony asked.

"Mix it up, I certainly will," Zecora said, apparently not dropping her rhyme scheme anytime soon. "Yet I am missing an herb from Ponyville."

"But whenever Zecora comes to town," Apple Bloom spoke up again, "all the shops are mysteriously closed..."

The purple mare looked back to her gathered friends, who were lined up (except for Applejack, who was hitching a ride on one of the others) close to the door.

"Oh, well...I think we can help you with that," she said, already mentally planning her next friendship report...
--------------------------
Azure Courage couldn't express more relief that this whole thing was finally over. When the "cursed" ponies finally returned to town to help out Zecora's case, as expected, they all ran home, a feat that left the colt disappointed, yet unsurprised. After all, even Twilight had been forced into believing the gossip in light of the "evidence". It took seven surprisingly calm ponies drenched in poison joke and needing a cure to convince the town the zebra that lived in the Everfree Forest was harmless, but the reward was double.

One, the group could finally be rid of their ailments. Two, Zecora could come into town and not be ostracized. The only bad part about this whole thing was that the cyan colt found himself in a place he suddenly realized was awkward as soon as he stepped inside: a co-ed spa in Ponyville.

Granted, the gender proportion was somewhat female-heavy in Ponyville; Azure knew this, but he wished the spa was segregated. It wasn't that he felt exposed around the girls at all, nor did they seem to feel exposed around him; he just honestly felt awkward at the prospect of being in the same pool of water with a mare, never mind...five. So, he was going to patiently wait his turn, which none of the mares seemed to object to, something Azure was grateful for.

"Miss Zecora," one of the twins that owned the spa said to the zebra overseeing the bath, "I would love to get the recipe for this bath. It's simply luxurious!"

And fast-working... noted Azure as he looked at his friends. They hadn't even been in the bath for more than ten seconds when it took effect. They were relaxing, a feat the colt felt entitled to do, but he wasn't about to tell a group of females that. There were two reasons for this: one, he wasn't that kind of pony; two, he preferred living.

"Applejack!" Apple Bloom called out for the miniature mare, clearly worried, and the male unicorn soon realized why: her sister wasn't with the others...because of her size, she probably might have drowned with the other five in there. "Hey, where's Applejack?"

There was a short panic among both the mares in the tub and Azure himself had to check to make sure she wasn't underfoot or underneath his bony body. He looked at his spindly forelegs, and prayed that his turn would come up soon.

"I'm right here, little sis," Applejack called out, now sounding normal, and as Azure looked, he had to refrain from laughing at the state the orange mare was in: stuck in a large cup, looking like a turtle on its back. "I ain't tiny no more!"

"Ooh," Rarity commented, moving around in the water a little, the excess streamers of fur gone from her body. "I have never felt so lovely in all my life."

This question forced Azure to wonder what it'd feel like when he got cured. After moving slow and being weak for the majority of the day, being immersed in the cure and being cured as a result would likely feel different to him.

"Oh my gosh!" Unfortunately, Pinkie was able to talk again. Then again, the male unicorn began to accept the motormouthing of the party pony as a reality, and actually had started to miss it. Now that her tongue was no longer swollen, she could speak once more. "I never realized how horrible it is to not be able to talk. I mean I love talking so much and when I couldn't talk because my tongue was all," she made a noise while demonstrating what exactly her tongue was like. "It was the worst! Don't you agree, Fluttershy?"

Fluttershy looked over to Pinkie, and, with her normal, soft and feminine voice, gave an affirmtive. The entire room went up in laughter.

Hopefully, after all that's happened, things will go back to normal, thought Azure to himself, remaining relatively close to the tub the whole time, sitting down. I was actually getting worried there...

"Hey Az, how come you aren't cured yet?" Dash asked, cutting into his train of thought again. However, since it wasn't particularly important, the unicorn-who still had a weak, spindly body, abandoned his introspection to repeat himself.

"I told you before," Azure replied. "I can wait my turn. I'm in no hurry."

"Why wait," Rainbow continued, and her face once again twisted into that look she'd given him on that one night in which he'd-- "You can just come bathe with us..."

The cyan colt faltered, physically becoming flustered. "Well...um..." He didn't want to be caught blushing here, not with so many eyes looking at him...

"Come on in, Azie," said Pinkie, apparently being completely oblivious as to why he was being so awkward. "The water's fine..."

"The water temperature isn't my problem..." Azure replied, still looking out of place, turning completely to them and sitting down.

"Shouldn't be..." whispered the blue mare, who was doing some kind of backstroke in the water with her wings.

The cyan unicorn opened his mouth to retort again, but all that came out of his mouth was a startled gasp. The next thing he knew, he was under water, and he could very clearly see multiple colors of hooves.

What the--who pushed me...? As soon as the shock wore off, Azure felt his joints start to crack, and he began to look at his submerged body. The bones vanished, once more hidden underneath the defined muscles he'd built up his whole life. He held his breath as his body "absorbed" the cure. With his strength coming back to him, he turned over underwater, just making out an amused-looking Apple Bloom having taken his place at the lip of the pool. Oh, oh Celestia, was I that weak just now?!

He remained underwater while the cure finished seeping through his pores and doing...whatever it did to rid him of the poison joke's influence. The instant he felt like he was cured, he decreased his buoyancy and reared back against the bottom of the pool.

Before any of the mares could realize what had happened underwater, he launched himself off the bottom of the pool, straight over Apple Bloom's head and sliding to a halt on his wet hooves a few moments later. He tried to process what happened, his mane obscuring his vision.

Okay, I got pushed into a tub full of mares by a filly... The cyan colt thought. Please let this be the end of the weird days...

"Why'd you push me...?" Azure asked aloud.

"Ya'll were takin' forever!" Apple Bloom responded, completely unaware of the colt's discomfort.

Right, she wouldn't know the implications and Applejack would kill me if I explained... the pony reminded himself.

"Well, now that I'm normal again, I'm just going to...assert my strength again. So, I'll just go work out until I feel like I can pass out..."

With that, the cyan unicorn began to tear out, hoping to Celestia, Luna, and any other applicable figures that would grant him good luck, two things were to happen to him.

One, that the cure was permanent even though he didn't just relax in the bath for a few minutes first.

Two, that none of the mares saw him blush before the small foal decided to take matters into her own hands.

Chapter 14: Shadows in the Trees

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Chapter 14: Shadows in the Trees
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Azure Courage felt relieved to see things had fallen back into their normal rhythm now that the town realized there was nothing to fear from the zebra, Zecora. He'd enjoyed a day off while he took some time to think, but now he was intent on going back to work to see what he had to do next. He lazily lifted his hard hat off his head before setting it back down, rubbing at his neck just a little.

"Don't know why, but I'm feeling restless again..." the cyan colt thought aloud to himself. "I haven't really had too much to do other than the usual working and training, but for some reason, that just isn't enough."

He cast a look up to the sky.

"I know Rainbow would probably help me out if I asked, but do I really want to deal with that?" he whispered to himself, remembering all too well the last time he'd asked her for help. "Really don't want it to be thirty percent teasing and five percent hoping the others don't get the wrong idea...like last time."

Eventually, the unicorn managed to reach the job board where he would find his next assignment. The last assignment had just been done, and Azure was ready to find out what his next job was going to be. After some waiting, the teal pony managed to check the list, and lined up his name with the duty he was expected to fulfill.

He blinked once, then twice, trying to see if he read it right.

"Help repair damages at Sweet Apple Acres..." Azure mumbled to himself. "Wait, that's...Applejack's farm..."

"Did you hear about what happened over at that apple farm last night, Steel?" asked one of Azure's co-workers, Archie Tact. He was one of the other few unicorns on the job, but when it came to it, he was the one that always laid out the blue prints for some of the newer buildings in town.

"Yeah, sure did, Archie," said the dark gray earth pony in response. "Lot of wild animals came and really wrecked up the place..."

The cyan colt could hear his heart beginning to beat as his mind called him into the past. He remembered the time Fluttershy had been losing sleep over what Rainbow had assumed were wild creatures. They were creatures, all right, but not anything from this world. The Shadow Ghouls had been vicious little creatures, and had Fluttershy not known they weren't animals...and had they been organic...it made Azure Courage shiver to his core thinking about the possibilities.

"Hey, A.C., you alright?" Steel asked, tipping the colt off that he was probably shivering a little too much.

"Oh, it's nothing, Steel," Azure responded, adjusting his hard hat and hiding his eyes with his mane as he turned to them. "Well, I've got to get going on my job. So yeah, I'll just be doing that..."

"Hey, aren't you friends with the Apples?" Archie asked. "More specifically, the older daughter?"

"That's right," Azure replied, slowing down just enough to answer that question.

"Oh, then we shouldn't keep you," said the short burgundy unicorn with a positively mischievious grin on his face. He gave the taller earth pony a nudge, and Steel matched the grin.

The cyan colt scoffed. Of course they were going to reference that fact.

"Nah, go on..." Steel said. "Sure this job's...important...to you."

"You have no idea..." The spiky-maned unicorn responded, galloping straight out before his co-workers could question it further, which was good for them.

Archie and Steel both took a few moments to gape at each other. The shorter one snorted, while the taller one chortled a little, quipping:

"You owe me ten bits, Arch..."
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Truth be told, Applejack hadn't ever seen animals like that before. That, however, was the least of her worries. What worried her was the fact they'd attacked her home, attacked her livelihood. There was hay to pay for that, but there was something about the attack that had to be sorted out first. Some parts of the farm had suffered quite a bit of damage during the attack, certainly nothing her nor her brother could handle.

While he seemed hesitant to go through with it himself, ultimately, Big had decided to allow some extra hooves on the farm to help fix the damages so the less able (Apple Bloom and Granny Smith) wouldn't worry so much. Yet, the orange mare felt herself feel just a little ill on the inside knowing complete strangers would be helping. At least she could handle asking her friends for help.

The farmer mare quickly planted her forehooves and bucked one of the apple trees hard. She was still a little sore from the attack of those strange wolves last night. It was dark, so she couldn't really discern other features other than glowing yellow eyes. Yet, she still had a job to do, and even if she would soon be needed to help the extra ponies on the job, she'd do some harvesting in the meantime.

Her mind drifted to her friends. All of them would have unquestionably helped her, and the damages weren't that extensive. Then again, there was going to be rain tomorrow, and if the harvest just continued as planned, there would be some leaking that'd make sleeping uncomfortable, to say the least. With a sigh, Applejack lifted the saddlebags and began making her way back to the farmhouse.

She got closer to the farm house until she could hear something...

"Az, that you?" Apple Bloom's voice was loud and clear, from the front of the house. "You part of the team that's supposed to be helpin' out?"

"Well, yeah, I am," Azure's voice came through, very clear. The earth pony female immediately did a double take and realized she had forgotten that the cyan unicorn was in fact a member of that construction crew. She'd seen him working a few times just passing by, and of course, sometimes he'd pass by in the square when he was on break with a hard hat on. The hard hat almost always made him look...out of place.

The orange farmer mare didn't remember picking up the pace directly, but before she knew it, she was inside the house, and crossing into where she could see Azure, looking slightly winded, conversing with Apple Bloom about what happened.

Applejack grit her teeth. Of course she wouldn't know. She had to dodge the question when Apple Bloom asked, since she didn't want to worry her little sister too much about the wild animals. Still, if those reinforcements hadn't shown up after hearing the commotion...

"Oh, Applejack," Azure said, looking up at her. His horn became alight with that light blue glow, and a few moments later, his hard hat off his head. "Good to see you're alright..."

"What," The orange mare felt only a little slighted at his comment. Normally she'd have been a little more livid about the notion she couldn't take care of herself, but-- "Ya'll think I can't handle a little trouble?"

"Not at all," The cyan colt responded. "but I couldn't forgive myself if I found out something bad happened to you."

If there was a pin dropping at Rarity's shop, Applejack could have sworn she heard it over the sounds of her heart skipping beats again. This was the second time he'd done that now, and, being honest with herself, it felt--

"Applejack, you're lookin' a little red there," Apple Bloom cut in. The mare adjusted her hat, fighting to remain composed in light of the fact she had started to blush again.

"A-Apple Bloom, would you mind runnin' along?" the orange mare said.

"But why?" the small filly asked, not appearing to get the reason. But Applejack could tell her little sister knew a little more than she let on, and didn't want to take the chance. So far she'd been lucky enough to...

"I need to show Az the damages so he knows what exactly he needs to do," The older sister continued, regaining her former composure. "Ya'll can't be around while the place is bein' fixed."

Apple Bloom seemed reluctant to go, and she sure voiced it, "I'm not a baby anymore, Applejack! I can help!"

"Not with heavy lifting," Azure spoke up, shaking off an apparent mental lag on his part; he looked to be thinking about something up until this point. "Maybe when you grow up a little more, but right now...well, I don't think you'll be able to move as much as I need to."

The yellow pony sighed, and walked off, grumbling about something under her breath the whole time, and something about wishing she had popcorn a few seconds before. Applejack felt herself start to get nervous that her kid sister noticed all that had happened a few moments ago, but she knew she had something to do.

"So, guess I'd better take a look and see what needs fixed, then," Azure said, replacing the hard hat on his head.

"'Course," Applejack responded. "Let's go, then..."

It took about ten minutes to go over the various damages the wild animals had caused. The cyan colt seemed particularly alarmed at the moderate-sized hole on the roof, and did seem just as shocked when she showed him some of the damage on the orchard. It wasn't until Applejack finished going down the list of damages did Azure finally say something a little more than "What happened here?"

"Applejack," he started. "What exactly happened here? I heard wild animals attacked, but...how'd that hole on the roof get there?"

The orange farmer felt herself blush only a little as she recalled exactly how that happened.

"Well, I kinda threw one of 'em a little too hard into the roof. Wasn't until other ponies came in, though, that they finally went back," she said. The cyan colt looked slightly relieved at this.

"Still, what exactly happened? The damages would be a bit too extensive for some wild animals I'm picturing, and the other ones would be able to do that kind of damage on their own..." Azure responded, his brown eyes showing genuine concern. "Mind telling me?"

"Well, ya see, Az..."
---------------------------------------------
It was after midnight when Applejack awoke to the sounds of distant howls. Normally, she'd have passed them off as timberwolves, but the howls sounded...a little different, and off. For one thing, it wasn't anywhere close to Zap Apple season yet--
---------------------------------------------
"'Zap Apples'?" asked Azure, interrupting.

"Oh, you'll find out what those are later, sugarcube," Applejack responded, continuing to tell her story...
---------------------------------------------
It wasn't Zap Apple season yet, and the wolf's cry was off. It sounded distorted. Being curious, the farmer mare woke up and began to investigate the noise, and found herself looking at about a dozen animals of some sort. They were strange, but due to how dark it was, Applejack couldn't make out any discernible features other than glowing yellow eyes and vaguely wolfish shapes.

The strange creatures had been on the orchard, but as soon as they noticed her there, they started coming at her! Applejack wasn't completely out, though. Though she was rudely awakened, she was far from being too sleepy to simply stand there in shock while animals attacked her. The ornery pony quickly began to fight them off. Though their numbers were big, they seemed to be surprisingly...fragile. Every hit Applejack landed seemed to knock them stupid for a moment and she could, for the most part, avoid their attacking her, though one of them struck her bluntly in the side at one point, a hit she was starting to feel by the time the morning arrived.

Even so, Applejack felt she'd soon be overwhelmed had ponies not been woken up by the commotion. Not only did her older brother come to her aid, but some nocturnal ponies had overheard the attack and come to investigate.

As soon as this happened, the strange creatures turned tail and ran into the night. The awakened Apple family members had reluctantly decided to ask for a little help with repairs so they could stay on their apple harvesting schedule...
---------------------------------------------
Azure Courage listened to Applejack's brief account with both ears tuned in full tilt. As soon as he heard about the distorted cry and the glowing eyes, he couldn't deny he was starting to get really worried. He remembered the details from the Shadow Ghouls...the distorted cricket's cry, the sea of glowing eyes...

"Az, you alright?" Applejack's voice broke him from his thoughts on the matter. "Ya really look worried...I'm fine..."

The way her voice sounded as she relayed the second part sounded slightly off. He looked up to her.

"N-nothing," Azure instantly regretted saying that, knowing she'd have seen right through him.

"It sure don't look like nothin'!" the earth pony said, taking another step closer to him. "I know ya good enough to know when somethin's not right with you, Az."

The cyan colt felt only slightly off-put now that she was looking directly into his eyes, maybe only one step from him now, and she was definitely scowling, a kind of look that told him he wasn't going anywhere until he was honest.

"I was just wondering if there was any other damage you hadn't shown me yet..." Azure tried to play it off, even though he knew it was futile. He wasn't dealing with Fluttershy or Rarity, where, if you brought up something completely different, they'd be more willing to talk about that instead. No, he was dealing with an earth pony mare that was just as stubborn as he was when it came right down to it. Yet, he didn't want to tell her, not if he could help it...he knew she'd likely get incredibly aggressive against it and might complicate matters.

"Ya'll are hidin' something from me, aren't ya?" Applejack took a step forward again, so that she was so close Azure began to feel claustrophobic and he took an instinctive step back.

"What would I have to hide?" asked the cyan colt, only knowing he was delaying the inevitable.

"Ya seemed real worried when I mentioned the glowing eyes," The orange mare repeated, closing the distance between them. "You're not easy to scare, Az, but when you do scare, even Pinkie could probably tell at a glance."

Do I really look that nervous? Azure thought to himself, taking another step back against his conscious will. I know that if my hunch is right, she'll find out anyway, but I really don't want to worry her if it can be helped...

When the male pony failed to respond, Applejack took another step forward.

"What is it, Az?" she asked again. "What's got you so worried?"

I'm not getting out of this either... the male pony thought. He inhaled, ready to continue his wave of denial.

"Hey, A.C.!"

The familiar voice of his co-worker immediately broke the cyan colt's statement, and the conversation, completely off. Azure whirled around to witness four of his co-workers, two of which were Archie Tact and Steel, who had been asking him if this job was important to him in that snarky way they had.

"Were we interrupting something?" Steel asked.

"No," Azure responded, feeling a sense of deja vu creeping up on him. The last time somepony asked him that when he was alone with Applejack... "I just got all the damage stuff. If we work together, we should be able to get this sorted out before the day ends."

He cast a look to a momentarily stupefied Applejack, who seemed utterly peeved that he'd dodged her question entirely. He sighed just a little. As the other workers immediately set out to gather what other supplies hadn't already been moved into place to begin the repairs, the orange farmer mare lightly tapped him on the nape of his back.

She was shooting him a glare, not one quite as nasty as the ones Twilight gave him on occasion, but it was still enough to let him know exactly what she was feeling.

"You ain't gettin' off that easy, Az..." she warned, walking past him in a huff. Azure sighed and hung his head, staring more at the ground than anything else as she passed.

Well, I can't just leave her like this anyway if it is what I think it might be... he thought to himself. The unicorn then turned, preparing to do his job.
---------------------------------------------
It took from morning to late afternoon, but the group of ponies on Sweet Apple Acres had managed to patch up the damages caused on the farm. Azure was grateful for the early release, and his fellow co-workers had decided to leave him to his own devices when the job was done. The cyan colt was unspeakably thankful that they left. It meant he could investigate the cause for the damages.

Well, he had some things he had to take care of beforehand, but he had to be sure before he told Applejack of--

"Alright, Az, time's up," Applejack said, catching him as he passed back through the house, preparing to take off to make the trips he needed to. "What had you so worried earlier?"

If the cyan colt hadn't had some time to himself during the repairs, he probably still would have been caught without a word to say for himself. However, while he was more or less busy with the job of the day, he had time to think of what to do about the problem he perceived. He'd effectively remove two obstacles, if he played it off just right.

"Well, to be honest, Applejack," Azure responded, making an effort to stay calm as he relayed his "reason", "I'm just a little concerned it might happen again tonight..."

"Why would it happen again, partner?" The orange mare asked. "Critters don't usually try again if ya run 'em off once..."

"I just want to make sure it doesn't..." The unicorn continued, holding out a forehoof as he lifted his hard hat from his head and let it float off to one side. "So, I'll be back later tonight to do a stakeout."

Azure Courage began to trot away, seeing as how Applejack hadn't yet said anything in response. He had just reached the door and began to open it when the farmer finally managed to find words again.

"Ya don't have to trouble yourself like that!" she finally said, trotting quickly up to him. "I can take care of myself, Az!"

With only sincerity in his heart and eyes, he turned back to her, meeting her green eyes.

"It's really no trouble, and I know you're capable," he said, just as simply as he could, "but I know I'd never forgive myself if something bad happened to you."
---------------------------------------------
Applejack instinctively took a step back and went up on her hind legs, leaning on a nearby wall for support. Azure didn't even see how her eyes glowed or the effect his words were having on her. She could tell he was being honest with his sentiment, but her heart started skipping beats again, even worse than earlier on the same day. She raised a forehoof to her chest in an effort to quell her racing heart.

Her face was just as red as the apples she harvested.

She tried to tell herself that he was just trying to be friendly, that there wasn't anything deeper behind his words, but as far as she knew, he hadn't really said anything of the sort to the other girls. That was what made it so hard for Applejack to just simply play it off as Azure being himself, especially since he seemed to keep doing it.

Eventually, the earth pony mare managed to stabilize herself as she lowered herself back onto her four legs.

If that city pony was trying to sweep her off her hooves...it was starting to work.
---------------------------------------------
Twilight had spent the better part of the day studying and reading like she usually did. Sure, she had friends now, but she also still had her studies to attend to, and after that mess with Zecora, she was taking it easy.

Well, "taking it easy" for Twilight Sparkle meant studying only half as much as normal and spending the rest of the day reading actual books. She had just finished the second chapter of the book that she was on when there was a loud slam downstairs, startling her.

"Ever hear...of knocking...?!" This was Spike, groaning in pain. He was obviously hit by the door.

"Sorry, Spike," This was a winded, excited-sounding Azure, the latter of which was not really normal. "Where's Twilight?"

"Oh, is that why you were in such a rush?" The baby dragon asked in that usual teasing tone of his that seemed to spring up more and more whenever Azure was involved. "She's upstairs again, nose-deep in books."

"Come on up," The studious mare called out, loud enough to be heard, "I'm not actually studying right now."

Truth be told, the purple unicorn wanted to know what had Azure so...flustered. He usually didn't get overly excited without a good reason to be. Well, for the most part anyway. He was still the most aggressive pony she knew, and Celestia help her, sometimes she wondered what he was up to.

"Twilight, I've got some bad news..." Azure said, entering the doorway and stepping inside. He looked just as out of breath as he sounded before, but his brown eyes were alight with worry, something definitely not normal.

"What is it?" She immediately closed the book, not caring if she lost her page or not - a worried Azure Courage was a rare sight, and most of the time, it meant there was something really wrong. Something that she had, for the most part, repressed into the back of her mind, resurfaced, along with the fact Pinkie and Rainbow had been along earlier to tell her what had happened last night. "Don't tell me..."

"I think whoever sent the Shadow Ghouls is back again." Azure responded. "I was over at Sweet Apple Acres today because my construction company got a request from them..."

"Pinkie and Rainbow were here earlier," she recalled. "They told me the place had been badly damaged for a simple wild animal encounter."

"She described a distorted wolf's cry," The cyan colt continued, sounding completely serious. "And the glowing yellow eyes. All signs point to something related to it, but the Shadow Ghouls, I remember, had distorted cricket cries."

"I'll look it up in that book you got earlier and see if there's anything else we missed." Twilight said. "After what you just said, maybe we'd better find out what we're dealing with."

"Sounds good," Azure responded. "I have to ask, did you find that counter spell yet?"

"No," The studious mare felt as though she'd only just remembered it, but being pacifist at heart, she never really got around to it, what with her friendship studies taking precedence. "I...really haven't found time for it."

"I see," the pony observed, nodding a little. "Well, you are Princess Celestia's student. I'd imagine you have a lot more to do than just that one thing, and after that whole thing with Trixie, well..."

"Please, it's nothing to brag about," Twilight said, repeating what she'd said to Spike after that whole thing ended. Only now did something occur to her, and she turned to face Azure, getting off her bed so that she could more directly address him. "Wait."

"What?" Azure asked.

"I want to know," the purple unicorn continued. "What exactly do you plan to do?"

"I'm going to go back over there as soon as I take care of some other stuff and do a stakeout, like when Dash and me went over to Fluttershy's that night." The cyan colt explained. "If it shows up..."

"You're going to fight it, right?" Twilight asked with a neutral tone in her voice.

"Of course I am!" Azure responded with a little more force and volume than was necessary. "I know you don't exactly like it when I fight, but..."

"No, no," The purple mare said, trying to diffuse the upcoming argument. She really didn't want to turn this situation into an argument. Even if he did just concede... "I don't like it when you fight, but when it's like this...well, it's obvious whoever's behind this isn't looking for a friend. And neither are the creatures they're sending after us."

To say that Azure looked surprised was an understatement. Perhaps it was the fact she wasn't trying to argue with him over it.

"Azure, do what you have to do," She continued, "Just be careful..."

"Okay then," The unicorn finally shook off the fact she had basically condoned his use of force in the face of danger, and gave a small smile. "I will, at least, as much as I can be. If this turns out to be what we think it is...you'll have to write the princess about this."

With that, he turned and left at a quick pace. The studious pony felt a smile creep onto her face as she listened to him leave.

"'Do what you have to do'...I can't believe I'm encouraging him!"
---------------------------------------------
As soon as the sun began to fully set, Azure Courage began making his way back to Sweet Apple Acres for the stakeout he said he would do. The pony didn't take anything with him. He was going to be all business from dusk 'til dawn, or until the Shadow Ghouls were repelled, whichever came first. He adjusted his headband, probably the only thing that never left his person.

Given he'd walked the same path many times in the past, even in the dark, it was hard to forget. As he walked, Azure found himself recalling the times he'd taken this path.

Applejack herself had told him the way home when he'd got hopelessly lost on his move-in day and wound up, by some force of luck, in her family's orchard of all places. That day, he had thought she was making a pass at him, but she clearly wasn't, nor did she seem to bring it up again. He took the path later on to see if he could talk her out of trying to harvest all the land her farm covered on her own.

He found himself recalling an incident he'd rather have forgotten.

That fall again... thought the colt to himself. Funny how sometimes I wind up thinking about it whenever Applejack's involved...

Paying that little fact no mind, his mind soon returned to his friend's words. He then recalled one of Applejack's reactions to what he was saying earlier today.

I wonder now...am I really sounding like that? The pony thought to himself. Applejack's a really good friend, but...I...I don't know if she really sees it that way or if it just makes her feel awkward...

Despite being old enough to live on his own in a new city, Azure Courage never fully understood mares. Part of it might have been the fact he never really made a conscious attempt to approach them in anything other than a friendly manner. Far as he knew, males and females were essentially the same with some exceptions. By the time he'd moved to Ponyville, he'd figured out more exceptions, but even after being friends with six girls at once, the colt still hadn't figured out enough.

In short, most of the time, he treated the girls as he would any other of his friends. So far, it seemed to work for him.

"Alright, I'm back," Azure mumbled to himself as he got closer, once more thinking aloud. "Lights are still on. Don't think I'll be disturbing anypony..."

The pony finally reached the porch, and, with one eye tuned in to his surroundings, began to knock on the door. As he lowered his forehoof, he began to look around.

Nothing's moving...good, so nothing's followed me here, the pony thought. Wouldn't want to lead more trouble over here...

Thankfully, Applejack was the one who answered the door, not looking any different from before. Azure breathed a small internal sigh of relief at not seeing her acting any different, either.

"So you're really gonna do it?" she asked, not at all sounding surprised.

"Just like I said," Azure replied, stepping inside. "I had to check on some things before I could come back. Didn't see anything when I went in the front door." Something occurred to him now, and he had to voice it. "What about the rest of your family? Do any of them know why I'm back?"

"They do, though they don't see the reason why you're so worried 'bout it..." the orange farmer responded.

After what happened with Fluttershy, of all the ponies to attack, Fluttershy, I can't be too sure... The colt thought to himself.

"Well, can't hurt to humor me," said Azure, smiling, hiding any evidence he was thinking of anything else with what he believed to be a good enough mask.

"I guess not, but where're you gonna be all night?"

That was a question he hadn't really answered, but he didn't need long to figure out his answer. Sweet Apple Acres covered a lot of land, that much was certain, but it also had multiple buildings and floors.

"Think I can stake out up there?" The unicorn asked at last, making a motion to where he needed to go, straight up. Applejack followed. "If I can get up there, I should be able to see everything on the farm before it gets to us."

"Well, ya can, but it's more of an attic," Applejack responded. "Storage place."

"I'll have to make do..."
---------------------------------------------
As the hours passed, Azure carefully moved about in the attic. Most of the Apples' storage boxes weren't too in the way, but it was still tough to reach the west window and the south window due to the sheer volume of stuff that was there. Each time he checked, he was met with a negative reading. Though the average pony might have simply abandoned the stakeout and went to sleep, the colt was having none of that.

No matter how sleepy he got, he was going to wait until the sun's rays broke the horizon before he got some sort of shut-eye. Each negative search did not make his spirit falter; as a matter of fact, he was secretly grateful for the lack of action. However, he knew that if he saw something coming, he would need to alert the others before he went to investigate.

The colt rubbed at one of his eyes as it passed one in the morning, and he shook his head to clear the sleepiness.

"I know you're out there..." he grumbled. "Just like you were back when this was at Fluttershy's..."
---------------------------------------------
At a safe distance away, a hooded unicorn watched Sweet Apple Acres. Though his eyes were obscured by the shade of the hood, one could just make out the discomforted grimace on his face.

It was the same pony from before.

"Master, are you sure that you want me to attack the Honesty Element again? ... I know, sir, we meant to test their ability, but now the Non-Bearer is there as well. ... Are you sure this testing is a good idea? I almost got discovered."

There was some silence, and the dark magic wielding pony sighed.

"Alright, if this is your new plan, then I will follow through with it..." His horn lit up, the blue-black color it took when he cast the summoning spells he was so good at. "Doesn't mean I'm not gonna treat this as 'just a test'..."
---------------------------------------------
It was getting harder and harder for Azure to remain awake as the one o'clock hour dragged on and on with no sign of movement or other indicators that something bad was about to happen. He'd worked here all day, then run himself to Twilight's, then to his house. Without resting too much, he then moved back to the farm and started the stakeout.

As the pony turned away from the window, he felt his consciousness start to wane, and he almost fell flat on his stomach trying not to fall completely asleep. He knew that if he so much as laid down in the state he was in, he was going to doze off, and sometimes he tended to sleep like a train.

A refreshing scent began to drift up the stairwell, and Azure immediately snapped up, alert.

"Coffee?" As much as he knew thinking aloud in the presence of other ponies was never any good, it was the only thing keeping him awake presently.

"Knew ya'll needed a pick-me-up, Az," The familiar, accented voice of Applejack entered his ears. A few moments, she appeared, delicately balancing a mug on one of her hooves as she entered the attic with him. He took it in his magic, trying his hardest to maintain his grip until he could bring the hot drink closer to him. All he could see in his mind's eye was the mug slowly being brought to him, cradled in the cyan glow of his magic.

He brought the mug to his mouth, and took hold of it in one hoof so he wouldn't fumble it now. As he sipped at the liquid, he already began to feel energized from the warmth of the beverage as well as the caffeine within it.

Something warm and soft wrapping around him disrupted the pony from his thoughts as he lowered the mug. It was a blanket, large enough to fit around him when he was sitting down without sliding off, decorated with apples in various phases of ripeness and/or being devoured.

"Sure is chilly up here, ain't it?" The orange earth pony asked with a smile. It had been, remembered the unicorn, but he'd been too distracted with the more important issues at hand.

"Guess I really wasn't thinking about it," Azure shifted just a little, not really upsetting the blanket. After taking another sip of the coffee, he realized he could still feel his body warming up. Realizing he needed a distraction from this lest he let slip a stupid question, he decided to bring up a much more important issue. "How's everypony else doing?"

"Granny Smith and Apple Bloom are sawin' logs," said Applejack. "Big Mac's still up, though."

The cyan colt nodded. Big Mac was easily taller than he was, and probably had even more muscle than he did underneath the crimson fur. Not to say the orange mare next to him wasn't strong herself. Even so, he couldn't let anything happen to her, not as long as he could breathe.

He'd made a promise to the princess, after all.

"Say, maybe you should try to get some sleep too," Azure began to feel himself waking up, despite the blanket on top of him. He was still warming up, but the coffee had definitely been the right pick-me-up.

"Thanks for the concern, sugarcube," Something was just a little off in that last word, but for the life of him the colt couldn't place it, "but I think I'll keep ya company." She sat down next to him, probably within leg's length, give or take a few centimeters. "If somethin' does happen, then I'd better be awake to lend a hoof, right, Az?"

"I appreciate the gesture, Applejack, but I don't want to keep you up all night," Azure replied, sitting up a little more. He took another sip of the coffee before continuing on, "For all we know, we could be up all night without anything happening..."

Applejack scooted just a little closer, definitely within Azure's reach now. She had a rather odd smile on her face as she turned to him.

"Can't hurt to humor me, can it?"

She just used my words against me, didn't she? The cyan colt once more found himself at a loss for what to do about one of his friends' actions. It wasn't as bad as the time with Rainbow Dash during the storm, but still, she'd disarmed him.

Not that Courage could have thought of a retort fast enough...
---------------------------------------------
Applejack knew the instant Azure deflated after she used his words against him that she had won that argument. She watched him take a long sip, and adjust again under the blanket.

Just as the farmer realized exactly how close she was to the colt, a distant howl began to fill the air. It sounded just like the ones from last night: distorted. What started off as one turned into many. The cyan colt stood up, setting the mug down on a nearby box. He moved quickly to one of the windows, throwing the blanket right off of him as he went. The colt grit his teeth.

"They're here!" he snarled, using that tone of voice he'd only ever used when he was completely serious. He broke from the window, immediately rushing downstairs. Applejack, knowing that her friend may have been right all along to do this stakeout, followed him. The two ponies rushed straight down to the bottom floor, where Big, who had also seen the incoming crisis, was beginning to barricade the door and windows.

Az, how did you know this would happen...?

"Kill the lights!" Azure called out. Big broke from the barricading for a few minutes to do just that. The interior of the house became dark, making it harder to see inside, but also outside. After Big finished doing the blockading, all three merely stood there and waited. The only sound that could be heard was the two earth ponies and the unicorn breathing as the tension built up around them, strong and sturdy like an apple tree.

'Kay girl, just keep calm. You're workin' with your own brother and with the most reckless pony you've ever met, the kind of pony that'd tussle with a chimera if he had to. He ain't afraid to throw down with anythin', not even his own kin if it means he's stickin' up for what is right. You can do this, A.J. You...can...do...this...

SLAM!

Something rammed into the door hard. If it hadn't been barricaded, the structure would have likely given way and whatever was out there would have gotten in. Now that was over, the farmer could hear growling, sounding just as distorted as the wolf's cry, and she could spot movement through the windows, something she could tell didn't escape Azure's notice either.

"Quick, both of you get upstairs and make sure your family's safe...I'll stay down here and take care of things here!"

He spoke with such confidence it was hard to believe that Twilight would scold him for going it alone. Then again, the farmer mare recalled that all of them had when he'd single-hoofedly fought a chimera...and won.

Big Mac gave little more than an affirmative huff as he began to go upstairs to protect the frailer members of the household. However, Applejack felt herself torn. Of course she cared about her family, but she just couldn't leave him to fight the waves of those strange animals...not this time.

"Az, ya ain't gettin' rid of me that easy," she retorted, immediately taking a position at his side. He looked over, and once again he had that look of frustration on his face, but it immediately dissolved.

"Applejack!" This was Big Mac, sounding urgent, and not like himself. Understandable, given what was happening.

"Don't worry," assured Azure, immediately turning back to him. "I promise, I'll keep her safe!"

Again, the sincerity of his sentiment...the way he said it...Applejack refused to let herself be distracted by those thoughts now, when there was something much bigger than that. Big Mac huffed an affirmative again, though he clearly seemed reluctant to leave the younger ponies to their devices.

The walls began to get cracked. Now, Applejack could see them more clearly than before. And what she saw vindicated Azure's concern completely.

"These ain't no timberwolves, for sure!" she cried out, getting a good look at them. They had furry pelts like a pony would, only much thinner. In addition, while they had wolfish bodies, they also had some bug in them, namely, the glowing eyes and what appeared to be attennae above them. They were about Big's size individually.

Azure's horn sparked to life, a cyan glow piercing through the darkness. A hole in the wall opened up, and Azure immediately shot off a laser at it, and Applejack withheld a gasp, knowing Fluttershy wouldn't like this sort of animal abuse. Yet the colt seemed to know precisely what he was doing. Immediately, the orange mare remembered how he'd skirted around her questions, and once again caught herself wondering.

There wasn't any time for that, for the creature immediately got up, as though the attack was nothing. It reached in again, just as more holes opened, the wolves starting to slowly make waypoints in.

She turned back to Azure's problem once again, just in time to witness him shoot a slightly bigger blast of magic at the same beast that had tried invading before. This time, rather than fall back in pain, the thing burst into smoke. At first, the orange mare was shocked.

"Tougher than before..." It was barely a whisper; had Applejack not been fueled by adrenaline, she probably wouldn't have caught it. "Applejack, I'm not going to ask you to leave. I'll need your help."

At least ya admit it right away, Az...

Deciding to seek the truth later on, when lives weren't at stake, the farmer mare immediately rushed forth to one of the holes, and much like with an apple tree, bucked it hard in the face, causing it to growl in pain and shrink away from the opening in the wall it had created.

"I'd help ya even if ya hadn't asked, Az," said Applejack with a smirk, readying herself for whatever came next.
---------------------------------------------
The earth pony mare and unicorn colt began to rush all about the lower floor, going from room to room, striking the strange, encroaching creatures wherever they went. Azure would sight the nearest monster, and kick it hard in the teeth if he had too little time or didn't feel like using magic up on them. Otherwise, he would use a laser spell, charged enough to where it would at least seriously damage them.

Applejack, on the other hand, took to fighting, using her hind legs primarily, treating the wolves like an ill-behaved tree. Sometimes, she'd hit it so hard that it would bump into one of its comrades trying to get in. Distorted wolves' howls and growls filled the night, but so did their agonizing groans. They all burst into smoke when they'd sustained enough damage.

However, even though they were obviously stronger summons than before to Azure, they still kept coming, wave after wave. The fighting seemed to drag on and on, mostly because the ponies were cutting the summons off before they could make the holes too big to break through. Neither pony seemed to truly become disheartened by the ongoing attack, something Azure Courage could really be thankful for. If there was one thing he liked about his friends, they could all be as unyielding as he can get if lives are at risk.

Even so, the fighting was dragging on, and it was showing. From having to run all over the lower level to head off the encroaching wolves, the cyan colt found himself slightly out of breath, and a small magic headache was starting to set in given he had been using quite a few charged shots. Of course, the orange mare looked like she was starting to get sore.

At this rate, nothing good was going to come of it. One of them was going to get hurt, and Azure didn't want to see a friend get hurt if he could help it. After blasting back another one of the summons, causing it to dissolve into smoke, he rushed up to Applejack, who in her own way was sending one of the creatures back to the alternate dimension it came from, and began to plead his case once more.

"Applejack, please, go upstairs with Big Mac to get your strength back!" The colt panted to himself, trying not to show too much fatigue in front of her.

"No can do, Az," she rushed past him, slamming her forehoof inelegantly into one of the weakened wolves' faces, causing it to go away. "I've got kin to protect!"

"I know, but they're upstairs right now," said Azure, "I promised you that I wouldn't let you get hurt, and I don't intend on breaking that promise!"

One of the holes in the walls suddenly expanded, and a set of glowing yellow eyes could be seen. It was one of those beasts, looking quite angry and vengeful.

"Darn it!" growled Azure. "How many more are there?!" It was a frustrated question, one that he immediately regretting asking when he noticed the eyes weren't even looking at him. The colt immediately realized it was fixing those paralyzing eyes on her, but Applejack was obviously unmoved.

"Ain't nothin' gonna happen to me!" She was perfectly cool, confident, and assured of this. The colt had seen her in action, and she had managed to fend off a good deal of these things before, too...with a little help, anyway. The farmer pony immediately rushed to the bigger hole, aiming to cut off the encroachment before the other ghouls could take notice.

Something very strange happened at this instant. The eyes of the ghoul briefly altered color, and then began to move erratically. The head's shape began to change as well. Azure briefly turned to one side to address a different encroachment, but when he turned back, he heard a noise that could only be described as nightmarish.

The encroaching wolf had distorted its head in such a way that couldn't be described. It was a horrifying sight, one that nopony should ever have to behold, no matter how bad they may have lived their lives. Applejack had apparently taken sight of this distortion, and she was frozen stiff. She was shivering. Azure realized immediately he was looking at a sight he never had to see. The ear-splitting scream he heard next...it came from the wolf's mouth, more specifically, that...that...thing that was in its mouth!

Whatever that thing was doing was scaring Applejack, and scaring her badly!

"Applejack, get down!" Azure shouted, shaking off his own internal fear factor as his horn lit up again with a charged shot. However, the farmer mare was too scared to move. With a frustrated growl, the colt immediately got a better angle on the attack, and could see clearly Applejack's reaction to it. He fired off his charged laser, nailing the Shadow Wolf--that was the name the unicorn assigned to it in his mind, dead in the mouth, causing it to vanish with a loud squeal.

Azure quickly moved in front of Applejack, covering the hole with the nearest large object he could seize with his levitation. A fridge? Perfect for the job.

"Applejack, we have to get out of here!" Azure called out. "That fridge definitely won't hold 'em..."

No response. Not even a negative from the ornery pony. The unicorn blinked.

"A-Az...I-I...I can't..." It was barely a whisper, something he could only hear because adrenaline was fueling him right now. He turned quickly, and saw Applejack, her head hung, shivering violently in place. Azure grit his teeth. That Shadow Wolf's...mouth distortion had left him with a case of the chills too, but it wasn't that bad for him...

"C'mon, Applejack, what are you saying?!" The cyan pony stepped forward, trying to snap her out of it. Whoever this earth pony was before him, wasn't her...it wasn't her at all, and it frightened him to see her this shaken up. "You can do this! We'll fight them off together!"

Applejack looked up, and now he could see quite plainly how scared she was. The tears were already spilling over, her green eyes wider than dinner plates, and her lip quivering. If she was trying to glare at him angrily, all she managed to communicate was terror and hopelessness, something that was not like her at all...

"And then what?!" She was frightened to her core, and her voice wavered, showing it quite plainly. "They're just gonna keep comin' and comin' until they finally get us! We've been fightin' them for a long time, Az!"

Azure felt himself start to shake. It wasn't fear he was feeling, aside from the fact that a frightened Applejack was something he never wanted to see. It was anger. He wasn't aware of it, but his eyes were starting to glow, much like they had with Virid.

Whoever did this...will pay...
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If ever there was a moment Applejack felt like it was all over, it was right then when she stared straight into that monster's mouth. She saw the most beastly, terrifying thing she had ever witnessed. Deep down, she swore nothing was ever going to top the terror she saw, nor the ear-splitting scream that came out of her mouth. The orange mare wanted to scream, but the best she could do was yell at Azure. He never yielded, a trait she could always admire, but...but in light of what she'd witnessed the past couple of nights...it was overwhelming. The fear had come, and it was cracking through, destroying any sense of security she'd ever felt--in her own home, no less.

"They won't stop, Az!" she cried out, full of despair. "They--"

A pair of forehooves reached out around her and pulled her close, up on her hind legs. It was a warm, inviting embrace. Applejack opened her eyes--at no point did she ever recall closing them, and saw, even in the darkness, an all-too familiar patch of cyan fur.

A-Az...? she thought to herself, and only here did she start to realize the density of the muscles underneath the city pony's fur. He'd definitely done his fair share of workouts...and she could feel it in his forelegs too, which were wound around her so tight they almost threatened to cut off her breathing...not that she was breathing when he first swept her into the hug.

"I won't let anything hurt you, Applejack," Azure said. It was a soft tone, yet intertwined with perhaps the most anger she'd ever heard in his voice. "I swear it."

Her breath hitched, and she adjusted to the embrace unconsciously. She felt...safe...reassured, like nothing bad was going to happen. Her worries dissolved almost instantly, and she felt that will, the strength to fight, restore as Azure continued to hold her. He continued to hold her for a few seconds, when a crash brought them spiraling back to reality. The forelegs disappeared, but the comfort had left her feeling rejuvenated, like it was still possible to make it through this.

"Now, come on, we need to get the others and get to higher ground. I don't think it's gonna hold much longer," The cyan colt said, no evidence to indicate he regretted saying or doing what he did. If there wasn't a much clearer danger present, Applejack would have confronted him right then and there, but there were these strange creatures to worry about first.

"Ya seem to know what you're doin'..." said the orange mare. The words sounded so foreign to her that she wondered briefly if the scare had changed her brains up too. Even Azure did a double take. "B-besides, we can't stay down here, like you said!"

The earth pony and unicorn quickly trudged up the stairs, hearing the sounds of more crashing downstairs as more holes were opened, and the holes became larger still...
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Azure Courage lead Applejack up the stairs, confused as to why she'd abandon the fight downstairs given what was at stake, but grateful that he wouldn't need to physically drag her up the stairs, as he was prepared to do that. However, when he got a look at her eyes, he could see the spark, that will to fight back, return, and that was what the unicorn really wanted to see more.

The two ponies quickly made a pit stop. The commotion downstairs had woken both the geriatric earth pony and school-age filly. The colt wasn't sure if he was imagining things, but it didn't look like this room had been touched at all during the past time of fighting. However, he had no time to confirm this, for another crash resounded downstairs, along with more distorted howls.

"There's too many of 'em down there!" Azure called out. "Everypony, up to the attic, quick!"

The two non-able-bodied ponies were still dazed from the rude awakening, and even if they wanted to argue, they couldn't, not with all the chaos that was going on. Big Mac moved quick, understanding the problem, lifting his grandmother onto his back and making a beeline for the ladder. The sounds of movement resounded behind Azure, but Apple Bloom wasn't quite out of the room yet.

He couldn't see what was coming, but it definitely sounded like one of the monsters was following them upstairs. Applejack was leading her little sister to the stairs, but at the rate they were moving, the wolf would definitely reach them before they could make it into the attic. The unicorn tensed up as the creature of darkness leapt into full view.

"What's that thing suppost' to be?!" This was a very awake-sounding and very scared Apple Bloom, apparently catching full sight of it.

"Don't you worry about it, Apple Bloom," Applejack sounded more worried about getting her little sister out of harm's way, and it showed as he heard the faint sounds of hooves dragging across a wooden floor. "Az here is gonna keep it away..."

The wolf rushed straight for the remaining ponies. The cyan colt knew he wouldn't have the time to manage a strong enough shot to defeat the demented monster, so he quickly spun around and kicked with both hind legs, catching the animal under the chin and sending it away.

"W-what about Winona?!"

The little filly's sentiment echoed in Azure's ears. He stood straight up, deeply alarmed.

"Winona?" The pony parroted, hoping he didn't forget a family member.

"She's talkin' about...!" Applejack started, her eyes reflecting genuine concern.

"Our dog!" The small yellow pony squealed, clearly upset. "Az, you gotta save her! You just gotta!"

This was followed by the saddest looking face Azure had ever seen. It was the look of a foal who had sincerely believed she was about to lose her beloved pet. The colt couldn't really understand such a pain, having never been there himself, but sweet Celestia, those sad eyes...

What am I supposed to do about that?! thought Azure to himself. I don't even know where the dog is!

"Az, look out!" The older sister warned, just as a feral growl sounded behind him. Azure whirled around to see the Shadow Wolf, clearly injured but not defeated, lunging at him for another attack. The unicorn's horn lit up, but he knew he didn't have the time to shoot off an adequate shot before--

The wolf suddenly gave a surprised growl of pain and got diverted into the wall. At first, the unicorn couldn't see why. Suddenly, he caught sight of it.

It was a tiny dog, brown and white in color, growling and snarling as it bit down into the monster. Azure could only guess that was the family pet Apple Bloom was so worried about. Realizing the dog was in danger, the pony quickly lifted the dog off with his telekinetic magic, and passed her to the small filly, who held the dog tightly, scared to let it go again.

With this over, Azure began backing slowly away, his horn lighting up. The earth ponies and family pet finally reached the attic, and the colt heard his friend call out to him:

"Az! Hurry on up!"

The pony blasted at the ghoul quickly before it could completely recover, destroying the summon. He made his way up into the cellar and, hearing the sounds of more of the summons approaching, quickly shut off the door and ladder so they'd be delayed. The Apples quickly moved to block the door with anything they could find, just in case.

The colt went up to the window, seeing the sea of glowing eyes. It was less than when they'd first appeared, but even so, there was still a great deal left.

"Over here, everypony!" Applejack called out, opening one of the windows, the one that had a good view of the orchard. "We should have more room to move about!"

Applejack lead the others out onto the roof. Big stayed with his grandmother and littler sister close by, while the orange farmer mare stuck closer to Azure. The colt surveyed the scene.

Don't panic, Azure, you still have a few dozen more tough enemies to go... The brown eyes darted about the orchards and fields below. Distorted cries sounded as the wolves continued to advance, and the colt swallowed nervously.

"Well, Az, what do we do now?" Applejack asked, clearly once more at a loss. Her confidence was starting to fade, even after what he'd had to do to give it back to her. Azure turned to her, then advanced slowly to the edge of the roof.

What do I do now? What can I do...? The colt remained silent, trying to conceal how nervous he was. He felt as though his instincts were starting to fail him, as he saw the sea of enemies and didn't quite see a way to defeat all of them. The others are probably counting on you too...c'mon, think! There's got to be somepony nearby controlling all of them...!

"I...I--" Azure started, fumbling for his words at first, when he broke off midsentence, spotting something. Though it was hard to make out at first due to the ocean of summons, he could see it, a dark blue inkspot of a glow against the darkness...? "What the--?"

He squinted, trying to get a closer look at the figure that was glowing. It was hooded, much like Zecora, but there was a huge, glaring problem with that assumption: the horn poking forth from the head of the pony. It was glowing vividly, and the unicorn below was casually sauntering up to the barn, probably believing he'd won.

Well, who was Azure to give him the benefit of believing such a lie like that?

"A unicorn...?" The cyan colt fed off the anger he'd felt earlier; hard to do considering he'd almost forgotten about the fact Applejack was frightened to her core in the rush of adrenaline that was ongoing; and he snarled, his eyes glowing cyan as his horn lit up. "Take this, you jerk!!"

The unicorn looked up, and whatever his vocal response was to the call to attention was, Azure couldn't tell. He shot off a charged shot, aimed directly for the head of the pony. The pony's horn immediately stopped glowing, and a split-second later, plumes of blue-black steam exploded outward, and at first, the male unicorn didn't get what happened, nor did he care what happened.

The shady pony gave a snarl, and audibly yelled, "You think you've won!?"

"Who are you?!" The cyan colt yelled, rearing back. Before the orange earth pony could stop him, Azure had leapt off the roof, making use of the gravity spell to slow his descent down as he beared down on the pony. He could make out some facial features, and a jet-black, distended tail. The pony appeared to have a dark blue pelt, but there was only one way to know for sure. "Show yourself!"

The unicorn shot off another blast. The enemy tried to dodge the attack, but was not quick enough. The suspiscious individual's hood burned away from the close pass of the reckless pony's laser, and Azure could just make out additional features in the darkness.

The pony's fur was definitely dark blue, a contrast to his cyan fur color. His mane, like his tail, was black, and styled into a pointed mohawk. Azure couldn't make out much else other than one scarlet-colored eye, glaring back at him.

"You haven't won yet!" He hissed, his horn taking on a blue-black glow and sparking violently.

"Get over here, you dirty--" Azure growled in response, preparing to rush forth at the unicorn that dared to attack his friends in the dead of night, when the body of the unicorn appeared to vanish, a result of the teleport spell. The colt found himself charging straight through empty air. He landed on the ground, his hooves scraping along as he tried to get traction back. Thankfully, the ground was dry, so it didn't take long for him to skid to a halt.

"Darn it..." The unicorn snarled. "He got away..."

Breathing heavily, the male pony stared at the spot where his foe had occupied not too long ago, as though expecting him to pop up somewhere else. Only after two full minutes passed did Azure finally realize that the assault was over. He breathed a sigh, and slowly began to trudge back to the farmhouse. The adrenaline that had kept him up since the battle started was starting to thin out, and soon, he'd collapse from exhaustion. He knew that much-his hooves already felt as though they were made of lead as he dragged his feet to the barn.

The sound of a door slamming open brought the unicorn to attention.

"Az!"

The voice sounded distant, but the back of his mind told him who it was. A moment later, he found himself in a very strong embrace, along with a faceful of blond mane and orange fur. The courageous colt felt himself stop short and lose just a little ground due to the force of the farmer's hug.

She was holding onto him so tight for a moment he wasn't sure he could breathe, but that was just his imagination-he just stopped for a moment. After a few seconds' hesitation, he finally moved to return it, too tired to have the same force he'd had earlier. No longer focused on battle, his mind wandered to the surprisingly soft texture of Applejack's fur, along with how toned she--

The thoughts broke off when she backed away, apparently realizing how long she was dragging the hug on. The orange farmer mare suddenly looked incredibly awkward, but Azure was too tired to point anything out.

"I-I'm glad ya made it out alright, sugarcube," Again, she placed a weird inflection on her usual petname, but again, Azure couldn't figure out why.

"I told you," The cyan colt said, closing his eyes. "I wouldn't let anything bad happen to you..."

Immediately afterward, Azure Courage collapsed into sleep, utterly exhausted from the skirmish that had taken place.
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It wasn't until late the next morning that Azure finally awoke. To him, only seconds had passed between when he closed his eyes and when he reopened them, but the first thing that hit his open eyes was a bright, white light-Celestia's sun. He immediately shut his eyes as his body came to terms with the fact he was awake again. His head started to hurt, especially at the base of his horn, due to all the magic he'd used up the preceding night.

Dear, sweet Celestia, what happened last night...? The cyan colt thought to himself, not taking full notice of his surroundings as he forced himself into a sitting position. At first, he didn't quite get it, until he opened his eyes and saw the holes in the walls surrounding him, through which light was entering.

"Those wolves...that colt...!" growled the pony as he sat straight up.

"Easy, Az, easy..." Applejack almost seemed to materialize at his side, but if Azure had paid more attention, he'd have noticed she was there since a little bit before he awoke. She was strangely calm given that last night she'd been shaken to her core by the attack. "They're gone..."

He turned to look at her completely. The holes in his memory patched up slowly, and soon the full story of the night before returned to his conscious mind, ready to be recalled when he'd inevitably have to tell Twilight of what happened so she knew what to say. Of course, that didn't quite explain why he was now sitting down on a sofa...

"How'd I get here...?" he asked, more to himself than anything. "I don't remember falling asleep..."

"After ya'll made sure we were safe, you passed out right there on the spot..." She hoisted herself onto the sofa right next to him before the colt could even realize what she had done. "I couldn't just leave ya outside, so I brought ya inside to put you here..."

Even with this explanation, Azure honestly couldn't remember passing out, but another hole in his memory became patched as soon as she finished.

The sensation of being hugged by a strong mare returned. That particular one, the cyan colt believed, was the longest hug he'd ever been in with a female. And he wasn't sure why, but his stomach felt uneasy...

The way it growled, however, tipped him off that it was just him being hungry. He blushed a little even as the pains of being impoverished ripped through his digestive tract, but was able to laugh it off alongside Applejack.

"That's right," Azure winced, running a forehoof down his stomach, "Didn't eat anything since lunch yesterday..."

"Can't blame ya for bein' hungry after everythin' that happened last night," The hat-wearing pony said, getting back off the sofa. "C'mon, how 'bout I treat ya to some apple pie?"

Had Azure ever eaten the Apples' pies before? No. Had he ever eaten desert for breakfast? Only once, but that was because Pinkie had nopony else to beg to try a new confection she'd cooked up in her spare time. The rest of that morning was spent trying to brush his teeth to prevent them from melting, the treat was so sugary.

The light came in through one of the open windows. Applejack took a few steps ahead, and something strange happened. Sunbeams caught the pony's body in an almost picture-perfect state, her mane partialy obscuring her face from view and...and...

The cyan colt found himself unable to stop staring straight at the mare as she passed into the light. His heart rate started to rise, and he felt his face start to burn like a fire.
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Applejack cast a glance back to Azure, mostly to see if the city pony was following. However, what she saw was a sight she hadn't quite seen. It was a distant-eyed unicorn colt, with cheeks redder than Big Mac's coat. No...not distant-eyed.

Those brown eyes of his were trained directly on her...

"Az? You okay?" she asked, turning directly to him. "You're lookin' a little red there..."

The memory of his hug during the fight last night returned, but try as she might, she couldn't put it off to the side like she usually could. The cyan pony finally realized that he was staring, and quickly snapped out of it, though now he appeared troubled by what he'd done. Applejack abandoned her current route and instead began to slowly walk back to the sitting pony.

"Az...?" She asked again. The farmer mare found that suddenly, she was at a complete loss for words. It wasn't that the earth pony didn't know what she was going to say, but she wasn't sure how exactly to say it.

"You were right..." Azure's response was unexpected.

All Applejack could manage to this was a head tilt, not getting what he was referring to.

"There was something I was keeping from you, but I didn't want you to worry, so I didn't tell you..."

The response that validated her earlier suspicions kindled just a little anger in the orange pony's chest. She took another step forward, but found the anger at having something concealed from her fade away, partially because she wasn't sure what it was he was referring to.

"Well, what is it?" she asked.

"No...I still can't say it yet," The weight in his voice added to the gravity of his words, and instantly, the earth pony realized what he could have been referring to: the concern in his eyes when he first saw the damages. "We have to get Rarity and Pinkie first..."

"But...what about the others?" she asked, noticing he'd left out Twilight, Rainbow, and Fluttershy from the equation.

Azure gave a reluctant sigh, as if knowing what he'd say next would just make things worse for him.

"Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy already know..." Azure said. "They already know of the secret because they were pulled into it at the same time. It'd been a secret ever since Virid got me hospitalized."

The farmer mare blinked, and felt herself start to get angry. That long? The anger made its way to her eyes, and instantly, Azure met her eyes with sad ones.

"I'm sorry, Applejack, I really didn't want you to worry yourself, since I wasn't completely sure when I first saw the damages..." The cyan colt said. "But now, after that whole mess happened, I promise I'm not going to keep it a secret anymore, but I want the seven of us to be together before it's told."

Applejack wanted to at least ream him out a little. He'd kept a secret, which she just knew was related to those strange wolves and their attack, seemingly lead by that pony from last night. He'd been keeping it for a while now, and she'd been caught mostly unprepared it--two nights in a row, no less! But...even though she felt angry with him for keeping it a secret, she kept looking at him, how sorry he truly was for having to keep it that long without telling any of the others.

No. She couldn't keep herself mad enough at him for withholding that information. It wasn't like he'd expected it to happen again...

She couldn't keep up her glare, and it eased into a more lighthearted smile.

"I'll hold ya to that promise, Az," she said, turning back around. The sound of four hooves colliding with the ground sounded behind her. "But I'd better feed ya first."
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It was high noon, and Twilight Sparkle hadn't seen all her friends assembled at the library since...actually, they had all assembled at the library just a couple of days before, when that whole mess with Zecora happened. However, this time, the purple mare already knew why they were there, and it was more serious than any silly curse that the ponies, save for Azure, were going on about at the time.

Certainly more serious than a poison joke affliction, too. Though Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Azure and herself already knew what they were here for, Pinkie, Rarity and Applejack, the farmer pony still looking sort of tired, did not.

"Sorry for calling you all here on such short notice," The male unicorn said, any evidence of joking or lightheartedness...or stubborness, for that matter, completely absent from his demeanor. Twilight didn't yet know what happened during the stakeout, but she had a feeling that was going to come out soon. "But this is the kind of secret that shouldn't be heard by just anypony..."

"What is it, Azie?" Pinkie asked, cutting in to the seriousness of the situation with her usual hyperactivity. "Ooh! Do you have a crush on somepony?"

If Twilight had paid a little more attention to Azure and Applejack, she might have noticed they both shifted just a little in place at about the same time. However, her full attention was on the interruptive mare.

"Pinkie, please," the studious pony responded. After the library once again fell silent, the colt in the room, the one that had insisted that it be kept a secret until it happened again, finally spoke up.

"There's something important you should know..."

The gag order on the Shadow Ghoul attack...was lifted.

Chapter 15: Psyche Check

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Chapter 15: Psyche Check
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It had been three whole days since the attack on Applejack's farm. Though he had been unable to help on the second set of repairs to their family farm due to his company not getting a request the second time around, the pony known as Azure Courage didn't care. Rather than stay on the job, he decided that he'd take some time off of work, and spend some time patching up the various holes the farm had incurred.

I keep going over there because I want to lend a hoof, that's all! the unicorn growled to himself. He had a day off from work, as per his schedule, and thus had ample free time. Normally, by this time, Azure would be doing some more active. Yet, today he felt...weird. Like he needed to actually think about things. That's why you're going over there! Had this sort of attack happened at Fluttershy's cottage, you would have done the same had it happened at the time...

Azure leapt down off his couch, onto the floor of his home.

"Though, come to think of it, it has been a few days since I told them of the last two attacks..." the colt said. "The fact there's a sick pony out there ready to use such strong magic can't be sitting too well with any of them."

He continued to muse over the recent events, as well as the assault on Fluttershy's cottage a while back.

"Not to mention that Twilight told the Princess about what happened..." Thinking aloud was something Azure particularly excelled at when he was alone. "I wonder...what kind of job does she think I'm doing with what she asked me to do?"

The cyan pony continued to pace around his home, trying to decide exactly what he should do on his day off. He could always do his usual physical training, but for some reason, the unicorn felt his energy should be used elsewhere today. After a few more moments of silent consideration, Courage looked up, and toward his door.

"I guess today should be a mental health day. Not for me, though," he said aloud, affirming his plan of action to himself. "I want to check on how they're doing. I know how I feel about it..."

With that, Azure began moving, going to check up on his friends to make sure they were in good spirits in spite of what had come up following the attack of those Shadow Wolves and their summoner, that strange colt...
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To the courageous pony, it made complete sense to check up on the meekest pony he knew first. She had been targeted once already, after all, and knowing Fluttershy for as long as he did, he knew she'd need some level of reassurance, if Rainbow Dash hadn't already beaten him to it. Then again, after that whole mess with the dragon, Azure wondered if visiting the yellow pegasus first was the right move to make.

At least, until he remembered that she returned to her normal self by the time the delayed storm had been kicked up. So, with that in mind, he increased his speed, remembering full well what happened the last time something like this happened.

He closed the distance between his home and Fluttershy's cottage in a decent amount of time. He looked around, making sure he wasn't disturbing anything else, and trotted right up to the door.

She might be out taking care of her animals, though... he thought to himself. One way to find out for sure, though...

With that considered, the cyan colt raised his hoof up and knocked on the door to the cottage. He set his hoof down, and all that could be heard was the sound of birds chirping. Understandable, given what Fluttershy's job was. The last time he remembered coming here...the conditions weren't exactly favorable.

Hard to believe there was a fight here... Azure remarked mentally, taking into account all of his surroundings.

"W-who's there?" This was a quiet voice, coming from the other side of the door. It wasn't too hard for Azure to recognize.

"It's me, Azure," he responded in a reassuring tone. "I was wondering if I could talk to you about something..." The very subtle noise of locks being undone tickled his ears, and a few moments later, the door opened, revealing the owner of the home.

"H-hello, Azure," greeted the pegasus with a smile. However, Azure's attention was not on the upturned mouth of the mare, but rather, her eyes. It wasn't nearly as noticable as before, but he could see the start of dark rings forming under them. She was definitely losing sleep. "Please, come in."

The door opened wider, allowing the unicorn to step inside. While he had been in the cottage once before, he hadn't taken any real notice of the interior of her house other than what he'd glimpsed when he went to check on her before he went off to the library. Other than the basic accessories, a sofa, a chair, some tables, and all that, the home had a few cages and food bowls strewn about. The colt knew he wasn't exactly genius material, but he was able to figure out that some animals stayed in the confines of Fluttershy's home.

"I just made some tea..." said the mare as she went further in, towards the coffee table. "Would you like some?"

Azure never really had a dislike for tea, but he preferred coffee. Nothing kicked him hard in the rump like a nice hot cup of java, but he didn't want to be rude. By now, the unicorn had figured out he was liable to be severely hurt if he said the wrong thing to Fluttershy - heck, if Pinkie hadn't stopped him from confronting Gilda back then...

"Sounds good to me..." The colt said, taking a seat. It was hot, clearly just made as the pegasus indicated. The yellow mare sipped from the cup. Azure didn't touch the tea quite yet, paying attention to the way she was conducting herself. It didn't seem quite right, but he supposed that since she was starting to lose sleep, it was affecting her. The two sat in silence, and the male unicorn took a small sip from the tea, detecting a small hint of cinnamon on the flavor.

"S-so, what did you want to talk about?" asked the pegasus. Azure set down the mug, releasing it from his telekinetic hold as he did so.

"Actually, Fluttershy," said the cyan pony in response, looking up to her. "I came to talk about you." The wording did sound a little awkward, but he couldn't think of a better way to phrase what he was trying to say.

"M-m-me?" The animal-loving mare became a little more meeker, but she didn't physically turn away from him. "Why?" She set down her mug, waiting for an answer.

"Well, to be blunt, I want to know how well you've been doing since that meeting the seven of us had at the library," Azure announced. "Nopony could take that sort of news without having some sort of reaction to it..."

Fluttershy failed to maintain eye contact. She hesitantly took a few more sips of her tea, clearly not wanting him or any other pony to worry about her. Yet, the cyan colt couldn't help it; from the day he first met her, she'd always given off a fragile aura. The one time she didn't project that was against the dragon, and boy did she deliver there...

"I-I'm fine, really..." The yellow mare responded. Azure raised a brow briefly, but relaxed it as soon as he realized the muscles were tensed.

Fluttershy, I don't have the same skill as Applejack or Silver when it comes to this kind of thing, but I can tell you're not being honest about how you're feeling. I can see those dark circles starting to form under your eyes...

"Come on, Fluttershy, you can tell me the truth," The cyan colt tried his hardest to be as gentle as possible when trying to encourage her to drop what he believed to be the real reason. "You're starting to get those dark circles under your eyes again. You've been losing sleep again, haven't you?"

Once again, the green eyes of the mare wandered away from him, and she seemed hesitant to go on. The unicorn took another sip, trying to patiently wait her out. Eventually, Fluttershy looked back to him.

"Y-yes, I've been afraid after you told us what happened," The meek mare rubbed her hoof on the table, just a little nervous about saying it. "But t-that's not the reason I look tired..."

Well, that was a shock. It was true, he didn't know how long the Shadow Ghouls had been watching her, but she clearly hadn't lost as much sleep as she had back then.

"Then, why do you...?" He asked, this time not bothering to control his brow raising.

"I've been helping care for newborn baby birds," said Fluttershy, strangely, with meekness absent from her demeanor again-probably because the conversation had moved into a comfort zone for her. "And because of that, I haven't been sleeping as much as I usually do."

"That's good to hear," Azure sighed in relief, a small smile curling his mouth upward.

"B-besides," The meekness returned as soon as the talk of animals was finished, "I don't have to be too scared."

"Why?" The conversation had just gotten interesting. Last time something related to the Shadow Ghouls happened, she was only reassured after Rainbow and him had actually done something about it. But now that it was out that there was a pony behind them, he'd half-expected Fluttershy to be losing sleep again.

"Because, even if something does happen...I-I know you'll be there to help us..." said the yellow mare. Azure couldn't withhold himself from blinking in shock as the words hit him dead-on like a train. He had indeed defended both her and Rainbow Dash (well, technically Dash defended herself the whole time), and, more recently, Applejack, from that summoner's demons.

After seeing how far I'm willing to go...are they trusting in my judgment a lot more? he thought to himself. With this new information, the cyan colt couldn't hold himself from smiling. At the very least, he knew Fluttershy was alright, which did give him hope his friends weren't as bad off with the information as he thought they were.

"Thanks, Fluttershy," Azure said. "And you're right, the moment anything bad happens, you can count on me to show up. I promise you that much..."

At that moment, there was a knock at the door, followed by a very familiar voice.

"Fluttershy, dear, are you ready?" asked Rarity from the other side of the door. "You do know today is our spa day, don't you?"

Azure turned to the door, then back to Fluttershy. He merely shrugged his shoulders before taking a large drink of the tea he'd been served, the hot beverage just about scalding his tongue. The pegasus, meanwhile, got up to answer the door. The white unicorn stepped inside, and seemed particularly surprised to find the colt sitting there with a mug of tea.

"Azure, what are you doing here?" she asked.

"I actually dropped by to make sure of something," Azure replied, standing up and walking over to the unicorn mare that had just arrived. "I was going to go around town to check up on everypony, see how they were taking the news. Speaking of which, how have you handled the news?"

"I must admit, darling, that the news was unnerving." Rarity said. "The whole thing was not at all good for my beauty sleep..."

Could I have expected a different answer from her?

"However," The alabaster mare continued, "knowing that somepony like you would go to such great lengths to protect his friends made it a lot easier to handle."

Again...! Azure thought to himself. Probably two of the ponies I expected to be the most affected by the news aren't really affected...

The cyan colt slowly began to come to a conclusion as the wheels turned in his head.

"I see," he stated simply. "Well, I've just got to go make sure the others aren't losing sleep or whatever, so I guess I'll leave you to the spa thing now." There were some things about mares Azure doubted he'd ever fully get. One of them was...well, most of what Rarity did on a daily basis that he was aware of.

After the mutual farewells were exchanged, Azure left Fluttershy's cottage, thinking about what exactly his relationship with the six mares had been defined by. Sure, he had those awkward moments with them, but how well did they know him, and vice versa, really?

"I haven't really gotten to know them for them, have I?" he asked himself aloud. "I have been sort of taking them for granted all this time, even given what I'm tasked to do..."

He looked up, towards the sky.

"I guess I can change that, starting now." Azure mused. "I've kept them at a distance for too long. I guess the whole image of me being some reckless colt and nothing more might diminish if I actually talked to them more..."
-------------------------------------
The colt decided to head towards the town next, aiming to talk to the next friend he could see. A small voice in the back of his head inquired as to why he'd skipped Sweet Apple Acres even though it was a bit closer to Fluttershy's cottage than any of his other friends were, but he disregarded it as the colt went over the ways he believed the rest of his friends would react.

Though initially he'd believed Fluttershy and Rarity would at least be scared enough to lose sleep, neither one had lost sleep over the incident, or at the least, not visibly. From the way they spoke to him about it, they either didn't want him to worry or they honestly had that much faith in him that he'd be there when disaster struck. The unicorn male found himself believing it was much more the latter than the former.

Next was Pinkie. If being faced with the prospect of being banished by Nightmare Moon or being ripped apart by mutant trees didn't knock the smile off her face, nothing would, and Azure had a funny feeling that mare just couldn't be worried easily, more so than him.

Twilight seemed a bit on the upset side when it was discovered a unicorn was behind the attacks, and the colt knew precisely why. She was the Element of Magic; barring that, she was the princess's prodigy, and eager to learn about magic whenever possible. She skipped on friends during her foalhood to study all day and night. The fact somepony was misusing it was likely doing a number on her somewhere.

Rainbow Dash...like Azure really needed to worry if she was losing sleep out of fear. The only time he'd ever actually seen her scared was against the dragon, and ironically it had been Fluttershy who stepped up to the plate. And besides, she had fought alongside him the first time that cloaked unicorn had attacked.

And Applejack...

Come to think of it, I haven't really seen her since the truth came out about the attacks...both current and prior...I don't think she had any trouble sleeping or anything. She had a moment of weakness back there, that's for sure, but we all have our moments, I guess. She still managed just fine on her own until that Shadow Wolf...did that thing...

The cyan colt hadn't even realized he'd stopped moving, nor did he realize he wasn't looking at anything. His gaze was distant.

A-and, in the right light, she looks kind of...kind of--

Suddenly, Azure found himself doused in cold water. Aside from leaving him soaked to the skin, it caused him to gasp and shiver just a little from the sudden splash.

The sound of familiar laughter just above and behind him tipped him off to exactly who it was. Sure enough, when he followed the noise, he was unsurprised to see a very amused Rainbow Dash with a bucket of water tucked against her chest as she hovered in laughter.

"Why did you need to do that?" Azure asked of her, getting her attention almost instantly.

"Sorry, Az," the blue mare started, "But you looked a little overheated." She held the bucket out in front of her innocently as she stated exactly what she'd just done. "I thought I'd cool you off a little..."

Immediately, something very important dawned on Azure.

W-was...was I blushing? thought the colt to himself. Quickly realizing he was now in the presence of another mare he needed to talk to, the unicorn tried to pull himself together and began to ask Rainbow the question he needed to.

"Say, you feeling alright after the last attack?" he asked. "How there's a pony out there willing to use those sorts of things to do harm?"

"'Course I am!" The pegasus responded, "It's no biggie, really. I wasn't afraid before, and even if they're bigger, they don't scare me now!"

And there's a response I expected... Azure thought to himself, taking the time to wring out his headband telekinetically while Rainbow continued to speak.

"Next time those things show up, I'm takin' them with one wing tied to my side!" The rainbow-maned pony rambled on, "Just you wait!"

"I'm sure you would..." The colt commented, replacing his still wet band around his head. "Good to know you're taking this in stride. Pinkie's probably going to be the same way. About to go check on her."

"You really shouldn't worry so much, Azure," Rainbow said. "It's not like you..."

Azure twitched just a little, but said nothing.

"What can I say?" he asked, walking down his path. "Guess I'm just a softie at heart..."
-------------------------------------
The unicorn colt still felt a little soaked as he finally approached the Sugarcube Corner where Pinkie worked and lived. All the way, he definitely had to thank Rainbow for that little wake up call.

Still...

Why did I trance out there? thought the pony to himself as he approached the Cakes' shop. I wasn't doing anything but heading into town and wound up thinking to myself about--

His pace slowed again, and once again, he gained a distant, trance-like stare to add to his facial features.

A-Applejack...every time I think about her...I...I--

Azure shook his head violently, trying to shake it off.

"Keep it together...you came here to check on your friend, remember?" The colt reprimanded himself, drawing closer to the shop. As he got closer, the first thing he could smell was freshly baked pastries, and frosting. Lots and lots of frosting. So much that he subconsciously found himself in need of a dentist. Shaking off the feeling of having his enamel rot away just by being close to the shop, Azure raised his forehoof and pushed open the door.

He looked about the front area, and didn't see many ponies. In fact, he only saw maybe two, total, in the shop as he surveyed the place. This struck the unicorn as odd, given the place usually was a bit more...lively at this time of day. However, the cyan colt was slightly grateful for the lack of ponies in the shop. It meant there'd be less to overhear about the Shadow Ghouls. With all this considered, the colt trotted up to the counter, glancing back to the door to make sure nopony else was about to answer.

"Hey, Azie!" The all too familiar overactive voice pierced his ears and startled him, as it came from an unexpected direction-behind the counter.

"Oh, hey, Pinkie," he shook off the shock and turned to face her. She was in fact, behind the counter and hadn't yet teleported (somehow) to him.

"What happened?" she asked, looking at him as though she'd only just realized he was there. "You're all wet!"

"Rainbow Dash got me. Used a whole bucket of water," Azure didn't care to elaborate, since he didn't know what the whole thing was with that. The next thing he knew, a cloth covered his head and obscured most of his vision, save for where his horn pushed it up out of his face. At first, he didn't get it, until he actually levitated it off his face.

It was a towel. He looked over to Pinkie, who hadn't appeared to move from the spot she'd been standing in when he first saw her, who did nothing except smile as she usually did. Realizing he was wasting time trying to understand things about his friend, he decided to dry himself off.

"So why'd you come?" The earth pony asked eagerly, not taking her eyes off him.

"I came here to ask you something," The unicorn responded. As if on cue, the cyan eyes of the mare lit up, and she began hopping about the room.

"Ooh, did you want me to help plan a party?" Pinkie rambled on as she hopped around Azure's personal space, "What kind of party is it? Who's it for?" The questions about the supposed party continued on as she hopped about, clearly excited.

"Actually, Pinkie," Azure finally responded, cutting her off before she could go on too long. It wasn't exactly what he wanted to do, but he knew the pink pony could have gone on for ages. He gently caught her in levitation magic, and began to set her down back in front of him. The sensation of being pulled through the air didn't seem to bother her; in fact, she actually seemed to enjoy it, pretending that she had wings until the time came for her to be set back down on her hooves. "I came here to see how you were doing. I wanted to see how well you took the news I shared a few days ago in the library."

Since the unicorn hadn't lost eye contact with the earth pony other than when she was hopping all around him, he could see her eyes change. The light in them seemed to...change, just a little, but Azure couldn't describe why. Pinkie still seemed just as energetic and happy as ever.

"You mean the spooky story you told?" she asked, no evidence to show she was scared.

"Didn't scare you too bad, did it?" The cyan colt repeated, making sure to keep his eyes on the mare's again.

"I'm not scared," The pink earth pony responded, and right as she said that, he saw her eyes change again for a moment. It wasn't that noticable, but it did tip him off that something wasn't quite right with the equine he was looking at now. "It's just like my song..."

Abruptly, the colt went back in time mentally to the whole mess with Nightmare Moon. She'd been the only one openly laughing and mocking the demented trees. And she started singing a shorter version of it, once more.

"Is that it, Azie? I need to get back to work so the Cakes don't think I'm not doing stuff..."

The cyan unicorn's ears immediately pricked up in alarm. It always seemed like Pinkie had free time whenever things were going bad. Even in the midst of what he assumed was a workday, he'd always seen her away from the Sugarcube Corner. And she was the most talkative pony he knew. It was clear she wasn't worried, at least, not about herself.

It was then that something clicked in Azure's mind. It was true, Pinkie was still chipper, but he finally understood what was going on in that head of hers for the first time since he'd known her. He decided to follow her into the kitchen, where the patrons wouldn't hear what was about to be said.

"You're scared for them, aren't you...?" The instant the earth pony stopped, the unicorn knew he'd gotten to the root of Pinkie's somewhat abnormal behavior. Well, abnormal for her, anyway. "I'm right, aren't I? It's not that something might happen to you, it's that something might happen to the others..."

Pinkie said absolutely nothing, but for a moment, Azure could have sworn she saw the curls in her mane and tail deflate...if only a little bit. It was barely noticable, but when she turned, he could see she was visibly sad.

Well, making her sad isn't something to be proud of. Best get on making that right.

"Pinkie, I can understand your fear," said the colt. "Truth be told, I am too." He stepped forward, reaching out with a forehoof to her shoulder. "But you don't need to be. They aren't helpless! Rainbow, Applejack, and Twilight can take care of themselves." He realized that he probably should have added Rarity and Fluttershy too, but he didn't see them as fighters-he'd only seen Rarity truly aggressive once against a manticore, and Fluttershy never actually tried hitting the dragon when she'd gotten mad at it.

Pinkie's reaction was to look away again, and Azure knew not including the two of them in that list was a big mistake.

"I can tell you now, no matter what, I'll make sure our friends remain safe," The cyan colt continued, "I'll personally see to it none of our friends get hurt."

"You promise?" She looked to him, her eyes full of hope again. Not that they'd lost a great deal of it.

"I promise..." Azure smiled, but the look on his face quickly faded when he saw Pinkie's expression didn't immediately change. She started to smile, but she wasn't satisfied with just that.

"Uh-uh," The earth pony grunted the negative, "You have to Pinkie Promise."

Now when she says that...? the unicorn thought to himself.

"Cross your heart..." She crossed one of her forehooves over her chest. Azure repeated the words and gestures, just to make sure she knew he was being sincere in his sentiments. "Hope to fly," She moved her forehoof up, "stick a cupcake in your eye."

"...Stick a cupcake in my eye..." He followed Pinkie's direction, jabbing his forehoof directly into the organ in question, and resisted the urge to wince too much when he completed the Pinkie Promise. However, when he did complete it, he noticed the pink pony appeared completely normal again.

"Thanks, Azie!" Again, her mood returned to the abnormal space he remembered it being ever since he'd known her. Quickly, Azure made the mental note to hurt the pony that would cause the mare to ever lose her smile, if only because the fact a sad Pinkie was a sight that depressed him just by schematic.

"Anytime, Pinkie," Azure said, heading out the back exit, ready to continue checking on his friends.

"Oh, and Azie?" Pinkie asked. Azure turned around to look at her. "Nopony breaks a Pinkie Promise..."

The wink she gave him, for some inexplicable reason, told the cyan colt he really did not want to break the promise he'd just made. Not that he planned to, anyway. He tried to hide the shiver that the look had given him and smiled again.

"Don't plan on it..."

With that, the cyan unicorn departed, and found his way back to the road, aiming to head for the library to make sure the local librarian wasn't too upset with the current news. He hadn't seen much of his friends since the assault on Sweet Apple Acres, but today that was going to change, for sure.
-------------------------------------
The unicorn had finally reached Twilight's home, and once again, he found himself only a little nervous at actually being at the door of her home. This time, unlike in the waning moments of Trixie's "visit", he knew precisely why he was nervous. He knew that the mare within was probably upset. With a small sigh, he decided to just get it over with, and decided to forgo knocking.

If he knew the purple pony like he thought he did, then she likely wouldn't notice his sudden intrusion until he was right there, after all. He opened the front door, and was met with a sight not unlike when he'd first met Twilight, immediately after Nightmare Moon had broken free.

The floor of the library was almost a sea of books. Entire shelves had been emptied, and some books more than others were left open on the floor in a state of being tossed aside. Probably the most organized part of the whole mess was that, admist the sea of discarded literature, was a path leading straight to Twilight's room. Azure breathed a heavy sigh, knowing what he came here to do.

"Let's get this over with, Courage," he mumbled to himself as he stepped through the clear path, heading right for the mare's study. The whole time, he felt like he was walking straight into the opening of an ursa's cave. Only, he wasn't stupid enough to try to wake it up. It was already awake and likely knew he was here.

As he drew closer to the door, he began to slow his pace as he heard movement and slamming on the other side. He swallowed hard, since the movement sounded rushed and aggressive. The colt found himself being cautious, a rarity for him. He decided to use his magic to open the door.

Three...two...one... Azure breathed in through his nose, then opened the door and took two steps in, tenatively asking "Uh, Twilight...?"

The brown eyes of the pony snapped wide open as he realized there was an object heading right for him. With only milliseconds to spare, he ducked low, almost getting smacked straight in the face by the object. A few moments later, there was a loud slam directly next to him, and Azure winced out of reflex. He looked, to see another book hastily discarded, and could only wonder exactly what kind of situation he'd just walked into.

"That was close..." he mumbled to himself, turning ahead. Sure enough, Twilight gave no indication she'd even noticed he was actually there, too engrossed in her studies to even pay attention to other ponies. This time, she was aggressively going from book to book, looking for something she could use, flipping through pages faster than Rainbow Dash could fly. Each time she'd finish a book, she'd telekinetically chuck it in a random direction behind her.

"So," Azure spoke up just as soon as she was between books. She halted, apparently hearing his voice. The way she halted didn't leave Azure feeling too good, but he knew he was too far in. "Is this...a bad time?"

Twilight turned to regard him, and she looked absolutely livid, "I've done some research in the past couple of days," She continued to speak as she approached him, with a very obviously misdirected fire in her eyes as she approached him, levitating at least four more books than Azure found necessary to levitate in such a situation. "Do you know how much skill it takes to summon something?! Let alone a Shadow Ghoul?!"

"Uh--" Azure tried to formulate a response, but he found himself at a loss for this situation.

"A lot!" She was practically screaming at him, continuing to advance on him. The colt took a step back, completely unsure of what to say. "And do you know how hard it is to control and maintain the summoning of one?!"

"Well..." He could have said more, how he'd probably guess it was.

"Very!" Even if Azure wasn't the kind of pony to become near-irrepairably skittish when faced with an angry mare, or otherwise an emotional one, he wouldn't have gotten the words out. Twilight was clearly upset. "You need high mental focus to control and maintain just one! Never mind a whole pack!"

Well, looks like my instinct was right here... thought the colt to himself.

"Why would a unicorn with that much potential waste it on hurting others?!" Twilight yelled, slamming each of the books down away from herself and Azure, causing the floor to quiver just a little around them. She seemed particularly upset.

She's the Element of Magic, and obviously possesses a good deal of potential... Azure thought to himself. For her, it must have been like looking in some kind of mirror and seeing a male, evil version of herself when I mentioned it was a unicorn...

As he watched Twilight return to her studies in a huff, the colt could only watch after her.

I can't leave her like that...but what am I supposed to say? I'm not exactly the authority on magic-that's Virid's thing...ugh, what to say, what to say...

Eventually, he was able to find the correct words to say, and followed her to where she was studying, taking note that she was significantly less aggravated in her movements and readings.

"Twilight, I can't tell you why some ponies would choose to do something like what that colt did," He approached her, slowly so he could have time to duck just in case she decided he was an absolute nuisance and chucked a book at him. "Everypony has a choice at birth. Some choose to use whatever skill they have to help others, and some just use it to hurt others..." He couldn't help but notice Twilight's face twitch when he said that last part.

The purple mare turned to him, still clearly angry about it. Azure took a step back, instinctively tensing up his body just in case, but he continued to speak, not really knowing what to do next until it hit him.

"I guess it explains why you always seem to have an issue with me, then," His voice became a bit light-hearted and sarcastic, a combination which had always seemed to work in the past for him, barring few exceptions. "Given I probably misuse my magic too..."

"Hey, hold on," Twilight interjected, any evidence of anger absent from her tone, instead replaced with that annoyed voice she often wound up taking with him. "I never told you you misused your magic..."

"But you always get mad at me..."

"Well...yeah, but that's just because you're reckless..." The purple mare quickly lost track of what she was trying to say, becoming sidetracked. "Really reckless...one of the most reckless colts I've ever met, actually..."

Azure coughed loud enough for her to get the message that she was carrying on.

"Anyway," Twilight awkwardly shifted, "I may not always agree with what you do, but you do it because you feel it's right to do. You use it to protect other ponies, and because of that, you are nothing like that other unicorn."

The cyan unicorn was honestly shocked. Was this what Twilight really thought? Up until recently, he'd always thought she hated what he did on the grounds that it involved the use of violence and magic. All of a sudden, he found himself thinking back to Silver's words. How his friend had told him that actions and words spoke more than he thought they did...but he was quickly called out of his thoughts when the unicorn across from him began to stare.

"Anyway, I came to make sure the whole situation wasn't affecting you," Azure finally responded. "Other than being angry, I guess you're alright."

"Yeah, I guess it annoyed me a little," Twilight replied, "but I can't let it get to me like that." Any anger she'd held in her seemed to be completely relaxed away. "And, you're right, it's up to ponies like us to stop the ponies that misuse magic for their own selfish gain..."

She turned back to the books, completely confident now, "I'm still trying to find a spell that serves as an anti-summoning for them, and I intend to find it before long..."

"Nice to know," Azure said, smiling and turning to leave. Good, she's alright with it, too.

"Oh, and Azure?" Twilight suddenly sounded a little timid, as though she'd forgotten something important. The colt turned to look to her.

"Sorry about yelling at you just now," she said, "It wasn't fair to do that when you hadn't done anything wrong."

"No harm done," he assured, smiling. "Just glad you were able to get it out of your system now rather than later."

"Thanks, I really needed to," Twilight sounded as though she didn't even realize it, smiling to him.

"Anytime, Twilight," Azure said, making his way out the door, leaving Twilight to her devices. The whole way out of the building, he subconsciously found himself wondering one thing.

Huh, wonder where Spike is...
-------------------------------------
Azure Courage made it out of the library. He found himself unusually hesitant to walk, but why? All he had to do was visit Applejack and make sure she was alright too, seeing as how even though he had spent some time with her while conducting the second round of repairs, he hadn't really seen much of her.

And there was that spacing out thing again. He shook his head quickly, making rapidly for the farm. He closed about half of the distance between there and the library when he found himself slowing down again. He realized he felt...odd. Like there were butterflies in his stomach, or something, and they were not in the mood to settle down and behave. They were fluttering about madly, threatening to make him clutch his stomach in discomfort.

Darn it all, why am I this nervous...? he thought to himself, closing his eyes. C'mon, Azure, pull yourself together! You don't need to be nervous! You've talked to her plenty of times in the past without this stuff happening to you!

The cyan colt continued to move onward, though walking to Sweet Apple Acres didn't seem to get any easier. Every few steps, Azure felt compelled to fidget in place, or mess about with his headband trying to keep himself calm. For the life of him, the pony couldn't identify why he was so nervous. Realizing he was only keeping himself back from doing what he set out to do with his current attitude, he resolved to finish going there. With a deep breath, he picked up the pace, hopping just a little as he increased his walking speed.

He was on the front porch within five minutes. Hesitantly, he reached up to knock on the door, still wondering what exactly had him so...skittish. With a sharp exhale, those darned butterflies still going off, Azure finally knocked on the door. Each second of waiting only served to increase his anxiety. Somewhere in his mind, he found himself wishing that it wasn't Applejack who answered the door.

Mother of Celestia, what's with me today? The cyan colt thought to himself, rubbing at his mane again, adjusting his headband as he messed about with it again. I can't think straight, my stomach is doing freegalloping, and I can't stop fidgeting...I've never felt like this before!

"I got it!" This was a younger, southern-accented voice. Azure strangely felt relieved to realize it was Apple Bloom that was going to answer the door. It took the edge off, however much when he remembered he was still on the Apples' front porch. The door opened, and the small yellow filly could be seen clearly.

"Oh, hello, Az," she greeted, seeming happy to see him for whatever reason. "Why'd ya'll come here?"

The question triggered a small reaction in Azure's brain, and for fear he'd trance out again, the unicorn quickly forced himself to speak. "Oh, hey, Apple Bloom, is Applejack here?" Quickly, he found his reason to justify it, and calmly relayed the information before his nerves could get the better of him again. "I need to talk to her about something..."

Alright, she should call for her older sister, I should be able to ask my question, and if she's still feeling bad about what had happened here, I'll offer her reassurance, just like I did with the others. Easy.

"Is this about ya'll's hug?" asked the young mare, causing the older pony's brain to do a somersault trying to hit the curve ball life had just tossed his way.

Strike.

"Oh, you saw that?" What else could he have said in such a position? He tried to be as nonchalant as possible, even given that she did sort of run out and crush him against her as soon as the evil unicorn left.

"Who is it, Apple Bloom?"

Azure found himself having to resist the urge to clamp a hoof to his chest to prevent the sudden heart rate fluctuation from taking him down. That was definitely Applejack's voice just now...

"It's Az, he came to see you!"

Agh! Why'd she say it like that?! All of a sudden, the pony felt himself starting to panic over the way the foal had so bluntly put it to her older sister. The ominous silence that followed didn't help matters any either. It felt a bit worse than any other time his friends had gone mute on him, but those happened too rarely for him to actually think about them. But now...the silence was making him more on edge than it appeared.

"I'll be right there!" she finally said, with a rapid tone in her voice that wasn't quite normal. Azure resisted the urge to sigh in relief, but he couldn't quite hold it back. At the very least, the filly that had answered the door would quietly go away and leave him to his--

"Say Az," Apple Bloom continued, having not moved from her spot since Applejack's response. "do you like my sister?"

Strike two, couldn't avoid that curve ball either.

"I--uh, no," Azure found himself backpedaling on that statement either, suddenly finding himself floundering about while his face began to turn redder and redder. It was strange that a pony years younger than him would be able to make him do this much by merely bringing up...whatever it was she brought up between her sister and himself. "Well, I mean, yes, she's my friend and all--"

The sparkle in the young filly's eye indicated that perhaps he had, yet again, chosen the wrong words. This time, instead of doing whatever it was Silver said he was doing, it was leaving him wide open for a verbal assault. The small pony gave a very Pinkie Pie-esque smile as she looked up to the older pony.

"I knew it, ya do like--" She was cut off by something snapping around her and flinging her back away from the door, the small filly giving a whine as she did so. Azure snapped out of the awkwardness almost as soon as this happened, the strangeness of the moment giving him a leg up on the odd feelings. Not long after, Applejack herself appeared, the unicorn taking a couple of steps back to give her room.

As she shut the door behind her, Azure took notice of the look on the mare's face: clearly annoyed, yet also...having an awkward undertone to it all the same.

Oh Celestia, tell me she didn't hear all that just now...!

Applejack cleared her throat, getting his attention, "So, ya'll wanted to see me?"

"Uh, yeah," Azure had never experienced a more awkward start, but now that he actually saw her, the awkwardness was gone, "I wanted to see how you were holding up, after what happened a few nights back."

"I'm just fine, sugarcube," assured the mare before him. The colt wasn't thoroughly convinced, and wanted to make sure that whatever that Shadow Wolf had done hadn't stuck with her even now.

"Are you sure?" Azure questioned, only wanting to make sure, "I mean, after that scare you had there..." The memory of a trembling Applejack refused to leave his mind. Even now, whatever was inside that demon's mouth escaped his imagination.

"I'll admit that was the most scared I've ever been," said the farmer mare after some silence. "But...ya'll helped me out of...it..." The second part was said with an awkward tone in her voice, and Azure could have sworn that her face was starting to turn pink again...

"Oh, yeah, that," And now the awkwardness returned.

Strike three. That ball had too much heat on it. Azure couldn't have hit that one if he tried.

"S-sorry about that, but I couldn't think of anything else to do at the time," The unicorn continued, an awkward smile starting to split his face.

"Y-" She started, apparently unsure of how she should continue it, "Ya don't need to apologize, Az...ya'll risked your neck for me an' my family, even though I didn't ask ya to do it."

"It was no big deal, really," Azure continued, rubbing at the back of his head. It really wasn't; he'd done a similar thing back when Fluttershy's cottage seemed to be targeted. And he'd continue to do it; they were his friends.

"It was a big deal, partner," Applejack interjected, "If ya'll didn't lend a hoof like you had, who knows what could've happened here!"

I have an inkling... thought Azure. The instant his mind nosedived into that dark alley, a chill ran down the colt's spine. It was an image he certainly didn't want to see. Had he not been there when that Shadow Wolf opened its mouth...had he not done what he had to reassure her...
-------------------------------------
Applejack was struck silent. Usually, Azure Courage had some form of retort for some things more than others. At the very least, that's how it seemed each and every time he'd argued with Twilight. And the same held true for a post-crisis situation. But the way he spaced out now reminded her of that worried expression he'd donned when he saw the first damages to the farm.

"I don't even want to think about that," Azure finally said. "I'd asked the others how they were holding up too, and...well, they seemed mostly alright. Twilight was mad and Pinkie was sad, Rainbow's reaction didn't shock me too much, and...surprisingly, Fluttershy and Rarity both seemed alright despite the bad news..."

Applejack blinked. She'd never pictured the unicorn before her to be the kind of pony to sit down and talk about emotions or anything. While it was natural for him to be a little concerned given the situation, it seemed to be off to her. Whatever it was about the unicorn's change of heart...the orange mare just couldn't see it.

"But...what about you, Az?" she finally asked, breaking the silence between them as she took a step closer.

"What do you mean, Applejack?" he responded, clearly not getting it.

"I get that you're worried about us, maybe a little bit," Applejack began to explain why she was questioning it, "but you've went around town askin' us how we felt about the whole thing...are you sure it ain't you that's been affected by all this?"

Azure's brown eyes changed just a little, but Applejack couldn't place where.

"M-me?" The colt asked, in obvious disbelief. "Applejack, I don't scare easily, you told me so yourself. The shadow creatures don't scare me..."

"Hold on there, sugarcube," The farmer responded, taking another step closer to him, meeting his eyes directly. "I ain't sayin' you're scared of them, I'm sayin' you're scared of what they could do..."

Azure's eyes widened considerably. Now the mare was sure she'd hit her mark.

"A-Applejack, I--" The colt had an uncharacteristic stutter, and his tone was off, washed-out sounding, if anything, like the wind had just been knocked out of him.

To Applejack, it was clear: he was lying, more to himself than anypony else, but he was still lying all the same.

"Az, I know you're lyin' to yourself," Applejack stated simply. "It ain't good for ya."

Azure gave a sharp grunt and lowered his head. It was all she needed to see to know she was correct about what she believed. The only thing that could be heard, besides the occasional creaking noise here and there from the farm, was the sound of birds chirping.

Eventually, the unicorn's body seemed to tremble, but it was only a few twitches and nothing more. When he finally could look into her eyes again, she could see the cracks in his armor again. Though he was trying not to show it, his brown eyes looked glassy, like he was going to cry at some point.

"You're right, Applejack," he finally said, breaking the tense silence. "I am scared, but not of what they could do...I'm scared of what I can't do." The unicorn continued to speak again, emotion breaking through in his tone as he kept talking. "My greatest fear is that I won't be able to protect my friends...or anypony, for that matter, when they need it the most. It almost happened that night, and the mere thought of what might have happened to you if I hadn't...if I hadn't spotted that unicorn..."

The colt visibly shivered. If ever there was a moment when Azure Courage was showing weakness, it was right now. All the time she'd known him, Applejack had never really seen him look...well, like this. Even against Nightmare Moon, that chimera, and the dragon, he'd never looked like he'd considered the consequences of action or inaction. But being swarmed by those creatures wore him out-Applejack could tell from how he'd acted immediately after the fight had stopped and the following morning.

She found herself moving before she was even aware of it. She reached out, putting a hoof to his shoulder, meeting the muscle concealed underneath the pelt. Applejack felt happy to finally hear him admit the truth, but now that she knew it, she felt bad for him. No doubt he'd been hiding that fear from himself for so long...

"Why do ya'll have to carry such a heavy burden?"

"Because...I made a promise, and I intend to keep it..."

A smile split the farmer's face. She didn't need to verify this time; she knew from personal experience he was telling the truth. When Azure said something, Celestia knew he meant it. Applejack thought back to the hug he'd given her when she'd experienced her own moment of weakness.

He had promised her he'd protect her as he'd squeezed her close. The feeling of security she'd felt at that very moment suddenly returned, along with a very different feeling that sent her stomach flopping about in her body. Her face heated up for a few moments, but by the time the feeling passed, Azure was ready to speak again.

"Thanks for the talk, Applejack," Azure finally said as he opened his eyes to look at her. "I'm glad to hear you're okay. And I'm glad you were able to get me to be honest with myself."

The colt began to move away. The orange mare lapsed for a moment as she considered the last part of what he said.

"Sorry for taking up so much time," The unicorn continued as he slowly walked away. "I'll just get out of your mane now..."

"Now hold on there, partner," Applejack wasn't sure why she was motivated to do it straight away, but she found she didn't want Azure to leave just yet. The addressed pony quickly turned his head back to look at here. "We ain't done here yet..."

"What do you mean, Applejack?" he asked, tilting his head slightly.

"Ya'll spent this time listenin' to everypony else," the mare continued. "Maybe it's time one of us listened to you..."

Even as she said this, it dawned on Applejack she actually didn't know as much about Azure as she thought she did. After the events of that assault, she'd been left with a curiosity about him.

"But, I already told you what was on my mind," Azure clearly didn't get why she was so concerned over it.

"Ya did tell me what was on your mind recently," The earth pony continued, gesturing him towards the front door. "But I get the feelin' there's more to it than just that."

The cyan colt looked hesitant to comply. For a long moment, Applejack found herself strangely afraid that he wouldn't comply. But as soon as he sighed and began heading back towards her, the mare found herself happier than she should have been at this.

She found herself really wanting to know what made Azure...who he was.
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Azure Courage didn't really want to have admitted it, but it was true. He was deathly scared of an inability he could very well have and not know it until it was too late. The cyan colt had a very close call a few nights ago that forced him to realize that perhaps he didn't yet have the strength he needed to protect his friends, both because he'd wanted to anyway and because the Princess had tasked him to.

Even though a good hour or two had passed since he'd relented to Applejack's offer, they hadn't really delved into anything deep. However, he had told her some things about himself he hadn't told others, but that was because the subject hadn't come up. Well, except when Silver visited, but even then it never came up explicitly.

In turn, Applejack had told him some things about herself he never would have guessed. However, after knowing her for this long, Azure realized that he hadn't really asked what was significant to her. She had been the one that recovered his band and kept it under her hat the whole time during the Nightmare Moon fiasco, back when he wore it around one of his forelegs.

"You know, Applejack, I never really asked before, but..." Azure finally spoke up, "You mentioned before," He patted the headband with a forehoof, trying to indicate exactly where this conversation was going, "that you knew what it was like to have something important to you. It's your hat, isn't it?"

The orange mare froze completely for a few moments and the room went dead quiet. She reached up to the hat with both of her forehooves and removed it from her hat, holding it there in front of him. She didn't speak straight away, but she nodded to confirm that his guess was correct. The mare removed her eyes from him and looked down to her hat, her eyes abnormally distant.

"It..." She started, in a tone so quiet that it reminded Azure of a typical conversation with Fluttershy. Her voice gathered strength, and she spoke up again. "It belonged to my mama..."

It was simple enough, her response. He had gotten his own headwear (well, it was headwear now) from his own parents right before he moved out. Ever since he had it tied around his head, he never really removed it, except when he had to clean himself up or whatever. But the way she referred to her mother sounded...off. She was around his age and calling her mother that...foals usually called their mother "mama" or "mommy", but by the time they became teenagers, "Mom" or "Mother" usually worked.

He took a second look at Applejack, and this time, he noticed her green eyes had glassed over. Azure swallowed hard, and almost gasped aloud when he noticed a silvery object slide down one of her cheeks. As soon as he noticed it, he felt like he just tanked a log straight into the chest...no, not even the chest. It was tipped with an arrowhead and pierced his heart...

Oh son of a--she's crying... The cyan colt immediately stood up, quickly trotting his way across the room. Gotta fix this...gotta fix this...

He didn't remember moving his forehoof this time, but as soon as he felt it make contact with her fur, he had no choice but to speak up again.

"Applejack," The mare's eyes regained some level of life to them, and she seemed surprised he was now right there in front of her. "I'm sorry if my question brought up bad memories. I won't ask you to talk about if it's just going to cause you pain..."

Applejack looked to him, honestly confused. She blinked, and only now did she notice the tears that were flowing down her face. She turned away, and wiped at her face with one of her forehooves. "I-it's nothin'...just somethin' in my eye..."

Azure didn't need her to tell the truth. Whatever the origin of the hat was, he decided he didn't need to know the whole story. He got some of the message, at least.

"Well, it's been interesting," The unicorn observed as he observed the orange mare finally replace her hat. "Guess I'd better head home now. It was..." Could he admit it? "great having this talk." He could.

"Anytime, Az."
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The two ponies found they had learned quite a bit about each other. They both couldn't remember a time in which they'd felt comfortable disclosing such information about each other. Azure felt he could have done without the fact he'd made his friend remember a bad time in her life. He was dense and oblivious when it came to mares, for the most part, but even he knew when he'd crossed a line somewhere. As for Applejack, she herself had gained a different understanding of her reckless friend.

They both exchanged smiles as the two went toward the door. Azure let himself out, and Applejack took a few steps outside herself to see him off. Abruptly, the colt stopped, feeling the need to speak up.

"Applejack," he spoke up. As the mare turned her head to one side, the colt turned his head back again to look at her. "If you ever need to get something off your chest, just let me know. I'll be right there." He wasn't sure if he was misusing his words yet again, but strangely, he found he really didn't care even with the knowledge he might have been. He turned and slowly began to walk away, an odd feeling surging in him the whole way.

"I know you will be, Az..." It was a soft whisper, one that she knew Azure didn't hear. She continued to watch him leave, and found herself rooted to the spot. She had intended on going back inside as soon as he was a good amount of steps away from the door. However, she continued to watch him leave. Her heart skipped a few beats and she found herself rushing forward. "Az, wait!"

Azure Courage turned around, and was met with the sight of an orange mare in a hat galloping at him. Before he could question what was wrong or even react, he felt himself get pulled into yet another tight embrace. This time, Applejack pulled herself and him both onto their hind legs, using him as balance.

Azure felt himself start to blush even before his brain started working again. The mare certainly had a lot of strength to her: in the areas where they made contact as a result of the hug, he could feel the muscle underneath her fur. At the same time, she was ridiculously soft to the touch, more so than he'd expected from her given all the trouble Rarity gave her on occasion.

So soft...yet so tough... His face burning hotter than Celestia's sun, Azure finally returned the hug. The two ponies used each other as support to hold themselves up now, in a pose that was all too human for quadrupeds to be taking.

Now Applejack found herself feeling how he felt against her. Though it wasn't liable to show up through his fur, the unicorn had a lot of muscle mass underneath. It never really showed, but she had seen it on rare occasions. But feeling this much of him against her, as well as the fact that he wasn't squeezing her so much as holding her tightly--it put so much into her mind she couldn't describe it. She'd already been blushing the whole way, but now...

So strong...yet so gentle... For a while now, she'd wondered if Azure was trying to sweep her off her hooves. Almost all doubt that he was vanished from her mind now. Eventually, both of them finally got a hold of themselves, and released each other, both back on their four legs safely.

"T-thanks for being such a great colt," Applejack finally commented, her face still reddened as she turned tail and rushed back into her home before the unicorn could say anything to her.

Azure continued to start after Applejack, not knowing what happened. He could only stand there and blink. Eventually, he smiled, though a bit awkwardly, and finally began to take his leave.
----------------------
Applejack continued to watch Azure through an open window near the front door. She was painfully aware of her mixed feelings. On one hand, she was happy to have gotten to know him better. On the other, she felt...sad, at watching him go. Her heart started beating as she recalled what had just happened between them. She raised a forehoof to her chest and uneasily rubbed at the internal throbbing.

Why in Ponyville did I just do that...?

"So ya do like him!"

The farmer instantly felt as though she'd gotten a cold block of ice directly applied to the nape of her neck, and she turned around to see her sister, Apple Bloom, with a big smile on her face and a glint in her eyes.

"Apple Bloom!"
--------------
Azure made it home, and sat in his room, feeling uneasy after what just happened. His heart did not stop thumping until he was on his doorstep unlocking the door to his abode. And he felt strange while walking along. For some reason, he felt a little light in his step, sort of like walking on a cloud.

However, as nice as the hug was, the unicorn found himself more concerned with what had happened a few moments prior. Applejack had held her hat, and told him it had belonged to her mother. Though Azure had his moments where he was dimmer than a half-dead candle, it wasn't hard for him to figure out the implications. A sadness crept up on him, and he removed his headband, if only compulsively.

"I wonder how they're all doing..." he mumbled to himself. "I haven't written since Virid came along...maybe it's time I write Mother about how I've been. Celestia knows she's worried sick."

He made his way to his desk, and stopped abruptly.

"Actually...Princess Celestia probably does know she's worried sick!"

As he finally sat down to write out his update to his family, the first one he'd sent in ages, what Applejack said came rushing back to him.

"T-thanks for being such a great colt!"

"I wonder...?" Azure started, taking a random glance away from his writing. "Why did she say 'great colt' instead of 'great friend'?"

The gears in the cyan colt's head turned and churned, trying to come up with a valid answer to that question. Eventually, progress ground to a halt. The unicorn had no idea what she meant by that, and decided not to pursue it. However, even as he wrote down the letter, there was a few details he omitted.

The most important of which: he was starting to feel weird whenever Applejack was involved, in a way he couldn't explain.

Chapter 16: It's the Little Things

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Chapter 16: It's the Little Things
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A new day dawned in Ponyville. For most of the town's population, the day was nothing special. However, for one unicorn colt, it was a day very close to his heart. It was the date he was born, his birthday. And he was waking up with one single aim in his mind, a small request he'd made, more to himself than anything as he laid down to go to bed last night.

"I know they're very good friends, and I do want to get to know them better at some point, but in all honesty, I'm a little worn out with the crazy stuff that happens whenever I'm around them...I need a break."

Azure Courage was taking the day off from everything: work and friends, to have some needed alone time so he could do whatever he wanted without the others interrupting. The others all seemed to have their hooves full anyway, so he'd figured he wasn't going to miss a whole lot if he took the day away from them. Today would be the day where he did his usual routine without one of the others intertwined, somehow.

The unicorn decided to waste no time in spending his day alone. He decided to remain indoors, and conduct some very basic training with his martial arts, just to make sure his form was up to par. Hooves crashed against thin air, and eventually, a sand bag, as the cyan colt exerted himself through his activity. It felt great to be able to do this without somepony knocking on his door.

It wasn't that he didn't like spending time with his friends, but sometimes, the randomness they could get into was almost too much for him. There wasn't much in the way of noise except for the sounds of rapid, aggressive movement, and the "thwack" of hooves hitting a solid object. Azure continued to attack the training bag until he felt like his aggression had been dealt with, and his form had been suitably practiced.

It hadn't taken him more than an hour to physically train himself. Having made sure his martial arts were polished, Azure went to his bedroom, and sat up on the bed, a place he often went whenever he chose to meditate.

He shut his eyes, his horn dimly sparking to life as he found his "center", his senses slowly fading out as he focused quietly. It was a technique his cousins had taught him given Azure had been a bit on the weak side when it came to magic control, and so far, he'd managed to work it out perfectly. Sure, he still had issues with the teleport spell from time to time, but he was improving.

In his mind's eye, he could see the cyan glow that represented his magic pool. He reached out with his hooves in that mental space, and slowly began to hold it close to his chest, almost like he would a baby or a small infant. It was a mental, magical exercise he often did: by kindling the magic in this manner, usually, he wound up feeling a bit more "in-tune" with the force unicorns often manipulated.

It was a process he'd done ever since he'd started being able to focus in his meditation, and often, he'd go for at least an hour or two while undisturbed.

"Pinkie!" The colt unexpectedly snapped. "Don't you...ever...knock...?"

Called completely out of his meditation, Azure looked around his bedroom, fully expecting a pink earth pony to pop out of nowhere and greet him in her usual method. Yet, it was dead silence. He sat there, blinking, as he found himself rubbing at his mane, wondering what that outburst was all about. Eventually, it hit him.

Most of the time, when he had his meditation forcefully interrupted, Pinkie was the one barging in to recruit him for...something.

"Force of habit, I guess..." Azure thought aloud, trotting over to the window. He looked up to the tree outside, and sighed. "I'm so used to her interrupting me that when I finally manage to get a good deal of time in..."

He looked up toward the sky. How long had he been at it? Unwittingly, he looked up higher, into the branches of a tree just outside, and saw a bird's nest. The one thing that was off about it was the fact it was an empty nest. No sign of life--in fact, now that Azure focused on it, it looked like it hadn't been used in quite some time.

What happened to the birds there...? he wondered to himself, staring up at the defunct nest. Wait...I remember now...
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It wasn't long after the first incident with the Shadow Ghouls. Azure had more or less busted his hump trying to both work and train himself hard, and had capped off the evening with a little bit of Pinkie-free meditation. All seemed to go well, and indeed, he hadn't been disturbed. His magic control increased, Azure Courage prepared to go to bed early, given he was sore and not in the mood to do a whole lot else.

Cheep-cheep, cheep-cheep...

Azure gave a sharp grunt of annoyance, and tossed over in his bed, groaning as he tried to find a way to avoid the horridly disturbing sound of what sounded like birds chirping. However, no matter how often he'd shifted in his bed, he just could not escape that irritating noise.

"For crying out loud..." he moaned, getting out of his bed and trotting over to his window. "Why are the birds making so much noise this late...?"

He groggily opened the window and peeked out, going to where he could hear the noises of birds chirping. The colt rubbed at his eyes with one hoof, trying to get the slightly blurred vision to clear. He noticed the birds had built a nest in the tree outside the window. The unicorn groaned, but at least he knew why.

"They're nesting in that tree...?" Azure groaned, closing his window and rubbing at his ears. "Sweet Celestia, this is troublesome...I won't be able to make up all that time I missed at this rate..."

Azure wasn't a cruel pony. He had two very good reasons why he didn't take a brutish solution to it. One, he would never destroy another's home unless it was to everypony's benefit; two, Fluttershy would never forgive him if he did forcefully remove the nest. He was caught between a rock and a hard place when it came down to it, and the unicorn knew he'd just have to suck it up and try to sleep. He laid down in his bed, and completely went under his covers.

He closed his eyes, and once again tried to sleep.

Cheep-cheep, cheep-cheep...
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The night passed, and Azure had not slept well at all. He couldn't go more than an hour without fighting the urge to nod off. The colt was suffering sleep deprivation like no other, and had virtually no motivation to exert himself. Somehow or other, he'd made it through the day, though his boss inquired as to whether or not he'd suddenly developed narcolepsy.

Stupid birds... the colt thought to himself as he walked along, keeping me up at night...

"Azure, what's wrong?" Fluttershy asked him, though because he was so tired, he didn't bother to respond until he'd walked about five steps.

"Oh," He could not contain a yawn, his eyes clearly displaying a lack of sleep the night before. "hey, Fluttershy."

"Oh...your eyes..." she commented, looking a little down because of that.

"Yeah, I didn't sleep good last night..." Azure punctuated that admission with a yawn. "Plan to make up for it when I get home by taking a nice, long nap..."

If Fluttershy had said anything more to him, the cyan unicorn didn't hear it, his mind and psyche far too focused on getting the sleep he'd been deprived of the night before...
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Cheep-cheep, cheep-cheep...

Cheep-cheep, cheep-cheep...

"Ngh!" Azure grunted, tossing around in his bed. "Can't a colt get some sleep?! Why are the birds active this late in the day?"

The pony rose up, taking a desperate solution to his problem. He removed the pillow cases from his pillows, and jammed the cloth into his ears until the noise was all but muffled. For the most part, anyway. It was enough for the sleep-deprived colt to be able to ignore it. The colt slowly fell asleep, satisfied that he could finally get some shut-eye. At some point, the cloth loosened, but Azure didn't notice.

Knock, knock, knock.

Until there was a pony knocking at his door. Azure sharply growled, and his eyes, reddened with the utter lack of sleep he'd gotten the night before, shot open. He launched the blankets off of him, and yanked the blankets off, ready to verbally assault whoever it was that disrupted his sleep. He stormed to the door, his hooves making audible sounds as he approached the door. He sleepily used his magic to toss the door open, and gave a sharp inhale...

"Oh, I-I'm sorry, Azure, I didn't mean to wake you..."

And immediately froze as he realized he was about half a second away from screaming at Fluttershy.

"F-Flutter--" He was cut off midsentence by a pitiful yawn. The cyan colt growled and smacked himself across the face with a forehoof to keep himself awake. The sleep deprivation-induced vision impairment finally cleared, and he was able to see two birds perched on the mare's head.

"Um, I came by to check on you and I noticed these two birds in a nest outside your window..." She said. "I realized they must have been what kept you up last night...so I-I decided to convince them to move."

She looked up to the birds on her head. "Now, if you can tell him you're sorry for keeping him up all night, I'll help you move to a new nest where you won't disturb anypony..."

To this day, Azure Courage believed the part where the birds actually appeared to chirp a legitimate apology to him was just a moment of insomnia-induced dementia.

"T-thank you, Fluttershy..." The cyan colt nodded, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna take that nap..."

No sooner did he close the door and turn around to go back to bed did Azure collapse flat on his stomach and pass out asleep.
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Azure continued to stare at the empty nest, blinking.

"Even now, I don't get how she made them tell me they were sorry," he reiterated to himself. "Ugh, I shouldn't be in my house all day. One, that's more Twilight's thing; two, it causes a pony to think too much. I'm goin' for a nice, long walk..."

With that, the cyan colt turned and strode straight out of his home, making sure to lock the door in place before going on his walk.
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The cyan colt trotted all about the town in a random path, not really bothering to avoid his friends' places of residence or work. All the way, whether he passed Town Hall or assisted some random pony with a trivial task because he felt like he didn't have anything better to do, Azure Courage found he just could not shake a restless feeling the whole way. It wasn't like when he felt like he had to do something extremely active, but at the same time, he couldn't place it.

The colt stopped, rubbing at his mane a little as he contemplated why he felt the way he did.

"Hm...what time is it?" He glanced up to the sky to see Celestia's sun a bit high up, but starting to trail west. "Past noon...? How long was I in training?"

His gaze fell upon a building, and for some reason, he felt oddly transfixed. All of a sudden, his snout picked up the scent of something delicious, and cued by the odor, his stomach gave a loud growl and a very dull pain. He'd gone quite a long time without eating.

"Geez, I'm hungry..."

As soon as he said this, the colt's brown eyes widened, as a distant memory returned to him. This time, it was a friend's gesture to him while he was on the job, and had jumped the gun a bit in terms of preparing for the day.
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It hadn't been long since Azure had gotten back on the job. In fact, it was maybe eight days after Fluttershy had done him the kindness of moving those troublesome nocturnal chirpers. The colt had been in a bit of a rush that morning, but hadn't really given it much thought. He'd woken up a bit late on that day, and barely made it to the job site on time.

The colt had been tasked with repairing the building he was standing in front of in the present day. It hadn't been more than an hour in when an unexpected visitor arrived in a most unexpected of places.

"Hi, Azie!"

Azure gave a sharp grunt of surprise when Pinkie randomly popped out of one of the port-o-potties on site.

"P-Pinkie," No matter how much he tried to deny it, the pink mare almost always managed to surprise him with where she chose to show up. "what were you doing in there?"

"Well, when you've got to go, you've got to go!" Pinkie chirped, hopping around him. The unicorn felt the urge to both laugh and facehoof from the way she said it. And the fact she said it at all only added to the urge to chuckle uncomfortably.

"I see..." managed Azure, returning to his business.

"So what'cha doin'?" she asked, probably completely oblivious as to the fact she needed a hard-hat on a construction site.

"Well, we're working on some repairs," the colt responded. "Simple enough..."

"Say, have you ever sat on a beam and ate lunch with your work friends?" she asked. "I saw a picture like that somewhere!"

"No, most of the crew buy their lunch...or bring their own..." Azure responded, once again being reminded of the fact he had neither a lunch or the means to buy one on him.

"Wait, Azie," Pinkie continued, "You didn't bring a lunch!"

"Yeah," The cyan unicorn turned away, adjusting his hard hat. "I'm not worried. I'll think I'll be fine..."

When Pinkie failed to respond to that, a surprise to him, Azure turned around, "Pinkie?"

She wasn't even there to hear his reassuring reply...
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Hours passed, and eventually, it was time for lunch. Though Azure played it off like it was no big deal, inside, he was suffering. He'd skipped breakfast, and the fact he hadn't had anything to eat all day was really getting to him now. Azure had his head down on a bench, and oh, sweet gentle Celestia, was he hungry. It was almost completely debilitating, how hungry he was.

"My stomach may as well be an Ursa Major's cave right now..." Azure moaned aloud, not caring if anypony heard him or not. At this moment, his nose immediately picked up the scent of something sweet. His stomach, in response to the absolutely amazing smell, gave a very loud, painful growl, and he patted his stomach with one forehoof. He turned to the source of the smell, fully expecting to see one of his coworkers taunting him.

"Hey, Azie," Pinkie greeted, her eyes and mouth communicating happiness, as she held out a basket. "I thought you'd need this to get'cha through the day..."

Azure floated the basket over onto the table, and weakly opened it. His eyes snapped open, and his mouth began to produce copious amounts of drool.

"O-oh...wow...!"

Inside the basket: a few small cakes, each appearing to have a different flavor than before. This was definitely going to fill his empty belly...and leave him with a severe need to see that dentist.

He crammed the first cake into his mouth before he even remembered it.

"Thanks, Pinkie," Azure remarked with his mouth full.

"Don't worry, Azie, this one's on me!" The earth pony remarked, "I knew you'd need lunch!"
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Back in the present day, Azure was enjoying hay fries at the local cafe, the waves of memory washing over him. Pinkie had gone out of her way to make sure he didn't starve to death all day because he'd overslept and forgotten to eat breakfast and pack lunch. The food he was eating was a far more fitting lunch than that. The cyan colt sighed.

That wasn't the first time a friend had showed up on the job, either... Azure thought, taking another bite of his food. Same week, different day...
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The colt had been tasked with repairing another building, a place not too far off from where he would eventually demonstrate Silver's ability to freegallop like he could. The colt was able to make quite a bit of progress, even with a solo job. The task was also difficult as well, partly because he didn't have a partner.

Azure was ready to go home and enjoy a little bit of meditation, when his ears picked up something outside the window. He turned his head, and his eyes shot wide open when a familiar rainbow trail crashed through one of the patches in the ceiling he'd had to make. A moment later, the streak made contact with the floor, and strangely came to an explosive stop, the force of the impact blasting Azure clean off his hooves.

When he got back to his feet, he stared in utter shock as he surveyed the room he was in. The whole place had basically been reduced back to the state it was in when he first arrived. The shock quickly gave way to anger when he saw the pegasus mare responsible for it: Rainbow Dash.

Trying to keep his rage under control, Azure spoke up, "Hey, Rainbow..."

"Oh, hi, Az..." Rainbow responded, apparently able to see the vein very clearly throbbing on the unicorn's face. The unicorn's very first instinct was to yell at the pegasus for crashing through and undoing a hard day's work of repairs. However, he fought for control over himself as he re-checked the damages. Sure enough, the day's work had been undone thanks to the pegasus's sudden crash. It had been a long, hard endeavor, but it was rendered null. Azure was back at square one and he was not pleased with that.

"This was probably the hardest job I've ever had to do, and I had to do it all on my own," The cyan colt said aloud, turning to Rainbow. His voice was quiet, but the suppressed anger in his tone was clear. "It took me all day to get this place fixed up, and you just destroyed it in a second..."

"Sorry, Az," The blue mare's response went from light-hearted to guilty-sounding over the course of her sentence as she surveyed the damage she'd actually done and the look on Azure's face. "I was practicin' a new stunt...and lost...control...um..."

"Well, I guess I'll just have a fun day tommorrow doing what I did today all over again...I need to go vent..." The unicorn huffed, using his magic to open the door. The instant he tried, the doorknob came off in his magical glow. He stared angrily at it. He shouldn't have needed to repair that...but now he did. On top of what he had to re-do...
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It had been one of the most aggressive times in Azure's life. He nearly busted the sandbag and had to fight to get to his mental center during his meditation due to the frustration he felt at the whole thing. Even when he went to bed, he'd had a little trouble getting to sleep, and he very nearly dreamt of the incident that shattered his progress. The colt awoke the next morning, knowing what he had to re-do.

"Alright...let's get this over with..." Azure put his hard hat on his head, and went back to the construction site that had been violated by his friend's failed stunt. It was a grim prospect, but somepony had to make sure everything was fixed. And if he had to re-do this job and finish it alone, that's what he'd have to do.

The path he walked to the site he was at wasn't an easy one, but when he got there, he saw something odd.

"Finally, you're here!"

Azure snapped to attention. Hovering impatiently in front of the building he was assigned to repair was Rainbow Dash in a hard hat much like his own.

"Rainbow Dash, what are you doing?" Azure questioned, most of his former anger replaced with confusion.

"What does it look like, Az?" responded the mare flippantly, "I felt bad about what happened yesterday night, so I'm gonna help you get this done!"
-------------------------------------------
The unexpected help actually did more good than harm. It hadn't taken long before the combination of physical unicorn and fast pegasus had actually caught up with the workload. Sure enough, by the end of the day, the repairs had not only returned the process to where it was before Rainbow lost control and crashed, but they had actually managed to advance the repairs beyond the point Azure had reached the night before.

The progress was absolutely remarkable. Not only was the room he'd worked hard on done, but the other rooms in need of repairs were done too. By the end of the workday, by some force or another, the two ponies had managed to get it done.

Rainbow Dash had chosen to volunteer since she'd felt bad about failing the stunt and reversing virtually all of Azure's work. Not only did she put it back the way it was, she helped him basically finish the job he'd been assigned.

"I can't believe we got this done..." Azure said, removing his hard hat to run a hoof through the sweat that had practically pooled in his mane. "In one day."

"Guess the job wasn't that hard after all, huh?" Rainbow asked. "Either that, or I'm simply that good at constructing things instead of destroying things..."

"Say, Rainbow," Azure cut in, now feeling bad he'd gotten mad at her. "Sorry about almost losing it before...it was..."

"Uncool?" asked the rainbow-maned pony, with a smug smirk on her face.

"Yeah, pretty much..." responded the unicorn.

"No biggie, Az," replied the mare as she put a foreleg around him in a friendly gesture. "I'd probably have gotten mad if you'd done somethin' like that to me."
-------------------------------------------
Azure finished his meal, but the distant look refused to leave his face. Even though she'd had ambitions to join the Wonderbolts, her loyalty to her friends had always come first. Though sometimes that ego of hers seemed to really grate on his nerves...

The colt found himself wondering why only now he was thinking of these gestures, when he'd wanted a day off from the randomness today, on his birthday. Unconsciously, he rubbed at his mane, and gave a small grunt when he realized he'd loosened the knot in his headband.

With a sigh, he took the headband the rest of the way off, and began to fiddle with it. As he looked up with it in the light, ready to put it back on, he noticed something that he wouldn't have noticed under most light.

"When did this patch--?" he asked himself aloud, when yet another memory washed over him.
-------------------------------------------
It was a couple of days after he and Rainbow had played tag in the storm. He was out in a rocky area not too far from Ponyville to train with some offensive spells. The unicorn had always first practiced shooting fast lasers, then moved to charged shots. However, he was going to try something a little different. As a sort of experiment, he wanted to see exactly how much he could put into a laser at once. He'd never really tried it with no more than twenty seconds' charge, the only exception being when he'd freed Twilight from Nightmare Moon's "cage".

He shut his eyes in concentration, trying to charge up the laser. His horn sparked to life and began to glow brighter and brighter as he focused magic into the attack. He didn't notice it at the time, but his headband, which had been loosely knotted that day, start to shift a little on the back of his head as he charged his spell.

The laser fired, the recoil blowing Azure back. He dug his hooves into the ground, not fully expecting the kick out of the laser. The beam ripped forth from his horn, heading for a large boulder. The cyan light drilled into the rock, and wiped it out, shattering it into rubble. As soon as the shards of rock finished raining down, Azure Courage had only one thing to say.

"Wow..." He ran a hoof across his head. "Is that how much I--" His forehoof ran across the place where he'd expected his band to be, but he didn't see it there. "Where'd my band go...?"

The cyan colt looked around, "I just had it around my--"

His eyes widened when he finally caught sight of it. Seeing the parting gift in the state it was in after the laser had Azure on the end of his rope already. Though it was mostly alright, a sizable chunk of the middle of the band had been charred away, the edge charred black. The "Courage" stitching had been reduced to just "C----ge" due to the size of the cloth missing. The thing barely qualified as a band anymore.

"Oh, no, no, no..." he mumbled, picking it up, panicking like no other on the inside."What do I do, what do I do, what do I do?"

He stared at the damaged band, as though the answer would come screaming at him if he just stood there uselessly and did nothing. Eventually it hit him. He knew somepony that could help him.

He replaced the band, tying it as tightly as he could around his head without tearing it the rest of the way in half.

"Gotta go see Rarity," he breathed, already making tracks for her place of work. "She's gotta be able to help me..."
-------------------------------------------
"Rarity!" Azure yelled, forgoing knocking on the door and quite rudely barging into the Carousel Boutique as soon as he came within distance of the building. The building had nothing but the sound of silence filling its corners. No, wait, there was a soft, feminine humming, very distinct from that of Fluttershy. And an even softer, almost unnoticeable whir of machinery. Breathing a little hard from everything that had happened and the exertion of running near full-tilt there, Azure followed the sounds.

He arrived at the room to see the white unicorn hard at work. She was humming lightly to herself, positioned near a sewing machine, working her magic on what Azure assumed to be a dress. Of course, at the time, he didn't really care what she was doing.

"Rarity?" The cyan colt asked. The humming stopped, but she continued to work. Azure did not take the lack of response too well. He questioned her again, with a little more force: "Rarity??"

"I heard you the first time, Azure," said Rarity in response, not even taking her eyes from her work.

"Um..." The way she responded didn't leave the male unicorn with much hope that his friend was paying attention to his problem. "I came here because I needed something fixed."

"Is that so?" She didn't sound skeptical or even interested, deep into her work on the dresses.

"You see, I was out in the forest--" Azure attempted to explain.

"I do not need to know the details, darling..." Rarity was clearly paying a little more attention to him, but she still did not take her eyes from the machine.

"Uh...okay..." The way she was acting made Azure's head fill with doubt that his request was going to get done any time soon, even given what she embodied. "So...when do you think you can fix it?"

Rarity turned to face him halfway, so it was likely she didn't see the damaged band at the time, though it was clear she was invested in her work. Her horn sparked to life and she continued to push the cloth under the sewing machine as she turned to him.

"I have a long list of dresses to complete by the end of the month," she said to him, as simply as she could. Given that he didn't know a thing about running a business, Azure wasn't really in a position to argue with what she continued: "If I do not meet the quota, I will lose a cilent." She turned back to her work flawlessly, and made a subtle motion with one hoof, "Please, place whatever it is on the counter over there and I will get to it when I am able."

Azure wasn't in a place to argue. He knew it. He obliged, putting the damaged band on the counter.

"Got it," the cyan colt said, starting to walk out. "Please, just be careful with it..."
-------------------------------------------
The unicorn did not remember falling asleep that night. It was his day off, but for some reason, Azure couldn't leave his bed. He wasn't sick, but he felt uneasy. Maybe it was the fact he was missing his band. It was a memento of his family back home, and now that he had it, he never felt right without it on or in plain sight.

He had to trust that Rarity would one day get to it. He knew she would; she was his friend, probably not the closest to him out of the six, but nevertheless he did identify her as one. When she barely knew him, she did give him a gift of her own-the red blanket that he'd used ever since moving in.

"I can't sit around moping all day. It isn't like me..." Azure mumbled to himself. Without his headband, for some odd reason, he felt more...vulnerable, if anything. When he'd handed it off to Fluttershy, he did so without a second thought because he knew she needed something to give her confidence and it was the only thing he could think of.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Hm?" The colt mumbled to himself, rising from his bed and trotting slowly to the door. "Who could that be this early?"

He reached up to the door, pulling it open with his magic for a change. When he saw who was there, he was moderately surprised.

"Good morning, Azure," said Rarity, levitating a small white box behind her in a blue glow. "I have something I believe you will appreciate."

The unicorn colt found himself blinking, but took the box in his own magic. He felt a weird case of deja vu, but there was no way she--

He opened the box to find a very familiar sight. It was his headband, perfectly repaired as though he hadn't burned it at all. Azure didn't even notice the patching job until a few days later when he'd had the reverse side of the band in the light, just right. Even now, he'd almost forgotten it had been damaged. The job was just that good.

"R-Rarity..." Azure's gaze was distant, yet clearly excited. "how? I thought you..."

"Indeed," Rarity responded, "I do have a long list of orders to fulfill. However, from the way you were acting, I could tell that this was important to you. So, I made sure to put it at the top of my list."

Azure did not waste any time securing the headband around his head while she explained away. "T-thank you!"

"I even made sure to stitch it by hoof," The white mare continued. "I'm happy to see you like my work. And, to be frank, darling, I can not imagine you without that headband for a long time. It suits you too well."

The colt immediately removed his treasure. Even the "Courage" stitching had been restored to, more or less, what it was before.

"Indeed, it does..." Azure mumbled.

"Though, do try to be more careful in the future," Rarity said. "I could tell at a glance a wild animal did not take hold of it..."

From that day forward, Azure always made sure his headband was on tight whenever he went out...
-------------------------------------------
Azure tapped a hoof on the table. Why couldn't he stop thinking about his friends? Sure, Rarity did fix his headband, and it did mean a lot to him, but on top of everything else, it just felt odd that on the one day he wanted to have to himself, now he couldn't stop thinking about his friends and the gestures they'd done for him.

Not to mention what happened the last time he and Applejack had spent a lot of time together in a day--

"I need to do something..." Azure mumbled to himself, paying for the meal and exiting the cafe. "I'm starting to lose it, and I don't know what to do..."

The cyan colt dragged a forehoof back and forth along the ground as he stood idly in the Ponyville streets. It was a bit irritating that nothing seemed like it was.

"I need to get to the library," The words were words that the cyan colt had spoken before, but the reason for his visits before were out of concern and a need to know. Now, it was purely selfish, and sketchy at best. "I think I'd better check out a book..."

Not even bothering to realize how unlikely that sentence was, Azure Courage immediately began running to the library. It was a fast run, one that almost made the unicorn look like a mad colt on a mission. Well, to be fair, he sort of was.

He reached the Golden Oaks library quickly, but found himself halting outside the door. Another recent memory returned to him, but it wasn't exactly a pleasant one...
-------------------------------------------
"Ooh...sweet...Celestia..."

Azure Courage had not ever been this sick since he was a small foal. However, he had to have gotten something. He felt incredibly hot, yet he felt more comfortable in his bed. If he tried to do much of anything, he would almost instantly feel sick. He could barely stand to drink cold water, and eating almost anything was out of the question.

"Drenched in sweat...can't drink...or eat...this...sucks..."

His assessment of his situation was pretty fair given his condition. The colt couldn't even hear a knock at the door. The second time, however, it completely registered, and he groaned as he forced himself out of bed.

In his condition, magic only seemed to make his head burn like no other, so he couldn't use it. While this wasn't too much of an issue for the physical-oriented colt, the fact he couldn't do much without almost having to drag himself back to bed afterward only made the task worse.

The pony somehow managed to make it to his door, and weakly pulled it open. Azure could see it was Twilight, who seemed concerned.

"Azure...?" She also sounded surprised to see him in the condition he was in. "Wow, you don't look so good..."

"That's..." Azure found himself on wobbly legs, the mere fact he'd gotten out of bed for as long as he did already taking a toll. "an understatement..."

"You really shouldn't be out of bed..." Twilight said. Azure found himself trying not to pass out again.

"I was in bed..." The colt said. "But somepony knocked..."

Azure suddenly found himself being lifted clear off his feet. Unlike before, when Twilight--he had to double check to make sure he was still alive and in the surprisingly gentle magenta glow--had yanked him out of the path of the Ursa Minor, she was nearly cradling him back to his bed.

"Now we know why you weren't outside all day yesterday..." Twilight said, "I'd guess you might have gotten sick from the storm or the river, and your active lifestyle probably aggravated your condition..."

"I figured that much out myself," Azure responded, being placed back into his bed. "I have not been this sick in a long, long time..." He found himself at a loss with how the studious pony was treating him. Sure, they were friends, but she was usually at odds with him. The only time she hadn't been was right after the Ursa Minor had been forced out of town.

The mare moved slowly, reaching cautiously out to him with a forehoof. She placed it right at the base of his horn, right between his eyes. She winced a few moments later and pulled her hoof back.

"You are burning up..." she observed. Azure could only stare, blinking, at what the pony was doing. As he saw the concern reflected in her lavender eyes, the unicorn could only wonder if the fever was bringing about a hallucination. "Are you in pain?"

"M-mostly just soreness," the colt replied after some silence, "but it really hurts to swallow. I'm sure it's just a cold..."

Lung-rattling coughs raked through him, and aching took over as he did. He turned away from Twilight as he hacked up what felt like part of his lungs.

"You wish it was just a cold..." the purple mare said again, and a few moments later, Azure was lifted off the bed. The blankets moved underneath his floating body, and the colt found himself bundled up in the blankets, in a cocoon of warmth.

"I'm already burning up...what's the point of this?" the sick pony asked.

"You need to sweat out that fever or else it won't go away..." said Twilight, sounding a little distant. Confused, Azure rolled over to look for her, and discovered that she wasn't there at all. For a few moments, the cyan colt wondered if it was just a dream and he was still home alone, when he heard the sound of rushing water.

A couple of minutes later, the mare returned, carrying with her a large bowl of ice water and a large rag. She soaked the rag, wrung most of the moisture out, and placed the rag around the base of his horn. After being warm for so long, the sick colt could only shiver in response to the stimulus, but eventually, the sensation faded and the cold compress actually helped.

"Now," Twilight continued, also holding a glass of water, "I know it hurts to swallow, but you need to drink something..."

Azure hesitated a little, to which Twilight said, "Come on, you're going to be sweating a lot; you should know you need to stay hydrated."

Eventually, the cyan colt relented and took the cup in his hooves. The chill of the water going down his throat did little to ease the pain of swallowing, but eventually he managed to finish the water.

"See, that wasn't so bad, was it?" Twilight smiled, taking the cup back. All the while, Azure could only think of one thing.

What in Equestria is going on today...? She's being really nice to me...sickness nonwithstanding...

"Now, I'm going to go get some stuff to help you get over this. Where do you keep your house key?"

Azure was so taken aback that he fumbled for an answer. Whoever this pony was, it couldn't have been the same mare he found himself at odds with most of the time. Eventually, he was able to break his silence.

"Over there...should be close to the front door..."

Twilight turned, and after some searching, she found the key in question.

"Azure, try to go back to sleep. I won't be gone long..."

Azure listened to Twilight leave, staring after the mare's general path. He blinked, not knowing what was happening. Even if he was as sick as he was, that didn't change the fact that it almost felt like there was a rift between them due to their clashing ideals. It was hard for him to believe that she was so willing to...

The colt's eyelids grew heavy. The fact he'd finally gotten some water in his system, as well as the cold compress around the base of his horn, was allowing him to relax without even realizing it. He was out before the end of three minutes.
-------------------------------------------
The sound of the door closing woke Azure. He felt agitated, paranoid. How long was he out? Who got in while he was asleep? Questions surged through his feverish mind faster than he could answer them, and he began moving around restlessly under the covers.

Something cool seized his overheated hoof and pulled on it.

"Ssh..." The voice was abnormally gentle, and for a moment, Azure thought it had been Fluttershy that had entered. When he actually took notice of what happened, he noticed Twilight had her hoof on his. "It's just me, Azure."

His reaction to the stimulus embarrassed him more than anything else, but it was obviously his fever acting up. Azure took a few calming breaths, then went back to staring at the ceiling.

"S-sorry..." he said, his voice still sounding a little scratchy due to his current condition.

"It's alright...I should have knocked first," Twilight responded. Her voice sounded...off, again, but Azure was too sick to comment on it or think about it at the time. She applied a new cold compress to his forehead before putting a bottle next to him. "I took a little longer than I thought. I was able to find a book on your condition, and I managed to find a simple natural remedy...it should lower your fever and help out that sore throat."

The sound of a small bottle popping open filled Azure's ears.

"I had to go into the Everfree Forest to get one of the ingredients..." she noted aloud, suddenly sounding like she needed to plug her nose. The colt turned to her.

She went that far...for me? Azure thought to himself, The colt that annoys her nine times out of--

"Not to sound ungrateful..." Azure was too weak to reach up for his nose, and instead he had to fight not to smell it. "but is that the reason why the remedy smells like that...?"

"I don't know..." Twilight said. "But the book said this is how you know you've mixed it right. Now, this will not taste very good..."

Azure swallowed. His throat felt even drier than it had the past couple of days. "Let's get it over with."

The spoon met his lips, followed by a thick, foul-tasting liquid. If you had told Azure he'd just eaten regurgitated stomach contents, he'd have fully believed you. The colt was determined not to gag as he forced down the spoonful of medicine.

"Oh...sweet...Celestia..." Azure mumbled, taking a few deep breaths to try and take his mind off the foul-tasting medicine. "I'm going to have to take that again, aren't I?"

"Only twice a day for a few days...I put all the medicine you'd need in this bottle." Twilight put the cork back in the bottle and set the now dirty spoon aside. "But you should feel better in no time..."
-------------------------------------------
Twilight had been right. As Azure continued to take the medicine and the unicorn mare's advice, his conditions gradually improved. All the while, the purple mare came by to check on him and make sure he was taking his medicine. Soon enough, the colt's fever broke and his throat stopped hurting. By the end of the third day, Azure was able to move around and take care of himself.

"Looks like you don't need me any more..." Twilight noted, removing her hoof from Azure's forehead. "Your temperature's back to normal."

"Hey, I'd probably still be lying around if you hadn't shown up when you did," Azure replied. Twilight giggled and nodded, but the colt couldn't help but notice she was in a hurry to leave, if only because she seemed to be walking a little fast. "Say, Twilight..."

The mare stopped at the door, and turned, "What is it, Azure?"

"Why'd you go so far out of your way to make sure I got well again?"

Twilight gave a smile, "Because you're my friend, of course..."
-------------------------------------------
Azure rubbed at his mane again as the memory faded. The memories that had washed over him served to trigger thoughts in his mind, ones that he hadn't even considered until now.

It's true, I didn't come to Ponyville looking for friends... Azure thought to himself. And Twilight didn't want them when she'd first come here. We were here for the exact same reason, more or less. But the two of us came to appreciate not only each other...well, for the most part...but the other five we had already met, more as time passed on. I'd proven time and again I was willing to put it all on the line for them; and they'd been willing to help me when I was in need in return.

The unicorn sighed.

I thought I'd wanted my birthday to myself...

The cyan colt looked up to the door, and mumbled to himself. "Maybe I was wrong..."

Magically, he reached out, opening the door...and taking note of how dark it was in the library. He stepped over the threshold and closed the door behind him.

Why is it so dark in here?

"SURPRISE!!"

Azure's trained reactions went off, but not to the same extreme as they had before; he merely jumped a little in place. By now, he came to understand that a darkened room usually meant one of two things in Ponyville: the lights were out to be out, or there was going to be a Pinkie Pie surprise party. Although the crowd was confined to only nine others total; six mares, a colt, a filly, and a baby dragon, there were still seven more ponies than Azure expected to see.

"Happy Birthday, Azure Courage!!"

The colt stood there, blinking, for what felt like the longest time. He'd made an effort to try and avoid them today, and all this time, they were working on this...specifically for him.

"You all..." Azure mumbled. "How did you know?"

"You told me," Twilight stepped forward. "While you were getting better that time you got sick."

The cyan colt realized the subject must have come up while he was still partially bedridden.

"She told me what we needed to do!" Pinkie chimed in, a party favor hanging halfway out of her mouth.

"Okay..." The unicorn stepped forward. "But why here?"

"It was the last place we'd expect you to come," The studious unicorn said again. "Of course, we also didn't expect you to come this way on your own..."

Azure found himself completely unable to resist a smile. Through thick and thin, these mares were definitely his friends. He didn't come looking for any, far too distracted with a much bigger problem, but once he got them, it was hard to get them to go away.

And the colt knew he wouldn't have it any other way.

"Well, let's get this party started then..."
-------------------------------------------
It was probably the best birthday party Azure had ever had to date. Some of the games that Pinkie had brought up were a little on the foalish side, but it didn't really matter. He knew now that it was the fact he was spending time with his friends that made the day all the more memorable, particularly when he'd come to realize that through memories of his friends.

Of course, every now and again, one of the six mares he was closest to would take him aside to show him a gift they'd gotten him.

Rainbow Dash was the first to pull him aside, gifting him with a pair of goggles that matched his color scheme. While he didn't fly, the goggles still could come in handy if he ever tried to run in a storm again or whatever.

Rarity was next, granting him a horn polishing kit she'd bought from the spa. He was aware she went there once a week with Fluttershy due to the events of a few days ago, but he wasn't sure if he'd ever actually use it. Despite his background, he could only be so formal. Nonetheless, he did express gratitude for the gift anyway.

As time passed, it seemed that the other mares he'd befriended didn't have a gift for him, but Azure was fine with that. The fact they all pitched in to help make this was enough for him. A party game erupted towards the center of the library, and Azure was currently taking a break from the fesitivities to have some time to think to himself.

"Hey, Az," This was Applejack, now away from the others. She seemed only slightly sheepish, but compared to other times, it didn't show so much. "come over here for a sec..."

Azure turned to see her with a gift box on her back. It was rather tall, not at all like the boxes that contained his headband. He walked with her, realizing all too quickly he felt something he didn't quite feel when Rainbow and Rarity had each given him their presents. He also realized, what with all the memories returning to him, that he hadn't thought of Applejack today.

"I wanted to give ya this," Applejack said, grabbing the present in her mouth. Azure felt an all too familiar feeling of skittishness and hesitation manifest in him, along with a certain feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Y-you didn't have to..." Azure mumbled in response, taking the gift carefully from her mouth so she could speak.

"But I wanted to," Now she sounded hurt, and the cyan colt felt the urge to backpedal on what he said again. "After what ya'll did, it's the least I could do."

Something clicked in the colt's head.

That's right... the unicorn thought to himself, I didn't need to remember a moment with her...I had one just recently, and...I remember it when I'm completely unoccupied...

He'd remembered when he went over to her house, and had his concerns unmasked by the farmer mare. He remembered the hug she'd given him as he left. More importantly, he remembered that strange, warm feeling that he'd had while she was in his forelegs...

"Oh..." Azure said, trying to break free of his thoughts before he started to blush again, "Thank you..." He gave a smile as he pulled the package closer to him so he could open it manually. Applejack returned the smile, but she suddenly looked away for a few moments.

When she looked back to him, she said, "Well, are ya gonna stare at it all day?"

Azure was careful in unwrapping the box and opening it. He pulled out something that was quite a surprise. While he was no expert in hats, the style of it was very similar to Applejack's. It might have been a different kind, but it still screamed "southwestern" all the same. The biggest difference was the charcoal black sash wound around it.

The colt was no expert on how things worked either, but he knew enough to see it was made manually, no magic or machines involved in the process. Given her reaction, it really looked like Applejack herself had made it. Azure could respect the fact she'd done so, unlike a certain green unicorn who he was related to.

"Thanks, Applejack," the unicorn colt said, spinning the hat around slowly in his magic so he could get a good look at all the angles of the hat. "It's perfect."

"Don't just look at it," Applejack responded with a smile, "Try it on, partner..."

Azure obliged, gently lowering the hat onto his head, minding his horn so he wouldn't puncture it. The hat was soft, and fit his head quite snugly at the angle he put it on. He wasn't quite sure if he had it on right, but that was what friends were for.

"How do I look?" he asked of the farmer mare. The mare didn't respond right away, taking a good, long look at him. Eventually, her green eyes flashed.

"Ya look perfect," she finally responded. The orange earth pony quickly blinked, and became skittish again, though she didn't lose her voice. "I-I mean, the hat looks perfect..." Again, blinking, backpedaling, "o-on you, sugarcube..."

Again, there was that weird inflection with her usual name for ponies.

"Hey, are you okay?" Azure asked, concerned with his friend's sudden change in behavior. The fact she stepped back and her face started to turn red didn't help matters...

"I'm fine," Applejack's face distorted physically, and her eyes immediately went elsewhere, "I just need somethin' to drink is all..." She took a few uneasy steps back. "Happy birthday again, Azure," The mare immediately trotted, fast-paced, away from him, back towards the party.

Azure rubbed at his mane, carefully adjusting his hat to do so.

"But..." he turned to the refreshments table on his left. "the refreshments are right here..." he thought aloud.

"My, my, my, what a development..."

A sudden surge of self-consciousness blasted through Azure, and he turned to see Rarity, with a little bit of a smile on her face.

"W-what do you mean, Rarity?" he asked, turning to the white unicorn.

"Oh, please, don't be so coy, darling," Rarity responded. "I saw the look in your eyes, as well as the look in her own when you were having your conversation." There was a strange look in the blue eyes of the mare, one that Azure had never seen in anypony. They appeared to be staring through him.

"What do you mean, 'look'?" The cyan colt wasn't aware of it, but he was getting defensive. He took a step back. Having this Rarity invading his personal space almost made him wish that the flirtatious mare he'd met on day one had come back to play. Almost.

"When you two were talking, you two were gazing into one other's eyes..." The white unicorn trailed off. "Well, when you weren't trying to avoid each other's gazes..."

Oh, she saw all that, didn't she?

"Oh, that," Azure knew he could play this off if he explained the situation, "Well, we were just talking about this hat she made me..."

The sparkle in the white unicorn's eye, for some reason, sent a chill down the colt's spine.

What did I say?

"I see," she finally said, "So, she made a gift for you with her own two hooves?" Rarity took a few steps forward, and Azure felt the urge to take a step back again. "That makes it much more meaningful, does it not?"

Azure blinked, "Um...I guess so..." He was about two words short of mentioning the weird feeling he got when she gave the package to him, but apparently Rarity had caught it.

"I must ask, as a matter of curiosity..." The white unicorn said, looking straight into his eyes. "Do you have a crush on Applejack?"

"No," Azure said.

"Then why is it you're blushing, darling?" Rarity asked.

"I'm not...!"

"...Well, now you are..." Now she was being just a little smug.

"What?" Azure realized now his face was heating up.

"Please, darling, do not worry," Rarity said, "Your secret's safe with me. However, I must say...you don't have any idea what you are getting yourself into, do you?"

Have I been here before? The unicorn colt was feeling a sense of deja vu creep up on him again.

"If you want, I could help clear things up for you..."

Azure blinked. Was she offering him advice...? He didn't know anything about it, that was true, but even then, he wasn't sure what it was he was dealing with. A crush? No...this didn't feel anything quite like that...but then again, his stomach did do gymnastics on some occasions when he thought about Applejack...

"I...don't think I'm ready yet," Azure said. "I've got a lot on my mind right now..."

"Oh," Rarity seemed to understand, "I see. Well, I'll leave it alone for now. But make no mistake, Azure Courage, if you should ever find yourself...overwhelmed, I'll always be willing to listen."

With that, she trotted back to the party, leaving the colt alone with his thoughts.

Isn't this what Silver was talking about...? Azure thought to himself. A pony's actions and words can say a lot to a mare...if so...

He took off his hat, and began to fiddle with it, unsure with himself more than ever. What else have I done through my words and actions? Is Applejack the only one?

Chapter 17: Stuck Inside in the Cold, Part 1

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Chapter 17: Stuck Inside in the Cold, Part 1
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For Azure Courage, the days and weeks since his birthday slowly began to blur into one single blob of time. Sure, a few days after his birthday, he received a very meaningful and large gift in the form of a parasprite invasion. At first, they were harmless, even cute. Then they started multiplying exponentially. What was once eight turned into eight hundred thousand practically overnight.

As it turned out, they reproduced asexually, by coughing up offspring. Rarity was not pleased about that at all. When the time came to try and remove the parasprite invasion, things really got bad when Twilight tried to cast a spell that made them stop eating all the food in Ponyville. It worked...but not in the way she had intended.

They took to eating the whole town instead. The damages were severe, but even so, the town was still salvageable. The repairs were originally estimated to take a total of six months to clear, but with practically every able-bodied pony in Ponyville pitching in to the recovery effort, what would have taken six months to fix took six weeks.

Even so, during that time, a lot began to happen. Though everypony had their own section of town to fix, and of course, Sweet Apple Acre's farmhouse had been completely destroyed during the parasprite invasion, Applejack somehow still found time to stop by Azure's section of town to say "hi".

At first, it seemed like sheer coincidence that she found him, given her own workload she had to take care of. However, as the days progressed and Ponyville began to regain its former shape, the visits gained in frequency, but the visits were just as short as the previous. Very rarely did they ever have a conversation. After about the third week, Azure received an unexpected gift.

The farmer had decided to give him a slice of apple pie for his lunch. This became increasingly common until the end of the repairs. At first, it didn't seem like a big deal. However, on days where he didn't get pie to go along with his lunch, his co-workers would ask a fated question.

"What? No pie?"

This was typically followed by the sounds of snickers from his other co-workers. At first, it seemed harmless, but then it quickly devolved into facehoof-worthy nonsense. Sort of like before when they teased him about the fact he was friends with six mares. However, Azure believed that by that point, he'd learned self-control around Applejack, given the awkwardness had vanished for the most part.

He was soon proven wrong. Not too long after the repairs, Azure opted for a change of pace and meditated outside in his usual spot. He had loads of free time at that point due to the fact his company was on break considering all the workers were a little sore from the constant work. Usually, it wasn't long before somepony interrupted him.

However, instead of Pinkie Pie inquiring about what he was doing before pestering him to RSVP at the next party she was hosting or whatever, it was Applejack, and stranger still, Azure found himself strangely okay with the interruption. With the weather outside getting colder and colder as winter approached, the Apple family needed to buck as many apples from their orchard as they could before the big freeze came. Azure had been happy to help, probably more so than he realized; on the opposite hoof, it appeared Applejack was estatic to have him helping her out.

It began as a group effort to help Applejack's family out in their time of need, but over time, things began to change and get even more confusing than before. It was rare, but on occasion, Azure would catch Applejack staring at him as he went to work on the trees. Apple Bloom seemed to be staring too, but her stare was more foalish, much less "staring straight at you" and more like "reading your diary and finding a juicy entry". It was like she knew something he didn't.

Of course, Azure had returned Applejack's stares on occasion, and had even himself been caught staring in her direction without even realizing it until somepony either drenched him in cold water or otherwise got his attention. All in all, the only thing the unicorn colt had done was make himself even more confused.

It didn't end there, either. Twilight had also been undergoing some changes when dealing with him. She came off as hostile more times than she had before, and more often than not, became snippy and sarcastic when talking to him. Around the same time as his work on the farm, she would take notice he'd been wearing the hat Applejack made for him.

In return, she asked if he'd ever used the gift she got him on his birthday yet.

Twilight's gift had come last, but the gift certainly made sense coming from her. It was a book, somewhere in the adventure genre. When she would ask if he'd ever read it, Azure answered no, and each time he did, she seemed more and more hurt by it.

It shouldn't have been such a surprise, but the fact she appeared hurt only confused Azure even more than he was already. And Spike's own teasing just seemed to get worse and worse as time continued to pass.

Azure would have put more thought into his situation if he wasn't more concerned with the fact that the shady unicorn colt was still out there. However, he hadn't yet made another appearance since the night of the attack on the barn, probably because the cyan colt had managed to unmask him in the skirmish. Neither did any of the Shadow Creatures-it turned out the wolves were actually called "Shadow Fangs"-make a reappearance. Though it was obvious the enemy didn't want to chance another attack for a long while, the colt wanted to make absolutely sure he was ready for that return.

However, the upcoming season was going to make that difficult. The days were getting shorter, the nights longer, and the temperature colder.
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"I...hate...winter..." Azure mumbled, cooped up in his house next to the fireplace, wrapped up in a thick blanket. Though many would consider this an overreaction, the unicorn had one thing that would always sap at his spirit: the cold. Without fail, he could not stand being outside in the winter for very long before he started feeling hypothermic. It didn't matter how he bundled up.

He preferred being toasty as he was now when the weather turned south like it had.

What is it about this season that brings out the worst in me... the colt thought to himself, staring into the fire for a few moments. The cyan colt had no idea what to do. He did not enjoy the cold at all, even when the other ponies took up sledding or whatever when the snow fell thick. Most of his winters were spent indoors, biding his time until the annual Winter Wrap-Up commenced.

That's right... Azure thought to himself. Might be different in Ponyville since there aren't as many unicorns in town...

Just as that thought dawned on him, Azure snarled in annoyance.

"Manure..." he grumbled, running a hoof down his face and lifting the blanket off his body. "I've gotta go check on Twilight's study progress, see if she's found anything on that anti-Shadow Creature spell..."

Ever since his birthday, he had checked in once a week when able to see if she'd found anything. Each time, she hadn't made any spell progress, but it was obvious she was looking into it, since she did display notes. Oh Celestia, did she ever display notes...each time he visited, it seemed like she had at least ten new pages of notes on the Shadow Ghouls themselves or possible neutralizers.

He decided to prepare himself, physically and mentally for the cold weather he was about to go through. After rifling through his stuff, he found a dark green scarf which had always served him well in the past. The colt donned that and the hat from Applejack so he could stay warm. He made sure to put on some horseshoes so his hooves didn't get frostbite-a lesson his mother had drilled into his mind since early foalhood.

As he began to leave his room, he turned to something on his bedside table. It was Twilight's book, with a hastily-made bookmark poking out of it at about sixty pages in...
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Azure Courage shivered bitterly, though he had to admit the hat was at least keeping his head warm, that together with his headband. The fact he and Twilight lived a sizable distance from one another and he had to walk there did nothing to help his feelings toward winter whatsoever. He looked around, seeing the snow-covered Ponyville, but no matter how he looked, the fact it was all cold sapped all the potential fun out of the scenery.

If the pony were instead a human, he'd be rubbing his arms briskly right now.

It's cold...! The cyan unicorn shivered, trying his hardest to keep himself from stopping. He feared that if he stopped, he'd freeze to the spot until spring came. Princess Luna, I'm sorry the winter solstice has to be so cold...

The colt trotted along, nearly slipping on an icy patch as he went along. He shivered again, his fur, scarf, shoes, headband and hat still failing at fully protecting him from the cold. All the way, he cursed the chilly weather, the slippery walks, the chilly weather, the short days...did he mention, the chilly weather?

Little did he realize he was being stalked...
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Rainbow Dash's job got easier when winter came along. All she had to do was guide clouds and not clear them. Once a week, there would be snow, and most of the time, she would play in it. Today was no exception. The snow was packing well, and currently, she was stalking her quarry, a certain colt in a cowboy hat, looking absolutely miserable.

"What kinda friend would I be if I didn't try to cheer him up a little...?" The rainbow-maned mare smirked mischieviously, balancing a perfectly packed snowball between her forehooves as she waited for her target to stop moving. Strangely, Azure didn't so much as slow down. He sure seemed in a hurry to get somewhere. As she continued to follow him under the cover of a cloud, her patience started wearing thin.

She loved a good prank, but Rainbow knew it would be much more "worth it" if she could just nail Azure with the snowball instead of missing. Not that she was scared of missing, mind you.

Finally, she decided to be direct...
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Azure felt like he'd been out in the cold for hours, but it'd only been about ten minutes. He was maybe halfway to the library now, and his body was shivering quite a bit. He tried to keep his mouth shut, for fear that if he left it hanging open even a centimeter, his teeth would start chattering madly. The colt tried to keep his brisk pace, but the frigid air was draining his energy. He could not stay warm for the life of him.

"Hey, Az!" Rainbow's very familiar voice called out. Against his better judgment, Azure stopped, and turned to where he heard her voice...

And caught a snowball right on the side of the head for his concerns. The impact knocked his hat from his head, and he stood, stunned, while he heard the sound of Rainbow Dash laughing. He found her, hovering in the air, positively beside herself. Ponies passing by were not interested in the spectacle, except for a select few who slowed down and rubbernecked.

"Why'd you do that?" Azure interrogated, annoyed with the fact that he'd been smacked with a snowball. Now the side of his face was slightly sore and cold. "Seriously."

"Why?" Dash asked, recovering from her laughing fit, "You looked miserable out here! What was I supposed to do?"

"Not throw a snowball at me?" The unicorn continued to display how irritating the unexpected snowball was as he telekinetically picked up his hat and put it back on his head.

"Where's the fun in that?" The blue mare asked, paying less and less attention to what the unicorn was doing. Which worked to Azure's advantage. If Rainbow Dash was going to blindside him with that sort of prank, then it was only fair he try to get her back before the end of the day. Preferably as soon as possible so he didn't have to be outside in the freezing weather. He reached out with his magic.

It was hard to learn to roll a snowball with just his magic, but Virid seemed insistent on teaching him the skill one winter, and Azure just couldn't get out of it. But, in this case, he'd have to thank his cousin for being magically biased.

It would help him earn payback here.

"Hmm, you know what, you're right, Rainbow," Azure said, "Where is the fun in that?"

"See, you're gettin' the hang of it..." she said, still not paying attention to him.

"And you know what else?" By now, Azure had finished forming his snowball, and prepared to launch. "I think I've found some fun out of this, but I don't think you're going to like it."

As soon as he finished his sentence, he flung the snowball from behind him, ducking down reflexively so he would avoid hitting himself with his own snowball as he magically chucked it up towards Rainbow Dash. However, apparently he made his retribution attempt a little too obvious, since the pegasus turned halfway and saw the flying projectile before it could hit her, and she eloquently rolled off the cloud.

Son of a--!

"Oh, so that's what you want to play?" Rainbow Dash asked, already rolling towards a nearby snowbank and preparing her next snowball.

"I thought it was what you wanted to play..." Azure replied coyly, already preparing his next snowballs as he magically rolled up a couple more for the exchange.

Azure let one of the formed snowballs loose, but found himself dodging one. Magically, he chucked the other one, which passed about two inches to the left of one of Rainbow's wings. The colt forced more magic into his horn, leaping to his left and skidding a little on the ice as he dodged another shot.

Rainbow Dash laughed it off, but was hit with a snowball from an unexpected direction. Keeping part of his focus on forming more snowballs, Azure had one eye on his left.

"P-Pinkie?!" Rainbow sputtered, having not expected the hit.

"I love snowball fights!" Pinkie said simply. "There're so many things I really love about snow, but..." The earth pony proceeded to ramble on about what she loved about the season, paying no attention to the pegasus's return strike until it nailed her in the side of the head.

"Don't ramble on in the middle of one!" The rainbow-maned pony warned. Azure took his chance, and nailed Rainbow Dash at last in the side with his own shot.

This got all three of them going, and within moments, more and more snow-based projectiles were sailing into the air. Azure didn't want to admit it, and he never would, but even though he couldn't stand the cold, he was actually starting to have fun. The pony ducked down around a corner, trying to keep on his path to the library.

How am I gonna get out of this snowball fight without either of them taking notice...? The cyan colt thought to himself.

"Hey, Azie," Pinkie greeted.

Azure turned his head, realizing he was in fact about to get nailed again. However, the attack came from an unexpected direction when a snowball crashed against the back of his head.

Darn it...

"This isn't how you win a snowball fight..." This was followed by the closest thing to a punch Pinkie had ever thrown. Of course, it didn't help that she basically jabbed another snowball right between his eyes. At least she didn't flat-out punch it into him while she was at it.

"It isn't, my mistake..."

Azure quickly broke in the general direction of the library, looking around at the ponies who were more or less watching the spectacle. He looked behind him, to see Rainbow Dash about ready to chuck a couple more snowballs in his direction. Pinkie Pie was...somehow, shuffling along on the ground while managing not to slip on any icy patches and, even more impossibly, juggling at least two snowballs with her tail while chasing him.

Let's see if I can just draw in everypony...

Azure's horn lit up, and he took whatever snow he could grab. He couldn't form too many snowballs in a magical grip, but for his purposes, it'd be enough if he could throw one and form the next while having another two on standby.

Last he cared to check how well his snowball formation via magic was, he could form up to six or seven projectiles at once before having to throw them, but he hadn't really practiced it due to his disdain for winter. A few snowballs impacted just behind him as he skidded to a halt.

"Where're you runnin', Az?" Rainbow observed, appearing ready to dodge whatever attempt he was about to make. "Don't tell me you're scared..."

"No..."

Azure's horn began to light up completely as he prepared to implement his plan.

"Just cold."

He began to fling snowballs in random directions, not caring if he actually hit anypony or not. He was aware that he might just wind up making the entire town mad if he flung the snowballs at them, but it was the only thing he could think of in his situation. All the while, as he continued to fling snowballs, he was aware of the shouts of ponies, as they either moved to dodge, got hit, or otherwise got "inspired", for lack of a better term.

By the time the unicorn opened his eyes again, he found, surprisingly, his tactic of flinging snowballs everywhere worked. It seemed like he'd gotten at least ten other ponies involved in a snowball fight in the middle of the town. Breathing heavily from the magic use it took to get to that point, the unicorn adjusted his hat, once more feeling the bone-chilling cold.

"Sorry, but I have other things I need to take care of..." Azure mumbled. "Now...to check up on Twilight's research..."
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The rest of the way to Twilight Sparkle's home and the Ponyville library was not marred by further snowball attacks. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie were far too busy with juggling the attention of over ten other ponies; they probably didn't even notice he left until it was too late. Then again, at least two of them were pegasi, counting Dash herself. Either way, Azure Courage felt lucky to be away from the snowball fight.

Sure, he found it fun, but in the end, his disdain for the cold won out. With all that considered, the cyan colt knocked on the door with one hoof. There was the sound of movement and a pony yelling at a dragon to "please get that" on the opposite side. A few moments later, the door opened.

"Oh, Azure, what a surprise," Spike greeted, "No more bucking with Applejack?" That style of humor had been rapidly aging since his birthday, and it had not been helped by the fact he was repeatedly tormented, giggled at, or otherwise looked at funny by foals. Three in particular leapt into his mind...

"It's been winter for a few weeks now," Azure answered, the cold wearing his patience thinner than usual. "Aren't you tired yet?"

"If I stay inside, it doesn't bother me..." the young dragon retorted, allowing the colt inside. "Dragons don't hibernate during the winter...I think. That's what Twilight tells me, sometimes..."

As Azure stepped inside, heat blasted him so fast he swore his fur got singed. He already began to remove the materials he used to keep warm, starting first with his shoes, then shifting attention to his hat, shaking the snow gently from the hat as he went along. Already he could hear the clopping of hooves approaching him from Twilight's room, no doubt the mare about to address his concerns.

He just got the scarf into his field of vision as he tried to remove it from his body when he heard her voice: "Azure, if you came here to ask about my progress, I have to tell you now I haven't been able to work on it as much because of a small setback..."

"What do you--" Azure finally caught sight of Twilight as he set his scarf off to the side. He was met with a sight he didn't quite expect to see of the mare. Given he always thought of her as a bookworm, it did fit that she was wearing glasses, but they didn't look like nerd glasses or reading glasses. But...the glasses she was wearing...they made her look...different. "Um...Twilight, since when...?" He waved his hand in front of his eyes, indicating what he lacked on his own face.

"Not that it's my choice," interjected Twilight, "Turns out all the time where I spend reading in poor light damaged my eyes..." She removed the glasses with her magic for a brief moment, and Azure observed she was squinting. "It's just temporary, but I have to wear these glasses for a while so they can recover."

"Sorry to hear that," Azure wasn't sure what it was about the mare in glasses, but for some reason, he couldn't quite stop looking her way when she was wearing them. Twilight looked...right, somehow, when she had those glasses on, and the colt knew that it wasn't because she read a lot. "Think you should give the research a rest until your eyes heal?" He asked the question, trying to shift his attention away.

"Can't do that, Azure," Twilight responded, turning to her room. "I spend a lot of time reading. It was probably going to happen even if that whole mess with that Shadow summoner didn't happen." She made a motion for Azure to follow her, and he began to. "Not that I'd expect you to know what it's like to be immersed in a book..."

Really, Twilight? You're still guilt tripping me over not reading the book? Oh no, wait, I have read it... Azure thought to himself, frowning a little bit. Let's see...quote she might know, quote she might know...
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By this point in her friendship with Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Azure Courage, Twilight Sparkle was utterly convinced that she was the only one who read for more than just research purposes. The fact Azure did read at all was interesting enough, given he was the only one other than her at the time they first met who believed Nightmare Moon was soon to return...though his approach was...terrible. However, the fact he continued to use books to look up information was just a smidgeon away from being a total shock given his personality type.

He just didn't seem like the kind of colt to think things through all the way. Still, she got the book because she couldn't think of anything else to give him at that time. However, she did still secretly hope he'd read it, even if he only read five pages and never picked it up again...

"'There were many choices, but in my heart, I knew the only right one...'"

Twilight physically stopped dead in her tracks. That quote was a rather iconic quote from the earlier chapters; even so, still further than she'd expected him to go. She did read the book through - twice - before giving it to Azure, and she knew a lot of it in the back of her mind. The mare looked back to Azure, feeling shocked.

"Wait, you actually read it?"

She couldn't withhold herself from smiling as the shock gradually washed away. Now this was a shock - Azure actually read on a recreational level, too!

"Of course I read it," Azure responded, continuing to walk up to her until he was about five steps from her. "In winter, I don't spend nearly as much time outside because it's so cold, so I just spend a lot of time reading..."

The fact he read on a seasonal basis didn't even matter to her. For some reason, she'd felt jealous Azure had more use for Applejack's hat than the book she gave him. It felt almost relieving to know he was using the book for its intended purpose. The quote was actually something from a passage early on, and--and--

"Twilight? Are you in there?"

Twilight adjusted the glasses manually, though instantly she wasn't sure why she did that given she'd usually done it unconsciously with magic. She turned back towards her room, feeling a warmth starting to surge to her cheeks.

She still wasn't sure why it seemed to happen more and more around him...

"It's...good to know you're reading it, Azure," Twilight finally said, trying to regain her composure. "So, let's go over the notes I took since last time you checked..."
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When Twilight said that she'd suffered a setback, Azure could tell in the amount of notes she'd actually taken since his last check. Where usually she'd have pages and pages of notes for him to pore over and barely understand some of the stuff she actually wrote, he only got four and a half full pages of notes on the subject, and the notes weren't as jargon-tastic as they usually were.

While the latter could be passed off as her understanding he couldn't get what she was trying to communicate in her writing, the former was definitely a cause for concern. She'd really messed up her eyes, he could discern that much.

"I just want to be sure: you spent as much time on the research as before?" Azure asked, turning back to Twilight.

"I told you, the eye damage slowed me down," Twilight responded, sounding only slightly indignant.

"Okay..." Azure ran a hoof uneasily over his mane. She was going to be taking notes like this for a few weeks while her eyes recovered? The colt admitted he only knew enough research to get by, and even then, he didn't think things through as much as most ponies in a given position would do. And Twilight messed up her eyes since she was getting involved in the incident and was juggling everything. "Now I feel bad..."

There was an uneasy pause, for some reason. It didn't help that the unicorn felt like he shouldn't have said that out loud to his friend all of a sudden.

What in Celestia's name possessed me to say that out loud?

"Oh?" Twilight inquired. A cold chill ran down Azure's back, and for some reason, he felt himself hesitate. Before, he would have happily told just about anypony what was on his mind, but he felt...skittish, for some reason.

"Well, I'd basically sentenced you to do this research alone," The colt relented with a sigh. "It obviously couldn't have been any good for your eyes, given you've got to wear glasses now to allow your eyes time to heal..."

The purple mare remained awkwardly quiet while Azure shifted his attention back to her notes.

Alright, let's see, Shadow Ghouls are better summoned at night...good to know, though it might have been obvious. It takes more magic to maintain them during the day...would explain why he was able to summon so many of those Fangs and maintain them. Light is their weakness, according to these notes, but all it does is weaken them a little bit. So...what does this mean...?

"So..." Azure said. "I see. Light weakens them somehow. That's obviously a lead, right?"

"Huh?" Twilight had apparently spaced out while he was checking over the notes. "Oh, yeah," She immediately regained her composure just as he turned to her, a little confused. "It took a while to dig that information up, but it looks like light could be the key to neutralizing the ghouls without dragging things out..."

"I wonder...?" Azure began.

He was remembering when he'd fired the laser at the unicorn that was summoning the Shadow Ghouls. Could the fact that his laser had gotten that close to his enemy's glowing horn have been the reason he was able to dispel the summons, and the colt in question had no control over that?

"You think you've won?!"

"The way he sounded when he yelled at me...could the fact I almost hit him with a laser spell be the reason the summons went away?"

"That might be stretching 'light as the weakness' a little too much." Twilight said. "Judging by how he hasn't tried another attack anywhere, least of all here, it's possible you just scared him off and he felt he needed to get out of there before you dealt your brand of justice to him..."

"Hey, at least in that case I'd be justified in kicking his rump up and down the orchards..." Azure countered.

"I didn't say you weren't justified..." Twilight responded, not sounding like she wanted to argue the point. "I know you're not the one picking a fight here; whoever he is, I know he's out to hurt ponies, and I know you won't stand for it..."

"So we agree on that," Azure nodded. "Okay, at least now we finally know what we're looking for..."

"The parasprites also slowed me down a little..." The mare continued. "But that was a given, really..."

"I didn't bother to check those weeks because I knew nothing would come of it..."

"So...next up, is to research spells that..." Twilight hesitated, squinting just a little behind the glasses as she struggled to find the right words. "I assume, generate sunlight, or at least some kind of substitute, to take out or cripple his summonings' capabilities..."

"Of the two of us, you should be able to pull it off," said Azure in response. "Even though I'm the reckless one, you have a lot more magical potential than I do..."

Once again, he wasn't sure why he said that, but it was true; ever since the incident with the Ursa Minor, he'd known Twilight Sparkle was two things: incredibly talented as a unicorn, and painfully modest about it. So why did it suddenly feel weird to say it now?

"Azure," The way she sounded wasn't that abnormal, nor was her reaction unexpected. She blushed and looked away for a moment...then a moment longer than he expected her to. "It shouldn't be too hard for you to do it..." And she got weirder. The colt couldn't help but raise an eyebrow and feel...confused, when she finished, "Um, not that I think you're bad at magic!"

"It's okay, Twilight," The cyan colt said, standing up. "Guess I'd better get going, though..." He was already heading for the door.

"W-wait!" Twilight called out to him, something sort of alien for these visits. Of course, what she said next utterly mystified Azure. "You just got here...why not stay for a bit before you go? I can have Spike make some tea or something..."

The colt sighed. He knew he said he wanted to get to know his friends better, but he knew Twilight fairly well compared to the others. Besides which, he did have something he wanted to do.

"Sorry, I can't, Twilight," What he was saying was only half-true, but it was truth enough to give him an excuse...what with what just happened between them, Azure felt that putting some distance between them was best. "I need to get back to that book." He turned back to her, flashing a smile. "I stopped on a cliffhanger in the book you gave me, and the suspense is starting to get to me a litte bit..."

Taking full advantage of Twilight's shock, Azure Courage quickly took the time to get out of the library, donning his winter gear as he went.

Hope it isn't raining snowballs when I get back...
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Twilight Sparkle found herself completely dumbfounded. Azure Courage was really acting...well, like himself, and yet so unlike himself it was hard to believe that she had just been talking to the same colt who attacked Nightmare Moon even when he knew he had no chance. Apparently, he really was a big reader during the winter.

It was almost ridiculous to think that such a pony could be so weakened by the cold that all he could do was read. At the same time, the mare felt grateful for it. Even if it was only a seasonal thing, they did share pasttimes...

Why was she thinking about this? There was important things to get back to...

The mare stopped suddenly, adjusting her glasses by levitating them back into place.

Azure, if you really feel guilty about leaving me with all the hard work, she thought to herself. Perhaps we need to meet up and help each other out with the research...

"That colt could attack again at any time, after all..."
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"You ain't getting away this time, Az!"

"Please, not now, Rainbow, it's cold outside!"

"C'mon, Azie, it's a snowball fight!"

"I already started one, Pinkie!"

"Don't tell me you're scared!"

"I'm not, I'm just hypersensitive to the cold!"

"That's not the only thing you're hypersensitive to..."

"...Oh come on! Now you're starting that too?!"

"Ooh, Rainbow, you must have pressed a button..."

"Agh!"
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Azure Courage warped back into his home using the teleport spell. He breathed heavily from the run he had done, and was surprised to find himself not only in the place he wanted to be, but the fact he was also sweating from the exertion it took to get away from Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, both of whom wanted a second round with the snowball fight with him. While he understood this would happen, his interest in staying out in the cold was even lower than it was before.

"How do you sweat in the cold...?" he panted, "Sorry, Rainbow, Pinkie, but one snowball fight was enough for me for one day..."

Wasting no time, the cyan colt immediately went back to his room, putting his winter gear back where he got it from, and putting the hat it its place. He sighed, brushing off his chest.

"Feel kinda bad for ditching them like that...but I don't like winter..."

A second sigh later, Azure turned to the book on his nightstand.

"Well, at least I have something to pass the time with until we can wrap up this season..."

With that, the colt took the book to his living room, where he'd been earlier that day, and re-kindled a fire. He slipped under his blanket, opened up his book, and picked up where he left off.

"...With time running out and so much at stake, Wild Monkey made a decision that would alter the fate of the entire planet..."

Chapter 18: Stuck Inside in the Cold, Part 2

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Chapter 18: Stuck Inside in the Cold, Part 2
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An hour passed. Then two. Azure Courage spent the better part of the next few hours reading the book Twilight got him when he wasn't eating something or shivering bitterly in front of the fireplace in a slightly overexaggerated moment of weakness. The colt's disdain for winter always affected him, but it seemed to be a bit less after that snowball fight.

However, if Rainbow started grilling him about it, his answer would be the same thing he mumbled to himself when he teleported back home: "Once was enough."

The colt had just tended to his fire, when there was a knock at the door. A sudden jolt of nerves suddenly blasted through him, believing that Rainbow Dash was about to cream him with a snowball as soon as he answered the door. However, the unicorn blew out a sigh, getting to his hooves.

"Let's get it over with, Azure," he mumbled to himself, getting to his feet. He kept his breathing even as he trotted up to the door, fully expecting the oncoming projectile.

Three...two...one...

"I thought you'd be here..."

"Twilight?!" Azure was shocked to see Twilight Sparkle, still wearing those glasses...and wearing two saddlebags full of books in addition to a scarf and winter boots. "What are you doing here...and what's with the books?"
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Twilight Sparkle had come to this conclusion hours before, when Azure had left the library and went home. Somehow, she knew it would have had to come to this anyway. One of them would have to stay over at the other's house and together, they'd have to really delve into the material they needed to counter the Shadow Ghouls.

"Well, you said you felt guilty about leaving me to all the studies earlier..." the mare answered, "So I came here to help you clear your conscience..."

Azure didn't immediately have a response, but, sure enough, he found his voice, "Oh. Come in, I guess, but why didn't you ask me to stay earlier when I brought it up? Why'd you come over here?"

The mare inexplicably stumbled over her own answer. However, she knew what she was here to do, and she wasn't going to turn back now, especially since she was here now. Besides, there was a very good reason she had in mind, and now was the time for her to state it as she passed inside.

She'd known Azure long enough to know some of his weirder quirks. They wouldn't have been weird on any other colt, but...

"Even though you said you felt bad," Twilight responded, walking past him, stepping inside, "I know not everypony can handle studying for prolonged periods of time. If I wanted you to help, I knew I had to find a way to keep you in one place. I merely closed the library for the night and told Spike not to answer the door for anypony while I was out. I also know that because you can't stand the cold, you won't leave your own home to try to get out of it. And, since there's going to be a snowstorm tonight, I know your 'code' won't allow you to kick me out into that."

Something odd happened to the cyan colt at this moment. Usually, even if he agreed, he'd have to get one shot in against her for some reason. Those instances decreased as they got to know one another, but it still happened often enough that Twilight found the silence a bit disturbing. It dawned on her that Azure was absolutely unable to respond to her logic.

Twilight couldn't discern exactly why she said what she said next.

"Oh look," she said, "You're speechless. How adorable."

There was an awkward pause. She didn't exactly know what to take it from there, but...somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew she was telling the truth, or at least, being honest about what she thought about the sight of a speechless Azure.

"...Um...okay..." The colt sounded a little embarrassed, any reply that he may have had to her previous statement completely shot away, "I guess we can make this work, then..."

She turned to him, to see the faintest traces of pink fading away from his cheeks.

"Go on, Twilight, make yourself comfortable. We'd better get going on this..."
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For Twilight Sparkle, it was just a little bit more than the average research report she'd had to write. Only difference is, the research period was a lot longer than she'd anticipated, and she didn't have to turn in any reports save for Princess Celestia when she'd finally reached a breakthrough on this.

The sun princess did seem awfully worried when she'd heard about it, but at the same time...seemed a little assured that help would come from the bonds they shared. The unicorn found herself not particularly surprised with her mentor's attitude towards the incident; however, she'd have preferred it if her reply was a bit less vague...

For Azure Courage, it was only slightly preferable to being in the cold. He found himself fighting the urge to nod off as he pored over more and more reference materials trying to find something that could be used against the Shadow Ghouls. However, he had said something about how he'd felt guilty forcing all the work on her, and he actually did feel a little bad.

A Twilight unable to read wasn't exactly a Twilight he could ever picture in his mind, so he did whatever measures he could to keep himself from falling asleep, including smacking himself with a hoof, drinking something, and...at one point, shoving his head out of one of the windows into the whipping winds so the frigid air would shock him back awake.

He'd basically said he'd help her, and no matter how much he wanted to, he would not fall asleep here. He would take whatever notes he could see, and call Twilight over if he thought he'd found something interesting...
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To put it simply, Azure Courage found himself bored. He knew he said he felt bad, and he intended to make good on his word by assisting Twilight somehow in her studies, but he was feeling dangerously bored, almost to the point he was going to pass out. There were two things keeping him from becoming rendered unconscious due to the study session.

One, his resolve. He was not about to have Twilight damage her eyes any more on his behalf because he wasn't able to help her gather what she needed.

Two, the fact she once said he wouldn't be able to last through a hardcore study session without passing out. But by Celestia, he was bored, and he needed something, anything, to take his mind off the boredom, at least for a moment. He rubbed his eyes, and decided he needed to talk to Twilight.

"Twilight?" Azure asked, half-expecting her to not pay attention to any of his statements since she was deep into the book.

"Huh, did you find something?" Twilight looked up from the book she had been looking at.

"I feel like asking something, actually..." the colt responded, standing up.

"Hmm?"

"I know we've been trying to find a light-generating spell and all, but, if we want to counter the summoner..." Azure found himself asking a question he never thought he'd be asking, but he was so bored he didn't see the harm in asking it. At the very least, he wouldn't be bored anymore. "Why not fight fire with fire?"

Twilight's neck craned bolt upright, and she stared straight at him, wide-eyed for a moment. It was obvious she was in disbelief.

However, as Azure expected, her eyes quickly narrowed, and her brows arched. "You're kidding, right? Please tell me you are..."

For some reason, the cyan colt didn't feel like taking back his statement just yet. Maybe it was the way Twilight's face pinched when she was mad. Maybe it was the fact the last hour or so of research hadn't turned up any spells powerful enough to affect an area equal to Sweet Apple Acres' land mass. Whatever the case, Azure continued to argue the point.

"No, I'm being completely serious..."

Twilight's horn stopped glowing, and she proceeded to manually slam the book shut with a hoof. The glasses came off for a moment, then she immediately put them back on, likely realizing she'd want to see him to ream him out for it.

"Of all the--I thought that even you wouldn't think of something like that!" She stood straight up, and took a step forward. Azure faced her, standing straight up and taking a step forward of his own.

Thought processes were a funny thing. Even though the unicorn had no intention of seriously suggesting it, he had a sudden burst of inspiration. He hadn't quite thought of it before, but now that he'd actually said it...it actually seemed like it'd be a good idea! It'd even the odds, for starters...
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Twilight thought the peak of Azure's brainlessness was standing up to an Ursa Minor while injured, and to his much more experienced cousin while still not fully healed. However, she had always found the colt had a funny way of proving her wrong. Sometimes, it was beneficial...however, this was not one of those times, under any circumstance.

"Just hear me out for a second, Twilight!" Azure said. There was a quality to his voice that wasn't there on their other arguments, but Twilight couldn't pinpoint it, too distracted with the larger picture to notice, "The summoner's able to summon an entire army of the things...and the best way to counter it is with an army of our own..."

Azure, if that conclusion was actually reasonable...would we even be here? Granted, since he didn't do the research and likely skimmed the notes, Twilight was convinced her friend didn't see the footnote on the summoning spell itself...

"Do you even think before you speak?!" Twilight asked, still a bit clouded due to her own anger at the situation. Azure had a way of being impossibly hard-headed when it came to things like this, but there was no way she was going to back down from this. "Why would you want to control them when you've seen what those creatures can do firsthand?!"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe just that I don't want to see my friends...your friends, too, mind you...get hurt!" His anger intensified, and if Twilight hadn't been caught in the moment, she might have noticed the dim, blue glow to his eyes when he said what he did. "If history is anything to go on, that unicorn's summonings are only going to get stronger and stronger as time passes. Who knows when he'll strike again...if I can just learn this spell, I'll be able to match him..."

Something inside Twilight's mind broke. Listening to Azure when he was like this was bad enough, but it was starting to become clear that this latest bout of recklessness, while infinitely more reckless than anything else he'd done...he was doing it out of concern, but there were so many logic holes in his plan of action that it was concerning her to see him like this.

"Did you listen to what I said a few months ago, Azure?!" Her voice was cracking just a little bit. More emotion that she ever realized was coming through in her words. She was almost overcome with it, but it came out mostly through her frustration. "That spell requires a lot more skill than you have right now!"

"I'll practice..." Azure said. He sounded so sure of himself and so full of self-righteous anger that Twilight wanted to hit him. Even then, she doubted he'd listen to that. The two unicorns had been advancing on each other as their argument intensified, and their noses were nearly touching now due to how close they were. "I'll do whatever it takes if it means other ponies don't get hurt!"

There was something she'd seen in his eyes only twice: pure anger, firmly etched into Azure's features. Twilight sighed. She knew he wouldn't believe it if he told him, so she searched the books she had on hand, knowing she brought some previously used guides with her on the actual spell. She turned her back on him, still very mad she had to put up with this Azure...
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Azure watched as Twilight turned away from him, no doubt trying to catch her breath or something. The mare's horn lit up as she temporarily went away from his personal space. No doubt she was going to do some fact-checking...

The unicorn's eye was instantly drawn to a mirror atop a nearby cabinet. He found himself compelled to look at it. However, as the winter wind howled outside, Azure felt a sudden creepiness well up in him. The reflection he was looking at...was that unicorn that had attacked Fluttershy, Rainbow, Applejack, and himself.

While he and that unicorn looked nothing alike, it was the absolutely hateful look that got him. Azure found himself recalling the livid look he'd received from the mysterious pony as he looked up at himself.

"You think you've won?!"

A sickness welled up inside him. The look he'd just shot Twilight and the mirror was almost a dead ringer for that filthy look that his enemy had shot him right before vanishing.

Get a hold of yourself... Azure thought to himself, his gaze easing up. Maybe he shouldn't have gotten so carried--

The force of a book being jabbed into his chest snapped him from his thoughts at once. Twilight was at the other end of the book, still looking quite sour.

"Page 220, paragraph 3, read it aloud..." she said. There was still that strange tone she'd had in her voice just a few moments ago when she'd yelled at him, but it seemed to be better controlled. Azure took the book for himself and did as Twilight instructed, feeling a bit emotionally disturbed himself, not only because of the realization he'd matched the anger of a possibly insane unicorn colt, but also because he was responsible for bringing about the mare's emotional state.

Soon enough, he found it, and read it.

"Prolonged use of the summoning spell can..." He halted mid-sentence, silently reading the latter part to double-check if what he was reading was in fact true. When he realized it, the air came flooding out of him faster than he ever felt possible. "It can cause corruption of the caster..."

Azure could say that only Applejack knew his most deep-reaching fear: the fear of being unable to help his friends, a fear so great that it made his past fear of chimeras seem small by comparison. It was a fear that had just about undone him here. He was so willing to take the shortcut and learn the dangerous spell without pausing to think of what it could actually do to him. He would only do more harm than good, he feared...

He looked back to Twilight, who didn't look angry, but was now looking at him with sad eyes. That, combined with the glasses--

"I understand that you want to protect what's important to you," she finally said, "but I can't let you lose sight of who you are to do it."

There was a silvery object at the corner of her eye, but Twilight turned away again before he could fully discern what it was. It could have been glare on her glasses for all he knew.

Azure sat down. It was true. He really couldn't sit still for a long time, let alone for a study session as hardcore as the one that Twilight was putting him through. And from the looks of it, he got so bored and so tired during the first hour he'd fooled himself into thinking he'd made a breakthrough. Instead, he had proven himself to be foalish, reckless, and...and...stupid.

By Celestia, no wonder Twilight wasn't enthusiastic about it...and the worst part of it all was, it was probably somewhere in the notes she'd written before, but he didn't notice it, far too focused on the prospect of a counter-spell...

"I-I'm sorry, Twilight," Azure finally spoke up, "you're right. I guess that's why you're the prodigy while I'm the mediocre unicorn." He closed his eyes and looked down, more ashamed of what brought this whole thing about in the first place. Silence reigned for a while.

"You're not mediocre," Twilight spoke up. The next thing Azure realized, there was a hoof on his shoulder that wasn't there before. He looked up, seeing the mare smiling to him with no evidence of smugness in her features. "Just hard-headed. You're kind-hearted and you don't want to see innocent ponies get hurt...but you can't take shortcuts if you really want to help them."

Azure breathed in and out. No wonder she took her studies so seriously...

"You're right...thanks..."

The two merely looked at one another. The colt didn't immediately get it, but he realized his face was warming up and his heart was beating faster. Twilight's own face turned red, and they merely looked at one another. The purple mare winced and quickly took back her hoof, looking just a little guilty.

"W-well...I guess that's enough of a break!" she called out, sounding nervous. "Get back to the books, Azure! We've got a lot of work to do, you know!"

"Twilight...?" Azure asked, his heart starting to slow down and his face returning to normal. "Alright, back to work it is..."

W-what was that just now? I thought for sure that stuff only happened around Applejack, so why'd it happen now...?
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The study session continued anew, with Azure looking to the books with a renewed vigor that not even he expected of himself. Twilight found herself getting more and more surprised when Azure actually appeared to be staying awake this time during the study session without the aid of inane techniques. They had gathered some light spells, and after testing some of the more basic ones, had to return to the books.

Twilight found herself both at a loss and...strangely, excited. As she was growing up, she'd never met another pony whose nose was in the books as much as she was. While Azure typically spent time with books when he couldn't stand to be outside, it still came as a shock and a relief that he actually read. It was also surprising to see he did know a thing or two about where to look when it came to a problem he didn't know a thing about.

But, of all her friends, she'd never imagined that the one that liked reading too was Azure.

"Hey, Twilight, I think I found something," Azure said. Twilight looked up from the book she was reading.

"I'm coming..." Twilight responded, getting up and walking towards him. However, there was a small problem with her vision. Though she could still see clearly with the use of her glasses, there was a problem. Her face pinched in annoyance, and her horn lit up.
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Azure looked over the section he'd found. It seemed promising enough in terms of light spells. The only problem with it was that it only illuminated the area in front of the caster. However, the light it gave off was essentially the same as if you were to look at the sun through a telescope. He was surprised to find that the book used that exact terminology, as if the writer knew precisely what it was like to do that.

The sound of Twilight's hoofsteps stopped. Confused, the colt turned to look at her...

And saw her cleaning the fogged lenses with a rag she probably had on her since she'd come here. The mare put the glasses back on, though it was clear in her face that she'd probably had to polish them quite a bit daily. She looked annoyed with it.

At least, until she caught him looking to her, "What?"

"Oh, it's nothing..." Azure said. "It's just that the glasses fit you..."

"Yeah, I'd bet," Twilight responded, now sounding just a little snarky on the issue.

"Oh, come on, at least it's only temporary," The cyan colt realized that he'd better cut himself off there before he said anything else that caused another argument. For some reason, that last one ended on an awkward note though nopony broke them up mid-argument this time.

"Yeah, I guess, though if this had happened when I was in magic school..." Twilight said, "Who knows what kind of hazing I would have gotten from other students...I read a lot and I didn't have any interest in other ponies...the glasses would have--"

"I wouldn't be too sure of that..." Azure found himself talking before thinking now. Even if he wanted to stop himself, he couldn't.

Azure Courage, what are you doing?!

"How do you know how they would have treated me?" she asked, now sounding curious...and slightly less acidic.

"Just a hunch, Twilight," Azure found himself once again unable to move his gaze away as quickly as he could. His eyes were firmly locked on her face. Apparently, she didn't quite notice what he'd said before was a sort of compliment. She'd taken it as an insult.

"How do you think I look in glasses?"

"A lot cuter than Rarity when she wears hers..."

The words echoed throughout the house, bouncing off all the walls. Somewhere along the lines, Twilight's eyes widened, and a moment later, Azure blinked, and realized precisely what he vocalized, and he felt his face grow warm for some unknown reason.

The purple mare stood there, almost in disbelief, trying to process what he just said. Azure's stomach started to do all those familiar gymnastics. He turned away, back to the book he'd been looking at, trying to find the words to restore their focus on the task at hand, but he felt himself trip over his words long before he could force himself to speak consciously.

"Oh...um...uh," Twilight finally found her voice, and sounded...incredibly flustered. "Thank you..."

"N-no problem," Azure responded, still wondering exactly why he said it. Even if he really thought Twilight looked cute in those glasses--

"S-so, did you have something to show me?"

"Huh?" What was I about to-- "Oh!" He returned his attention fully to the book, and relocated the entry he'd found on that spell. It may not have been the exact spell they would need in the event the unicorn mounted another attack, but Azure had a feeling it was something that could come in handy. "Look at this..."
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Twilight managed to positively identify the spell as something usable. It was definitely something more fit for Azure's style of dealing with things, and it could potentially be used for things other than the Shadow Ghouls. The cyan colt agreed, and said he'd start working at it as soon as he could without injuring anypony else's eyes, making a joke about sunglasses in the process.

The two continued to study through the hours, though what had happened between them left them both confused to say the least. The night progressed with no further incident or Azure tongue slips. Both unicorns soon found themselves fighting off sleep as the pages turned...
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Azure rubbed at his eyes, trying to stay awake. He'd found that light spell, and it seemed simple enough for him to use, but their focus was still trying to find a source of artificial sunlight powerful enough so that the Shadow Ghouls and their derivatives and stronger summons would become inconsequential, to the point that even one of the foals could kick them and they'd vanish.

"Twilight, have you found anything?" Azure asked, yawning through clenched teeth immediately afterward. The home was silent. Twilight didn't respond at all. "Twilight, are you there?"

The fact he'd had to force himself awake for at least the past half-hour wasn't helping his mood any. He turned to where Twilight was, and said her name again, "Twilight?"

Azure got up and strode across the room to her, slightly concerned. As he reached her, he watched her "torso" slowly rise and fall, and her bespectacled eyes were shut, with light dark circles underneath the lids. It took the colt a few moments to figure out what was happening.

She fell asleep first...? Azure thought to himself, genuinely shocked. Well...hm...guess I'd better do her the same justice I did Rainbow when she crashed here...

The unicorn colt trudged over to where he was working, shutting the book after a few seconds. He turned to the open fireplace, which by now contained small, dark red embers that would soon burn out, and blocked it off so the hazard was gone. Next, he turned to his closet, aiming to get a blanket from there to drape it over Twilight before he carted her off to bed.

Azure himself would once more take a temporary spot on the couch. Sure enough, Twilight shifted a little when the blanket was put over her. The colt began to move in front of the mare to move her into his bed, but something very odd happened at that moment.

The colt froze as two foreign objects clasped around his right forehoof, and he blinked slightly, looking down to Twilight. For whatever reason, she was squeezing his leg tightly, and try as Azure could, he couldn't even wiggle his foot.

Twilight... Azure gave another massive yawn and rubbed at his eyes with his free hoof, now half-closing them in exhaustion. Ah, forget it...too tired to argue this case...

With that, the cyan unicorn laid down, being careful not to wake Twilight as he moved about. A few moments later, he pulled some of the blanket over himself, and as soon as the colt shut his eyes, he was off to dreamland...
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The night passed quickly for those that liked winter, as well as those who disliked it. The storm abated overnight, dumping quite a few inches of fresh snow overnight. As she cleared the clouds to allow Princess Celestia's sun to shine through the clouds, Rainbow Dash was satisfied with her handiwork, both in the storm and in the cloud clearing.

"I just love the look of fresh snow," she mused aloud, admiring the sights as she floated over the town. She recalled the snowball fight from yesterday, and had in fact remembered how much fun she'd had while pelting anypony that dared chuck a projectile in her direction in response to their attacks. For a colt that apparently hated the cold, Azure sure knew how to throw those snowballs...

Speaking of the colt, Rainbow was just over his house, and noticed with some level of surprise that Azure wasn't up yet. Even on a cold day like this, he'd have at least opened his door to clear the path. The only explanation was that he was still asleep as of right now.

A fiendish grin soon split the blue pegasus's face. Her weather work was nearly done, though it wouldn't take that much longer to resolve that...

"This is gonna be priceless..."
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Sunlight always had a funny way of finding Azure's face after a long, near-sleepless night. Even in the dead of winter, when days were shorter, the light would hit one side of his eyelids and force him to wake up. The colt was warm under his covers, and even though he was on the floor, he had no intention of getting out underneath the rather toasty blanket that was covering him. The colt turned his head several times, tossing it from side-to-side, in a futile attempt to keep the glare away from his face.

Dear Princess Celestia...seriously, can you hold off on the sunrise for a few minutes? I'm still very sleepy... Azure thought to himself, lightly grumbling to himself. Okay, fine...I can just do this...

The unicorn reached up with his right forehoof, covering his eyes with one foreleg as he gave a small, internal sigh of relief. Victory! ...Wait...

Now Azure's eyes opened in shock, every intention of oversleeping gone from his subconscious. He noticed the hoof he was covering his eyes with was the same hoof that Twilight had grabbed hold of the night before. The colt lowered his hoof, able now to discern that at some point during the night, he was on his back. For some reason, the position he was in was awfully warm...

Azure tried to shift around in his position, but found that it was a bit hard to move. Which was funny; he never really found the floor this comfortable, and the blanket he used to cover himself and Twilight certainly wasn't that warm either, but right now, he was absolutely content...

As the rest of Azure's body slowly woke up, he became aware of the fact that there was a slight weight draped across his belly and chest. Azure slowly lowered his head to see what it was, and received a surprise for his efforts.

It was a certain studious mare, mane a total mess due to what appeared to be a night of tossing and turning, draping her upper half across his middle. Apparently, she found his body comfortable enough to use as a pillow, given that she looked peaceful when she slept. And she was still in those glasses...and oh, Celestia, she was warm...

It began to occur to Azure that at some point during the night, he felt himself get warmer. Now, he understood why. This, combined with all the awkwardness from the night before, caused the colt to blush terribly, the heat in his face dwarfing any other heat he felt at that moment. The unicorn urged himself to think, but given the fact he'd been sharing body heat with Twilight for the better part of the night, it was really hard for him to do so.

Just calm down, Azure...try to move her gently, and realize that this can't get worse...

The unicorn's horn lit up as he began to lift the mare off of him, just as he had with Rainbow Dash (only without the flustering realization that a mare was on top of him). However, Twilight Sparkle was in no way like Rainbow Dash, and as soon as her body started to move noticeably, Twilight snapped awake.

Azure swallowed hard, and internally, he cursed his luck.

Why can't I catch a break with situations like these?!

Twilight turned, realizing she had been on top of him. Exactly two seconds later, her face was bright red, and her face was pinched in absolute embarrassment.

And all the colt could think to do was lie there, staring back at her, blushing bright red.

Say something, stupid! She looks like she's about to freak out!

"Um..." Azure started, sounding as flimsy as a piece of tissue paper.

"Oh gosh, Azure!" Twilight leapt up, sounding embarrassed, her voice clearly showing it. "I--um--Oh gosh, I'm sorry, I just...I must have--" Her horn lit up, though the bright magenta light did nothing to offset the red glow on her face. Books from all over the house were picked up--all of which being Twilight's books that she'd brought with her for the study session. By the time she packed away the first book, she'd degenerated into an almost non-sensical babble that, in its own way, was adorable...and not like Twilight Sparkle at all.

Especially when she was dealing with him of all ponies. "Twilight...?"

The fact she was acting like this did nothing to reassure Azure that he'd be forgetting about this anytime soon. Not that he could anyway, given all that had happened before that.

Nor what was about to transpire...

Twilight continued to embarrassedly mutter apologies and statements of disbelief, obviously flustered at the fact she'd cuddled up with him in the night. The mare headed straight for the door. As she opened it, she looked back, paying absolutely no attention to what was going on. For his part, Azure's focus was entirely on the mare in his home, stressing out about the accidental cuddle.

"Well, it's been fun, Azure, I hope we can do this again sometime..." Twilight stated quickly, still sounding hurried.

"What?!"

The sound of several voices screaming in a unified surprise blasted Azure's composure to pieces. Now that he'd actually heard said voices, he could see very clearly, beyond the door, Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, all looking equally in disbelief about what they just heard, and what they just saw...

Oh...Celestia...strike me down...
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Twilight knew precisely what had just happened. She was experiencing a case of deja vu, only the situation was reversed...and a lot worse than when she'd caught Rainbow over here for a completely different reason. Her face was red, and she cast a quick glance back to see Azure, face equally red, mane equally disheveled.

In every way, this was worse-looking than what it was with Rainbow. There were so many assumptions to be made here...

"Did you guys have a party without me?!" Pinkie yelled, her assumption not exactly on the list that Twilight mentally prepared for this case.

Then Rainbow Dash broke out laughing. Probably because now the shoe was on the other hoof. And, again, the unicorn mare just could not get over how bad the scene looked.

"T-this i-is not what it looks like!" Twilight stuttered, the situation aggravating her already frazzled nerves. By now, Azure had walked outside, though it was clear he didn't want to be out there long, but the purple unicorn had a strong feeling it had nothing to do with his disdain for the cold.

"Oh, sure it isn't..." Rainbow wiped away one of her tears from her eyes, clearly enjoying the spectacle as she hovered right next to her, putting a foreleg around her to draw her close. Twilight knew she was going to regret looking the blue mare in the eye, but curse her Canterlot upbringing, she couldn't help but do it. "So Twilight...how was he?"

That wink...that smug wink...six eyes, three ponies, one of which so happened to be another mare she'd noticed had some interest in Azure.

It was all too much...
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"I...uh..." Twilight floundered, clearly unable to formulate a response. Azure did not like the looks of this. It was bad enough she woke up on top of him and then rushed her way out right into this, but why did it have to be Pinkie and Applejack in addition to Rainbow Dash? "I..."

The next thing that happened stunned Azure. Twilight bit her lip, and immediately rushed back into the house--Azure's house, and the small click indicated that she'd barricaded herself within the structure.

...Can I just get a one-way ticket to Orion's belt...?

"Will somepony please tell me what in the hay is goin' on here?!" Applejack yelled, stamping her hoof hard on the ground. At that precise moment, Azure felt his heart stop beating; more out of fear than anything else. He knew he had weird feelings whenever he was around her, and certainly now was no exception, but now confronted with all this, and the fact there were things that happened last night that he knew would only aggravate the situation further...

Azure was in a pinch, and with Twilight having locked herself in his home, the situation was absolutely bleak, to say the least. The colt really wished he had somewhere he could think away from all this, but there was nowhere to go to allow time to give him something to say.

"Okay, okay, calm down," Azure started, trying to find his words before he got swept away in accusations again. The actual situation, while hardly any better, would hopefully at least sweep part of this under the rug. "This really isn't what it looks like at all..."

"Oh, really?" Rainbow started, "'Cause it really looks like you and Twilight found a way to keep warm during the night..."

"Rainbow!" The amount of anger in Applejack's voice was painful to hear. Meanwhile, Pinkie remained absolutely oblivious to what was going on.

Even worse is that Rainbow's right...what do I say, what can I say...?

"Well..." Azure started. "You remember the Shadow Ghoul attack on your farm, Applejack?"

"What's that got to do with--" Applejack started.

"Well, the reason why Twilight's wearing the glasses she's wearing now is because she's damaged her eyes doing a bit too much reading in poor light. I felt responsible, given I asked her if she could find a way to counter the summons so the unicorn summoning them would be weakened. Turns out light's their weakness." the cyan colt quickly said, trying to cut off any speculation.

When nopony said anything, Azure felt better. He felt like he could wiggle out of this tight spot. "So, she came over here with those bags of books on spells, and we spent most of the night looking up light spells. We fell asleep before we could make it to bed..."

"Make it to bed, eh?" Rainbow Dash asked.

And I slipped up again...

"Oh, come on!" Azure yelled.

"Then why'd she come out lookin' like that?" Applejack asked, a flood of questions leaving her. It was clear from her eyes Azure wasn't going to get out of this one so easily. "Why'd you look like that? Huh? Explain that, Azure Courage!"

...I'm honestly afraid right now...this is the angriest I've ever seen her, and it's at me...

"We fell asleep on the floor," said Azure in response. "Not exactly the most comfortable place to sleep."

"And the 'fun' that Twi' said she had...?" Applejack continued, taking over the questions. Apparently, Rainbow Dash's comments on the matter had only aggravated her more and more.

"She's the only one I know that has so much fun reading..." Azure replied again. That...actually makes sense...

Applejack scrutinized him for what felt like forever. The colt didn't know why, but he felt absolutely terrible about the fact she'd gotten that mad at him. Even if it was over an innocent misunderstanding. Eventually, though, the orange earth pony's features relaxed, and she sighed.

"Alright, Az, I guess it adds up..."

"Yeah, I guess," Rainbow said, still looking amused for some reason. "But I don't think Twilight's coming out anytime soon..."

Azure now realized why the cyan mare looked amused as she did, and the cold of the winter hit him like a train. The cold penetrated his fur, his skin, and blasted through his bones and muscles.

He still wasn't through this ordeal. Not yet.

"Oh, sweet Celestia, it's cold!!" His body went into a state of violently shivering now, and instantly he wished he were back under the blanket. Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash burst out laughing.

"So...what're you gonna do, Az?" Applejack asked, all of the anger she held gone. Instead, it was replaced with concern as she watched Azure shiver.

"Well, I'm gonna have to try and get her out of there...but...I think she's a bit scared to come out now..." Azure said. "Don't think she'll be willing to if you're all here, so I'm going to have to ask you to...go..."

He desperately hoped that wouldn't immediately raise Applejack's suspicions again after all the work it took to defuse the situation the first time.

"Well, after all that hazin' a certain somepony gave her," The glare was now trained on Rainbow Dash full-force, something that Azure, had he not had all those awkward moments the night before, would have done himself, "I'm certainly not surprised."

"Oh, c'mon, I was just messin' with her," Rainbow defended, looking only slightly sheepish at the fact Applejack trained her fury onto her.

"Well, I reckon it didn't sit too well with her..."

"Guess you're right," Rainbow responded, "Well, guess I'd better get out of your mane, Az..."

With that, she flew off. Pinkie looked around, and seemed...well, disappointed about something, but Azure couldn't exactly figure out what. Applejack looked to Azure, and even though she seemed relieved to hear that nothing happened here, she was still studying him a bit.

"Az," she finally said, sounding embarrassed to say the least. "Sorry for doubtin' ya..."

"It's fine..." Azure said. This isn't exactly the first time something like this has happened...but I really hope this is the last time this will happen to me...

"Guess I'll...see ya around..."

Applejack seemed hesitant to leave, but as soon as she turned her back and trotted away, still seeming a little unsure, Azure sighed, breathing out a cloud of vapor.

Okay, situation resolved. Now to get back in my house before I freeze to death!!

Azure immediately turned to his door, and trying to keep his teeth from chattering, began knocking on the door.

"You can come out now, Twilight," the colt said, shivering all the while. "They're gone..."

There was movement on the other side of the door, and the door opened, to reveal a still very embarrassed-looking Twilight. However, she looked at least somewhat normal in that her face wasn't red any more.

"That was...mortifying..." Twilight responded at last, probably feeling exactly as Rainbow Dash felt that day after the thunderstorm.

"No kidding..." Azure had been here before, ironically enough, with Twilight and Rainbow Dash in opposite places on the sides of his door. The former now stood there in front of him, allowing him back in his house where it was nice and warm, where she closed the door again.

"Sorry about leaving you out there to explain that...I just...didn't know what to do with it..." Twilight finally spoke up after some silence.

"It's fine. This isn't the first time this has happened to me," Azure recounted, "Only difference is you were on the other side of the door..."

"No," Twilight replied with a laugh, "This was easily far worse than that was..."

"I know I'm going to regret this, but..." Azure finally said, realizing there was still important business to take care of. "At least until your eyes get better, we've got to keep researching together whenever possible."

"I-I don't mind," Twilight stuttered, no doubt caught off-guard by the latter part of his statement. "But I think we should cut it off after a certain time..."

"Right..." Azure sighed. The two unicorns looked to one another, and once again, a feeling suddenly swelled in Azure's chest. It was a bit...odd. He'd definitely felt that not too long ago when Applejack stopped being mad at him, but...why was Twilight giving him the same response?

"So...um..." Twilight responded, smiling just a little. "I guess I'll get going now, so nopony else gets the wrong idea...but, as I said, I hope we can do this again sometime..."

"Well, keep your hopes high, Twilight. Celestia knows I'm not going to be leaving home much until the weather warms up..." Azure nodded, trying his hardest to return the smile. As soon as Twilight closed the door behind her and left his sight, Azure's smile turned upside down, and he plopped down on his rump, more confused than ever now.

What's going on between me and Twilight...? And me and Applejack? This is getting insane...is Rarity right? Is there something between me and Applejack? And was Silver right? Have my words affected Twilight too...? If this continues...I think I know who I can turn to...

Chapter 19: Not Very Heart(h)warming

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Chapter 19: Not Very Heart(h)warming
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Azure Courage found that the more friends a pony has, the faster a loathsome season seemed to pass by. Though he still made visits to the library to see if Twilight's progress on any other light spells had picked up, he found himself outside a lot more than he wanted to be in the summer. Stranger still, he enjoyed every minute.

But even in the dead of winter, he still had a job to do. While construction had essentially halted for the winter months, there had been some damage down at Sweet Apple Acres. Apparently, there had been some oversights when the barn was rebuilt after the parasprites ate it, and the storm caused some damages. Ever sympathetic to cold drafts in a warm home, Azure quickly agreed to help out Applejack in repairing the home.

Yet, even in the midst of repairs, he could catch her staring at him, though she seemed a bit less...sure of something than she was during the applebucking before the season started. Her little sister's stare seemed to have lessened a bit, though she apparently enjoyed watching her sister and Azure deal with whatever was happening between them as a kid would.

Twilight didn't seem as acidic as she had been, and in fact actually seemed willing to have him help a bit more in the studies of the anti-Shadow Ghoul spells. Though, he could have sworn she was being a bit more deliberate in how she moved the glasses along her snout...

Over the past few weeks, he'd finally finished that book she got him too. The colt had noticed the sequel hook at the end, but didn't mind it: winter was only half-over, after all. When she learned that he had finished it, she had been incredibly eager to discuss the novel with him; more so than he expected given he didn't picture adventure as Twilight's favorite genre of book.

Of course, as Apple Bloom continued to have that knowing look whenever he was over at Applejack's, so too did Spike's jokes whenever he had to be at the library. It was starting to become exhausting to deal with it. More than one, the thought of talking to Rarity about what was happening to him as of late crossed his mind, since she had offered on his birthday when she noticed something between him and Applejack that he had apparently missed.

However, not all of this time was spent dwelling on the awkwardness he'd felt at those locations while he was there. Even though it was the dead of winter, Azure did say that he'd start trying to his magic under better control, so he could harness whatever light spells he could for himself, as the pony that had physical strength and magic at his disposal. Now that quite a few light spells had been amassed by the unicorns during their various study sessions, it was time to put them to the test.
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Twilight Sparkle had learned quite a bit about Azure the last few weeks, and had been able to produce a couple of friendship lessons on the matter while she was at it. And today was the day Azure was supposed to come to the library to practice doing the light spells they'd picked out from the books. For a colt that didn't think his magic was anything special, he was determined to push himself. His dedication to his friends was nothing short of remarkable...

She pored over the spells she'd noted from the pages, making sure everything was ready.

"Spike, I think everything's ready..." Twilight mused, going over her checklist for the study session. "Spells, simplified so that Azure can understand it better, check. A cleared work area?"

"Check..." Spike wearily said, moving the last bit of breakables out of the area surrounding the fireplace. That was her study area, and given that spells had a habit of misfiring on her when she was trying them for the first time, she didn't want any broken glass in the area if it could be helped.

"And..." Twilight mumbled to herself, knowing Azure would arrive any minute. She turned to where she kept those glasses she'd been perscribed, and reached out to them magically. A few seconds later, the glasses were back where they had been for a few weeks straight. "Check."

"Twilight, I thought you didn't need to wear those anymore..." Spike cut in, shifting his full attention to her. The purple mare pointedly turned away from her assistant as he continued on: "It's been a few weeks now. Aren't your eyes better?"

The feeling of sudden, intense heat tugged at her cheeks. She faltered for a moment as the dragon's words washed over her, but it wasn't that hard to think of an explanation that sounded at least somewhat credible.

"We're working with light spells, Spike," Twilight said, trying to keep her voice steady. "I might need these again, so I think I'd better keep them around..."

If Spike wanted to give her a reply, he didn't have time. Almost as if on cue, there was a knock at the door.

"That's probably him now!" Twilight noticed she was a little bit cheerier than she usually was whenever Azure visited nowadays, and she couldn't figure out why. "Spike--"

"Already on it..." Spike slowly walked over to the door--probably on purpose since now it was common knowledge between the friends that Azure had a weakness to the cold--and opened it, revealing a surprisingly patient-looking cyan unicorn. He was still wearing Applejack's hat and the other winter gear he'd had on him during his previous visits.

"Alright, Twilight," Azure said, stepping inside. Spike crossed his arms indignantly, neglecting to close the door for a few moments due to being ignored, but he quickly shrugged it off. "Let's see how far along I can get with learning these spells..."

"I am also here," remarked Spike dryly, though there was just a small, smug look on his face as though he suddenly understood why she had the glasses on. Whatever the case was, Twilight didn't care to know, shifting to "all business" mode as Azure finished setting his winter gear and the hat aside. After the colt quickly adjusted his headband, he looked over to her.

"Ready, Twilight?" Azure asked, beginning to walk towards her.

"Just a second..." Twilight responded, "I know you said you were going to learn these spells, but you have always said you weren't exactly the best at magic. Are you sure you can handle it?"

Azure blinked, obviously just a little confused, "I...have to learn these spells. I'm the one that always goes in swinging first, after all..."

Twilight nodded in response, "I had a feeling you'd say that..." She gave a small smile, which he returned.
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Azure Courage didn't know what it was about today, but he found himself unusually fired up today. Perhaps it was the fact he was going to learn spells that could be used to help his friends. One of them in particular could have been used even if he needed it to fight off a pony in broad daylight and needed a quick way to get an upper hand.

This spell seemed simple enough in concept. It was the very first spell they'd come across in their joint research, the one that worked better if you were facing the target.

"Alright," Azure said, taking a deep breath to steady himself as he pored over the notes for that spell. He had to give Twilight credit: she knew how to take her magical technobabble and put it into layman's terms so even somepony like him could see what he had to do. It looked simple enough to execute. "Let's see if I can get this down..."

The two were in Twilight's study area, only the place looked like it had been stripped of the breakables, an understandable precaution given they were working with magic. There was a fire going in the fireplace to keep the room warm, and there wasn't much else in the room other than Twilight's notes and the books from which the spells came from.

Azure shut his eyes in his concentration, trying to remember the steps of the spell as he focused his magic into performing it.

What this spell does is a little more complicated than the gravity spell Blitz taught me to make freegalloping in close-quarters easier... he thought to himself, a cyan glow entering his mind as he began to take into account the steps. Step one...focus on a light. Well...sunlight is currently pouring in through the window, but this thing can take even a small amount of light and turn it into a blinding force if performed correctly...
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Twilight watched as Azure began his first attempt at the spell. His horn was glowing cyan. The very tip of his horn, however, began to take on a yellowish tint. It looked like he was doing it.

Step two: Ampilfy the light using your magic...

Now she could notice that the colt was starting to sweat a little. There was a vein starting to stick out just a little bit to the right of his horn, and his body was tensed up. The light ball on the end of his horn was sputtering, varying in size and brightness far too much for the spell to work properly. It was obvious he was trying to get it to work.

Sure enough, the light ball vanished and Azure gasped, stumbling about, obviously shaken from the sudden magic failure. He soon recovered, rubbing at the base of his horn just a little.

"Darn it!" he grumbled, shaking his head violently. "I know it isn't going to be easy..."

Twilight nodded. "Well, I never said it would be, just that this spell was a very simple one compared to some of the others we found."

"I'm aware of that..." Azure quipped. "Alright, I'm going to try again..."

"Don't push yours--" Twilight halted midsentence, realizing who she was talking to. "Well, um...never mind. I guess with you, that might be asking a little much..."

Azure gave a nod with a slightly smug grin, and closed his eyes, his horn lighting up again.
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Step one: focus on the light; the magic currents your horn produces creates a warm feeling if you're doing it right...

This time, Azure was more prepared for the sudden heat on his horn as the sunlight from the windows began to catch on the tip. He worked to shape the light, a little more prepared than the last time to control the currents and amplify them.

S-step...two...amplify...the light with magic...

There was a mental strain he wasn't going to be prepared for any time soon. The colt tried not to focus on the nagging sentiment in the back of his head that Virid was right about his magic needing some more work all those weeks ago as he tried to focus. Like Tartarus he was ever going to admit that that blowhard was right...

He clenched his jaw unconsciously as he fought to maintain the light and intensify it so he could move on to step three, the last step. The feeling of heat on his horn intensified, no doubt the sunlight being amplified.

The heat should feel like I'm dipping it in hot water when I first get this down, but the heat definitely shouldn't be as dramatic once I get this spell down...

The heat continued to intensify, but just like last time, the strain became too much. It felt like the currents of magic were slowing down, or speeding up; he couldn't really tell for sure. Point is, he was starting to feel disoriented again, and he strained to keep it up, but it was no use. The feeling of light on his horn started to fade and cool off.

Suddenly, the currents completely stalled, and he felt them painfully backlash once again. Air he didn't even realize he was holding rushed from his lungs as the recoil blasted through him. His head once more began to hurt, especially at the base of his horn, and he raised his forehoof almost reflexively to his forehead in pain.

"Again...!" Azure began, rubbing at the spot lightly. "Ugh...! The currents slow to a stop and they reverse...at least, that's what it feels like..."

"Spells backfiring sometimes feel like that..." Twilight responded.

"I've never seen one backfire on you like this..." The cyan colt replied, slowly recovering from the second backfire. The mare across from him remained quiet for a little bit, but Azure didn't focus on her reaction to what he said right away.

"Would you like to take a break?" she finally asked, taking a couple of steps forward.

"No, no...I can't take one yet...I've got to try again..." Azure spoke up, closing his eyes again. "Maybe 'third time's the charm' won't exactly work here, but the more I do it, the more I feel like I'm getting better at this..."
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Twilight knew Azure was right; he hadn't seen spells backfire on her, at least, not to an extent such as what he'd experienced just now twice. They usually backfired in application, the parasprite invasion still serving as a good example. And she didn't know why, but she found herself once again resisting the urge to blush for a moment when he'd said it.

But learning magic wasn't the easiest thing she'd done in her life. It may have been her talent, but she had some trouble pretty early on, like most other unicorns did.

Azure's horn sparked to life again. Step one came a bit more easily to him than it had the last two times, but once again, as he tried to amplify the light via magic, the light began to slowly swell at first. However, the swelling was more consistent this time, as opposed to the size starting to fluctuate after a few seconds. The light on the tip of his horn grew in size and seemed to be getting brighter. Twilight resisted the urge to turn her head, knowing she needed to tell him if he was doing it right. She needed to guard against mishap.

Twilight squinted hard. A tiny voice in the back of her head told her to take off her glasses, but she wasn't listening, for whatever reason. As the rate at which the light intensified began to slow down, the purple mare began to wonder if she should turn her head so that she wouldn't be irrepairably blinded by the third and final step.

However, the light slowly began to fade, allowing Twilight to look towards Azure directly again...

"Azure..."

"Not now, Twilight, I'm in the middle of concentrating..."

"This is kinda important..."

"Alright, what is it?"

"Your horn's on fire..." Twilight said.

"...What?" Now Azure was paying attention, his horn stopping all kinds of glowing...except at the tip where he'd concentrated his magic on the light. Somehow, through pure magical mishap, he'd managed to set the very tip of his horn on fire, like a candle. "Now that you're mentioning it, it does sort of feel like--"

The colt finally opened his eyes, and within moments, they went wider than the plates she'd removed from the room. Now, in all the time she'd known him, Twilight had never seen Azure panic. The closest he came to it was whenever he was caught in a compromising position; but even then he seemed to keep his cool. However, were it her whose horn was starting to immolate from a spell that wasn't a fire spell, she'd imagine she'd start losing it.

Twilight started to move as Azure finally started to come to terms with the fact his horn was more like a candle.

"How did this happen?!" Azure yelled, now completely alarmed, trying to shake his head in hopes that it would put out the flame. All he was doing was making the flame grow bigger.

"I don't know, maybe the spell generated a lot of heat!" She was equally panicked, and gasped just a little when Azure started to reach up to his horn with his forehooves. Immediately, she magically reached up, grabbing hold of them and forcing his hooves back down, already knowing what he was planning to do.

"If you do that, you'll just burn yourself!" Twilight admonished, already knowing what she needed to do.

"What else am I supposed to do?" Azure questioned, now sounding like he was in some pain.

"Just hold on for a moment, I'm going to go get some water!" Twilight advised, hoping that Azure could hang in there and that his horn wouldn't get burnt up before she got back.
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Azure Courage was in easily the most pain he'd ever been in in his life. He was sweating, but as the flame spread down from the tip of his horn so slowly, he began to feel something far worse than a headache. The cyan colt tried his hardest not to cry out and remain absolutely still save for pained twitches of his hooves as the heat on his forehead began to intensify.

Hurry it up, Twilight... The last thing he'd wanted to do was set the library on fire using his unintentionally-made torch from flailing around like an idiot, so he held himself from doing so with every fiber of his being. I can't take much more of this...any closer and I'm going to start needing fur donors...

Cold water splashed over him in that instant, and he heard a faint sizzling sound that was the fire being put out. Though he was soaked again, Azure was too distracted from the sudden relief from both the horn immolation and the consequential heat to care that he was sopping wet in the middle of Twilight's study room.

"Azure, are you alright?"

Azure finally opened his eyes, trailing his eyes up to his horn. The tip of it was smoking, and slightly blackened from the burns, but it wasn't anything a good polishing wouldn't fix. Good thing Rarity gave him that kit...he'd need it now...

"Y-yeah," the unicorn colt commented, sighing in relief as his cool finally returned. "Thanks..."

"I think we'd better take that break now..." said Twilight.

"No objections..." responded Azure.
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It hadn't taken too long to get over by the fire. Ironic, given what just happened.

Azure Courage was sitting in front of the fire, an ice bag over his horn. It was more or less against any flare-ups, but Azure had to admit he was still feeling a little burnt out from the triple backfire, the last of which apparently made his horn into a torch...without any of the benefits and all of the detriments of such.

Twilight, after re-checking the spell as described in the book, returned to his side and plopped down right next to him, "Well, that was unexpected. I re-checked the book just to be sure, and it didn't say anything about spontaneous horn combustion in there."

"Guess we're just going to have to make a note of it," Azure winced, readjusting the ice bag so it was better distributed.

"I'll keep that in mind," Twilight answered, now turning to face him directly. "How's your forehead?"

"Fine," Azure responded, turning to her as he removed the bag, rubbing at his forehead, "It doesn't really hurt, but I think I might have singed a good patch of my fur there..."

"Let me see..." Twilight said, sitting up so she could be at eye level with his forehead. For whatever reason, Azure initially hesitated to remove his hoof from the spot, but she quickly, gently moved it aside.

"Doesn't look too bad," she said. The worst of it was a black patch immediately around the base of his horn, but so far, he hadn't lost any fur. She turned to his horn, and winced again as she saw the black, burnt spot on the tip. "Though the tip of your horn has seen better days..." The purple mare reached up to touch it, but thought better of it, "Does it hurt?"

"Just my pride..."

"Oh, don't be overdramatic," Twilight replied, "something that big can't be damaged that badly from just a simple backfire."

It wasn't meant to be funny. It was a clear assessment of his condition, but for some reason, Azure snorted, and a split second later, he burst out laughing. It took Twilight all of two seconds to realize what she'd just said and she joined in. For a few seconds, it was pure laughter between them.

"Oh, so now you tell jokes, huh?" Azure questioned, not sounding slighted in the least about it.

"Yeah, well, even I have my moments..." Twilight replied.

Truth be told, over the past few weeks as she'd spent time with him, she'd found that she could let herself go just a little whenever she was around him. She never really felt like he was about to just judge her for what she did. By all accounts, he probably should have long ago in the throes of an argument. She never quite was able to understand completely why she felt that way.

They argued all the time when they first met, but they gradually began to fade the more they hung around each other. The fact that he actually read books when he didn't need to was another thing that gave her comfort in a place she didn't expect. On top of that, he always seemed to have a knack for offering her fitting reassurance when she needed it the most...

Azure looked back over to the wet spot where he'd been standing moments before. He winced as he saw that not only was that floor probably not going to get completely dried off, but a couple of books had been caught in the water as well.

"Sorry about the water damage..." he said, sounding just a little down on himself.

"It's no big deal," Twilight started, looking over to him. "I'd pick water damage over seeing you in that much pain any...time..." For some reason, both of them paused awkwardly, and both looked way from each other, light blushes on their faces.

"Thanks, but it would help if I were as good at magic as you were," Azure said as the two unicorns looked back at each other again.

"You're not that bad," Twilight responded, "You know the gravity spell and laser spells, two spells I didn't know of when I first met you...besides, what you lack in magical ability, you more than make up for in physical ability."

"This, coming from the mare who beat me in the Running of the Leaves..." Azure replied with a smile.

"Yes, but you came out sprinting and practically left the rest of us in the dust..." Twilight raised a forehoof as she brought up that particular fact. "Had you paced yourself like I did, you might have won the whole thing."

"Perhaps," Azure said, lightly chuckling. "But using my brain like that has never been my strong point."

Twilight realized she once again found herself wanting to correct Azure's statement that he was stupid; had this been at the time of their first meeting, she might have let the comment go, but now, she found it didn't feel right. It didn't sound right, coming from him.

"Don't say that, you're smart..." Twilight stated. "Maybe not like me, but..." She faltered for the correct words to describe what he had going for him.

"Don't worry about it," Azure cut in, "I'm the brawns, you're the brains, and I wouldn't have it any other way..."

He wasn't the best at using magic, but he did have quite a bit of physical strength underneath that fur.

She was never known to exercise-it came as a surprise to Azure, Applejack and Rainbow Dash that she came in fifth during the Running of the Leaves; but she was the princess's student, to hone her vast magical talent.

"You're right, I guess we make the best team," Twilight smiled to him, as her glasses slid down her face very slightly.

"No team better," Azure replied, smiling back.

While this wasn't the first time they'd provided reassurance to each other, this time, something about the moment felt different. Azure looked to Twilight, and saw the glasses had slid down her face somewhat. The light from the fire caught her frame in a way that seemed to bring something out, and all Azure could do was look into her eyes.

She looks...cute...really cute...with those glasses...
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Twilight found herself unable to look away. When she was younger, even before her studies under the princess started, she'd never really had any friends, mostly because she wasn't interested in them. After being forced to come to Ponyville, she'd met six ponies, five mares and Azure, all better friends than a pony could ask for. Each one of them were unique, but for some reason, Azure had always stood out, and it wasn't because of his gender.

Azure, when I first met you, you made my head hurt... she thought to herself. I never understood why you did the things you did when we first met. You're the most stubborn colt I've ever met, that hasn't changed, but...you have proven you'd be ready to fight back and fight back hard if it came to it. You can't stand to see your friends hurt or insulted...

The purple unicorn continued to stare. You had a hard outer shell around you, but the more I got to know you, the more I saw the nice pony underneath...and he's the pony staring me down...now...

Simultaneously, both of the ponies went on autopilot. Neither one had been aware of what had happened as they unconsciously moved forward. Both were blushing very slightly, but didn't seem to notice it. Their mouths slightly parted as they moved closer and closer to one another, preparing and welcoming the inevitable contact that was about to happen.

"Hey, Twilight, where was the fi--" Spike's voice shattered the scene entirely, and both unicorns snapped back to their senses. Azure was completely stunned, as was Twilight, but she managed to get enough of her sense back to shove Azure over onto his back out of sheer embarassment.

"Sp-Spike!" Twilight stuttered out, thoroughly confused by what just happened and at a loss for an answer. "We...we were just...um..."

"Um, well," Spike's look told the unicorn all she needed to know: he was fully aware of what he saw, "I'm just going to leave you two alone..."

Twilight buried her face in her forehooves, feeling it start to burn like a fire as her face turned a very bright, bright shade of red. The only thing that could be heard in the room was the sound of two racing heartbeats, though they could each only hear their own hearts rushing.

"Oh, that was so embarassing..." she lamented. She turned to the recovering colt on her right, and, noting that he too was blushing, asked him a simple question, "W-what were we about to do?"

"I-I don't know..." Azure stuttered, getting back to his feet slowly, the shock of the moment overwhelming him. "I lost control of my body..."

"W-what could have possessed us to...to...almost...almost..." Twilight was overcome, and Azure could see it, clear as day. He himself was confused about what just happened.

Were we about to...? Azure thought to himself, already moving towards her. I-I...oh no...

"Twilight," he said, reaching out to her as he continued. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"N-no..." she stuttered, suddenly moving away from his touch. "I think I'd better...gather my thoughts, call it a day..."

"Okay then..." Azure didn't know why, but the instant they said this, it felt like an ice spear went straight through his heart. "You know where to find me when you're ready to start up again..."

Azure quickly left the house, not bothering to see what Spike had to say for himself. Surprisingly, even though he'd just caught them in a rather interesting moment, he didn't seem to have anything to say, but the unicorn colt didn't care. If Twilight needed her space, she was going to get it.

He quickly put his winter gear back on and left the library quickly, too wrapped up in his thoughts to notice the winter cold...
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Twilight silently remained in her study, removing the glasses from her face. Her vision was clear as it had been before, so Azure's repeated misfires didn't do a number on her vision just yet. She walked over to the window and set the glasses down on her desk. From the window, she could see Azure walking away, looking very deep in thought, his head hung, and at one point, a forehoof pressed into his forehead.

The purple unicorn didn't understand what just happened between them, and it both interested her and made her terrified since she didn't quite get it. Her heart was still thrumming in her chest due to the fact they'd just about kissed had Spike not intervened. As she watched him leave, she felt a sudden, strong pain in her chest, and she rubbed at it instinctively...

"Azure..."
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Azure Courage felt himself wrack with doubt and confusion at what he'd just experienced. He and Twilight had been close from the onset, to the point a couple of the others had been joking they'd be together, he did remember that, but as far as he could see, they were just friends. But that didn't explain what just happened at all.

No doubt about it... he thought to himself. Had Spike not stopped us, we would have kissed right then and there. What the heck's happening? I know there's definitely something between Applejack and me...but have I also drawn in Twilight too...?

The cyan colt couldn't purge it from his mind. Something was definitely going on, something more than he wanted to admit and something more than he wanted at all.

What's going on? Are Silver and Rarity right about this?

The colt continued to walk forward, guilt edging its way into his mind. But he had no idea where it was coming from. He rubbed at his forehead uneasily as he made his way home.

No...wait...

Azure found a distant memory returning to him. He grit his teeth, and his face was set in discomfort.

"Thanks for bein' such a great colt!"

The memory of the hug Applejack had given him in the immediate aftermath of the attack on her farmhouse returned with a vengeance. She'd hugged him in a manner that definitely meant friendship. However, it dawned on him that none of the other mares he'd been friends with had made such a move on him before. Usually, the hugs only lasted a few seconds at most, but that one lasted a good half-minute at least. Up until now, he'd only really remembered receiving that hug. His brow creased, and his face pulled into a grimace as his rational mind fully processed the situation he was in.

As fully as it could, anyway.

The only other time where I've felt like that was with Applejack... Azure thought to himself, recalling both his long, long hug with Applejack, and now the near-kiss with Twilight. My body started acting on its own...why do I feel like this when I'm around them...do I like Applejack? Do I like Twilight? Both? Is that even possible...

He rubbed at the base of his horn again, another grimace forming on his face.

"Ugh, I don't know what to think..."

Azure continued to walk along, firmly convinced he was in a pinch that no amount of magic or freegalloping would get him out of, when a memory returned.

"If you want, I could help clear things up for you..."

Rarity had offered this advice to him back when it was just Applejack that was confusing him. The unicorn exhaled, a vapor trail leaving his mouth as he returned all four feet on the ground, looking back towards the town.

"Hmm..."
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While Azure Courage struggled with mare troubles and the consequences of not following his friend's advice, somewhere else in Equestria, a symbol of times of old was about to be unearthed, and the conspiracy surrounding the mysterious summoner of the Shadow Ghouls was about to deepen...
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The winter excavation had not been going well for Dr. Rune der-Ground. His archaeology exploits in Baltimare did little to help his struggling family, and the excavation at Manehatten did no better for him. This time, his team and himself were digging for artifacts outside of Fillydelphia, and so far, they had come up short.

Rune der-Ground was an earth pony who loved what he did for more than just the profits, though. It was in his talent, his nature, to take an interest in Equestrian history. The pay was just a side benefit compared to the reward that he felt inside whenever he unearthed an important artifact...perhaps the remains of pre-historic creatures, or even some artifacts of old regimes in the history of the country.

However, this particular sorjourn was just creating a large, fresh pit in the ground to be dusted with snow. If he didn't wrap up the excavation soon, the town and the surrounding areas were due for a heavy snow. That would, at best, make a few inches of digging snow in the large pit on the outskirts of town, and at worst, fill the hole with ice. That would make the excavation impossible.

The light blue pony continued, determined to at least find something to make the work worth it. He continued digging at the ground with the shovel. Spade down, sink in, throw out...down, in, out...down, in, out...down...in--

Clink!

"Hm?" The pony had a vague accent us humans would refer to as "German". "What's this?"

Resorting to manually scraping aside the soft mud with his hooves, Rune soon uncovered a gray object. As he uncovered more and more of it, the object shone in the sunlight, and reflexively, the earth pony looked away for a moment. Eventually, he was able to pick it up from its muddy tomb, and examine it more closely.

"What is this?" he asked to himself, examining the object. "I haven't seen anything like it..."

The object appeared to be a gem of sorts, but it wasn't a gem like he'd ever seen. It was an odd one: at first glance, it appeared to be shaped like an odd hourglass: one end slightly larger than the other, so it was obviously a cut diamond. It was still covered in mud, but as Rune cleaned the object's smaller end, he saw something interesting as the light hit it.

It was an image of the night sky, decorated in white stars and a waxing moon. Rune blinked. He'd seen this design before...

Curiosity got the better of him even more, and he began to clean the object thoroughly of mud. This time, when he saw the larger end, he saw a very familiar sight when the light hit the concave opening in the diamond.

It was an image of the sun, against a whitish-pink background. Rune blinked, as a realization hit him.

"This is...Princess Celestia's cutie mark, is it not...?" he mumbled to himself. "What is this...?"

He was convinced now this was an ancient artifact of some sorts, given its depth and the fact that Nightmare Moo--Princess Luna's cutie mark was on the gem as well. The earth pony found himself both surprised at the find...and concerned. He had no idea what it was. Was the original castle here, in Fillydelphia, and this was a commemorative gem tossed aside by a unicorn because he couldn't make it work? Or was there more to it than what he thought.

There was only one way he could find out...
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Princess Celestia had a busy life for the past several centuries. Even though her sister was back at her side to help her rule once more, she still hadn't completely recovered all her power just yet, and still needed a little assistance in putting the stars where they went. It'd probably be another couple of months before the reprocussions of the Elements being used on her evil half would finally fade.

At first, she was maybe slightly taller than Twilight and her friends, as well as that colt who was appointed to be their Protector. Now, she was about three-fourths of her full height, and her mane and tail had started to regain their etheral looks. If Azure could see her now...

The news that there had been an attack in Ponyville left the alicorn greatly troubled on top of the mountains of paperwork she had to go through as co-ruler of the land. Even with Luna helping her again, it still seemed like there was so many things to be done. However, the Princess knew there was a certain satisfaction in knowing her subjects, for the most part, trusted her. She didn't know why a select few still thought of her as a tyrant even though she acted in the best interest of Equestria, but she thought little of it, since those ponies were few and far between.

The fact that another attack hadn't been attempted in all this time left her a little relieved, but she still was concerned that her student and her friends would get too complacent with this fact. However, it didn't seem to be the case, given they all seemed to be learning from one another, judging from Twilight's letters. She kept all of them in an archive. Somehow, she'd felt they'd come in handy, if only to be able to look back on them later on and smile.

Speaking of letters, currently she was going through piles of letters. Some of them were townsfolk offering their thanks for whatever reason. She knew the type by now like the underside of her hoof after ruling for over a thousand years, so she would put those aside to focus on important correspondence.

Her gaze stopped on a letter from Fillydelphia. It had a seal on it that usually wasn't present with the so-called "fan mail". And that particular seal was usually there when a matter needed to be given some level of immediate attention. Princess Celestia blinked.

"Urgent matter...?" she mused aloud, immediately unrolling the parchment. Her magenta eyes scanned the parchment. "Hmm...'Rune der-Ground'...I've been to a couple of his exhibits before...'odd, hourglass-shaped jewel...'"

The sun princess broke off midsentence, re-reading the second part of that statement.

"With Luna's cutie mark and my own on it...?" The white alicorn blinked. Her gaze shifted for just a moment as painful memories of over one thousand years ago resurfaced, but only for a moment. She came to her decision almost immediately. "...I think it'd be better left in Canterlot's hands..."
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"Can you believe it, Blitz?"

Crimson Blitz honestly could agree with Virid Strategem's enthusiasm for this. They had been members of the Royal Guard for about six weeks now; even having the traditional golden armor of those in the Guard, and already they were entrusted by the Princess herself to handle a situation.

"I know," Crimson responded, "It feels like yesterday when we were accepted..."

Azure's cousins were on a chariot headed for Fillydelphia. Princess Celestia had filled them in on what they had to do. It seemed ridiculously simple, but even so, the fact that the beloved monarch of the land herself had bestowed the task on them made it all the more important to them. They were to secure the centuries-old artifact, and transport it back if it was necessary.

"We know what we're looking for, right?"

"Of course," responded Virid. "In the right light, one concave side of the gem should display Princess Luna's cutie mark. The other concave side, under the same conditions, should display Princess Celestia's cutie mark. The gem itself should be gray and lifeless aside from the normal luster a diamond should have."

"Good. Nice to see you're on top of things here, Virid." Crimson nodded.

"Nice of you to say, Crimson Blitz, but I have to be..." The green unicorn looked over the side. "Looks like we're almost there."

"Think this is gonna be open-and-shut, Virid?" The red unicorn asked.

"Why wouldn't it be? It sounds so simple..."

"Maybe Azure's rubbed off on me, but something tells me not to be so sure..."

"'Kay, Red Fearful, I'll keep it in mind..."

Crimson sighed. Even after joining the Royal Guards, Virid managed to be a royal pain. After his conduct in dealing with Azure's friends, the red unicorn had essentially shouldered the burden of having to make sure Virid could remain a part of the Royal Guard.

Being a top-notch strategist meant absolutely nothing if you were going off on tangents about how your non-unicorn colleagues couldn't do magic. And, though he hated to admit it, the lack of magic prowess that Crimson had as a unicorn made him a perfect partner for Virid, who practically breathed the power. Thankfully, it hadn't come up yet, but anypony who knew the unicorn more closely knew it was only a matter of time.

"Whatever. If your hunch turns out to be right, don't be like Azure and rub it in next chance you get..." Virid finally said. "Still think you're being paranoid."

The chariot finally touched down in Fillydelphia, pretty much at the site where the find had occurred. Both unicorns immediately dismounted. Within moments, the light blue form of the earth pony appeared.

"So the Princess is interested in what I've found?" He sounded genuinely surprised.

"Yes," Virid still knew how to be civil, though Crimson found himself just a little nervous at the prospect of leaving Virid unsupervised to talk to this pony. "She wanted us to see if it was what she thought it was for ourselves. If it's the artifact she thinks it is, she wants us to transport it back to Canterlot."

"What exactly does she think it is?" The earth pony demanded to know.

"She didn't say it directly, but she seemed..." Crimson cut in at this point, taking over. "I don't know how to put it...but there was something about her that was off when we received our orders."

"Well, come in, and I will show you the jewel," said Rune, allowing the two unicorns into his tent. Though the muddy pit was devoid of other ponies, it was now about noon. They were probably away at lunch, Crimson figured.

The two unicorns approached the jewel.

"I'll handle it, Blitz," said Virid calmly, stepping forward a little more.

"Go on, but I want to look at this myself..."

Virid scanned the jewel carefully, holding it up to the nearby desklight. He nodded at the larger end and at the smaller end, and gave both ends another once-over. Finally, he set the jewel down.

"Well?" der Ground asked, eagerness in his tone.

"Let's see what Crimson thinks..." said Virid, passing the baton on to Crimson.

The red unicorn was a little skeptical at first pass. It looked just like a regular, triangle-cut diamond with the top part caved in, and the pointed bottom also cut off and caved in, giving the stone its hourglass shape, though due to the difference in size between the two concave ends, it was warped in appearance. However, as Crimson rotated the bottom concave part towards the light, he saw it.

A mark of the night sky, complete with the stars and the moon. Though Crimson hadn't seen Luna firsthand; the lunar princess probably still adjusting to the world having aged without her, Celestia had at least done enough to tell them what her mark looked like, and this was almost a perfect match.

Crimson flipped over the gem. He didn't need to be told that this time he was staring at Celestia's mark, the morning sun. Other than that, in normal lighting, the gem looked perfectly normal, as though it were harmless.

"I think this is what she was looking for, no question about it..." Crimson responded, though already his mind was surging with questions.

But why does she want this now? It obviously has some magical property to it because the designs only appear under light...but it was left behind, so it can't have been that effective... the red unicorn thought to himself. He cast a glance to Virid, who nodded, confirming that he had thought about this too.

Princess Celestia...what is this thing, and why is it so important? Was it something that fell through, or something else?

Chapter 20: A Clueless Colt's Connundrum

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Chapter 20: A Clueless Colt's Connundrum
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Azure Courage knew one thing: he hadn't even reached the Boutique and he was already starting to regret his detour. The thoughts swimming through his head now would not quit, but now he was trying to make sense of them.

I've hung out with both of them more than I have the others... the colt thought to himself. Some ponies say that attraction is inevitable, but...no, that can't be right. Maybe...no...no, no...

Azure snorted in frustration, and he slowed his pace as he noticed Rarity's business was approaching on the horizon. For some reason, a feeling of dread began to well up in his heart. He knew he needed to talk to her about this; Twilight and Applejack were automatically out, Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash wouldn't take it seriously, and Fluttershy...he didn't really know if she'd be able to talk to him about it without being...well, shy about it.

Yet, the fact Rarity seemed to be one of those romantic types-judging by the reason she wanted to go to the Gala in the first place...it made Azure both realize Rarity was his only option, and regret actually allowing it to come to him needing her help in the situation.

I don't think she's going to be so willing to dispense advice if I tell her I feel weird around Twilight and Applejack... Azure pondered, slowing his pace and dragging his hooves along the ground. ...but, darn it, I don't really have a choice, do I?

Feeling that he didn't have a lot to lose, the cyan colt picked up the pace and closed the distance between himself and Rarity's business and home. Standing just outside the door, Azure found himself hesitating once again.

C'mon, "Courage" is in your name... Azure thought to himself. This is the hand you've been dealt...and nopony you know save for Silver, Rarity, and your family can help you make sense of it, and since all but Rarity are back home in Canterlot and you want answers now, you've gotta turn to her.

With a deep, calming breath, Azure pushed open the door. The shop hadn't changed much from his last visit, with some winter-oriented material swapped in to replace the stuff from last season. The bell rang, and the colt had a funny feeling that Rarity didn't hear it. He waited a few seconds so that he could approach the counter, just in case the mare decided to come down herself.

It would be my luck she'd be busy today... Azure mused, making it to the counter. He reached out with a hoof, and with only moderate hesitation this time, rang the bell.

"Just a moment," Rarity called out, the sound of hooves landing on the floor soon following. The sound of hooves continued towards Azure, and after a few seconds, the white mare in question appeared. "Azure?" She squinted, clearly not expecting him, but at the same time showing concern when she noticed the state he was in. "What happened to your horn?"

"Just a little magical backfire, nothing to worry about..." Azure responded, suddenly feeling a pang of dread once again enter his subconscious.

"So then, why'd you come here?" Rarity asked.

"I came to ask you something, actually," The colt responded.

"Oh?" She was clearly listening.

"Do you remember my birthday, Rarity?" Azure questioned, "The offer you made to talk about my...'problem'?" The mare blinked twice, and the shock did not go unnoticed. "Are you still willing to talk to me about it?"

Rarity's face shifted from shocked to an almost blank look, but one of her eyebrows arched, but that quickly vanished and she smiled openly, making Azure once again regret his decision.

"Oh, you honor me," she said, immediately moving around the counter. "Please go to the living room while I close shop..."

Azure obliged, already removing his scarf as he trotted in the direction Rarity wanted him to. All the way, he wondered if this whole thing was a good idea to begin with. She had certainly seen his confusion at that time, but after what had nearly happened today, he was troubled.

Alright, I'm here now, guess it's a good thing she's willing to talk with me about this... the colt thought to himself as he finished ditching his winter gear and putting it off to the side. I've got myself this far...now, how exactly should I put this...?

Azure plopped down on the couch. When Rarity walked in, something clicked in the pony's mind and he urged himself to not laugh.

I feel like I'm in a therapy session...

As Azure surveyed Rarity, she was wearing her usual work glasses, but she was also carrying with her a notepad, a quill, and a bottle of ink. However, Azure blinked when he saw the glasses.

...Somehow, Rarity in glasses doesn't do anything for me...and yet, Twilight in glasses... Azure shook his head slightly to clear any thoughts from his head. Focus...
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Rarity had to admit, of all the things she'd expected to have to take care of today, Azure's little crush on Applejack wasn't one of them. She was glad to see the colt had finally come to his senses and come to her for advice. Yet, the way his eyes looked suggested there was just a little more to that than when she last checked.

She didn't really approve of his referring to budding love as a "problem", but she chalked it up to Azure not knowing what exactly that entailed. He seemed clueless enough, so Rarity pushed it aside.

"Now that I've made sure we won't be interrupted," Rarity said, "please, tell me, what changed between Applejack and yourself that lead to your visit today?"

Azure shifted uncomfortably when the quill made contact with the pad, but his response was a bit mystifying...and concerning, "Um, actually, I think it's about the same right now, but something else has happened that lead to this."

Rarity raised an eyebrow, but was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, "Something else? Would you mind explaining?"

"I wish I could..." She could tell just from his expression he was lost.

"Very well, let me ask you a different question..." Rarity said, now lost as to what exactly Azure was talking about. "How, exactly, do you feel when you're around Applejack now?"

Azure actually gave this question a few seconds' worth of thought, and he finally relented. The small blush that coated his cheeks, and the way he sounded when he said it all tipped Rarity off to her small success here.

"Well, my stomach would feel like it was in knots, I'd have a hard time making eye contact, and on occasion, I'd even find myself...blushing..."

All of this sounded normal, but now Rarity wanted to know what that "something else" entailed. She had a nagging feeling there was a lot more to Azure's problems than what he lead on. She scribbled down all that he'd just said, and asked another question.

"I must ask, have you ever felt like this towards anypony else?"

"Not until recently..."

Rarity paused. What did he just say? She resisted the urge to call him out on this for the moment, and continued her line of questions. "Recently, you say?"

Azure nodded, though he looked reluctant to do so.

"How recently?" There was some anger in her tone, but it wasn't enough that Azure could pick up on, apparently.

"Well, it was just a while ago, when I was at the library with Twilight...something almost happened..."

Rarity blinked twice, and one of her eyebrows arched. The mare fought to maintain her composure, though she desperately wanted to know something about that situation.

"Please, darling, tell me, what almost happened between you and Twilight?" Rarity asked, making sure to conceal her rising anger.

"I'm not sure how," Azure responded, still not detecting anything wrong with the unicorn mare's tone. He blushed again as he relayed the tale, "but if Spike hadn't walked in when he did, we would have...kissed... After that, I-I wanted to see if she wanted to talk about it, see if we could figure out why it happened, but..." His voice dropped, "She asked me to leave..."

You...!

Rarity removed her glasses, still trying to conceal the anger she felt within. She set the quill and notepad aside, dropping all pretense.

What sort of colt are you?!

"Azure, darling, would you come here for a moment?" It was hard for her to hide the rage she felt for her friends being lead on like they were...

"Um...okay..." Azure responded, still sounding oblivious as ever. As soon as they were face to face, Rarity gave him precisely what he deserved: a hoof-slap across the face.

"You two-timing scoundrel!"

"T-two-timing?" Azure questioned, sounding dazed from the hit, a red hoof print already forming on the side of his muzzle where she'd hit him. "W-what do you mean?"

Playing innocent? "A mare's heart is not a toy, Azure!" she continued her verbal assault on him, satisfied with the fact she'd left a very visible mark on his face.

"Look, I have no idea what I did!" Azure responded, and only now did Rarity realize she may have made an error, "I don't even know what's going on right now! That's why I came to you!"

Rarity sat down, blinking, one eye on the red spot on the side of the cyan colt's face. His expression illustrated no attempt to save face on his part. In fact, the way he'd acted about the whole situation...

Oh dear... oh dear... oh dear...

"Oh, my, you really haven't a clue as to what's happened, do you, Azure?"

Azure plopped down on his rump, looking utterly exhausted.

"That's right..."
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The session continued anew after that, which Azure was thankful for.

First, she had him explain exactly how it had all started between him and Applejack. It was simple enough to pinpoint it to the attack on the Apples' property. That, and the immediate aftermath of the attack, apparently had to have been the tipping point. Rarity seemed surprised to hear what he'd done in the depth of that situation, and was even more surprised to learn that it was just him being himself in that moment.

Next, she had him explain what happened with Twilight, since that particular prospect was new to her. Rarity had been surprised to learn about the fact he actually helped her study the counter-spell, but she seemed particularly alarmed to hear what happened during their first study session; particularly the part where she'd reacted to his wanting to learn the Shadow Ghoul-summoning spell without knowing the consequences.

Rarity had taken down all of her notes on the matters at hoof, and after looking over all that she'd taken down about his problems, finally rendered her judgment.

"It would seem that you have a way with words, Azure," Rarity finally said, removing her glasses. "But you have no idea whatsoever what kind of effect those words could have on a mare..."

"I didn't even know what I was doing until Silver pointed it out to me..." Azure sighed. "I guess I should have put a little more stock in what he said to me..."

"Indeed," Rarity concurred. "Had you listened, you might not be in the place you are now, darling..."

"Well, there's nothing I can do about that now..." The cyan colt let out another puff of air, "I may not know too much about what I did, but I know enough to realize that if this keeps up, I'll end up hurting at least one of them..."

"At least you're not completely oblivious to your actions..." Rarity observed, finally setting down her materials and fixing him with a stern look.

"What do I do now?" Azure asked, feeling a little down on himself. The white unicorn did not answer for a moment.

"Well, dear, you're going to have to make a choice..." Rarity responded. "Find out exactly how it is you feel for each of them, and decide which one you have the stronger feelings for. But I can not make this decision for you. It would not be fair to either of them, or to you..."

"Wouldn't that wind up hurting one of them in the end?" Azure questioned, not liking the sound of that.

"It will," the mare responded bluntly, "But if you continue on the course you have put them on, Azure, it will hurt even worse than that. You mustn't allow yourself to lead them on anymore if it can be helped, until you know exactly how you feel..."

The silence was deafening, and Azure felt like his head had just been shoved straight into a fire. However, his situation was made clear to him.

Azure Courage, what kind of mess have you gotten yourself into this time? The colt thought to himself. Most colts would do anything to be in your position, but you might be living proof that being caught between two mares like this isn't heavenly by any stretch...

"I've got a lot of thinking to do," Azure finally spoke up. "Good thing it's cold..." He turned to his winter gear, which he'd discarded for the sake of the conversation. "Thanks, Rarity..."

"Anytime, Azure..."
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Rarity was happy to have been able to help Azure through his problem, or at least, help him understand what it was he had to do. She watched him go, knowing that, in the eyes of some uncouth individuals, he was in a position enviable by most colts. However, she knew Azure better than that.

At least, now she did. She'd always thought of him as a ruffian, a very brutish pony. He wasn't anything like the others, that much was for sure.

Every now and again, though, his softer side would show, more through his words than anything else. However...

She replayed not only the fresh information she'd received from him, but even the smaller acts he'd done over the months she'd known him. He'd given Fluttershy his headband to reassure her when they were up against the dragon. He intercepted a rock that would have hit Applejack dead-on if he hadn't. He'd given it his all when it came to those shadow creatures and their summoner.

Perhaps I've been more wrong about you than I care to admit, Azure...
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Meanwhile, in Fillydelphia, the mystery surrounding the strange, unearthed gem was about to deepen. Crimson Blitz and Virid Strategem remained on-site to report their findings so that Princess Celestia knew what was going on. About an hour passed between their inspection of the gem and then, and the workers had returned to the site to see if they could dig up anything else.

"It makes sense that she'd show interest in it," Virid summarized, standing outside the building where the gem was to be held until the gem could be safely transported. "It has the Royal Sisters' cutie marks on it. But what is it?"

"I wouldn't know, Virid," Crimson responded. "She did seem a bit off when she called us to do this."

"I wonder..." Virid continued. "Could we have been picked for this because...? Oh, never mind."

"What's wrong, Virid?" asked Crimson.

"Oh, nothing. Just wondernig to myself why we were picked for this and not other, more experienced individuals..." Virid responded.

"You have a point," Crimson replied, and it was true. He didn't know why they were picked, "Compared to most of the other guards, we are relatively new on the force. It does make a pony wonder..."

The two remained, for the most part, stoic, overseeing the work. The ponies that were on the job didn't seem to mind; nor did Rune der-Ground seem to object to two Royal Guards hanging around just outside his tent to wait for a report back from Princess Celestia. Indeed, the earth ponies and unicorns on the job continued to dig away, trying to find something. Suddenly, Virid's ear twitched.

"Wait, Crimson, did you hear that?" he asked, sounding somewhat alarmed.

"Hear wha--?" Crimson didn't finish his sentence, now hearing something; the sound of what vaguely sounded like shifting rock. "Now I did..."

"We are on an excavation site, gentlecolts," said Rune der-Ground. "It could be entirely possible that--"

The sound of raw earth giving way suddenly sounded off, and Crimson withheld a gasp at what he saw when he turned to look. Rune der-Ground and Virid were equally alarmed as well.

The sight that unfolded before them was a creature about seven feet tall that appeared to be made entirely out of mud. But it wasn't that alone that got Crimson's adrenaline flowing. He couldn't quite discern what it was! It looked like it had one bunny ear stretching out the center of his head, two blank yellow eyes, a snout like some kind of dragon, and tendrils that extended out of its body. It reached out with its mud tendrils-which flowed remarkably like liquid, and ensnared two of the workers, dragging them underground.

"What in Tartarus was that?!" Virid demanded, "I haven't seen anything like it!"

"What" is a good question... Crimson thought, prepared to leap into action. The remaining workers looked around, when a second rumble took place underneath their feet. A few moments later, a second creature at about the same height as the first one burst forth from the ground. Like the first one, it too appeared to be made out of mud, and it too did not look like any one creature Crimson had ever seen.

This time, the creature had two pointed ears, similar to a cat, yet it also had a set of antlers as well. The antlers were more for show: Crimson guessed that if that thing had to stab something with it, the antlers, not the victim, would splatter, given that they appeared to drip away. The rest of the body appeared to be more slender, a serpentine sort of body. It too, had the same exact tendrils, which it used to ensare three other workers. The rumbling reconvened, but neither creature reappeared. Eventually, the quaking stopped, and the workers, along with Virid, Rune, and Crimson himself, ran over to the holes.

"Are these...tunnels?!" Rune observed, leaning dangerously close to the edge of one of the holes. Virid extended a forehoof in front of him, pushing him back a little.

"Those...odd creatures must have been underground here for quite a while. Maybe this excavation of yours disturbed them..." Virid said, looking to the earth pony, "Maybe that's why they're attacking..."

"Virid..." Crimson said. "Those things don't look natural to me..."

"I knew that," Virid retorted, looking down into the hole. "Rune der-Ground, stay up here with the jewel."

"Where are you two going?" Rune asked, clearly concerned.

"We're going after those things. An excavation can't get moving without any workers..." Virid said, leaping down the hole, his horn lighting up in an amber light. As he went down the hole with the aid of the gravity spell, Crimson could have sworn he'd heard him say: "no matter how inferior..."

One of these days, Virid, these ponies we are charged to protect will hear you, and I'll have to beat you down myself... thought Blitz to himself, following Virid's lead as he leapt down after the unicorn and the two strange creatures.

The hole had to have been about thirty feet deep, Crimson estimated, as he and Virid touched down. It was dark down there, save for the light from each of their horns. Suddenly, Virid gave a startled gasp.

"Oh, what was I thinking?!"

"V-Virid...?" Blitz asked, completely concerned now.

"Crimson, we should have taken off our armor before jumping down here! Captain's not going to like it if our armor isn't clean when we get back!" The green unicorn said, sounding completely sincere when he said it. Crimson's horn glow completely fizzled out for a few seconds, and he felt his eye start to twitch.

"I-I'm sure...he isn't going to care too much if our armor gets a little dirty..." Crimson said, completely at a loss for Virid's sudden change in demeanor.

Well, actually...it wasn't that sudden...

Crimson would have chided Virid more on his sudden care for his armor, but he had more important things to take care of than try to rekindle that rivalry. Such as that ominous rumbling that once more surrounded him.

"Virid, do you hear that?" he asked, shifting his eyes.

"Not now, Crimson!" Virid's tone was the furthest thing from "serious, about to engage in combat" he'd ever heard. Guided by his purple horn light, as well as Virid's amber horn light, Crimson turned and saw Virid on his hind legs, frantically trying to wipe at some spot on his armor with his hoof.

"Seriously, Virid--"

"I said not now!" The green unicorn said, paying absolutely no mind to what else was going on, hooves still scrabbling away at the white and gold armor. The rumbling continued to grow louder and closer, and Crimson grit his teeth.

"Look out!" he yelled, physically rushing up to Virid and pushing him over with both forehooves, just moments before the first of the mud monsters came tunneling through the wall immediately to Virid's right.

"Oh, come on now..." Virid groaned, immediately getting back to his feet. "It's gonna take me forever to polish this..."

"Better that it's mud than blood..." Crimson responded. "C'mon now, stay focused on what we jumped down here to do in the first place."

"Right, right, rescue those workers and defeat those mud monsters...or whatever they are." Virid said, straightening up his posture, and glancing in the direction the first beast went.

The unicorn was about to use his talent for strategy to determine where, in the network of tunnels, there was.
-------------
Virid had to take a guess that the monster had been coming from his right, which could have been where the lost workers had been taken. He went into the path the creature had just dug, and increased the light coming from his horn so that he could see a little more clearly. His blue eyes scanned the network of tunnels, and he began to draw conclusions.

This tunnel, the one I'm standing in right now, was freshly dug... he observed. The two creatures have made an entire web out of their tunnelings. But some of these tunnels have been here for a long time...the mud's dried. We won't be finding anything there. Some of the paths are moist...they've recently been dug up...

The unicorn forced a little more magic into his horn so he could clearly see which of the paths had been most recent. The ground rumbled around him again, but Virid paid it no mind. Two paths in particular vividly glistened in the light. There!

"Well?" Crimson asked.

"Two of these paths were dug up just today." Virid responded. "I strongly believe if we follow these two paths..." Two amber lasers shot forth from his horn, purposely weak so they'd leave a mark on his chosen paths. "We'll wind up in the same spot, and perhaps where those creatures took the missing ponies."

The red unicorn walked forward, "Alright, I'll take your word for it. Usually, your strategies don't need a whole lot of adjustment."

Without too much in the way of words, both unicorns charged down one of the paths: Virid taking the one on the left, Crimson taking the one on the right.
------------------
Crimson's horn lit up a bit more as he went down the path he'd been assigned. He'd trusted Virid's plans in the past; it was what got the two of them as far as they did. For all Crimson knew, it might have been the reason they'd been picked for this.

"If any of you lost ponies can hear me, don't move from where you are!" the red unicorn called out, not really caring if there was any ponies to hear him. "We're going to get you out of here!"

There was a faint noise. It didn't sound like growling, but Crimson couldn't quite make out if it was a pony's voice over the nearby sound of rumbling. Had the creatures taken more ponies? Crimson didn't want to find out.

His horn lit up purple, and his galloping speed increased, his body (and armor) becoming a glowing, purple blur of light as he dashed forward through the tunnels. He felt the tunnel slope upward at one point, but then straight down afterward, forcing Blitz to have to dig his hooves and stop using his speed spell so he could maintain control as he slipped over the wet mud.
--------------------
Virid dashed down the path, trying his hardest not to move too fast, for fear he'd get his armor dirty. It was an oddball quirk that he'd picked up ever since joining the squad. Well, at least, odd to everypony but him.

He could hear Crimson calling out to the lost ponies, and heard the faint sounds of a voice saying something back. Just then, the rumbling started again. The creatures were on the move. Virid continued to run forward, and was caught off-guard by a sudden drop. He fell hoof-first into more fresh mud, and cursed silently to himself as he felt it splash over him.

"Oh, come on..." he grumbled, rising to his hooves and rushing forward again. It didn't take much longer for the green unicorn to reach an odd room.

The horn light from the unicorn's horn didn't bathe the room in light nearly as well as it had in the tunnels.

Is this some kind of chamber...? he thought to himself, looking behind him. The tunnels we were just in lit up very well thanks to the light of our horns, partly because the clearance was about two feet above our heads...but here, it's probably about fifteen, at least.
---------------------
"Who's there?"

"What're those lights?"

"Is that the Royal Guards?"

"I heard one of them call out to us..."

"I can hear you!" Crimson's voice rang out loud and clear. "I can't really see you, though..."

"We're down here with you!" Virid called out, sounding more annoyed if anything. "We'll bail you out of this situation, don't worry!"

The ground began to rumble, not just underfoot, but around them as well.

"They're coming back!" one of the captured ponies called out.

"Virid, think you can light us up here?" Crimson asked as the quakes began to get worse.

"Already on it, Crimson!" Virid's horn began to glow brighter, and the very tip of the horn began to glow with a bright white light. A few moments later, the light streaked to a high point in the room, illuminating it like a regular light bulb would.

The room was definitely large enough to accomodate both of those creatures, and their captives. Excluding the freshly dug paths, the walls of this room were dry, and looked the least disturbed out of everything in the underground maze-at least, what the ponies saw of it, anyway.

The ceiling began to crack, and soon enough, a large blob of mud that barely looked like the first creature broke through the ceiling, both of the Royal Guards instantly bracing themselves as the kidnapped ponies gave startled gasps. As the mud monster reformed, its friend immediately shot through the right-hand wall, opposite the captured ponies. Now, Crimson and Virid could see clearly what it was they were dealing with.

The objects which they mistook for tendrils were actually their limbs; they were just a lot narrower for what they should have been. The creatures appeared to be constantly dripping mud, and their bodies had some level of "fluidity" to them.

"Those tendrils..." observed Virid. "Is that how they move about? If so, clearly, these things are as amorphous as mud, for the most part."

"Alright, Virid, what's the plan?" Crimson asked.

"We're going to be fighting an amorphous magical creature, all things considered," Virid responded. "Two of us, two of them. I say we split up the work between us. These things just don't seem like they can use team work."

"Aren't there more out there?" asked one of the captured ponies.

"No, I'm fairly convinced there aren't any more other than these two..." Virid said. "Alright, I'll take the one with the weird bunny ear...thing, coming out the center of its head. Blitz, you take the other one."

"Alright then, I'll lead it away so it doesn't try to interfere with what you've got," said Blitz in response, his horn lighting up once more in a purple hue as he began to rush forward, using his speed spell to leap forward and plunging his forehooves through the mud monster he was assigned. Unsurprisingly, he found himself splashing right through the body of the beast, leaving a pony-sized hole in its chest. After a few moments, though, the hole reformed, and with a rather moist-sounding roar, the chase was on.

While Blitz took off running fast down one of the nearby tunnels, his adversary quickly stretched its tendrils, chasing him down, leaving Virid with a handful of frightened ponies and a creature to contend with...
--------------
"Alright, let's see what you've got!" Virid called out to the creature, just as one of the tendrils came bearing down on him. He leapt to the right, away from the captured ponies, and shot a weak laser to his enemy to ensure its full attention was on him.

The monster gave a sudden yelp of pain as the laser made impact, followed by a frightening roar as it attempted to reach out to Virid and ensnare him. The mud tendril scraped past him, and the beast advanced slightly, trying to get a good grip on him. The blue eye of the unicorn flashed a little.

This thing has to have a range limit of some kind...even being made of semi-solid dirt, it can't reach forever... Virid mentally observed, ducking down low underneath another reach and taking a glancing blow to the side of his armor, causing him to grit his teeth. I am so glad these things aren't real...

The colt continued to observe his opponent's attacks. For the most part, however, the mud monster had no real attack aside from roaring in anger and reaching out with its tendrils. Virid grit his teeth and began to slowly retreat from the enemy while circling around in the chamber.

"What's he doing?" asked one of the captured ponies, "Why ain't he attacking?"

"Why is he running away?"

"I'm not running away!" Virid snapped to the gathered captives.

The creature capitalized, extending one of its tendrils straight to Virid's chest. If Virid hadn't kept one eye on his enemy when he went to yell at the ponies he had been charged to protect, he might have been completely plastered to the ground with wet mud. However, he observed the tendril and leapt off the ground with a little aid from the gravity spell, giving himself enough height to allow the tendril to pass underneath. Now head-level with the creature, he could see its body a little more clearly with the help of the light.

He began to allow gravity to re-assert itself as the creature again reached out to him, glancing down his spine when he lowered his head so he'd get out of the way. He noticed its body morph as it reached out to him. It was subtle, but the well-lit cavern allowed him to see it clearly.

When it reaches out...is it rearranging its body?
--------------------
Crimson lead the mud monster with antlers away from the other ponies, the light from Virid's spell dimming as the distance between him and it increased. When the light was almost nil once again, Crimson planted his hooves, turning around to face his adversary.

There was barely any room to fight inside the tunnels, but that was fine by him. His horn lit up as the creature raised one of its tendrils. Using his speed spell, he blurred forward, and used his forehooves to slam holes into the creature's body. However, the pain from the hits either didn't register like it had before, or he wasn't doing enough damage for it to matter.

One of Crimson's orange eyes caught an oncoming attack, and thus he immediately began to retreat, using his speed spell to evade the tendril and the subsequent splashing of mud. He kept one eye on the wounds he'd inflicted, and watched with a lack of surprise as the holes refilled.

Naturally, given it is part-liquid... he thought to himself, dodging another tendril slam using his speed. I may be able to outpace it, but even then...

Dodging two tendrils at once by speeding right toward the beast again, Crimson continued his offense. This time, he leapt up, the extra momentum aiding him in getting height.

Not being as attuned to magic as Virid, a quick change from a speed spell to the gravity spell was hard, but somehow, the red unicorn managed to pull it off, allowing him to land several attacks in quick succession to the creature's chest, punching more holes in the body of the beast.

However, Crimson couldn't quite get to the ground quick enough, and found himself swatted into a tunnel wall by a tendril, causing him to feel quite a bit of pain, first from the initial hit, then again when his side slammed into the wall.

"Good thing I was wearing my armor," mused Crimson to himself, quickly rising to his feet, ignoring the pain he felt. He watched as the holes he punched into the beast once more filled back in.

Am I gonna stalemate this thing until Virid finishes his up? Crimson thought, once more enabling his speed-buffing magic to allow himself to evade the creature's attacks once again. Normal attacks are useless...I don't know a whole lot of spells...

Well, I'm not gonna let Virid hold this over my head... The red unicorn thought to himself, managing a backwards leap away from his adversary, his horn's glow glowing a brighter purple. No choice then, I'll have to go all-out here.

Crimson took a ready stance, crouching down low and preparing to launch forth as his horn's glow began to actively illuminate the tunnel. The glow of his horn gradually expanded, covering his head, then the rest of his body.

Living Rocket...

The red unicorn burst forth, his entire body bathed in a purple light. The monster tried to slap him away with its tendrils, but the creature was way too slow to properly react. As the pony began to close in, the heat from his magic began to cause the creature's body to harden into solid dirt, and its movements slowed. By the time Crimson's body actually touched the creature, the creature's torso had been solidified.

Crimson's momentum carried him through the hardened body of the creature, causing it to completely shatter, the semi-liquid parts of the creature splattering all over the place as the rocks it was attached to bounced off the walls of the tunnels. The aura surrounding Crimson dissipated as he prepared to land, his horn lighting up just a little so he could see his handiwork--and if his enemy was able to recover from even an attack like this.

He eyed the lumps that formerly formed a creature, waiting to see if they would re-liquefy and re-form into one singular being once again. Crimson stared at the results for thirty seconds, breathing a little from the exertion of using that much magic at once. When absolutely nothing happened, not even a gurgle from the remains to show that the creature was still alive, Crimson breathed out slowly.

"Glad that's over..." Crimson said, immediately turning back to the light he could see. "Now to see if Virid needs any help with the clean up..."

With that, the red unicorn began galloping at a normal pace towards the chamber where he'd left Virid.
--------
Virid had spent the better part of the past minute and a half avoiding his enemy's attacks, much to the confusion of the captured ponies. However, he had a sudden, smug look on his face. The tendrils reached hungrily out for him from halfway across the clearing...

Mere centimeters from the pony's body, though, the attack stopped short. The creature strained for a moment, stretching futilely beyond its limits. Virid's smug smirk erupted into a full-blown grin.

"So, this is your limit, is it?" Virid asked. "Even in your natural zone..." He closed his eyes, concentrating, as the mud receded. "Okay then, I'm gonna end this now..."

The creature's limbs were halfway back to its body when Virid began to move, eyes opened. He galloped straight toward the creature, which reached out once again, trying to attack him. To the untrained eye, it would appear like he'd gotten lucky, since he didn't even bother to move away until the last moment by hopping up out of the path of the tendrils and circling to the left of the beast. Long before the beast could mount another attempt, Virid's horn instantly lit up an amber color.

"Here!" Virid called out, the air around his horn growing frigid. The mud monster's left half soon began to become brown and encased in ice. The unicorn quickly weaved out of the way of another tentacle slash, and went up on his hind legs, his hooves glowing.

"Take...this...!" Virid yelled, thrusting his forehooves forward, using the same attack he'd used on his cousin, Azure, during their duel. The pressure generated from the attack caused the frozen half to shatter into pieces, and the creature fell back over, seemingly dead from the attack.

"N-nice...!" one of the supporting ponies said.

"See," Virid began, trying to filter his words just a little bit. "This is the power of unicorn magic, and what it can do in a situation like--"

SPL-WACK!!

The creature wasn't quite dead yet, as Virid had otherwise assumed, smacking Virid with a very weak attack. Its limb splattered on impact, causing Virid's entire right side, armor and all, to be splattered with mud. Observers would later recall the green unicorn's face as "priceless" when he realized his armor was coated in mud, never mind himself. He turned back to his halved opponent, and gritted his teeth in pure anger.

"Get the heck out of here!" he snarled, firing a steady stream of lasers at the remainder of the beast, destroying the rest of it until it was no more than a few motionless clumps of mud. "Ugh, why did this have to happen?"

"Virid!" Crimson called out, galloping into the room again. "You alright?"

"What do you think?!" Virid shouted back through gritted teeth, trying his hardest to not look worried at the moment.

"Well, you're covered in mud, and--"

"Don't remind me!" With a frustrated sigh, the green unicorn turned to the captured ponies. "C'mon, let's get to the surface. Now."

The captured ponies began to gather around, opting to save their thanks for when they were back above ground. Crimson trotted up, and he and Virid split the workload between them, using the teleportation spell to warp back to the surface...
-------------------------------------------
All in all, Crimson felt like he did his duty as a member of the Royal Guard. The captured ponies seemed shaken, but overall, nopony was hurt. Except for Virid's ego, maybe.

The group of ponies appeared on the surface, where the remaining workers and Rune der-Ground were waiting expectantly.

"Yes, you did it!" Rune called out to them as soon as he noticed them.

"Thanks for saving us!" one of the captured ponies said.

"No problem," said Crimson, while Virid took to spitting on his hooves and wiping away at his armor.

"Yeah, what he said," the green unicorn grumbled, not even paying attention.

"Really, we thought we were going to starve down there!" said another.

"Really, you don't have to thank us," Crimson said.

"Yeah," Virid continued to pay the other ponies no mind.

"Rune," Crimson said, "I don't think you should go much deeper..."

"Why is that?" asked Rune, taking a couple of steps closer.

"Down there, there's a mess of tunnels, almost like a web. Had Virid not narrowed it down for us, we wouldn't have been able to find them so quickly."

"I see," the excavator commented. "Well, if that is the case, we're going to need to be careful. We still have some ground to uncover to see if we can find anything else of historical significance. Thanks again for your hel--"

"If you really want to thank me, could you get me some soap?!" Virid finally yelled, letting out another sharp grunt as he went back to frantically wiping at his armor. The other ponies fell silent at the frantic royal guardstallion.

"Is he...germophobic?" questioned Rune, not really getting it at all. Crimson didn't know why, but for some reason, he winced uncomfortably when he was asked this question. It didn't take him long to remember why.

"Let's...go with that..."

Better they think you're germophobic, Virid. It'd be awkward to explain the real reason...
--------------------
At a distant hill overlooking Fillydelphia, there was a cloaked figure seeming to watch the proceedings. The figure was definitely ponylike, judging from the body shape. Unlike with the summoner that Azure and his friends had fought a few months back, the figure had no horn, nor did he have wings. The exposed part of his muzzle was a dull gray, and his tail was a darker shade of that.

He grit his teeth just a little in annoyance.

"From the looks of things, Master, it seems Celestia's guards have beat us to the artifact," he observed. He remained silent, the annoyed look on his face changing from irritated to concerned. "You want me to attack them? Here?"

The pony continued to remain silent.

"...After Shade's slip-up in Ponyville, we have had to lay low for long enough. There's no denying that. Very well. If these guards are unicorns, they should be no match for me..."

The figure reached up to his hood, revealing a very trim, neat mane, slicked back somewhat like his tail, which was the same color.

"Not with what I have in store for them..."

Chapter 21: Historical Significance

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Chapter 21: Historical Significance
----------------------------
It seemed to take Virid a long time to get his armor properly polished. Both of the unicorns had gotten themselves cleaned off after their underground skirmish against the strange magical creatures. The princess had been somewhat prompt in getting the "okay" back to them, but said that the two would have to catch the next train back to Canterlot. Apparently the object had some level of magic to it, and it was a precaution that needed to be taken.

Now, the two unicorns were heading to the Fillydelphia train station with the Princess's item in tow, waiting for the train to arrive. As the Royal Guards waited, thoughts of the preceding battle began to resurface in one of their minds...

"What were those things...?" Crimson mused quietly to himself.

"Who cares?" Virid responded, back to his normal personality after his armor had been cleaned from all the mud that had coated it as a result of the subterranean fight. "They're gone now..."

"Yeah, but I've never heard of anything like that before..." Crimson took a look to the item, which was in a small sack attached to his armor. "Both of them looked like...mashups of creatures we've already seen. Well, I've never seen a one-eared rabbit before..."

The green unicorn put his hoof to his thought, appearing to at least give the situation some consideration. He raised his foreleg, eyes half-closed and mouth somewhat open.

"I don't know, Crimson," Virid finally said. "The fact those freaks appeared shortly after that jewel was unearthed had to have been a coincidence, though I'm not that convinced of that. But it really doesn't matter. If it happens again, we'll hear about it."

Crimson shrugged, and turned back to the tracks. "Maybe, but it's bugging me...how long were they there?"

"Who knows? Who cares?" Virid asked. "The job's basically over. I'm sure Princess Celestia will explain everything when we return the item to her."

The train whistle blew, and both of the unicorns looked down the track. A train was chugging along. If Crimson remembered right, the trains heading into the city were dual-engine: one end pulled the train toward Fillydelphia, the other to Canterlot or other cities. Fillydelphia was on the eastern coast of Equestria, after all.

"Good, the train's here..." Virid said. "Pretty open and shut, just like I said. Though the item itself still bugs me."

"Yeah, but like you said, the princess should explain why this item was so...important."

The two ponies, along with a few others at the station, boarded the train. Virid and Blitz went to the guards' station near the front, and sat down across from each other. The train wasn't overall too special, but most passenger trains, especially those bound for Canterlot, seemed to have the special section for Royal Guards set aside for them.

The train gave a loud, sharp whistle again, and the train jerked in the opposite direction as it went back down the tracks, heading for Canterlot.

"Should be home in about two hours," Virid casually observed, leaning back in his seat. "Pretty easy case."

"Yeah..." Blitz non-chalantly replied, sinking down in his own seat as his own thoughts began to churn.

Virid, I know you're not taking all this in stride. Stop acting so cocky...
----------------------------------------------
The train ride seemed to drag on as the train went down the tracks. Neither of the unicorns really talked about anything as they rode home. They'd already covered most of what they wanted to talk about, and both of them were imagining precisely how their reports would go. Of course, they would make mention of the mud creatures, as they had been made from some very strange magic, a kind that neither Virid nor Crimson could say they'd heard of.

"Oh, and Virid?" Crimson said, trying to break the silence. "I will mention your rather unprofessional breakdown about your armor getting dirty..."

"What?" Virid snapped to attention, just as the red unicorn had planned. "Oh, you wouldn't dare..."

"Why not? You should know it's sort of against our code to randomly snap at anything, let alone ponies thanking us for our efforts."

Actually, the code pretty much forbade the guards from showing any reaction whatsoever in public, even if the pony in front of them happened to be making funny faces or trying to get a rise out of them, but punishments came only in cases where the guards showed unforgiving anger to the offending equine. Still, Crimson felt himself slowly starting to get bored, and even though he didn't want to pick a fight with Virid, he couldn't think of much else to break the boredom.

Which in itself was a violation of the rules, come to think of it--

"Hey, I got my armor dirty on their behalf!" Virid countered, completely disregarding the fact he was charged to protect the ponies in question, probably because the majority of them weren't unicorns.

"And you don't hear me complaining about the fact I got a little dirty too..." Crimson responded. "Your behavior was unprofessional, Virid, that's a fact..."

"You know what's even more unprofessional?" Virid asked. "Having dirty armor!"

"Besides, you know, I don't even think the captain would care," Crimson responded, standing up. "He's not the kind of colt to take anything other that one's duty seriously."

"Mares'll do it to a colt..." Virid maintained. "I'm sure he's just going through a phase...you know, like Azure..."

"C'mon, Virid," Crimson said, "I know you know there's more to it than tha--"

There was a sudden thud, one that sounded unnatural. Both of the unicorns instinctively looked up, as the sound seemed to come from outside the train. There was the sound of rapid clangs on the roof of the train car the two unicorns were in.

"Hold that thought, Crimson," Virid said, following the sounds as he surveyed the car. There wasn't anypony else but them in the car, and the clangs weren't exactly coming closer to them. As a matter of fact, they seemed to be--

Crash!

The window of the car shattered inwards as a pony appeared to swing his way from the roof hoof-first, smashing the window in with his hind legs. The pony was wrapped in a cloak, though his fur color was definitely strange: an ashy gray. The unwelcome guest quickly rolled to a halt on the other side of the room. Crimson and Virid immediately got to their feet and stood, ready to act.

"I'm only going to ask this once," said Virid, taking a few steps ahead of Crimson. "Who are you?!"

"Who I am," the pony answered, casually getting back to his hooves and standing across from them placidly as he spoke, "isn't all that important. What I'm here for, however..."

The two unicorns blinked, and Virid looked back to Crimson, "You don't suppose...?"

"No doubt about it..." Crimson took up the conversation from here, speaking up to the cloaked pony as he continued, "Sorry, I don't think we can allow that."

"I had a feeling you'd say that, being Royal Guards..." The pony said, reaching up to his hood to cast it backward. "Guess I'll just use force then..."

The figure of the pony's head came into view. There were no bulges at his sides to indicate wings, and he certainly did not have a horn. It was an earth pony...

"What can you hope to do against us?" Virid asked, clearly unconcerned with this information. "You don't even have pegasus magic, let alone unicorn magic..."

"Hey, don't judge a book by its cover..." said the unknown pony, closing his eyes. "You might just live to regret it."

"Really, now?" Virid asked, turning to Crimson. "Say, do you mind if I knock him out now? Clearly threatening Royal Guards is against the law..."

"It is," responded Crimson. "But just because he's an earth pony doesn't give you grounds to underestimate him..." The unicorn took a couple of steps forward.

"I think it's a fair estimate," continued the green unicorn, taking a few steps forward.

"Bring it, then," said the unknown pony, not even bothering to open his eyes.

Crimson didn't get why the earth pony was so calm. Even if he were physically adept, he was outnumbered two-to-one, and to top it off, he wasn't just facing off with two unicorns, but two Royal Guards that happened to be unicorns. The red unicorn could see why Virid was so cocky, but at the same time--

Virid rushed forth.

"Virid, remember, we're in a train!"

"Relax, Blitz, I know what I'm doing!"

The earth pony continued to close his eyes, utterly complacent with the fight he'd gotten himself into. He raised up on his hind legs just as Virid got in range, and the two exchanged regular attacks. A left jab from the intruder was deflected by Virid, who managed to land a right jab into the pony's chest. His horn lit up, and a few moments later, his forehooves thrust forward.

And as Virid tried to complete his signature spell, the earth pony opened his eyes, appearing to squint for a moment. Though there was nothing wrong with Virid's execution, the amber light surrounding Virid's hooves suddenly appeared to come apart in what appeared to be petals of white light, which vanished.

"W-what--" Virid started, completely caught off-guard by the magic failure. He didn't have time to complete his sentiment, though, for the unicorn found his chest being smashed by a double hoof-jab from the earth pony. If Virid hadn't been wearing his armor, it might have broke something, but as it stood, he got knocked back quite a bit, his off-balance posture not helping.

"V-Virid?!" Crimson called out in confusion.

"What in Tartarus..." Virid groaned, rising to his feet. "He's an earth pony...why is he able to...?"

"I told you, not everything is as it seems..." the earth pony continued, taking a few steps. Crimson surveyed the surroundings, and decided that in the enclosed space, even while the train was in motion, he could do some wall running. His horn lit up in its purple glow and immediately Crimson employed his speed spell, moving fast enough to defy physics.

The earth pony, strangely, did not move at all after taking a few more steps. He once again stopped, seeming to be trying to track Crimson. However, after two seconds, the glow surrounding Crimson's horn and his body faded away in the same effect that Virid's had. The momentum keeping Crimson on the ceiling at that time failed him, and he fell straight onto his back with a loud "clang".

"Do all the spells you want, you two..." the earth pony continued. "It won't have any effect on me."

"Why not?!" Virid yelled, getting to his feet as Crimson began to recover from the slip.

"I can instantly nullify any spell you throw at me..."

"Absolute manure!" Virid yelled, his horn lighting up in a bright amber light as his anger raged out of control. "You're an earth pony! Earth ponies don't even have a means of channeling magic, let alone a horn! How can you possibly say you can use magic like that?!"

"I could explain, but that'd just be wasting time," said the unwelcome guest, trotting his way toward Virid. "I have more important things I need to take care of."

"You...!" Virid growled, beginning to shoot off orange lasers aimed at the enemy. Crimson bolted to his feet and yelled out to him.

"Virid!"

"No need to worry..." the cloaked pony said, stepping forward, paying absolutely no mind to the lasers. The lasers came within centimeters of his body, and faded away into white petals of light and nothingness, leaving the train car and its contents unharmed. Virid stopped his attack, and adopted a look of total shock.

"All of that...?" Virid asked. "He...negated...all of that...?"

Crimson narrowed his eyes. What are we dealing with? He's an earth pony, but he's able to use magic that makes our magic useless...

"I told you, you can fire spells all you want, but the end result is the same: you can't win."

"Darn it all!" Virid began to charge, paying absolutely no mind to anything else.

"Virid, wait!" Crimson yelled.

Too late.

The earth pony shifted to the left of Virid, the unicorn too blinded by his rage to notice. The earth pony sent his back legs up, catching Virid in the head and left shoulder, knocking him into the wall, where, with a pained, soft groan, he landed on the ground below it, lying still.

"Virid!"

"Don't worry..." the earth pony said. "I didn't do much more than knock him out. At least, I think that's all I did."

Crimson grit his teeth. While his magic was useless, he still had some physical attributes to him...and even if it was now one-on-one, he could still fight back.

"Careful," Crimson warned. "Not all unicorns solely rely on magic to do what they need to do in times like this..."

"Oh?" The earth pony asked, turning to Crimson. "Is that so? Do you think you can beat me without your magic?"

"I'm not sure, but I've got to try it!" Crimson called out, running forward as his opponent once more took on a bipedal fighting pose. "I can't let you take the jewel!"

The instant Crimson reached his opponent, he mimicked this stance. The two formed a circle as forehooves jabbed out, either parrying their opponent's blows or being hit by them. To the untrained pony, such a battle would seem unconceivable, but the ponies knew their stuff: neither one seemed to be giving an inch.

"At least you weren't bluffing that you didn't rely on magic in this situation..." observed the earth pony non-chalantly, parrying another one of Crimson's blows, but this time holding the forehoof, and violently shifting his weight, sending Crimson off balance. "However..."

A crushing blow to the side lifted Crimson off his back hooves completely, sending him at least a third of the way down the train car. The unicorn instinctively clutched at the bag attached to his armor, and discovered that somewhere in the fight, it had started to come loose, probably from the trauma of being forced to let physics assert itself. That, and the heavy attack to the side might have helped it along.

The earth pony was rushing him, and just as Crimson managed to get to his feet, he had been nudged backwards, with a resounding clang accompanying the impact. Though most ponies would at least show some fatigue after ramming into metal like that, the enemy didn't even seem winded by the attack. The train continued on, but by now, Crimson could make out terrified faces at the start of the next car behind the enemy.

The unicorn rose to his hooves again.

"I must commend you, really," said the gray pony again. "To think you'd be able to withstand so many of my attacks without magic at your disposal, unicorn."

Crimson remained silent, already starting to breathe hard from the skirmish. The whole situation just seemed incredibly bad. Virid was unconscious, and none of his spells would work thanks to his enemy's skill...

"What do you want with the jewel?" asked Crimson, tensing up to prepare for the next attack.

"It's not important," said the earth pony. "All you need to know is that I want it."

"At least tell me that much," the red unicorn continued, rushing forward again to try to meet his opponent's move. The earth pony took the hit, seeming definitely phased by the impact, considering the soft cough he gave.

"Don't think for a minute you're in a position to be making demands because you're wearing that armor!" The earth pony recovered faster than expected, thrusting his head into Blitz's chest and throwing his head upward, catching the unicorn on the chin and once more lifting him off his feet. "Right now, I have all the cards."

The earth pony moved to Blitz's left side, the side where the bag was located. Crimson barely had time to recover before he received a powerful back kick straight to the side, strong enough to cause another loud clang to resound through the train car. This time, the force of the impact dislodged the sack completely from the armor.

Crimson tracked it with his one open eye, gritting his teeth in a mix of pain and frustration.

No...!

The bag sailed through the air. Crimson tried his hardest to get back on the ground and attack again, knowing his opponent was likely to make off with the item, especially now that it was in unsafe territory.

His hooves slid on the carpeted floor of the train car, and he rushed the earth pony again, landing another nudge that caused the earth pony to slide back. Knowing trying to levitate it was useless, Blitz caught the sack tenatively in his mouth. The cloaked stranger was right in Blitz's face, pushing as he took the other end of the bag and began tugging, while the ponies pushed their heads against once another in an act of aggression.

Neither side wanted to give an inch in this tug-of-war, neither side wanting to relinquish the strange jewel. All at once, the earth pony with the strange skill leaned downward, bag still clenched in his teeth. Crimson held on, not knowing what his opponent planned.

His opponent abruptly let go, leaving Crimson to stumble backwards off-balance as the extra force suddenly had nowhere to go except back where it came. The unicorn uncontrollably fell back on his hind legs, trying to restore his balance...

An incredibly hard head smashed straight into his chest, with yet another loud clang. However, this time, Crimson felt most of the impact, and he coughed harshly as the wind left him, relinquishing the bag in the process.. He fell on his back, crossing his forelegs over his chest as he tried to force air back into his lungs. The unicorn rolled on his side, still conscious. He forced himself back to his feet.

In this case, I have to ask myself...what would Azure do...?

"I...won't let you...have it..." The red pony declared. "I've...no idea what it is...but...my orders didn't involve anypony taking...that jewel..." His air eventually stabilized.

"Is that so? Then..." The earth pony asked through clenched teeth, the sack containing the item between his jaws. "Why do I have it right here..."

"You won't have it for long!" Crimson declared, throwing all caution to the wind, determined to fill his duty as a Royal Guard-the duty he was assigned to do since arriving in Fillydelphia.

Virid's summary of the job could not have been more wrong. Conversely, Crimson Blitz could not have been more right.

Crimson rushed his opponent, trying to do something, anything, to make him leave the item in the train with him and the unconscious Virid. He had no idea what to do: the attack had been so sudden and so unexpected - in every sense of the word - that Crimson didn't even know what to do other than mimic his younger cousin.

It wasn't his forte to go in without Virid as backup for a plan in this case.

The enemy waited until the unicorn was in range, then reared his head back and chucked the sack up into the air. He quickly circled to the unicorn's side, and a bright shaft of light and stars exploded into Crimson's vision as he felt a dull ache spread through his shoulder and chest.

A few moments later, his vision faded to black, and Crimson Blitz lost consciousness...
-----------------
"...any sign of the attackers...?"

"No leads...witnesses said there was only one attacker..."

"Was there anything else found in the train?"

Train...train... Crimson thought to himself, his memory slowly starting to return, along with his consciousness. The first thing he saw: bright light. After blinking a few times, his vision slowly became less and less blurry. That's right, Virid and me were on a train...heading home, after a trip to Fillydelphia...

"No, nothing, sir," said a nearby voice. Crimson's ears flicked. That wasn't Virid's voice.

"Okay then, you are excused..."

That voice...!

The unicorn's vision finally cleared. Crimson Blitz immediately realized he was in a hospital. Why am I...?

The memory of what had happened immediately before he had been knocked out resurfaced, and his jaw clenched, "The jewel...!"

"Easy there, soldier," The familiar, male voice said, the sound of a door closing immediately preceding its statement. Crimson soon realized why: the instant he jerked up in response to his sudden realization, his chest flared in pain, and he brought a forehoof to it instinctively. After taking a moment to catch his breath, Crimson looked to his right, towards the door, and saw another pony in the room.

The pony was a male unicorn, probably a few years older than him, and white in color. His mane was a mess of blue streaks, ranging from dark blue to light blue, and was slicked down as well. His tail matched the color and to some extent the style. His hooves had dark blue patches on the ends. He also wore a suit of armor just like Crimson's, but the main color was purple instead of white. And his cutie mark was a shield. Crimson knew this pony very well...

"C-Captain Shining Armor?" Crimson tried to salute as per his instincts, but lying down in bed with a soreness in his chest made the salute just a little difficult to pull off, never mind the fact he was still wearing his own armor.

"At ease," Shining said. "Can't expect you to salute like that anyway...Don't worry, nothing's broken. You'll be feeling sore for a while, though."

"How'd I get here...?"

"Everypony on the train saw what had happened," said Shining, "but we couldn't do much until the train arrived. An earth pony attacked the two of you, huh?" He put a hoof to his chin, then lowered it, sighing, appearing troubled. "It doesn't make sense to me. Even with an earth pony's stamina, he shouldn't have been able to do so much on his own. I want to hear it from you, since Virid wasn't very responsive...odd coming from him..."

"Yes, sir?"

"Was it an earth pony that attacked the two of you on his own?"

"Yes, sir, it was," Crimson responded with a small nod as he began to get out of his hospital bed. "But the earth pony...he had an unusual ability."

"Unusual, how?"

"He...he was able to completely nullify all our spells. I couldn't even augment my speed, and Virid's spells proved absolutely useless against him. All that happened was that our magic vanished into air..." Crimson found himself reminded of Virid's...bias, at this moment, and found his teeth were clenched a little tighter than usual when he relayed this information. "Apparently, he was well trained, considering I could barely touch him in physical combat."

"I've...never heard of an earth pony that could do that..." Shining replied, looking just as troubled as Crimson felt. "That could be a thorn in our side later. I'm going to have the two of you report this to Princess Celestia as soon as you're up for it."

Crimson looked around. He was aware that the hospital rooms weren't very roomy; only one patient at a time. Meaning Virid had to have been in a seperate room, nursing a very bruised ego in addition to the ten other bruises on his body.

"Where's Virid?"

"He...woke up before you did." Shining said. "But he wasn't acting like himself. I didn't need too much time to figure it all out..."

Ah...please tell me he doesn't know about Virid's unicorn bias... Crimson thought, trying to keep a straight face as he considered that possibility. If he did, he'd be off the squad faster than Rainbow could fly...

"Well, anypony with a job like yours would take it hard if this happened... especially if that job came from the Princess herself..." The captain continued. "...I know that feeling quite a bit myself..." That second part was more to himself, but Crimson set it aside.

Shining did have a princess of his own to worry about...

"Anyway," he continued, "I think that broke him. He may not have broken a bone in his body, but I can tell this loss damaged his ego more than anything else. Don't know if he'll ever come out of this..."

"I'd better go talk to him, get him in a reporting mood," Crimson responded. "Where'd he go?"

"He went up on the roof," Shining said. "He told me he needed some air as soon as he was able to get it. I let him go."
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Virid couldn't process it. Nothing about the situation made any sense at all. He'd fought an earth pony. Earth ponies weren't supposed to be able to use any magic, let alone specialized magic that rendered his own useless. Yet here he was, battered and bruised, and having failed in his mission, nursing his wounds on the hospital roof. He looked out over Canterlot. He could see the castle close by, maybe about a ten-minute walk away. He knew he could probably see Ponyville from where he was, but he did not dare look. The cold didn't bother him at all, the emptiness in his own mind overwhelming him.

Why is it that a mere earth pony was able to make our spells useless? It doesn't make any sense! Virid thought to himself. He rendered us almost unable to fight just by existing! I've never heard of an earth pony that had such an ability!

Virid ran a forehoof over his face, utterly disgusted at the turn of events.

Have I been wrong this whole time? No...I couldn't have been...!

The sound of a door opening and closing didn't even register in the unicorn's mind as he continued to stare emptily into space, his brain simply unable to make the leap of logic he needed to come to terms with the defeat he'd suffered.

"Virid..." This voice was unmistakably that of Crimson.

"What do you want, Crimson Blitz?" Virid spat, his anger at his defeat all but evident in his tone.

"Calm...down..." Crimson said. "Once we're both feeling up for it, Captain's orders say we need to report what happened to Princess Celestia ourselves. She's likely already been informed of the situation."

"Oh, good..." Virid acidly retorted, "More reminders of my failure..."

"It's my failure, too, Virid, don't put it all on yourself."

"How can I not?" The green unicorn turned around, clearly shaken by what had happened. "He's an earth pony..." His voice got quieter. "He shouldn't have been able to...!"

"Virid, whether you want to admit it or not, he did, in fact, use magic..." Crimson responded, almost hesitant to admit it. "As unbelievable as it is, he still used magic."

Virid halted. No, there was no way that Earth pony--yet...if he was able to physically nullify their spells...

Wait...that's it...he did use magic! Even though his mission had been a failure, an affirmation that his beliefs still had some merit was enough to get Virid's attitude to shift back towards its normal mode. Earth ponies aren't born with an innate ability to cancel out unicorn magic. Still...does this mean I've just relied far too much on my own magic?

As soon as he considered that, his attitude shifted from mildly content, back to concerned.

"But then..." Virid said, keeping his internal thoughts to himself. "When, why, and how is he able to cast such magic? What's going on?"

"Like I know..." responded Crimson. "Captain Armor didn't seem to know either, and seemed just as troubled as we were to realize it."

After a few more moments, Virid cast aside his troubles. "...Well, our mission was a failure. No way we could have seen something like that coming. Chances are, if our captain doesn't know, no chance anypony else'll know. All we can do now is report what happened and see if the princess knows anything. After having the jewel taken from us, I really want to know if there's more to it than being an artifact."

"Sounds alright to me..." Crimson sighed.
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"...and that's what happened after the mission," Virid finished his report to the princess. Crimson was no expert at being a ruler of land, but he had a nagging feeling in the back of his head that physically looking worried in front of one's subjects wasn't exactly standard code for being delivered bad news.

"I see," Princess Celestia responded after some silence. "Well, it is a shame that catastrophe struck at the last second, but that's the way the world works. It wasn't a total failure, though."

Virid appeared to be on the verge of questioning how, but Crimson watched as Virid literally bit his own tongue to prevent himself from doing so.

"You two did manage to save innocent lives from those...mud monsters, you described."

She continued to look towards them, but she didn't seem to be commanding them to leave with her eyes. In fact, she actually appeared to be considering something.

"I take it you two have some questions on your minds regarding this whole affair?"

Virid and Crimson both stood straight up, only half-expecting her to hear the answers they'd wanted to know from the start.

"Princess Celestia," Virid started, clearly hesitating to speak a little. Crimson guessed he was trying to word his statement so as not to offend her. "how is it that an earth pony could use such magic, like we described?"

"Truthfully, I don't know," Celestia answered flatly, "But it's strange. The only earth ponies that could use magic existed only in legend, and didn't have Null spells..."

The way she answered left Crimson wondering if she actually knew an earth pony that was able to use magic. However, he put that question to the back of his mind.

"Null spells?" Crimson asked. "That's what they're called?"

"Yes, spells that, as you experienced, render most spells completely useless," the princess continued. "It's known formally as 'nullification magic'. Anything else?"

"Yes," The red unicorn continued. "That item did bear your cutie mark and your sister's cutie mark on it, but only under the right light. What was it?"

The princess remained silent for a few heavy seconds. Eventually, though, she released a small sigh.

"Come with me," she said, rising from her throne. "There is something I must show you if the story behind that item is to make any sense."

Crimson looked to Virid, who merely shrugged.

"It was buried for who knows how many years..." Virid responded.

"One thousand and five."

Crimson and Virid paused, both blinking.

"Huh?" Virid asked, clearly confused.

"It was left at that place one thousand and five years ago..." Celestia said. "...Well, give or take a year."

The two unicorns looked at each other again. Apparently, Celestia did know that particular fact.
------
It had been a minute or two of walking, Crimson hadn't really paid attention to the time. The Princess had lead them out of the castle and towards...the sculpture garden?

The Canterlot sculpture garden was "world-famous", or so he had been told all his life. He'd only ever been there once, but as a foal, he'd never really paid attention. So why was it that Princess Celestia was leading them here?

"Not too much farther now..."

Left turn, right turn, right turn, left turn, straight ahead...

"What...?" Virid asked, the sounds of his hoofsteps slowing a bit.

Crimson could now see something that he hadn't noticed on prior trips to the statue garden. It was a statue of...a creature that he couldn't describe in just a few words. It was something that he couldn't wrap his head around. It looked like a dragon at the very first glance, but it had so many other parts...griffon's paw, goat's beard, two different wings...

Yet, even though this creature wasn't anything Crimson could have even dreamed of or thought of, there was something about its overall...lack of sense in its features that seemed oddly familiar. Like that deer antler, for instance.

"We're here," said the princess, stepping off to one side to allow the guards a full look at the statue. The creature appeared to be frozen in a dramatic pose, almost as if he were...singing? "Do either of you know what this statue is?"

"It's...a chimera...?" Virid asked, clearly at a loss.

"Well, you would be right, but the actual name of this creature is 'dragonequus'," She cast a glance to the statue. "And...over one thousand years ago..." She paused. "He ruled over this land before my sister and I did."

Virid and Crimson looked up.

"Well...isn't it normal for...rulers to have statues made after them, in their honor?" Virid asked.

"I wish it was that simple," replied Celestia. "This statue isn't exactly a statue...it's Discord himself."

Now both unicorns barely restrained themselves from gasping.

"How?" Crimson asked.

"Why?" Virid questioned.

"He had kept Equestria in a state of constant unrest and unhappiness while he was ruler. That item you two found had actually been created by the two of us, Princess Luna and myself, to try and drain his influence..."

"So...then...those monsters we fought..." Virid slowly began to understand what had happened. Crimson felt himself come to the same realization a few moments later.

"That jewel wasn't a total failure," Celestia said, "It did drain some of his magic away, but not nearly enough to make a huge difference. We'd discarded it there after we'd used the Elements of Harmony to seal him in this state."

She seemed hesitant to look upon the statue again now that she'd said it.

"Of course, I didn't expect his influence to infect the ground in that manner...those mud monsters you fought..." The alicorn continued, looking back to her subjects.

"They were a result of his magic leaking out of the object..." Celestia said. "Of course, they're not likely to come back again."

"So...you threw him out of power all those years ago, and that jewel was merely an attempt to dethrone him?" Crimson asked.

"Yes..." Celestia responded. She appeared to be considering something else. "I should have mentioned earlier, back in the throne room, but it's still important enough that you should know."

Virid and Crimson shifted a little in place, but said nothing.

"You mentioned a cloaked pony attacked you, right?" she asked, but neither of the ponies felt the need to answer-it was a rhetorical question. "Well...you see, in Ponyville, a couple of months ago, another cloaked pony had attacked."

Now neither of the ponies could withhold themselves from gasping.

Azure...! Crimson mentally said.

"He was able to do things that not even my student could do. He used summoning magic to attack a few of her friends..." Celestia said. Though it was clear in her tone that this was troubling, she didn't seem...overly worried. "I do not know for sure if this incident and that attack are related, but...I feel that something will turn up, sooner or later..."

"But..." Virid started, apparently unsure of how to word his concern for his cousin's safety.

"He's doing fine," Celestia responded, perhaps a little too quickly. "They're all safe...and if he keeps up the work he's been doing...well, they'll continue to live in safety..."

The princess quickly circled back around to leave them again.

"Now...any more questions?" asked the princess.

Crimson looked to Virid, who merely shook his head.

"No, Princess Celestia, I think...all of our questions have been answered now."

"Well, you two have earned your rest," she observed. "Let's head back to the castle..."

With that, the visit to the statue garden was over. However, as they left the statue of the oppressive ruler behind, Celestia looked over her shoulder towards the statue for a few seconds longer, but Crimson couldn't name the emotion behind her eyes.

Chapter 22: The Heart's Calling: Part 1

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Chapter 22: The Heart's Calling: Part 1
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Twilight had spent the better part of the last three days cooped up in the library. While that in itself wasn't anything new for her, what she had done over the past three days was. She couldn't figure out why, but every time she thought about Azure's last visit, her stomach started to do gymnastics, something that she herself never even looked at much less mastered. At the same time, her chest-no, her heart, began to hurt when she recalled that they'd been about a second short of kissing. If Spike hadn't interrupted--

Of course, it wasn't just that she had to deal with. Her assistant, Spike, seemed keen on reminding her about it at least once a day. Sure, immediately after he saw the angry or hurt look on her face-Twilight couldn't tell what kind of face she'd been pulling when the memory came back-he shut up about it for the rest of the day, but it still kept reminding her of the moment...

And the immediate aftermath. The first thing she did was shove him over onto his rump while he remained completely still. Then, when he tried to talk about it-probably not meaning anything by it-all she did was push him away. Ever since then, she'd felt that she did need to talk about it. However, she would always put it off, insisting to herself she wanted the study time.

That approach had worked so far. But now she couldn't focus on the book she was reading, and it certainly wasn't a result of eye damage. She'd forgone wearing her glasses since that day. Her face pulled into a grimace as she strained to keep herself focused on the literature.

It's no use... Twilight thought to herself. I can't focus like this...

She looked to her winter gear at the opposite side of her room, just to the left of the door.

"Spike, watch the library," Twilight called out.

"Why?" Spike asked back, poking his head into the room to look to her. Twilight tried to hold herself from blushing, which was easier said than done given the circumstances.

"I've got somepony I need to talk to. Now."

She reached out to her scarf and boots, and began to put them on. She cast a glance to her glasses, and breathed steadily as she decided to herself on whether or not to wear them over there.
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Azure hadn't moved much from his home over the past three days. He wasn't sure at all what to do about the predicament he found himself in. The only thing he could think to do in his situation was to stay away from the others as much as he could, since he wasn't sure if it was a good idea to be around them. He did remember he did have a moment with Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy as well. While there hadn't been any since then, he wasn't about to take the chance until he could sort out the mess between himself, Twilight, and Applejack.

The only time he left his home was to see if Rarity had any other advice to offer him, given two things: she knew when he said something, he didn't mean it romantically; she also wasn't interested in him like that anyway. She didn't really seem to be advising him one way or the other. Applejack and Twilight were very different mares. One of them was very physical-well, being an earth pony aside-and the other spent most of her time reading and studying. Azure wasn't sure which one he would choose. However, he didn't want to hurt either of them if it could be helped, and he certainly didn't want his final decision to hurt them any worse than it was going to already.

The colt lay back in his bed, racking his brains for an answer to his question.

I guess it can't hurt to go down what it is I like about each of them again, and see if anything new comes up this time. Azure thought to himself, closing his eyes and going down his mental list. Both of them are beautiful and hard-working at what it is they do; I know this already. I have to admit, they both can get aggressive at times, though it seems like Twilight is always trying to direct hers at me...

Azure furrowed his brows, All of which I know already...Among my friends, they were saying Twilight was the one, at least way back when I first met each of them. Among my co-workers, I think they were pulling for Applejack, though I'm not sure of that. But I guess that doesn't matter since I've wound up with both of them liking me in a way that ponies shouldn't like "just friends"...

The unicorn's eyes twitched, and he shifted on his mattress.

What else is it you like about them? Which mare's traits do you like more?

There was a knock at the door, disrupting Azure's train of thought. He swallowed nervously, dreading who was on the other end of the door. It was a dread he'd never thought he would have about the fact it would be one of his friends at the other end of the door, but given the situation he'd wormed himself into unintentionally, he didn't want to chance attracting any other mare to him.

He rose from his bed and trotted up to the door, wrapping himself up in the blanket on his bed as he went. Eventually, he opened the door, and was moderately surprised to see Twilight Sparkle standing there. And she was still wearing those glasses. Azure had half a mind to ask why she was still wearing them, but he wasn't about to get slapped by another mare.

"T-Twilight, what are you..." Azure started, not expecting her of all ponies to visit. Yet, he knew he'd wanted to talk about what had happened between them a few days ago. The memory of that event returned, and he felt himself blush.

"Azure..." she started, starting to blush herself. "We need to talk about what happened the last time you were at the library..."

"Okay...are you sure you're ready now?" Azure responded. Twilight paused, and after a few moments of awkward silence, she nodded, showing reluctance to talk about it. However, since she did look ready to speak; and seem ready, the cyan colt cast aside his doubts, "Come on in and make yourself comfortable...we're gonna be here a while..."

I'm probably gonna regret doing this, but I still want to talk about it. Maybe it'll allow me to see something I hadn't before.

Twilight set aside her winter gear in the spot where she had when she had last visited him, and joined him over by the fireplace. The two unicorns shifted about awkwardly. Azure could tell neither of them could find the exact words they needed for the moment, so he said the first thing that came to mind.

"So..." he started, completely unsure of how to begin. Following his instincts, the first thing Azure said was this: "Uh, you must be cold after the walk here...so...I have cocoa, would you like any?"

Twilight remained silent, merely nodding to his question. It was a bit awkward, since neither of them had anything to say. Given the fact they always seemed to have something to say to each other since the first day they met, the fact there was nothing much said so far made Azure even more uncomfortable. He tried to delay the upcoming conversation as long as he could, taking the longest possible time he could with preparing the hot drinks.

I've been trying to avoid them the past few days while I tried to figure things out, that much is true... Azure thought to himself. I couldn't have seen this coming...what do I do now?

He couldn't stall for more than ten minutes before the cocoa was ready. Exhaling harshly to himself, he stood up, and began lifting the mugs with his magic, carrying them back to his room and setting them back down.

"There we go..." he said, setting Twilight's cup down in front of her. "Careful, it's hot."

He awkwardly paused as a voice in the back of his head cried out: Of course it's hot, stupid!
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Twilight took the mug, not knowing what else to say other than "Thank you" to the offer the colt had made. After cooling the cocoa, she took a sip of the drink. She watched Azure set his mug aside. If she didn't know what to say, she might have acused him of buying time, but knowing he was in the same boat she was made it more bearable to not know what to talk about regarding their "almost kiss".

It didn't help the mare's case any that there were no books on the subject of romance she could see. At least, not fact-based books. Most of them were sappy romance novels that Rarity would be drawn to, and even some that would be too much for her. But Azure seemed particularly reluctant to say the first words. She gritted her teeth, not wanting to be the first to say something, but she came here to find out why she felt the way she did.

"F-first," she finally stuttered audibly, and Azure snapped to attention. She was trying to keep control of the situation, but her voice wavered just a little bit. "I want to apologize for what I did back then."

"It's not your fault, Twilight," Azure responded, sounding as though he were making every attempt to keep his voice flat and his words short, failing in the former. "We were both in shock."

"Maybe, but it doesn't excuse what I did," she continued, now feeling at least a little more comfortable talking. "I could have just backed away...I didn't have to push you over!" She frowned, looking at her own reflection in the cocoa. "You even wanted to talk about it and all I did was make you leave...a-a mare shouldn't do that to a...colt."

For some reason, she felt like she missed a word. No. She knew the reason why she felt like there was a word missing.

"It's okay, Twilight," Azure said, abandoning all effort to keep his voice flat, but he was still speaking in an unusual manner for him. The purple mare couldn't figure out why he seemed so...different. "At least we're talking about it now."

Twilight smiled. At least that softer half hadn't gone away. The fact he was still acting serious in this case, and not...reckless or hard-headed here, made the fact she was here to talk about a painfully awkward moment all the better for her. She merely nodded in response to this, and found herself unsure of how to start the discussion once again.

She shifted the mug about on the table with her hooves as opposed to her magic. "To be honest, I don't know where to begin with this. You should know by now I don't do things without first getting some information on it. But there wasn't anything on...things like this. Not even a 'how to' guide..."

"I wouldn't have expected anything different," Azure replied, only now taking a sip of his cocoa. He flinched slightly, probably because he failed to take his own advice and burned his tongue as a result, but he recovered quickly. "Back when we first met, you were the only one out of the seven of us that night that knew what to do about Nightmare Moon. Me? Even though I saw it coming too, I didn't have any plans in mind."

"But even though we both know the situation again, this time, neither of us know what to do. I am just as lost as you are on how to start this." Azure finished, taking another sip. His brown eyes trailed elsewhere, and they almost seemed to glow for a moment as the light from the fire hit them.

"Alright..." Twilight sighed. For once in her life, she was just going to have to go by instinct. And her instinct was telling her to ask a very simple, straightforward question. "So...before we almost..." She once again found herself unable to say it, and a strange pain once again flared in her chest. "What exactly went through your mind."

The answer she got wasn't what she'd expected.

"You were."

Twilight's eyes widened, and she couldn't hold herself from blushing at all.

W-was I really...?
-----------------------------------------------------
Azure--you idiot, you did it again!

Ever since Rarity had made him totally aware that his words were in fact having an impact on his friends, in particular two of them, Azure had made it a point of staying home whenever he could, except to see if the white unicorn had anything new to offer him on his problem. So far, she didn't dispense any real worthwhile advice except to see which one he was sure he liked more.

Now that he saw Twilight's reaction, guilt welled up in the colt's heart like he'd never felt before. At no point did he mean to lead her or Applejack on, but it was the truth that he had said in all of the instances.

Azure tried not to sigh heavily as he gathered his words. Now that the cat was out of the bag, he decided to make sure the cat couldn't retreat into the bag. The hole he was digging for himself was getting deeper.

"So...w-what was going through your head, Twilight?"

"Oh...well..." She gathered herself with a deep breath, "I had been thinking about you...or, rather, the side of you that had come out into the open..."

"Eh?" Azure asked, completely oblivious as always.

"I guess I'd better explain this..." Twilight sighed, setting the mug of cocoa down and sliding it slightly away. "When I'd first met you, when you tried attacking Nightmare Moon even though you had full knowledge of what she was capable of, I thought you were a hard-headed colt who just could not be reasoned with." She was blunt about it, but it wasn't exactly news.

"It wasn't until you reassured me when the Ursa Minor attacked town that I began to re-think what I thought of you. Even then I wasn't really sure. After you stood up to your own cousin, I really began to evaluate who you really were." Twilight said. "In light of everything that's happened recently, I realized that I wasn't right about you."

"Yes, you recklessly charge into everything that you can't stand to see, but in almost every instance where you had, you were provoked by something. Whether it was Virid mocking us or an evil pony doing evil deeds, you never once attacked out of spite alone. You did it because your friends were insulted, because they were going to be hurt if you didn't do anything."

"Azure, you might be a reckless colt, but you're also...you're also probably the most interesting colt I've ever met!" She finally finished. "That was the colt I saw in your eyes three days ago..."

Is...is that how they see me now...? Azure thought to himself, unable to react to what he'd heard straight away. I should have guessed...but I didn't think my actions would have affected her of all ponies this much. "Actions speak louder than words"...Why didn't I think of that?! What kind of catacylsm have I gotten myself into with all of them?

"Azure, are you okay?"

Azure blinked a few times in quick sucession, trying to get himself together. He hadn't even been aware he'd spaced out while pondering the depth of his predicament.

"S-sorry," Azure replied at last to the mare's discomfort, "That caught me by surprise..."

"I hadn't really thought about it until recently," Twilight said. "I'd had a lot on my mind for the past few days after that almost happened..."

Silence reigned once more in the house for a few uneasy seconds, and the purple mare seemed like she was fighting with herself on a certain subject. Finally, she leaned forward, and began to ask another question.

"C-can I ask you another question? You know, now that I've...said that?" Twilight asked awkwardly, seeming to be incredibly nervous about it.

"S-sure," Azure said, fearing what her question was inside. "Go on..."

"W-well...what--what do you see in...in me?"

The amount of nerves he could detect in her voice as she questioned him didn't soften Azure's nerves any.

What a time to ask me, when I'm not even sure of that myself... Azure thought to himself, sweating bullets. His eyes darted about against his will, and he found he couldn't even fabricate an answer to save himself here. What do I do now...?!

His heart started beating painfully, and admist the panic that gripped him, a single thought emerged in his mind. Am I going to lose her?

"Y-you don't have to answer right away..." Twilight finally said, breaking the silence. Azure blinked, and looked over to Twilight. Her expression, her body language, betrayed her emotional landscape. "I... I don't even know why I asked it, but...I really wanted to know..." She frowned, and Azure had to hold himself from holding his hoof to his torso in sickness.

Darn it...I'm hurting her doing this! I can't leave her like this...

"P-please don't take it the wrong way, Twilight," Azure responded. "I...I just have a lot on my mind lately..."

"I-is there anything I can help you with?" Twilight asked, trying to recover from her emotional disarray. The lights in Azure's mind were dim, but he wasn't a total idiot, especially after what had come to light recently. She wasn't quite right after Azure had failed to answer her, yet deep down he feared it would have gotten worse had he actually answered her without having his thoughts in array.

"I..I just need time to think, that's all..." He tried to sound as sincere as he could despite all the emotions raging inside of him.

Twilight seemed to buy his statement, and rose from her seat. She began to make her way to her winter gear, appearing to go a little slow.

"I understand," she said. "Guess I'd better get going." She was speaking a little fast for somepony that "understood" the situation, but Azure couldn't think of anything else to do in the case. He wanted to avoid hurting either of the mares he'd found himself attracted toward, and so far, he was doing a lousy job of that. "So, I guess I'll see you later then?"

"O-of course..." Azure said, walking up to the door, only to find the handle coated in a magenta hue. Twilight, now back in her boots and scarf, was walking past him.

"I'll just...show myself out..." she said, with a small smile. Though Azure really wanted to believe she was alright, there was something in her eyes that just seemed off. The mare walked past him, closing the door behind him.

Silence reigned in his home for a few moments. Azure went towards the table to clean up after the visit, when the full impact of the moment hit him and guilt...at least, that's what he was telling himself it was, guilt, began to leak from his eyes before he even realized it.

I'm hurting her, doing this... Azure thought to himself, leaning over as he sat down on his rump, overwhelmed. Have I hurt any of the others, too?

Twilight, I want you to understand, you're an irreplacable mare...but...
-----------------------------------------------------
Twilight's chest hurt like it never hurt before. She could see Azure was being sincere, or at the very least, he looked the part, when he was at a loss for words. The mare didn't like it at all, that he couldn't answer her straight away when she'd asked him that question. She was trying to hold herself together, trying to make it home before she began thinking too much of the--

Has he already decided on Applejack? The memory of how she'd learned of their closeness hit her full-force, and now she couldn't stop thinking about it. Azure, have you--

She had to stop herself immediately before she could think any further on that.

Azure might be reckless, but he's not...that kind of colt! I know he can't be... The mare thought to herself. If he was, I'd have already seen that side of him by now and I wouldn't be feeling like this...but why does it hurt so much...?

Tears tugged at the corners of her eyes, and she couldn't hold her jaw from clenching. She lowered her head, and raised a forehoof to the frame of her glasses to prevent them from slipping down off her face.

Azure's a great colt, and Applejack's a very good friend! I don't...I can't lose either of them...!

She bit her lip, at a complete loss for what to do about her situation. This was clearly more than just a matter of friendship, she could feel it deep down. And she wasn't immediately sure who she should ask about her problem.

That is, until she recalled the kind of books she did find on stuff like this.
---------------------
It was another pretty average day for Rarity. There was a certain triangle that needed to be resolved, but she was fairly confident Azure wouldn't do anything stupid. In fact, according to him, he had been trying to avoid contact with the others until he'd sorted things out. It was a bit unhealthy, but the white unicorn believed that in matters like this, especially considering all six of them were mares and he had a nasty habit of saying overly romantic things without even being aware of the romantic connotations.

With the Winter Wrap-Up approaching, Rarity had taken it upon herself to get this year's team jackets ready. Of course, typically Ponyville's Spring always came one day later, just because the whole affair was one disorganized mess, each and every year since she'd come here. However, since the event gave her store some publicity, she didn't turn down the chance to show what she could do.

She had been deep into her work when she heard somepony entering her shop. With a sigh, she decided to get up, somewhat expecting it to be Azure again, and Celestia knew he needed all the help he could get. When she crossed into the threshold, however, she was surprised to see Twilight Sparkle there instead. The white unicorn blinked, honestly not expecting her.

"Twilight!?" Rarity tried to compose herself from the surprise, but as she drew closer to her friend, the unicorn found it slightly difficult when she saw the whites of Twilight's eyes had been run red, and her cheeks looked a little wet. Rarity lightly bit her lip, and all of a sudden a very familiar anger rushed through her.

Azure Courage, what have you done?!

"Hi, Rarity..." Twilight said, probably trying to hide the fact she had just been crying. "You got a minute?"

Almost immediately, the white unicorn chose to hide the fact Azure had already talked about his side of the story thus far. It might have really complicated the tangled mess he'd already gotten himself into. It might have benefitted Twilight in the moment, but it would later come back to bite all three of them.

"Of course I do, darling," said Rarity, "Please, make yourself comfortable..."

The purple mare seemed surprised by the sudden hospitality, but didn't question it. Whatever it was that Azure did seemed to have knocked away her other concerns, and that only made Rarity's anger grow. Nevertheless, she had a duty to carry out for now. So, she went to close up shop for the time being while Twilight proceeded to make herself comfortable.

She was sitting down on the same sofa that Azure himself had sat on when the colt started to realize he was digging himself a hole. Rarity trotted into the room, fully ready to hear what it was that had happened, expecting the worst when it came to Twilight's condition.

"Would you like some tea, Twilight?" Rarity asked.

"N-no thanks, Rarity, I'm not very thirsty right now," Twilight responded, still seeming off. The white unicorn felt another swell of anger, but she remained calm in her demeanor. Never in the time she'd known her did Rarity believe Twilight could be like this, especially towards Azure. Even with the fact that they did sort of make--

No, Rarity, be honest with yourself, the unicorn thought to herself, looking over to Twilight. Both of the mares he wound up in this situation with have an equal chance with him.

"Twilight, dear, is there something bothering you? You seem very upset..." The white unicorn questioned, going straight for the jugular and asking indirectly. Twilight was hit with the full force of Rarity's question, and her eyes widened.

"I-is it that obvious?" Twilight asked.

"I make it a habit of knowing when something's wrong with my friends," Rarity answered, opting not to comment that everypony could see how bad it was. "Please, tell me what's happened, Twilight. I will help you through it. After all, what are friends for?"

After a few moments of quiet consideration, Twilight spoke up: "Will you promise not to tell any of the others?"

"Well, of cour--"

"Especially not Azure?" asked Twilight. Rarity felt yet another surge of rage spike in her, but at least she knew she had been correct in the cause for the purple mare's change in attitude. And now, she absolutely had to know what happened between them.

"Of course, I won't say a word to anypony, whether it is Azure Courage or anypony else." Rarity affirmed. "Now, please, tell me, what happened..."

"Well, a few days ago, Azure and me were in the library..."

She'd heard this story before from Azure himself, but now she was hearing Twilight's half of the story. Apparently, her infatuation with him was longer-running than Rarity had realized. Ever since he had his ill-fated showdown with his cousin, Virid, even Rarity had to admit Azure was not the colt she thought he was. And she never thought she'd hear Twilight talk about Azure like that.

Such depth... she thought. This is far worse than I realized it to be...Is it the same way with Applejack, or...?

"Um, Rarity?"

"What?"

"You looked like you were daydreaming," said Twilight, taking note of the fact she had gone deep into thought over the bookish mare's story.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Rarity said, trying to banish her thoughts on the manner until after she'd heard everything. "As you were saying, darling?"

"Well, today I visited him at his house after finally getting up the courage to talk to him..." Twilight really seemed torn up about it. "We ended up talking for a while...and I asked a question that...I don't even know why I asked it in the first place..."

"What kind of question could you have asked him?" Rarity asked, not liking the look in Twilight's eyes.

"Well...I guess I should start with how it got to that point. You see, I asked him what was going through his mind when we almost..." She trailed off. "Well, you know..."

Rarity nodded in response, but did not say anything, reserving her words for when Twilight got to the point.

"He said he was thinking about...me..." Twilight smiled faintly, and her cheeks became flushed slighltly pink, but both signs of embarrassment quickly faded as she got to the heart of the problem. "But after I told him what I thought of him, I asked him what he thought of me..."

"A-and," Rarity immediately feared where this conversation was going. Azure had just barely figured out his problem; she didn't expect him to have an answer. "What did he say, Twilight?"

"He didn't have an answer...he said it was because he had a lot on his mind..." The purple mare hadn't looked more upset, and for a moment, Rarity swore Twilight reached up to her chest to quell some kind of heartache.

He couldn't answer you, Twilight, because he's not completely sure of his feelings for either of you yet...but he doesn't have a lot of time left to choose now.... Rarity thought to herself, trying to find a decent plan to buy Azure some time while at the same time placating Twilight.

"Well, it's highly possible he does," Rarity said, as an idea came to her. "Celestia forbid this is true, but something might have happened to one of his family members for all we know."

"T-that...that never crossed my mind..." Twilight bought the story, her eyes thinking through all the possibilities.

"Don't overthink it now, darling, I'm only using it as an example," Rarity cautioned. The last thing she wanted was to have told a lie too big for Twilight. "What I'm trying to say is he might be going through a tough time right now. He might need some time to himself."

"I-I guess me showing up and asking him that d-didn't help," The lavender unicorn seemed to understand Azure's plight, but she only knew half of it.

I really didn't want to lie to her like that...but I can not have her interrupting Azure while he's struggling to understand what it is he's doing and where his feelings lie.

"Please do not worry about it, darling," Rarity cut in. "I'm sure he will tell you his answer in due time."

Twilight's expression brightened. It was the reaction Rarity was looking for. "Thanks, Rarity, I really needed somepony to talk to about this, and from all the romance novels you checked out, I knew you were the perfect candidate."

"Anytime, dear," Rarity wasn't exactly sure what Twilight was getting at, but it was nice to see she was at least feeling better now. "but I must admit, I did not expect your feelings for Azure to run so deep..."

"I can't explain it, but over time, I found myself enjoying the time we spent together," Twilight said. "I searched all the books I could find, but none of them had a straight answer."

"This is not a topic you can research, Twilight."

"What...is it?" Twilight asked, confused by the fact one of her vices was shut down.

Rarity walked towards her friend, placing a hoof to her shoulder. "It's something you must figure out on your own."

"Okay," Twilight relented with a sigh, "Guess I'd better get going. Thanks again, Rarity. I feel a lot better now."

"If you ever feel like you need somepony to talk you through this, Twilight," Rarity felt a sense of deja vu enter her, but she did not dwell on it, "I believe I'll be able to offer you that service."

Twilight smiled and nodded before making her leave. As she watched her friend leave the boutique, Rarity quietly smirked to herself.

I really seem to have a knack for this...

There was no time to deal with that now. The white unicorn attempted to go back upstairs.

"Oh my, I appear to have forgotten something..." She looked towards the front door, and saw that she had left the "out to lunch" sign up on her front door. That wouldn't help her business at all, so Rarity decided to go towards the door, intent on correcting this fact.

Out of her peripheral vision, she saw it.

It was Azure, coming down the street, looking visibly disappointed. Rarity's forehoof twitched before she was even aware of it.

Impeccable timing, Azure... she thought to herself. I suppose I'd better leave the sign up for now. I know what he's here to talk about...

She decided to wait away from the door for Azure's arrival, and be prepared to hear his side of the story. A minute or two later, in walked the cyan colt. He looked up, seemingly surprised to see Rarity away from her work.

"Azure," Rarity's forehoof twitched again. "have you come for more advice?"

"Of course I have..." Azure seemed willing to blow past his surprise for the moment, walking up to her. "But first, I have a simple request."

"What is it, dear?"

"Slap me," Azure said. "Just as hard as you--"

SMACK!

The force was probably even more than the first time, but given he requested "as hard as she could", Rarity was willing to do that.

I probably couldn't have held myself from doing so anyway... thought Rarity. Does he already know how badly he messed up?

The cyan colt seemed almost dazed from the force of the slap, another bright red hoofprint taking form on the side of his face that got hit. He shook his head a little bit, recovering from whatever lag he had. "Thank you..."

"So, Azure," Rarity said, "why do you feel like being struck is necessary?"

Azure released a heavy sigh, and began telling her his story.

It was the same story Twilight had just told her, but she could hear the stress that was in Azure's mind. He still was coming to terms with what it was he liked about each of them, so telling Twilight what exactly he thought of her wouldn't have come naturally to him, or at least, as naturally as it might have were it not for the situation he was in.

"I know I hurt her, I know I did..." Azure's voice was full of guilt, "I didn't tell her what I thought of her...and--and I...I feel terrible."

Rarity raised a hoof to her mouth, as she quietly reconsidered hitting him for a split second. He's learning, at least...

She released a sigh. While she wasn't going to tell Azure any of the specifics, she felt like he had to know about Twilight's visit, so he didn't have to rush thinking about who he loved more. Such matters were not to be rushed.

"Azure, you do not have to worry too much about it," Rarity said.

"What?" he asked.

"I'm not saying you should lie back and patiently wait, but I bought you a little time..." The white mare continued. "It wasn't too long before you visited that Twilight came to me and told me the same story you just told me."

"What?!" Azure questioned.

"You did hurt her with your lack of an answer, but I was able to convince the poor dear that you needed time to figure it out. I didn't tell her anything that you told me, but you needed to know so you didn't feel like your time was up just yet." Rarity finished, "Matters of the heart should not be rushed."

Azure quietly stared, his pupils shaking a bit as he considered all that had to happen. He released a heavy sigh and said, "Thanks, Rarity. I owe you one."

"Do not worry about it, Azure," The white mare said. "Now, you know what you must do, right?"

"I probably still don't have that much time..." Azure responded. "But I need to get my feelings for both of them sorted out soon..."

With that, the meeting ended. Azure thanked Rarity for her help once more before departing. He seemed to be moving slow as he ambled down the walk, Rarity quietly watching him.

Some colts would envy you, Azure Courage, but... she thought to herself. You're not like them at all. You care for the mares you've wound up in this mess with, and you're faced with a tough decision to make. Both of them are matches for you, there's no denying that. But you need to decide for yourself which one's the bigger match. Twilight Sparkle and Applejack...which one calls out to your heart more?

Chapter 23: The Heart's Calling: Part 2

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Chapter 23: The Heart's Calling, Part 2
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Azure Courage walked home from Rarity's home, wracked with guilt and unanswered questions. Even though he was grateful for her help in his time of need, he knew that he still needed to figure out his answer to Twilight's question in a timely manner. He felt horrible for getting Rarity caught up in this mess now that she'd had to advise Twilight too, but it was better she was a neutral party in this whole affair, than in the same place as Twilight and Applejack were. Azure already felt guilty enough having inadvertently wound up in this situation with two of his friends.

What is it that I see in Twilight? Azure thought to himself. Given that Rarity was more than willing to slap me without a second thought, that means she saw something I didn't earlier...

He recalled when Twilight talked to him, and remembered the way in which she had described him, from the time they met up until that moment he fumbled about.

When I first met her...I thought she was just another product of Canterlot... Azure recalled. Cranked to eleven; she didn't want anything to do with any of us...even if Nightmare Moon hadn't come along, I feel like I wouldn't have just forgotten about the others...they wouldn't have let me...

But this isn't about the others, is it? Another voice rang out in his head. This is about what you thought about Twilight, and how it changed to lead you into this mess...now think! There has to be something you missed before!

Azure closed his eyes tightly in thought, his head slowly starting to hurt from the exertion. Wait...that one time where I had Rainbow stay over during the storm...she acted kinda like Applejack did when it was Twilight who stayed...

He opened his eyes again, and saw that not only was he close to his house, but he was also confronted with a sight that under most conditions, would have been more welcome. However, after what had happened today, it was close to the last thing he needed.

Applejack seemed to be waiting outside his door, looking a little irritated over something. It occurred very quickly to Azure that she also wanted to see him today. Immediately, Azure realized he should have left his house over the past few days so that the others wouldn't worry. She lowered her hoof.

"Where is that pony...?" she said to herself. Azure, however, caught it, his ears twitching. However, he didn't have long before she happened to turn his way, and her expression immediately shifted again. "Oh, there you are, Az!" She briskly trotted up to him now, and Azure resisted the urge to show any sign of nervousness.

Of all the days she could have chosen to show up...!

"Hey, Applejack," He tried to keep his voice as normal as he could stand, masking what just happened with Twilight to the best of his ability. "How's it going?"

"I was 'bout to ask you the same thing!" retorted Applejack, "You haven't been anywhere for three days! I was wonderin' how you were..."

Azure wasn't sure, but he had a funny feeling he detected the smallest traces of jealousy in the mare's tone. He banished those thoughts just as quickly as they appeared and kept up his smile, deciding to see if he could see what Applejack thought of him, so he could confirm whether or not she felt the same way to him as Twilight did.

"I've been fine, just...have a lot on my mind, that's all," Azure's statement was the honest truth, and Applejack apparently took it as such as well.

"I guess that's why you've been shuttin' yourself in your house for a while," Applejack observed, blinking. "You wanna talk about it?"

Azure knew he should have politely declined, but he was too curious to see exactly what it was that the orange mare felt for him. He paused briefly, trying to find the best way to word his request without making things even worse than they already were.

"I can't...not until I sort things out about it first," Azure said, "Do you have anything you want to talk about?"

Applejack paused, obviously hesitating just a little before answering, "...Yes, I have somethin' to talk about."

"Come on in, then," Azure responded. "I'll be more receptive where it's warm."
-----------------------------------------------------
As Applejack stepped into Azure's home, she couldn't help but think that she was here at his home with him. While this in itself wasn't anything new, it was the first time she'd come to his house alone. It was just the two of them. The orange mare paused for a split second, once again reminded of the fact Twilight had stayed here quite a few times. However, it was to help stop those creatures, so she let it slide. It was, however, harder and harder for her to ignore as the winter months dragged on.

"Applejack," Azure said, turning to her. "You want something to drink?"

"Nah, I think I'll pass on that, Az," Applejack responded, "Thanks for the offer, though..."

She wasn't sure if she imagined Azure flinch when she gave her negative, but she shook it off quickly. The earth pony noticed two mugs on the table near the fireplace, and began to wonder exactly why there were two. He couldn't have thought ahead, right?

"Okay then," The cyan colt finally continued. He turned to her, appearing convinced of something, but Applejack couldn't figure out what it was.

"Applejack, I'm curious," Azure started, looking unsure of how he was going to proceed for a few moments. He then asked, "What do you think of me?"

"What do I think of you?" Applejack repeated, caught off-guard by the question. She felt unsure of how to answer his question; the farmer had no idea where to start with this. Azure was the first colt she'd had a real interest in.

"Please," Azure repeated, seeming to plead for her answer, "I just want to know..."

The orange mare began to think, hard, about his question. What did she think of Azure Courage?
-----------------------------------------------------
Azure Courage watched as Applejack appeared to be thinking hard about her decision. It wasn't unlike his reaction when Twilight had asked him the very same question. "You know, you don't need to answer me right away if you can't think of it..."

"N-no, I don't need time, Az," Applejack responded, not surprising Azure. She had to have been thinking about it too, just like with Twilight. "I can't say when it started. Guess ya just grew on me after a while."

Azure nodded slightly, wondering when it happened.

"At first, you struck me as a colt with a one-track mind, but the more I got to know ya...well, I began to understand how ya work. Your approach always seemed to be the roughest one possible...but you had your reasons. When your cousin insulted the lot of us, you certainly began to show your true colors..."

Azure nodded, "Go on." At the same time, he mentally added to himself, Should I thank Virid for the help there, or curse him for helping me get into this mess?

"But that wasn't enough. Some time later, you began to show a...gentler side to yourself. Though I still don't get why you did it, you were the one that helped Fluttershy around the mountain--even if you had to carry her up the side. You didn't take the roughest way, nor the fastest way, in helping her deal with her fear. You even gave her your band before things got bad!"

"Then...that night, I knew what kind of pony you really were..." He could see the memory washing over her eyes now, the night where she had been scared straight out of her wits. "You showed no fear when we were fightin' those monsters. When I thought there wasn't any hope, you completely destroyed the doubts I had. I knew from then on I could trust you with anythin'...not just my own life, but the life of my family, too!"

Is that...how much she...trusts me, now...? Azure thought to himself. I mean, I never doubted for an instant that they had trusted me, but...I didn't think it'd be to this level...

"Was that the kind of answer you were looking for?" The farmer pony asked, looking only slightly flushed from the story she just told.

"Uh, yes, thank you..." Azure replied, nodding somewhat, hiding the thoughts within.

"Now, there's somethin' I wanna ask you, Az," Applejack said, her tone changing somewhat. Azure was already dreading where this was going, based on his past mistake with Twilight. He didn't know if he'd be able to answer her either, even given that it didn't get awkward until now. "Is there somethin' goin' on between you and Twilight?"

Azure felt his heart stop beating for a moment.

I should have known it'd come to this...! he thought to himself. It's not like I can say "yes", but I can't say "no" either! It's complicated, and I think it might have just gotten worse! What can I say? What can I say?

The cyan colt was trying not to show it, but for one of the few times in his life, he was genuinely panicking. He had no idea what to do in this situation, and he couldn't see a way out of this.
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Applejack had never seen Azure like this. He appeared to be fidgeting about in place, and for the life of him, suddenly, his eyes failed to maintain contact. He took a few steps away, turning away from her.

Is there or...? She trotted slowly up to him, almost afraid of what was about to happen. The room was dead quiet as he turned to her, his head still down. It was just like when she'd spied the crack in his armor last fall, after the second attack, only she hadn't seen it this time.

"Az...?" she questioned, reaching out to him slowly. He looked up to her, and the look in his eyes was...strange, distant. He wasn't looking at her, but seemingly through her now. At first, she didn't get it, but when she saw he was still trembling, it occurred to her.

He was terrified of what was to come.

"Applejack," the cyan colt sighed, his voice heavy with emotion, "As much as I want to be able to answer that...I can't. I don't know."

Applejack felt her heart stop. It felt like her worst fears were slowly coming back to life.

"I..." She choked up, and she didn't quite see Azure's expression. "I see..." She quickly turned away, determined not to let him see her tears. "I...I'd better go...I'll s-see you a-around..."

Applejack quickly trotted, paying no attention to anything other than the pain in her chest. She couldn't keep herself from tearing up, and the last thing she wanted to do was cry right there in front of him. The farmer had just about reached the front door when she heard a loud sound.

Thud!

She just barely made out a masculine grunt under the noise, which had her confused for a moment. She turned, to see that Azure wasn't there, but the door to a back room she hadn't quite noticed before was open just a crack. A few more seconds was passed, and she heard the sound again, much more clearly.

Thud--"ungh!"

The sound repeated again, and Applejack blinked back the tears, curious as she rushed towards the sounds. She got back just in time to see Azure, mane obscuring his eyes, running full-force at the wall again, and Applejack found herself frozen in time to watch the action occur.

The colt hit the wall hard, his horn slipping nicely into a hole he'd probably already made in the wall, and his back legs flinging up slightly from the impact. Applejack gasped, and Azure, looking only slightly dazed, backed slowly away from the wall.

He can't be about to--

The colt's forehoof scraped along the floor, and he grit his teeth again, and Applejack knew that she had to do something right now.

"Az!" She called out, but the voice was like a starting gun firing to him; he probably didn't even realize she hadn't left yet. She grit her teeth and rushed forward, trying to discard the betrayal she felt just a few moments before. Applejack intercepted Azure's path, but found him incredibly hard to stop. When she first wrapped her foreleg around him, she felt herself start to jerk forward, so she found herself hugging him. "Az, stop it! What's gotten into you?"

Only now was her voice heard, and his body trembled again. Whatever emotion that Applejack had from the previous revelation gave way to anger at the colt, whose mane continued to obscure his eyes, and his mouth still showcase his teeth.

"Are you out of your little pony mind?! What're ya tryin' to do to yourself, Az?! You could have broken your thick skull doing that!" she scolded. Only now did Azure's eyes finally become visible as he turned to her, and Applejack could clearly see his eyes were running red, leaking tears, his face showing a self-loathing unlike anything she had ever seen in him. Also, above his left brow, she could clearly see an injury, dripping blood, obviously attained from the previous impacts.

"I deserve it, Applejack," Azure finally called out, almost sounding as though he were sobbing between every word, "This whole time, I've tried to keep my friends from getting hurt! Before I know it, I'm the one hurting the two mares I've had feelings for!"

He probably wasn't thinking clearly, but Applejack knew as soon as the words left his mouth he was being truthful. The room went quiet, and both of the ponies' eyes widened considerably, but Azure only seemed to realize what he'd said about fifteen full seconds after the words left his mouth. He tensed up again, and the only thing Applejack could think to do was let him go, convinced he wasn't about to take another run into the wall.

"Y-you tellin' me that...you have feelings for both of us?" Applejack was shocked to hear the news. Azure sat down, sighing.

"Please don't be mad...I never meant to hurt either of you, but yes, it's true..." Azure responded, sitting down again. "I do."

Applejack blinked. Whatever she had felt over the past few minutes was slowly starting to fade. It was no wonder he was acting so weird today. He was trying to keep it inside, for fear it'd hurt both her and Twilight...

"Az, you can't keep somethin' bottled up like that," Applejack said, "Who knows what'd have happened if I wasn't here?"

"With my luck, I'd have wound up in a coma..." Azure replied, his voice devoid of sarcasm. He sounded completely serious about it. And...given how hard he'd been running into the wall, Applejack could only assume that was the end result he was looking for.

"Don't you even joke about that!" she reprimanded again, her emotional landscape shifting completely. At first, she felt hurt and betrayed. Then, angry. Now, while there was still some betrayal on the inside, given Azure's reaction to the whole situation, she could tell he didn't mean for any of it to happen, and thus, concern was all that was in her mind now. "Az, why would you keep somethin' like this to yourself?"

Azure closed his eyes. "I-I was afraid that if it had come out, both of you would wind up hurt."

That was all Applejack needed to hear. He'd been shouldering something like that for the longest time. He knew the answer he was going to give wasn't going to be easy, which explained why he couldn't answer straight away. He didn't want to have to have put either of them through any pain, and when that failed, he likely took it all out on himself...more than he already was.

"Az, listen to me," she said. He re-opened his eyes; she could see how red they were once again. "I ain't angry with you over this. You've worked yourself too hard to keep this from boilin' over, and the only one gettin' hurt is you. Neither of us want that."

"Applejack, please, don't spare my feelings on this matter," Azure responded dryly, closing his eyes once again, "I deserve whatever ill will you have towards me..."

Was he expecting her to slap him? The pony who would charge headlong into danger if it meant it kept those who he cared about from psychological or physical injury? No. Even if she had wanted to, Applejack felt that she wouldn't have been able to go through with it. Rather than going through with what Azure was obviously expecting, she instead gently, carefully moved her forehoof into contact with his cheek, causing his eyes to snap open in shock.

"Ya got to stop doin' these things to yourself, Az," she said simply. When Azure didn't respond, the farmer continued: "I get it now; you're tryin' to sort things out, aren't you? I guess pokin' around like this ain't gonna do you any good. So, I'll leave you to it. Take as long as you need, and I promise, that no matter who you choose in the end, I'll still be your friend."

Azure eased up for just a moment, but then he immediately went back to being tense, "But...but Twilight asked me a question earlier...and I still don't know the answer! She's still waiting for one..."

Applejack wasn't sure if she felt betrayed or not. Twilight was probably in the same boat as both of them; she hadn't felt that way towards a colt either, and probably didn't know how to react to it.

"I've gotta go, Az," Applejack said, "It's not because I'm mad, but I've got work to do. As for Twilight, don't worry. I'm..." She hesitated, turning away from Azure lest he see her telltale facial distortions, "I'm sure she'll understand the reasons..."

She quickly left Azure's house before the conversation could continue. Once outside his home, Applejack sighed.

"How could things have gotten this bad?" she asked to herself. It was true that she had work to do, but now she had somepony else she needed to talk to. Suddenly, Applejack understood what was eating at Azure, more so than the fact he was going to hurt one or both of them when all of this was over.

He was probably just as afraid, if not more so, of what would happen between Twilight and herself. And the orange earth pony felt herself start to understand that fear, and reciporcate it. She had no idea what was about to happen, but Applejack had found herself some resolve.

"I'd better go talk to Twilight about this," Applejack thought aloud, turning towards where she remembered the library was. "She's probably just as bad as Az is about this whole mess..."
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Try as she might, Twilight found she still couldn't focus on her reading. Even after talking to Rarity, she still found her psyche pulled toward what had happened with Azure moments ago. Even if he faltered due to personal problems, the mare just couldn't hold herself wondering what the colt was going to say in response to her questions. And the more she pondered all the possibilities his response could contain, the more anxious she began to get.

How long will I have to wait...? she asked herself, closing her eyes tightly. She had removed her glasses since before talking to Rarity, and once again, they set on the stand, waiting for her to use them again.

Knock-knock-knock!

Her head whipped towards the front door quicker than it ever had before. She didn't even know who it was, but her hopes turned to honest thought that it was Azure knocking. She rose quickly to her feet, her excitement taking over as she practically rushed to the door, not bothering to ask Spike to get it.

"Hey there, Twilight..."

Now that she actually saw who it was behind the door, her heart sank just a little, since now she didn't know what was about to happen. Not that she would have anyway were it Azure Courage on the other side.

"Oh, hello, Applejack," she said, only now catching the tone in Applejack's voice that wasn't typically there. "What...brings you here?"

"Twilight, we need to talk..." She pitched her head back and forth, probably checking for any encroaching ponies that could listen in to the conversation. "...in private. It's important."

Twilight's anxiousness began to spike again. Every part of her conscious mind was telling her that something was about to happen-something bad, but she couldn't name why she was feeling that way. Part of her wanted to run away from this, but she fought away that feeling.

"O-okay, come on in," Twilight relented, stepping in to allow Applejack inside. As soon as the mare was clear from the door. "Let's go to my room. Nopony should hear us in there."

Both of the mares immediately went towards Twilight's room, upstairs, then into that particular room. Once inside, Twilight closed and locked the door, to prevent anyone from walking in. Once that was accomplished, the purple unicorn immediately noticed how serious Applejack looked, and began to regret agreeing to this already.

"Okay, we're alone," said Twilight. "Now, what do you want to talk--"

"Twilight," Applejack said, going straight for the jugular, "Do you have feelings for Az?"

Twilight's eyes widened, and she felt her face heat up. She clumsily stepped backward, not expecting this at all.

"I-I...w-what are you talking about?" Twilight and acting suspicious were never a good pair; and it always seemed to arise more when she was nervous than anything else. She was caught off-guard, and the fact she had actually talked to him today didn't help any.

"Ya do, don't ya?" Applejack asked, keeping her voice level.

"I--Um... I'm thirsty," Twilight began searching for an excuse; she needed time to recover and Applejack wasn't helping any, "Are you thristy?" She was already almost to the door. "I-I'm going to get something to drink."

She wasn't aware of it, but part of her mane began to kick up on its own.

"Twilight!" The tone of the farmer's voice was now sharp, angry. Releasing a sigh, Applejack continued, "Look, if it makes it easier on ya, I--" She hesitated, "I've got feelin's for him too, Twilight..."

Twilight whipped around to face Applejack directly, shocked at this information. Applejack didn't flinch. She was serious...which meant...

S-So...it's true... That famililar pain, which Twilight now knew to be coming from her heart, started up again.

"There, I admitted it, now I want you to tell me the truth..." Applejack responded.

Twilight didn't know what to do now. It was obvious Applejack wanted to sort out this issue now, and it was obvious there was no running from this. Her fears began to set in. It wasn't just Azure she was afraid of losing now. Applejack was a good friend, and she couldn't stand to lose her over this either.

But...Applejack's gotta know that too, and she told me without me even asking her...I've gotta come clean. It's gonna hurt...but I have to.

"I..." Twilight began. She released a sharp sigh, truly afraid of what was about to happen. "I'm not sure what to make of it really...but lately, whenever I'm around him, it's hard to be...normal. And whenever we're apart, I keep getting this pain in my chest...I'm still not sure what it all means..." Her ears wilted, and she couldn't meet Applejack's eyes anymore. She really didn't want things to grow sour between them, but she could only imagine what was about to happen now.

"Sounds like you've got it bad, Twilight..."

Twilight met her friend's eyes again. Applejack looked...sad. Almost as if she were ready to cry...

"Please, don't hate me, Applejack," Twilight's plea forced its way out of her mouth with little resistance.

Applejack's eyes opened wide, "Whoa there, I don't hate you, Twilight..."

"B-but..." Twilight felt her confusion grow, and she swore that before the end of this, her heart wasn't the only organ of hers that was going to hurt, "we both just admitted to liking the same colt! Don't mares usually end up fighting because of that?"

All those books that she'd read on the matter don't help.

"They don't got to, Twilight," Applejack said in response, "This is the first time any of us have been in this kinda situation..."

Maybe, but you're handling it better than I am, Applejack...

"Besides, this ain't just about our feelin's for him, it's also about his feelin's for us..."

Twilight felt something surge within her. It felt like a mix of panic and even more confusion.

"W-wait, Applejack...you mean...?" Twilight asked, and Applejack could only nod quietly. "Both of us...?" Another nod.

Both of them started to blush just a little now.

"He...he can do that...?" Twilight asked.

"No, it don't work like that, and Az knows it. That's the problem..."

"What do you mean?"

"Look, I stopped by his place not too long ago..." Applejack began, "He asked me what I thought of him, and I said..."

Twilight had to stop. That was almost the same question that Azure had asked her, and the one she had asked him. She wondered what his answer was. It was obvious that Applejack probably had the same feelings for him, but they seemed to start after that attack on Sweet Apple Acres. The purple mare forced herself to refocus as Applejack continued her story.

"After I told him all that, I..." She paused, "I asked if there was somethin' goin' on between you two."

Twilight's breath hitched and her heart skipped a beat. She wondered if Azure had answered, and feared what his answer actually was.

"W-what did he say?"

"He said that he couldn't answer. I guess he's still tryin' to figure it out himself..." Applejack looked sad again, and Twilight had a feeling she couldn't, even if she wanted to. "I ain't gonna lie, Twilight, when he said that, I felt like somepony bucked me in the chest."

Twilight hung her head, feeling horrible; she felt like she was the cause for her friend's pain. But Applejack didn't stop there.

"I felt like I had to leave, and Az knew why. Before I could get out the door, he'd run back into his back room and...and he was ramming his head into the wall!"

Any sadness that Twilight had gave way to shock.

"He...he what?!" It shouldn't have been so surprising, Twilight knew that, but in light of the recent events, it was. "Why would he do something like that?!"

"He was punishing himself, Twilight. He told me that the last thing he wanted to do was hurt any of us..." Applejack said. "He took it all out on himself; he felt guilty this is all happenin'. I didn't think he was having a problem like this, and we might not be makin' it any easier on him."

"Applejack, I..." Twilight hesitated, but now that everything was on the table, the bookish pony felt like she had to reveal this fact. "I also visited him today...I probably made it worse..."

The mare was caught off-guard when her friend finally rested a hoof on her shoulder.

"Hey, don't go blamin' yourself. He kept his own feelin's a secret from everypony. There was no way you could have known..."

Twilight wasn't even sure if she deserved Applejack's friendship anymore. Surely the princess could have an answer on this sort of situation?

"So...what do we do now?" Twilight asked. All the cards were on the table.

"We need to give him space. He needs time so he can clear his head and make his choice."

Applejack was right, but fear refused to go away.

But, even if he gets the time, he still has to choose one of us, Applejack! I might not know what's gonna happen next, but I know it's gonna leave somepony heartbroken...

"What if he comes to one of us, Applejack?" Twilight asked. "What then?"

"Then we need to be careful. We need to avoid doin' anything that could make it even harder on him." Twilight could only nod. Both of them were in agreement. Azure probably already felt horrible about this; his self-punishment a clear indicator of that, but there was soemthing else about this situation she was afraid of; it prevented her from being calm.

"Twilight, I want to tell you the same thing I told Az before I came over here." Applejack finally said. Twilight looked up to her.

"W-what...?"

"No matter what happens, no matter who he chooses, I want you to know we'll still be friends."
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Time seemed to stretch on for an eternity after Applejack left. Azure's head continued to throb, and he rubbed at the base of his horn. However, he did not regret hurting himself. He was probably still bleeding, but that was the last thing on Azure's mind. He lay back on his bed.

"Such a hard choice..." Azure laid back. "I should have listened to Silver...maybe I wouldn't have wound up hurting either of them like that..."

He looked to his bedside table. On it rested the two gifts he'd gotten for his last birthday.

On the left, Applejack's hoof-made hat. On the right, the book Twilight had gotten him. Both of them were useful gifts in their own right, but they also carried emotional attachments. Azure still wasn't sure who he would choose. He couldn't downplay Twilight's gift as something done last-second; it was probably the only thing she could think to give him, and she at least picked a genre she felt was appropriate for him.

Applejack's hat also wasn't something he could downplay; he'd be a hypocrite anyway if he did. Besides, she made it herself, and it kept his head warm when he chose to wear it outside.

It wasn't like he could consult his parents either; his father wouldn't know and his mother would probably use up a week's worth of parchment scolding him. Virid would make some snide remark, and he wasn't sure if Crimson or Virid had time to answer him anyway. Silver seemed like his only other consultant aside from Rarity, and Azure didn't know how to write braille. He didn't feel like asking Twilight about it either; it would probably only bring on more pain.

"Who do I choose? Which one calls out to me more...?" Azure closed his eyes, convinced he needed to make his decision soon.

He needed to listen to his heart closely. It was something he knew would help him.

The cyan colt closed his eyes, drifiting off into a trancelike meditation.

I hope nopony comes barging in...I need as much thinking time as I can get...

Chapter 24: Realization Waterfall

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Chapter 24: Realization Waterfall
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The days since the run-in with Applejack and Twilight began to blur together. Azure normally would have gotten more excited about Winter Wrap-Up, but due to his conundrum, he just couldn't find it in him. He couldn't even approach Twilight to offer her his usual support like he would have under normal circumstances when she and Applejack argued over the use of magic. It all worked out, however, so at least there was that.

Winter gave way to spring in a timely manner--apparently for the first time in years--in Ponyville. However, Azure Courage couldn't get psyched for the ability to freely run about as he would normally. He still had a lot on his mind regarding his situation, and the fact the weather was warm again was the last thing on his mind.

However, at least something had come of his increased overall isolation. He was able to think far more clearly about his situation. However, he still hadn't come to a satisfactory conclusion. Which was why he was now waiting at the train station, seeming to wait for something...or somepony.
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For what felt like the first time since this spring started, Azure Courage was outside. However, he wasn't out to train his body, nor was he out to see a friend. He had been aware of the hole he'd dug himself into with two mares, and ever since last winter, he'd been trying to dig himself out of it. The warm breeze, the nice temperature, the songs of birds tweeting around as they went about their business...all of that didn't matter to him.

He was here at Ponyville's train station now, waiting for an old friend who had warned him things would get like this. With the only other option being consulting Rarity again, Azure decided to see what Silver had to say, as the colt that warned him things would get this bad. He couldn't enjoy the spring as he used to until he could find a way to wedge himself out of the hole.

He took a deep breath of the spring air. The fresh scent of spring was still in the air; it had been two weeks since the Winter Wrap-Up. It was always a relaxing scent, and with all the stuff that had been called to his attention since last fall, Celestia knew he needed all the help he could get to relax.

A train horn sounded off, breaking Azure's concentration and he released a sigh.

"Finally," he observed aloud. "It's been a long time..."

He stood up, shaking his legs a little bit to try and restore blood flow to them. He'd left his home and went straight to the train station, lest he run into somepony that knew him. The last thing he needed was another mare to add to his list. The train eventually stopped at the station, and the cyan colt began to search through the crowds filing out of it. He was looking for somepony that could reasonably be expected to get to Ponyville exclusively by train.

"What'cha lookin' for?" Azure turned to his side. He only jumped just a little when he saw who it was. It was a familiar face, who had participated in the triathalon a few months ago, and saved Applejack and him with his magic while he was here. It was Silver Espada, Azure's friend from Canterlot.

"Well, I was looking for you," Azure responded with a sigh, "Guess you heard my heartbeat again?"

"Yeah," Silver said. "But I could barely recognize you from that alone." The two colts proceeded to head for Azure's home, continuing to exchange sentences as they went.

"Well, hey, nice to see you again," Azure offered his hoof, and Silver found it effortlessly, meeting it with his own as though he had full eyesight. Which, given his pale irises, he did not have.

Silver removed his sunglasses, his horn lighting up dark blue as he did so, setting the shades into his saddlebags, "Been a while...Didn't expect you to rely on Crimson to give me that letter, but hey, it all evens out..."

Azure shifted his attention, trying to change the subject for a moment, "I'll explain that later. Why aren't you wearing your sunglasses?"

"Pretty much the whole town knows I'm blind after the race, remember?" Silver asked, exposing his unseeing eyes. "No need to keep it hidden while I'm here."

"I see...other than my letter, anything new back in Canterlot?"

"Nothing really. You already know Virid and Crimson are in the Royal Guards. Other than that, the whole town's buzzing with the news of the upcoming Grand Galloping Gala."

Azure's memories of the first few weeks of meeting his friends returned. And with that, inevitably, came the whole memory of what happened when Twilight came across tickets. She'd changed his fur color...and delivered a ticket to him. And, for some reason, they both talked about how they couldn't danc--

Darn it, not now! He didn't want to be thinking about her or Applejack straight away with Silver in earshot. "Would you believe the princess actually gave us all tickets last summer?"

"Last summer?" Silver paused, "Talk about getting it done in advance..."

Silence reigned for a few moments, and Azure took a few steady breaths to calm himself. It wasn't going to be long before his blind friend would ask why he'd done what he did to get his attention. Crimson was no doubt very busy as a Royal Guard, so delivering that letter to Silver couldn't have been easy for him. The fact he'd done it was a miracle in itself.

"Alright, Azure, what's up?" Silver finally asked. "What happened since I was here?"

Azure froze. It was time to come clean about the truth. And while he was at it, he'd have to fill his friend in on that dangerous colt...

"Silver, I'll tell you everything when we get back to my house. Let me tell you, it gets really crazy..."
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"...and that's how everything went down since you last were here," Azure finished.

"Jeez," observed Silver, having remained silent since Azure began his explanation. Never in his life did he imagine so much could happen in a such a small town in such a short time. The fact that Azure's personal problems were beginning to pile up was bad enough, but the fact there were those strange ghouls...no, summons, attacking the town and his friends...

The blind colt let out a sigh. No doubt about it, Azure picked a heck of a town to move in. "Don't you think you should tell the princess about these attacks?" He chose to address the more serious problem first.

"That's under control, don't worry about that," Azure responded. "I'm more worried about that other problem I mentioned."

Silver rubbed at his mane. He'd never even considered that Azure's mare issue would have gotten to this point. Now that it had, he was somewhat at a loss.

"How could you let it get this bad?"

"How should I know?! By the time I finally figured out what was happening, the coffin was half shut!" Azure shouted back as bluntly as possible. Silver could hear it in his voice, probably better than all the mares he'd befriended combined. His voice was distorted, and it was clear he did not like this situation at all. He knew that Azure couldn't live with himself if he wound up hurting anypony else, but the fact he was in a love triangle was making it worse on him.

"Okay, okay, Azure," Silver began, already coming up with a solution. "Take a deep breath."

The sound of air moving slowly indicated that Azure had done so.

"Sorry, Silver, it's just...I don't know what to do. I know I've got feelings for both of them, and I'm sure they both return those feelings. I've been trying to figure out for the last month what those feelings are and who those feelings are stronger for, but I keep running blanks..."

Azure's heart beat violently in response to this, and once again he took a deep breath to compose himself. Through it all, Silver could only consider how lucky Azure was to have Rarity as a confidant in the winter months. If he hadn't, he'd either still be clueless, or the pony before him would be an entirely different colt. But talking it out alone wasn't solving anything. Silver knew what he had to do then and there.

"I'm curious, what do you see in them, Azure?" Silver asked.

"What do you mean?" Azure questioned in response.

"What about them stands out to you?" The blind pony kept his voice level and clear the whole time. He was able to see without seeing, but he had to give Azure the perfect impression in order for it to sink in. It just so happened that way. "I mean, they seem like any other mare to me. Not that special..."

Azure's heartbeat increased, and his breathing pattern changed. He was angry...which was what Silver wanted. He knew Azure enough to know that whenever he was worked into an absolute frenzy over something...

"Are you kidding me?! There's absolutely nothing ordinary about either of them!"

He tended to say more than needed. Well, in this case, it was what he needed to say, but couldn't. Probably a stress-induced mental block.

"Applejack is a strong mare, probably the strongest you'll ever find; kind and loyal to her friends! She'll do anything to make sure she can help others no matter what the cost!" Azure paid absolutely no mind to what he was actually saying, lecturing Silver without any real structure to his raving. "Twilight may not seem like it at first glance, but she is a great mare to be around. She speaks her mind and isn't afraid to express herself. She holds on to her beliefs and nothing can make her falter, no matter what. She is one of the most talented mares I've ever seen in my life and she's not even the least bit overconfident about it. She actually apologized for her talent on a few occasions! She improves not so she can show off, but to use it when she has a reason to..."

"There is absolutely nothing ordinary about either of them!" Azure was breathing heavily now. Silver, however, was undeterred by his friend's rage.

That's what I wanted to see...

"It's hard to say it when you're conflicted. But it's easy to defend them when another pony speaks ill of them." Silver said with a smile. Suddenly, Azure's "aura" changed. Something that had probably been disconnected this whole time in his mind must have finally clicked together.

"Thanks, Silver..."
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I may not have discovered what my answer was, but the step I just took toward it was massive. I'll be able to answer both of them soon enough. Though Twilight was the only one that asked me that question... Azure thought to himself. Kinda wish he didn't have to insult them to prove a point, though...

Azure's thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door. The colt swallowed. Ever since hurting Applejack and Twilight in the same day, he dreaded visitors. However, he wasn't called "Courage" for nothing. So, he steeled his nerves, and said the first thing that came to mind, "Well, Silver, there's somepony at my door. I'm going to go and answer it."

"I don't need you to tell me why you're so edgy," Silver said. "I'd figured you weren't exactly receptive of visitors given you were alone at the train platform this time and you insisted on coming straight home before telling me anything."

"Yeah, yeah, sure," Azure replied, opening the door. When his eyes initially failed to meet with anypony, Azure blinked. Then, he looked down.

His eyes met with three fillies, one of which he knew very well as Apple Bloom. The other two, he recalled, she'd befriended due to the common factor that they hadn't yet received their cutie marks.

If he recalled correctly, the orange pegasus was a sort of mini-Rainbow Dash, except for the ability to fly. Her mane, tail, and eyes had the same purplish color to them. While she wasn't related to Rainbow Dash in the least, she certainly viewed her as an older sister of sorts. And her face betrayed a look of utter...boredom? Azure didn't get that part at all. If he remembered right, this one was named Scootaloo.

On the other hoof, the little unicorn didn't look bored at all. Like Apple Bloom, she seemed interested...in something, Azure was sure. She bore a resemblance to Rarity; if memory served, Azure recalled her as Rarity's younger sister, Sweetie Belle. Her coat matched her sisters, and he could have sworn Rarity styled her mane and tail, because they too had similar fancy curls. However, her mane and tail were two shades of purple: one moderate, one light. Her eyes were green.

"Oh, wait. I remember now, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, right?" he finally asked, that last bit of memory returning to him.

"Hey, Azure," Scootaloo immediately took charge. "Seen Rainbow Dash anywhere."

"I haven't!" Silver called out from behind, sounding incredibly enthusiastic. Azure rolled his eyes, knowing that Silver was referencing his condition again.

"I haven't," Azure answered. "Sorry. Been busy..."

"Oh. Well, c'mon, Crusaders, let's--" Scootaloo attempted to walk away, back to a wooden cart attached to a...scooter, not too far from Azure's door.

"Hold on a minute!" Apple Bloom cut her off, "I wanna hear how Az got his cutie mark!"

Azure blinked. Was that why they weren't off crusading today? Because they were asking the others how...

"He's gotta have a good story!" Sweetie Belle piped in. Scootaloo froze midstep, and finally sighed.

"Fine, I'll listen," she said, turning around.

"Alright, guess I'd better listen too," Silver quipped, saying no more than that. Apparently, he was probably saving the joke for later.

Once the three fillies in attendance had settled down, Azure breathed out a sigh.

"Let's see, where do I start..." Azure began. "It was a normal spring day in Canterlot. I was out with Virid and Blitz. Freegalloping had become part of our routine at that point, and..."
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The sun beat down on the three unicorns as they rushed through the streets of Canterlot, leaping past ponies and galloping up the sides of buildings. Crimson, using his speed spell, always seemed to have the edge, but Virid was almost always right behind him. By this point, both of his cousins had earned their cutie marks. Azure was lagging behind them a bit, trying to watch and learn.

"Blitz, I'm gonna learn that speed spell of yours!" Virid called out after Blitz as he began to lose ground.

"I think I'm the one with the talent for such spells, not you!" Blitz called back.

The two continued to argue about each other's marks, both of them eventually promising to fight. Somehow, as Azure followed them, they were slowly beginning to climb, and it was all Azure could do to follow the leaders. At least, until he got up to the roof.

Apparently, Crimson and Virid couldn't hold themselves from being competitive in this venture any longer. They'd apparently forgotten Azure was tagging along, and both immediately began to leave their younger cousin in the dust. Azure didn't get to see how they got down, but he watched them recede into the distance. So he was a young unicorn, caught on a roof, and had no idea how to get back down.

"Virid, Blitz!" the younger Azure called out, sounding slightly scared. "How do I get down?! I can't get down like this!" The younger colt began to fall into despair for a moment as he couldn't think of a way to get down. It seemed like he'd be stuck up there until his cousins realized he was gone.

Suddenly, he heard a loud "bang" in the distance, and saw something amazing. Though it hadn't been raining, and there wasn't exactly one called for in the forecast, a rainbow spontaneously stretched across the sky.

To this day, Azure wasn't sure why, but something told him to move. It wasn't a coherent thought. It was more like an instinctual knowledge of how he should get down. Of course, his rational mind told him to stay still. However, he didn't intend on staying there all day.

The colt began to call upon his freegalloping skills, and took a leap of faith. By some miracle, he'd landed on an awning for a shop. He bounced off said awning, and managed to redirect his course to another one, slightly lower than that. After that, it was a simple bounce down. The whole time, he'd used the gravity spell to slow his descent enough to where he wouldn't cause any unnecessary damage by falling through things.

At the time, he could only use it in very short bursts, but it did what it needed to do.

"Now...where...?" Azure asked himself, looking around to see if he could find Blitz or Crimson around. However, as he looked behind him, he saw something he hadn't thought he'd see for a while.

His flank was no longer blank. Where the blank cyan canvas was, was an image of a star-shaped light bulb, blue in color. He blinked, trying to figure out what he did to get there...

Of course, that was for about three seconds.

"I--I did it! I got my cutie mark!"
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"Of course, I didn't figure out what it meant until later," Azure finished, "Turns out my talent lies in relying on my instincts, both using magic and my own physical body."

"That's why some ponies call him impulsive," Silver added, nodding somewhat as Azure turned to him. He turned back to the fillies. Scootaloo still seemed bored with the whole thing.

"That's probably why Rarity calls him that," Sweetie Belle commented. "Instincts can be a talent?"

"What about you, Silver?" asked Apple Bloom, "How'd you get your cutie mark?"

"Wha--I have mine?!" Silver yelled, clearly joking.

"Well, of course you do!" Scootaloo came to life, indignantly pointing out the obvious, "What are you, blind?!"

Silver faced the fillies directly. "Yes. Yes I am."

The ensuing silence left Azure no doubt that his blind friend would be able to foalsit should the need arise. Even though he was blind, he once again proved he was fully capable. The Crusaders collectively stared, wide-eyed, for a few minutes. Before they could say anything, however, something unexpected happened.

"Hiiiiiii everypony!" Pinkie chirped, unexpectedly bursting in from...actually, Azure didn't see how she got inside, and by this point, he'd stopped caring how she managed to teleport herself into places. She caught sight of Silver, and smiled widely. "Silver! You're here?!"

"Yeah, visiting for a week," Silver answered with a nod. "Gotta get back in Canterlot before the Gala starts..."

Pinkie didn't seem to hear that last part, turning her attention to the foals for a moment, "Azie, I didn't know you foalsat!"

"I...don't..." Azure responded, not expecting that out of her. Then again, it wouldn't be Pinkie if she did something fully expected. "They came over here asking how I got my cutie mark, so...I told them."

"Pinkie!" Scootaloo called out, "You seen Rainbow Dash?"

"You're looking for Rainbow Dash?" Pinkie asked, at first, sounding surprisingly normal. "If I was her, I'd be at Sugarcube Corner. Of course, if I was anyone, I'd want to be at Sugarcube Corner. Hey! I have an idea! Wanna go to Sugarcube Corner?!"

"Well, we were going to ask about how she got her cutie mark anyway..." Sweetie Belle said, somewhat at a loss on keeping up with the rambling.

"Ooh! While we're on our way there, I can tell you how I got mine!" Pinkie began skipping towards the door. "C'mon, let's go!" She turned to the older ponies in the room. "Hey, Azie, Silver, you coming?"

"Just go on ahead, we'll..." Azure released a sigh, "be right along!"

"I hope so! The others are going to be there, too!" Pinkie said. "C'mon, let's go!"

Azure tried not to be nervous as he nodded and waited for the fillies and Pinkie to file out. Silver walked up to him, and released a sigh.

"You're worried about seeing them, aren't you?" he asked, as soon as he was positive the four ponies were out of earshot. "Twilight and Applejack, I mean."

"You couldn't understand...after what I'd done, I've tried to stay inside until I could find the answer..."

"That's not the Azure Courage I know..." Silver responded. "Sure, you hurt them, but...you haven't even worked up the courage to look them in the eye again?"

"It's not that simple, Silver. Whenever I look at them now, I get a knot in my stomach and freeze up." Azure said to himself. It was just one step forward, but he couldn't muster the strength to move forward. It was a situation he knew needed to be handled delicately, and he didn't exactly do delicate when it came to difficult situations. Azure looked to the open door, tormented with indecision. He just didn't know if he could face up to them.
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Silver had never sensed Azure this frozen up; he'd heard stories about his fear of chimeras, but he was also made aware of how he stood up to one when he'd spent time with Fluttershy the last time he was here. However, now the normally brave-hearted colt was acting skittish and unsure, afraid to take the chance. For a pony whose talent lay within his own instincts...it was unbecoming.

"You know, Azure, for as long as I've known you, you never let fear get in the way...at least, not for long." Silver advanced until he was standing right next to Azure. "You always found a way to break through."

"But...it's different. It's a lot more...delicate than fighting a monster or jumping off buildings..." Azure objected.

"I don't see that much of a difference," Silver said, dry of any humor. While he couldn't see, he always found a way to get through to the end. "This triangle you're in now, it's just another obstacle fear's keeping you from overcoming. You're afraid of hurting them even more if you do something wrong, but if you let it control you like you have been, you'll only hurt them even worse because of hesitating."

"I know that already," Azure responded, shaking his head. He'd already been made aware of this by Rarity, Silver presumed.

"Sure, it might be hard to see them, but if you manage to walk up to them, still treat them as you would a friend, but still make it clear you're trying to make up your mind, you can show them you still care."

Azure's aura changed again. He was obviously thinking back to something. Silver knew he was on the right track now.

"Azure, we all have obstacles to overcome whether we like it or not. Look at me. I'm floating in a sea of darkness with no hope to see light. Yet, I overcame that fear." Usually, Silver made light of his condition, and even around foals if the opportunity presented himself. Yet, he never really referred to it as serious. Azure's presence altered again; it was clear he was thinking deeply about all that. Finally, he chuckled.

Nailed it... Silver thought to himself.

"When'd you get so deep?" Azure asked.

"Who knows, but some ponies say it suits me." The two laughed it off. He could detect some fear in Azure, but he was clearly reassured now.

"You know, I'm willing to try."

Silver smiled, and the two walked outside. The blind colt heard a subtle click and knew that Azure had locked his door behind him. The two were now walking pleasantly towards Sugarcube Corner, at Pinkie's behest.

"So, Silver, how did you get over that fear?" Azure asked.

"A certain hardheaded unicorn helped me see I could overcome anything, and I did." Silver smiled and turned to where he knew Azure was. It was clear Azure had been thinking back to that day.

Seems like I've worked off that debt, thought the blind pony to himself. Now that that's over...

"So...how's Fluttershy?"

Azure's presence shifted again.

"What?"
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Azure and Silver continued to walk. Azure really wasn't sure what to do when he got there, especially if Applejack and Twilight decided to strike up a sensitive conversation. However, Silver was right. He couldn't keep isolating himself from the others over the issue. He'd had a month to think things over, and though he'd only just now taken a big step towards finding his answers, he still wasn't sure if he could answer Twilight...or Applejack, if the question came up.

And then, Silver wanted to see Fluttershy. The memory of the two walking up to the starting line returned, and the cyan colt found himself wondering exactly what had happened between them. The colt must have still seemed pretty washed-out to Silver, since the pony in question turned to him.

"Still not up for it?" Silver asked. "How about a race?"

"Seriously?" Azure questioned. "You know how deep in thought I've been...and need to be..."

"C'mon, live a little..." Silver replied. It was clear to Azure that his blind friend thought racing to Sugarcube Corner would cheer him up a little.

With a sigh, Azure readied himself. He really didn't want to rush there, but he knew Silver wasn't going to stop asking him to "live a little". His instincts were telling him not to simply run forward this time. However, it was clear he wasn't given a choice. "Fine."

A few moments later, paying no mind to where he was going aside from his destination, Azure called out, "Go!"

Azure closed his eyes, not even bothering to look forward, as he began sprinting forward.

"Azure, watch it!" Silver warned.

The warning came too late. Azure banged into somepony full force, causing himself to go sprawling on his rump. He heard something hit the ground, and somepony fall back onto her--Azure could tell from the feminine grunt that it was a her--behind as well. Azure looked up...and was met with a sight he knew he'd have to see today, but was ill-prepared to do so.

Twilight was right in front of him, her head down for just a few moments as she tried to gather her bearings. She looked mad...and strangely, she wasn't wearing her glasses. The mare's look quickly changed, however, when she saw who she bumped into.

"A-Azure?" Twilight questioned, her look changing into an awkward one, "Um...hello."

"H-hey, Twilight," Azure responded, not knowing what to say here other than the obvious. He wasn't prepared for this. "Sorry...about running into you."

"No problem...nothing's broken," Twilight was only half-smiling, something which bothered Azure. She looked past him, and then said, "Oh, Silver, nice to see you again."

"Likewise," Silver responded with a wave.

"So, where are you two heading?" Twilight asked with an awkward tone in her voice that she was failing to hide.

"Sugarcube Corner," At this point, Silver took over the conversation. "Pinkie invited us, you?"

"Me too!" She said, with a little more enthusiasm than usual. She then met eyes with Azure, and started to blush just a little, "B-but...um, I need to take care of somethng first..."

"Oh, okay, see you there, then?" Azure re-took the conversation.

"Y-yeah, definitely..." Twilight responded, immediately turning and beginning to walk back the way she was coming. Azure understood why perfectly well. He was about to continue the way, when he saw something.

"W-wait, Twilight!" Azure called out to her, activating his magic and lifting the object he knew Twilight had with her when the collision happened. It was a book. It had miraculously avoided damage when it flew out of what the colt assumed was her magic.

Twilight froze, turning to him.

"Y-you dropped your book..." he levitated it over to Twilight, who took it in her own magic as soon as he realized.

"T-thank you," Twilight said, floating the now closed book alongside her as she went back to do whatever she said. Azure smiled, just a little bit, seeing the small success he just had in doing this.

"Well, I guess that wasn't so bad," said the cyan colt as he slowly exhaled a breath he'd only now realized he was starting to hold. Azure continued walking, but he realized there was only one set of hooves walking along. He turned, to see Silver appearing to space out.

"Hey, Silver, what's up with you?" Azure raised his brow, not that Silver could see it.

"I'm not sure why, but I feel like we've been here before..." Silver responded.
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The two continued to walk towards the Sugarcube Corner. The little run-in with Twilight had given Azure a bit more confidence; he could tell from the way Azure was walking along. He wasn't dragging his hooves as much, but it was clear he was still nervous. After what happened last time, Silver wasn't crazy about trying to goad Azure into another race, lest he accidentally run headlong into Applejack next.

Still...why was that situation before so familiar...? Silver asked himself. I don't think this has happened...

Something he'd heard Azure say in his younger days suddenly came flooding back.

"Hey, you! Wait up! ... You dropped one of your books!"

And along with that, came the situation that it was attached to. Immediately, Silver realized something.

"Azure!" Silver said. "Do you remember that day a few years ago?"

"Depends, which one?" Azure asked.

"The day a filly dropped a book and you picked it up for her? Then she ran away afterwards after trying to thank you?"

Azure stopped walking. "Yeah, but why bring it up now?"

"Do you remember what she looked like, Azure?" Silver asked. "Think hard."

"She was..." Azure paused. However, there was no mistaking the change in his "aura" again. "Purple!"
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Azure Courage remembered that day very well. It was a few years before his move to Ponyville. He wasn't sure if it was before or after he'd started following the Mare in the Moon story, but that wasn't important. What was important was this: he wasn't aware of it, but he'd met Twilight long before he even thought about Nightmare Moon.

It was an average day in the Canterlot park. The sun was shining, and the day was generally pleasant. Silver and Azure had both been in the park on that day, the former getting the hang of his sound magic and the latter teaching him how to free gallop. His cousins, Virid and Blitz, were also there as chaperones, but they were tied up insulting one another to pay attention to the young colts as they travelled around.

"Alright, Azure, I'm ready!" Silver confirmed. The pony was not yet wearing his shades to conceal his blind eyes, but his magic hadn't developed to the point that it had now. His horn was vividly lit up in its dark blue shade (which looked more neutral blue as a result) as he used his sound magic to echolocat the various obstacles.

"Ready...go!" Azure called out, and the two ponies rushed forward. Since Silver needed to concentrate on the spell at the time, Azure almost immediately took the lead, bouncing off the various obstacles with some ease. Silver, on the other hand, rushed forward, and clumsily jumped off some obstacles and narrowly avoided running into others. The race was a bit one-sided, as they often were in those days.

However, as the colt rounded the corner, with the blind pony gaining, Azure noticed something out of the corner of his eye.

It was a filly, about his age, with a saddlebag practically bursting with books. She had purple fur, and a purple mane and tail, styled straight. Both mane and tail had a pinkish stripe through it. Her eyes were closed, but Azure couldn't remember if it was out of strain or something else. He stopped midstep, looking to the mare with a sense of wonder.

How many books does a pony need? he thought to himself.

The mare continued to drag the saddlebag, not seeming to care about the fact she was carrying more than her own weight in books. At the same time, one of the books that hadn't been properly stuffed into the bag fell out. The young filly didn't even notice the missing item, even as she stepped over it. Azure couldn't have that...

"Hey, Azure, why'd you stop?" Silver asked, running past him in the process.

"Hang on, Silver, there's something I gotta do. A filly just dropped her book and I gotta get it back to her..." Azure responded, moving to do just that. He picked up the book with his magic and called out to the bookish pony: "Hey, you! Wait up!"

The mare froze midstep, and turned around, opening her eyes, which Azure could see were purple. When she saw Azure running towards her, her eyes widened and she didn't seem to know what to say other than a "what?"

"You dropped one of your books!" Azure exclaimed, finishing trotting up to her. The mare continued to stare, saying nothing. The colt tilted his head, not getting her reaction.

"I--I--" The mare began, sounding meek and unsure of the situation.

"Um...Here...I'll put it back in your bag..." Azure didn't understand why at the time, but he began to feel awkward standing there. He did so, and the mare didn't even so much as say a word.

"Th-th-th..." The filly continued to flounder about. "Thank...you..."

She almost immediately turned tail and ran, miraculously not dropping any books. Azure plopped down on his rump and blinked, entirely confused as to what happened.

"Whoa!" Silver called out, "Look at her go..."

"Silver, did you see--" Azure wasn't one to remember Silver's condition off-hoof at the time.

"No!"
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Silver couldn't see anything, nor would he ever be able to under normal conditions. That was what the doctors told him and his parents. However, that wasn't to say he didn't know the expression on Azure's face right now. He was likely stunned, because after he'd realized aloud what color the filly was, he went into a stunned silence for several minutes. He remained perfectly still as he took a trip down memory lane, and Silver took it upon himself to snap Azure out of it.

"Hey!" Silver clapped his hooves together in front of Azure's face.

"Huh, what?" Azure asked, apparently having all but forgotten where he was; as Silver expected, he had been thinking about that day.

"You spaced out on me, you alright?" Silver asked.

"Y-yeah, I was just...remembering that day..." He paused, and Silver didn't even need to be echolocating everything to guess where Azure's attention was focused now. "She...she couldn't be the same pony, right?"

He's not buying it... Silver thought. To him, it's probably a huge stretch to think that Twilight was that filly, all grown up and with the same feelings as that one...if I have to help him see this too...I will.

"Azure, how many other purple unicorns do you know?" asked Silver.

"Well, other than that filly and Twilight, none." Azure was using a tone of voice that suggested that he knew the answer was right in front of him, but he was expliclty refusing it.

"Don't you think it could be that they are one and the same?"

"It couldn't be, I don't remember every detail of that day, so I might just be making some of that stuff up for all we know..."

"How many bookworms do you know?"

"Just the one--" Azure cut himself off. "But..."

"Azure, you know, I just remembered something else about that time." Silver said. It was a wonder how he didn't immediately bring it up afterward.

"What, Silver?"

"I remember you were talking about that filly for weeks after that day." Silver recalled how often the younger Azure would. He talked in such an odd tone for him at the time that everypony could guess he had a crush on the filly he'd run across, and yet he seemed oblivious to his own actions at the time. "You and I would take that same path for those next few weeks. I didn't think much of it at the time, but now, I'm starting to think it was you trying to spot her again."

Azure gasped; he knew where Silver was going with this.

"If that filly was who I think it is--no, who I'm sure it is now...then Twilight Sparkle was your first foalhood crush..."

Chapter 25: A Friendly Outing...

View Online

Chapter 25: A Friendly Outing...
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The meeting at Sugarcube Corner took a weird turn after Silver and Azure finally got there. For one thing, it turned out Rainbow Dash was the cause of the rainbow Azure (and the others) saw on the day they got their cutie marks. Apparently, she was racing bullies, and something happened to her during the race that caused her to perform a Sonic Rainboom. Everypony in that room who actually saw it had wound up getting their cutie marks long before the group had ever met one another.

However, while that in itself was interesting, it did little to soothe Azure's mental state. A few minutes prior to all of that, he'd learned a shocking truth: he met Twilight on a day a few years ago. Moreover, she was the filly he might have had a crush on a long time ago. He never saw Twilight again after that day, and had completely forgotten she'd existed until the night Nightmare Moon.

"How'd I miss it..." Azure mumbled. "Silver, you didn't even see what happened; your magic wasn't exactly the level it is now either, and yet you were able to pick out all the details I'd missed..."

"I didn't actually start thinking about it at first," Silver said. "Twilight didn't remind me of that filly because she didn't have any issues berating you for letting a blind pony freegallop. However, now that she's become awkward around you--again--it was a lot easier to pick up...especially when you gave her the book she'd dropped..."

"Do you think Twilight knows?" asked Azure, not turning to face Silver, still reliving that memory in his head.

"Knows what?" Silver responded.

"That I was the pony she ran from that day--"

"She didn't start being awkward until now, Azure." the blind pony became awkward.

"Maybe, but...your hearing's better than mine," Azure needed some kind of reassurance, positive or negative, about his latest revelation. If it was true, it would add yet another complication to the triangle he was in. "Couldn't you tell if it was her if you tried?"

"Two things, Azure: one, she barely spoke at all that day; two, even if she had spoken up just a little bit, voices change when a pony grows up, so chances are I couldn't tell anyway," Silver responded. "There's only one way to know for sure..."

Azure turned to Silver, not bothering to mask the fact he knew what Silver was implying he do in order to figure things out.

"That being...?" But he had to make sure all the same.

"You ask her about the day yourself." Silver responded. Azure's heart started beating fast all over again as dread set in. He'd only just gotten the confidence he'd needed to speak to the two mares he was in the triangle with. If Twilight wasn't the filly, it'd only set him back a bit. But if she was, he had no idea how she'd respond to that knowledge.

"There isn't another choice, is there?"

"Not unless you know a time travelling spell..." Silver responded. Azure sighed. He was once again finding himself hesitating, but he knew it would have come to this anyway.

"You're right," Azure said. Stalling wasn't going to get him anywhere; besides, he'd been painfully aware he had been given more than a reasonable amount of time to think about his predicament, and he'd been wasting a majority of it lamenting he'd hurt them and chasing his tail. "Silver, sorry if I'm being difficult."

"It's not like I can blame you for being like this, given your situation," Silver reminded Azure once again of his failure to heed his advice. Azure sat down, tormented with the fact once again he might have been able to avoid it had he merely listened to the blind pony.

"...I..." Azure started. "I'm going to go talk to Twilight." The colt immediately stood back up and proceeded toward the door. He heard hooves following him, and turned to see Silver walking towards him, clearly concerned.

"Are you sure you're ready to do this?" Silver questioned.

"No," Azure admitted, "But I've got to try..."

Azure opened his door, and found a somewhat rare sight. It was a white unicorn mare--Rarity. She was standing right in front of Azure's door, her hoof outstretched, clearly about to knock on his door.

"Oh, Azure," she said with a little surprise as she lowered her hoof, "Your timing is impeccable."

"Oh, hey, Rarity," Azure was confused, no questioning that, "Why'd you come to me? Usually it's the other way around..."

"I was asked by Pinkie to invite the two of you to a picnic with the rest of us," Rarity responded, and Azure immediately began to panic.

"A picnic? When?!" If the picnic was later today, there wasn't a chance he'd be able to talk to Twilight alone. Especially with Applejack in attendance...

"Um...tommorrow." Rarity took a step back, not liking the emotion Azure had projected while in the middle of his panic. Azure sighed in relief, and stood up straight again. "Tommorow, at noon."

"Good. I still have time to talk to Twilight, then." Azure observed, preparing to get the planned talk over with.

"Well..." Rarity started, "It's good to hear that you are able to bring yourself to speak with her again, but she's not home right now."

Azure's heart dropped straight to the pit of stomach. Fearing the next thing that was going to come out of his mouth would be the refreshments he ate back at the random party Pinkie had just thrown, he spoke again, "W-where'd she go, then?"

Azure stepped towards Rarity, who took another step back, clearly uncomfortable with the fact he was getting closer.

"I don't know, Azure," she responded, "She said she had something she needed to take care of; she mentioned she wouldn't be back 'til late."

Darn it all! Just when I finally make a possible breakthrough, I can't catch her alone!

"I could barely muster up the nerves needed to talk to her, and now I can't do that until tommorrow when everypony else is going to be there, including Applejack! How can I talk to Twilight if she's there too?" Azure wasn't aware of it, but he wasn't in Rarity's face anymore. He was now pacing back and forth, through his living room. Rarity followed Azure in, and her tone of voice suggested she was worried.

"Silver, is he alright? ... Silver?"

"What do I do now?" Azure paid no mind to the world around him, once more swimming in guilt and self-loathing.

"He will be in a second..."

Splash!

Azure was brought out of his panic attack faster than he ever thought possible. Cold water drenched him, causing him to gasp and immediately stop in his tracks.

"How's that feel?" Silver asked. Azure turned to him, to see an empty bucket floating next to him, wreathed in the usual dark blue glow.

"Thanks...I needed that," Now Azure was slightly annoyed. He was really getting tired of being drenched in water every time something went wrong. Even if most of those situations were his fault...

"No problem," Silver responded, now floating a towel over to Azure. Azure took it and began to dry himself off.

"Is this a bad time?" Rarity asked, and when Azure turned to her, he could see she was about to leave. Azure was indecisive on this.

Should I tell her too, or should I leave it alone?

"Well...do you think you need to tell her?" Silver asked, almost as though he was reading his mind. It was clear to him that without Rarity, Azure likely wouldn't have gotten this far.

"Yeah..." Azure responded, nodding. "Rarity, there's something new about the situation I'm in. Close the door. I don't want to risk anypony else hearing this."

Rarity was confused, yet intrigued, and her face showed it. She did as she was instructed, being a guest in Azure's home. As soon as everything was in order, Azure began to tell the story of how he once met a filly as a foal...

And how that filly may have wound up growing up to be Twilight Sparkle.
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Rarity could hardly believe her ears. Azure's tale was truly something remarkable. The filly in his story had to have been Twilight; what other pony would have carried around a saddlebag filled with books at that age?

"Oh my, this is something straight from the pages of a romance novel!" The fact she went there did not surprise either of the colts, "Love at first sight, only to be seperated afterwards. Then, as if guided by fate, they meet again!"

"Wait...love...what?" Azure asked, clearly off-guard from Rarity's comment.

"Easy, Rarity, no need to add to his list of problems." Silver reminded her. Rarity looked to Azure; it was clear he didn't really comprehend what she was getting at.

"I apologize, Azure, darling. I may have pushed it a bit far in using that word."

"It's fine, Rarity," Azure brushed it off with a sigh, "But I still don't know what to do now...the longer I wait to talk to Twilight about this, the harder it's going to be for me to do it."

"If that is the case, darling, then why not just talk to her during the picnic?" Rarity suggested, plainly as she could.

Azure's look of doubt was unrivaled. "How can I get alone from her then? The others would get suspiscious, for sure..."

"Leave the others to us..."

" 'Us'? " Azure asked, clearly confused.

"Silver, care to help me keep the others away from them?" Rarity didn't exactly like the implications of that, given she didn't know how deep Applejack's feelings for Azure were, but the situation needed to be resolved soon. Twilight was starting to get restless...

"Alright, Rarity, I'll do what I can..."

The relief was clearly visible on Azure's features. "Thanks, you two...for helping me with all this."

"Hey, don't give me all the credit," Silver said. "Rarity's the one who helped you the most..."
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The night came and went. Everything seemed to be in place. Rarity had no doubt that the others, except for maybe Fluttershy, would go along with the suggestion Silver suggested for the distraction so that Azure could get some alone time with Twilight. It was almost time for the picnic now and Rarity was already leaving her shop with a basket floating next to her. She believed everything would go smoothly as soon as everypony arrived.

It was a nice spring day: a gentle breeze was blowing and the temperature was just right. All was set for the picnic today. Rarity trotted along, wondering to herself who else would already be there by the time she arrived. Rainbow Dash probably wouldn't be able to wait it out, so she'd be among the first there. Neither could Pinkie, since she was always the one starting these get-togethers anyway. Twilight was the student of Princess Celestia herself, so naturally she'd either be early...

"Oh, Rarity!"

Or right on time.

"Oh, hello, Twilight," said Rarity, waving her hoof as she turned to the purple pony. "Heading toward the picnic as well?"

Twilight looked around before answering her question. Rarity did so as well while waiting for the pony's response, and noted that aside from other ponies just outside of earshot, the two were virtually alone.

"Actually, Rarity, I was heading for your shop first..."

"Oh, is there something you wanted to talk about?" Rarity asked in response. "We can talk about it along the way, if you like."

Twilight stopped for a few moments, gathering her thoughts. "Have you ever felt like...you've met somepony before?"

Rarity blinked twice, wondering if Twilight was going where she thought with this.

"Let's keep going, Twilight, we musn't be late..."

"A-are you sure, Rarity?" Twilight asked, looking around nervously. "I don't want the others to hear us..."

"No need to worry, dear, I doubt we could run into any of them from this side of Ponyville." Twilight still looked unsure after Rarity said this, but she agreed. The two walked a few steps before Rarity restarted the conversation. "Now then, you mentioned you feel like you've met somepony before?"

"Well, after what happened at Sugarcube Corner, after we found out that Rainbow was the cause behind all of us getting our cutie marks, I started to think about my past. At first, I remembered things like the first book I read, or the time I became Princess Celestia's student. But then, I remember something else...I think it was the week before I was to start my lessons, but other than that I can't work out the details of it." Twilight recounted. Rarity had her ears open the whole time, now more curious than ever as to where this was going. This certainly sounded familiar so far...

"Well, what was it about, if you don't mind my asking?"

"It's hard to say. There was this young colt, and he did something for me, but I can't remember what..." she said, sounding a little frustrated by her inability to remember much of anything about it.

"Is there anything about him you remember?" Rarity asked, blinking.

"Just his mane...it was bluish-green in color, I think."

Oh my, is it true after all? Rarity had to know more. "Is that all you can remember?" It was difficult not to act surprised. This situation was familiar, and it stood to reason this was Twilight's side of the story Azure had told her the night before.

"Yeah, it's just...the detail stuck with me for some reason. A green mane isn't rare among ponies, and I've seen several colts with that mane color before." Twilight recounted. "None of them ever reminded me of that colt...not until yesterday."

Rarity had just about heard all she neeeded to. "Do you mean...?"

"He was the only pony that came to mind when that memory surfaced...but I don't know if it was really him then, or me just wanting it to be him..." Twilight sounded honestly unsure. A very rare sight coming from her.

"Well, why don't you just ask him yourself?" Rarity asked of Twilight, hiding her excitement at what she knew was going to happen the instant Azure and Twilight started talking. "Couldn't hurt to try."

"W-what..? I couldn't do that; not with everypony else being around..." Twilight said, almost panicking. "Especially...you know who..."

Rarity wasn't sure exactly why Twilight was talking in code. The two were still relatively alone, and nopony seemed to be listening in. They were almost to the picnic site, but Applejack wasn't present, not from what Rarity could see. Still, Azure wasn't present either...

"Now, now, Twilight, darling, do not allow something like that to stop you. It will not hurt anypony for your to ask a simple question of him." she assured her.

"But, how can I talk to him about it, and not have somepony else hear us..." Twilight said. "Everypony will know if I just ask him to talk alone in front of everypony else..."

Rarity withheld the urge to smile; the whole moment was ironic. One didn't want to talk with the others present; the other didn't know how to make that happen.

"Just enjoy the picnic. If you see your chance to talk to him, do not hesitate to take it, Twilight..."
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It wasn't that much later that Twilight and Rarity arrived at the site where the picnic was to take place. Sure enough, like Rarity thought, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie were already there. Twilight was not surprised to see Spike there already; before going to see Rarity, she sent Spike to see if the party pony needed any help carrying stuff. Judging from the fact Spike seemed just a little winded, she had quite a bit to carry.

"Hi girls!" Pinkie chirped on sight.

"Hi, Pinkie, have you two been here long?" Twilight responded, trying to bury the recent conversation into her subconscious.

"Nah, me and Pinks got here a couple minutes ago," Rainbow confirmed, reclining on a cloud she'd lowered herself. Rarity, meanwhile, walked over to the blanket that had already been placed and set her basket down next to the three already there. Though it would have been nice of the pegasus to bring her own basket, it was far more likely that Pinkie had brought all three herself.

"That just leaves Applejack, Fluttershy, and the guys," The studious mare looked around, seeing if she could spot anypony else. Strangely, Azure wasn't present. It was odd; on the days he was last to know, it was during days that couldn't be helped. He didn't work today to her knowledge--

"Scratch that, I'm right here," The familiar voice alerted them to the presence of the farmer mare. All turned to see her trotting up, a basket balanced perfectly on her back. Twilight couldn't help but wonder where Azure and Silver were. They were closer to here than Sweet Apple Acres, right?

"I'm beginning to think we have too much food for this picnic," Rarity observed as Applejack set her basket down with the others. This brought the total to four, and all looked jam-packed with tasty treats.

"Should be fine, I know Rainbow could eat for two mares," Applejack commented.

"What's that supposed to mean, A.J.?" Rainbow was now paying full attention, but her response only got a laugh from the others.

"Hey, sounds like we missed a joke..." Another voice, this time male, sounded. It wasn't Azure, Twilight knew that much. She turned, and saw a somewhat familiar sight. It was Fluttershy, with Silver. Yet...

"Wait a sec, where's Az?" Rainbow pointed out.

Twilight didn't quite know it, but both she and Applejack were both really interested to know this information.

"Oh, he got called in to work. Emergency, but he should be here later so he said to just go on without him." Silver replied.

The purple mare gave a small nod to herself. It made sense; Azure was certainly...dependable, when it came right down to it.

"So, you wound up walking into Fluttershy on the way here?" Rainbow was the one asking all the questions now. From personal experience, Twilight usually knew that didn't end well, but since it was Fluttershy, it was likely not as bad.

"Oh, well..." Silver started, a smile on his face. "You could say that."

Twilight wasn't immediately sure if she imagined it, but Fluttershy actually smiled a bit wider than she thought. Normally, the mare would have blushed just a little. It seemed...odd.

"Don't you think..." Fluttershy started. Twilight wasn't sure if she imagined it, but the mare's statement definitely lacked an "um" at the start, "that might be a little too much food?"

"Don't worry. I'll work up an appetite by practicing some stunts, no big deal..." Rainbow assured, adding a flip into the air ending in a hover for emphasis.

"Not a bad idea, Dash..." Silver said. "But why don't we all try to work one up with a couple games?"

"Oh, picnic games!?" Pinkie immediately came to life--well, even more to life, "That would be super-de-duperly mega incredible!" She bounced around afterward.

"Not a bad idea, Silver," Applejack commented, "Got any in mind?"

"...Got any rope?" Silver questioned; Applejack's look of confusion afterward was unmistakable.

"Um...yeah, I always have some on me...why do you ask?"

"How about a six-legged race?"

The word "race" got Rainbow's full attention. It was clear she was interested, even if it meant being on the ground. A certain incident in the fall made sure she at least didn't use her wings anymore in ground-bound competitions...

"A race, huh? Doesn't sound half bad..."

"Great, how about everypony else?" Silver inquired.

"Sure, why not?" Applejack was in.

"I'm in!" Pinkie chirped, "It'll be so much fun!"

"I'll participate as well," Rarity stated plainly. That raised a few eyebrows. "What? Even a lady such as myself has to have fun sometimes!" She turned her head away slightly, seemingly offended, but somehow, Twilight had a nagging feeling that wasn't it.

"How about you, Fluttershy?" asked Silver. Unlike everypony else, unsurprisingly, she wasn't too sure about it.

"Um...I don't know," Fluttershy replied, "I-I'm not a very fast runner..."

"C'mon, you can run with me, if you want..."

"Well, okay," Fluttershy smiled again at Silver's offer.

"I think I'll sit this one out," Twilight noted, "Somepony would be left out anyway, and Spike can't participate..."

Everypony agreed. The teams were quite odd pairups no matter how you looked at it: Rarity and Pinkie were a team, Applejack and Rainbow were another team, and Silver and Fluttershy were a team as well. All seemed set for a fun six-pony race. Twilight couldn't help but feel a little left out.

"Don't worry, Twilight, I can wait back here and keep you company..." Spike assured, tossing aside a stick which had been used to draw the start line and the finish line in the dirt.

"Care to come along for the ride, Spike?" Rarity asked. Immediately, Spike abandoned his previous statement; he ran up to the white unicorn, who immediately placed him on her back using the levitation spell. The finish line was in a spot ahead out of sight; the start right in front of the group.

"Are you sure about this, Silver?" Fluttershy asked, her trademark lack of confidence showing through, "I don't think we can win..."

"It's okay, I don't care about that anyway," Silver responded.

"On your mark," Rainbow took immediate control, eager to get this event started. "Get set...go!" Applejack and Rainbow took off, somewhat synced up, while Rarity and Pinkie struggled along a bit before finally getting their pace; Spike bobbing along like a buoy on water as Rarity tried to keep up with Pinkie. Silver and Fluttershy, surprisingly, did not immediately take off. If Silver was anything like Azure, this wasn't too shocking, but--

"Um...shouldn't we start?" Fluttershy questioned again. Silver didn't even so much as move.

"Do you want to run?" Silver answered with a question of his own..."

"Well...I...um...no..."

"Then, we can walk. Maybe talk along the way...I didn't get to know you well enough the last time I was here, and I'd like to know you a bit better." Silver smiled. Fluttershy's eyes shot open and she immediately began to blush.

Even though she knew he couldn't see, she hid part of her face behind her mane. "...O-okay..."

Twilight barely picked up the meek mare's words, and now she felt herself become confused. As she watched the two walk, a single question formed in her mind.

"Did...I miss something?" she blinked once, twice, and sighed. She was all alone at the picnic table, and was likely to remain that way for quite a while.

It was funny, really. When she first came here, alone time was all she wanted, but couldn't get. But now...all she wanted was somepony there with her. A friend...or a more trusted friend...or...
-------------------------------------------
Close by, a colt was furiously thundering to the picnic. His mane and tail, spiky and bluish-green. His coat, cyan. His eyes, brown. The colt was breathing slightly hard.

"Shouldn't have spent so much time brooding...!" Azure scolded himself, making rapidly for the picnic site. "Please, let me be in time..."

The plan was simple, so simple it was almost guaranteed to work. To seperate Twilight from the others, Silver would suggest a long party game that needed to be done in teams of two; with the lack of numbers, Twilight would likely sit it out. He wasn't sure yet what kind of game his blind friend had picked out, but it had to be one with a competitive element to get Rainbow's attention and Applejack's attention. So, he likely wouldn't have much time. But Azure hoped it'd be enough.

Azure continued at a gallop just short of a full sprint, but he soon slowed to a trot as he drew closer to the picnic site. He could see Twilight now, but he couldn't see what her facial expression was. However, the others were in the distance, but continuing to retreat.

A race, huh? Classic. I won't have much time, though... the pony thought to himself, taking a deep breath. It's time...to find out if Twilight was that filly from that day...

As Azure continued forward, something in his head suddenly went off. Silver's goading the day before...this recent event...he wasn't yet sure why, but he felt closer to the answer than ever before; close enough that he could reach out and pull it close to him if he just knew the right way to do so...

I don't know why...but...I feel like I'll find the answer...if I talk to her here and now. I feel like most of this problem will be solved for some reason. Yet...I can't, for all the magic I have in me, figure out why...

Azure's feet began to feel as though they were made of lead as he drew closer and closer. C'mon, get this over with...

"U-um, hey, Twilight..." Azure hesitantly said, if only because he didn't know how to go about this.

Twilight's ears flicked up immediately on hearing his voice. Though it was clear she was trying to hide it, she was clearly excited to see him...yet, Azure could tell that wasn't all she was feeling right now.

"Oh, A-Azure!" she called out. "What happened, you know, at work?"

Azure blinked, trying to come up with something. He didn't know why, but he felt a secret sense of gratitude it wasn't Applejack he had to deal with right then. "Well, it was a pretty simple fix that nearly got blown completely out of proportion...where are the others?"

"They're all running a six-legged race..." Twilight responded.

As I thought...I think I'd better cut to the chase... Azure quickly moved to talk about the flashback he'd had. "Twilight...I have a question."

"W-what is it?" she asked.

"Have you ever...felt like you've met somepony before?"

Twilight stood straight up, the look on her face suggested that perhaps she was going through the exact same thing he was. It was a good sign...

"Y-yes, I-I have..." Twilight said. "I-I was actually hoping to talk to you about it..."

This is a very good sign...

"Alright...I'm just going to cut straight to the point." Azure began, taking a deep breath. "For a while now, I've been trying to answer an important question. As days turned to weeks, I just couldn't figure out the answer. But something happened yesterday. Something big...I feel like I'm finally getting closer to that answer..."

Twilight's reaction to his words continued to give Azure the pointers he needed to make sure he was likely on the right road.

"A few years ago, when I was younger...I met a filly, one that stood out like any other I'd seen. She had a saddlebag bursting with books, and she dropped one. I picked up that book for her, and she gave me the most silent 'thank you' I have ever received."

Twilight's eyes widened this time. He felt as though he was starting to finally get on the right track.

"For days afterward, I thought about her; I wasn't even aware I was doing it until Silver pointed it out to me...yesterday. I wound up using my recently discovered cutie mark and my developing freegalloping skills...to run all over Canterlot just hoping I could see her again. But I didn't. I eventually forgot about her, a more malefic thing taking over most of my interests. I think you know what I'm referring to..."

Now he remembered clearly: his Nightmare Moon fixation...it might have affected his memory of meeting that filly, even when she'd grown up...

"Now, I think I may have met her again...and not even realized it."
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Twilight Sparkle could not believe it. It all sounded so familiar. Though, the path she took afterward was far different from Azure's, assuming he was the colt that had done that thing for her. Rather than hope to catch a glimpse of that colt as she continued onward...

I-I...ignored him, and all other ponies... Twilight thought. I...I remember now. After that day, I couldn't focus as well as I used to be able to. My stomach felt weak, and I was always spacing out thinking about him...I began to think that other ponies would get in my way. Over time, I believed that ponies would only interfere in my studies. If that colt is the same colt in front of me now...

"Azure...there's something I want to tell you too..." Twilight started. She felt herself starting to become nervous, but she still couldn't see any of the others approaching. She knew she probably didn't have too much time to say it...

Races were fast, after all...
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As Twilight relayed her side of the story to Azure, another development was taking place along the racing trail. Fluttershy walked alongside Silver-not that she had a choice, considering their forehooves were tied together to one another, same with their rear legs. However, since they weren't running, Fluttershy found she had little trouble adjusting to the art of walking with a conjoined pony on one's side. They weren't even past the halfway point yet, but Fluttershy didn't mind. She never was a competitive pony.

"Wow, you scolded a dragon?" Silver asked. The two had just finished talking about the trip up that mountain. That was the day she figured out the meaning of the word "Courage", and had an example to go by too. The blind colt had asked if she had ever stood up for herself; having heard about a time from Azure, as well as her fear of dragons. He seemed surprised to hear the news.

"Well, he hurt my friends like some kind of bully, and I don't like bullies..." Fluttershy responded.

"Yeah...I can relate." Silver replied, his pale eyes seeming to trail off into the distance, as though they hadn't been already.

"Y-you...?" Fluttershy started, unable to believe it. A friend of Azure's...bullied? "You were bullied?"

"School is a difficult place when everypony can see you have a weakness...but I guess that can be anywhere," Silver began. "The other foals would always pull pranks on me. Moving my stuff when I wasn't paying attention, throwing paper balls at me because they knew I couldn't see who threw it. Actually, this one time, I hear they tried to paint eyes over my eyelids once when I fell asleep in class, though that one was actually funny."

Fluttershy was no stranger to bullies. She was the weak one, the defenseless one. However...she didn't think other ponies would do that to a blind pony. It was unfair to her; it really was. He didn't have a choice...

"So...um...what's it like, being blind?"

"Well...at first, it's scary. You can't see what's in front of you or what's not there. You can't tell if its day or night. It's like standing in a room without any light..." Silver explained. Fluttershy gulped lightly. The mere thought of it...even for a day, terrified her. Yet Silver had made it clear he had been like that all his life.

I...I...can't imagine...how's he...like this now?

Before she could ask her question, Silver spoke again, "But, eventually you get used to it. You learn to turn your weaknesses into a strength, and you look back and wonder if it had ever been a weakness to begin with."

"W-what do you mean?" Now Fluttershy was just a little confused. He had been the kind of pony that didn't seem to know what it meant to be blind; at least, that's the impression he gave off when it all came out last time he was in town...So...?

"Sure, I can't see. I still learned that it was important to slow down and enjoy what's around you. I can't see it, but when I'm in a garden, or a forest, I listen to the animals around me, take in the scent of the flowers. Not many ponies do that these days, especially back in Canterlot." Silver finished.

"I...I think I know what you mean," Fluttershy responded after some silence, and it was true. She hadn't really talked to him, she decided. It had been quite a long time since she last met him; she'd only chatted with him for all of five minutes, if that; and yet she felt she found somepony that could enjoy nature as much as she did. "Everypony else is always so busy that they don't always have time to enjoy the outside. Well, I guess Azure, Applejack, and Rainbow are all exceptions...but even then, Rainbow's all about speed, and Azure and Applejack both spend most of that time working...They don't seem to have a lot of time to enjoy it. But...even though I also work a lot outside, I always take the time to enjoy where I am...I love nature..."

"And that's what I like about you, Fluttershy..."

Fluttershy came to stop, almost sending both ponies off-balance since they were tied together. D-did I...did he...?

"H-huh...?"

"You may not be as assertive as the others, and you tell me you're not as strong as them, but even so, you have your own qualities that make you stand out. You never forget what's important in life, and you care so much for the ponies you love that you're willing to stand up to anything, even your greatest fear...and you're one of the best singers I've ever heard."

Fluttershy felt her face heat up. For a moment, she wondered if her face was on fire. It was easily the best compliment she had ever received in her life. When she was younger, no colt really complimented her or approached her, and the ones that did were bullies. She hid her face behind her mane again, knowing full well he couldn't see anything let alone her. For a moment, she wondered if she could hide...until she remembered she was still tied to him.
-------------------------------------------
Silver could hear and slightly feel Fluttershy's heart beating due to how close he was to her. He had told her the truth about how he felt about her, currently, anyway. It was a bit more than simple flirting he'd just done, and yet the pegasus next to him was at a total loss for words...

"Oh-um...I...t-thank you..." Her voice was so soft that Silver wondered for a moment one simple thing: if his ears weren't made sharper by his lack of sight, would he have been able to hear her?

"No problem," Silver echolocated something familiar, "And speaking of the others..." He pointed to where he knew they were. They must have been on the way back. He fully expected Rainbow and Applejack to have won. Not that it mattered...

"Looks like we lost," Fluttershy mused.

"I don't know...I think I won before the race even started...." He lowered his free forehoof and raised the one tied to Fluttershy's. He could tell she was happy to have heard that. "Now...I guess we'd better head back."

"Y-yes, we should," responded Fluttershy. Silver undid the rope tying their feet together. Soon, the pegasus and unicorn turned and began to make their way back.

Azure, I hope that's enough time, he thought to himself. Rarity and me can't buy anymore time if we tried...
-------------------------------------------
"...so that's all you remember?" Azure asked. Twilight's story seemed to check out, but...she hadn't gone into the detail he had. It made him wonder if the picnic was the right venue to talk to her, even with the plan.

"Y-yeah," Twilight responded, "as much as I've tried, that's all I've been able to figure out..."

"Do you think that...maybe...?" Azure began, hoping she'd a bit more about it.

"I..." Twilight began, squinting her eyes. It occurred to Azure that for the first time in a while, she wasn't wearing her glasses. However, he knew it'd make him an idiot to point it out now. "I don't know..." She motioned past him. "B-but I think we'd better talk about this later..."

Azure turned, already seeing the others make their way back. He gritted his teeth for a moment. Knew I wouldn't have enough time...if I only had a few more minutes with her...I could get this sorted out...

And yet...I don't feel like I missed anything... Azure returned his attention to Twilight, "Okay..."

It wasn't that much longer before everypony returned. Rainbow was first back.

"Az?" she asked, clearly confused at seeing the two alone together, "Good to see you made it, but you missed out!"

I'm not so sure I did... Azure refused to let his mouth run until he was sure he knew what he was going to say. More importantly, he wanted to be sure he knew if what he felt right now, after talking with Twilight, was true before he said anything else that even sounded like he was flirting. Plus...

The other mare he had to worry about was mere yards away. Applejack once more stopped, and it was clear she didn't know what to make of the situation again. He knew she had said she wouldn't hate him if he did happen to choose Twilight over her, but he believed it wouldn't be easy for her to contain negative feelings.

"H-hey, Az..." Applejack greeted awkwardly.

"H-hey..." Azure knew exactly what the scene looked like, but he did get something out of this. But he couldn't say it...not with the others present.

Pinkie arrived next, "Hiiii Azie! Are you ready to play now?"

"Hmmm...I...don't know..." Azure was clearly kidding.

"C'mon, it'll be fun!" she chirped.

And now I feel uneasy...His stomach dropped into his intestines as soon as he heard Pinkie say that. It had been quite a while, but somehow, every time she said that while he was in earshot, he always wound up getting hurt.

Rarity returned, followed closely by Fluttershy and Silver. None of them had anything to say outside of a greeting to Azure, which he returned. It seemed like the picnic could finally get underway. However, before everypony could get completely comfortable, Applejack approached Azure with a simple question on her mind.

"So, Az, I noticed ya'll with Twilight when we got back..." Applejack said, "What were you two talkin' about?"

Azure blinked. "Just..." His eyes trailed up to the sky. "about..."

Before he could finish his sentence, he noticed something, odd, in the sky above.

"Az??" Applejack asked, noticing him squinting into the air.

"...Hold that thought...I think I just saw..." Azure started, not quite sure what he saw. The unidentified flying object began to dive. As it drew close, Azure noticed some familiar features...blue-black skin, insectoid wings and body...the creature a mashup of pony and insect. "Ungh!"

Azure's horn lit up fast as he fired a weak laser up towards the diving Shadow Ghoul, startling Applejack and drawing the attention of the others. The laser made contact, and the Shadow Ghoul fell to the ground like a sandbag, landing just to the left of Azure.

"...A Shadow Ghoul...?" Azure asked. "At this time of...?"

Silver stood up, his horn physically lighting up. "Everypony, watch out! I'm picking up something that shouldn't be here!"

That was all it took. Within moments, Azure turned. There was a swarm of them inbound, all Shadow Ghouls. As the waves of ghouls approached, Azure could see, in the distance, a handful of Shadow Fangs also entering the fray.

"O-oh no!" Fluttershy whimpered, caught off-guard by the sudden intrusion.

"These things again?!" Rainbow called out, sounding very annoyed by the fact this had happened.

"Of all days for this--!" Azure yelled, echoing the blue mare's sentiments perfectly as he began to fight again.
--------------------------------------------
Fluttershy and Spike ran for cover, not being aggressive (though Spike tried to appear brave for Fluttershy's sake). Naturally, Azure Courage, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack went right in and began fighting the Shadow Ghouls using their own unique styles. Much to Azure's surprise, Twilight also got involved, using the laser spell just as he would against them. More surprising, Rarity, using levitation to convert tree branches into clubs, participated in the fight; Pinkie also participated in the skirmish in a way only she could. For some reason, every time she would jump on one, the number "100" would pop up out of the defeated Shadow Ghoul before it went away...

Silver, to the surprise of all except Azure, also participated in the fight. He generally tried to stay in one place and let the stragglers come to him, and then used his sound magic to hit them with compressed sound waves. It was a crude, yet effective use of his magic, that much was certain.

Rainbow flew low, a streak of rainbow cutting through the crowd of Shadow Ghouls. The mare eventually plowed through a good number of them, coming to halt in a circle of ghouls. She used her wings as balance, allowing herself to stand on her hind legs unassisted. The monsters charged. One tried to ensnare her, but she managed to throw it off with sheer physical force. Another came at her from the nine-o'clock position, but the mare threw a left side kick, knocking the ghoul back with enough force to cause it to vanish.

The mare fought through all of them using the same martial arts that she'd practiced in her spare time--well, when she wasn't doing stunts, when a large Shadow Fang jumped down at her. Easily evading this attack with her speed, she slipped behind the wolf-like creature, and slammed her rear hooves into its back, drawing pain.

As she busied herself with dispatching it, Twilight continued to blast lasers, keeping her distance from the assailants however she could. One rushed right for her, legs extended...

Applejack intervened, snaring the beast in her lasso and swinging it around, treating it like a yo-yo as the beast continued to collide with its bretheren, eventually causing a double knockout and rendering the rope useless.

"Thanks, Applejack," Twilight called out over the sounds of fighting.

"Ain't over yet, sugarcube!" Applejack responded, going back to bucking two ghouls hard in the head, taking them out.

Pinkie bounced up into the air, flailing her legs madly, landing on one Shadow Ghoul, strangely defeating it. Once again, a number floated up from the remains of the bug-pony hybrid before vanishing, but as she continued to bounce on a few more in the chain, the number that came out continued to increase the more she defeated.

Eventually, though, her combo was broken by a Shadow Fang leaping down in front of her. Applejack had managed to yank her back a bit before the Shadow Fang could return the favor and avenge its friends. The monster roared, but Applejack roared right back.

"I ain't scared of you no more!" she yelled bravely, smashing her back legs into the creature's face, leaving it open for Azure to use a charged laser shot on the chest of the creature, defeating it.

Meanwhile, Rarity furiously batted away Shadow Ghouls with the nearest branches she could reach, huffing "Take that! And that!" ever so often. It seemed to be working well for her, at any rate. Closer to Fluttershy and Spike, Silver was playing defense.

"Silver! You sure you can do this?!" Spike asked, noting the encroaching squad of creatures with a look of fear almost purely visible in his features.

"Just because I'm blind doesn't mean I can't fight back!" Silver responded, his horn starting to light up. For just a few moments, he became truly blind. However, his magic was merely redirected to an offensive purpose. A ten meter area in front of him began to thrum violently as though it were made of guitar strings, and the Shadow Ghouls were blown back, seemingly incinerating from the high-frequency soundwaves.

The fighting continued from there, each fighting pony tangled up with tens of opponents at almost any given time. Overall, the team was doing exceptionally well given the numbers, but they were slowly starting to get worn down from it all. Azure blasted a few more away, gritting his teeth, frustrated with the fact the fight was going on this long.
--------------------------------------------
What's going on? wondered the colt to himself. These things shouldn't be able to take sunlight...

"Azure!" Twilight called out, "Look out!"

Azure turned to his left, spotting an injured Shadow Fang just about to claw at him. He leapt back just moments before it could cleave him, and finished it off.

"This is crazy," Azure responded. "Their weakness is light, isn't it?!"

"Yeah, that's what the books said, though it does just take more magic to control them under these conditions..." Twilight noted, frowning.

"Alright then, I guess there's no choice," The cyan colt closed his eyes. "I've just gotta use...that spell."

"You mean...that one that causes blinding light?" Twilight asked.

"That one. That should take care of this in an instant. And if he's using up a great deal of magic, all we've gotta do is find that colt before he can recover!" Azure responded, stating his game plan. "I just need a little time. I've practiced the spell since I first tried it..."

When I wasn't brooding over that situation I'd pulled Applejack, you and me into, anyway...

"O-okay! I'll move away from you for a bit!" Twilight said. "Don't want to get blinded again!"

Azure closed his eyes, focusing magic into his horn. He remembered the steps, having practiced them when he was in the mood to practice the light spell again. Though he hadn't suffered any more horn immolations since his first attempts, it still did take a lot of concentration and focus in order to get it down. However, Azure didn't need too long.

The colt's horn glowed cyan at first, then the glow changed to whitish-yellow.

"Alright, here we g--"

Something strange happened at that instant. For some reason, Azure found that he couldn't feel his magic. And it felt like his horn had gone numb. He looked up, to find that his horn had stopped glowing. At the same time, the Shadow Ghouls appeared to dissipate into thin air. Rarity was no longer weaponizing random objects; her magic was not working. Twilight was having similar problems, from the looks of things, judging from the deep, disturbed frown on her face.

"What the--" Azure began, unsure of what just happened.

Before he could consider the implications further, there was a sudden, shrill cry. The scream sounded familiar.

"Ugh?!" The colt tried to turn to see what had happened, knowing it was a friend, but something heavy and hard crashed into the back of his head, knocking him flat on his stomach in an instant. Already, Azure could feel himself starting to lose consciousness. He looked up, seeing four gray hooves, and a cloaked figure.

"Really, Shade?" the figure asked a pony. "You couldn't stop playing around--that's why you lost to this one..."

And that was the last word Azure heard before slipping into unconsciousness...

Chapter 26: ...Tarnished

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Chapter 26: ...Tarnished
---------------------------------
"Is he alright?"

"He got hit pretty hard in the back of the head..."

"What was that? Our magic stopped working completely for a few moments...and then...!"

Azure Courage could only imagine what was going on. His head still hurt, but slowly, he was starting to return to consciousness.

What...happened...? he wondered to himself. His eyes were still shut, but he was starting to move as he began to regain alertness.

"He's waking up..." He began to recognize Silver's voice now, and Silver sighed after noting this. "He's not gonna like this..."

Abruptly, an image flashed into his mind. He and most of the others at the picnic...fighting...!

"Shadow Ghouls...!" Azure's eyes snapped open, and he sluggishly began struggling to his feet.

"Calm down, Azure," Silver said, though it was clear from his voice he did not like the turn of events one bit either. Azure once more failed to heed his words, trying to get back on his feet.

Memory began to flood back to him now that his consciousness was coming back to him. They were all at a picnic, when the Shadow Ghouls attacked. It seemed to be an endless battle...Azure tried to use a new spell...then...

"Somepony screamed..." Azure said, dazed. He blinked once, then twice. He looked around, hoping to see all his friends there in one piece and relatively unharmed.

His friends were totally silent. They knew he heard it, and their faces represented an emotion Azure didn't like to see. It was sorrow, and possibly hopelessness in their features. Azure slowly looked around, trying to process what he was seeing.

Spike...Applejack...Rainbow...Rarity...Silver...Pinkie... He noticed Pinkie's mane wasn't its usual self. It had somehow lost its poofiness between when he was knocked out and when he was conscious. Her tail was also flat, and her fur tone in general...it looked like she had gone slightly...darker, in shade. Not one even looked relieved at anything. In fact, they-- Wait...

He blinked several times, looking around. "Twilight...Fluttershy...where are they?!"

The group went silent again. Only half of the group could meet his eyes. "Where are they?!"

"Taken..." Pinkie finally broke the silence. Even her voice sounded off.

"W-what...?"

Silver cut in at this point. "Azure...both of them were taken away almost right after you were knocked out."

There was silence for a few good moments. All Azure could hear was the sound of his heart beating furiously. Not only were two of his friends swiped right out from under his nose without anything he could do about it, but one of them, he--

"By who!? Not that pony that summoned the Shadow Ghouls?!" Azure yelled, already starting to become overcome with emotion.

His worst fear was coming to pass...

No.

Not if he had anything to say about it...
---------------------------------
"No, Az," Applejack explained, "There was another one in a cloak too. He was the one that knocked you out..."

Silver could hear the confusion and anger in her tone too. He was angry himself; his magic got turned off, and he couldn't have done anything to stop the two cloaked equines from making off with Fluttershy and Twilight. He hadn't seen any of it; not that he could even if he tried, but from what he could gather, Fluttershy had passed out from fright, while Twilight struggled against her captors.

"Fluttershy passed out when the cloaked unicorn got close, but Twilight...she was..." Silver heard Rainbow state. "She was handled the same way you were!"

With his magic re-enabled, Silver could "see" everything clearly once more. However, he didn't need his echolocation to locate the next step of events. He could hear Azure hyperventilating now, and there wasn't a bucket of cold water around to snap him out of it.

"Darn it all!!" Azure was moving now. His movements were more erratic than normal. Silver could tell right now that in his condition, he likely wouldn't be able to go on. The blind pony could understand what Azure was feeling right now, but...

"Az, where are you going?!" Rainbow called out.

"I'm gonna go after them!" Azure yelled back.

"Hold it, Azure!" Silver said, gritting his teeth and rushing forward. He could tell he was in Azure's path since the hoofsteps stopped. "I can't let you do that!"
---------------------------------
It was hard to believe, but it was true. Silver had cut off Azure in his path, and at first, Rarity couldn't understand why he had done it. Time was ticking, and the longer they spent arguing, the further away the brutes that attacked them would get. But, after she considered what Azure had been through recently...

"Don't try to stop me, Silver, I'm going to get them back, even if I'm going it alone!"

And how far he was willing to go for a friend in need...

"Do you hear yourself right now?!" Even with two dead eyes, Silver's stare still appeared violent. "We couldn't handle them as a group when our magic cut out! What makes you think you can do anything alone?!"

"I-I know how to fight without relying on magic!" Azure retorted. "I can fight them now without any help! Besides, they only knocked me out because they got the drop on me before I could react! I'm going to be more perceptive this time!"

Rarity finally understood what Silver was doing. He wasn't stopping Azure because he condoned the actions of the two ponies that had done as they had; he was stopping Azure because in his current emotional state...

"You wouldn't last two seconds against them even if you were on-guard!"

"I don't care, Silver!" Azure shouted, seeming to get louder. "I'll fight them, even if it costs me--"

Though Rarity didn't see why it had to come to it, she disregarded it as Silver's only real means of communicating with Azure when he was like this. Silver reached out, striking Azure in the face hard enough to send him stumbling back until he fell on his rump. That clearly hadn't done anything for the overall situation, yet...

"Whoa, Silver, what're you doing?!" Applejack called out, looking about ready to stomp over there and return the favor in Azure's place.

"Don't, Applejack," Rarity pleaded. This earned her a few looks.

"Rarity...?" Pinkie asked, still clearly depressed.

"Azure needs this..." Rarity responded, turning her attention back to the spectacle. "Please, refrain from stepping in. Silver isn't out to hurt Azure...more than he needs to..."

Azure rubbed the sore area. Now, Rarity could see his eyes were alight once again with his usual magic color. The last time she'd seen him like that, Virid had been the one angering him. However, at that time, his rage had been justified. Now, however, Azure was directing his rage at Silver because Silver was in his way.

Try as she may, Rarity couldn't help but wonder if Twilight's being taken was the cause of some of Azure's anger.

"What was that for?!" Rarity could tell Azure was already close to a breaking point, and Silver hitting him had brought him to the edge of it now. He was back on his feet, no longer caring if Silver could see his death glares.

"To knock some sense into you!" Silver shouted back. "You're a lot of things Azure. I didn't know 'stupid' was one of them..."

"I can't take this stuff from anypony right now, not even you!" Azure snorted. "I'll say it once: move!"

When Silver failed to comply, Azure tried to thrust his forehoof into Silver's face to prove a point. The others only managed part of a gasp, Rarity herself included. It seemed like it was going to be a clean hit, but Silver moved his head out of the way just enough to where the attack missed. Silver repeated his earlier attack, but Azure was more prepared for it this time, stumbling backwards only a couple of steps.

Azure wiped his hoof over the sore area again. "That's it, Silver! I'm going, even if I have to take you down to do it!"

Azure rushed forward again, with Silver merely looking on, any anger he had replaced with relative calmness.

"You can't get past me like that, Azure," Silver stated clearly, his voice raised in volume but not in anger. Azure reached Silver, throwing yet another forehoof in his friend's direction. Silver took a glancing hit, but did not immediately retaliate. Azure tried again with his opposite forehoof, and finally managed to land his first hit.

"Silver, I'm not going to hold back!" Azure growled.

"You can't see why I'm doing this, can you?" Silver responded, still all calm. This only served to agitate Azure further, and he spun around, aiming for a double back kick. However, to Rarity's shock, Silver was able to avoid this move too. Even if his other senses were heightened, Rarity couldn't see how Silver could have possibly evaded that.

"What's Silver up to?" Rainbow asked, hovering in place. "I don't get it!"

Rarity took a closer look. "Azure may battle with his emotions, but right now, his heart may be in the right place...but..."

"But what?" questioned Applejack.

"He's too upset to see straight." Rarity said, "Silver knows this. Azure Courage is normally a very reckless pony, but even so...he does at least some thinking, even at his worst."

"But now, look at him. He's emotionally devastated. Right now, he views Silver, his closest friend, not necessarily as an enemy, but as an obstacle that he needs to get out of his way. Normally, he would take his friends' advice. However, Azure can't make that distinction right now..."

The fight continued, with Silver landing another punch to Azure's face, but it didn't seem to phase him. It seemed like, with every hit Silver evaded or landed, he was only getting more and more erratic.

"So..." Rainbow said. "It ain't that Silver knew the attack was coming..."

"Az can't even focus right now," Applejack cut in, seeming as though she knew something the others didn't. "If he can't even land a good hit on somepony that could match him, he won't stand a chance against much of anythin' if he goes off now."

"That's why Silver's butting in?" Spike asked.

"Exactly, Spike," Rarity responded.
---------------------------------
Azure Courage couldn't believe what was happening. In the space of a few minutes, two friends were snatched out from under his nose. He had a duty to fulfill, both as a friend and as a Protector of the Bearers, yet Silver was getting in his way. Worse still, he couldn't get Silver out of it.

Azure charged forth again, using the gravity spell to manipulate his jumps. He then made himself heavier, aiming to crash down on Silver's midsection. However, Silver dodged to the left.

"I've known you forever, Azure," Silver said, each word sounding more like a taunt than a condolence to him, "I didn't think you were this brutal. We're on the same side! I'm just as upset as you are..."

Azure's eyes widened, but the statement only made him madder.

"What do you know about how I feel?!" Azure roared, unaware his voice was breaking just a little. Azure believed he sounded enraged, but Silver only seemed to "look" at him oddly. "Have you ever had a friend foalnapped right from under your nose? Have you?!"

"You haven't either," Silver replied, casually dodging a few more shots. Azure wasn't aware of it, but the more emotional he got, the more his style was clouded. He thought he was throwing perfect hoof-punches and his tactics were spot-on.

Why can't I hit him!? Azure thought to himself. I know he knows some martial arts, but he can't use them to their full extent, even with his sound magic! So why is he--?!

"Azure, you can't go on like that!" Silver shouted, and Azure once more took it as an insult rather than a hint.

"I could if you would just butt out, Silver!" Azure responded, going up on his hind legs to throw a punch.
---------------------------------
"My greatest fear is that I won't be able to protect my friends...or anypony, for that matter, when they need it the most. It almost happened that night, and the mere thought of what might have happened to you if I hadn't...if I hadn't spotted that unicorn..."
---------------------------------
"Azure Courage, do you even hear yourself right now?!" Silver shouted, meeting his move with an effective parry.
---------------------------------
"I understand that you want to protect what's important to you, but I can't let you lose sight of who you are to do it."
---------------------------------
"You may be hard-headed, reckless even, but there's no need for you to put this all on yourself!" Silver launched his own attack, aiming for Azure's chest. Azure couldn't block in time, but refused to let himself fall over.
---------------------------------
"Why do ya'll have to carry such a heavy burden?"

"Because..."
---------------------------------
"I made a promise, Silver, and I intend to keep it!" Azure didn't even notice the tear sliding down one side of his face as he moved to attack Silver again. Azure thought it was his technique that knocked Silver back, but he didn't realize it was the sheer shock of how he sounded to Silver that did the job.

"I..." Silver started, getting back on his hooves. "I understand, Azure! Knowing you, you did make a promise, but you didn't promise to do it alone!"
---------------------------------
"I'm...I'm Azure Courage. I moved down here from Canterlot last week. ... Well, it was a matter of noise pollution, really."

"Yeah, Canterlot can be noisy sometimes, but, well, I'm here on royal business...I was sent by the princess to check on preparations for the festival..."

"You know...the Princess...?"

"I'm her most trusted student...oh, I forgot, I'm Twilight Sparkle..."
---------------------------------
Silver continued to let Azure come to him, and yet again avoided another hoof-punch. Azure was breathing hard.

"I won't..." Azure panted. He knew he had more reserves than this...so why...?
---------------------------------
"'Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape, and she will bring about everlasting night'...I hope the princess was right... I hope it really is just an old ponytale..."

"Wait, so...I'm not the only one tracking that?"

"Wait...what?"

"You just mentioned Nightmare Moon, didn't you? How the so-called Mare in the Moon is supposed to return this year?"

"That's right, but...I thought I was the only one that...saw it coming..."
---------------------------------
"I can't...I can't let her down!"

Silver's face twitched.

"'Her'? Two of them were taken..."

Azure gritted his teeth, and ran at Silver again, but his pace was slower than it was before, and more tears were coming from his eyes now.
---------------------------------
"...I never really got to congratulate you for taking care of the ursa..."

"You don't need to thank me...If anything, I should thank you..."

"Thank me? For what?"

"When I saw the size of that Ursa, I began to wonder if I could ever pull it off...But with your kind words, I got the confidence that I needed."

"?!"

"Thanks..."
---------------------------------
Azure was knocked back by Silver. It was clear even Silver didn't exactly know what Azure was going through. Azure struggled to get back on his hooves; again, he wasn't sure why it was suddenly getting harder and harder for him to keep going.

"...Twilight..." he mumbled.

"Eh...?" Silver asked.

"...I..."

Azure couldn't complete his statement, "M-move, Silver!"

Azure's movements were sluggish in addition to being erratic. He wasn't truly aware of it, but he was missing almost every shot he threw the blind pony's way.
---------------------------------
"You got hurt again, didn't you? You were out fighting, weren't you? I knew you couldn't go long without getting yourself injured! Why do you insist on putting yourself in physical danger?!"

"It was just an accident, I swear..."
---------------------------------
"So, just so you know, we're going to go up on the mountain and persuade the dragon to nap somewhere else..."

"Now, when you say 'persuade'..."

"Of course your first response is to resort to violence..."

"Well, how else are you going to convince a dragon to move?"

"If we simply explain to it what its snoring is doing, it might realize what it's doing!"

"If it cared enough about what it was doing, it wouldn't have moved so close!"
---------------------------------
"You know I'm not letting you away from here until you've cooled off, Azure!" Silver said, whirling around and kicking Azure under the chin. Though the physical damage wasn't in any way close to life-threatening, Azure found himself trembling as he fought to rise to his four feet again.

"You want me to cool off..." Azure's eyes started glowing again, "When Twilight's in danger?!"

"Fluttershy was taken too!" Silver responded. "Why do you only care about Twilight being taken?"

Azure didn't respond, gritting his teeth. More tears rolled down his face as everypony else looked on.
---------------------------------
"Wait."

"What?"

"I want to know...what exactly do you plan to do?"

"I'm going to go back over there as soon as I take care of some other stuff and do a stakeout, like when Dash and me went over to Fluttershy's that night. If it shows up..."

"You're going to fight it, right?"

"Of course I am! I know you don't exactly like it when I fight, but..."

"No, no, I don't like it when you fight, but when it's like this...well, it's obvious whoever's behind this isn't looking for a friend. And neither are the creatures they're sending after us."

"Azure, do what you have to do. Just be careful..."
---------------------------------
"...I..."

Azure's horn flickered. Even his magic was betraying now...

"It's not that I don't care about Fluttershy, Silver...!"

"Then...why do you seem to only be worried about Twilight...?"

Azure didn't answer, his horn lighting up brightly, matching his eyes.

"S-Silver...!"
---------------------------------
"What?"

"Oh, it's nothing...it's just that the glasses fit you..."

"Yeah, I'd bet..."

"Oh, come on, at least it's only temporary..."

"Yeah, I guess, though if this had happened when I was in magic school...who knows what kind of hazing I would have gotten from other students...I read a lot and I didn't have any interest in other ponies...the glasses would have--"

"I wouldn't be too sure of that..."

"How do you know how they would have treated me?"

"Just a hunch, Twilight..."

"How do you think I look in glasses?"

"A lot cuter than Rarity when she wears hers..."
---------------------------------
Azure's horn and eyes returned to normal, Azure closing his eyes.

"Well...can you answer?" Silver asked. Azure spasmed, choking back his words, not bothering to fight back the tears.

Twilight...I...I know what my answer is...to everything...But I have to get you back, no matter what...in order to tell you what those are!
---------------------------------
"Hey, you! Wait up!"

"...what?"

"You dropped one of your books!"

"I--I--"

"Um...Here...I'll put it back in your bag..."

"Th-th-th...Thank...you..."
-----
Fast forward...a few years later... Azure thought to himself. I-I'm almost sure it's her...but even so...
-----
"W-wait, Twilight!"

"?"

"Y-you dropped your book..."

"T-thank you..."
---------------------------------
"...I love her..."

Silver blinked his visionless eyes. Did he hear Azure correctly?

"W-what...?" He was amazed to hear it. A loud stomp filled his ears. Silver didn't need sight to know what he would have been seeing otherwise. It was the visage of an almost desperate colt, one that wanted so badly to save the mare he treasured he was just about ready to toss aside everything for her sake.

And that colt was Azure Courage.

"I love Twilight!!!"

The sounds of several simultaneous gasps filled his ears. Silver couldn't have imagined that it would have come out under these circumstances. However, even though it was a surprise to hear it now, Silver noticed Azure's aura changed. If he didn't take this shot now...

"Azure, I'm not going to stand here and try to convince you that I know how you feel, but I can sympathize with you," Silver said, taking a few steps towards him. "But tell me, how do you think they feel?"
---------------------------------
Azure blinked as Silver motioned behind him almost perfectly to where the others were standing. They all shared looks of concern and worry. And once again, Pinkie was still clinically depressed.

"They also want to save their friends...your friends," Silver emphasized. "I understand it hurts you that you couldn't protect her then, but it's not too late to save her and Fluttershy..."

The words rung clear in Azure's mind.

I-I almost forgot...Fluttershy too...

"But you won't be able to do that if you forget the kind of pony you are."

Did I...did I completely lose myself in my emotions? I didn't care what happened to Fluttershy, it was that bad? It was guilt he was feeling now. He'd lashed out at everypony, even his friends, because of circumstances he probably couldn't have helped. He was caught off-guard by the sudden attack, and he wanted so desperately to make it up to Twilight he lost himself in his anger.

"I-I'm sorry..." Azure's lip quivered and tears began to fall down his face freely. He could see it now; once again, he was the fool. He shut his eyes tightly, lowering his head. "I'm so sorry...!"
---------------------------------
Silver sighed in relief. At last, Azure understood what he was doing wrong; at last, he understood his emotions were only clouding his judgment. Silver found himself breathing heavily. Even given Azure's state, Silver still wasn't able to completely evade all of his attacks. At his worst, Azure could still land a clean hit; but Silver employed a defensive fighting style-not the best thing to go up against Azure. If he did that poorly against him...

"Now, it's our turn," Rarity announced, walking towards them.

"For what?" Rainbow questioned, making only a little effort to hide her impatience at the situation. She knew just as well as anypony else that those two cloaked ponies were making off with their "prizes".

"What mares do best, apply a gentle touch..." responded the unicorn as she continued over to Azure, who was still trembling on the spot, still beating himself up over the fool that he was for letting himself get to that point. He was still despairing over the situation; Silver could sense that, yet he seemed a little calmer now. Silver began to walk towards the approaching hoofsteps, stopping halfway to process what happened a little further.

"But first...Silver, are you alright?" Rarity asked, stopping as she passed him.

"Yeah, just need to catch my breath. You know what to do, right?" Silver replied.

"Of course," Silver didn't need eyesight to inform him Rarity had winked at him; it just seemed like something she'd do right about now. Silver closed his dead eyes and allowed the mares to pass him, counting the bodies. Two on land, one slightly dragging her hooves; likely Pinkie given how hard she'd taken the foalnapping, one in the air. There were two bodies missing, but Silver guessed that even Spike knew he wouldn't do anything more than the other three would either.

Silver altered his echolocation, and found what, or rather, who, was missing from the group of ponies. Silver walked again, finding that Applejack hadn't move from her spot since Azure's little annoucement.

"You alright, Applejack?"

I hope she's going to put it aside for the moment... Silver thought. That couldn't have been easy for her to hear; she does have feelings for him too...

"Yeah..." Applejack's heartbeat hitched for a moment, Silver being close enough to pick it up. The colt couldn't place it, but he'd guessed Applejack was telling only half the truth. "Yeah, I'm fine..."

I hope you are...there's something we've gotta do now, as a team...

"And...Silver?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for bringin' Az back," responded Applejack.

"No problem," Silver responded, turning back to the group over by Azure. He didn't need to see to know how Rarity's "gentle touch" went. He could detect four bodies clustered very close together where Azure was now, Azure himself at the center of it all. "Everypony needs to vent now and then."
---------------------------------
It was calming. He didn't have to tackle this alone; he was a fool to think he could given the situation. Azure Courage was between three mares who he'd formed close friendships with. Applejack wasn't involved in the hug, but it was almost at the back of the colt's mind right now. He took a deep breath, allowing himself to be calm. At first, he shuddered as the air entered his lungs, but his condition stablized, physically and emotionally.

Azure closed his eyes as his friends backed up. When he reopened them, he was completely serious; but not necessarily full of rage. Well, except for the dimly glowing eyes. He was back in business.

"It's time," Silver cut in.

"Right," Azure replied. "But before we go, there's something we've got to take care of first."

His gaze focused on Spike, who had joined the group at this point.

"Spike," Azure said, "I want you to write the Princess and tell her what happened here."

"W-what do you think that will do?"

"I don't know. But, we can't just keep this from her, one way or the other. Oh, and..." Azure said, "That light spell...Twilight's notes on it? Send those along with it."

"Why?" Rainbow cut in. "What's she gonna do with the notes?"

"...Do any of you remember my cousins, Virid, Blitz?"

"Y-yes, of course we do," Rarity responded, not really getting it either.

"They're in the Royal Guards now," Silver said. "Azure's betting on a long shot, but it just might work..."

Yeah...a long shot, Silver... Azure thought to himself. Even if this much has happened, I still have a secret to keep...

"Well, that's great and all," Rainbow cut in, "But what are we gonna do about those creeps in the cloaks?!"

"We're going to do what I planned to do alone..." Azure said, "Chase after them..."

"But they've definitely got some distance on us now, Az!" Applejack called out. "They could be anywhere outside the town limits by this point!"

"Yeah..." Azure stated. "That's true...but...do you all remember the dragon that tried to nest just outside of town?"

"Fluttershy told me about that earlier," Silver said. "A big red dragon..."

"Yeah, well...I was over on the cliffside, watching it leave. As it did, I managed to overhear it saying something about 'rats with yellow eyes'. At the time, I didn't think to mention it...but I think he was talking about Shadow Ghouls..."

"Wait, are you saying that he was run out of his original home by those things?!" Spike shouted.

"It can't hurt to ask...Spike, you're always with Twilight in the library...Did she ever look up where dragons normally live?" Azure questioned. Spike paused for a moment, trying to remember.

"It was like, right after it happened, but...I think I remember her saying that it wasn't time for the migration yet...So...according to her...she said...the Badlands, just south of the Everfree Forest..." Spike struggled to relay what he believed he heard Twilight say.

"The badlands, hm..." Azure said. "That seems like where they're going, so...we have to get moving. Did anypony see which way they went after they snatched Twilight and Fluttershy?"

"T-they went...!" Pinkie started, having regained some of her color and "poofiness", hopping towards a thick part of the trees to the south. "That way!!" It was clear, she had hope that this would still turn out alright.

"Then...that's where we'll go..." Azure said. "Spike, I'm going to have to ask you to remain behind and wait..."

Spike closed his hands into fists. It was clear he wanted to help out too...

"Alright...I'll stay behind and write the letter..." he agreed.

"Everypony else ready?" Azure asked, looking around. There was a "hmph" of agreement from the others. "Then let's go!"

The six ponies quickly shot off into the forest, Rainbow using her wings while the others used their hooves. Spike was left to return to the library, entrusted to give the status report.

Azure closed his eyes, and reopened them as he got into the lead. His eyes were glowing vividly now, just as they had before against so many other opponents, Silver included. He didn't even seem to notice this, too focused on the task at hand.

Twilight...Fluttershy...don't worry. I--We...will save you!
---------------------------------
"...stop complaining...we did it, didn't we, Shade?"

"You know I don't like it when my creatures are nullified, Tagane!"

"Couldn't help it. It was the best way to catch them off guard, and besides...you were playing with them..."

Twilight's eyes slowly opened. Her head felt sore, and she wasn't sure why, but she was being carried from place to place, on the back of another pony. At first, she could only see a blur, but as her consciousness began to focus, she realized she was in a deep, deep forest. She began to look around, fearing for her friend's safety more than her own.

The first thing she noticed was that she was atop a pony's back, horizontally, her legs dangling off her captor's back. As she pitched her head to the left, she noticed Fluttershy, still passed out from the fear, slung over another cloaked pony. Memories of the ruined picnic came flooding back to her, and instinctively, she began to move just a little bit.

She hadn't so much as twitched a muscle when the pony carrying her calmly turned his head and said to her, in a placid tone, "Refrain from getting any ideas. We were told to bring you back alive..."

"But I'm sure the boss wouldn't mind if we..." The other pony said, an insane sort of tone to his voice, "Roughed up our cargo to do it..."

Did they...did they...?

"Oh no, not you," The pony in front continued, "The one I'm carrying..."

I-I can't let Fluttershy get hurt...but I can't do anything here... Twilight thought. I...I can handle some pain, but...Fluttershy...?

"I must admit, Shade," the pony carrying her said. "You know how to negotiate with hostages well...just leave the planning to me..."

"Not on your life, Tagane..." Shade grumbled, looking ahead.

"Tell me..." Twilight began, "What kind of ponies are you?"

"It's not important," Tagane said. "Nothing will matter when we reach our destination. Just cooperate, and your friend will not be hurt."

Twilight hung limp. She didn't want to see Fluttershy hurt, and that was the worst part of all-rather than threaten her with physical violence if she resisted, they would threaten her friend. These were truly evil ponies she knew she was dealing with now.

The lavender unicorn looked up. She had to do something about this situation, but what could she do that wouldn't get Fluttershy hurt?

Can I use my magic now...? she asked herself, finding it easy to call on her magic. She knew she needed to be discrete about it, otherwise things would get worse. Looking up again, she saw several branches she could break off easily without them noticing a thing.

This is all I can do...I'm just going to hope it'll be enough...Everypony else...it's in your hooves now...

An image filled her mind. It rejuvenated her, gave her hope.
-----------
"Is there any way I can give up?!"
-----------
Azure Courage... Twilight thought to herself. "There can be no harmony without courage"...Now, I may not be in a position to fight back...but I'm going to share your courage now...

Discretely, Twilight focused her magic into her horn. Neither of the ponies seemed to notice the sound of a thin stick snapping off of a tree as they continued on their path...

Chapter 27: A Ghoulish Surprise

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Chapter 27: A Ghoulish Surprise
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The letter was finished. From the fact it refused to use many big words...or phrases, and appeared that it was hastily scribbled rather than carefully scribed, as well as the enclosed notes, Princess Celestia was sure to realize this letter was bad news before she even actually read it. Spike quickly inhaled, held up the scroll, and exhaled a large amount of green flames.

"It's done..." he said, sitting down on Twilight's bed. It was still just as made as it was that morning. "Now...I've just gotta...wait..."

Spike buried his head in his hands. Twilight was always there, like that nagging older sister that made him do all the chores. He didn't really mind it, except in some days where she got really studious and drove him to the point of exhaustion only to wake him up early the next day...

But now, with Twilight foalnapped, the young dragon could see quite clearly that he was wrong to have just taken her for granted all those years since she became his assistant. The wait for answers was killing him. At least when Rarity got foalnapped he did what he could. Yet, today, he couldn't stop Fluttershy from getting foalnapped either. He got casually brushed aside when he tried to help out, just like before.

All he could do now was leave it in the hooves of the others. He wasn't completely aware of it, but he was already starting to cry.

"Please...bring them back...everypony..."
--------------------------------------------
Azure Courage wasn't sure how long they'd followed the trail. He didn't care how much time had passed; in fact, he found it better to not focus on that aspect of the chase. The group had followed Pinkie's direction for the very first part of the chase, but after about half a mile, Applejack quickly took over the lead. Nopony really objected. Silver also volunteered to take the lead; it was a deep forest, perhaps his remaining senses could help pinpoint their direction.

As for Applejack...

"I'm telling ya, I should be able to track 'em down!"

Her experience as a farmhand seemed to give her confidence she could track down the miscreants in cloaks. Azure didn't see why not: the only thing he knew about forest environments was how to bounce off the walls. Besides, Azure's sense of direction was very poor if he didn't know where to begin. And this was a case he knew he wouldn't have gotten done without his friends' help, now that he was deep in the Everfree.

The group had stopped, not necessarily to catch their breath but to gather their bearings and decide which way to go next. Rainbow went high up, above the trees, to see if she could see any signs of disturbance. Applejack scouted ahead, seeing if she could find tracks. Silver stayed back with the group to track odd movements with his echolocation. Rarity also pitched in.

As it turned out, her mark wasn't just for show: she knew how to find gems with a certain spell she passed on to Twilight. However, the spell essentially functioned as an X-ray. She insisted that with enough power, the spell could pass through the trees for a distance to see if the captors were hiding anywhere.

This left Azure with Pinkie to wait for anything that the four of them could find.

Everypony's working together... he noted. The loss of our friends hasn't destroyed us...if anything, it's only made our resolve more clear...Just like that time Rarity got foalnapped...

Azure closed his eyes, Only, the captors won't respond so well to complaints and prissy behavior...

Rainbow flew down next to them, hovering. "Can't see a thing with all these trees around!"

"We're deep inside the Everfree. I don't think the captors would be taking the beaten path anyway..." Azure noted. "Silver, are you hearing--"

Silver made a gesture for Azure to be quiet for a little longer. For a few seconds, he stared off towards the southeast, as his horn lit up. The dark blue glow seemed to point in that direction.

"That way...birds are...being disturbed..." Silver said, still appearing to concentrate.

"Rarity! Have you found anything yet?" Azure called out.

"No, Azure, I have not," Rarity said, clearly exerting herself by using the spell at such potency.

"Everypony, get over here!" called Applejack. "I see somethin' on the ground over here!"

Everypony looked to each other, blinking, wondering what it was. All five quickly moved over to where Applejack was standing, looking down.

"Hoof prints...?" Azure asked, just before looking down. What he saw was far more obvious than hoof prints in the ground.

It was an arrow, hastily yet carefully scribed into the ground, very visible to the unaided eye. The tool was a discarded twig, laid crookedly across the tip of the arrow. This obviously wasn't drawn by the cloaked cohorts; they would have needed hooves or magic, and neither of them would have been so keen on telling them exactly where they were going.

"What are we looking at?" Silver questioned.

"It's an arrow," Rarity said. "I think Twilight might have drawn this for us to show where they were going..."

"Which way is it pointing?"

"Southeast," Azure said. "Where you heard the disturbances?"

"That's right!" Silver responded.

"Well, if we follow these arrows, we'll find 'em..." Applejack took control. "Time's wastin'! We've gotta get moving!"

The group began to move about. It was only Applejack and Silver teaming up as the scouts now; Applejack to search out with her eyes for the arrows Twilight inscribed in the dirt and Silver to listen ahead to make sure they were on the right direction. Every now and again, they'd find an arrow, and Silver would confirm it. The group made ample distance in virtually no time at all, and as they paused once again to confirm their direction, Applejack noticed something.

"Hey, this one here looks like it was just drawn!" Applejack noted, pointing to the arrow again.

Silver closed his eyes, concentrating. His ears visibly twitched.

"I hear...voices! Just ahead!" Silver said. "How can we know it's them..."

"It's a bit risky..." Azure said, stepping forward. "But I doubt they would have gone to the trouble of taking them alive and going in here if they didn't need to bring them back alive..."
--------------------------------------------
Shade was somewhat grateful to see that the hostage that was still conscious was cooperating. She had hardly said a peep since she first woke up. Part of him wished she would have put up some resistance--it certainly would have been exciting to be able to smack both Bearers around if she had. However, another part loved the feeling that he got whenever an adversary's spirit broke. It was the sweetest feeling he ever had, and he wanted to savor it. And...he wanted to see the expression on that cyan colt's face when--

"Twilight......."

Shade's ear twitched, and Tagane skidded to a halt. Shade forced himself to stop as well, and both turned back, bewildered.

"Fluttershy!!!"

The mare on his back began to move, though it was clear she was still a bit out of it. Tagane gritted his teeth.

"How...?" he snarled. "We couldn't have made that big of a trail on our own?" He turned to Shade. "Tell me you kept--"

"I didn't summon a thing! I didn't think we'd be followed..." Shade suddenly grinned. "Not that I care if we were or not..."

"Shade, don't be an idiot..." Tagane admonished, trying to take the lead. "We need to get out of here, fast! If we try to take a longer way back to the hideout, we might still be able to shake them..."

"That might be true, Tagane..." Shade grinned, turning to the still-unconscious pegasus on his back. "But...the other four Bearers are there. I don't think the Boss will mind if we try to...add to our cargo."

Tagane looked up.

"Look, you know they are probably closing in," Shade said. "I'm sure I'll be fine on my own against the lot..."

"Fine, then..." Tagane said. "There's no arguing with you, is there? I'll go on back to HQ the long way. You try taking the rest of them on your own. But pull back if you're going to be overwhelmed..."

"No danger of that!" Shade said, turning to the pony on his back, grinning...
--------------------------------------------
Azure pulled ahead of the group for a moment, ready for whatever was ahead. According to Silver, they had stopped to talk about it, but that was all Azure needed to know, and he and Dash blasted off ahead of the group, quickly followed by the others. Also, Silver mentioned something about hearing tree bark being broken, but by the time he said it, Azure was nearly out of earshot.

"Somepony's up ahead!" Dash called out, having pulled ahead of Azure just moments before.

Azure turned his sight ahead, and the group drew closer. The group soon reached a clearing, surrounded by trees, a few hundred yards up from where Silver estimated the two colts were. In the middle was...

"F-Fluttershy!" Rarity called out upon recognizing the form of her friend. Fluttershy stirred, apparently hearing the others' voices. Azure planted his hooves. Fluttershy was here, and seemingly safe, which he knew he should be happy to see, but--he couldn't.

The other girls rushed ahead of them. Silver skidded to a halt aside him.

"Hey, why'd you stop...?" As soon as Silver questioned him on this, Azure gritted his teeth.

"You have to know..." Azure stated, "It isn't going to be that easy--"

Almost as Azure finished his sentence, Silver stiffened. Both looked to each other, scowling.

"So it's..."
--------------------
"Girls..." Fluttershy quietly whispered, apparently unharmed.

"Fluttershy, don't you worry...we're here now..." Pinkie said. "But where's...Twilight?"

"I--" Fluttershy began. Silver rushed forward at this point, urgency in his features, followed closely by Azure.

"Everypony, watch it!" Azure called out.

For a moment, there was silence, followed by the sounds of several distorted crickets' cries...and one terrifying distorted wolf's howl. Rainbow gritted her teeth.

"You won't be heading back home anytime soon!" A maniacal laugh echoed throughout the treetops. "The whole lot of you are coming back with us now! My associate has already gone ahead with the other one...and soon, I will join him...with every last one of you in tow!"

"Twilight's still--!" Azure began, worry evident in his tone.

"I wouldn't worry about her," the voice sneered. "Why don't you focus on who's left instead?!"

Azure's eyes glowed brightly again, "You..."

"Well, maybe you'll see her again. Depends on what use I have left for you. It's just like I told you, unicorn, on that day I tried attacking the Honesty Bearer: 'you haven't won yet!'"

"You're the same colt?!" Applejack asked. "You're the one that attacked our farm?!"

"I'm also the one behind that attack on Fluttershy's cottage..." he continued to sneer. "And just like then, you can't see me, but I can see you perfectly..."

A cricket jumped out of the bushes, aiming its sights straight for Rarity, but the unicorn managed to turn around and land a crushing hit to its midsection and destroy it.

"Now, how long do you think you can last?" inquired the voice of the colt, as a virtual flood of crickets began to fill the clearing, flanked by several of the larger Shadow Fangs.

Silver and Dash immediately went to guard Fluttershy. The remaining four ponies kept an eye out on all angles, trying not to stray too far from the center as their opponents began to come.

"Got any ideas, Az?" Applejack asked, any evidence of her earlier pain completely absent from her demeanor overall.

"You're asking me..." Azure responded. His heart beat furiously. The more time he wasted here, the more time it would allow Twilight's captor to get to the Badlands. On the other hand, he couldn't just abandon his other friends here to the other one. And, since he had no way of knowing if Spike had sent the letter yet--no, he knew that well; since he had no way of knowing if Princess Celestia had done anything with said letter, he was in a tough position.

The creatures charged, and immediately, the six friends moved to protect the one that couldn't really fight. Silver remained close to Fluttershy, as did Rarity, using a thick tree branch as a club to ward off attackers, just with before. The remainder of the group fanned out bravely towards the crowd. Azure shot off a laser. The crickets that didn't make any attempt to scatter took it head on as the projectile slowly lost momentum, exploding a few feet into the crowd and taking out more.

Rainbow Dash once more took to the air as several Shadow Ghouls and a couple of Shadow Fangs sprouted wings and took to the air after her. She began to use the opportunity to try and interleave the martial arts she knew with aerial acrobatics, diving through the air only to uppercut away the summons, or bisect them completely when they were weaker.

"You think I'm gonna give up to this?!" she exclaimed, increasing her height, looping through the air and landing a hard double kick to one of the aerial Shadow Fangs, sending it through the trees and crashing into the ground.

Pinkie, meanwhile, took the new challenges more seriously. One would notice that numbers did not float out of the monsters she defeated, for one. She also appeared to be employing a very crazy, unorthodox, yet disturbingly effective fighting style. It seemed to contain a little bit of everything. Were anypony to actually notice and comment on it, one would wonder if she just happened upon Azure or some other ponies in training and thought that the moves combined would make for a funky dance.

There was an awkward forward kick thrown in such a way that she also "accidentally" punched back an attacker directly behind her, taking out both of the ghouls attacking her. This was followed by a sudden weave to the side, and...rolling into her opponents, sending them scattering like bowling pins? She seemed to be taking the situation seriously in spite of her weird fighting style.

"If only I had brought my party cannon with me," lamented the pink pony as she miraculously unrolled from her ball form, taking on more monsters, seeming to regain a little bit of her usual vigor as the fight dragged out.

One of the Shadow Fangs opened its mouth at her, aiming to do the same thing its bretheren had done to Applejack that night. However, before it could scar the earth pony for life, a cyan laser flew into the open orifice and caused fatal internal damage, causing it to vanish.

Silver hung back with Fluttershy as some of the weaker monsters flew past the others' defenses. What Rarity failed to smash away, Silver would cause to vibrate using concentrated sound waves, just as he had before.

"We will not be taken," Rarity declared as she smashed away yet another Shadow Ghoul.

"Nor will we let you take our friends!" Silver finished, preparing for the landing of the larger Shadow Fang. As it landed in front of him, he momentarily re-focused all of his magic for an offensive purpose. As it lunged for the trio, the blind pony unleashed a large amount of compressed soundwaves, actually causing his opponent to fall back.

Azure noticed his friends' plight, and quickly charged up a shot, letting it fly at the Shadow Fang. To his surprise, the attack didn't detonate on contact like it usually would, but passed right through the body of the Shadow Fang and into more encroaching Shadow Ghouls. The Shadow Fang was finished off by the remaining soundwaves, while the Shadow Ghouls caught in the laser attack were destroyed as well.

Applejack lassoed onto the back of one of the demonic-looking wolves, quickly pulling herself onto its back with a "Yee-haw!" She rode it like it was her personal rodeo for a few moments, kicking herself off and swinging around to kick away more Shadow Ghouls that were encroaching. She was thrown off by the Shadow Fang after a few seconds of this, but she quickly recovered, ducking under a claw attempt and delivering a powerful buck to the midsection of the monster.

The battle continued for five minutes in this manner. Somehow the group had managed to avoid noticable injury during this time despite the number and power of the summons used. However, the group knew time was wasting. There was strength in numbers, but somepony was still being taken away even as they burned time fighting to protect Fluttershy to try and get her back to Ponyville. It was all Fluttershy could do to stay conscious, despite the fear going through her.

"We're not going anywhere..." Azure said. Though he was trying not to show it, he was despairing the more and more enemies he destroyed. "At this rate..."

The group remained silent, none of them wanting to consider the possibility...
--------------------------------------------
Even as he fought through the flood of enemies alongside his friends, Azure Courage felt like the group was actually taking steps backwards in terms of accomplishing what they went into the forest to do. Each second they took trying to create an opening in the opposition was another few yards the other pony could escape with Twilight. Yet...the group needed its numbers in order to overcome the summons.

"Az, leave this to us," Applejack cut through the silence. "Go on after Twilight!"

Azure kicked away two Shadow Ghouls, blinking, "What are you saying?! I can't--" Another couple approached him, but he quickly blasted them before they could do any harm, "just leave you here to fight these!!"

"There's no time to argue, Azure, we have Fluttershy--" She slammed her back legs into a Shadow Ghoul, sending it reeling backwards. "--but they still have Twilight!"

Azure froze, nearly getting blind-sided by a Shadow Fang had Rainbow not bucked it hard at maximum velocity.

"You made a Pinkie promise, Azie!" Pinkie reminded from halfway across the clearing, hopping up above the ground and crushing the ghouls like she had before, "You gotta keep it!"

"We can handle this!" Rainbow ducked low, allowing two of the weaker summons to crash into one another. "Get going, Az!"

"B-but..." Azure found himself reminded of his horrid sense of direction, the one time he didn't need it more than anything else, "I don't even know where they went!"

Applejack hopped around, manipulating the Shadow Ghouls away from herself with a combination of kicks and ropework. Eventually, she spotted something leading to the southwest.

"That way!" she called out, pointing her hoof down an open path. Azure turned around, but found he didn't have the time to really see what it was other than an open path. The enemies were as relentless as he was.

"Silver--"

"Kinda busy right now, Azure, you're just going to have to trust her!" Silver said. Azure sighed; Applejack couldn't lie, nor would she under the circumstances.

"But you were the one that told me I couldn't do this on my own!" Azure called back, "That we all had to work together!?"

"I know what I said, Azure, but you need to keep listening!" Silver called back. "Even if we split up like this, you aren't alone! We're still working as a team! Soon as we're done here we'll follow!"

Azure looked around. Even in the midst of the fight, all of them looked confident enough they'd brave this swarm. Yet, he didn't like the thought of leaving them alone. However...Twilight was just as important to him as the others. He wouldn't forgive himself if the other captor got away...

"Fine, I'll go on! Just be sure to keep going!" Azure yelled, shooting off a laser in the direction Applejack indicated, clearing himself a path and sprinting through. As he went, he noticed something that Applejack had probably pointed out.

Twilight...how...?

At the base of a tree not too far into the path, a large arrow, pointing southwest, was etched into the bark.

"I'll take your hint..."

The sound of an encroaching enemy distracted him. His cyan, glowing eyes trailed behind him. A Shadow Fang attempted to blindside him at that point, but Azure quickly leapt into the air with the gravity spell assisting him. He then made himself heavier, crashing down hard enough on the Shadow Fang's head to knock it over. Rainbow finished the job as he landed.

"What are you waitin' for, Az?!" she yelled, rushing back towards the others. "Get moving!"

Azure did not object. He turned, and beat it down the route Twilight had left him at full speed.

Everypony...Please...Keep yourselves and Fluttershy safe...
---
"Good, Az is on the trail of the other guy," Applejack observed as Rainbow flew back, taking out another flying Shadow Fang by flying through it top speed.

"Now how are we gonna beat this guy if we can't even see him?!" Rainbow exploded, giving Silver an idea. Since he couldn't see and all...

"Rarity, Pinkie!" Silver knew their attention had been caught, "Watch after Fluttershy for a bit! I've got a plan!"

"What are you going to do?" asked Rarity, the sound of wood breaking indicating her makeshift club had finally taken enough abuse.

Silver didn't answer, taking a few steps forward. He could hear something somewhere...he felt like...

"Yes, what will you do," The condescending voice answered, "How can a blind unicorn possibly--"

There!

A loud buzzing suddenly emanated from the tip of Silver's horn, and though Silver heard his nemesis move, the sound of movement immediately before a tree collapsing demonstrated that the blind pony had found him anyway, and had only a few feet of error to show for it.

"I made a promise long ago that I would never allow somepony to look down on me ever again, something you just did not too long ago..." Silver was dead serious, his blind eyes wide open. "I'm going to show you what I can do..."

Two bodies were at his side...Rainbow and Applejack.

"Alright, let's get this over with so we can help Az!" said Applejack. There was another collective "hmph" from the group, and the three ponies charged forward into the crowd.
--------------------------------------------
Tagane had known what Twilight was doing since he and Shade parted ways. He had, therefore, erected a nullification field around himself and his hostage so she couldn't cast her magic anymore. He had caught her just as she had been peeling bark off of that tree not too far up. Rather than warn Shade about it, seeing as how it was too late anyway, Tagane instead elected to keep it quiet, and keep running to the southwest.

His captive had not done anything since her magic was turned off; pretty much all she could do given all he'd seen her do was magic-related. In fact, if memory served, the mare on his back was the Element of Magic. It made sense for her to be unable to do much of anything with her magic safely shut off.

The colt came to a stop at a fork. He already knew which way he was going to go. Any pursuers would have a fifty-fifty shot of choosing the right path, at best. Both paths were virtually identical.

If I cross the Ghastly Gorge, I'll be able to make it back to HQ from there...and that is to the left of this fork...

Tagane straightened up. There were a few snags, but this operation was going to be successful. He could just feel it. He reared back, jumping over the root on the left, and landed. However, as he made his jump, he felt weight leave his back. The instant he hit the ground, he felt himself worry just a little. The last thing he needed was to trip at the finish line and let his captive get away.

The earth pony turned, seeing Twilight leaning against the tree root, seemingly broken. Tagane couldn't withhold himself from sneering. Maybe it was the knowledge he could strip her of her magic at any time; maybe she realized he was also a physical powerhouse. Whatever the case, the cloaked pony was glad to see his captive had seemingly lost the will to fight.

"How clumsy of me..." he mused aloud, "but you don't seem to be in the mood to run..."

Twilight didn't answer, her mane obscuring her eyes. Tagane effortlessly lifted the pony back onto his back, making sure she was secure before taking off again. Had he taken the time to take a closer look at the purple mare, he might have noticed the slowly forming smile on her face.
--------------
Twilight Sparkle knew she only had one chance to tell Azure which way to go. Without her magic, she had to improvise a way to do it. Falling off her captor's back was a bit painful, and she knew she'd be feeling that one later, but it was worth it. Now all she had to do was hope he or another member of the group could spot the signal.

Believe what you want... Twilight thought to herself. I haven't given up hope yet...

As the earth pony continued to lead her wherever she was going, the unicorn couldn't help but wonder what all this was about. They seemed to be aware of the Elements of Harmony, and which pony represented which one. However, she couldn't point out why they were doing this. They didn't seem like the kind of ponies to tell what they were doing either, so Twilight had to bite her tongue.

The mare continued to cling to her courage, and her hope, even though she was separated from Fluttershy. She would not give either of her captors the benefit of breaking her or seeing her broken.

Everypony...I'll leave it to you... The purple pony could not appreciate the irony of her thoughts right now; initially, she never wanted anything to do with them; only agreeing to have Azure accompany her into the Everfree Forest because he did seem useful even then. However, now, she felt she could place her full faith in her friends, as they would do the same for her if the roles were switched.

Azure... She recalled something else about that night. Every time she was in danger, Azure had saved her from it; even taking on Nightmare Moon alone when he knew full well what would happen. How many times would this make it now?

Chapter 28: Guide Us, Friendship!

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Chapter 28: Guide Us, Friendship!
-----------------------------
The battle didn't slow down after Azure left to continue the chase. Grunts, growls, howls, sound booms, and implosions continued to echo from deep within the Everfree as the battle between the ponies and summoner's minions proceeded without him. Even without the battle-ready Azure Courage at the site of battle, the group was still holding their own and then some against the Shadow Ghouls--no, mainly Shadow Fangs now; the summoner having stopped using their lesser variants a little bit after Azure was safely away.

Rarity had since snapped off a much thicker branch, using it to swat the deformed crickets away like the quasi-insects they appeared to be if they got too close. It wasn't that she didn't quite use her body to attack either, but it was a preferred method of attacking. She couldn't bear the thought of one of those creatures landing on her or Fluttershy.

Pinkie continued to use her crazy fighting style to deflect the rest of the attackers Rarity missed or couldn't get. Weird kicks and hoof-punches, and moves that wouldn't have worked if it wasn't her, all of them seemed effective enough to ward off her potential attackers. It wasn't as useful, however, given she and Rarity were stuck in a position close to Fluttershy.

However, whatever cons the situation would have had were negated by the efforts of Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Silver Espada up front against the bulk of the army of summons, which had all of the Shadow Fangs.

"Yee-haw!" Applejack bellowed as she lassoed onto a Shadow Fang, and after some effort, began to use its body as a battering ram and slammed it into several of its brethren Her physical strength was built up from years of farm work, and as such, she could swing around the larger, more deadly summons with little trouble at all. Plus, if one tried to get too close, a swift back kick to the face would take care of it quick.

Applejack wasn't alone in being physically fit; Rainbow Dash had a physical advantage as well. While Applejack's body was strong, Rainbow's wings were in the same deal: as she would so often brag to everypony else; there was no pony alive who could outfly her. And her opponents, though numerous, were in no way ponies, no matter how big they were. While in the air, she often used the same moves over and over, flips, rolls, and loops; her pursuers could not keep up with her, and often smashed into each other trying to. Failing that, a full-speed slam into the torso of her opponents would send them crashing into the ground.

Silver's method wasn't as physical as theirs. He had neither the strength nor the speed nor a pair of wings to keep up with them. However, even then, he held the advantage on his numerous opponents for two reasons. Reason one: nothing could sneak up on him. His echolocation magic could be pushed to a respectable distance if he applied his magic to it, which was almost second nature to him at this point in his life. This lead into reason two: he didn't need to get close to launch a counter-attack.

A Shadow Fang charged for him, aiming to claw him across the face, but it didn't even make it within ten feet of him before Silver's sonic wave made short work of him.

However, Silver's ranged magic had its drawbacks: due to the fact he had to cast a different spell, he had to shut off his echolocation momentarily, leaving him truly blind for that instance. However, it was not an explicit vulnerability by any means; he was able to switch between offense and support in an instant. While it did provide an opportunity for his opponents to blindside him, both his keen hearing and his echolocation allowed him to "see" his opponent, and slammed his back hooves into the deformed wolf's face, lifting it off its feet and sending it flying into a tree, where it went limp on impact.

They'll keep coming if we don't take down the pony responsible... Silver thought to himself, But he's not going to show himself...the coward...

Quickly, the blind pony began to think to himself about a way he could get himself and his friends out of this. He and the others had a promise of their own to keep. Ever since he discovered his special talent for sound magic, Silver slowly developed his skill to the point he could quickly find hidden ponies, making him a friend to parents with missing foals and foals with missing pets and an enemy to anypony playing hide-and-seek. Given time, he could try to find the pony summoning them, but he would need time; he'd tried to do it before, but he was interrupted by the start of the battle.

"Much as I love tossin' these critters around, we can't keep this up forever," Applejack pointed out. Silver could hear the strain under her breath, and her heightened respiratory rate. Rainbow was slightly better off, but he could hear Fluttershy's whimpers and Rarity and Pinkie breathing harder.

If anypony's close to their limit, it'd be them... the blind pony observed. And if one falls, eventually, we'll all fall...Don't like what I gotta do to end this, but it's gotta be done...

"Applejack!" Silver called out, "I need you to protect me!" Applejack turned to him; Silver didn't need eyesight to understand she was confused at his request. He wasn't having trouble fighting either.

"What's wrong, Silver, you out of magic?" That was her first guess.

"No, I've got enough to spare, but there's only one way I can think of to end this. I have to focus; doesn't come naturally when I'm fighting..."

He could sense Applejack's indecision on the manner. It wasn't hard to find out why: even as they talked, they continued to fend off assailants, and it was getting harder to protect the others around her, never mind herself. But, she knew as well as he did that the fight needed to end soon.

"How long do I gotta guard you?" Applejack bucked away a ghoul, and got closer to Silver.

"I can't say; I'll go as fast as I can, though..."

"Alright..." He could still sense unsureness in her tone, but she had decided to trust him.

Should have done more meditating... Silver thought to himself, closing his eyes and releasing a deep breath. It'd make this a bit easier...focus, filter through the sounds, mute them all and only use the one you need...

This was one of the arts he hadn't mastered yet: he could still hear the sounds of battle around him. He had to try and completely relax, and within moments, his surroundings faded, except for the loud noises of battle, and softer, less prevalent noises slowly began to enter his awareness.
-----------------------------
As Silver lowered his head and his horn's glow became visible, Applejack found herself locked in battle with the forces. Seeing as how using her lasso was out of the question while she had to play goalie, Applejack decided not to use it. More of the summons began to focus on Silver, seeing a weakness. Applejack had to be fast. A Shadow Fang tried to rush straight for them, but she quickly slammed it back with a powerful buck, sending it into two of its friends. Another was just about to attack Silver, and she quickly tackled it to get it out of the way.

Against her better judgment, she bit down on the leg of the summon she tackled. A foul taste almost immediately coated her tongue, but that was the last thing on her mind right now. She put in some effort, and lifted up the summon to swat away a few encroaching Shadow Ghouls before throwing it a distance away.

The others continued to guard Fluttershy, though their movements were slowing down just a little bit. Rainbow Dash had noticed what Applejack was doing, but had her hooves full with flying Shadow Fangs, and couldn't really lend assistance. For the most part, Applejack didn't seem to need it too much. All the while, Silver's horn began to glow brighter and brighter.

C'mon, Silver, Applejack thought to herself, trying to avoid shouting out, I don't know how much longer I can keep this up!
-----------------------------
That's it...

Silver had reached a point of focus where now, all he could hear were minute sounds: various heartbeats echoing through the air. All of them were rapid. One by one, he began to shut off even those, starting with his own, then Applejack's. One by one, he shut out those sounds. The last odd sound was that of Fluttershy's heart beat. He would have enjoyed its strangely soothing rhythm more, but he had a job to do first.
-----------------------------
"I can hear it..."

Applejack didn't know what Silver was mumbling about, avoiding a claw attack as she leapt up and inelegantly smacked the deformed wolf she was fighting off right on the nose.

"He's close, he's watching..."

Applejack bit her tongue; she didn't want to interrupt him yet. However, for a moment, she faltered on keeping herself aware. A blunt force struck her on the side, lifting her off her feet and knocking her loopy; one hit was all it took to knock the wind out of her. She turned, seeing a Shadow Fang land down, teeth bared.

"Almost...almost..."

Silver...hurry!!!

The summon continued to advance on her, and for a few moments, Applejack found herself once again in the throes of fear. An intense sense of deja vu would have overcome her were it not for the fact she was in a serious pinch as her assailant began to slowly advance on her, like a predator stalking its prey.

Silver's eyes opened wide, his eyes taking on a very faint glow in addition to the bright light generated from his horn, "There!"

He turned seventy degrees clockwise, pointing his horn straight towards some foliage nearby and planting all four feet firmly. No time elapsed as Silver unleashed all of his stored magic, firing off a concentrated blast of compressed sound waves. All of the creatures in front of it were cut through as though they were made of butter, though the magical blast did not lose momentum as it sailed towards its intended target.

There was a loud groan, followed by loud cracks and severe rustling as the flora became compromised The sound wave stopped, and the remaining summons roared. A few moments later, they began to vanish. The one stalking Applejack pounced forward, but vanished just as it got serious air. Everypony looked around, almost in disbelief, for a few moments. As soon as they realized what happened, everypony grinned widely.

"Woohoo, you did it, Silver!" Rainbow Dash flew down, whooping in triumph. Silver was out of breath, but he soon returned the others' enthusiasm.

"Yeah..." Silver responded, trying to catch his breath, "is everypony...else okay?" All that magic at once definitely took a toll on him.

"We're fine, just a couple of scrapes, nothing major," Rainbow dismissively waved her forehoof.

"What about Fluttershy?" asked Silver in concern.

"She's fine, dear," assured Rarity, looking over to the pegasus in question, "There is not a scratch on her..."

Fluttershy finally stood up straight. She was clearly shaken, but other than that, she didn't seem injured.

"T-thank you..." she stuttered, smiling.

"That's good to hear," Silver sighed in relief.

"C'mon, we took him down," Applejack cut in, having recovered from her physical and mental lag following her getting bunted by the Shadow Fang, "But we gotta find him before--"

Snap!

All heads turned toward the sound. A pony came into view; no doubt the one responsible for the summons. His mane was messed-up, his cloak's hood was torn off and had a hole on the left shoulder, and his nose was actually bleeding. And he did not look happy to have his game interrupted.

"I guess that means you want me to get serious...?" The pony's voice was serious, his horn glowing an even darker blue than Silver's. However, as he continued to focus, his horn glow only seemed to get darker and darker in color, approaching jet black. A pool of shadows began to form directly in front of him.

"I don't like the looks of this," Applejack mused.

The pool continued to grow.

"Not again, you--!" Rainbow rushed forward, aiming to deck the wayward colt. However, just before she could make contact, she felt a very strong gust of headwind, seemingly emanating from the sheer force that the cloaked pony was exerting. "I can't get..."

A large object suddenly reached out for her, aiming to swat the pegasus down. Rainbow just had a split second to dodge or be knocked to the side. Thankfully, the pegasus escaped being treated like a fly.

"What kinda magic is this!?" she yelled in confusion and frustration.

"The horseshoes are coming off..." the evil pony mused. "I have not been pushed this far in a long time...meet an even stronger creature..."

The shape that had attacked Dash continued to crawl forth from the large hole, revealing a monster that was twice the height of an average pony; and was taller than even Big Mac, the largest pony the group knew.

The beast had two appendages that looked like the claws of a dragon. It heaved itself out of the hole, revealing it had six insectoid legs attached to the body of a pony. Its torso, to which the draconic claws were attached, was wide and muscular, resembling something of myth that escaped the knowledge of the group. Its head, strangely, resembled that of a ram due to the curved horns.

"W-what do you call that thing!?" called out Rainbow Dash, at a loss for words.

"Meet the Shadow Taraxippus..." the pony called out. "Or rather, Taraxippi..."

The first beast moved to one side, allowing a second one to crawl out. However, suddenly, Shade grimaced. The portal closed.

"Hmph...oh well. These two Shadow Taraxippi will teach you the meaning of carnage..." The pony said, taking a few steps back. "...And terror."

The group stared up towards the two beasts, which appeared to be waiting for the orders of the evil colt. Silver, the only one without sight, saw the situation better than anypony else.

"This just got dicey..."
-----------------------------
Azure continued to gallop forward, trying not to mind the others too much. He knew that if he thought too much about how they were doing, he'd slow down. And he couldn't afford to do that, not with Twilight still in transit. He was still worrying about them, even in the back of his head as he neared a fork in the road...

F-fork...!? Azure skidded to a halt, and swallowed hard as soon as he got a good look at it. If ever there was a time for him to not be given multiple paths to choose, it'd be now. He had a fifty-fifty shot of choosing which path was correct, but both paths looked identical. Azure plopped down on his rump, not knowing which way to go.

What do I do? he thought to himself. I...I have to do this...I have to pick the right path, or else Twilight's going to be taken...somewhere...B-but...when it comes to this, I tend to always wind up getting lost! I can't afford that!

Not even paying attention to where he was going, Azure began to gravitate toward the left path.

Twilight...I...

Abruptly, the colt tripped over the root, stumbling a little. At the emotional state he was in, Azure was bound to go off at any time, even on an innocent tree root. As he turned, ready to blow it up in a state of panic-induced fury, he noticed something.

Where the root arched up, there was a mark that looked like it had been etched out on the underside of the root. However, it didn't look like any old stick or magic had done it.

"Is this...a horn mark?" Azure had to be sure. Quickly, he doubled back, and checked under the root on the right.

There was no mark to speak of there. Azure blinked, going back to the left path. The choice was clear now.

"Twilight...you clever mare..."

With nothing holding him back now, Azure took off max speed down the left path, using freegalloping to enhance his speed. Somehow or other, though he wasn't sure how, he was now leaping from tree to tree, each bound increasing his distance and speed. As he progressed, the tree thickness began to lessen, and Azure became aware of the gurgling of a brook somewhere nearby...
-----------------------------
Twilight knew where her captor had taken her as soon as she saw the rocky cliffs. She had been set off to the side, but it was impossible for her to go anywhere. Not only was her magic still disabled, but the earth pony's magic--yes, she was sure the earth pony was responsible for it--had created a small field around her that prevented her from moving around except in that small field. She couldn't see it, but she knew it was there as she put her hoof up against solid air. She sighed.

Where are you, Azure? she asked herself, almost past the point of caring about whether or not he felt the same way she did. Anypony...please, hurry...

Her captor continued to stare out over the Ghastly Gorge, trying to determine how to cross. After a while, he turned to her, his face devoid of any emotions and his eyes lightless.

"Alright, I've determined the best way to cross," he said placidly. "Let's--"

"Twilight......."

It was a distant shout, much like she'd heard before. However, it wasn't accompanied by anypony else. Twilight's ears pricked up, and she tried desperately to remember which way they came from.

Her captor's ears pricked up, and he adopted a look of disbelief.

"Impossible..." he said aloud, taking his attention off of Twilight. The mare raised her hoof, and realized he hadn't yet disengaged the field that kept her magicless and in place.

However, even though that was still a bad place to be, inside of that invisible barrier, Twilight felt her heart surge with hope, especially when she heard the voice again, much more familiar than the last time.

"Twilight!!!"

"How could he have found us--" Her captor's face faulted as he recalled the part where she fell off, and he turned away from the sound, glaring at her. "You!"

"I wasn't going to be taken without a fight," Twilight said, trying to keep her calm in the face of his burning black eyes. She couldn't really deny that she'd done it anyway, nor would she.

The sound of four hooves landing on the ground filled Twilight's ears, but her captor didn't even look that way. His mistake.

A pair of cyan legs crashed hoof-first into her captor's side, lifting him off his hooves and sending him flying several yards. The cloaked pony managed to recover from this, and skidded straight to a halt after managing to land on his feet. He looked up, even angrier now.

Azure matched that anger as he glared back, and Twilight realized his eyes were glowing cyan. However, what made it weird was that his horn wasn't glowing at all. However, that was the last thing on her mind.

"A-Azure..." she said, her heart so full of hope that she couldn't even describe it. She reached out to him, only to be reminded she was still trapped in the earth pony's magic. Her hoof made a small "clink" sound as it hit the edge of the prison.

"Twilight..." Azure responded, reaching out to her forehoof with his own as though he were to touch it, but found his efforts repulsed by the same field. "W-what the...?"

"I'm held in this prison...I can't use my magic..." Twilight replied.

"You did great even though you didn't have magic. You helped me find you..." Azure said, lowering his forehoof. Her captor had since abandoned the look of anger he held on his face, and had reverted to that almost disarming placidity she'd expected of him. "Now, I'm going to save you..."

"Where--" Twilight had almost forgotten in her excitement, "Where...how are the others?"

"They're protecting Fluttershy from the other one..." Azure responded, and Twilight gave a partial sigh of relief. Even if her other friends weren't quite out of the woods yet, she was at least partly relieved to hear Fluttershy was safe.

"You..." Her captor finally said, no longer talking to her, but to Azure. "I met a couple of Royal Guards with similar mane styles to yours...Unicorns, to be exact."

The cyan colt's jaw visibly dropped, and his eyebrows arched even sharper.

"Virid...Blitz!?" Azure yelled. "How do you know them?!"

"Simple," responded the earth pony. "I merely defeated them on a train ride..."

Twilight gasped; Azure snarled, "You..."

"I don't think you'll do much better than they did," Casually, the pony took a fighting stance. "I'm going to make it quick..."

Without further warning, the earth pony rushed forward, his hooves thundering against the rock below as he rushed Azure. Azure rushed forward, and Twilight watched him, all of her relief being replaced with worry. She remembered the outcome of Azure's duel with Virid all too well...

"Azure! Be careful!" Twilight called out, though she was almost sure he didn't even hear her.
------------------------------
The two ponies butted heads, Tagane missing being skewered by Azure's horn. Both sets of teeth rattled and were momentarily dazed. However, the unicorn quickly recovered, going up on his hind legs. Tagane matched this move, and both parried a stream of hoof thrusts and punches from the other. The unicorn's horn lit up, and Tagane waited for him to do a spell.

"It won't work," he said, "Do whatever you--"

He was cut off when Azure did a gravity spell-enhanced jump, though it was noticably weakened from what it should have been. The earth pony, stunned, went down into his regular standing posture.

But how...?! Tagane said. How is he still able to--

A pair of forehooves slammed down on his back, causing two of his legs to slide out from under him. As he stumbled, Azure whirled around, catching him under the chin with a hard back kick. Tagane's hooves once more left the ground, and he actually wound up on his back.

"I'll give you a chance," Azure stated, "Let her go..."

Tagane gritted his teeth, realizing there was the taste of blood in his mouth. "Not a chance!"

Instead of rushing for him, Tagane waited for Azure to come his way. Tagane watched and waited for Azure to use another spell, and sure enough, he did. The colt proceeded to use levitation, aggressively picking up loose spells as he continued to charge. Once Azure was close enough, he let loose a shower of small rocks via levitation.

While Tagane didn't expect the projectiles to stop dead in the air, he expected them to very quickly lose momentum. They did lose momentum once they entered his airspace, but not nearly as much as Tagane had expected. The pebbles hit at such a speed that he definitely felt the impacts. Tagane had barely any time to brace himself for another locking of the heads, and the two ponies pushed against each other.

Azure stepped forward, forcing Tagane to step back. Tagane pushed harder, forcing Azure two steps back. He tried again, when he suddenly found himself unable to push Azure back further. Azure took one step forward, starting to push Tagane back instead. Then another, and another.

How is he doing this?! he thought to himself. He's obviously younger than those two guards I fought on the train, so why is he?!

Tagane immediately let his "push" slacken, which caused Azure to momentarily drop his guard. Tagane then quickly planted his forehooves, whirled around, and slammed his back foot under Azure's chin, mimicking the cyan colt's earlier move. Azure stumbled back, aware there was a sore spot on his chin.

His opponent then proceeded to slam his head into his shoulder, knocking him off his forehooves and causing him to stumble back. Next thing he knew, he had a faceful of gray hair as his opponent caught him in the same spot from earlier, knocking him completely off his feet and onto his back. Azure rolled quickly to his feet, rubbing at his cheek with one of his hooves.

Twilight watched the spectacle unfold, just as she had before. However, this time, Azure was facing an opponent he seemed to have a good chance of defeating. Though she normally would have given more thought to the fact that Tagane seemed to be able to shut off unicorn magic at will and how Azure seemed to still be able to use his, she found herself in a state she wasn't in during the time she was in Nightmare Moon's trap. She was actively observing his battle, almost lost in the moment. She didn't believe all hope was lost, not yet.

"I don't get it," Tagane said. "You know I can nullify your magic. You know I beat your relatives with ease. Tell me, what reason could you possibly have to choose to fight me alone!?"

Azure stood straight up, "To save the mare I love..."

Twilight's mouth unhinged in utter disbelief. Did he just...? Did he...? For a moment, her heart leapt, and threatened to exit her chest cavity. It made the fact she was behind a prison even worse. She couldn't see the look in his eyes; she couldn't see his face; she couldn't even really tell if he was saying it because he felt it or if it was just a heat of the moment thing. All she had to go on were those six words...

"Whether you do or not has no bearing..." Tagane countered. "I'll defeat you here and take her back to my home base..."

"Not if I stop you first..."

Azure charged Tagane again, this time, breaking left. Once again, Twilight observed his gravity spell was not quite up to par with what it was before. She blinked.

What's going on? Twilight asked. My magic was completely shut off...so was his at the picnic...so why are his spells not being shut off now...

The purple unicorn found herself asking more and more questions as Azure quickly utilized the gravity spell to land a heavy strike. Tagane was just as confused as Twilight was.

I should be stronger than he is... thought the earth pony to himself, rising to his feet. I knocked him out with one blow once I got his blindside after I shut off his magic...yet he's matching me...

Azure rushed him again, and Tagane took in the detail that had not yet faded from Azure's eyes: the ever-present glow.

Could that have something to do with it?

The battle between the two colts continued. Eventually, Azure managed to knock back Tagane again.

"You brought this upon yourself!" Azure roared, his horn brightly glowing. "I'll settle it now!"

A shower of cyan laser bolts began to rush towards Tagane, obscuring him from view as the blasts drew close...
-----------------------------
The battle continued. Even though he only had two of them, his Taraxippi were still very fierce, a lot more so than any of Shade's other summons until now. Not only that, they were seemingly smarter than the Ghouls or Fangs. Rainbow Dash was doing all she could to either of them, but no matter how many hits she landed, she couldn't do much more than make one stumble back a step or two. These two shadow summons were clearly a lot more durable than their predecesors.

Though they had spread out a bit since they were summoned, they were still remaining close to their summoner, and Silver could guess why. He could hear it: the rapid beating of his heart, the heavy gasps for air...

He had to guess the enemy was on the ropes; between his earlier summons, the damage he'd received from Silver; all of it had taken a toll on his magic pool and stamina. And, given how he'd reacted when "only" two came from his summoning pool, he had intended to summon more, but it was all he could do...

"Don't lose hope!" Silver encouraged, minding a sharp cracking sound nearby, "If we can just defeat these two, this'll be over!"

"Easier said than done!" Rainbow barked back from above.

"Incoming!" Applejack warned.

A large tree was uprooted by one of the Taraxippi, and used as a blunt spear of sorts. Silver and Applejack narrowly dodged the attack, but the mere fact the creatures were also strong enough to completely lift a tree from its roots to weaponize it was definitely intimidating. It was clear: at this stage, if either side made a single error, it would all be over.

"Everypony! Keep your distance!" Silver turned to his right, blasting another sound wave at a Taraxippus. The sound attack hit its mark on the left chest; the creature being far too large to dodge, but all it did was cause it to flinch a little. It roared, clearly only moderately injured.

"Can't you just charge up another one of those, Silver?" Applejack asked.

"Like I'm letting you do that again!" Shade called out, his horn coated in its inky black glow once more. One of the summons turned its attention to Silver, given a single command: charge. The ground trembled as it rushed straight for the blind pony, the intent all too clear as it drew closer.

"Silver, move!" Rainbow warned, but Silver wasn't sure if moving would be effective, given what he could image via echolocation. Silver instead stood his ground, and charged magic into his horn again. It was far less time, far less charge, but Silver definitely managed to get a shot off. However, the attack only caused it to falter slightly and lose only a fraction of its momentum. The others could only watch as the monster finished closing the distance, preparing to swipe Silver with claws. The monster brought his claw down...

only to find his arm going through a blur of rainbow light, leaving some streaks in the ground where Silver had been just a moment ago.

"You're heavy...!" grunted Rainbow, having heaved Silver out of the way at the last minute. Silver sighed in relief; he hadn't seen if he'd made it or not and for a split second thought he was having an out-of-body experience.

"Thanks, Dash," Silver said, turning his head down, trying to image something else. "Hm...we're right above it...Rainbow, let me go!"

"Wait, what?!" Rainbow said, wondering if Silver had developed a severe Azure complex between when the colt in question left and now.

"No time to explain, just trust me!" The pegasus wasn't quite sure what her blind friend had in mind, but reluctantly let him fall. His face reflected confidence; the others could only gasp when they saw he was dropping right on. Silver dropped upon the Taraxippus's back, latching all four legs around its neck as firmly as he could.

"Whoa!" The summon and its master did not like Silver's new position, and the blind pony found himself on a wild ride as it tried to shake him off. "Okay...not my brightest idea...but...!" Silver dug into his physical strength reserves, tightening his grip even more.

"I can't turn back now!" Silver's horn glowed brightly again, and a strong sound wave pulsed out of his horn, scoring a point-blank strike on his enemy. It flinched, losing its balance. As it tried to recover, Silver quickly saw an opening, and repeatedly began sending pulses of sound straight into the back of the creature, causing it more discomfort. Silver's focus was entirely on the task at hoof, and didn't quite notice the Taraxippus's method of dislodging the pony on it until a blunt force--the creature's tail--swatted him off his back.

Silver grunted in pain, launched into the air.

"Silver...!" Fluttershy called out, standing bolt upright, though her legs shook.

"I've got him...!" Rainbow said, trying to fly towards him. However, while Silver's target was still moderately disoriented from the repeated strikes, the other Taraxippus was ready to counter any and all attempts at rescue as Silver's body began to fall.

The focus returned to the blind pony's eyes, and he managed to reactivate his echolocation. There was maybe a second, if that, between the ground and himself. Quickly, Silver called upon his freegalloping skills, throwing his body weight around in the air to roll himself such that his forehooves pointed down. The landing turned into a tuck and roll, and after a few feet, Silver managed to get onto his hooves, standing straight up.

"Silver! You okay?!" Applejack demanded.

"Yeah, just--" Silver stepped forward, and felt the sharp, stinging pain in his side he hadn't quite felt at first when the impact occurred. Gritting his teeth, he willed himself to ignore the pain and stepped forward, trying to analyze the situation via echolocation.

"Well, that bought us a little time, but now what?" Rainbow asked. The Taraxippus was still trying to regain its senses, but Celestia knew it wouldn't stay that way forever. Silver focused a little, looking for anything that could be used. He didn't have to look far.

"Rainbow, keep it from regaining its senses!" Silver barked, once again taking command of the situation. "I have a plan..."

Rainbow grimaced, "This better work like your last one!"

The instant Rainbow shot off to do as she was asked, Silver ran in the opposite direction, towards something entirely different.

"Silver?!" Pinkie called out. "The meanie's that way!"

Applejack snapped her head over to Silver, "What're you--"

"Hey, Applejack, still have that rope?" Silver asked, having arrived at the object he found via echolocation.

"You expect me to hogtie that?!" Applejack responded, before seeing exactly what Silver had found. "...Oh, I get it..."

Rainbow continued to keep the Taraxippi busy all the while, flying around them like a fly would around her own head. However, the one that Silver had stunned earlire finally managed to recover, and, using its tail, dealt her a glancing hit enough to send her to the ground, skidding all the while.

"Good thing it was just a small brush..." Rainbow moaned, rubbing her head with one hoof. The two beasts turned to the rest of the group, ready to finish the job.

"Hey, fella, try this on for size!" Applejack perfectly tossed her lasso around the previously stunned Taraxippus's neck, and pulled it tight with Silver's assistance. Both ponies tugged hard on the rope with their mouths, but the Taraxippus barely budged in response to their combined strength.

"Really?" Shade asked, amused. "You think that could work? Whatever; show them what kind of mistake they made!" His horn glowed again, causing the snared Taraxippus to jerk its neck back hard, trying to pull the ponies up with it. However, Silver and Applejack released their hold on the rope. Before Shade could question, the two ponies jumped away.

"What are you plan--" The rope sprang, and only now did Shade realize what they'd done. The rope wasn't attached to them...it was attached to...the tree earlier weaponized?!

The uprooted tree lifted forward, heading right for the ensnared creature's chest, pulled forward by the sheer strength of the Taraxippus. Shade didn't have time to give a command; the Taraxippus wouldn't have had time to respond to it anyway. The tree hit its mark, slamming straight through its torso, the bark shredding on impact and embedding itself inside and around the wound. However, it still stood.

"How durable are these monstrosities?!" Rarity shouted, mirroring everypony else's thoughts. The Taraxippus numbly moved its arms, intending to remove the tree. It grabbed on, and began to try to pull the spear out. But, no matter how much it shook in place, no matter how much strength it used, it couldn't dislodge the tree. Eventually, the beast's arms fell limp at its sides, and it began to fall forward.

The instant the leaves on top of the tree touched the ground, the shadow creature broke away in a large puff of black smoke. The smoke faded completely, and the others breathed a collective sigh of relief.

"One down..." For a moment, Silver thought his plan wasn't going to work out the way he intended it to. However, the instant he sensed the large monster vanish, and felt the impact of the improvised skewer on the ground. "One left..."

"You okay, Rainbow?" Applejack asked as the mare in question walked up.

"Yeah, yeah, just fine, I'm used to crashes like that. Just don't like 'em..." Rainbow said, stretching her wings for a moment. "Now, we just need to take care of that one..."

Shade pulled his last summon in front of him, clearly at a loss for the situation. However, it was obvious he wasn't going to surrender.

"So, if Rainbow and I distract it, you think you can blast it, Silver?" Applejack turned to the blind pony, inquiring as to his new strategy. Silver did look like he was considering something, but it wasn't what anypony expected. It wasn't a battle strategy he was thinking of per se; at least, not for this one.

"Rainbow...I need you to go after Azure," Silver said.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Rainbow responded, almost echoing the group's thoughts verbatim. "Hold on, you want me to leave now!?"

"I think I know what kind of enemy Azure's up against!" Silver called out. "He's against an earth pony that, for some reason, can nullify his magic. And even if Azure can hold his own, his opponent's strong; even caught off-guard, it usually takes more than one hit to knock Azure out...I'm sure the other one's stronger than him...That's why...you have to go after him, Rainbow!"

Nopony knew if Azure had caught up to him, or how far the other captor had gone with Twilight, but somepony did need to help him.

"C'mon, he can handle himself!" Applejack protested, "Besides, we can take this thing down in no time flat then go after him together!"

"You've gotta trust me on this!" Silver countered, "Have I steered any of you wrong so far?"

Rainbow and Applejack both tried to protest, but found they couldn't. Since Azure left, Silver had assumed command of the situation; even when Azure was there he had to assume some control to prevent Azure from flipping his lid. Everything he'd done up until now had shown positive results, for the most part. There was no reason to not trust what he was saying now.

"I...can you handle it?" Rainbow asked, Element of Loyalty taking full effect. She did know that two of her friends were likely in danger somewhere; but the rest of them were here, and she didn't quite want to abandon them either.

"Please, go on, darling," Rarity assured, walking up behind the trio.

"We'll handle it!" Pinkie chirped, still sounding just as cheery as ever. With just one summon, Rarity and Pinkie didn't see the need to stay back anymore; Fluttershy taking refuge behind some debris.

Rainbow floated into the air, slightly reassured. She had to get a good look at the attacker's face. He looked angry...and realizing he may have bitten off more than he can chew from the group. She withheld a smirk; he definitely was on his last leg.

"Alright, I'll go!" Rainbow said, turning around, "Don't keep me waiting!"

"Wouldn't dream of it," Silver replied. Rainbow nodded, flying up even higher at top speed. "Alright...let's end this..."

The remaining four fighters banded together in front of the remaining Taraxippus.

"It's not going to be that easy!" Shade roared, his horn glowing fiercely. "I'm sure that they won't mind if you're a little bruised up..." The Taraxippus moved forward, its eyes glowing blue instead of yellow. "Go on...go wild..."

The Taraxippus's eyes glowed red upon hearing Shade say this word, and it let out a fierce screech. It began to rush, but this time, the group was ready.

"Scramble, try to divide its attention!" Silver commanded, and all four immediately did just that, not letting any of them attack. Rarity snapped two large branches off of the makeshift spear from earlier, and began to use them as clubs, smacking the Taraxippus several times. Though the head pitched back and forth in response to her attempts, she only seemed to succeed in angering it; causing it to catch one of her clubs in its mouth and snap it in half with its sharp teeth.

"Oh my, what sharp teeth you have," Rarity observed, slowly, nervously backing away. The Taraxippus, clearly not amused, began to charge, but was struck from its side by a small stone.

"...Okay, Az, stones are more effective than apples..." Applejack mumbled, standing next to a pile of small stones, which she repeatedly back to toss with her tail. A shower of stones pelted the Taraxippus, but it didn't seem to do a whole lot other than make it mad. It took its focus away from Rarity, and prepared to fight Applejack, with yet another screech.

Silver blasted it with sound waves before it could more than a few steps, drawing its attention to him. The Taraxippus let out another screech, clearly annoyed with all the attacks from different angles. It turned to Silver, trying to find a way to attack him before something else happened. Its tail twitched, its intent obvious.

Something crushed down on its tail; a large boulder. The Taraxippus turned to see that; and Pinkie Pie nearby, smiling up at it as though mocking it.

"Sorry, well, not really!" This was followed by blowing a raspberry at the creature. The creature tried to swipe its tail to return the "gift" given, but he couldn't do it fast enough and Pinkie almost effortlessly hopped out of the way.

Shade gritted his teeth. This was not at all going according to his expectations. With just one summon left, and not much magic or stamina left in his reserves, he knew he was about to lose. He needed something that could give him an advantage in battle. He looked out over the group, and saw his trump card: something that could also be used to prevent them from fighting back.

"Forget them!" Shade yelled, his creature's eyes glowing blue as Shade resumed control, "Grab the yellow one!" The Taraxippus looked up, seeing where Fluttershy was hiding; her head poked out from behind the debris.

"Oh no you don't!" Applejack yelled, her and the others quickly putting themselves between the Taraxippus and Fluttershy. They surrounded it while doing so, making sure they were out of its reach.

"You won't be doing that again!" Shade taunted, giving the creature another command as his horn seemed to glow brighter. This time, the Taraxippus lifted its tail, but all of them were sure they were out of its range. However, the creature stopped cold, and before any of the four ponies surrounding it could ask why, it spun in place, its tail unexpectedly extending, swatting away all four ponies in succession.

Now with all four out of the way, the Shadow Taraxippus charged Fluttershy, who quickly began to tremble in place.

"Fluttershy, run!" Applejack called out. Fluttershy tried to do so, abandoning the piece of debris she was holding on. She tripped over her own hooves before she could make it five steps, and her legs trembled under her own weight.

She found that no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't move. It was just like that dragon incident all over again, only this time...this time there was no coming back; no amount of angry glaring would convince their adversaries to back down. If she was captured again, it was obvious she was going to be used as a hostage, and everypony would be forced to submit.

The others watched, almost helplessly, as Shade's summon closed the distance. Suddenly, the Taraxippus appeared to be slowing down, losing speed. Its face grimaced, and it tried to force itself to run faster. Even Shade's commands to do so had no effect.

"S-Silver?!" the four mares yelled in unison, upon realizing a dark blue glow was surrounding the Taraxippus. The thing had to be heavy.

Silver didn't respond. Every last ounce of his focus and magic was dedicated to this task; he couldn't do anything else. Sweat ran down his face and body as he pushed himself beyond his limits just to restrain the Taraxippus. The creature was still able to amble forward, very, very slowly. With each step, Silver felt as though his horn was inverting and drilling into his head. Silver gritted his teeth. He couldn't even see it, but he could tell things were bad.

The Taraxippus extended its arm, very slowly, prepared to pick up Fluttershy and once again take her hostage.

Silver's eyes opened, once more glowing, this time, brightly. A sudden magic surge welled up inside of him; he needed to do this!

"You...will...not..." The others could only stand in awe as the Taraxippus stopped completely, now at Silver's mercy. But it didn't stop there; now it was actually lifting into the air a few feet. Veins formed on Silver's forehead; one of them looked like it was ready to burst from the effort, but Silver didn't care. "...touch...her!!!"

Silver tossed his entire upper body backwards, and he tossed the Taraxippus with what he had left, sending it crashing into nearby trees, uprooting them or breaking them as it went on. He planted his hooves, and no sooner did he do that did he run up to where he remembered Fluttershy was. Right now, he needed to get his magic back online; so he could use echolocation once more.

"...Are you...okay...?" Silver wheezed, all but spent from that last stunt.

"Y-yes," Fluttershy said in response.

"Great...I'm glad of..." Silver couldn't even stand for a moment, Fluttershy stopping him with both her forelegs to prevent him from falling flat on his face.

"Are you okay!?" she asked in turn out of concern.

"I've been...better..." Silver realized he was once again completely blind. He couldn't see the world around him spinning, but he definitely felt disoriented. If he had vision, he'd be seeing a heavy blur from fatigue, but he could still hear nonetheless, and he could hear the creature getting to its feet. "It's not over yet...Fluttershy...You need to get out of here. I'll try to hold it off..."

Silver stepped forward, against his better judgment.

"No, you're too tired to fight!" Fluttershy argued, surprisingly not stuttering as she grabbed onto the first thing she could reach: his tail.

"Don't worry about me..." Silver replied, "I couldn't protect you back then...but I'm sure as hay going to protect you now!"

This wasn't the first time she'd heard such a thing, but as Silver stomped his hoof on the ground for emphasis, Fluttershy had to argue the point.

"Why!? I didn't ask you to!!" Even if she wasn't exactly programmed to defend herself like most of her friends were, she still did not like the idea of her friends fighting for her sake; them getting hurt was just another blow.

"Because..." Silver turned to Fluttershy, smiling, "I protect the ponies I care for..."

It was a kind look, a sincere look. Even though his eyes were pale and lifeless overall, she could tell he was being honest...She felt herself begin to blush.

"S-Silver..." The moment didn't last long enough for her to say anymore. The creature was on its feet, and ready to try it again. Silver was out of magic at this point, and practically falling over. The only thing that kept him going was his will, and he willed his body forward.

"C'mon...I won't let you place a single claw on her!" Without his echolocation, Silver had to rely on his other senses, and he could hear the summon getting closer. It was all he could do to stand there. Fluttershy could only watch; the others were still trying to shake off the earlier tail swipe and couldn't quite make it in time...

Tears formed in her eyes; she had never felt more useless before...

Suddenly, there was something oddly familiar. It was a purple blur, running past everypony, barking a simple command.

"Everypony, cover your eyes!"

The voice was familiar, but Fluttershy, nor the others could place it. A second later, there was a brilliant flash of light that filled the forest, and Fluttershy covered her eyes to avoid being blinded...
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The light was so intense that it was like a flash grenade had gone off at their feet. Well, if ponies had flash grenades, anyway. It seemed like the sun's rays themselves were being amplifed, punching through the trees as though they weren't there. In the process, the Shadow Taraxippus began feeling the light. Even though the light had no actual physical mass, it was still pushed back as though it were being hit by a devastating magic blast. In the process, Shade's final summon disintegrated.
----------------------------
Silver heard a dying screech, and realized that whoever that voice was; something like that, had defeated the Shadow Taraxippus and saved them. He breathed a sigh, and could already feel his legs shaking. He collapsed, flat on his stomach, ready to sleep it off.

"What in tarnation happened?!" Applejack bellowed, blinded by the assault.

"No time to explain," An unfamiliar voice said. "We got your letter and came as fast as we could...Soon as you recover, you need to help me find that summoner..."

Silver's ears pricked up, and he forced himself to lift his head. Even though he couldn't even see anymore, he had to confirm something.

"Hey!" His voice was raspy, and he sounded sleepy. "Who's there?! Are you Royal Guards?!"

"Yeah," A second voice said, "Azure's letter came in handy--"

"Virid...is that you?!" Silver processed.

"Yeah, it is, now quiet..." Virid coldly said. His voice changed, and Silver couldn't place his tone. "Anyway, Captain, did my cousin's letter come in handy?!"

"Yeah, those notes he sent on the light spell helped out a lot," The unfamiliar voice said, seeming slightly uncomfortable at Virid's...enthusiasm? "Speaking of which, where is he? I've heard a lot about him from these two..."

"He went on ahead...he's taking on a pony that can nullify magic..."

"What?!" Blitz called out. "What'd he look like?"

"He was cloaked and gray!" Pinkie chirped, somehow not bothered by the fact she was probably straining her eyes. Or perhaps she just pulled a pair of shades out of nowhere in the nick of time.

"It's that pony...!" Virid snarled. "Captain, what are your orders?"

"Go on ahead. He'll probably need your help..." "Captain" responded. "I'll look for the other one. Let's hope he doesn't get away this time!"

"We sent on Rainbow..." Rarity said, "She shouldn't be affected; that's what Silver said...And I don't remember it affecting her..."

Virid said nothing, "I owe that pony a beating...Let's go, Blitz!"

"Right!" Blitz called out, already on the move. Silver sighed in relief.

"Alright..." The captain of the two responded, "Anypony who's recovered from the blindness, follow me! I'm going to need your help to find him..."

"Say, have we met you before?" Rarity asked, "You look...familiar..."

Silver wouldn't have known it...
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Azure panted, the spamming of his laser spell having kicked up smoke around his target. He panted, staring at the smoke. Somehow, he knew that wasn't going to be it. He cast a look back to Twilight, who put her hooves up on her invisible cage.

"Azure...the spell isn't down!" she confirmed, looking over to him.

"Affirmative..." came the voice of his enemy.

Azure turned back around to his opponent, who had taken some damage from his assault. His cloak was torn in several places; several burn holes seared through it. His hood had been blown off, and his exposed fur was spattered with burn marks as well. He was clearly unamused, but his overall aura reflected surety.

"I do not know how you made your magic so...potent..." he observed. "I can't nullify it with my normal spells...however, no matter..."

An invisible force suddenly spread from the pony's body. It blew past Azure, and somehow, he felt sluggish. His eyes stopped glowing, and it felt like the weight of his earlier blasting was catching up to him. He gasped for air.

"The Large Null Field negates magic that I can't on my own...It's what I used earlier to knock all of the unicorns offline back at that picnic..." he said calmly. "And apparently, your little potency increase was just a large surge in your magic...Nothing more."

Azure looked back to Twilight, who had her hooves pressed up against what looked like empty air. She was clearly concerned now. He turned back to Tagane, who was bum-rushing him.

"Now you will get out of my way..."
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Rainbow Dash found it surprisingly easy to find Azure Courage. High above the forest, she could see a cyan light show going on at the Ghastly Gorge, and she quickly deduced that was where he'd caught up to the other pony. She quickly made a beeline for it.

"Hold on, Az..." Rainbow said. "If Silver says you're gonna need the help, I'd better go do it..."

She flew straight for it. As she neared the battle, she noticed what looked like Twilight, on her hind legs, seemingly held in place. Just ahead of that, she could see Azure and the cloaked pony fighting it out on their hind legs.

Azure was clearly losing. Rainbow increased her speed, flying straight down, but she was too late to stop Twilight's captor from thrusting both his forehooves into Azure's chest.

The force of the strike lifted Azure off his back hooves, and sent him flying back.

"Az!!!" Dash called out in alarm; followed closely by Twilight's own scream,

"Azure!!"

Chapter 29: Negate This!

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Chapter 29: Negate This!
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Azure Courage could only think of one thing to do in his current situation: cough. The attack from his opponent definitely knocked the wind out of him, and it hurt. He was fairly sure he heard one more scream than he should have, but he wasn't sure if he actually did or he was so sore from that last attack that he momentarily heard echoes.

"R-Rainbow!?" Twilight called out, almost relieved to see it.

"Huh?" Azure coughed, getting back on his hooves. Sure enough, in about a second, Rainbow seemingly materialized at his side, hovering.

"You alright?" Rainbow asked, looking to him.

"I can still go," Azure responded. "What about the others?"

"They're alright..." she said. "Silver told me to go on ahead, said you needed the help..."

"I just might have to take up that offer..." Azure responded. "You have a real sense of timing, Rainbow, just a few seconds earlier he turned off my magic..."

"Heh, don't I always?" she asked.

"Gloat about it later!" Azure advised. "He isn't going to stand there and let us talk forever!"

"Hm..." Tagane mumbled. "So the Element of Loyalty has come to aid him...No matter. I can still beat you both even if I can't shut off pegasus magic..."

"Don't get full of yourself!" The pegasus in question shouted, apparently hearing him.

This coming from you... Azure resisted the urge to show any reaction to her usual confidence, relieved to see she hadn't lost a bit of it due to everything that had happened today.

"I don't see why I shouldn't be, but I guess I'm just going to have to beat both of you and prove it..." The earth pony said, rushing forward again. Azure and Rainbow met the charge, though Rainbow was a lot faster and reached Tagane first. The earth pony in question looked momentarily surprised, just as Rainbow slammed one of her outstretched hooves into his face, bending upward.

Azure continued to rush in after this, knocking over Tagane again, though he couldn't muster as much force as he had before. The earth pony managed to recover quickly from this assault, attempting to attack Azure once more. Rainbow curved around in midair, hoping to catch him full speed from the side, but Tagane managed to avoid her rush this time with a very well-timed jump.

As Rainbow tried to right her course again, Azure found himself rushing into Tagane's head once more, though this time, Tagane was definitely pushing him back. Despite Azure's best efforts, he had to keep taking steps back or he would be forced to the ground.

Just as Tagane tried to move in for another knockout hit, Rainbow Dash flew around once again, this time, landing her full-speed charge from the side and lifting Tagane off his feet. Rainbow skidded to a halt on the ground, slightly dazed from the impact.

"Rainbow, you alright?" Azure asked, noting her condition.

"What's he made of...?!" she grumbled, using her wings as leverage so she could wring her hooves in slight pain, as they had lead the charge.

"Don't know..."

"Why do you persist in something you can't win?" Tagane asked, clearly angered by the constant intrusions and the fact he was starting to lose ground.

"You had help last time in fending us off!" Azure responded.

"I'm still capable of knocking you both out...It doesn't matter how fast or fit you are..."

Rainbow Dash rushed forward, "What about both?!"

"I'll show you what I can do about both..."

Tagane stood completely still as Rainbow once again took advantage of her speed, rushing at him, probably aiming to tackle him to the ground. The pony looked up, just as Rainbow entered his range, and ducked low. He didn't stop there. As Rainbow soared over him, she didn't have time to react to Tagane thrusting himself upwards, essentially slamming himself into her midsection. This caused her to lose control of her flight and knocked the wind out of her, sending the pegasus into the trees behind her.

Tagane then turned his attention to Azure, and both ponies charged each other again. Both quickly went on their hind legs and entered another fierce exchange of hoof-punches, though Tagane clearly held the edge. He attacked one of Azure's joints, causing Azure to be stunned long enough for Tagane to thrust one of his hooves into Azure's chest, once again knocking him off his back hooves and onto his back.

While Azure tried to recover from this assault, a "Why you..." was heard from the trees. Rainbow Dash floated above the trees, clearly unamused by the flight failure she'd experienced. She flew towards Tagane, bits of branches stuck in her fur. The colt calmly waited once again, and jumped off to one side at the last possible second. With no way to apply the brakes, the pegasus slammed full force into the ground, causing her to cough slightly from the pain. She slid for a bit, winding up next to Azure. Both ponies got to their feet.

"Just stay down." Tagane said, "There's no point in going on. You can't beat me..."

"We're not going to just fork over our friends, you know!" Azure shouted back.

"You don't get a say in the matter!" Tagane rushed forward, aiming for the final blow on Azure. If Azure fell, Rainbow would be left alone; and if she fell too, Twilight and Rainbow would have both been captured by them.

Azure stood his ground this time, not knowing what to do.

"For crying out loud, Azure..." A familiar voice rang out. A moment later, a rock flew through the air almost like an oversized bullet. Tagane had to quickly fall back to avoid taking the hit. Even as it soared through the air, it was obviously magically pushed; as soon as it entered the range of his large Null Field, it began to lose momentum. However, it would have still stung quite a bit, and Tagane was starting to feel Azure's earlier hits, as well as the strikes Rainbow had landed.

"You couldn't handle this much on your own?"

Azure blinked.

"Give him a break," said a second, also familiar voice. "Sure enough, it's the same pony we lost to--you expected him to take him on without help?"

Azure turned, to see a rapidly slowing Crimson Blitz and Virid Strategem, both decked out in their armor. The latter wore an almost contemptibly smug look on his face, the former showed no emotion other than relief.

"At least we were in time..." Crimson sighed in relief.

"Crimson! Virid!" Azure cried out. "You two got the letter I sent?!"

"Yeah..." Virid said. "Our captain made short work of this guy's friend, and is trying to chase him down through the Everfree Forest as we speak. He'd better pray for mercy."

Were it not for the greater crisis at hand, Azure would have noted the absolutely respectful tone Virid used in reference to his captain. However, given that Tagane was still healthy, Azure didn't bother with pointing it out.

"You two again?" Tagane asked. "No wonder Shade isn't done with the others...I'm not surprised..."

His tone betrayed just a hint of regret for splitting up with his friend. However, he quickly righted himself, cracking his neck as he went. "It won't make a difference. Of the four of you, I've already knocked out three of you once..."

"You got the two of us by surprise," Virid countered, stepping forward. "Even though you may be able to turn off magic, this time will be different..."

"And if you could have knocked me out when I was on my guard...I'd have already been knocked cold again..." Azure responded.

"Bring it on, then..." Tagane said, as placid as ever. "I'll take all four of you on at once."

The four ponies charged as a group. Rainbow flew towards Tagane once more, this time, breaking left before Tagane could launch a counterattack. The rainbow trail she left was kicked through by Azure. Tagane tried to dodge, only to be met with a left cross hoof-punch from Blitz that sent him staggering backwards. Rainbow circled around, and landed another hit on Tagane's back, stunning him long enough for Virid to get in close.

"Remember me?" he asked, finishing up with closing the distance.

Tagane said nothing, barely getting on his hind legs to force Virid to do the same. He remembered him all too well-the pony that couldn't do anything other than magic. Even his base attacks were magical, so the earth pony believed he shouldn't have been that hard to deal with this time around.

He was, however, sorely mistaken.

"I've been preparing for this for a while now!" Virid declared, his eyes already moving to his left to cut off Tagane's attack, attacking his joint to stun that foreleg. As Tagane was forced to lower himself, Virid shoved at Tagane's chest, sending him off balance. "I don't know how you can use magic, but--"

"This isn't the time for your manure, Virid!" Azure called out, galloping up to deliver a powerful slam into Tagane's chest to lift him off his hind legs. The cloaked pony quickly recovered, however, just in time for Blitz to mimic the maneuver This time, Tagane actually stumbled over, falling down. However, he was back up in no time, strangely, trying to actually catch his breath.

"Man!" Rainbow blurted out, returning to the sides of the cousins as she caught her own breath. "Fightin' all those monsters the other colt summoned took a little more out of me than I thought!"

Azure panted hard, but Virid and Blitz only were catching their breath. Virid looked back to the two less healthy ponies, and merely scoffed.

"Virid! Do you have any idea what we can do yet?" Blitz asked. "The two of them are tired and right now, we can't use magic...If we could just cause him to lose his Nullification spells...we could end this quick."

"I know! I'm thinking of it..." Virid responded.

"Whatever you try to do won't work..." Tagane returned to his feet. "You aren't going to get much further than this. Soon, you two Royal Guards will once again be gasping for air at my hooves...along with the younger one...And as for the Elements..."

"Dream on!" Virid snapped, looking ready to attack once again.

"Virid, calm down..." Blitz said, stretching out a forehoof in front of his comrade. "Do you have a way or not?"

Virid knit his brows. "Earth ponies can't normally harness magic...let alone specialized magic like this."

"State the obvious!" Rainbow barked, but Virid didn't even seem to notice.

"So...Hmm...I wonder..." Virid trailed off.

"Do whatever you want, I'm sure it won't work!" Tagane roared, launching forward again. Virid grit his teeth.

"You three, buy me a little time! I almost have everything I need figured out..." Virid bellowed.

"Who made you a prince?!" Dash responded.

"Not now, Rainbow!" Azure said, already taking Virid's advice and charging Tagane, Blitz already running right alongside him. Rainbow decided to take Azure's word for it and rushed forth, though she was a little too late to stop Tagane from colliding with both colts. Both sides stopped cold, but the combined power of the colts began to very quickly force Tagane to walk backwards. Quickly, Tagane shifted his weight away from them, sending the two unicorns off balance.

The next move was a bit awkward, but as Azure and Blitz recovered, Tagane jumped back a bit, before leaping forward with his hooves outstretched. Both Azure and Blitz were hit in the chest. Blitz was able to handle the attack a bit better than Azure was. The red unicorn was pushed back, though he remained on all fours, but Azure slid back, forced to land flat on his rump.

Rainbow didn't allow Tagane to charge again, this time landing in front of him.

"You dare to try and take me on alone?" he asked.

"I don't know what you want with us...but I'm not going to let you take any of us away!" Rainbow declared, standing between the two groups.

Rainbow used her wings as leverage to keep herself on her hind legs as Tagane got on his, and began to match his attacks. Tagane was a strong pony, there was no getting around that, and Rainbow could feel the force behind his hooves. However, she wasn't giving an inch. She moved her head to avoid one of the earth pony's less-than-accurate haymakers, and while he was sent off balance, Rainbow used her wings as a boost to slam into the pony's chest. This time, more than any others, Tagane was clearly winded, and he actually had to get back on all fours to rub at his chest in pain.

"Do that again!" Virid called out. "One of you, do that again!"

Rainbow blinked. His chest...?

Azure and Blitz seemed to understand what he might have been getting at, and both launched forward again. Tagane gritted his teeth. He seemed to understand what Virid was getting at, and thus he tried to ignore his other three opponents for the time being. He rushed for Virid instead.

"Huh!?" Azure called out. "Virid, watch it!"

Virid's amber eyes changed as he realized Tagane was making for him. "Well, never mind that..."

Tagane seemed to have forgotten himself in his rush, and Virid could see it, clear as day. He whirled around, and landed a perfect back kick into Tagane's chest. The cloaked earth pony lifted off all four hooves from the force of the attack, and as his opponent sailed into the air, Virid could only think of one thing to say.

"Too sloppy!"

Tagane fell to the ground again, buffeted by the attack. This time, he was coughing harder than ever. He struggled to his hooves. The other three fighters began to surround him, cutting off the 3, 9, and 6 o'clock positions. Virid stood in front of his former opponent, who was struggling to catch his breath.

"I think the winning strategy is just about set up..." Virid said. "I don't know why, though..."

Tagane lowered his head, almost as though surrendering. Twilight felt her heart soar with hope, and she reached a hoof out to her barrier. The solid feel of the barrier wasn't any more reassuring, but with any luck, soon it would...

Her hoof fell through the barrier, and she awkwardly stumbled forward, not expecting it.

"Wha--?" she started, followed by a loud, sharp grunt coming from Virid. Twilight snapped her head over to look, and realized Tagane had somehow managed to shove the green colt aside. He was now heading right for her.

"I will not fail!" Tagane roared, making a beeline for her. "At this point, even one of you being captured will do!"

Twilight gasped. She was probably going to be hit hard again. Instinctively, she attempted to flare up her magic...but realized she was still within the confines of the field he used to knock out the others' magic.

"Twilight!" Azure yelled, though it was clear he wasn't going to make it in time. Even weakened, Tagane's surprise attack had managed to get most of the ponies off-guard.

Twilight closed her eyes, unable to look at this point. She expected to feel another blunt force strike her, and that would knock her out. She wasn't sure what Tagane had planned to do once he had her in his grasp, but she hated that most of all...

No blunt force came, and Twilight opened her eyes in surprise.

"You ain't goin' anywhere with my friend!" Rainbow declared through clenched teeth, holding up her captor by the cloak. Tagane was utterly at a loss as to how fast Rainbow was.

"Hey!" Virid called out, "Get that cloak off of him! It might show why his chest is more vulnerable that it should be..."

"Don't!" Tagane yelled in protest, but it was too late for him to be trying to plead. Rainbow ascended in height, and, maintaining her grip, flew low with the earth pony in tow. The numerous holes that littered his cloak already began to warp from the stress, and soon, all the holes ripped apart at once, and Tagane, now fully exposed like the mares and Azure, fell to the ground as his cloak fell in pieces around him.

Rainbow spat out the cloak fragment that she was holding on to, and turned around, landing next to the cousins once more. Tagane was face-down on the ground, and he was gritting his teeth in anger.

"You've done it now..." His voice was dangerous, and as he got to his feet, all facing him let out a gasp.

"His...chest..." Virid mused, almost at a loss for words.

Right below his neck was a narrow mark, almost like a cut, where his fur was sparser than the rest of his body. As he got to his feet, Tagane's chest was in full view. It looked horrific: there was a jagged, four-pointed scar stretching across his chest, and at the center was a large, white, glowing jewel. Part of it looked cracked, probably from his previous attempts.

"So that's how he's able to use that Nullification Magic..." Virid said. "Looks like we busted it up a little earlier, though..."

"That's right..." Tagane responded, apparently hearing him. "I'm an earth pony, as you were so keen on pointing out. I do rely a lot on the element of surprise. But that's what we're all about, Shade and I...He swarms you with his summons faster than you can bat an eye, and even though I don't look like I can use magic, I negate all the others...That's where my name comes from, 'Tagane'..."

"I don't care who you are anymore..." Blitz said. "You attacked innocent ponies, and you're going to pay up for it."

"None who hear my name have ever been able to tell it to a friend..." Tagane said dangerously, preparing to attack again.

"If we can just break that gem...or at least fragment it enough, it should restore our magic..." Virid said. "But we're going to need a Tartarus-load of force to pull it off...all we could do between the four of us was crack it...and we don't have all day..."

"Won't breaking it kill him?" Blitz asked, clearly concerned.

"...Hm..." Azure turned to Rainbow Dash. "Rainbow, think you can put enough speed behind your hoof to--"

Rainbow turned to him, grinning, apparently already knowing where he was going. "Just be sure to hold him still..."

"You won't be able to plan your way out of this!" Tagane roared, heading for them.

"Alright, Rainbow Dash..." Blitz said. "Why don't you give us a speed demonstration...?"

Rainbow said nothing, partly because she was already putting distance between herself and the scene of the battle.

"You think it makes a difference that you know how my ability works?" Tagane asked, "I'll defeat you all here and now!"

To this, Virid rushed forward, "We'll see about that!"

Tagane put weight on his hind legs. To the average pony, it would have looked like he was about to stand on his hind legs once more to attempt bipedal combat. However, as he neared, Virid noticed that his adversary hadn't moved aside from this. In his mind, it left him with two options: he was going to be faked out and be struck in the chest; or his opponent had something else in mind.

Virid continued to charge without stopping, closing one eye to keep an eye on his opponent's movements.

"...As I thought..."

Tagane showed a look of surprise as Virid charged full force into his chest. The earth pony fell back, just in time to notice Blitz on his way. Virid ducked down to allow Blitz a little more room, and in turn the other Royal Guard smashed into Tagane's chest once more, causing the earth pony to fall over onto his back. Blitz jumped up, aiming to deal some more damage to the gem with an intense crash; even unassisted, Blitz could spring quite a bit into the air.

However, it was all for naught as Blitz's forehooves crashed into solid ground, Tagane having rolled out of the way and back to his feet before he could land. Tagane got back to his feet, apparently analyzing the improvements in his former opponents. However, he heard the clop of hooves at his side, and turned just in time to avoid Azure's attempted buck to the side. Azure was off-balance from the attempt, and couldn't recover in time.

Pain shot through him as Tagane mimicked his attack, only with success as Azure didn't recover his balance quick enough. Azure's hooves left the ground. However, he wasn't quite out of it yet; he managed to recover, and planted all four hooves on the ground, skidding to a halt. Immediately after trying to right himself, he felt a small pain in his ribs.

No time...to worry about it...now...

Tagane prepared to charge again, intent on taking out the already exhausted unicorn, when he heard two ponies closing in on him while his back was turned. Virid and Blitz were coming right at him, probably intending for a team attack. However, Blitz suddenly pulled ahead of Virid, and Virid almost seemed to disappear as Blitz was ahead. Blitz let out a scream, and Tagane braced himself, trying not to take his eyes from the charging red unicorn.

Once Blitz was close enough to bop Tagane on the nose, he suddenly broke left, and Tagane followed Blitz instinctively. He blinked, only now remembering that he forgot to count--

"Surprise!" Virid called out, aiming another strong attack for the gem. Tagane turned, taking the brunt of the attack just to the right of the gem. The attack still hurt, and it did send him skidding back a few feet.

"You think the two of you can stop me?!" Tagane yelled.

"Three!"

The voice was muffled, and Tagane felt a blunt force apply to the back of his head. Azure bounced off the back of the unicorns head with one forehoof, and clumsily landed, eventually winding up flat on his stomach.

"There...now we're even..." Azure said, his cousins quickly taking his sides as he got to his feet. Tagane wrestled himself to his feet.

"You think you've won yet?" Tagane asked.

"I don't see why not..." Virid responded. "You took us out separately hiding behind the surprise your magic creates..."

"But when we're together, and know how your magic works..." Blitz said, "Even at the cost of your own personal welfare, you can't defeat the three of us together."

Azure's ears pricked up, and he checked behind him. He could see it: a cyan dot very quickly gaining momentum as it sailed right towards the scene of the battle. "Virid, Blitz, Rainbow's coming back! We need to hold him down now!"

Blitz and Virid nodded, not even looking at Azure.

"Just try!" Tagane challenged.

In response, all three of the unicorns rushed forward. Tagane was fully prepared for the full-on rush, and he tensed up in preparation. Given the speed the pegasus was closing in at, the trio had at most fifteen seconds to--

Virid and Blitz broke away from the run, quickly circling around to his sides. The speeds of all three ponies were in perfect sync, and Tagane could see it: he couldn't attack one without the other two catching his blind spot. Which left him only one option.

He stood his ground, waiting for the right moment. As the trio neared, Tagane saw his winning formula: the three unicorns would be unable to continue their course and crash into each other or stop trying not to; the pegasus would miss her attempt and have to turn around, losing momentum in the process, and that would be the end of that.

Tagane leapt back to prepare his plan, when suddenly, Virid and Blitz stopped, sooner than expected. They turned to face Azure, and as the older unicorns each raised a hind leg, Azure leapt forward. With precise timing, all three unicorns kicked, springboarding Azure forward. Azure stretched out his forelegs as his cousins quickly moved towards him.

Before Tagane could even process what had happened, a pair of forelegs were now around his neck, and something smashed into his flank, causing him to rise onto his hind legs involuntarily. It didn't take too long to figure out what Azure had done, but as soon as he recovered, it was too late.

"You aren't..." Azure started, behind Tagane, using him as support to stand on his own hind legs.

"going anywhere!" Virid finished, holding on to Tagane's left foreleg while Blitz held on to his right. His chest jewel was fully exposed, and Tagane couldn't overwhelm the combined strength of the three ponies: his anatomy wasn't built for struggling out of the hold.

Rainbow Dash, practically cloaked in a rainbow blur, rushed forward, her hoof outstretched in front of her. She was holding back just a little so she wouldn't impact the sound barrier and lose all of her gathered momentum, but she was still gaining speed fast. The world was practically a single blue blur around her as she rushed forth, her distance quickly going from miles to feet in milliseconds flat.

Three seconds was plenty of time for her to land her mark, perfectly on the gem in Tagane's chest. The gem fissured heavily from the impact, and the sound of shattering was not lost on the ponies present. Translucent, white magic began to emanate from the gem, and it came out with such force that Rainbow Dash, Azure Courage, Crimson Blitz, and Virid Strategem were all sent flying away from the modified earth pony.

Azure managed to get his bearings, dizzied and exhausted from the battle. He looked around to make sure nopony had been sent over the edge of the gorge. Crimson and Virid hadn't been sent over, and Rainbow had also recovered nicely. Tagane, on the other hand, was lying flat on his back, just outside of the impact crater the magical explosion had formed. The gem was riddled with cracks, and even though it had been glowing just moments before, it was now dark gray and lifeless, the magic inside completely spent. Tagane was motionless as the others slowly approached him.

"Is he...?" Azure began.

Rainbow stared towards the earth pony, "Serves him right...nopony messes with my friends..."

Tagane coughed violently, and the others stopped dead in their tracks. He slowly got back to his feet, his eyes half-glazed over as he tried to remain upright.

"It's...not...over...not yet..." He groaned, clearly drained from the previous attack's toll on his body. He shook his head violently, clearly on his last leg. "I won't let it end like this!"

Tagane galloped forward, aiming to grab Twilight once more and run. However, before anypony could fully realize it, Blitz vanished in a blur of purple light. He reappeared, cutting off Tagane.

"Hm..." Blitz said. "Looks like our magic's back in order..."

Tagane stopped, and Blitz could see it: his pupils were shrinking, violently shaking as he processed something very clear.

He lost.

Blitz turned around, slamming one foot hard into Tagane's chin. Weakened from the broken gem in his chest, and powerless, he was sent flying from the one attack. Azure was next, his eyes once more taking on their glow as he did a gravity-spell assisted jump, crashing down into Tagane's gut with one hoof outstretched. Tagane coughed violently once again as he made impact with the ground, which cracked under the weight of the impact. Azure flipped off of Tagane, and his eyes once more returned to their normal coloration.

Tagane got back to his feet, though his movements were even slower than before. Virid walked in front of his opponent like a predator stalking its prey. Tagane got back to his feet, and lifted his head just in time to see Virid's cool, collected, yet smug expression.

"Don't bother." Virid's horn glowed, and so did his right forehoof, which he extended to Tagane's shoulder. "It's over."

A violent pressure expanded from Virid's hoof, and Tagane was lifted off his feet once again. He flew back, bouncing on the ground twice as he somersaulted through the air. This time, when he hit the ground, he didn't get up. He was still breathing, though faintly.
-------------------------------------
Azure breathed out, and as he did, all the pain he'd suffered over the past battles became clear to him. He wasn't going to let it get to him, though. The mere fact he was entrusted with his duty by the princess would have stirred anypony to go to the lengths he had to see this through; however, Azure would have fought this hard even if Princess Celestia hadn't confronted him on that night.

The cyan unicorn trotted over to Twilight, still feeling sore from the fight as a whole, but happy to have won. Twilight stood up as he approached, seemingly in stunned silence over what happened. She slowly approached him, smiling.

"You didn't hear me at all...did you..." she asked, but Azure didn't even have time to respond before he found himself in a spot he was familiar with. Twilight had thrown one forehoof around him, pulling him close. It aggravated some of his injuries from the fight, but Azure found he didn't care about that anymore.

"...Twilight..." Azure said after some pause, trying to decide what to say. After all, he'd said something...interesting, towards the start of the fight, that he had a pretty good feeling she heard when he said it. "...Are...are you okay...?"

Azure hadn't even been aware he returned the gesture in between his two phrases. A few feet away, Virid rolled his eyes and looked the other way, while Blitz and Rainbow could only smile; the latter combining her motion with an eyeroll.

"Yeah...I'm fine..." Twilight's answer was barely above a whisper, "Thanks to you..."

Azure didn't care that his cousins and Rainbow Dash were watching. All he cared about now was the fact Twilight was unquestionably safe at the moment.

"Azure..." She was hesitant to continue speaking now.

"Hm...?" he asked, Twilight finally letting go as he did the same.

"About earlier..." She said; as soon as she said that, Azure figured out exactly what the mare before him was going to ask about, and his heart began to race. "What you said to him..."

So soon...but...somehow...I know what I said wasn't heat of the moment...it couldn't happen twice!

"I...I..."

"Twiley!"

The voice cut through the scene. All heads turned to the source of the voice. Azure noticed a white unicorn stallion with a blue striped mane and tail heading for them, decked out in armor similar to Virid and Blitz, only purple and gold instead of white and gold. He turned back, to see Rainbow looking confused and his cousins standing at attention. Looking into the distance behind the newcomer, he could see the rest of his friends, all safe and relatively unharmed.

And Twilight's reaction stupefied Azure: "B.B.B.F.F.!"

With that, she ran toward the stallion, and Azure could only blink when he saw the two hug. A single tear formed at the white stallion's eye, and all Azure could think of was this.

Who is this pony?

"Captain Shining Armor, sir," Virid said. Azure turned back to his cousin again, and was utterly confused to see the level of respect he was giving the unicorn. Even if he was his superior...

"Yes, soldier?" Shining asked, looking to him.

"The earth pony has been subdued," Virid seemed to put even more effort into his salute, which left Azure even more at a loss.

"Good work, soldier," Shining responded, "Wish we could say the same for the summoner, though. He managed to get away..."

Silver made a small "tch" at this, clearly discomforted about the escapee.

"We'll get him next time, sir," Blitz said. Virid wasn't talking, he seemed to be sufficiently uplifted after hearing Shining give him a "job well done".

"Twilight, you never told us you knew the Captain of the Royal Guards," Rarity was standing maybe within half a foot of the stallion in question, giving him probably the most flirtatious eyes Azure had ever seen a pony put on ever.

"Captain of the--whoa..." Rainbow responded in utter disbelief, echoing Azure's thoughts verbatim.

"Well, of course I know him, he's my brother!" Twilight replied to Rarity's question. There was silence all around, and a single question echoed off every other tongue in the valley.

"B-b-b-brother?!"
-------------------------------------
It was a long walk home. The trio of Royal Guards kept an eye out just in case the summoner tried for a second attack. Tagane was the one being carried away this time, and given that he was out cold, he wasn't likely to wake up until he was safely in custody. Shining offered to carry him, but strangely, Virid was way ahead of him. Not much time had passed between the kidnapping and now, but it felt like an entire day had passed to Twilight Sparkle. So much had happened, and she wasn't sure how to take it.

It's good that Azure had shown up when he had...and that Rainbow Dash and then Azure's cousins came when they did, but... Twilight began to think to herself about all the possibilities that could have unfolded. What would they have done to me, to Fluttershy, if they hadn't shown up when they did...Would we have ever been rescued? Would I ever have been able to see my friends again? Would Azure--

Twilight felt very faint, and the next step she took caused her to lose her balance. She would have fallen flat on her face had Azure not been right next to her to catch her. Everypony stopped, turning to her.

"Twilight?!" Everypony said, nearly at once and at the same time. They all began to move towards her, wondering if she'd been more seriously hurt.

"I-I'm okay...it's just..." she started, not sounding as shaken as she looked.

"We understand, darling, you've had the roughest possible day a mare could have..." Rarity said, putting a hoof to Twilight's shoulder. The mare tried to use Azure as leverage to stand, but anypony could have seen her legs were trembling under her own weight.

"C-can you walk?" Azure asked. He sounded like he regretted asking, but Twilight wasn't about to point out he asked a question with a very obvious answer.

Twilight shook her head no, slowly.

"I-I can carry you...if you want..." Even beaten up, Azure was still willing to make the offer.

Shining heard the offer; it was exactly the same as he was about to make. He would have had one of the other guards carry the pony he was now carrying off, but the problem was already solved. Twilight didn't even respond, climbing straight up onto Azure's back without so much as a word spoken. Shining couldn't think of anything to say right away.

"Sir, is that awkward for you?" Virid asked. He was always eager to please--it was almost unsettling.

"...No." Shining smiled, turning away. "C'mon, let's head back to where the picnic was. We can get back to Canterlot just fine from there..."

Twilight nestled into Azure's neck. He definitely had exerted himself a lot for her sake; she could tell considering that he was walking just a little slower with her on his back. However, she couldn't tear herself from him now. She knew where she needed to be right now, after the trauma she'd just endured...

Chapter 30: The Aftermath of Trauma

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Chapter 30: The Aftermath of Trauma
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The walk back to Ponyville seemed to take the longest time, but Azure didn't really care about any of that. He'd fulfilled his promises once again, this time in a way he'd hoped to never experience from this point onward. Nearly losing two friends to two crazed ponies wasn't something that anypony should ever wish for themselves or another.

All along the way, the group had more or less talked. The surgically modified earth pony hadn't so much as stirred with the talk around him. Shining began to go into detail of how the pursuit with Shade went, with Virid and Blitz listening intently. Azure listened in too; he still owed that pony for what'd he'd attempted to do three times now. Twilight quietly rode on his back, still shaken from the whole ordeal. Occasionally her grip would tighten, and Azure would often have to raise a forehoof tenderly to where she was squeezing him to remind her that he was still very sore.

While this was going on, another conversation was taking place. Though Fluttershy had also been shaken by the ordeal, she could find it in herself to stand and walk with assistance. Silver was the one helping her along, but they were even further back than Azure and Twilight.

Fluttershy hadn't said much for most of the trip; other than an occasional "yes" or a short statement regarding the actual fight, she had kept her mouth shut.

"You alright, Fluttershy?" Silver asked, using his sense of touch to locate her, "You haven't said anything in a while."

If he had eyesight, he would have seen the doubt on her face.

"I'm okay...i-it's just..." Fluttershy paused, feeling incredibly unsure if she should say what was on her mind. But her want to know outweighed her timidity, and she had to ask, "Earlier, right before...Shining arrived....D-did you mean it?"

"Mean what?" Silver asked, a look of puzzlement on his features.

"When you said...'you protect the ponies you care for'?" Fluttershy responded, her heart suddenly racing. Not even Azure's pep talk way back then had done this much to her; he hadn't made the assertion that Silver had at that time.

"Oh, that..." Silver's face began to flush with color-red. Fluttershy returned the blush as soon as she realized he was. "Yeah...I did mean it. And it wasn't in the heat of the moment either...I meant every word..."

Fluttershy almost let out a goat bleat; had Silver not been supporting her weight she would have fallen over. "I-I don't know what to say..."

"You don't have to say anything if you don't want to..." Silver assured. "But if you're not busy tomorrow, I thought maybe we could hang out...get to know each other a little more."

Silver turned to Fluttershy, giving the warmest smile he could muster. Fluttershy stared into Silver's dead eyes and began to return the smile, even if he couldn't see it.

"I'd like that..." she responded, resting her head on Silver's shoulder.
---------------------------------------------------
The rest of the walk back had gone off well, but a lot of time had disappeared. When the foalnapping had happened, it was about noon. Though the whole affair hadn't lasted more than an hour, the walk back from the Ghastly Gorge took a lot longer with several exhausted ponies in the party. The sun was already beginning to set, and set fast as the group finally made it back to the picnic.

"Well," Shining observed. "We've gotta go take this colt away now," He motioned with his head to the still out cold Tagane.

"Will..." Twilight said, looking up from Azure's neck, but still maintaining her hold, "Will you be back?"

"Twiley..." Shining responded, turning back to her. "We will be here for a couple more days...That pony could still try again. As such, only one of us will leave to--"

"Pick me, sir!" Virid blurted out, immediately showing Shining only the utmost respect, once again. "I promise he won't get away this time!"

"If you manage to lose an unconscious pony..." Blitz began, trailing off for emphasis.

"Crimson, go with Virid until he leaves. Make sure nopony sneaks up on him," Shining commanded, heading off the potential argument that could have risen from that. Azure had a funny feeling his cousins were still prone to unprofessionally fighting each other...even with Virid's unusual amount of respect for his captain.

"As for the rest of you..." Shining continued, addressing the group. "I don't think it'd be the best idea to go home alone tonight, after what happened. He could still be out there."

Nopony objected. Rainbow Dash and Applejack left together, probably going to Sweet Apple Acres. Azure knew he would have to talk to her at some point, given all that had happened recently, but right now, he was going to focus on the present. Rarity and Pinkie left together, with Rarity giving Azure a very subtle wink as she walked past him. Silver looked to Azure, nodding.

The two didn't say anything, bumping forehooves. The blind pony then left with Fluttershy, while Virid and Blitz left with the still unconscious Tagane in tow. This left Azure alone with Twilight...and her older brother.

"Azure, right?" questioned Shining as soon as the others were out of earshot.

"Yes, sir?" Azure asked, more out of force of habit. Shining merely chuckled in response.

"C'mon, you're not one of my soldiers, just 'Shining' is fine by me..."

Azure nodded. Inside, he wondered how he could be so laid-back considering who he was and all that had happened, but he wasn't about to question it now.

"Hey, do you mind if I talk to Twilight for a bit?" Shining asked.

He wasn't immediately sure if he imagined Twilight's grip tighten just a little out of reflex or not. But he could feel her shake slightly.

"It's just for a few minutes. I'll still be here when you get back, don't worry." Azure said, touching the spot where her hooves intersected again. "Besides, he's your brother..."

Twilight relaxed, and allowed herself to be placed onto Shining's back without so much as a word spoken. Shining then began walking away, leaving Azure alone. The sun finished its course, and the moon came into full view, and Azure stared up at it.
----------------------------------------------------
As soon as Shining exited Azure's earshot, he allowed Twilight to lie down on the ground, and sat down next to her. They were under a tree. It was easy for Shining to read his sister's emotions, even though he hadn't seen her since she moved: she was still very shaken from her ordeal.

"I'm sorry I wasn't here to protect you, Twilight," he said, nuzzling his sister gently.

"It's not your fault..." Twilight assured, "Besides..." Her face was buried in his shoulder, and he couldn't see the smile that had formed on her face as she said the next part, "Azure was there..."

"And I've never been more grateful..." Shining chuckled suddenly, "It's funny...every time I picture a colt in your life, I always wind up hating him."

Twilight groaned in response, and that only made him laugh just a little more.

"But...now that I've actually met one, and seen how far he's willing to go for you, well...he's got my respect." He looked over to Azure, and he was looking at the moon like some kind of wolf. "So...Twiley...do you remember a few years ago, a little after you got your cutie mark?"

Twilight blinked. Of course she did; in fact, before all this had happened, she had remembered it quite clearly...all except for one detail. Her eyes widened.

"You told us about a colt you saw..." Shining continued, "You ran straight home, and for days afterward, you would talk about him all the time. He was probably the only thing on your mind. And I remember you always looking for something when we went out as a family. I think I know who it was..."

Now she looked away, blushing. Shining laughed again.

"But after a while, you realized your grades were slipping, from A-plus to A-minus. Two things happened: you gave up on the foal, and concluded that all other ponies not already in your life by that point would only get in your way."

Twilight didn't need to be reminded of how she used to avoid other ponies. She shuddered slightly at the memory. She may not have intended it, but she really did come off as a snob in those days.

"Sometimes, I wonder how it would have happened if you had ever met that colt again. And...well, I finally have my answer..." Shining said. "Tell me, does this sound familiar? A greenish, messy mane, cyan fur...I never forgot how you described him; it was kinda hard to forget, after all!"

Twilight looked back at Azure again. This time, she could see it, as clear as crystal. The greenish mane, messy style; cyan fur...even that attitude he displayed on the day matched up.

It was him...it was him all along! I didn't even know it!

Shining watched his sister's reaction, and smiled. He knew without needing to be told that she definitely remembered him now.

"C'mon...I think it's time you got home...Spike's gotta be worried sick by now..."
----------------------------------------------------
Azure stared blankly up at the moon, reflecting on everything he'd been through since moving to Ponyville and meeting Twilight; mostly the latter since the moon was the whole reason he came to Ponyville in the first place--followed closely by the snobby nobility. Had he never learned of Nightmare Moon, he would have moved anyway.

Twilight...you and I fought a lot... Azure thought. Looking back on it all...I...

The sound of a hoof clopping on the ground behind him caused his ear to twitch. He turned in the direction of the sound, and saw Shining with his sister still on his back.

"Well, I gotta go now, got reports to file and all..." Shining said, as casually as though he were picking up the week's groceries, "Mind watching over her?"

Azure nodded, his expression changing from distant to stern as soon as he made the request. Shining walked up next to Azure, and the instant she could reach over, Twilight immediately latched on. Almost as soon as she made contact, Azure heard her sigh very lightly.

"And...Azure?" Shining asked, "Don't do anything I wouldn't..."

If it wasn't for the fact he heard him chuckle, Azure would have assumed Shining was threatening him. Still, Azure couldn't stop himself from blushing, and was grateful for the fact nopony was around to mock him for it. Shining went off into the distance, and Azure breathed out a sigh. His aches and pains weren't getting any easier, and what he wanted to do was flop down almost anywhere and nap. However, he still had something he needed to do, and it wasn't just because Twilight's older brother asked him to do it.

Azure began to trot as quickly as he could in the direction of the library--Twilight's home.
----------------------------------------------------
The night was clear, almost as if the royal sisters themselves were celebrating everypony's safe return. Azure trotted along, noting that there were a few Royal Guards stationed around town. He wasn't about to question it, given what had just occurred. The way to the library was clear otherwise, but Azure remained alert. He wouldn't allow himself to collapse until he was sure Twilight was out of danger.

As for the others: if there was one thing he learned today, his friends could take care of themselves without him there as long as they were ready.

"We're at your home, Twilight," Azure said as he stepped up to the library. Twilight looked up, clearly seeing her home, but she didn't say anything. "Lights are still on...is he still awake?"

Azure raised a hoof to knock on the door. Almost as soon as he finished his first knock, he heard the sound of rapid movement inside the house. The second and third knocks weren't even necessary, but it was almost a force of habit.

Barely five seconds had passed before Spike answered the door. The first thing Azure noticed was that his eyes were run red, obviously from crying. As soon as he saw Twilight on Azure's back, he stared.

"Twilight...?" Spike asked, almost at a loss. "Y-you're okay!?" Crying, he practically lunged forward.

Before Azure could move or allow Twilight off his back, Spike was already hugging the purple pony, and she made no effort to get off to return it, instead returning it from atop Azure's back.

"I'm alright Spike..." Twilight replied, practically crying herself, "Thanks to Azure and everypony else..."

Azure just rolled his head back and let them have their moment. The day was almost over anyway.

"Alright...Spike..." Twilight apparently sensed Azure's discomfort. "No more tears..." she said. "Now...I want you to go on and go to bed..."

"B-but..." Spike started.

"Spike, you've worried yourself sick since the picnic at least..." Azure said. "I was surprised to see you were still awake right now..."

"Don't worry," Twilight piped in, "I'll still be here tomorrow...now...please, get some rest..."

Spike looked to Twilight. It was apparent he wanted to keep the reunion going for a bit longer. Azure could understand where he was coming from, at any rate.

"Fine..." Spike said. As he walked away, he wasn't quite sure if he imagined the dragon saying something about "wanting alone time".

Azure and Twilight managed to get into the main area of the library as Spike headed for his bed. Azure shut the door behind him and locked it as a precaution. Now that she was safely home, Twilight began to get off Azure's back. However, as she dismounted, she suddenly halted. Azure could feel her forelegs still around his neck.

"Azure...could you stay...?" asked Twilight. Azure looked. She was still shaken from her ordeal--there was no way he could say no to those eyes...

"I'll stay as long as I'm needed," Azure responded, and only then did Twilight let go of him. Her legs were still shaking, but she was able to at least walk under her own weight now. Not that she was going to for long anyway. Twilight made her way over to her couch, and Azure found himself following her. Earlier, he had come to terms with his feelings: not once, but twice. He was sure of it now. However, he wasn't quiet about it during either of his realizations.

"Azure..." Twilight said, just as soon as she laid down. "About what you said...when you were fighting..."

Azure straightened up; he knew she was eventually going to get back around to asking him about it, but he really didn't think she'd want to talk about it so soon.

"Did you really mean it?" She asked.

Azure felt like he had to say yes, almost as loudly as possible, but this was one of those things where he couldn't just charge in, horn blazing and hoping for the best. However, he had thought about it the whole way back.

"Twilight..." Azure started, closing his eyes. "Do you remember way back when we first met?"

"How could I forget?" Twilight questioned, "It was the day I met you all, and..."

"It was also back in the time where neither of us really thought of the other as important. Back then, I thought for sure the only thing we would ever have in common was the fact we tracked Nightmare Moon. Back then, I couldn't see me spending time with you, and honestly, back then, you thought the same, only not just me but everypony else..."

Twilight bit her lip, looking as though she were almost ashamed of the pony she was then.

"But it all changed that same night. I stood up to the chimera--I think that's when it started. I didn't think much of it back then, but now I know for sure. I couldn't allow anything to hurt you..." Azure said, opening his eyes after some time. "After that, we spent a lot of time together...mostly at each other's throats, though..."

Twilight gave a sheepish smile. Azure couldn't help but notice she looked adorable right then, and chuckled lightly before continuing.

"As time passed, I began to respect you more, and I didn't want to argue my case that much anymore. I didn't want to see you upset or mad, especially if I was the cause. I've seen you shine at your absolute best, and even at your lowest points, I watched you come out on top in the end, and I've enjoyed every moment of it."

He looked Twilight dead in the eye at that moment. He could see her purple eyes very clearly now: even though she wasn't mid-spell, he could see them twinkling, possibly from the candles. She stared back, deep into his own brown eyes; she could see the gentle side of him showing full force, and he was making no effort to conceal it now.

"So...when you ask me if I meant it, I can tell you now there's no doubt in my mind about it. I'm sure of it now," Azure closed his eyes again. In his mind's eye, the filly he met all those years ago began to grow up in a flash before his eyes. When she was done, it was the mare he'd rescued from the hooves of those evil ponies. "I love you, Twilight Sparkle. And nopony else."

There was a definite twinkle in her eyes; for just a moment, Azure could have sworn he saw her eyes flash a magenta color, just before her face flushed with that same color. Though, now that he had focused on her eyes all this time, Azure noticed something.

"...But I have to ask, Twilight..." Azure continued, "...Why haven't you been wearing your glasses recently? Don't you still need them?"

Twilight frowned, almost as though she knew this was going to come up. "...Azure...I...I don't need them...my eyes healed up fine a long time ago..."

"But..." Azure started, nearly at a loss for words, "...you wore them since last winter when you--"

"...I've worn them ever since you called me cute..." She admitted, her face flushing with the memory of it. Azure blinked; he remembered it very well. He did in fact call her that, without even pausing to think of his words. "Other than my family members, nopony has ever called me cute until then...I thought...I guess...I guess I must have thought to myself..."

Twilight paused, seemingly rubbing at a temple in frustration with herself, "I guess I kept wearing them because I still wanted to look cute to you..."

Twilight made a move as though to stand, but Azure quickly got in front of her, which seemed to confuse her greatly.

"Twilight...I did say that. I meant it, but..." Azure started. "I...I was wrong then to not see it..."

"What?!" Twilight practically shrieked, but Azure would not let her think he was retracting his statement.

"...Twilight..." Azure extended a hoof, this time to Twilight's mouth so she couldn't cut him off. "...By that, I mean that...you're beautiful without them. And I was blinder than Silver to not see it."

Twilight blinked, blushing bright red again. Her eyes followed Azure as he got onto the couch next to her, and soon the two were face-to-face, staring each other down. It was a familiar sight, and one that Azure remembered very clearly. His heart was beating fast, and he was sure he was blushing too by this point.

"A-Azure...I..." Twilight began, almost sheepishly. "...I...I-It's hard..."

"Huh?" Azure asked, blinking.

"It's so hard to believe this is actually happening...I...I feel like I'm dreaming..." she responded.

"If it is just a dream, Twilight," The colt said, the rest of him moving on its own, "Don't pinch me, I don't want to wake up..."

Twilight began to move on her own as well. This was a very nostalgic place for both of them: had Spike not walked in last time, this would have already happened. However, this time, Spike was not about to walk in. There was nothing to stop them now, and that was just the way they wanted--no, needed it to be this time.

Their muzzles came together, lips parted, eyes shut.

Contact.

Bliss.

Their lips touching brought on a whole new sensation. It was unlike anything they'd ever felt before or after. Save for when their mouths would briefly part for air, the room was dead quiet. As they continued to demonstrate their feelings rather than talk them out, their horns slowly, gradually began to light up: Azure's cyan, Twilight's magenta. The hues moved towards where their horns lightly made contact, and seemed to mix in the center. To an average onlooker, it would appear dangerous, but the light show was benign in nature.

However, the two were on complete automatic now, well out of the reach of their rational minds. They couldn't stop just there, not with what had recently happened still fresh in their minds. Azure felt something moist pressing against his lips, and he didn't need to be a genius to figure out it was Twilight's tongue doing the pushing. Without even thinking about it, he opened his mouth to allow the foreign tongue to meet his own.

The two playfully wrapped their tongues around each other, not really sure what to do, given this was their very first actual kiss and their first open mouth kiss to boot. Both were operating on instinct right now, and neither one was sure what to do; even Azure didn't quite know what he was supposed to do here, everything was happening so fast.

The light whispers to air began to turn to moderate gasps for oxygen as they continued. Eventually, exhausted from the earlier ordeal, they finally broke apart, practically starved for air. Both panted heavily, blushing heavily, as their horns began to lose their glow.

"...That was..." Azure breathed, fumbling for words as to how to describe what he just felt.

"...I...I should have said..." Twilight started, as soon as her rational mind returned. " 'I love you' back, r-right?"

"You didn't need to say it..." Azure said. "Far as I know, you did all the talking through what you did..."

Twilight looked as though she wanted to say more, but instead of words, all Azure got was a yawn. The instant she finished, she looked like she needed to sleep right then and there.

"...I don't think I can make it to bed..." Twilight said. As soon as she said it, Azure yawned as well.

"I'm sore and tired...I don't think I can carry you to your bed..." Azure stated, already feeling his eyelids grow heavy.

"That's...okay..." Twilight said. "I don't think...my bed has the right pillow...anyway..."

She managed to crawl slightly forward before resting her head on his shoulder. Within moments, Twilight Sparkle was out cold. Azure figured out what she meant by pillow as soon as she began moving towards him, and he sighed.

The couch would be missing something comfy if you had gone to bed...anyway...

And with that, Azure nuzzled Twilight, falling asleep in that position with her on the couch before he could even think about saying anything else.
----------------------------------------------------
Twilight's night came and went without much intervention. At one point, she did, however, have a nightmare. However, as soon as she reminded herself Azure was still very much snuggled up with her on the couch, she was able to lull herself back to sleep and did not get disturbed for the remainder of the night. Soon, the time to change from night to day was underway, and Twilight quickly learned that her sofa was the worst possible spot to sleep for the night, particularly if it was facing a window opened to the east.

She stirred in the sofa, trying to block out the light that had so easily assaulted her face. She just wasn't ready to get up yet. However, as she moved about, she noticed something was wrong.

Azure...?

Twilight's eyes opened, and the light immediately assaulted her eyes, causing her to squint them shut out of reflex. After blinking several times and shaking off the initial flash, she looked around. Nopony was around her; she was totally alone in the library save for her owl.

"W-was it just a dream?" Twilight asked herself, feeling that familiar pain flare up in her chest. "No, it couldn't have been...it was too real!" She practically hopped off the couch, and no sooner did her hooves make contact with the ground did she hear something coming from the kitchen. And as soon as she began to walk toward it, she caught a deliciously sweet scent.

"Spike?" Twilight questioned, figuring it was probably him up early out of excitement that she was safe. "Did Azure leave?"

The instant she stepped into the kitchen, she noticed a sight she didn't expect to see, and froze, her reactions escaping her. The fact it was Azure in the kitchen was odd enough; the fact he was cooking pancakes was even weirder, and Twilight resisted the urge to pinch herself to make sure she wasn't still dreaming.

Azure turned around, catching sight of her. He smiled and waved. Twilight couldn't help herself.

"Morning, Twilight, did you sleep--"

Twilight practically tackled Azure to the ground before he could finish his sentence, practically smothering him again in a hug. Azure returned it, but in his position it did sort of look weird...

"...You're a lot stronger than I give you credit for..." Azure grimaced, "...still kinda sore from yesterday, though..."

"Sorry, it's just...I woke up and I didn't see you!" Twilight said, letting the colt back to his hooves. "I was starting to think it really was just a dream..."

"Oh, believe me," Azure leaned forward, planting an almost unexpected kiss on Twilight's cheek, "It was no dream..."

"What are you making?" Twilight asked, taking in another huge whiff. "It smells...delicious!"

"Blueberry pancakes..." Azure responded. "I figured you'd be hungry from what happened last night..."

Twilight's stomach growled at that instant, very audibly. Heat rose to her cheeks out of embarrassment. She hadn't eaten at all since yesterday morning, and even then she didn't eat much out of anxiety...

"I...think I can eat..." she chortled, already moving towards the table.

"...Alright then..." Azure said. He paused for just a moment, and turned back to the pan. It wasn't long before Azure had finished the pancakes he was working on. In moments, Twilight found herself served a stack of four pancakes.

"Enjoy," Azure said, just before his own stomach let off a growl, "...I didn't eat a lot either..."

The mare poured some syrup on a stack. Deep down, she didn't think Azure could cook for anything, but she had to give him the benefit of the doubt. The colt she saw yesterday was a far cry from the colt she first met. She used her magic on a fork to hack off a piece of one. As soon as the pancake entered her mouth, she immediately regretted ever doubting him.

"A-Azure," she said, just as soon as she got the first bite down, "I didn't think you could...cook..."

"I do my best..." Azure responded. A small cup thudded next to the mare's plate--apple juice. After a few more minutes, Azure served himself a similar plate, and quickly began to eat from his own stack. This time, the silence between them wasn't awkward. Well, at least Azure seemed content with the silence, but Twilight felt a little uneasy. She was picking at her pancakes with her fork.

So much I never knew about him...and yet now we're...definitely...more than 'just friends', but...

"Something on your mind?"

Twilight looked up to see Azure. He was levitating his next bite haphazardly as he looked over to her.

"I-is it that obvious?" Twilight laughed.

"A little..." Azure responded. "C'mon...what is it? You can tell me..."

Twilight tried to think it through, but the smile Azure was giving her from across the table made it a little hard for her to think properly. However, the mare knew if she didn't ask the question now, she might never know what he thought of the whole situation.

"I-I was wondering, Azure..." Twilight stated, unsure, "Where do we go from here?"

Azure looked back to her, his face showing signs of bewilderment. He ate the piece of pancake he held off on eating, and as soon as he swallowed the piece he said, "Truthfully Twilight, I wouldn't know. This is the first time I've gotten this far."

Twilight didn't know what to think. On one hoof, the fact he hadn't been in a relationship all that time either was reassuring. But it meant she would need to do a lot of reading up on relationships later on, so she could understand the benefits of something beyond friendship. On top of that, she still had a lot of work left to do on her studies of the magic of friendship.

Just thinking about what I'm gonna need to do is giving me a headache...I'm sure the Princess might help me if I asked...

"...But I do know one thing about this situation..." Azure continued, taking another bite, "I can't treat it like I would a fight. I've gotta be..." Twilight hadn't even noticed one of her hooves had found its way onto the table. At least, until Azure reminded her it was there with his gentle touch. "a bit more delicate."

Twilight felt her cheeks heat up, "You sure you've never done this?"

"Positive," Azure chortled.
----------------------------------------------------
Azure hadn't really cooked for other ponies before--the opportunity hadn't presented itself. The meal went on, the conversation remaining light-hearted; Azure tried to keep it away from the events of the preceding day. However, as they talked, Azure felt as though he were forgetting something. After several minutes, the two were done eating, Twilight carefully levitating the plates into the sink.

"I have to say, those tasted better than the ones Spike makes..." Twilight sighed in satisfaction.

"Thanks...I, uh...helped my mother out when I was younger...in the kitchen and all..." Azure rubbed the back of his head, feeling his own cheeks begin to heat up.

"Oh, I never pegged you as a momma's pony..." Twilight smiled.

"Hilarious."

Azure began to drink the last of his apple juice. As soon as the flavor hit him, Azure remembered what it was that was slipping his mind.

Right in front of her... Azure thought back to when he was yelling at Silver. It hadn't been entirely clear to him until after the fact, but he had definitely said too much, I yelled out my choice right in front of her...

Azure looked to Twilight, who didn't seem to notice his sudden guilt over the situation, I'm not having second thoughts, I do love her...but I wish I could have had it made clear some other way...

"T-Twilight, I need to take care of something..." Azure stood up.

"Was it something I said?" Twilight practically leapt up from her chair, looking guilty. "I didn't mean to insult you!"

"Oh, no, not that, I just remembered there's something I'd forgotten to do in all that excitement..." Azure responded, turning back to her briefly before setting off for the door. Twilight followed him the whole way.

"Oh, okay..." Twilight observed, "So will I see you again?"

Azure stopped at the door, turning around, Now the way she says it...

"I mean, later today, or tomorrow, or--"

Azure couldn't take it anymore. There was something about a fretting Twilight that never stood right with him, but it was even worse in the light of recent events. He leaned forward and kissed her very quickly on the lips. As soon as Azure finished, he noticed Twilight had calmed down and started to blush again as she smiled.

"You plan on doing that every time I get nervous?" Twilight asked.

"Probably, if it works for you," Azure responded, giving Twilight another reassuring nuzzle. "But...to answer your question..." Azure rubbed at the back of his head. All the physical contact in the world seemed to be working, but he wondered how he could definitely seal the deal. As soon as he felt his hoof pass over the loose knot at the back of his head, he had an idea.

"Here, how about this?" Azure's horn began to glow, and he undid the knot with his magic before moving it over to Twilight. "Until we meet again, why don't you wear my band?"

"W-wait," Twilight stuttered, almost lost for words, "Are you sure?"

"It means a lot to me, you know that much..." Azure smiled, tying the knot. "I can't think of anypony else I'd rather have wear it."

"I-I don’t know what to say, Azure..."

Azure tightened the knot, and after a few moments, Twilight looked up. "W-well...how do I look?"

Azure watched the mare before him look up. He didn't know what it was, but he suddenly felt himself start to blush at the sight of Twilight in his headband.

"W-whoa..." Azure said. Twilight raised a hoof to her mouth to try and stifle her giggle, but it couldn't hide her blush.

"Oh, get a room..."

Both of the ponies turned to see Spike once again interrupting a moment. He was making his way downstairs. Azure could only guess the venom that was in Twilight's glare at the moment.

"Well...I've gotta go. I'll see you soon..." Azure quickly nuzzled Twilight once again before exiting the library.

Gotta talk to Applejack...!
----------------------------------------------------
Twilight watched as Azure left. Unlike most of the other times where he'd left in a rush, Twilight didn't feel a pain in her chest. In fact, she felt...she couldn't describe exactly how she felt, but it wasn't painful.

"Twilight, why'd he give you his headband?" Spike asked, sounding rather interested in that development.

Twilight felt herself smile.

"Spike..."

"And why's it smell like something good was cookin'?"

"...you can start the day by doing the dishes..."
----------------------------------------------------
Azure Courage didn't even care that he still hurt just a little from last night's crisis as he thundered towards his home. He had an idea of what he needed to say, and what he felt he needed to do to make it up to her. He didn't envision it being easy; he knew this day would come sooner or later, but until the day before he hadn't known how it would go. Even though he got himself wrapped up in that triangle he was in, he could definitely get himself out of it now.

Romantically, his mind was made up. However, he still had something he had to mend, and this time he knew precisely how he would do it.

However, life always insisted on throwing him a curveball. When he finally reached his house, he noticed a very familiar pony facing his door, just finishing knocking on his door.

She had orange fur, a blond mane and tail tied off at the end, and a hat that belonged to her mother...

She's already here... Azure thought to himself, guilt welling up in him. No, no, no time for guilt now...

He continued to walk forward, and picked up on a sigh coming from her.

"Must've left with Twilight..." Applejack mused aloud, apparently thinking she was alone. However, as soon as she turned away from the door, she noticed him, and looked up. "O-oh, hello, Az..."

He could tell straight away that Applejack was troubled about what happened. He couldn't fault her; he did tactlessly announce his decision right in front of her when he was pushed to his psychological limits. Applejack was shifting her hooves and she couldn't maintain eye contact.

"Here, let's get inside," Azure said, taking his key and unlocking his door. "I have a pretty good feeling of why you're here..."

Applejack hesitated, but as Azure opened his door, she finally, slowly, walked inside. He followed her in, locking the door soon afterward. Azure noticed Silver hadn't returned yet, as he had been staying here for his visit. It was the optimal conditions. Applejack walked over to a chair and sat down. Azure sat across from her. He didn't quite know how this would go down, but he had to be confident that it would all work out in the end.

"Applejack, I'm pretty sure I already know what's on your mind, like I just said," Azure started, "But I want you to know that nothing said here will leave this room." Azure thumped his hoof on the floor for emphasis. Applejack seemed to ease up just a little.

"Thank you, Az..." Applejack took a deep breath before begin, "I'll be honest, I don't feel right about this..."

"I can't blame you for it," Azure said, feeling guilty he'd hurt not just her but Twilight for leading them both on without even realizing it himself until it was too late. "Just say what's on your mind. I know what I screamed back at the picnic hurt and I won't fault you if you hate me for it..."

"Hey, hey, slow down!" Applejack barked, "Remember what I said earlier? That we'd still be friends afterward regardless of who you chose? I can't hate you after all that you've done for everypony. And...I'm happy that you and Twilight found each other, I really am..."

She sounded convinced of this, but Azure felt like there was more to it... "But...?"

Applejack's smile faded. He knew she was the one lying to herself a little now. She knew it too, so she took in another deep breath before continuing.

"But it's still been eatin' at me..." Applejack said.

"Just say it," Azure responded. "If you let it eat at you, you'll wind up slamming your head into the wall..."

"I've gotta know...even though I don't like havin' this question on my mind..." the farmer continued, "If...if it were me that'd been foalnapped, would it have been any different?"

The way Applejack flinched after she finished her question told Azure that she seriously didn't want to ask it, but it had been swimming around. It was understandable. If Azure hadn't already thought about his situation with Twilight deeply, he would have stuttered and been unable to answer. However, he already knew what his answer to that question was.

"Applejack, I'll be honest," Azure said, "Not that I couldn't be around you even if I tried. No. Things wouldn't have turned out differently."

Applejack's look of disappointment was unparalleled. "Oh..."

"But it doesn't mean I wouldn't have done everything in my power to save you anyway..." Her eyes grew wide, "Applejack, you already knew I had honest feelings for both of you, and they were strong. But it took me a long time to figure out what my feelings were. When I was with you, I felt we were alike. You appreciate hard work and you aren't afraid to get dirty if it comes to it. But we were so alike I mistook it for something else."

Applejack exhaled. She seemed more at ease with Azure's answer, probably happy to have gotten it so straight.

"Thank you, Az...I'm glad you were straight with me..." she said. Azure stood up, ready to enact the last part of his "making-up". Applejack stood up too, already thinking the conversation was over. "Guess I'd better get back to the farm. Harvest's comin' up and we gotta be ready for it..."

Applejack was already heading for the door. Azure quickly went back into his room. "Wait, Applejack!"
------------
Applejack stopped at the door, wondering why Azure wanted her to hold on. She turned, to see him running back from his bedroom, levitating a familiar object.

That's the hat I...

"Unintentionally or not, I lead you on, and you're probably still hurting..." Azure levitated the hat over to Applejack, looking regretful it had gotten that far. "You made this with your own hooves. If you want to take it back, I'll understand..."

Applejack took the hat in her mouth, almost at a loss for words. She looked over to Azure, and thought back to all that he had done for her. Even if he had wound up hurting her, she could tell very clearly that he cared, even if it wasn't in the way she thought it was.

She removed the hat from her mouth with her hooves, and gave it back to him, putting it on his head. She noticed that he wasn't wearing his headband when she first saw him, but she paid it no mind. It was likely in good hooves if he had removed it.

"No, Az," she said as she adjusted the hat on his head. "I'll admit I had other reasons why I made that hat, but you still earned it. It's just my way of sayin' we're still friends..."

Azure smiled lightly, relieved. As Applejack left his home, he reflected on how well that went.

That went a lot better than I thought... he mused, I don't think she's completely over it yet, but time will heal this wound...I'm hoping.

"Hey, you okay?"

Azure didn't even realize he'd spaced out. He noticed Silver was walking towards him, guided by his echolocation.

"Huh? Oh, hey Silver..." Azure responded. "Yeah, I'm fine. Still sore. How'd Fluttershy sleep?"

"Oh, just fine," Azure wasn't sure if he imagined Silver gritting his teeth just a little as he smiled. "Say, why are you wearing Applejack's gift?"

"Oh..." Azure said. "She was over here, wanted to talk to me about what I said yesterday..." He smiled. "She's probably still hurt, but...I think I gave her some closure..."

"Everything's cool, then?"

"Yeah, sure is..."

Thwack!

Azure was immediately reminded of how beat up he actually got when Silver smacked him on the shoulder.

"I told you that it would blow up in your face! But I'm glad it worked out..."

Azure sighed.

"Oh, and Azure..." Silver said, turning away.

"Yeah?"

"I was talking to Fluttershy, and..." Now Silver was glaring at him menacingly through his dead eyes. "She kissed you?!"

Azure was yet again reminded that Applejack wasn't the only one that had shown interest in him--however, unlike with the farmer mare, Fluttershy had never come up again. Silver was usually good at seeing the truth in most situations. Now it was up to Azure to have Silver see the truth and context behind that one.

Chapter 31: The Bookworm's Bane

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Chapter 31: The Bookworm's Bane
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Though things had went horribly wrong, within a few days, everything seemed to be back to normal, aside from a small unit of Royal Guards holding the fort to make sure the other pony didn't come back. From what Azure had heard from his cousins, Tagane wasn't talking, even though he really wasn't in a position to argue with his very obvious surgery rendered null and void.

Of course, there was something else that wasn't the same as before in Ponyville either. Azure didn't quite get how, but the word quickly spread of the blooming relationship between himself and Twilight Sparkle. It was probably the fact he'd screamed out his choice in front of everypony, and now that the crisis was over, Rainbow Dash likely said it to anypony who'd listen.

If he'd still been in the middle of his rough decision, he might not have been so forgiving, but given that his mind was made up, it was really irritating to hear all the things the townsponies would say about it. Some of them would tell him how lucky he was, for various reasons. Some of them would whisper that he was a two-timer due to the stuff he'd been seen doing with Applejack. Others would say nothing, but he could tell what they might have been thinking from looking at them.

Azure had to take it easy at work whenever he could; given that nothing in the town was damaged or needed anything more than a touch-up, it actually seemed he could rest his sore body and listen to his coworkers grill him about the mare that had stolen his heart.

"You know, A.C.," Steel said, "I never thought you'd go for a bookworm..."

Azure shifted a little on his seat, reminding him of the attacks he sustained from Tagane. The way he was hit, it was a wonder he wasn't more seriously injured than just that. However, Azure wasn't about to question it--after the horrid luck he'd had over the winter, he felt entitled to something a bit more than that.

"Yeah, well," Azure responded, "It's one of those things that gets you by surprise..." The unicorn chose not to mention the fact she was as close to royalty as a pony could get without marrying into it: her brother the captain of the Royal Guards; Twilight herself being Princess Celestia's trusted student. He'd never hear the end of how lucky he was if that got out...

"I'm kinda confused myself, Azure..." Archie said, sitting down next to Steel. "We really thought it would have been Applejack...what happened with that?"

Azure closed his eyes. Did he really want to tell his coworkers what had happened in his circle of friends?

"It's just one of those things that comes back to you," Azure said, taking a different approach. "She and I were too much alike...I thought I mistook it for something else. I'm from Canterlot, so's Twilight..."

"And that means..." Steel continued.

"We met when we were still foals; though the meeting was brief, it stuck with us a long while..." Azure said.

Steel and Archie Tact looked at each other again, and a single word could be heard coming out of their mouths.

"Oooooooohhhhhhhhhhhh..."

It was one of those noises that crowds made when a particularly bad burn was inflicted by verbal means. Azure breathed out and sighed, wondering why he even said that.

After this, I'm going to go see Twilight...
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Meanwhile, at the library, the place was in a state of disarray. Twilight laid on her bed, books strewn about the room, with a large stack about twice her height next to it. She was reading one of the books, taking notes like a diligent student would. The mare looked as though she hadn't been sleeping too well at night, but she still seemed determined to finish her reading.

"Twiley!" A voice called up to her from the front door, obviously her brother. Twilight stirred only slightly.

"Up here, Shining!" Twilight called back, before returning her full attention to the book.

"Twilight, I'm stopping by to tell you--" Shining halted when he saw the state of her room. "--this is the last day the Royal Guards will be in...town?"

"Oh..." Twilight said, only now giving her brother her full attention. "I see..."

"What's with all these books?" Shining asked. "The Princess giving you an exam or something?"

"No, not yet..." the mare responded, sheepishly looking away.

"Why are you so nervous?" The colt asked, taking another step forward.

"I-I'm not nervous! Just doing some reading!"

"...On what?" Shining's horn lit up in a purple glow, different from Blitz's purple, and the book on Twilight's bed lifted up.

"Hey! Give that back!" Twilight said, seeming to forget she had magic on her side. It was too late; Shining was already looking along the spine of the book.

"'Romance and You: Why You Feel Like Throwing Up When You're Around Your Special Somepony'..." Shining read aloud, setting the book back where he got it. He managed to keep a straight face for a few seconds, before he burst out laughing, "Oh yeah, I've been there..."

"Hey..." Twilight was embarrassed now, and her face showed it. Shining caught this, and quickly cleared his throat, though the fact his sister was looking this stuff up (and the books actually existed for her to do so) was still a little funny.

"Sorry, Twiley, it's just..." Shining said, rubbing the back of his head, "Why are you looking up books on romance?" He already knew his answer very well after what had happened a few days ago...but he felt like asking anyway.

"Isn't it obvious?" Twilight asked, some of her snarky side showing through now, "If Azure and me are going to be in a relationship like this, I have to understand how it all works! I've gotta understand how I feel, how he might feel, what to do when something comes up..."

Shining blinked. He never put this much thought into his own relationship-actually, most ponies in general didn't. He just went with it.

"Twiley..." Shining started, unsure of how his sister would react. "Don't you think you're...overthinking this, just a little bit?"

"Overthinking...?" Twilight tilted her head, "Overthinking?! I don't want to ruin it for either of us!"

"Hey, hey, I'm sure it'll be just fine," Shining patted his sister on the head playfully. "You just gotta do what you think is natural."

Almost as soon as he said it, Shining Armor regretted saying it. For most ponies, doing what was natural was what came naturally to their relationships. However, Twilight wasn't like the others.

"This...is natural..." Twilight responded, motioning at the books around her.

She would try to research the subject no matter what, even if the subject was something that most ponies wouldn't research.

"Well...don't push yourself too hard," Shining responded, "Just thought I'd drop by to see how my sister was doing. If you want to, come see me before I have to go back to Canterlot."

"I'll make time for that!" Twilight barked, "I never get to see you that much anymore..."

With that, the siblings parted ways. Shining sighed as soon as he was out of the library.

"Hope he's ready to handle that side of her..."

From within, Spike could be heard groaning as Twilight requested him to hunt down a couple more books...
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Azure Courage had completed the day's work a bit early. There was nothing more he needed to do than go see Twilight after all of the ribbing that he'd taken that day. He did plan on going by there anyway to see if she was still okay. However, after he spent most of the day afterward with her, she did seem fine on her own.

Call me overconcerned if you want, I can't see her being all better just yet... he thought to himself as he galloped towards the library. He was there in practically no time, still having his hard hat on from the job. Azure knocked on the door.

"Spike!" Twilight called out from the inside, "Can you get that?"

"Right, right..." the dragon groaned, and a few seconds later, the door opened. Of course, the instant Spike saw who it was, he turned around to look into the house, a mischievous grin on his face, and let out a yell: "Hey, Twilight, it's your coltfriend!"

Azure blinked. Had Twilight let it slip to him about the rather...passionate, kiss they'd shared within about ten minutes of getting her back home safe and sound?

"It's not official yet!" Twilight barked from upstairs! "Not that I don't want to see Azure anyway...come on up...!" She halted for a good five seconds before she finished her sentence, "Uh...honey!"

Azure looked up towards her room, feeling his center of gravity shift wide right as he stepped over the threshold. Isn't that what married ponies call each other?

As Spike burst out laughing hysterically right next to him, Azure cast a dirty look in his direction, thinking of only one thing: And isn't that what you want Rarity to call you?

He would have said it aloud, but he wanted to let Spike delude himself into thinking that his crush was a well-kept secret. The drake nearly kissed Applejack in the middle of a daydream and probably would have had she not snapped him out of it!

"Right..." Azure awkwardly said as soon as he righted himself, walking straight over to Twilight's room max speed to get as far away from the laughter that was splitting Spike's sides. The instant he got inside, he noticed Twilight lying on the bed, reading a book...with several others piling around her and a large stack right next to her bed.

"So..." she paused awkwardly again, and this time looking to her notes, "...cutie, I've been thinking..."

Azure blushed, but the fact she sounded a little awkward when she said it... "C-cutie...?"

Outside the room, Spike laughed even harder, and this time Azure knew he'd been called that by Rarity on at least one occasion.

"Calling each other pet names is common in a relationship," Twilight levitated an open book in front of him, opened to a specific page. "According to this book!"

Azure blinked several times in quick succession before he could get his focus back. "Wait...this stuff's in books?"

"Of course..." Twilight said, "Why wouldn't it be?!"

Azure would have retorted, but he didn't feel like starting an argument today. Instead, he said, "My mistake..."

"So...now it's your turn to call me one..."

Azure couldn't help but smile. She doesn't know the first thing about relationships, so the first thing she does is look them up in books...I wouldn't have expected anything else. ...I don't know much either. Maybe her way can work...

"O-okay..." Azure felt awkward being put on the spot for this, and couldn't think of one straight away, but he was going to deliver, "Babe...let's see how this goes..."

Azure did his best to ignore the fact that Spike was laughing harder than ever now outside the door. Twilight huffed, practically rushing past him to slam the door. It didn't block out the sound completely, but it sure made her feel better. He could notice how red-faced she was about it.

"A-anyway, I complied a list of common things couples do..." Twilight's blush suddenly intensified, "M-minus a few things I wasn't too comfortable with..."

"...What books did you look--"

Twilight hastily changed the subject before Azure could finish, "So for now I think we'll tackle each thing on..." she produced a small list, "This list, one at a time...Let's see..." A quill floated into view, followed by the scratch of something on the list being crossed off. "We've already covered pet-names...Now we have to go on a date."

"Makes sense to me..." Azure said, not really seeing any problems with it.

"Good, then let's go," Twilight responded, opening her door.

"Wait, now?" Azure asked, not expecting it so soon.

"Yeah, that is, unless you're busy..." Twilight turned back to Azure.

"No, I'm not. Planned to spend it with you anyway..." Azure responded, feeling that awkwardness intensify again, "So...let's go..." He paused again to try and come up with a new pet name, "...Sweetie...pie..."

It still felt strange to be put on the spot for something like that, but he didn't want to give Twilight the wrong impression. However, her mood lightened--just like her cheeks, and moved past a giggling Spike who was struggling to complete his chores. Azure was surprised to see he wasn't mid-molt from all the laughing he had done in the past few minutes.

"We'll be back later, Spike..." Twilight said as the two walked out the door. As he left, Azure's ears twitched.

Somepony else laughing too?
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"You okay?"

"Y-yeah, I-I'm fine..."

Silver and Fluttershy were walking through town. Not that long ago, Silver had helped her feed her animal friends. After making sure each of them had been fully satisfied, Silver suggested they go into town to grab a meal for themselves. The meek Pegasus didn't take long to figure out what it was he was asking for.

"First time on a date?" Silver asked. Fluttershy stumbled just a little before looking around self-consciously. It wasn't that she didn't want to be seen with him...she was new to the concept and didn't want anypony else knowing this was her first.

Outside of her friends, anyway.

"Y-yes..."

"Then we're on equal ground," Silver chuckled as he playfully gave the shy mare a little nudge. Fluttershy didn't get how, but he always seemed to find a way to calm her nerves.

"O-okay, so wh-where do you want to go?" Silver paused midstep to think, and motioned to a place nearby.

"This looks like a good place..."

"...Um...That's a hardware store..." Fluttershy said plainly upon realizing what it was he was pointing at.

"It is?!" Silver said, sounding surprised. "I swear, I'm blind sometimes..." He rubbed the back of his head. Most ponies would have felt awkward in this situation, but it wasn't the case here. It was obvious he was joking, and she giggled lightly in response.

That laugh...so cute... Silver thought to himself, unable to notice the blush that was lightly on his cheeks.

"Why don't we go to Sugarcube Corner?" Fluttershy suggested. She was feeling better about being on her first date now.

"Sounds great, let's go..." Silver responded.

As they walked towards their intended destination, they began to walk closer together than they already had. Though Fluttershy felt herself blush, she wasn't about to say anything.

"Well, well, what have we here?" A familiar voice rang out.

Fluttershy froze, and Silver stopped walking. Both turned around. Rainbow Dash was just coming in to land, a rather happy look on her face.

"H-hello, Rainbow, what brings you here?" she asked the cyan pegasus, already having a small inkling.

"Oh, you know, just flyin' overhead when I saw the two of you," The quality of her smile changed to more mischievous in nature, "Walking awfully close to each other..."

Fluttershy blushed heavily as her friend stepped closer to the two of them, and couldn't maintain eye contact, hiding her face behind her mane.

"O-oh, w-well...w-we were j-just going to Sugarcube C-C-Corner..." Fluttershy utterly failed to maintain her composure. This, combined with the general layout of the scene before her, gave Rainbow all she needed to know. Her eyes widened, and her mouth gradually began to open.

"Oh...my...gosh..." Rainbow finally said, "You're...you're on a date!"

The blue pegasus happily picked her friend up and forced her to stand on her hind legs. Fluttershy could only give a very shy smile in response to all this extra praise.

"That's so awesome!" Rainbow practically squeezed Fluttershy. Meanwhile, all Silver could do was stand there blankly. Somehow, not many ponies had bothered to notice the spectacle.

"Well," Rainbow finally let Fluttershy down. Her legs shook, but she was still able to walk, "I'll just leave you two to it then..." She began to hover away. "Don't have too much fun...oh...yeah..." The way she grinned as she turned back to the two concerned Fluttershy (who had been embarrassed by the mare's prior statement), "Don't overdo it with the names either..."

"W-what...?" Fluttershy asked.

"Just some friendly advice..." Rainbow winked before speeding off.

"W-what'd she mean by 'names'...?" Fluttershy turned to Silver.

"Beats me. Don't know why she'd bring up pet names at a time like this..." Silver responded. "And...that other thing she said..." Silver shook his head, hoping Rainbow was kidding. "Let's keep going. We're almost there!"

The two ponies continued to walk on to the Sugarcube Corner without further interruption, still with that closeness between them.
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At about the same time, Twilight and Azure walked through town. Twilight had read that ponies in relationships generally intertwined their tails with one another's. So, they walked through town in this manner, going for their first date. Azure tried to block out the stares--and he could have sworn he heard somepony whistle in their direction.

Well, I guess everypony knows now... The cyan colt thought to himself.

"We're almost there..." Twilight said with glee. "Sugarcube Corner...A common spot in Ponyville for first dates!"

The two finally reached their destination, but something unexpected happened.

"Twilight?"

Both of their heads immediately turned in the direction of the soft voice. It was Fluttershy, walking close together with Silver.

"Fluttershy?" Twilight asked, surprised to see this.

"Azure?" Fluttershy questioned, confused at the fact the two were holding tails.

"Silver!?" Azure yelled, probably just a bit too loud, looking back and forth between the blind pony and Fluttershy. Silver had a blank expression on his face as he listened to the event that just occurred.

"Is this really happening?"

The group fell into an awkward silence. Both sides knew what the other was doing, but neither side wanted to be the one to say it straight away.

"S-so, are you two...?" asked Twilight, trying to break the silence between the four.

"Y-yes, I-I mean no, I mean...we're eating lunch together," Fluttershy blushed heavily as she faltered through this conversation. "I mean, we're not together yet, not that I don't want to be, I mean--"

Silver took control of the situation, placing a hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder with all the tenderness he could muster. The act snapped her out of this nervous rambling.

"Easy, Fluttershy, just take a deep breath," Silver said calmly. Fluttershy did so a few times, and the jitters that had settled in her gradually vanished. "We're just eating lunch together. It doesn't have to be a date if you don't want it to..."

Fluttershy looked down and kicked at the ground, "Well, I never said I didn't..." she whispered in a low voice.

"Hey, I have an idea," Twilight brought out her list from her saddlebag and looked through it. "It's not exactly in the order I wanted it, but we could have a double date!"

The amount of glee in her voice was unparalleled. Fluttershy and Silver looked to one another.

"I don't have a problem with it if you don't..." Silver responded with a smile.

"I guess it's okay..." Fluttershy replied. Neither of them expected what came next, though.

"Great!" Twilight cheered before turning to Azure, "C'mon honey, let's get a table!"

Azure's face became painted bright red from the fact she'd just thrown out the pet name right in front of Silver and Fluttershy. Silver's eyes widened, and all he could do was blink them. Fluttershy didn't know what to make of it either.

"R-right behind you...sweetie..." Azure responded, too embarrassed to speak his words clearly at first. A loud snort sounded, and Azure turned, really hoping Rainbow hadn't flown down at that precise moment.

"Sorry, pollen..." Silver apologized, holding a napkin to his nose. Azure decided to buy the cover story for now, really not wanting to think Silver was laughing because of the pet names.
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Silver would be lying if he said he didn't want to laugh because of what he just heard. However, he'd also not be lying if he thought it was funny. However, he really didn't want to get caught laughing.

I guess this is what Rainbow meant... Silver didn't even want to be caught smiling right now, but it was going to be difficult. If Azure sees me laughing, I'm one dead pony...

Fluttershy and Silver followed the couple in, Silver getting himself under control. Pinkie noticed the four, and quickly moved in to greet them.

"Hi!" she greeted the group, seemingly materializing from Silver's left?!

I...I didn't even notice her there!

"Why'd you all come!?" She gasped, "Are you two holding tails?!"

The silence was a bit overwhelming following Pinkie's statement, but Twilight moved to point it out.
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"Yeah, Pinkie...the four of us came for a--"

"--A double date?!" All heads turned to the five ponies, the four in question nodding in confirmation. However, it was apparent everypony was listening in now.

"Y-yes..." Twilight responded slightly awkwardly to the whole thing. "Pinkie...could we just...sit over there?" Twilight walked to an empty title, closely followed by Azure. Fluttershy followed. Azure noticed somepony was missing, however, so he temporarily unentwined his tail with Twilight's to see that Silver hadn't moved much from his spot.

"Hey, Silver, what's up?" Azure asked. Silver blinked.

"She snuck up on me..." Silver replied; Azure's eyes momentarily widened from this information. "Nopony ever sneaks up on me..."

"You'll find Pinkie and logic haven't met," Twilight said walking toward the two, "It's best not to think about it...Take my word for it."

The ponies finally got to the empty table, Silver attempting to forget about the fact that for the first time, somepony had virtually materialized out of nowhere at his side. He used his magic to pull the chair nearest to Fluttershy out. Fluttershy took the unsaid invitation, and sat down in the chair. Soon as she was comfortable, Silver slid the chair back in.

"I knew this list was spot-on!" Twilight cheered, looking to her list once again, "I thought getting the chair for the mare was important...so I put it on there..."

"...I thought something like that was common courtesy," a slightly confused Azure said, already a step ahead of Twilight. The mare quickly stowed her list into her saddlebag and took her seat. Once she was seated, Azure pushed her back in.

As the colts took their seats next to their dates, Silver popped the question: "So what happens when you run out of things on your list? Do you move on to the next?"

Silver intended it for a joke, but Twilight merely blushed fiercely.

"N-no... I..."

Before Azure could wonder what other lists Twilight had; or what books she'd been reading recently, Pinkie Pie seemed to teleport at the group's side once again.

"Everypony ready to order?!" Pinkie chirped, pulling everypony's attention to her. It was fairly simple from there. Twilight decided to order a smoothie with two straws. Azure, spotting her intention, decided not to order anything. Fluttershy ordered a vanilla shake with extra oats.

"How about you, Silver? See anything you like?"

Ordinarily, the moment would have been awkward given Silver's condition, but Silver laughed it off, ordering a slice of carrot cake afterward.

Pinkie hopped away with the orders written down, prompting Twilight to look to her list for a guide on what to do on this double date.

"Small talk..." Twilight nodded to herself, and turned back to the table, plainly asking the first question that came to her mind, "So, have you two given each other pet-names yet?"

Silver did nothing, while Fluttershy just about fell off her chair from the awkwardness of the question, "I...I--"

"It's a little early for that," Silver responded, blinking, while Fluttershy tried to recover from the last question Twilight asked.

"It's easy!" Twilight encouraged, her cheeks reddening slightly from the memories, "Like today, I've called Azure 'honey' and 'cutie'..." Azure practically put his head down on the table, trying to hide how red his face was, "While Azure has called me 'babe' and 'sweetie pie'..."

Silver tried to hold back a snort, firmly convinced if he was caught smiling now he'd be murdered on the spot. The image of Azure using those names was too hilarious.

"Come on, why don't you two try it?"

Fluttershy shrunk, and Silver looked at Fluttershy.

"I...think we're good, Twilight..."

"Okay, then how about holding tails?"

Fluttershy seemed to shrink a little more, and she began to blush.

"When we're ready..." Silver declined.

"Well, have you two at least kissed yet?"

Fluttershy promptly fled under the table to escape her friend's unintentional peer pressure. Meanwhile, Silver stiffened, sitting bolt upright in his chair.

"Azure, we'd better check on the order," Silver practically jumped out of his seat, masking his amusement at Twilight's attitude.

"Uh...okay..." Azure said, rising up, blinking at his friend's sudden need for this. He followed Silver away. Meanwhile, Fluttershy finally poked her head out from under the table, and began to nervously rise to her seat.

"C-can we talk about something else, T-T-Twilight?"
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At first, Silver lead Azure directly to the front desk to check on the order. However, he suddenly broke left, and trotted away for a few more steps. A little after Silver turned left, Azure realized checking on the order was the last thing on Silver's mind. Sure enough, Silver stopped a few more steps later, and turned to Azure.

"So, how's this date going for you?" Silver stated just as soon as he finished turning around.

"What do you mean?" Azure asked. He was having fun, Twilight was having fun (even if it was a little embarrassing because of all the pet names he had to endure and come up with)...where was the issue?

"I'm talking about Twilight's list..." said Silver, "Don't you think she's overdoing it?"

Azure was suddenly reminded of the fact she might have had another list. He found himself wanting to know more than ever what else couples did that was so embarrassing. He almost died on the spot when Twilight used a pet name right in front of Silver and Fluttershy. What was left?

"I don't know...maybe?" Azure responded, shrugging, "But she seems comfortable enough with it, and I'm not up for arguing about it with her."

"Azure...I've never been in one, but I know this much," Silver replied after some silence, "Relationships are about sacrifices for one another. You just seem to be letting her take control. I never thought you'd be...submissive."

Azure tried to say something, but Silver continued on, "I mean, I don't want to tell you how to date your marefriend, but don't you think she's forcing it? I mean...what's next? Locking tongues in front of the fireplace?"

Azure blushed heavily, and he was sure Silver sensed the sudden awkwardness. Sure enough, Silver did.

"Oh...Celestia, you already have..."

"It was from the heat of the moment," Azure was now trying to explain the context, not wanting to think about Twilight's list, "We were on the sofa...she must have felt vulnerable after all that, and--"

Silver's iron-gray hoof jammed between Azure's jaws, silencing him.

"Don't tell me the details!" Silver said.

"...Getting back to the topic...It does feel like she's trying way too hard to ensure the relationship works, but I really, really don't want to disappoint her. She must have worked very hard to make that list..."

"Where's the adventure?" Silver wasn't letting up, asking yet another question.

Azure opened his mouth, but no words came out.

"Look at me and Fluttershy...Neither of us know what'll happen when we leave. Maybe we'll hold tails on the back, maybe I'll get a kiss at the door, maybe she'll invite me in. There's also a chance none of that will happen at all. But if it does, it's because we feel that we're ready to. Not because some list says we're supposed to."

Azure looked back over to the table. Twilight still seemed to be badgering Fluttershy, but it was definitely much more light that it had been when all four were at the table.

I was...a little iffy about the tail-holding thing. I never liked attention like that. And I had gotten it way before I realized either of my crushes... Azure thought. Because I happened to pal around with mares a lot of the time.

"...I guess you have a point," Azure rubbed the back of his head, turning back to Silver, "But...won't she be disappointed?"

"You mentioned she worked at that list like it was some kind of report?" Silver asked. Azure could only nod. "To me, that says she's willing to do what she can to make this work between you."

"...You sure you've never done something like this before?"

"I just pay attention."

Azure remained silent. When the blind pony was right...

"I guess I'll talk to her about it, but for now, I think we'd better get back to the table before they wonder what's keeping us."
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Despite the vast difference in how each couple executed their relationships, the double date proceeded smoothly, though the sight of Azure and Twilight sharing a smoothie did draw quite a bit of attention to the two of them. The two couples parted ways soon after, and the whole way back, Azure once again found himself ensnared by Twilight's tail. He bit his tongue, wanting to make sure that the two were relatively alone before saying what was really on his mind.

He did not doubt Twilight wanted it to work between them, but she was putting a lot of stress on it due to the fact she overthought it and made it far more organized than it really needed to be. Azure understood full well why she researched...it was in her nature.

Eventually, the two reached the library, passing by Spike.

"So, how'd it go?" he asked, semi-dryly, as the two passed.

"It went perfectly!" Twilight chirped with a smile. "Isn't that right, honey?"

Azure bit his tongue as Spike started to snicker again. At least the pet names, he could get used to. Everything else they did today, except maybe the sharing of the smoothie, was a bit too far, though.

"Sure was...babe..."

As Spike's sides began to split once again, the two made their way up to Twilight's room, which had been cleaned up significantly since the two left. When Twilight closed the door, Azure breathed out a heavy sigh, not exactly sure what he wanted to say.

"Twilight..." Azure started, "we need to talk..."

The instant he spoke those four words, Twilight's expression changed from happy to extremely scared and sad.

"Oh, no...no, no, no, no..." she said, walking towards him, "You're breaking up with me, aren't you?"

"Breaking--what, no..." Azure responded, "Why would you think that?"

"I-I read about it in my books!" said Twilight, "Every time a conversation between a couple starts with 'we need to talk', it usually means a break-up is going to follow!"

"I'm not breaking up with you..." Azure assured her. "There's just...something I have a little bit of an issue with..."

"W-what is it?"

"I-it's your list..."

Twilight blinked. "Y-you don't like the list...? But...I researched for several hours making it..."

"Twilight...I understand it..." Azure said, "I understand that it was your first instinct." He walked forward until he could reach Twilight's shoulders. It was a bit awkward to touch both of them at the same time, but he managed it well. "You didn't know what it was, so it was books you turned to...but...the list isn't needed. And whatever other lists you might have...well..."

Twilight blushed, "T-those were...for..."

"I...don't want to know what those were for." Azure cut her off before his curiosity got spiked to the limits, "You wanted to make it work, and you turned to your lists. Something that helped you during the winter wrap-up even after you slipped a little..."

"Twilight...What I'm trying to say is...for romance, neither of us can approach it like we normally would," The cyan colt said, finally standing on four legs again, feeling Twilight relax just a little. "I can't blindly follow my instincts like I'm used to, but planning it down to the detail isn't going to work either."

"Silver...Fluttershy...neither of them planned their day, and both of them still had a good time..."

"I..." Twilight started, sounding unsure.

"I get that you value organizing affairs like this..." Azure replied. "But...well..." He blushed a bit, remembering something important. "We didn't exactly plan our first kiss now...did we?"

"Well...yeah..." Twilight blushed heavily at the memory, "And...that was...the best thing I'd ever felt..."

"And...you know..." Azure responded. "I don't plan on planning that anymore either..."

Azure kissed her full-on the mouth, holding it for five seconds, before pulling back. Twilight half-opened her eyes afterward, seemingly convinced with his answer.

"So...babe...I think we can do...without the planning..."
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The Royal Guards left town later that day. A couple of days later, Silver also left, leaving Azure with a hoofbump as departure, along with more teasing words about his current relationship. The cyan colt didn't care much for Silver's advice of "don't overdo it with the sweetness now", but he did notice Fluttershy seemed just a little down when he left town. Silver also hinted he would be back sooner next time without needing to be asked before departing.

Azure stretched out on the sofa, feeling less restless than he normally would. He had himself a cute marefriend, he'd proven he could defend her and his other friends if the need arose, and he'd managed to mend what he'd broken through his own stupidity. Yet...through all this, the cyan colt couldn't help but feel he was forgetting something.

A knock at the door broke him out of his thoughts. He got up to answer it, not really caring who it was as long as he didn't have to kick some teeth in. He opened it, finding Twilight.

"Hi, Azure," she said, forgoing her pet name for the moment. "How have you been today?"

"Still just a little sore from the whole mess a while back, but I think I've healed..."

"Always downplaying major problems..." Twilight said, "Whether you've burned up most of your magic or physical endurance...Doing it so we don't have to worry about you?"

"...Probably..." Azure said, "So...why'd you come?"

"Well, I wanted to see you, but more importantly...the Grand Galloping Gala's coming up."

Azure blinked. "Grand Galloping Gala...? Oh, right! The whole mess with the ticket...and you changed me to your color..."

"Yeah...Well...do you remember we each got one? Even Spike got one?" Twilight asked, walking inside without Azure even telling her to come in. Azure, for his part, didn't mind.

Azure closed his eyes. A memory returned, one from way back when he and Twilight first started to get along. It was that night, after he got home and dried himself off following his little swim.
---------
"Actually, there's something else I'm here for too..."

"Wait a sec, you're taking me? Didn't I say--"

"Actually, you see, I sent a letter to Princess Celestia about how she'd only sent two tickets, and how I couldn't decide between each of my friends. She'd sent eight tickets in less than a minute after I'd sent her a letter. There's one for each of us, including Spike. Honestly, I'd imagine she didn't want you or Spike to be left out."

"I get it. Well, I guess it'd be rude of me to not go. If anypony expects me to dance, they're bound to be disappointed..."

Twilight's giggle, even now, remained in his memory.

"I don't plan on dancing either..."
--------------
"Right. I still stand by not dancing..." Azure only now seemed to figure out what it was he was forgetting. "Oh...manure...that's right...it's one of those formal events, isn't it!?"

"Azure...?" Twilight asked.

"I completely forgot...I don't have any formal wear..." Azure responded.

"Actually..." Twilight smiled, walking up to him, "Rarity said she had something for you...She told me she was saving it for something like this..."

Azure blinked, "...What is it?"

"If I had to guess, it'd be that 'formal wear' you were just fretting about..." Twilight kissed Azure on the cheek as he started to blush from her sentiments.

"...Oh..." Azure said, "What about the rest of you?"

Twilight paused, "...Where were you when we put her through so much stress?"

"I...had other things to do at the time..." Azure remembered bits and pieces of Rarity's ordeal. She had put the work all on herself, and initially the mares had placed way too much on her to make each of their dresses. The first results turned out horribly for her at the fashion show, but the second ones were much better. It occurred to him that he hadn't even seen any of the fabled dresses. "Those are the ones you're wearing to the Gala, then?"

"That's right..." Twilight said. "Don't worry...she's covered us...oh, and Azure..."

"Huh?"

"Don't look a gift horse in the mouth..." Twilight seemed to be rattling off something she learned at that moment. Azure wasn't complaining about what Rarity made; he had no intention of doing so. He was sure whatever she had in mind for him wasn't something that would conflict with his character too much.

"...Got it..." Azure responded. "Gonna walk there with me to see what she's got in store?"

"...Planned on it..." Twilight replied with a smile.

The two ponies left for Rarity's shop, perfectly content with going with the flow for now.

Chapter 32: What Kind of Night Is This?

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Chapter 32: What Kind of Night Is This?
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Azure was in a spot he expected to be, a lot earlier than he thought he would be. He was on a train bound for Canterlot. Ponyville seemed to have quieted down considerably due to the fact the Grand Galloping Gala was going to be happening that very day. The pony pictured himself riding in the train anyway, but he had at least two very good reasons for it.

One, he wanted to be surprised by how the girls, particularly Twilight, looked for the occasion. He himself had already gotten his own formal wear for the event, and was going home to see if he could straighten out his spikes at least a little.

Two, well, he had one other, incredibly good reason that trumped the other one by far.
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Azure was semi-preparing for his train ride to Canterlot. He was still somewhat debating going on ahead of the rest of the group. He had packed away his suit, making sure to take his ticket with him, and was pacing around, trying to decide if he should wait for the others, or go on ahead like he had intended to when he first got the Gala tickets.

Granted, things were different since then; Twilight was now closer to him than any of the others, and he did know it was more commonplace for couples to go together, and dance if applicable. Tonight was certainly going to be interesting; Azure couldn't deny that, but he wasn't sure if going on ahead would be the right move now.

He was called out of his thoughts, however, by a knock at the door. He answered it, and to his surprise he found Twilight (and a very amused-looking Spike) on the other end.

"Twilight? Spike?" Azure asked, "Why'd you come here?"

"Well, we're getting ready for the Gala, and I wanted to know if you'd be comfortable coming with us to the Boutique to wait or not..." Twilight responded, "I really don't think you're a patient colt when it comes to waiting."

Azure blinked, "You're getting ready for the Gala, already? Isn't it a bit early?"

"Yeah, well, I've got to make some preparations of my own to get us there. I've been looking into spells for that kind of purpose." Twilight explained. "And, well..." She sighed, "You know Rarity....she's the one getting us ready for everything."

Azure immediately opened his eyes, "Wait, so Rarity's the one getting you all ready?"

"Of course she is!" Spike barked, sounding indignant that Azure hadn't immediately figured that out.

Silence reigned.

"Yeah...if that's the case, I think I'd better go on ahead. Besides..." Azure said, looking to Twilight, "I want to see how you look for the Gala at the Gala..."
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"Kinda wish Spike wouldn't be so offensive about it..." Azure said to himself, "I wonder what's up with him today? He's usually not so...acidic, when it comes to Twilight and me..."

Azure sighed, really wondering how the whole thing was going to go down. "I wish I could know more about what's going to happen tonight. However, guess I'd better take some time, visit my parents, and see what else I can do before the Gala starts."

Eventually, the train arrived in Canterlot, and Azure stepped out, levitating his baggage with him as he stepped out. He had an idea of where he needed to stop at first.

"Alright, so I guess I should check in with my parents first..." the colt mumbled to himself. "Before I do anything else..."

With that, Azure Courage began to do one of the hardest things he would ever have to do...in terms of social events anyway, second only to resolving the triangular mess he had been in all winter. He began to head back towards his old, foalhood home, wondering what his parents would have to say to him.

I...don't plan to tell them about Twilight yet... Abruptly, he recalled he'd just met Shining Armor, his cousins' captain...and Twilight's older brother, Though I can't say the same about Twilight if Shining managed to find time to tell her parents about me!

After much walking around, Azure Courage finally made it to the front door of his parents' home. A million things were going through his mind as to what would happen as soon as he knocked on the door. He raised his hoof, and knocked on the door three times. He took a step back, ready for anything, including his own mother. The door flew open-had Azure been standing in front of it, he'd have been sent flying like a playground ball. Azure spotted who was coming for him, and before he could even command himself to start running, his mom was practically in his face.

"My little Azie has come home!" she chirped, practically gushing with emotion. "Give mama a kiss!"

Before Azure could do anything, his mother was taking a kiss from him, kissing him on the cheek. It wasn't that he now had a marefriend--it was embarrassing enough without that tidbit added on.

Celestia...awaiting banishment... thought Azure to himself, glad nopony else saw that happening or cared enough to look.

"Come on in, Azie, it's nice to see you again? How long's it been, a year?"

"Just about..."

Azure followed his mother inside, hoping to just blow past why he was back in town for the day. Unfortunately, one awkward problem often gave way into another. As soon as Azure saw who else aside from his father was home, his eyes opened nice and wide.

"Hey, Azure," Silver said, as casually as though he wasn't waiting for Azure to come in. Judging from the amusement Azure could see plastered on his features, he knew that his blind friend had heard all that had just happened at the door.

"What are you doing here?" Azure asked, forgoing the obvious question and suppressing the urge to deck the blind pony for his unexpected intrusion. Mother's love had always been an embarrassing subject since she still insisted on treating him like a foal, after all.

"Figured you'd stop by here first," Silver responding, moving right past the awkwardness that accompanied the situation, "Thought I could go with you and the girls." Azure flinched a little, remembering his parents were very much in the room, but at least they knew who he was talking about. "Where are they anyway? Didn't they come with you?"

"Well--" Azure couldn't even formulate his answer before his parents interjected, starting with his father.

"Girls, with an 'S'?" his father asked, while his mother didn't say much, her eyes sparkling at the mere thought of it.

"You mean the ones from his letters, Silver?"

"I've...met them, yes..." Silver responded.

"It's not like that," Azure half-lied, "I told you, they all happened to be mares when I showed up in Ponyville. They're all just my friends..."

He was pretty sure his mother wasn't listening at all; the thought of her little pony having a significant other was too much for her.

"Azure..." Silver said, "they don't know you're dating Twilight?"

Azure suppressed the immediate urge to skewer his blind friend on his horn for even thinking it was a good idea to mention it at that moment, and worse still, on the day of the Gala. Meanwhile, the memory of his letters sparked in his parents' minds; his mother was the first to speak up.

"The Princess's student!?" Azure's mother practically squealed in delighted disbelief. It was the only way to describe her emotional state upon hearing that.

"Silver...you're killing me today..." Azure grumbled, having had no intention of telling his parents that information yet. Now he had no choice.

"Aiming for the best..." Azure's father winked at his mother, making Azure second-guess himself on the idea of having a marefriend to begin with and making Silver feel very uncomfortable from his own magical "image" of the event, "Just like your dad..."

"Oh, dear, maybe it's time you had 'the talk' with him..." Azure's mother suggested. As his parents briefly talked about the whole event, Azure could focus all of his anger at the situation at Silver himself, who seemed to feel the hate that Azure was giving off.

"Maybe there's a reason I never told them?" Azure asked, "Because we both knew they'd do this?"

He didn't care if his parents heard him; in fact, they didn't even seem to notice.

"Azure, I didn't kn--" Silver started, trying to apologize.

"Oh, manure, Silver, you didn't know..." Azure sighed, having thought Silver would have at least had some idea of how his parents acted whenever he reached a milestone. "Well, I'm going to be getting 'the talk' now, whatever that is. Maybe you should go do the same. It'll pass the time..."

"Azure, Azure, calm down--" Silver tried to reason with him.

"And to answer your first question, they're getting ready for the Gala already..." Azure refocused, getting back to Silver's initial question before his parents began their expected barrage of reunion banter.

"Rarity?" Silver asked, already knowing the obvious.

"Rarity," Azure nodded, feeling tired even though he hadn't even done anything active today.

"So...um...I guess I'll just..." Silver began shuffling towards the door, "start getting ready for the Gala too...And maybe I will get 'the talk' while I'm at it..."

With that, the two friends went their separate ways, and Azure turned to his parents, fully ready for whatever they might tell him...
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"I never want to hear that again as long as I live..."

Azure moaned this to himself when he finished getting "the talk", and he continued to repeat this whenever the words from his parents echoed in his mind. He didn't even want to remember it, since his cheeks flushed vividly whenever parts of "the talk" entered his mind. The fact his tongue was inside Twilight's mouth already hadn't made it any easier on him. Hours had passed, and the Grand Galloping Gala was pretty much starting now. Ponies seemed to be entering, but Azure opted to wait for the others first.

Azure's spiky mane and tail had been somewhat tamed for the occasion. He had also temporarily taken off his headband for the same reason, using it as an ascot. Apparently, Rarity hadn't seen the need to make a tie a part of the suit. The suit itself complemented his coat color extremely well, being a gentle red hue; not at all traditionally colored. At least, to what Azure understood. The undershirt was still a white color, but the suit itself also was trimmed with a very light gray. His hooves had been covered for the occasion as well.

I have never felt more comfortable in formal wear... thought Azure to himself.

"Hey there!"

Azure turned his head and saw Silver walking up to him as though he hadn't just sent Azure straight into the most mindnumbingly scarring event he ever shared with his father. Silver too had dressed up for the occasion, but his was a more traditional white tux (just like his mane). All Azure could do was glare, since because of Silver, Azure had to suffer through "the talk". All because Silver couldn't keep his mouth shut.

"Okay, Azure, I know you're still angry, so I want you to know I made amends..." Silver responded as soon as he felt Azure's wrath quietly boiling.

"How?" Azure asked, raising a brow.

"Had my own dad give me 'the talk'," Silver shivered, "I've never heard a metaphor like that before..."

Azure sighed, figuring that Silver's lack of sight somehow made it worse on him. Maybe it made it better, since at least he didn't have to deal with his own father's body language...

"Okay, we're even," Azure decided, poking Silver on the chest. "Just don't bring up anything between Twilight and me to my parents again, until I say it's alright."

"Fair enough..." Silver said. "On the subject, you think she might have you meet her parents while you're here?"

Azure physically froze. He could barely imagine how well Twilight meeting his own parents would go, and he had some ideas of how his own meeting with Twilight's parents would go. Neither case would end very well for either of them, he feared.

"Uh..." Azure needed a distraction, almost as soon as possible. Thankfully, that need soon vanished when he spotted what looked like a giant apple with windows coming towards the area. "Oh, look, they're coming now!" He could clearly see Spike riding on the chariot, being pulled by two colts he'd seen around town. Inside, he could see the silhouettes of the girls dressed up, and immediately, nervousness set in. He had no idea what Twilight would look like once she stepped out, and he had no idea how he would look to her.

"How's my mane?" The question was the first thing Azure could think to say, forgetting exactly who was standing next to him.

"Really, are you that nervous?" Silver wondered aloud, probably questioning the situation internally as Azure remembered Silver's blindness. Before he could push the point further, the chariot came to a stop. Now that the group was close enough, Azure could clearly see even the ponies pulling the cart had their own suits to wear. Spike himself wore a fitting black tux with a red bowtie, making him wonder if he'd had that since before moving to Ponyville or if Rarity had made that one for him too. He noticed them, but didn't pause for a moment to actually greet them; instead, he waved at the two, before motioning them to come closer.

"Silver, Spike wants us to come meet them," Azure said. "By the way, an apple is a fashionable carriage these days..."

"What?" Silver asked, honestly sounding somewhere between confused and shocked, "Sometimes I really wish I had my eyes..."

With that, the two colts quickly made their way over to the carriage, Spike already at the door and opening it for them. After that, he shuffled back.

"Presenting..." Spike said, with a very announcer-esque tone to his voice, bowing down to half-height as he did. Azure didn't do the same, but he did close his eyes, trying to gather himself. As soon as he heard hoofsteps coming out of the carriage, he opened them.

Rarity did not disappoint. From the first hoof out of the carriage to all six being in full view, the dressmaking expertise of the white unicorn did not escape a single stitch. Not only that, but just like with Azure's own outfit, she had made sure each pony's dress was tailor-made to express each pony's personality in clothing form as well. Rarity's was about as eloquent as they came, and even came with a tiara. Applejack's screamed "country", but looked just as formal as Rarity's. Fluttershy's brought out her love of nature, Pinkie's dress showing...more of her occupation than anything. Rainbow Dash's dress was just as in-your-face as she was, and...Azure noticed that her mane almost seemed longer than normal. Their manes had also been styled for the event; Rainbow Dash's seemingly pretty special.

All of them looked beautiful, there was no denying that, but when Azure fully saw Twilight, his eyes widened. Like the others, her dress also brought out her personality. Her dress looked similar to the night sky, and her mane was adorned with a star. There was something about her dress that made her stand out even more than the others.

Call me biased...but...she looks absolutely gorgeous here...

"Whoa!" Spike exclaimed, as soon as he saw them, "You all look...amazing!"

"Azure, that is most undignified!"

Rarity directly addressing him snapped Azure out of his haze, "Huh...oh...I...um..."

While Spike and Rainbow busied themselves with giggling at that incident, Rarity soon directed her attention to another problem.

"Never mind that; Silver, aren't you going to compliment Fluttershy on her dress?" asked Rarity, a bit indignantly, since Silver didn't react at all to the mares coming out of the carriage. "I put a lot of work into that, and I at least want to hear your...input..."

"Oh no, please, go on..." Silver said, making sure his pale, lifeless eyes were on full display.

"Oh...that's right...sorry." Rarity said sheepishly.

"On the subject, while I'm not able to appreciate the work you did on her dress and mane, I can smell her perfume...and it's heavenly."

Fluttershy blushed lightly and all was well again. Twilight had a rather determined look on her face the whole time, though it had been slightly offset by the light blush that had painted her cheeks ever since she and Azure met eyes. Azure decided to push these thoughts aside for the moment, taking a deep breath to steady himself.

Please don't let family be here, please don't let family be here, pleasedon'tletfamilybehere...

"Well then..." Azure made his way next to Twilight, extending a foreleg. "Shall we?"

Twilight eagerly accepted Azure's offer. That much might have been on a list she had somewhere, for all Azure knew. Silver mimicked Azure's gesture. Fluttershy hesitated for a moment, but eventually she too took her colt's forearm...
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One musical number later...

"Hey! Hold on! Why are you skipping over it!?"

Pinkie, nothing changes from the show!

"But it's a song!"

I can't think of anything that would make this noticeably different! The only reason why I included all the other ones was because the plot could do something with them!

"Aww...you're no fun..."

Sorry, it's what happens when you wind up in the mood to write past midnight...
---------------------------------------------
Azure hadn't thought of it mid-song, but now that everypony was done, he had noticed something important.

Where'd Applejack's accent go...?

"Azure," Twilight said, "Could you...um, let me go...talk to the Princess now?"

"Huh?" Azure was called out of his thoughts. "Oh...like you sang about...I understand."

"Thank you! I promise I'll spend time with you later!" Twilight smiled heavily, very quickly hugging Azure before bounding off for Princess Celestia.
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The evening seemed simple enough. Each of the friends had their own goals for the night. Twilight was going to discuss magic with her mentor. Rainbow Dash was going to impress the Wonderbolts (again, considering what she did at the Young Fliers' competition). Pinkie Pie was going to have fun. Applejack was going to sell a lot of apples. Fluttershy and Silver were going to spend the day tending to the animals at the castle. Rarity was going to try and woo Prince Blueblood. Azure was going to avoid causing a ruckus for once.

Fluttershy and Silver went to the garden where the animals awaited. If Silver could see, he would have been able to see the vast, well-maintained garden that awaited the two.

"Oh, I can't wait to see all the animals that live here," Fluttershy excitedly stated as she looked around the garden.

"You must have really been looking forward to this," Silver commented, walking beside Fluttershy.

"Oh yes, I've been waiting so long for this night, and I couldn't imagine anything better," Silver's ears pricked up at this information, and immediately flattened.

"Oh, I see..." Silver frowned.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that," Fluttershy quickly apologized, picking up on the tone in the unicorn's voice, "Seeing the animals here was a dream I've had before I met you...and..." Now she blushed, "Invited you to come..."

It was a little bit on short notice, but Fluttershy had Twilight mention there was one more to the party going to the Gala. With a little bit of luck, another ticket had been given to Silver.

"No, no, it's alright. This is your dream..." Silver started, "But maybe later, if you want, we could...dance, maybe?" Silver asked, slightly blushing now.

Fluttershy paused. Sure, it didn't seem like that bad of an idea, but the mere fact she would have to dance in public was already making her want to back out. However, Silver had always managed to find a way to make her feel comfortable.

"I'd like that..." Fluttershy said, hesitantly, hoping beyond hope that the dance floor wouldn't be crowded later--

A light chirping was heard overhead, and Fluttershy looked up, obviously seeing-- "Oh my, a meadowlark!"

She was obviously following the bird, which began to sing, "I think she's calling out to me..."

Fluttershy began to follow the sound, beginning to hum to herself. The sound was like honey to Silver's ears.

If she's going to hum like that all this time, this will be a good day... Silver thought to himself as she followed Fluttershy deeper into the garden.
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Azure Courage was finally remembering why he didn't want to come along. One, though the party wasn't nearly as girly as he thought it was, it was still formal. Two, it was incredibly boring. Three, it reminded him of all the reasons why he moved away from Canterlot in the first place. With the others pursuing their own visions of the perfect Gala night, Azure was in need of something to do.

Azure rubbed at his mane, wondering what he could do to pass the time. From what he knew, Rarity was off trying to work her charms on a nobleman, so that wasn't going to fly. Rainbow Dash would kick his teeth in later if he tried to talk to her while she was trying to show off for the Wonderbolts. Twilight was pretty much off-limits because of her teacher. As for Pinkie, while he was sure she could breathe life into this party, he wanted to avoid causing a ruckus. Fluttershy and Silver were off animal watching, which just didn't seem to work because he just didn't want to be there.

"...I feel like I could go visit Applejack..." Azure remarked to himself, looking up. "I need to do something..."
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Fluttershy was not having the luck she hoped for when dealing with the animals at the garden. She would get within about ten feet of them, if that, only to have them run off when she got too close. After several minutes of failures, it had started to get to her.

"Fluttershy...what are you--?" Silver asked, not able to see precisely what she was doing. All he knew was that something was placed on the ground nearby, within the garden.

"Shhh...they'll hear you," Fluttershy replied softly before grabbing one end of a rope with her teeth. The other end was tied to a stick which kept one end of a box off the ground. Underneath this was a carrot which was being used as bait. "I just need to be more bold, like Twilight says..."

By this point, Silver was convinced she might not be talking to him anymore. Ever since that donkey's song lead them off the trail, Fluttershy had been slowly slipping in front of him.

"I'm so sorry to have scared you, my friends!" Fluttershy said, at a volume louder than Silver thought possible from her, particularly when it came to animals, "But I'm leaving now, so you can come out now!"

"Um...Fluttershy?"

"Ssh!!"

The sound of something munching on something filled Silver's ears, and then Fluttershy said, "Gotcha!" She tugged on the rope, snaring whatever it was in the trap.

"It's okay..." Fluttershy said as she walked towards the trap, "I promise not to hurt you, I just want to be your--"

She uncovered the trap, revealing something unexpected. "Friend?"

"Sounds good to me," It was the gardener that had sprung the trap, probably viewing the carrot as a free snack. Fluttershy was not amused, and Silver could feel it.

"Um..." Silver started, "Maybe you should try taking a little break?"

"Oh no," Fluttershy said, her face setting into an expression of anger, "I'm not giving up yet. No more Ms. Nice Mare."

Silver paused, unsure if he should be here. Things were getting awkward, and the fact his father gave him "the talk" earlier didn't help any.

"Didn't Dad tell me about something like this..."
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Azure made his way outside, breathing in the fresh air. He passed Rainbow Dash actually seemed to "hang" with the Wonderbolts. By her terms, anyway. It seemed like the two ponies in question were more or less being forced to ignore her. Such was Canterlot society for you.

"Excuse me," The voice was as uptight-sounding as it could be, "Don't I know you, lad?"

Azure turned to see a pony with a monocle, a white moustache like the mane and tail he sported (finely groomed too), and a black tux on.

"No...I don't think we've ever met..." Azure said, trying to be polite.

"I feel like I've seen a colt like you jumping around like some kinda rabbit..." the pony calmly said, adjusting his monocle. "How'd a wild foal like you get into the Grand Galloping Gala?"

"Oh, you know, just here with some friends," Azure had never so badly wanted to get away from a pony before. He was remembering now more than ever why he moved away.

"Really?" The pony asked, seeming concerned. "Well, do make sure not to cause a ruckus. I hear Princess Celestia doesn't like that sort of thing at this event."

Azure smiled, "I don't plan on it..."

The pony left him alone, and Azure breathed a sigh of relief out.

Okay, I made it through that... thought Azure to himself. Now...visit Applejack...try to keep myself from going "prim idiot" from all this...
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Fluttershy just seemed to be getting worse and worse as the animals continued to brush her off. She went from the gentle, meek pony, to a forceful mare. Fluttershy just abandoned all pretense and tried to run up to animals and catch them in her hooves. This was not helping her any; the animals were becoming more and more scared of her.

"Come out!"

At this, Silver immediately dove for cover behind a nearby tree. He was convinced Fluttershy didn't even see him now, only the animals that dared run from her.

Wait...I remember now! This is that 'time of the month' Dad warned me about...what'd he call it again? Silver recalled "the talk" he got earlier, and after a while, it hit him: The seven day heat wave? Silver's dad always used metaphors to better paint a picture for Silver's lack of eyesight, something he picked up on over the years. He never did get to know what the metaphor actually was before his mom cut in. Silver was warned, however, that it was best to keep your distance during that time.

Keep my distance, but can I just leave her like this...? I'm sure she'll revert back to her sweet self soon enou--

"I'll catch you yet, my pretties! Oh yes...as soon as one of you birds, or monkeys, or bears touches this net, you'll be mine! Mine!"

This was then followed by the craziest laugh Silver had ever heard in his life.

"...So I wonder what Azure's doing right now..."
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Azure eventually managed to find his way to Applejack's cart. She seemed positively down on herself, and Azure couldn't figure out why. Hadn't she sold a single apple...product since coming here?

Now that I think about it, didn't that one Wonderbolt have some pie encrusted in his mane...

Azure continued to think back, wondering how well the others' nights were going, when he caught two ponies from the corner of his eye. One of them was Rarity, and the other was a stallion taller than her. He had a golden mane, white fur, and blue eyes, and practically reeked of royalty.

"Oh, that's why Spike was in a bad mood earlier..." Azure remembered aloud. "That's Rarity's 'prince'...I can't remember what his name was...Prince...Bluebell...? Bluebill...?"

"Blueblood, Azure, Prince Blueblood..."

Azure blinked, and turned his head to see Silver standing right there.

"Silver? Where's Fluttershy?" Azure looked around, slightly worried now. He didn't want to have his teeth kicked in by everypony else if Silver happened to break her heart by abandoning her.

"I...don't want to talk about it..." Silver shuddered. Azure was even more curious now, but he couldn't voice his question fast enough.

"Ahem!"

Both colts turned their heads towards Applejack's cart again. Rarity and her prince had found something that night, but from what Azure could tell, it was just an argument. But it wasn't one of those foalish arguments he and Twilight would get into all the time; oh no, it was something more serious.

"I'm going to have to pay, aren't I?" Rarity sighed. Azure physically twitched. He thought all ponies in Canterlot at least knew that much. Even a "wild foal" like him knew it was usually the male that paid.

Guess I can brush this off... Azure thought, gritting his teeth. Though--

"It's okay, Rarity, I got'cha covered..." Applejack said. Azure twitched again, hearing this.

"Azure..." Silver said in a warning tone.

"That was not an argument to have between a couple..." Azure responded, walking up to the cart with Silver following close behind. "I would know, Silver. Applejack shouldn't have had to do that..."

If Azure were human, he'd have been subtly clenching his fists, urging himself not to act. Blueblood was no mare, that much was certain. However, Azure was holding himself back since Rarity was still hanging around him and Blueblood was still royalty, no matter how much he abused that f--

"Bleah!" Prince Blueblood immediately spit out the apple fritter that he had started to eat. He had perfect aim; good enough to knock off Applejack's hat. "Apple fritters, dumplings, caramel apples! My royal lips have touched common carnival fare!"

Azure stopped dead in his tracks, unamused yet unsurprised by Blueblood's display of utter lack of taste in anything below horse doves or whatever they called those party snacks. He'd been away from those kinds of gatherings for so long out of disinterest he'd forgotten what he was called. Silver stepped ahead of him, taking charge of the situation.

"Don't you think you're overreacting...a little?" Silver asked. Blueblood turned to him, and scoffed.

"Please, food like this is better left to the dogs!" the prince huffed, walking off with Rarity following close behind, clearly disgusted at the behavior. Azure lowered his head, allowing his mane to obscure his eyes.

Oh...you spoiled excuse of a pony... Azure thought to himself, Of the kinds of ponies I didn't like in Canterlot the most...you're right there at the top of the list...Can't treat mares right, don't know the meaning of good food unless it's a name I can't pronounce without curling my tongue...That's it, you've just been put on the list of "Ponies I Have To Clock"...

"Azure, where are you going?" Silver asked as soon as he noticed Azure was moving.

"I'm just going to go talk to the royal pain--I mean, prince," Azure stated.

"No, Azure...don't."

Azure found his momentum had been arrested, and now he was hovering a few inches off the ground, being pulled back by Silver's magic. "The last pony you talked to didn't go near another mare in over a month..."

"He called Applejack's food dog food..." Azure hissed. "Wouldn't know a gift if it smacked him in the face, but it'd probably feel good if I did it myself..."

"Hold your horses there, Az," Applejack said, catching Azure's attention. "I appreciate the thought, I really do, but if you go knocking heads with a prince it won't be pretty..."

"Unless you somehow hit him so hard he forgets who he is..." Silver realized almost immediately afterward what he said came off more as a suggestion to the angry Azure.

"...Doable." Azure responded, starting after them again.

"Az..." Applejack said, "I really didn't wanna go there, but how do you think Twilight'd feel if she knew you knocked out Princess Celestia's nephew?"

Azure froze. He knew very well what Twilight's reaction would be. He really didn't want to disappoint her today. Given how well things seemed to be going so far for the others, he didn't want to add on to any of it. Even if Blueblood had it coming...

"Fine..." Azure sighed, looking in the direction where they'd gone.

"...You're not giving up, are you?" Silver asked. "You're going to follow them..."

"...maybe..."

"Well..." Silver said, after some silence, "I'm going to tag along and make sure you don't get out of hoof, but first..." The unicorn turned to the apple cart. "Two apple fritters, please."
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It wasn't that hard to see where they were going next. Azure realized in an instant they were going inside. Blueblood was no doubt going to cleanse his pallet with more snacks with names Azure couldn't pronounce. However, the crown prince of clowns and Rarity stopped at the door. It occurred to Azure almost instantly that Prince Blueblood had no intention of opening the door for her.

I'm in even less of a forgiving mood than usual!

Azure huffed, and once again began to move forward at a quickened trot. However, he was soon cut off by Silver, who had managed to catch up.

"Easy, Azure, easy, I don't like this any more than you do..." Silver responded automatically.

"Then why'd you leave Fluttershy at the garden...?"

Azure wasn't sure if he imagined a distant, frustrated screech at that exact moment, but whatever it was sent shivers up Silver's spine, and he visibly shuddered.

"Anyway, there's no way you can expect to do that without something going wrong..."

"Just once?"

"Not even once!" Azure snorted, looking around for anything, anything at all that he could use for his purposes. Soon enough, he found it, and his horn lit up.

"Why don't I just throw this at him, then?" Azure lifted up a large rock that was off the path in his magic.

"No! Not only would it be kinda obvious somepony threw it with their magic, you'd probably just hit Rarity too!"

Azure huffed, letting the rock drop back down in the walk. The colt continued to watch the two ponies fight over the door without so much as an actual word said to each other. Eventually, though, Rarity relented and opened the door for the spoiled prince. A few moments later, Rarity walked in after him, slamming the door shut behind her.

"Okay, how can he be related to Princess Celestia..." Azure asked the very first question on his mind, followed by the very first statement that came to his mind. "They're polar opposites!"

Silver asked something sarcastic, but Azure didn't even pay enough attention to make out his words, entirely focused on taking down all of Blueblood's antics in a mental list he would make sure to pay back later. With Silver following him, Azure followed the two in, and began to search through the crowd of ponies for a white mare and a spoiled brat of a colt.

"Say, Silver, could you help me find them?"

"It'd be easier if most of the ponies in this room didn't feel annoyed with something..." Silver remarked, looking around through dead eyes as he tried to do as he was asked. "I'd say Rarity is annoyed, but...so are most of the other ponies in the room?"

"How and why?" Azure questioned, but Silver didn't need to answer.

"C'mon, everypony, you want to party?" Azure could pick out that voice any time, anywhere. "Now it's a paaaaaaaartaaay!" Azure lowered his eyes to the crowd, and could pick out Pinkie Pie bumping into several ponies trying to get them to dance right along with her. All this did, however, was annoy them. Azure didn't need eyesight to know this; he grew up in this atmosphere.

"Azie!" Pinkie wrapped her foreleg around his neck as a greeting before Azure could react, "Good! You're here! You've gotta help me teach these ponies how to party!"

Azure knew Pinkie meant well. She really did. However, Canterlot ponies didn't like even the slightest bit of wild behavior. He knew firsthoof, being "that wild foal".

"Sorry, Pinkie, Canterlot ponies aren't the kind of ponies to have wild parties..." Azure tried to explain, but his words fell on deaf ears.

"Nonsense," Pinkie waved her hoof dismissively, "They just need somepony to show them how! Trust me! It'll be fun!"

Azure immediately stopped dead in his tracks. Every single time Pinkie had said that to him, it had ended badly for him. And tonight was not going to be an exception. Pinkie immediately dashed back into the crowd trying to encourage the other ponies to dance along with her. Azure backed away, not at all convinced hanging around was a good idea.

The door slammed open, and Azure immediately feared the worst. He turned, and was relatively relieved to see Applejack was entering the room. However, he saw potential catastrophe in the form of what was on her cart: a large cake.

"Okay, all you high-class ponies," Applejack said loud enough for the room to hear. "Here's a highfalutin apple cake for your hoity-toity taste buds!"

"Stage dive!" Pinkie called out, doing exactly as she said. She made a perfect dive, getting an impressive amount of air time. The landing would have been stellar had it not been for Applejack's own agenda for the gala. The party pony landed on the cart in such a way that it caused the cake to catapult into the air. Azure followed the cake with his own eyes, and realized it was soon to land on Blueblood and Rarity. It was Blueblood's last chance to redeem himself.

Too bad Blueblood had all the chivalry of a cactus, as Azure would see once and for all.

All Azure could do was watch, eyes widening as Blueblood grabbed Rarity and used her as a living shield to keep the cake off of him. All Rarity could do was gasp as she was covered in frosting. As soon as he processed the action he saw, Azure stomped his left forehoof down. He wasn't sure if he cracked the floor or not, but with that last act, Blueblood had placed a large, flashing bulls-eye where his horn was, and Azure was gunning for it now, with absolutely no regard for what would happen afterward.

"How about now?!" Azure asked, literally already marching over to Blueblood. Silver quickly halted his advance.

"Azure, cool it! Let karma take care of things..."

Rarity had snapped; Azure had finally picked up on this as soon as he caught the look on her face. Azure stopped trying to pull away from Silver's grip.

"You, sir, are the most uncharming prince I have ever met!" Rarity snarled, stepping towards Blueblood who backed away in utter terror. "In fact, the only thing royal about you is that you are a royal pain!" Blueblood had been backed against the door by this point, and was practically shaking in his horseshoes.

"Stay back, I just had myself groomed!" He whined, holding his hooves up for protection, all the while acting like he didn't bring it upon himself.

"Afraid to get dirty?!" Rarity questioned before shaking herself violently. This got the frosting mostly unstuck from her dress, and most of it splattered all over Blueblood and the floor immediately in front of him. As Blueblood cried out in protest, Rarity turned her nose up to the prince and walked away. Though Azure didn't exactly like the final outcome (since Rarity didn't do what he was about to), he did like the buildup. Seeing Blueblood utterly frightened of the mare he'd no doubt been more or less shunning by virtue of his position in royalty was the highlight of the night so far.

"Now's my chance!"

This was Rainbow Dash saying something out loud to herself. Before Azure could even realize what had happened, a rainbow streak blasted past him and towards a statue he only just realized was falling. The pegasus managed to catch it on her back. At first, it seemed like the situation had resolved itself, but quickly, Rainbow Dash lost her balance, stumbling around with the large statue on her back.

"Pinkie...you just had to say the magic words..." Azure grumbled, getting ready to move. "Silver, we've got to get out of here..."

"Too late..." Silver couldn't see what was happening, but he pointed right to it like he could. Rainbow completely lost control of the statue and bumped into one of the cement support beams. This caused it to hit the one next to it, and the pillars began to fall in a domino effect, knocking over the remainder of the beams in a circle.

Azure watched the whole spectacle, blinking. The whole night had just gone from boring to bad to worse...and to make matters even more complicated, Twilight and Princess Celestia, no doubt having heard all the commotion, walked into the room. Instantly, Azure could only think of one thing as they surveyed all the damage.

Please don't blame me...please don't blame me...please don't blame me...

"Well...it can't get any worse," Twilight assessed the situation.

"It's about to..." Silver said clearly, having picked something up via his echolocation. Just then, the floor below began to rumble, like an earthquake was going off underfoot. The door to the garden banged open, and several animals began to flood inside, running from somepony. The smoke revealed...

"You...are going...to LOVE ME!!!" This was Fluttershy, of all ponies, having lost total control of her temper. Azure could only blink, not knowing what else to say at this.

"Okay..."

Azure whipped his head around, seeing Silver hiding behind him like he was scared of the pegasus gone haywire. "...What?" His question was more or less directed at the situation in general, but he still didn't get why Silver responded to Fluttershy's statement directed at the animals.

"What?" Silver cleared his throat, pretending like he hadn't just broken down over the issue. Azure was just about to ask what happened in the garden, but a loud whistle broke him from his thoughts. He and Twilight met eyes, but that was pretty much for an instant, so Azure couldn't tell if she blamed him at all for what happened. Twilight and the others began to run for the exit, past the sun princess. However, the crowd went into full panic mode, and Azure knew he and Silver wouldn't be able to reach the door without getting stampeded by ponies and squirrels.

"Silver, let's go!" Azure called out, tapping Silver on the shoulder. The two quickly made their way out the closest door before anypony could notice either of them and accuse them of doing something they had absolutely nothing to do with.
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Azure and Silver managed to escape the hall before anypony noticed them standing around amidst the chaos.

"And they were worried about me...!" Azure groaned, feeling almost hurt by the whole thing. "Anyway...Silver, what happened in the garden?"

Silver looked away, shaking his head, "She...Well, it looks like the night was a disappointment for most of us..."

Azure didn't know what Silver was getting at, but soon enough, he didn't care. From the corner of his eye, he spotted a pie-encrusted Blueblood walking along, trying and failing to be useful to even himself. A grin split Azure's face.

"Well, since the Gala's been wrecked for the night..." Azure began to take a few steps forward, fully intent on delivering his own brand of justice.

"Azure, I wouldn't do that if I were you..." Silver warned. "Besides which, I can hear a beehive somewhere around here..." Azure looked around, checking above his head for the beehive in question so he could avoid tromping under it. That alone got bees defensive.

"Where?" Azure asked.

"Over there...in what I'm guessing is a tree..." Silver motioned towards the tree, which so happened to be... "A tree that Blueblood happens to be standing next to....You know, it'd be amazingly unlucky if it fell..."

Azure looked over to Silver, almost confused.

"Well...I'm going to go find the others before they disappear on us..." Silver said, walking away from Azure. As soon as Silver disappeared around the corner, Azure's face became gleeful. He was about to get some revenge.

Azure looked around, finding a decent sized rock before too long. Blueblood continued to fidget about, trying to get the frosting off of him. Apparently, he was so spoiled he couldn't even shake the pastry from his fur. The fact he was covered in the stuff would make him a bee magnet, for sure. Azure closed one eye and stuck his tongue out, taking aim.

"I can not believe what that wicked witch did to me!" whined the prince as he continued to brush himself off ineffectively. Azure nearly bit his tongue out of anger, but that alone did not mess up his concentration and he made his magical throw count. The stone bounced perfectly on the beehive with enough force to knock it loose. And without anything holding it to the tree, the beehive fell, the hole at the bottom falling almost perfectly onto Blueblood's horn.

"What is the meaning--!" Blueblood called out, apparently not noticing Azure nearby. The loud buzzing of hundreds of angry bees soon made him realize exactly what it was on his horn. "No, no, not the bees!" He began to run, but he was no match for the speed of bees. As far as the bees knew, the spoiled prince had knocked their hive down, and they were making him pay by stinging him repeatedly, each sting giving off a rather satisfying yelp as Azure watched him attempt to flail his way away from the insects.

Blueblood had finally managed to elude the bees-due to pain-induced dizziness, Blueblood had managed to slip and fall into a fountain not too far from where the chase had started. The remaining bees that hadn't given up their lives in their valiant struggle to defend their now utterly soaked hive flew off, no doubt going to make a new hive elsewhere. Blueblood emerged from the water, moaning to himself, totally soaked and covered in red bumps from forehead to flank.

"Karma...it stings..." Azure mused.

He then walked away, now completely satisfied at what had happened. Deciding to split before ponies found out the real story, the colt quickly beat it out of there, hoping to find Silver and the others before they got too far.
-------------------------------------------------------
It wasn't that hard to figure out where the others were heading off to. Silver was able to remain behind and tell Azure they had headed to Donut Joe's, probably the least high-class establishment in Canterlot that Azure was aware of - in terms of food, anyway. The two were able to get away from the Gala while dodging some of the upper-class ponies. After a while, they just walked to the establishment.

"Did it work out the way you wanted?" Silver asked ambiguously.

"It went better than expected..." Azure replied with a smug smile. "At least he can say he got a free bath. Wonder if Rarity'll accept stings as a beauty treatment, though..."

"Nah, she's high class, but she also doesn't view other ponies as lowly creatures meant to serve her..." Silver responded.

"You know, Twilight and me got into an argument about this not too long after we all got our tickets..."

"That's not surprising..."

"Wonder if she still remembers what she said to me..." Azure said. "I believe she said 'You probably wouldn't last more than a half-hour before you get so restless you start bouncing off the walls and then deck royalty'..."

"She was half-right, you know," Silver pointed out, but Azure ignored it.

"Well, we're here," Azure peeked inside, seeing the girls with Spike at a table together. The girls all looked like they'd had to endure a majority of a stampede, and Rarity still had some pastry on her. Apparently, Spike had holed up here after everypony went their separate ways for the night. "That's why we didn't take the front door..."

"They scuffed up a little?" Silver asked, unable to see the details Azure could.

"Yeah, just don't tell them I told you or this'll be my last night ever..."

Azure opened up the door, and he and Silver passed inside. The bell signifying entry sounded off, just as Spike finished saying, "That sounds like the worst night ever!"

"It was!" said the others, laughing it off. At this moment, Twilight caught sight of Azure and Silver at the door.

"You two made it!" Twilight said, moving away. "Azure...what were you doing?"

"Just...taking care of a pest control problem..." Azure responded casually, walking towards the table, Silver following him.

"What?" Twilight asked.

"Nothing. Let's just say I was too late to stop somepony from getting harmed by said pest..." Azure responded, not putting any real emphasis on any of his words. If anypony was going to understand the double meaning of his statement, it was going to be whoever saw Blueblood's true nature...and how a beehive fell perfectly on his head.

"Um...okay," Twilight didn't understand what Azure was getting at, but she seemed happy that they were all there now, "I just hope that Princess Celestia isn't upset with us for ruining the Gala..."

"That was the best Grand Galloping Gala ever!"

All heads turned towards the door at the voice. Azure blinked.

"Princess Celestia?!" everypony shouted at once in surprise.

Oh man, tell me she didn't see what I did to her nephew... Azure thought to himself.

"Pardon me, Princess, but tonight was just awful..." Twilight responded after getting over the fact the princess had basically followed the whole group there.

"Oh, Twilight, the Grand Galloping Gala is always awful..."

Now that was a surprise. Then again, Azure had learned quick that the sun princess was full of them. She had walked in on him gloating about the fact Nightmare Moon returned and told him what he had actually done and had to do. So far, he'd done a good job of keeping that part of the "no harmony without courage" thing under wraps...but that was just the start.

"It is?" Twilight asked, apparently just as unaware as everypony else about the whole thing.

"That is why I was thrilled to have all of you attending tonight. I was hoping you could liven things up a bit..." Princess Celestia trailed off. Her gaze now focused almost directly on Azure. "Though...I had expected you, Azure, to have something to do with it."

Azure's first instinct was to bury his face in the table in response, earning a chuckle from the sun princess. Aside from Blueblood, he had kept that side of him under wraps...

"Eh, I didn't think the other ponies aside from us would have enjoyed some wall galloping..." Azure recovered easily enough. Besides, showing off is Rainbow's thing...

Azure wasn't sure if he imagined two pairs of eyes quietly burning into the back of his head as he said that.
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The group continued to enjoy the night even though it hadn't turned out as expected for most of them. For the time being, the girls just shared their stories with Azure and Silver, who hadn't been there to hear most of it. Even though it hadn't been as they planned, the lesson that Twilight took away from all of it was that she could laugh it off afterwards with friends.

Even so, Azure began to feel just a little guilty. Even though he wasn't at all the cause of the chaos that happened that night, he couldn't help but feel bad. Twilight never actually got to talk with her mentor about anything. Azure could see she was okay with that, but he felt like he could have done more for her than just wander aimlessly around the castle...

"Something on your mind, Azure?"

Azure's ears flicked up, and he turned to see Princess Celestia herself behind him specifically once more. Except this time he was pretty sure he wasn't thinking out loud this time. The others turned to look, and Azure could only look around the table with some nervousness at their faces. However, since the Princess had been able to sense his thoughts...

"Um... can I talk to you...in private?" Azure asked.

Princess Celestia raised a brow, but nodded with a smile as she got up from the table. She lead him away until both out of earshot.

"Is something wrong?" Celestia asked, her voice filled with only genuine concern.

"Kind of." Azure responded with a sigh, "I feel like this night was supposed to be special for Twilight. I thought that if I left her with you like she wanted and just did my best to stay out of trouble, then everything would be fine. Sure, she seems okay with it all now, but...I can't help but feel that I should do something so she doesn't remember this night ending with what happened in the dance room..."

Princess Celestia looked over to the table, where the others were still in a conversation about what happened. After some time, she looked back to Azure, "It's rare to see a colt or stallion go far out of his way to ensure the mare in his life is happy..."

Azure immediately blushed and began stammering. Somewhere deep down, he was sure he would have done the same thing if she had hinted about him having a crush on Twilight way back when he first talked to her personally.

"W-what do you mean...?"

The princess only giggled lightly in response to Azure's question, "Oh, nothing. Now then, did you have any ideas on how you would attempt to improve Twilight's night?"

Azure shook his head no, and took a deep breath, trying to think of what to do. He looked over to the table, and spotted something.

Rarity was standing up from the table. Azure wasn't sure what she was about to do, but she had helped him before.

"Rarity..." Azure whispered. When Rarity didn't seem to respond, he repeated, just a little louder, "Rarity!"

Rarity caught his voice the second time, and she immediately appeared confused when Azure motioned for her to get over there.

"Azure, what is it?" She was more confused than anything.

"I need your help with something..."
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Twilight turned over to where she knew Azure had gone, and found that he and Rarity were talking. She blinked, wondering what they were talking about. The others didn't seem to notice her concern too much, until Twilight noticed Rarity's blue eyes sparkle. Rarity clapped her hooves together just once. But that wasn't weird enough. The two then practically ran out of the shop together without saying so much as a word.

Please..not again...

"Are you okay, Twilight?" Princess Celestia asked of her.

"I...um..." Twilight stood up, fully prepared to chase them down. "Where'd Azure and Rarity go?"

"They had to take care of something," her mentor answered, "Do not worry. You will find out soon enough..."
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The phrase "do not worry" was not in Twilight's dictionary. She couldn't help but worry. The image of Rarity and Azure running out together did not leave her mind in the least. The Princess had told her a few times she didn't have to worry about it, but wouldn't say any more than that. Eventually, though, Princess Celestia had gotten up and informed them it was getting late. She offered the group to stay in the castle until the next morning, an offer that they could not refuse.

"Princess, I'm still sorry about the damages," Twilight said, still walking alongside Princess Celestia. The princess didn't even seem to care about it.

"I assure you, it's nothing to worry about," Princess Celestia once again said, "The damages aren't that bad..."

Twilight wasn't sure. She saw the destruction with her own eyes, and it looked like a mess. She could only imagine what kind of stuff the animals did to other rooms of the castle, but the dance hall was particularly bad off due to that statue accident.

"Listen," Celestia continued, almost as though reading her mind. "If you're still unsure, why not take another look?"

The two came to a total halt right in front of a door. Twilight immediately noticed it was the door to the dance room. She couldn't imagine what could have happened after everypony fled the scene.

"Well..." Twilight started, her horn lighting up its magenta hue as she opened the door. "Here goes nothing!"

She surveyed the room, and blinked several times as she processed everything. The room looked totally different now that the lighting in the room had changed. The light was focused solely on the dance floor, which the studious mare knew wasn't the case while the party was going on. The dance hall itself looked fixed up a little, but as soon as she saw who was waiting for her under the spotlight, she felt herself go numb from shock. Not once did she break contact from his eyes as she walked up to the smiling Azure Courage.

"A-Azure...what are you..." Twilight stopped just a few steps from Azure, too shocked to form statements as fluently as normal. "What's going on?"

"Sorry I ran off earlier, but I needed time to get everything ready..." Azure started, closing his eyes. "I was glad that I didn't do anything to embarrass you tonight, but I still felt bad that your night didn't turn out the way you wanted. And...well, I wanted to be able to fix it. I wanted to make this a night that you would never forget."

Music started, and Twilight felt confusion set in once again. Up until then, she had listened intently to Azure, but she looked around as the slow song started.

Two steps came from Azure's direction, and Twilight looked again to him. He had one hoof extended, and he spoke: five words, "May I have this dance?"

Twilight blinked harder than she ever thought she would in her life. In disbelief, she uttered, "B-but you said you wouldn't dance..."

"I know, but I'm willing to give it a try," Azure responded, as though it wasn't a big deal, "For you..."

Twilight blushed, and her jaw fell open against her will. However, she quickly recovered. With a smile, she took Azure's hand, and the two began to move, slowly waving side to side out of rhythm at first, but both quickly adjusting to the rhythm of the music.

"...You're really good at this..." Twilight said.

"I never said I couldn't dance, just that I didn't expect to..."

After this exchange, the two ponies remained completely silent. Soon, the rhythm was the only thing guiding them as they continued to move about. As the song continued, Twilight began to think to herself.

A-Azure...I'm glad we met up again...I don't care how wild you can get when the ponies you care about are in danger...But sometimes you get really, really carried away with it...

The song ended, both ponies ceasing to dance. The two remained close, opening their eyes as they looked intently into each other's eyes. This was a moment Twilight knew couldn't last forever--her scientific side wouldn't let her believe it too much. However, she did want it to.

She took a deep breath, and nuzzled her check against Azure's.

"Best...night...ever..."
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Silver and Fluttershy had once again broken off from the rest of the group upon arriving to Canterlot Castle once again. Neither one said anything as they walked, but it wasn't an awkward silence.

"Um...Silver?" Fluttershy spoke up, not paying any attention to where she was being lead to. "I'm sorry about how I acted earlier..."

Silver remembered quite well how Fluttershy got, but he wasn't about to remind himself of that. "It's okay, Fluttershy. I should be the one to apologize anyway. I shouldn't have left you like that...that's not something a colt should do..."

"It's not your fault...I promised we'd dance...and I completely forgot..."

The two went back and forth, apologizing to each other about what they themselves did wrong. Eventually, though, Silver came to a stop, cutting in front of Fluttershy, his blind eyes open wide, a smile on his face.

"Apologize all you want, but I'll never blame you...besides, I want to be at fault..."

Fluttershy looked up to Silver, intent on once again apologizing, but she stopped when she realized that the two had wound up back in the garden. The animals that were there before were gone now, no doubt hiding from her after what she had done earlier.

"So I can make it up to you..."

"W-why'd you bring me here?" Fluttershy asked, but Silver didn't answer right away. Instead, he sat down, his horn lighting up.

"You'll see, just listen..." Silver said softly. He focused, his eyes closing. The glow on his horn fluxed gently. Fluttershy was just about to ask what he was doing when she heard a sound. It was a noise, but it wasn't music. All the same, the noise sounded pleasant. Fluttershy felt nothing but bliss building up inside her the longer she listened to the noise. She closed her eyes, attempting to enjoy the music.

However, the sound of movement nearby startled her out of her trance. She turned, and saw, with increasing delight, that all the animals she had so thoroughly frightened earlier were coming out of hiding. They were moving cautiously toward the two, obviously afraid that Fluttershy would snap again.

"Silver...are you calling to them?" Fluttershy said in a tone that was barely above a whisper. Overhead, birds hovered inches above her. Slowly, gently she raised a hoof and to her amazement, the bird landed on it, as though earlier she hadn't chased it down like a timberwolf hungry for--

She saw the other animals were cautiously moving towards her and the source of the noise. The animals were further away from her than Silver; the animals closest to her were a few steps away. The animals flinched as she inched her way toward them, but as soon as she touched a few, very, very gently to show she really didn't mean any harm, they started to warm up to her.

"Animals react to sound, Fluttershy," Silver said, very quietly so as not to speak above the note he was playing. "Play a tone they find pleasant, and they won't be afraid..." Fluttershy looked over to Silver for a few seconds. He had pulled her back here to make sure that she could live her dream. He wasn't going to let the animals or the pony he knew get away again. Fluttershy slowly walked up to the unicorn as a smile spread across her face. Silver was so deep in focus he couldn't notice her.

Thank you...Silver...

Fluttershy did the same thing to Silver that she did to Azure when he made sure that she didn't have to doubt herself. She puckered up and planted a quick kiss on Silver's cheek. The sensation caused Silver to lose focus.

"I...I..." Silver's horn flickered and the spell wore off. The Canterlot animals quickly abandoned the two ponies and scurried off back to where they came. "I-I'm sorry, I'll just...redo the spell..."

Silver tried again, but Fluttershy stopped him with a hoof to the shoulder.

"No, you don't have to do that...I got to live my dream because of you..." Even if it was only for a moment... Fluttershy sat down next to Silver. "Now...it's your turn to live yours...Do you...still want to dance?"

At this point, Fluttershy was almost certain there wouldn't be music in the dance hall anymore, but if Silver would have provided with that sound, she felt she could dance to that. Silver finally seemed to get his focus back.

"Actually..." Silver began to blush. "I just want to spend some time with you, if that's okay..."

Fluttershy smiled again and leaned against Silver's shoulder, grateful that they were alone.

"It's very okay...Silver..."

Chapter 33: The Mysterious Door

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Chapter 33: The Mysterious Door
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It had been a long time since Azure Courage had been allowed to go this deep into meditation uninterrupted. In Canterlot, he very rarely got this deep due to the boisterous nature of the city. In Ponyville, most of the time, Pinkie or one of the others would interrupt him. However, it had been one of the rare days where he had managed to go so far into it that he was seeing the interior of his psyche.

For the most part, it was a quaint place. It was a gray hallway of sorts, full of doors, each representing a skill he had. His physical skill, his practical knowledge, his magic control...all of it behind each door. The floor had white mist in it up to his shoulders. However, as his age had increased and he became more capable of delving deep into his psyche, he had been able to go further and further down the hall.

However, it wasn't until the weeks before Nightmare Moon he had seen something at the end of the hall. It was a door just like any of the others barring two important exceptions: one, it was unlabeled. Or, rather, the label was obstructed by the second exception: It was heavily sealed up, every single type of lock upon it.

However, now that he looked upon it again, some of the restraints were gone, and Azure could now see a faint cerulean glow emanating around the edges of the tightly shut door. He didn't quite understand what he was looking at, even now.

"This door again..." he said to himself in the vast expanse, it echoing through the empty space. "What is it? It's been here since I came of age, but up until now, it was so sealed that I couldn't even move a single chain. Now...most of the chains have gone..."

He reached a hoof up towards the door, and tugged physically on the handle. It was no good. He tried to tug at the chains, but they didn't even budge.

"You are not ready yet..." a gentle, almost calming voice echoed throughout the space. Azure looked around, convinced he'd heard the voice somewhere before.

"Who's there?" Azure looked about, trying to find the source of the voice.

"One day you will be..." The voice abruptly changed in tone. It sounded commanding now, yet still highly familiar. "Now, rouse thyself posthaste, little pony!!"
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Azure Courage jolted awake, brought out of his deep meditation by the intensely loud yell. He panted loudly, unable to determine what had just happened inside his psyche. The unicorn looked around. He was definitely conscious now, back in his room on the bed. He looked around, sighing. It was one of his days off, and he had decided to meditate a bit before doing anything. He didn't know what time it was now, but he knew he had something else he needed to do before attempting to exercise.

"Well..." Azure got up off the bed. "Guessing I can try taking Twilight out to attempt some freegalloping. If she applies what she did with the Running in the Leaves well enough, she might just be able to get the hang of it before long..."

The cyan colt smiled to himself. "Besides...I do read sometimes, just not as much as her. She's probably up to her shoulders in books on the subject by now when I suggested it to her last week..."

He closed his eyes, remembering that dance at the Gala. It was certainly a night to remember. He hadn't even caused any mayhem, which even Princess Celestia thought he'd be up to, and the night was still spiced up in the end...even if the others didn't want it to. And after all that, he at least got to make Twilight's night. Probably Rarity's too, both with her helping him plan the moment out and of course, how she found out he got his revenge on Blueblood for her--though that was well after the Gala.

It had been a month since then. In about five weeks, Azure was about to celebrate his one-year anniversary in Ponyville--six weeks for Twilight.

"Oh, what am I doing thinking about all this..." Azure stated, "Celestia knows I'd better not keep a mare waiting..."

And without standing around anymore, Azure left his house.
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To say Twilight was nervous was an understatement. Today was going to be her first day attempting one of Azure's hobbies. Reading was simple, especially for her; Azure could probably read all day if he wasn't so busy doing physical activity. The mare, however, was not especially known for her physical talent--the only reason she didn't get outdone by Applejack and Rainbow Dash (and most of the other ponies) in the Running of the Leaves was because of three factors: one, they were more interested in attacking each other; two, she paced herself; three, she only knew to do it because she read a book.

However, when it came to Azure's pastime, Twilight Sparkle didn't know what to do. For one, she knew firsthoof it was a lot different from simply galloping. Second of all, and perhaps more important, she had tried to abstain from looking up anything about it. It wasn't that Azure had asked her to for the sake of finding out; he wouldn't have been surprised in the least to see she had looked things up, she knew that much. But...there was something she felt like she could learn from him other than a useful magic spell. Even before she realized how she felt for him, she couldn't help but secretly admire his use of the gravity spell to prevent himself from getting hurt if he needed to. Actually, that seemed like a useful application even without the freegalloping.

Twilight currently had a small saddlebag ready to go. It contained a book she had been reading for some time, and she'd figured she'd need it at some point. Even so, she wanted to have something to do if she couldn't get the hang of it straight away.

"Twilight, calm down," Spike advised, walking into the room, "You're even more nervous about this than your first date...c'mon, it's just bouncing off walls. Something you got on him about a lot before last winter? Why did you agree to this again?"

"Couples share in common interests all the time, Spike..." Twilight responded, "At least, that was what I read..." The unicorn's gaze quickly shifted towards the front, hoping to see Azure coming down the street. He always seemed to be able to calm her down whenever she was nervous. So far, he'd been doing a pretty good job of it.

"I was surprised he read that book..." Spike dryly commented.

"Don't you have somewhere to be, Spike?" Twilight asked. "Something about Rarity...and helping her out today?"

Twilight looked to her assistant, who had been asked to help Rarity. He was in the middle of preparing to leave when he cut into Twilight's introspection. The instant Twilight reminded him of what he said he'd do, however...the memory returned to him like a ton of bricks.

"Well, Twilight, I'll be going, good luck on your date!" Spike said about as fast as his mouth and lungs would allow him as he made a beeline for the door. The door shut behind him, leaving Twilight alone in the library. However, Azure had never been one to keep her waiting too long. No less than half a minute later, she saw Azure walking up the street, still just as happy as he was when he heard she was willing to try it for him.

Twilight practically teleported to the door--no, actually, she pretty much did without even thinking. She was a bit too nervous to believe that doing so was just a little unnecessary. As soon as she heard him just outside her door, she didn't even bother waiting, and opened the door for him. Azure looked up, his hoof raised as he was about to knock. However, the confusion on his face soon replaced itself with a smile.

"Hey, Twilight," Azure greeted, "Are you ready?"

"Well..." Twilight didn't know what to say to that. Usually she'd have studied so hard that--though she wasn't truly aware of it--the word of the book was gospel. However, given that she had done all in her power to abstain from doing that this time, she really didn't feel ready.

Azure's head tilted, but the smile didn't diminish too much, "What is it?"

"I don't know if I'm ready or not, but I want to try it..." Twilight said, looking away, feeling herself grow more and more nervous. She heard hooves clicking on the ground, and when she turned back, Azure was right there, "I mean, I'm ready...but I don't know where to start..."

"Didn't you look at a single book on this?" Azure questioned, his gaze suggesting surprise, same with his posture.

"I...didn't..." Twilight sheepishly admitted. "I thought...for once, I'd learn the same way you do..."

There was a silence. The studious mare felt herself swell with gratitude that they were the only ones in the library right then, especially so when Azure leaned in, a goofy smile on his face.

"Who are you and what have you done with Twilight Sparkle?" he asked, playfully nudging her with his shoulder. Twilight giggled slightly from the impact.

"I guess we should get going," she said. "I'm not sure how it's going to play out..." She levitated her saddlebag, and Azure tilted his head again.

"What's with the bag?" Azure asked. "You said you didn't read up on anything..."

"This is the book that kept me from reading up on freegalloping..." Twilight replied, securing the bag. "I'm going to be reading during our breaks."

"Oh, I get it..." Azure said, "You don't expect to get it straight away, do you? Well if you do what you did during the Running of the Leaves last fall, you'll do just fine..."

Twilight smiled, reassured somewhat by her coltfriend's somewhat comforting statement. She nuzzled just underneath his chin, making sure her horn didn't poke him. "At least you aren't afraid to show your sweet side, sweetie."

From the way Azure shifted uncomfortably against her, she didn't need to look to see he was blushing furiously...
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Azure knew exactly where he wanted to go, and Twilight followed him all the way, not really questioning it. It was a clearing not too far removed from Ponyville, plenty of solid surfaces for a beginner like Twilight to practice on, and nopony around to see her fail. It was a place he'd went to sometimes to meditate as well if he really wanted to escape Pinkie's nosiness. But even then, Pinkie somehow seemed to materialize right there if she really wanted to find him for whatever reason she needed him for.

"Well, this should be the spot..." Azure said. "Go ahead and set your saddlebag somewhere nearby, Twilight."

"Okay," Twilight responded, levitating the saddlebag up against a tree. She then looked up, wondering if there was a different way.

"Um..." Azure began.

"I really don't want to lose the book..." Twilight continued, levitating the saddlebag up onto a branch that looked sturdy enough. She then hung the bag off the branch. "Now if something tries to take it, we're going to hear it in time..."

"I...see," Azure blinked. "So is the book that good?"

"I couldn't put it down!"

Azure nodded, hearing Twilight's confirmation, "That good, then. Alright, now then, we're here because you want to give freegalloping a try..." Twilight sat down, waiting for him to start explaining it. Azure rubbed at his mane with a forehoof, unsure of how to proceed. It was something he'd taken for granted, and had practically learned by doing it. He was a pony that operated almost solely on instinct; Twilight was as far as from that as possible.

"Well...how to begin..." Azure started. He looked over to one of the trees, and began shifting the same forehoof against the ground. "Basically..."

Twilight gasped when Azure made his initial sprint, but he was sure she was relieved of that fear the instant he began to defy gravity for an instant. As he got into the groove of freegalloping, Azure began to feel at home, and the explanation began to flow from his mouth as he continued to do every trick that he could do in the clearing.

"It isn't that different from running at a basic level. However, you essentially see everything around you not as a barrier, but as an obstacle. You use your body and momentum to throw yourself around the environment. Sometimes I use magic to make it easier on me, but I usually don't need to unless I'm in pinch."

Twilight blinked. Azure remembered doing pretty much just that way back when they first met, helping Twilight out before going over the edge. He had managed to gain traction using his horn on the way down, and then managed to do a forward flip off the cliff edge, into the trees. From there, he merely pushed himself through the trees, managing to make it back to where the others were. Only Rainbow and Applejack had even understood what he'd done at the time.

"So that's how you managed to survive..." Twilight had just recalled Azure's survival herself. "You pretty much used the momentum to your advantage..."

"That's the gist," Azure smiled, glad he was able to take something as physical as what he did and put it in a way that Twilight would understand. "So do you think you can give it a go?"

Twilight stood up on all four legs, and very nervously lowered herself down. Azure felt like he knew the reason for her reluctance to take off, and sighed.

"Hey, don't worry, I'm not going to laugh if you fall," Azure said, "I'm not Rainbow..."

Once he said this, Twilight seemed to relax, but now she was looking up, probably afraid the pegasus was eavesdropping and waiting for the right moment to fly down and start laughing away. Now that Azure said it, he felt slightly nervous about it, too.

"Well, if she shows up, she does..." Twilight finally said, "Okay...I guess jumping off a tree was a good start."

The fact Twilight had not done much in the world of athletics was showing more than ever when she nervously gulped before sprinting toward the tree. Left forehoof, right forehoof, left back leg--

Twilight couldn't make it more than three steps on the tree before she slipped and fell over backwards, letting out a short gasp as she landed on her back. After taking a small moment to recover from this, the mare shakily got back to her feet. True to his word, Azure tried very hard to not laugh at her utter failure. He had somewhat seen it coming.

"Ohh..." Twilight groaned. "Okay...Guess that was a little too much..." She then began to think back to Azure's demonstration. She then turned around, and immediately took off towards another tree, this time making it to the point where she could get all four hooves on the tree. Her body, however, seemed to freeze up as she realized what she was doing, and she slid down the trunk while holding onto it.

"Making progress..." the mare observed, looking towards the sky. To her credit, Twilight didn't appear overly winded after two attempts at freegalloping. She seemed determined enough to at least keep trying, and Azure had to admire how she devoted herself to a task. Even one that had absolutely nothing to do with the study of friendsh--

Azure had to stop himself there. Had she learned a lesson like this before they started dating? He sort of lost track after the whole incident with the Pinkie Sense...

He returned his attention to Twilight just as the purple pony began to gallop up the side. Azure began to rear up, his forehooves hovering a scant few centimeters from the dirt, as Twilight managed to get on the tree even better than the first two times, and she managed to kick off the tree with her hooves. However...she misjudged the height. Twilight would have nailed the landing perfectly had she had maybe a few extra inches. However, the unicorn instead faceplanted, landing flat on her belly a split-second later. As the lavender mare tried to rise to her four hooves once more, however, she gave a sharp grunt.

"Twilight?" Azure asked tentatively as the mare struggled against the ground, grumbling and grunting all the while. Finally, she stopped moving.

"Azure, I..." Twilight almost fell back down, probably incredibly embarrassed at what had happened. "I'm stuck..."

Azure bit his lip, only slightly amused at the event. He was now having a harder time keeping control of himself, but he managed to erase the intent to laugh openly at Twilight's misfortune by the time he reached her.

To be fair, we had the cityscape to work with... Azure thought to himself. We usually just had the faceplant thing growing up...

He reassuringly nuzzled the middle of Twilight's back, which right now was at a diagonal slant as Twilight tried again to pull herself out.

"Alright, let me help you get unstuck..." Azure gently said, taking hold of Twilight's rear legs with his magic as she pushed up with her forehooves again. Though the unicorn was now doing a foreleg stand, with Azure floating her other end up, her horn slid out of the bit-sized hole in the ground where Twilight's horn had drilled in. With his marefriend safely back on the ground, the colt quickly walked up to her. Twilight was blushing heavily now, but seemed unharmed from her experience.

"Twilight, are you alright?" Azure asked.

"I'm fine," Twilight replied, looking away. "Just...really happy nopony was around to see that..."

Azure nodded, though both of the unicorns soon found themselves nervously checking the sky above for a rainbow trail or a moving cloud. When none were seen, the two sighed a little.

"So..." Azure said, "Do you think you want to take a break, or do you want to try again?"

Twilight looked toward the spot where her horn was stuck, and her face pinched into a sour scowl Azure found somewhat adorable right then.

"I think..." Twilight began, "I think I'll give it another go..."

"There we go..." Azure encouraged. "Just as determined as ever..."

He wasn't sure if he imagined the blush that coated Twilight's cheeks before she began to start up again.
---------
Rarity hadn't let the Diamond Dogs incident scare her away from her life's calling. She had learned to find gems when she was a filly and that was how she got her cutie mark; now, she used the gems for dressmaking. Spike was always willing to help her out when she needed it as well. Deep down, the mare was vaguely aware the young dragon had feelings for her; strong ones at that. However, she was indecisive on letting him know. She had no idea how dragons aged, and Spike was probably around her sister's age too. However, for the moment, the white unicorn felt she had no choice but to cast it aside. The longer she spent fretting about it, the less would get done.

For the past couple of hours, the two had continued their gem searches unabated. Spike had just unearthed another set of gems when suddenly, he stopped, putting a fist over his mouth, "Hold on a sec...Rari--"

He couldn't finish his sentence properly, for the dragon suddenly belched up green fire, which began to form into a rolled-up piece of parchment. Rarity knew almost immediately that it was a letter from Princess Celestia, but what could it be? Certainly not an official apology from Blueblood...

"Sorry," Spike blushed, causing Rarity to smile. However, as soon as Spike's attention returned to the scroll, he gasped, "Uh-oh..."

Rarity frowned, "What is it, Spike?"

"This is an urgent one..." Spike responded, unrolling the parchment. "Oh, oh...that's not good...that's really not good..." One clawed hand went to the drake's head as he began to panic.

"Spike, what is it?"

Spike took a deep breath, trying to compose himself. It appeared to work: some of his former composure returned, and he began to read the letter aloud.

Gems were soon the least of Rarity's worries...
---------
"Alright, Twilight!" Azure began to give his applause. Though Twilight still wasn't even close to being as good as him, the mare had made an impressive leap in her skill at freegalloping. At the very least, she wasn't bound to get her horn stuck in the ground anytime soon. The two had spent the majority of time polishing Twilight's skill at freegalloping. While it was extremely limited, even now, Twilight had to only take one rest break. During that break, the two had laid next to each other, right there, in the clearing. Twilight had nuzzled against Azure while she continued to read her book.

After she got to a certain part, on the book, she suddenly shut the book. Azure could tell from the look on her face that the book had given her some kind of drive to finish what she had started. After a few more accidents in her attempts to simply bound off the tree, she began to get progress in. Azure ran after her as she began to jump off the tree trunks, impressively only stumbling a few times as she continued through the trees.

At a certain point, Twilight's hoof slipped on the bark of a tree, and it seemed like she'd fall flat on her belly. However, Azure managed to get himself underneath her, and break her fall with his body.

"Ungh..." Azure groaned as the mare landed on his back.

"Azure!" Twilight said, getting off him almost immediately, "You okay?"

"Yeah, don't worry," Azure replied, getting to his hooves. "Gosh, Twilight, even if it's not magic, you still manage to learn fast!"

"Oh, come on...it can't be as fast as you learned it..." Twilight looked away, blushing a little.

"I'm being serious..." Azure said, "What about the book inspired you to keep trying?"

"What?" Twilight questioned.

"Honestly, you could have spent the rest of the time reading and I wouldn't have minded," Azure elaborated, "But you stood up...with a very determined look on your face, no less, and began trying again."

"Oh, well..." The mare said, "The main character, Fire Hoof, had fallen into a rut since..."

"Hey, hey, don't spoil it," Azure waved, "I might just pick it up later..."

Twilight blinked, as though she'd forgotten the fact he did read.

"You mean in the winter?" Twilight asked, "I'll hold you to it...anyway, the point is, he was down on his luck, but he managed to gain inspiration from thinking of what she felt was the most important. She got her spark back, and..."

Both unicorns halted, their ears flicking up. Azure immediately tensed up, and Twilight did as well.

"Did you hear that, Twilight?" Azure asked, gritting his teeth. The last time something was heard out of nowhere...

"Yeah..." Twilight responded. "I think we'd better head back into town..."

Azure nodded. The two made their way back to the clearing where they started. While Twilight's saddlebag and book were undisturbed, Azure found himself feeling uneasy. An unsettling feeling began to pervade into his mind, and he grit his teeth, trying to focus on the surrounding sounds.

"Well, my things weren't messed with..." Twilight said uneasily, taking note of Azure's face, "What is it?"

"We'd better head back..." Azure responded. "I...don't like the feel of this..."

The two started for Ponyville, no longer feeling safe in the forest. The two looked around, trying to see if anything was out of the ordinary. However, neither one could see anything. As the two drew close to Ponyville, however, Azure's ears flicked straight up, and he whirled around. An unidentifiable object bum-rushed him. The cyan colt was caught off guard, and was tackled to the ground by it.

"Azure!" Twilight called out in worry, gritting her teeth.

"Twilight..." Azure strained, pinned under the pony's--he could tell from the sensation of hooves pressing into his chest that it was a pony, and judging from the dark cloak the pony wore, it was probably one that was up to no good. The pony seemed to be folding its wings back, and Azure couldn't get a good look; the cloak was furled tightly over them. "Get back to the library..."

"I can't leave you like this, Azure!" Twilight called out, already preparing a spell.

"Don't bother," the pony under the cloak hissed, "Ponyville won't be a safe place to be very soon..."

"What?!" Azure's eyes opened widely, and began to glow. He felt the sensation of having more power than he had normally-a sensation he'd had when Tagane wasn't negating his magic-once more, but did not link it to anything other than a surge of magic that happened whenever his friends were threatened. The power seemed to surge through his body, and with all his strength he managed to toss the pony off him. "What do you mean?!"

The cloaked pony got back to his hooves, an unreadable curl to his mouth as he did so.

Twilight's ears flicked, and the cloaked pony sneered underneath his hood. "Looks like Shade's still able to assist a little..."

"Assist with what?!" Azure demanded. Twilight gave a sharp gasp, and Azure looked back over to her. Along the ground, scurrying towards them, was a plethora of Shadow Ghouls. Some of them were the usual color. However, a majority of them looked slightly tougher than before, and were black and white in color as opposed to the dark bluish scheme the original ghouls had.

"More of them?!" Twilight gasped as the shock wore off. "What's going on?!"

"Boss said there wasn't a real need to keep quiet anymore," the pony sneered, and he put a hoof to his cloak. A few moments later, the pony's cloak was taken off, revealing that the pony was wearing a set of shades...and something very apparent about the pony's species. Both of the unicorns could quite plainly see a pair of bat wings at the dark gray pony's sides that stood out more than his short navy blue tail and mohawk.

"You're...a batpony?" asked Twilight in surprise.

"That's not all," Azure responded. He had seen this kind of horrific modification to a pony once before; the shock was not nearly as great as it was then, "The same as the pony with the Null Magic...A jewel in his chest..."

"Correct..." said the batpony, sneering. "I don't like it when the boss sends me out into the fray in broad daylight, but at the moment we're shorthooved..."

"You have a boss?" Azure questioned, feeling a surge of anger come on, "What kind of pony is he?"

The batpony sneered, his fanged teeth showing, "A visionary..."

Azure was grateful he hadn't eaten much so far that day. He might have thrown up. A pony that wanted to kidnap others, a visionary? It was a laughable prospect to say the least.

"Twilight, get into town and warn the others, quick!" Azure barked, preparing to fight. "I'll take this pony on!"

"But--" Twilight tried again, looking back to the ghouls.

"The other ponies in town will be in danger, not just our friends, Twilight! Just go! Get the others ready!" Azure called out.
-------------
Twilight's heart was beating, as it often did whenever Azure put himself in harm's way. Before he even wormed his way into her heart, she had always found herself worried about him. Now, however, he was about to fight a batpony with an unknown magical modification, apparently commanded by somepony else. However, she relented.

"A-alright, but I'm not going to leave you here for long!"

Azure charged the batpony, but Twilight didn't see who struck the first blow, having teleported herself into town to warn the other ponies and her friends...

Chapter 34: No Longer Hustle & Bustle

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Chapter 34: No Longer Hustle & Bustle
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It was something unprecedented in Canterlot history (at least the last one thousand years, anyway), purely because nopony thought any living creature would be stupid enough to set foot in Canterlot to declare an attack of any sort, let alone one of this magnitude. However, that is exactly what happened that day. Most of the civilians felt themselves too unsuited for battle, so they fled into their homes. There were the odd exceptions, but not one so odd as the blue pony with a white mane and tail hopping from building to building.

"I haven't felt objects like this since...!" Silver grumbled, blasting away two Shadow Ghouls with a compressed soundwave as he began to fight his way through the city streets. "The ruined picnic..."

The blind pony gritted his teeth as that memory resurfaced. He'd "seen" the Shadow Ghouls before, but they weren't so tough as this. Before, it took one clean hit to defeat them; now, it took at least two to put them down for good. It was one of the few times Silver Espada could honestly say there was no substitute for eyesight; maybe then he'd be able to see subtle differences.

Silver launched another compressed sound wave into a crowd, making his way for the castle.

"Gonna go meet Virid and Blitz...even if Twilight's brother makes me go home. He's gotta know I'm not gonna sit around doing nothing!" the unicorn said, continuing to jump around.
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The unexpected invasion by the Shadow Ghouls was bad enough, but they seemed to be uninterested in causing havoc just anywhere in the city. They seemed to constrain the majority of it to within a few miles of the castle. It didn't make a lot of sense to Virid, but that was what he was getting out of all of it. He hadn't seen a sea of summons like this in his life, nor had he even heard of them. He and Crimson remained close to the castle, fighting off the various summons with help from their captain, and the other guards. Though Virid was pretty sure the princesses could do something, it wasn't his position to tell them to help.

The Royal Guards' duty was to make sure no harm came to the princesses. No matter what conspiracy theorists tried to assert, it was the way it had to be. Try as he might, Virid never understood why some ponies thought that of the princesses (mainly Princess Celestia considering Luna had only been back for a year). To him, it was clear all they could do was--

"Virid, could use a little help over here!" Crimson called out. Virid's head turned, seeing Crimson jumping away from a small group of black Shadow Ghouls. The green pony let out a sharp yell, letting out a perfectly calculated stream of amber laser blasts. The small flock was reduced to black smoke by the attacks.

"Sorry about that Crimson. Just got lost in my thoughts..." Virid nodded, waving off the incident. The two had a small problem-though they had lead a small platoon, due to the absolutely random nature of the attack, the two had managed to get seperated from them and were now fighting back to back against shadow creature after shadow creature. Even being outnumbered, they held fast to their duty: the Shadow Ghouls would not be allowed to get to the castle, no matter what.

"I don't understand," Crimson grunted, using his magic to leap into the air and crush the head of one of the creatures. "Why attack here, in broad daylight?"

"Remember, they attacked Azure and his friends in broad daylight, too!" Virid said, coolly firing laser after laser at the ghouls. He paused to rest as Crimson began to pick up where they left it. "As for why...my guess is they want their guy back, either to get him back or to silence him! Remember, he probably knows a lot of important stuff! He hasn't talked, though!"

Virid's eye trailed to the side as he caught sight of the Shadow Ghoul. Quickly, Virid leapt up, avoiding the hit, while charging a pressure wave in his forehooves. The unicorn brought them down first as he began to fall, taking out the ghoul. The green unicorn smirked, satisified with his handiwork.

"Gloat later, Virid!"

Crimson's shout alerted Virid to another Shadow Ghoul, too close for Virid to react. However, he didn't have to worry too much. A purple blur filled his vision, and the next, the ghoul had been sent flying. A quick laser attack from Crimson swiftly finished off the vile creature.

"Always got my back, Crimson, I feel the need to gloat..."

"Be serious, Virid...We're getting swarmed here. Got any ideas to lay out this small platoon?" Blitz asked. Virid looked around, still smirking only a little.

"Very well..." Time seemed to slow down around Virid as he began to strategize everything. Ghouls seemed to be coming out of every conceivable crevice possible, and only a few of them were the black and blue color mentioned to him before. The rest were the same charcoal hue, and all of them were pretty strong for what they were. If they were going to stall the process, they had to do something big.

Virid noticed they were the only ponies in the area, and he noticed something in the environment that could prove useful. It was a bit risky, and the paperwork'd be a pain in the flank later, but the pony didn't see any other way.

"Crimson, follow my lead!" Virid called out, immediately making a beeline towards one of the walls to a building. Crimson merely followed, both taking down any Shadow Ghouls in their immediate path. One of them was blasted away while another received a kick in the thorax for its efforts. The two continued their freegalloping until they'd made it to the roof of the building. The Shadow Ghouls were below and getting ready to climb. A couple had taken to the sky.

"Now what?" Crimson asked, firing at the flying ghouls.

"This!"

Virid let out a charged laser shot. At the very first instant, Crimson thought Virid wasn't even trying. It wasn't until after the shot flew through the air that he realized the green unicorn's plan. It was a straight shot, and hit its mark: the steel beams supporting a large watertower. The supports were sheared with little effort on the part of the spell, and the water tower began to creak.

"Timber!" Virid called out as the tank fell. The tank hit the ground, crushing an uncountable amount of the ghouls before it burst open, drenching the remainder of the ghouls on the ground. The water didn't go underground due to the cobblestone roads, so it just hung there at the feet of the ghouls. The ghouls hissed in confusion and anger as they became soaked up to their knees.

"Alright, Crimson, you know what to do..." Virid observed.

"Okay then..." Crimson knew what he had to do, his horn already crackling with the spell he had while Virid took over blasting the flying ghouls out of the sky. The unicorn's horn was not glowing purple as usual; the glow was more erratic and sparking a light purple color. Blitz let out an electrical surge from his horn, straight into the water.

Water conducted electricity; the base of Virid's plan. With all the ghouls below soaked, they were all hit by the electric current and were damaged enough to burst into black and bluish smoke. There were a few climbing up the side of the building after them, and some were still in the air, but the two had cut down on their workload.

"That's how it's done..." Virid smirked, blasting another ghoul away. The two continued to pick off the stragglers using their own innate talents, Virid sticking to magic and Blitz relying more on physical blows than magic. Three more flew towards the duo, and Virid caught them, aiming to blast them himself. However, before he could do anything, an odd, buzzing sound resounded nearby, and the ghouls vibrated violently, stunned long enough for some dark blue lasers to finish them off.

Virid and Blitz turned, spotting Silver on a nearby rooftop. Already he was leaping across, heading towards them.

"Silver..." Blitz observed, "Should have known you wouldn't stay inside..."

"Not on your life, Blitz," Silver responded. "I'm not going to sit around and do nothing while they're at it again..."

"Silver, as a Royal Guard, I must inform you that we are responsible for your safety just as much as we are the princesses' safety," Virid advised, now sounding as though he were reciting the code. "Any harm you take will reflect badly on me..."

Silver inhaled as though he were ready to say something, but a look from Blitz caused him to think better of it. The message reflected in the pony's movement pattern was clear: "Remember Twilight's brother?"

"I understand, Virid, don't worry. I'm not out to get myself hurt." Silver assured.

"Textbook response," said a voice, "But c'mon, I already know you and Azure don't care how bad you get hurt..."

All heads on the roof turned towards the door on the roof, which was now wide open. All three of the ponies recognized the pony there.

"C-Captain!" Virid stuttered, all traces of a smirk vanishing from his face. "About that water tower..."

"Don't worry about it, Virid," Shining waved his hoof dismissively, but he did not remove his helm all the while. "Yeah, paperwork's not gonna be easy on that one, but after a day like this, I don't think anypony's going to mind a missing water tower..."

"This is Canterlot, you know..." Silver interjected, "Hub of stuck-up ponies..."

"Silver!" Virid called out, seemingly aghast, "Watch your mouth!"

"At ease, Virid...there's no time to be fighting amongst ourselves." Shining walked to the edge of the roof. "Even with that entire platoon taken out, they're still spawning everywhere non-stop. If we want to put a stop to them, we've got to find the pony that's summoning them..."

It's gotta be that "Shade"... Silver remembered how powerful the unicorn was. Probably got himself a new jewel after the one I cracked...Well, wouldn't mind taking another crack at him, that's for sur--

"You're gonna be a little delayed!"

Shining looked down over the roof, and was made to regret it instantly. Something orange--a forehoof--caught him right under the chin and caused him to recoil back. However, he was quickly able to recover, without too much delay.

"Captain Shining Armor!" Virid called out, practically teleporting to his captain's aid. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Shining rubbed his chin twice, "What hit me?"

"That was me..." The voice came from above. All eyes--including the blank eyes of Silver--trailed upward. Those that could see saw an orange pegasus pony staring down at them, hovering casually above them, all confidence. The pegasus's mane and tail were jet black, same as his cloak. His eyes were odd: his left eye was blue while his right was a light orange color. They didn't know his special talent, but they could plainly see he was the same as the other cloaked ponies.

"What are you ponies?" Crimson asked, "And what do you want with this city?"

"None of your concern, I'm afraid," said the pegasus. "Here, I'll cut you a deal. If you can manage to catch me, I'll tell you everything you want..." The orange pony quickly began to touch down, mere feet from the unicorns. None of them knew what his game was. Was he grossly overconfident, or was he another surgically modified pony?

"We took your friend down...We can take you down, too." Virid asserted as he stepped forward.

"Friend? Oh. Tagane. Thought for sure you guys had killed him." The pegasus chuckled, "That might be impressive, considering you're unicorns and all, but I'll let you in on a secret..."

His body seemed to melt into the ground, or rather, a hole in the ground, glowing dark blue. The blue hole closed as quickly as it appeared.

"Silver, can you see him?" Virid asked.

"I can't get a reading," Silver responded, forgoing the obvious joke in favor of the bigger problem.

Virid's ears pricked up as he registered a sound. The Pegasus was now coming out of a red hole in thin air next to him. Time seemed to slow down for the green unicorn, but there was no way he could come up with a counterattack. Caught off-guard, Virid was struck in the face, and sent stumbling backward. His helm did take some of the force, but he definitely was gonna have to get that dent out later.

"I'm a whole different game from Tagane...he'd never beaten me once!" the pony boasted as he vanished once more into the ground without a trace.

Virid managed to get control of himself, and looked around.

"Silver--"

"I'm pushing it as hard as I can, but I can't 'see' him!" Silver cut off Crimson.

"Stay sharp," Shining said, looking around, "We don't know where he might attack next!"

"He's right, you know..."

Silver found himself lifted from his feet by a powerful back kick to the ribs.

"Darn it...!" The blind unicorn gasped, managing to get control of himself with a little application of freegalloping. This time, he managed to get both forehooves on the ground, and as soon as he was facing the pegasus, he let out a compressed sound wave from his horn. The invisible attack soared at the mysterious orange pegasus, but the Pegasus merely vanished into the floor to avoid it.

"He did it again!" Crimson shouted. "How's he doing this?! Is he like the other one?"

"Heh, almost got me that time..." The pegasus ignored Crimson's question as he reappeared. "But, you'll need to be a lot faster than that to land a hit on me..."

The pegasus dropped his guard, closing his eyes and putting a hoof over the center of his chest. Crimson's horn lit up purple.

"You mean like this?!"

Crimson blurred, a purple smudge against the background as he rushed the orange pony. There was no way he could have avoided it, and he was sent stumbling backwards by a shoulder tackle to the chest.

"Crimson, move it!" Virid shot a laser to the pony, aiming to deal more damage. Crimson quickly blurred out of the way, allowing the laser to continue. All the while, the pony's head remained lowered; however, if one were close enough, they could see the grimace change to a smirk. The pony's chest seemed to glow, and the next, a hole materialized into the air in front of him as he waved his hoof. It had a dark blue outer ring, and the laser entered the hole, passing inside as it closed behind him.

"What?!" Virid's jaw dropped.

"Alright, so you managed to hit me..." the pegasus said, recovering from the tackle and sarcastically applauding their efforts. "Now, you get your prize!" This time, he waved his other forehoof. Off to Virid's side, another red hole with a dark swirl within opened, and out of it came the laser Virid shot...now weaponized against the pony who fired it.

"Look out!" Shining's horn lit up, and Virid saw a light purple glow glide in front of him, halting the attack before vanishing without a trace. The pony was not too surprised; his captain was, after all, a pro at shields, as indicated by his cutie mark.

"Thank you, Captain..."

"Thank me later. Right now, we need to keep our eyes open..." Shining said, walking forward, glaring at the pegasus pony. The pony shrugged nonchalantly, cracking his neck a bit as he continued.

"Guess you know what my secret weapon is..." The pony said, "Portals..."

"Yeah. Doesn't mean you're invincible," Silver said. "We'll find a way to beat you..."

The orange pegasus looked around as the ponies surrounded him at the 12, 3, 6, and 9-o'clock positions. He smirked.

"If you can, go for it. I've got all the time in the world..."
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Canterlot's statue garden. A place where statues of ponies who had been exemplary in life were immortalized for their virtues. The only exception was the singing statue Princess Celestia took Virid and Blitz to see. Even here, ponies were ambushed and forced to fight or flee from the Shadow Ghouls. The statue of Discord sang to the heavens in its still image, not even phased by the ongoing chaos.

At least, that was what it appeared to the average bystander. Nopony could see it, but there was a very faint, almost non-existent, glow beneath the stone surface in some places. And in some of these faintly glowing places, hairline fissures were beginning to form.
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Princess Celestia was beginning to piece together the motives of these ponies. Though she wanted to help her subjects, her sister was stil somewhat recovering after being purified. Her sister wasn't exactly in the best of shape to fight for too long, for a variety of reasons. Luna wanted to help, but Celestia had to deny her the right.

However, the centuries-standing ruler knew what those cloaked ponies and ghouls were here for.

"Sister, why are these upstarts attacking here?" Luna's vernacular had improved somewhat since her return from the moon, but she still slipped into Old Canterlot mannerisms very easily.

"Luna..." Celestia began, "Do you remember back when we fought Discord, all those years ago?"

"How could I forget..." Luna said, a hint of sorrow in her tone. "Because of what happened during all that..."

"I know..." Celestia said. "It left long-lasting scars on us...But...do you remember the cloaked pony that took that item we made against Discord so long ago?"

Luna looked up, "I recall that, yes...Is he not still in the dungeon? Is he not their target?"

"If that were the case, we wouldn't have a choice but to fight..." Celestia observed.

The solar princess watched her lunar sister begin to piece things together on her own. Eventually, though, a light glided across her eyes.

"No..."

Celestia glanced again towards the statue garden. If the point of the attack wasn't to do anything in particular other than stir the pot...that would hasten the time limit on that encasement...

And an old foe would face a new generation...

And there was nothing she or her sister could do, even after all these years, to help them...

Chapter 35: The Ponyville Push

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Chapter 35: The Ponyville Push
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At the edge of the Everfree, as Ponyville began to come under siege, two ponies: a cyan unicorn and a dark gray batpony, did battle. The unicorn's eyes were more luminous than normal, twin pools of burning cyan light. The batpony had remained ground-bound, using his wings as leverage.

Azure tried for a left hook, but was parried by his opponent's own hoof and took a blow to the chest. He was able to give a blow of his own in return. Azure's horn flared, and he channeled magic into his hoof for a power punch, only to have his opponent jump back into the air, wings flapping.

Azure's hoof slammed downward, leaving a small impact crater in the ground where the batpony had just been. Azure quickly regained his balance, and looked up.

"You aren't safe up there, you know..." Azure said, his horn lighting up as he channeled magic into it. "Ha!"

The pony let loose a few laser blasts, but found himself surprised when the batpony's wings began to glow and flap rapidly. A blast of cold wind caught the laser blasts, redirecting them back at Azure. Azure grunted, leaping backwards as the lasers impacted where he was standing.

"I'm guessing from Tagane you already knew as much as the stuff we do for our cause...' said the batpony, sneering down at Azure. "In my case..."

The batpony's wings glowed again, and what looked like fine powder--snow, perhaps--came from the gust that followed. Azure grit his teeth as he crouched down and moved slightly to the left. He felt a pain on the left side of his face, a burning pain like frostbite and a superifical cut combined. Instinctively, the unicorn put his forehoof to the side of his face, and saw a very small blood trail; the attack had opened a small cut on the side of his face.

"It's the power over not just wind...but a cold, icy wind. Long as I'm around, you could say he's got a second wind...One that blows in the night."

"You can say that again," Azure snapped, his horn lighting up as he leapt up to the hovering batpony, once more abusing the gravity spell as he reached out with a forehoof.
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Within about a minute of her leaving Azure to his fight, Twilight could only try to fight off the encroaching Shadow Ghouls as they advanced on her--due to a rare malfunction of her teleporation spell, she had only managed to teleport herself maybe a few hundred yards ahead of the summons. They seemed more interested in just attacking anypony, though--it was an all-out attack, and the purple mare could only guess who the intended target was. Instinctively, Twilight's first trip had been to Fluttershy, if only to get her to safety. As Fluttershy ran for her life, Twilight distracted herself against the Shadow Ghouls.

"Whoever's behind all this is a monster, through and through," said Twilight cynically as she blasted another one of the darker Shadow Ghouls, causing it to dissipate. Fluttershy, meanwhile, did her best to keep away from the monsters. The meek mare had been doing a good job of running, but it wasn't entirely due to her being the best hider.

"T-T-T-Twilight," she practically whispered.

"What?" Twilight asked, trying to move closer while fending off all attackers she could see.

"Don't you think i-it's...s-strange?" Fluttershy asked.

"Of course I do," Twilight responded, immediately leaping to a conclusion, "They're attacking in broad daylight...and they're attacking the town too! If we don't stop them--"

"N-not that!" Fluttershy seemed to force herself to speak louder. "I-I mean, last time, they...they...knew what they were hunting for. But now...they're just out to tear into...everything..."

Twilight had to consider Fluttershy's statement now as it came to her. It was true. Before, from what she understood about the three previous attacks, they were the target; there was no doubt about that. However, this time, it just seemed like they didn't really care if they got them or not.

Though a good few would not mind claiming a prize, as Twilight soon found out. As she considered her friend's statement, she had dropped her guard, and a couple of Shadow Ghouls leapt at her.

"Twilight!" Fluttershy called out. Twilight turned, and gasped when she saw the onrushing mosnters and braced herself. However, there was no need for her to worry. A rainbow blur surged in from her left, and tackled the two into the ground, destroying them.

"Rainbow...!" Twilight gasped, somewhat relieved to see the save.

"Hey, what are friends for?" Rainbow asked, "Besides, Az wouldn't let me hear the end of it if something happened to you..."

If the situation wasn't so serious, Twilight would have blushed for slightly longer than a couple of seconds. However, her focus shifted back to the situation at hand. "I was going around town to make sure everypony was okay...Fluttershy hasn't been hurt yet..."

"Well, you don't gotta worry about me--" Rainbow was promptly accosted by a few flying ghouls; a few quick strikes made short work of them, "It's under control..."

Twilight continued to fight the others off, "Azure's fighting off another pony..."

"Is it that unicorn from the last time?" asked the hovering pegasus as she plowed into another one, using it as a battering ram to clear a path, "I owe him a beating after what he put us through!"

"No...it's a batpony..." Twilight asserted. "He told me to get going, warn everypony, while he stood up to the others...I just wasn't quick enough to get into the town..."

"That does sound like him," Rainbow sighed, "Always telling us to butt out whenever he starts fighting..."

Fluttershy had remained quiet up until now, "Doesn't Azure need help with those ponies?"

"He can take care of himself in that kind of situation," Twilight said, not in the mood to be anything but blunt.

"But--last time, didn't he have trouble...?" Fluttershy asked.

Rainbow's brow furrowed. "Come to think of it, it was only because of his cousins and me that he had been able to take down the earth pony who had you, Twilight, right?"

Twilight forced herself to remember as another ghoul fell to her laser spell. That was true, but hadn't Azure gotten stronger since then, even with all the distractions he'd probably had to put up with? She knew firsthoof he had an unstoppable drive to protect those he cared for, often times taking extreme measures to make sure he could.

"...That's right," Twilight said, gritting her teeth. "Warning the townsponies isn't exactly necessary now..."

With that in mind, the purple unicorn quickly decided on her course of action, "Alright...Rainbow, think you can protect Fluttershy until the attack dies down?"

"What are you gonna do?" Rainbow asked, having just finished disposing of yet another summon.

"I'm gonna see if I can get any of the others to come with me to help Azure," Twilight said, "Fluttershy, I'm sorry to say it, but..."

"I know," Fluttershy responded simply, "I just hope this is all over soon." Her pacifist nature hadn't given way; even under this duress, so Twilight didn't feel as though her friend had taken offense to the blunt assessment of her usefulness here.

"Alright," Rainbow sighed, no doubt sulking internally that she couldn't be a part of the action this time. "I ain't gonna leave you to it forever, though!"

Fluttershy gave a disturbed "meep" in response. Twilight soon began to leap about, unconsciously taking into account some of the freegalloping she had just learned to do again. Watching her go, Rainbow paused, completely stunned.

"...Now since when could she do that?!"
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Rarity and Spike never made it to Ponyville; they didn't even know where Twilight and Azure were, or if they were still okay. Within a few hundred yards of the city limits, they were cut off by several summons. Left with no choice, both pony and baby dragon decided to fight their way through the enemies, hoping to make it to Ponyville in one piece.

Like the last time she fought, the unicorn mare had taken to whatever blunt object she could find to use with her levitation spell. Each time one of the shadow ghouls came close enough, she would smash them to the ground. For his part, Spike surprisingly attempted to make a stand this time around, using claws whenever possible.

"Can't believe they're trying this again!" Spike quipped, managing to claw his way through a weakened blue ghoul. "Really, after last time you'd think he'd have learned not to mess with us!"

Rarity was too concerned with a completely different matter to address him. "It's not that they're attacking us again that worries me, Spike...What worries me is why they would attack Canterlot?"

Both quickly looked up towards the sky. In the far-off distance, they could see Canterlot. The amount of ghouls flying about up there was almost tangible; even though they couldn't see them as much more than specks, it was obvious what they were, given what they knew. However, neither one could really worry. There were hundreds of Royal Guards up there; they could definitely handle the situation.

"Nonetheless, we should not worry about it," Rarity said, "We must continue to Ponyville and make sure our friends are safe..." It wasn't too hard to be reminded they were still very much in the midst of their own crisis. Ponyville was likely under attack now, but they didn't know that. Rarity quickly grabbed Spike and put him on her back. It was rather easy to abandon the actual outing when you had more important news to deliver. She was trying to gallop her way back to town, going fast enough to satisfy her need; slow enough to where she could accurately make it back.

Snap!

Rarity skidded to a halt, the sound echoing around her. She knew that wasn't her, and Spike was on her back. Both dragon and pony looked around. Trees and shrubs filled their vision, but as soon as rustling sounded nearby, Rarity's ears pricked up and she turned to it. The bushes on her left, just behind her, were moving. The tension began to build.

Just back away, Rarity...slowly... she thought to herself, taking small steps back from the bush, never taking her eyes off it. Each step was therapuetic, but it could not last. The growl came from the bush, and the head of a beast she had seen before--very wolflike and bluish in color, came forth. Rarity froze, unable to properly contain her fear as the wolfish creature charged.

"Hey, get away!"

Before Rarity could force herself to move, Spike leapt off her back, claws ready, and dug them deep into the creature's face. It hissed in agony, and began thrashing about trying to shake off the dragon. Rarity couldn't believe it, but she supposed she shouldn't have been surprised.

The dragon was hardly opaque when it came to certain matters.

Spike eventually lost his grip, despite his best efforts, and was flung off into a tree. Dazed from the impact, there was no way he could have prepared himself for the wolf's recovery. Though carrying a few injuries to the face, with one of its eyes destroyed from the dragon's efforsts, the wolf wasn't about to go on; it bared its fangs and charged, aiming to treat the baby dragon like its personal chew toy.

The ice broke.

"S-Spike!" Rarity called out, snapping off a branch from the above trees and rushing to strike. If she could just get a good enough hit on the wolf, she'd be able to save Spike. But her plan was quickly ruined when a clone of the same creature began to leap down. Rarity barely had enough time to react. If she didn't get the branch in the way--

Thankfully, it didn't end badly. The wolf's fangs bit down on the branch; while it had saved Rarity, it had only opened up another problem. Now Rarity was faced with a choice.

If I let go of the branch, it might attack me again... Rarity still didn't quite know what they wanted with them; either that or she forgot what the ponies were there for to begin with. Either way, it wasn't for the purpose of making friends, But if I try to fight it off, Spike...!

It wasn't that hard for Rarity to choose--Spike was a friend above all else. She gave the branch the hardest push she began to muster and made a break for Spike location. However, she noticed the Shadow Fang was recovering faster than she anticipated, and it quickly leapt into her path again. Now at a loss as the fresh monster advanced on her, Rarity was forced to remain rooted to the spot, frozen with fear.

"What do you monsters want with us?!" she cried out. The wolf pounced forth, but it barely even made it a yard.

Something impossibly fast--was it a shaft?--came rushing in from Rarity's left, striking the wolf dead-center. It gave out a terrifying shriek of pain before bursting into smoke.

"W-what...?" Rarity asked. Just then, a cloaked figure ran past Rarity, straight towards the other monster. The unicorn couldn't make out what it was, nor could she discern anything other than the cloak's color: paper bag brown. All she could realize was that the figure was advancing on the one pinning down Spike, who, thankfully, hadn't been harmed just yet. The Shadow Fang brought its claw down but didn't get the chance to ream the baby dragon. In a flash, the figure knocked the large ghoul aside, hard.

Spike finally managed to open his eyes, his senses regained and able to freely move. The dragon looked up, expecting to see...well, anypony, but he didn't expect to see a familiar cloaked being. The figure let its hood down, revealing an unmistakable striped complexion. How many zebras did Spike know? Just one.

"Z-Zecora?" asked Spike. The zebra turned, acknowledging Spike with a slight smile before turning back to the remaining beast. She reached into her cloak, pulling something out; a long wooden shaft, from Spike's point of view and chucking it straight at the wolflike creature. It couldn't dodge in time; like its brother, it too met its end at the projectile.

Rarity managed to rouse herself, looking to what had struck the beast that had held her at bay. It was a shaft of wood, but at the end, she could see a sharpened rock at the end, tied on securely with what looked like twine.

"When it comes to survival," Zecora said, "Knowing how to create these tools is vital."

"Zecora," Rarity said, "You know of what we went through about a month ago, correct?"

"The assault on your friends was certainly unjust," Zecora continued, "But to make sure we are safe, reunite, we must..."

Spike got to his feet, prompting Rarity to get to his side, like she had wanted to from the start. "Are you hurt?"

"No, I'm fine," Spike said, trying desperately to sound tough, but Rarity could still see the lingering fear for his life in his eyes. "I-I've got tough scales!"

"Alright, but don't push yourself so hard, Spike..." Rarity reminded him. "Now, let's head back to Ponyville."

"The town we live in is also under siege," Zecora remarked, "This will not be something accomplished with ease."

With that, the three began to head back to town, resolving to worry about the details later; right now, making sure everypony made it through this assault alright was top priority.
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Applejack had been in this position twice before; at least, twice within a twenty-four hour timespan. She had seen an attack like this on her orchard, but from what she was able to gather, this was happening everywhere. Like before, Big Mac stayed close to the house, guarding Apple Bloom and Granny Smith from danger, while she managed to stay out in the fields. Thankfully, these weren't those upgraded wolves, so Applejack was not having any trouble with them. However, the numbers were a different matter; for every one Applejack defeated, two more showed up to take its place. And, the orange pony was convinced there was a different breed involved in the affair.

She had fought these things ever since they started assaulting her family's farm. She leapt out of the way of one, coming down on top of it and crushing it like the insect it was. She did a one-two kick to a darker ghoul, causing it to disperse into coal black steam. The earth pony had managed to hold her own for the most part; she definitely did not need saving from this swarm.

That isn't to say she didn't get it. Two ghouls, one blue, one black, immediately approached her flank, and due to her preoccupation with frontal attackers she couldn't quite respond in time. Two magenta flashes quickly hit the ghouls, eliminating them both.

Applejack turned, "Twilight!"

"Applejack..." Twilight said, "How have you been holding up?"

Applejack allowed Twilight to cover her flank as she righted herself, "This is crazy, Twilight, what's goin' on?!"

"Those cloaked ponies are at it again," said Twilight, "This time, there's a batpony...Azure's fighting him right now..."

"He ain't responsible for the darker ones, right?" Applejack asked, just to make sure; she had heard of the jewel that the earth pony had last time and wanted to be sure.

"That's right; I didn't see him using any magic, no sign of it whatsoever. With the earth pony there was some sort of clue other than my magic not working..." Twilight summated. "But I'm not sure if Azure can handle the batpony on his own..."

Applejack didn't want to believe it, "Don't tell me ya'll went and forgot Az fights hard for the ponies he cares for!?"

"But he didn't beat the earth pony last time without help..." Twilight said, "I know your hooves might be tied here...but, if Azure needs help, I-I don't know if I'll be able to help him alone..."

Applejack blinked. She didn't want to believe Azure needed help. She had, for the most part, recovered from his rejection. But like Twilight said, he needed his cousins and Rainbow both to help him pull a win there. So if he needed help...

Applejack sighed roughly. "Twilight...I don't know if he needs it or not, but we'd best at least check it out..."

"Alright..." Twilight said, "Then, let's break through the ghouls on three...One...Two..."

"Three!!" Both called out at once, orange and purple ponies beginning to advance quickly through the crowds of shadow ghouls, Twilight using magic while Applejack used her physical capabilities to her advantage...

Chapter 36: An Awkward End...

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Chapter 36: An Awkward End...
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As far as Azure could see, his new opponent and him were more or less evenly matched. For each blow he landed, his opponent would get one back, and for every laser he fired, his opponent would use those wings of his to blow magical, icy gusts of wind at him. Azure quickly rushed in, unicorn and batpony bumping hooves in an unfriendly manner, and managed to catch his opponent with a hoofpunch to the inside elbow. Whatever that'd be for a pony, anyway.

The batpony landed a haymaker to Azure's face, sending Azure landing on his back. Azure rolled out of the way of the hit to the ground, and managed to land a back-kick to the pony's jaw, once more magically charging it to amplify its power. The batpony was lifted into the air, but quickly recovered with its wind. Azure heard the batpony's wings shuffling fast; something he'd picked up on during the fight.

Azure looked up, the cold wind blowing toward him. He quickly put up a shield, dispersing the wind about throughout the area, ice shards going everywhere. He dropped his shield, but his opponent had moved between firing the attack and now. Azure checked around, but the batpony caught him looking the other way by slamming into his ribcage with both his forehooves extended and hitting him into the tree.

"Where were you looking?!" taunted his adversary, backing off as Azure recovered. Azure's horn lit up, his eyes still glowing the cyan color. The batpony turned around, aiming to once again use his chest gem to use his magic, but Azure shot off a few laser bolts, which the batpony dodged with ease.

"C'mon, you're going to have to do better than that!"

"Really?" Azure's horn was still glowing, and his opponent had a momentary look of confusion on his face. It soon changed to pain, however, when the easily dodged lasers changed direction midair and struck the batpony in the back. Off-balance, the batpony began falling towards the ground like a wounded bird. Azure quickly rushed up to the batpony, using the gravity spell to his advantage. He executed a jumping kick, managing enough velocity to hit the batpony away from his original landing zone.

The batpony hit the ground with his forehooves, sliding backwards a few yards on them before finally coming to a rest on his feet. The two fighters took a short breather, before the batpony began hovering again.

"Not bad..." the batpony commended. "Homing lasers, huh? Fine." He flew backwards, slightly up into the air. "Let me show you another cold wind, then..."

"Winter was over months ago!" responded Azure, "I'll bet you think your leader's a visionary because he promised longer winter months..."

"It's not even close to that at all," the batpony snarled, "Somepony such as you wouldn't understand a vision like his!" His wings began to flap violently, but there was no cold wind, at least, not immediately. Suddenly, the batpony's wings began to glow bright white, and a few moments later, it looked like the space right in front of the pony's wings distorted.

The compressed air came down on Azure like a hard rock, forcing him flat on his stomach. It didn't cause a cut like the previous wind did; it was a huge wave of compressed, frigid air that bore down on him and the ground beneath him, causing a small crater to form where he was now lying down, trying to recover from that last attack.

"Tch," Azure grunted, moving his legs, "Must have touched a nerve..."

"You're darn right!"

Azure gasped. He had just gotten back on his feet when his opponent smashed his head to his and began forcing Azure to slide back. Azure eventually managed to get control of the struggle, and the two were once again evenly matched. However, the batpony's wings began to flap faster again, and Azure already knew it was coming. He erected a magical shield, backing off as the second wave of compressed air came rushing at him. While he didn't feel the chill, the kinetic force behind the wind definitely wasn't mitigated any by the frontal barrier; it fissured, and small chips of it flew off and disintegrated into the air as Azure slid back, his hooves scraping along the dirt painfully.

The unicorn channeled magic into his horn, firing off another laser which the batpony was forced to take as he was flying at him. Azure quickly did a gravity-spell assisted jump, coming down on the pony's back again. This time, it was the nameless batpony who was forced to the ground. However, Azure didn't have time to celebrate; in a few moments, the batpony righted his wings, and slapped Azure with each wing, forcing the unicorn to back off.

Azure quickly warped backwards, not even bothering to question how he'd managed to teleport to safety as his opponent recovered.

"You're right about one thing, though," Azure said, "About me. I don't understand what your boss wants; but I do know I don't want to understand it. What kind of visionary would foalnap ponies?"

"It's not just any ponies we're wanting!" said the batpony, "I'd elaborate more, but surely you should be able to figure out at least as much as who we're targeting..."

"You can't mean..." Azure started, but the batpony finished for him.

"That's right..." The batpony ended his sentence for him, "Those Bearers you seem so intent on protecting..."

"But why do you need them?!" Azure said, "You aren't some misguided harmonic extremists! I can tell it just by looking at you!"

"Now that would be telling..." the batpony said, "But right now, our focus has shifted. I'd explain more, but it all depends on how Torpal is doing in Canterlot..."

" 'Torpal'...?" Azure questioned. However, he soon refocused. He'd had better luck trying to understand Pinkie Pie's more rambunctious antics, "Never mind, forget it. I'm not going to waste my breath wondering what you're up to. You'll all be captured one of these days..."

"We'll see about that..." the batpony countered.

"Azure!" The feminine voice momentarily lowered Azure's guard as he turned to see Twilight, having made her way back to him. And with her...Applejack?!

"What are you two doing here?!" Azure called back, "This isn't exactly a safe place to be right now!"

"What're you talkin' 'bout, partner?!" Applejack shouted, "It ain't safe anywhere in Ponyville with them monsters runnin' about!"

"We came to help!" Twilight stated, "Even though...I didn't think you did..."

"This guy isn't taking out my magic, I should be able to take him..." Azure's ear twitched, his ear picking up the rapid wingbeats. He turned, to see the batpony's wings glowing a bright white, flapping so fast they looked like what humans would describe as helicopter blades.

"Big words..." the batpony sneered, "But let's see..." He began to hover just a bit, until Azure was just out of range of whatever he was doing. "How well you can handle the frigid air!!"

Azure realized almost instantaneously where he was aiming for. It wasn't meant for him; it was meant for--

His body started moving on its own...
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Both Twilight and Applejack stood ready as the batpony used magic. It didn't take long for them to get over the shock of him using magic in the first place, but the speed of the attack...They couldn't have reacted quick enough to counter, and by the time they realized it, it was too late to dodge. Worse still, it was apparent the attack was only meant for one--

A blue pony suddenly appeared in front of them, directly in the path between the tornadic-looking spell and...Applejack?!

"A-Az?!" Applejack stuttered out of shock.

"What are you doing?!" Twilight called out in confusion and fear.

"Defending a vow..." Azure barely had enough time to say before the attack was on him. Applejack and Twilight quickly jumped backward to safety, but Azure was caught in a tornado--both of the mares could feel the cold wind just stirring around them, and both could clearly see Azure was in pain, not only being buffeted about by the sheer force, but within a few seconds, nicks and cuts were covering Azure's body.

Twilight momentarily forgot what Azure said; this was her coltfriend being savaged by what looked like a razor tornado. And his opponent? Laughing, maniacally.

"How's that? Still think playing the hero is worth it?" the batpony asked, in the air, a good ten yards back. "That spell won't stop until one of you surrenders, or..." He sneered, letting his statement trail off for emphasis.

Azure's eyes opened against the current, and his horn lit up again. Twilight saw it before she felt it-the color of his magical glow changed to orange, and the cool wind began to dissipate in favor of a gentle heat radiating onward, and upward.

"What?!" the batpony growled, now seeing what happened.

Twilight got it; it was in a book she read back when she didn't care about friends: "Wind spells...they are strong against earth, but their weakness...is fire!"

"Twilight?" Applejack asked.

"The heat given off by any one spell forces most wind spells to dissipate via convection; plus, oxygen is required for a fire..." Twilight responded, paraphrasing what she'd learned. Now that Azure was out of the tornado, though, she could see his body was littered with small cuts. None of them were life-threatening alone, but had he remained in the tornado for as long as the batpony said...

"You said you were the cold second wind for your boss..." Azure said, his horn still having that orange glow. "So why don't I have a warm front blow away your blizzard?!"

"You little...!" the batpony said, his wings flapping violently once more. He sent out another tornado, this time aimed directly at Azure himself.

"Didn't you already see elemental affinity just take precedence?" Azure asked, immediately running straight towards the tornado.

"A-Az?!" Applejack called out, clearly concerned. All Twilight could do was watch; hoping to herself the fire Azure was carrying would help him out.

And it did; the tornado still left a few cuts, but the tornado completely vanished after Azure began to manifest the fire spell: two gentle tendrils extended from the orange glow and began spinning like a slow-moving fan. A few seconds later, as the batpony hovered in what looked like shock, Azure shot off a large orange fireball straight up at the batpony, which made contact, and engulfed his body, burning him. He fell to the ground, clearly injured from that last attack.

Twilight and Applejack both shared a sigh of relief as Azure turned around, breathing just a little hard; the fight did appear to have taken its toll on him. Azure gradually stepped towards the defeated batpony, and Applejack and Twilight did as well. The cyan colt was the one who spoke first, being the closest.

"It looks like your boss has lost his second wind..." Azure commented.

"You haven't won yet..." the batpony said, getting back to his feet. "Nor have you!" The second part of his statement was directed at the Bearers. He then glared directly at Azure, a very small smile on his face. "Have fun now..."

His wings flared outwards, and as they did, they sent out an alarmingly large gust of wind that knocked all three of the ponies back. Azure, Twilight, and Applejack could only look up into the air as the batpony began to take his flight, injured, but clearly still able to move about.

"You were lucky..." the batpony said, "But, we will meet again..."

Azure watched the pony the whole way, waiting for him to try to get in a parting shot. The parting shot came, but in a way Azure did not expect.

"Have fun being Celestia's lapdog in the meantime," he said, "Protecting those precious elements of hers..."

"What?!" Azure called out, completely caught off-guard from the revelation. How do they--?

The other mares had said it at the same time he had, but as the batpony flew away, laughing, Azure couldn't think of what to say right away.

That task I was given way back when...? Azure thought to himself. Just what are they--

"What did he mean by that?!" Twilight asked. Azure turned, seeing two very confused mares.

"Honestly, I don't know," Azure decided to half-lie and hope Applejack didn't pick up on it right away, "Probably the kind of guy that loves to indulge in conspiracy theories regarding the royalty..."

However, internally, he was troubled by what he heard come out of the batpony's mouth.

How long have they really been watching? Was this pony more briefed than the others; was he a spy? Azure thought, I can’t believe he would know about...that job...
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Back in Canterlot, the Royal Guard was still fiercely ongoing with the shadow ghouls, while Shining Armor, their captain, Crimson Blitz, Virid Strategem, and Silver Espada all focused on their leader, no doubt the one orchestrating the attack this time around by providing the portals directly into the city. All of them had clearly taken some damage from the battle; their opponent, a surgically modified pegasus, had given them the slip for the moment. Though they had gotten used to his tactics by now, it was still hard to predict where he would show up next.

"Surrounding him didn't work..." Virid noted. As team strategist, he had been counted on to formulate a winning plan. However, with his opponent's insanely erratic attacks, he hadn't been able to formulate one quite yet. A red exit portal appeared on the floor just underneath his jaw, and he leapt back to dodge.

"Hurry up and figure it out, Virid," Blitz called out, dodging another portal charge by the hair on his mane; "This has gone on way too long..."

"I know!" Virid called out, closing one eye in focus as he tried to recall his opponent's battle style, and what he could do as counter-attacks. Images of the battle replayed in his head repeatedly, dark blue entry portals, red exit portals, redirection...teleportation...

Shining, meanwhile, kept his eyes peeled, and his horn lit up, levitating a semi-large piece of debris. The head guard's head turned and he saw a red exit portal just forming there. He quickly lobbed it, nailing the pegasus between the eyes cleanly as he came out from the portal. This stunned him long enough for Blitz to do what he did best--a rush shoulder charge into the pony's side, sending him to the ground. The pegasus actually seemed grounded, the wing on that side folded up in obvious pain.

"Why you..." he growled, melting into the ground. Blitz's own horn lit up as the pegasus began melting into the ground again. The pony quickly sent out a bolt of lightning into the portal after him, and the dark blue entry portal closed.

When the red exit portal reopened, however, Blitz was surprised to find his own spell coming back at him from the seven o'clock position, nailing him in the side. However, the pegasus was nowhere to be seen.

"He keeps vanishing over and over again..." Silver noted, his echolocation nearly useless against this particular opponent. All of a sudden, his ear twitched; noticing a sound he hadn't quite noticed before. Under the screeches of dying Shadow Ghouls, victory yells of the Royal Guards, pandemonium all around, and even the clopping of hooves on the ground as the others tried to anticipate his next move, there was a low hum coming from directly behind him.

Shining quickly got a visual, "Silver! Behind you!"

"That's all I needed to hear..." said the blind unicorn, leaping around midair and blasting a compressed sound wave as he faced the warning direction. The off-guard orange pegasus was taken by surprise, his ears momentarily comprimised from the sound wave, in addition to that.

Silver's ears can probably pick up something we can't... Virid took note of this development. He likes to charge around, redirect projectiles if he knows they're coming. So...

"Why...you..." The orange pegasus said, hearing nothing but a loud buzz, "You'll pay for that!" A dark blue entry portal appeared above him, and he managed to hover up into it; his wings clearly not as clipped as they were thought to be.

"Alright, I have it!" Virid said, "Captain, Blitz, Silver, stand back-to-back with me. We'll cover all positions; Silver, use your ears..."

"I-I don't know if I can manage to hear that again," Silver said, "It was a sound I only picked up just now..."

"Just focus..." Virid said. "Once we absolutely know where he's coming from, we'll all spring our best at him...That should take him down..."

"Alright...I'll do it," Silver said, "But don't make any noise if possible..."

This time, the four waited in absolute silence; Shining not issuing direct orders, Virid and Blitz withholding their bickering, and Silver breathing in and out, trying to hear the low hum. Via echolocation, he confirmed he was just opposite of Blitz in the circle; Virid on his back-left and Shining on his back-right.

His ear twitched, and he focused very hard on it; a low hum. This time...

"Right in front of me!" Silver called out; the others looked, seeing the red portal appearing. The orange pegasus flew through, aiming right for Silver--

Only to be met by a firm, purple field just feet from Silver. His hoof cracked the surface, but it was all the time the others needed.

Silver let out yet another sonic boom attack, this time, specifically aiming to stun the enemy. He covered his ears, wings flapping erratically, eyes closed in pain.

"Now," Virid said, "I'll get him off-guard...Blitz, end it."

"You don't gotta tell me," Blitz said, as Virid took the lead, his hooves already glowing with magic. The helpless pegasus was hardly able to resist, taking the full force of Virid's pressure strike right to his chest, knocking him backwards to the edge of the roof. Seemingly defeated, he began to fall off the roof. Blitz rushed after him, full-speed, leaping off the roof in pursuit, aiming to tackle the chest gem and destroy it.

Before he knew it, he was entering a dark blue portal, entering through a vortex where, for that one instant, he could see where the Shadow Ghouls were being dispatched. However, before he realized it, he had landed back on the roof of the building, leaving a sizable crack in the surface.

"What?!" Silver called out, in disbelief, having felt the disturbance. Shining, meanwhile, dashed to the edge of the roof, Virid closely following.

The pegasus pony was gone.

"Darn it!" Virid said, stamping a hoof on the ground. "He gave us the slip again!"

"Virid," Shining spoke up, "I have a feeling he did a little more than that..."

The unicorns looked around, awaiting a sign that their opponent was going to bum-rush them out of a portal again. After a few tense seconds longer than it usually took, it was apparent the pony had actually escaped in that second, having warped Blitz back to the roof to prevent him from catching him before he himself warped out.

"Alright," Shining said, "I'll go see if I can finish this. Virid, Blitz, you too, Silver, go help out the townsponies."

"But--" Silver began, quickly cut off.

"Silver!" Virid scolded, already levitating him off the ground and unceremoniously carrying him away, "You don't back-sass a captain!"

"Is carrying him away like that necessary?!" Blitz called after them, already leaving as well. Meanwhile, Shining quickly began his pursuit of the portal-porting pegasus, unaware he was already well out of range.
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At Ghastly Gorge, a certain Batpony was landing. He had left his cloak at the scene of the crime, but that wasn't a problem; he had no doubts the organization he was supporting was supporting the right cause; their leader was a true visionary. However, his work in Ponyville was over.

He sneered, his naturally sensitive ears alerting him to a low hum nearby.

"Perfect timing, Torpal...." he growled, as an orange pegasus with heterochromia and a cloak appeared behind him, coming out of a red-trimmed void. The hole closed behind him quickly enough, evidenced by the fade of the hum. "I should hope you're still pouring Shadow Ghouls into Canterlot, like discussed..."

"Don't worry. I even pulled back the Ponyville wave. They should be finishing up with them soon," said Torpal, confirming the batpony's assumptions. "How about you, Noct?"

"Not minding the daylight assault as much anymore; not that I minded it much to begin with," Noct, the batpony, answered. "Anything for our cause..."

"Speaking of which, I think our plan is going to move forward just as scheduled," Torpal continued, "Soon as we get word from the boss that the stone shell has cracked, we can go on home and wait. Inevitably, it will seem this assault was for naught..."

"But they won't know what hits them when the real surprise starts," Noct cackled, "Too bad I won't be able to see the looks on their faces when it all starts going down..."

"Yeah," Torpal said, "But we're all lapdogs in our own way, you know..."

"Maybe," Noct sneered angrily, as though Torpal had insulted him personally, "But there's a difference. I do this by choice. They do it because Sunflank tells them to."

Torpal gave a sigh, "Well, in any case, the achievement of our final cause will be the big payoff, not the cracking of the shell..."

Noct and Torpal cut off their conversation at that moment, waiting for the time to come when their boss would tell them their plan was ready to move into Phase 2...

Chapter 37: Fissures Forming

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Chapter 37: Fissures Forming
----------------------
A few whole minutes had passed since the end of the attack in Ponyville. The zebra, unicorn, and dragon had made their way back to the library, finding refuge there.

"The swarm has finally receded," Zecora commented, "Their attack has not succeeded."

"Well, it wasn't a complete failure..." Rarity said, "They still did a fair amount of damage to the town in the time they had."

"Do you think Twilight already knows something's up?" Spike asked.

"Undoubtedly, Spike," Rarity commented, "Anypony could see the ongoing attack in Canterlot if they looked up long enough."

Spike shifted uncomfortably atop Rarity's back, and Rarity could only guess what his concern was--Twilight's safety. After all, it had been compromised once before by the very same creatures.

"It's not like Twilight was left to herself," Rarity continued, "Azure Courage would never consciously abandon his friends, much less a mare so dear to him..."

"It's part of his promise!" The voice was high-energy; the three could only turn around, seeing Pinkie pop in through...the window, which inexplicably bent backwards on its hinges to let her in that way.

"Pinkie, you realize there is a door, right?" Rarity asked, "But where were you in all this? Are the Cakes alright?"

"They're just fine! When those bugs came they started freaking out since we told them what they were and then there was a fight and..."

Pinkie couldn't quite finish her story. Spike put his hand to his mouth, and belched loudly, burping up a letter for the second time that day. All heads turned to the drake, who held yet another scroll from the princess.

"Should I open it?" Spike wasn't quite so used to reading Twilight's mail to others unannounced, but like the last one, the scroll was marked as urgent. However, with the crisis now over, Spike wondered if he needed to wait.

"It must be important, Spike," Rarity started, turning to him, "Like the last letter she sent, she must have something important she wants to tell us about this whole mess..."

Spike nodded, not even waiting for the others gathered to pitch in their own two cents. He opened the parchment quickly, clearing his throat and reading aloud:
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"To my faithful student, Twilight Sparkle:

You may already be aware of this, but both Canterlot and Ponyville were simultaneously attacked by the creatures you mentioned before, along with more supporting ponies. While their attacks seem to have failed, there has been a lot of damage. I hope that none of you all are hurt because of this...

While nopony knows exactly what this unknown organization is up to, it is clear they pose a threat to harmony. If this attack has shown us anything, we must remain vigilant. We can not allow ourselves to become lax in times like this with these ponies running around and causing chaos...

If you must leave your abodes for more than a few minutes, I highly recommend you must not be alone. We had a close call, and your safety is always a top concern.."

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As Spike began to scan the rest of the letter, there was a heavy silence over the room. Rarity was the one that broke it.

"Oh my, this is really getting serious..." Rarity said, "If their repeated assaults are any indication..."

The door creaked open, and all heads minus Spike turned to the noise. The dragon continued to scan the letter, namely the point past where he read. If anypony looked at him, they might have seen the growing look of confusion on his face.

"H-hello?" asked Fluttershy, poking her head out from behind the door as Rainbow Dash walked past, clearly much worse for the wear than she was; not saying a lot given Fluttershy wasn't hurt at all.

"Oh, thank Celestia, you two are okay..." Rarity commented.

"Nothing to it," Rainbow said, smirking, as she polished her hoof on her chest. Fluttershy, meanwhile, looked around, clearly confused.

"Where are the others?" asked Fluttershy.

"I'm afraid I don't know, Fluttershy..." Rarity said.

"There's more on the letter..." Spike announced, his voice showing a slight level of confusion. "She's specifically asking for...?"

"For...?" Rarity asked.

Spike cleared his throat, and prepared to speak.
----------------------

P.S.

"I request Azure come see me alone as soon as possible. I need to discuss something important with him after his recent actions against these attacks. A chariot will be arriving shortly for him. I advise he doesn't keep them waiting..."

----------------------
"But why?" Rainbow Dash asked, "Any of us could tell her, so why does she want to talk to Az about it?"

"Who wants to talk about Az?" Applejack seemingly materialized at the front door, walking through, followed closely by a similarly unhurt Twilight...and an Azure who looked like he just got in a fight with a razorblade and lost. Needless to say, upon seeing his condition, those who hadn't already seen him let out a collective gasp.

"Are you okay, Azie?" Pinkie asked, walking up to him with Rarity, Rainbow and Fluttershy close behind. Spike, meanwhile, had finally gotten off Rarity's back and now looked ahead, back to the letter.

"Yeah, just a few cuts. None of them are deep..." Azure assured them, right as a pinch came from one on the left side of his torso. "So...what was that about somepony wanting to talk to me?"

Spike went back over all parts of the letter again, but it wasn't until they got to the postscript that the room once more fell into a silence, confused as to what the letter meant. Azure, however, was especially confused.

Okay, if she wanted to hear what happened over here from me, she'd be wasting her time with sending someone after me. Twilight, or anypony else, could just as easily tell her in writing or in person, so what could she want to talk about? Azure thought to himself, keeping calm in the face of the fact Princess Celestia may have put him in a position to remain clammed up or squeal about his role. The others had no idea of the raging paranoia surging through him, that they might have connected some of the dots.

"Well, it's obvious what she wants to talk about," Rarity cut into his thoughts, sounding like she had an answer.

"We do?" Applejack asked, clearly confused.

"Of course! It all makes sense," she said, "Azure Courage has put his own well-being on the line to protect not only the five of us, but also to protect her personal student and the mare of his dreams." She walked to Azure, who fought every urge to show panic in his expression or body.

Did she figure it out?! he thought to himself, Rarity maybe a few centimeters away.

"It is very clear that our Azure..."

Oh ma--

"Is going to be knighted!" Rarity smiled, dodging Azure's paranoia so sharply that Azure had to pause to make sure he was going to say the right question.

"Knighted?" Azure asked.

"Well of course!" Rarity said, taking Azure's confusion as genuine, "You heard what she wrote. Why else would she wish to discuss your recent heroic deeds?"

I can think of a few reasons...

"That would be awesome!" Rainbow immediately took all the focus off the confused Azure, "With a title like that you could boss around the Royal Guards!"

"I ain't sure it works that way..." Applejack stated. As the others began to chat among themselves, Twilight turned to Azure, ready to let him know of her pride. She did certainly think it was possible, but she could clearly see relief in his eyes. As soon as she saw it, she remembered the parting words of the batpony.

"Have fun being Celestia's lapdog in the meantime..." Twilight remembered clearly, No. Just the words of a hateful pony and nothing more. He obviously refuses to understand actions other than his own...

Within a few minutes, the others began to disperse, Zecora heading back to her home, Fluttershy and Rainbow leaving together since the former was still slightly shellshocked from the whole ordeal, Applejack and Pinkie also leaving together due to the letter's instructions and not wanting to take any chances. Rarity remained behind for the moment, but Azure wasn't sure why specifically. Twilight and Spike were also there--it was their home after all.

True to the letter, a chariot arrived, being pulled by ponies; Twilight and Azure standing next to a window.

"They're here..." Twilight announced.

"Should I really leave at a time like this? The town was just attacked..." Azure said, only to receive a nuzzle under the chin for his doubts.

"We'll be fine," Twilight assured, as one of the Royal Guards approached the door, "You won't be gone long, right?"

Azure wanted to tell Twilight he didn't even want to leave, but to do so would ignore Celestia's call. To voice his doubt now might give him away anyway, so he didn't do it yet.

"I'll be back as soon as I can be..." Azure said, turning to Twilight and planting a quick kiss on her lips. After the moment ended, Azure looked into Twilight's eyes. He just wanted to say something, really quick. "I--"

"Azure Courage, you were summoned to Canterlot Castle," the commanding voice of an unfamiliar Royal Guard came from the other side of the door. "We saw you through the window..." It was a deadpan addition to the command, but it certainly got Azure's attention. Azure turned to Twilight, his thought train all but derailed.

"Be safe..." Azure said, once again leaning in to kiss her on the cheek before quickly heading for the door, "I'm ready now..."

And with that, Azure left. The two ponies and baby dragon crowded around the door, watching them leave into the distance towards Canterlot. Twilight looked up towards the chariot, feeling just a little confused.

"Don't worry, Twilight," Rarity assured. "I'm pretty sure we both know what he was about to say..."

"O-of course..." Twilight stuttered. She didn't know why, but once more, she felt a pain in her chest at his departure. It wasn't as bad as last winter's pains, sure, but she just couldn't name the degree of pain she now felt at this.
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The Shadow Ghouls were still undergoing cleanup from the city. The Royal Guards were less needed now, hence why they could spare a few to go pick up Azure. However, the confusion the normal ponies were experiencing, the mayhem that had just been inflicted on the city, and the waning havoc going on now, was causing something to be stirred.

At the statue garden, the singing statue of the animal mixture was considerably more littered with cracks. At the same time, a purplish glow began to slowly expand, like ink, from the statue. All at once, however, the statue fully cracked. A purplish ooze began to seep slowly from within the statue, pooling at the base of the statue. The more came out, the more the statue began to slowly crumble.

If anypony were around to listen, they might have heard the ooze chuckle to itself, as the statue fully crumbled away. Furthermore, they might have heard it seemingly talk to itself as it left behind a trail...remarkably akin to graham crackers...in a zig-zag trail along the walkway and into the grass.

"I'm free at last..." the blob said to itself. "Sure, I could wind up back to my old tricks, but there are a few formalities I need to take care of first..."

The blob quickly seeped into the ground.

"I guess I'd better give my...rescuers...a proper introduction..."
----------------------
"Noct, Torpal, get back to base immediately! The stone has cracked! From here, we lay low again..."

The telepathic message was loud and clear in their minds. Noct scoffed.

"Fine, let's get out of here..." Noct said. "It's a shame, really...From what I've heard, it seemed like he's really able to put those lapdogs...and the queens...where they belong..."

"Save the rhetoric for later, Noct," Torpal stated, "Boss said we didn't want to hang around. C'mon, I'll warp us back..."

Torpal prepared to warp away, fully intent on adhering to his boss's command. However...

"What?" A voice asked, "And miss out on all the chaos to come?"

Torpal and Noct froze. Both turned around, clearly alarmed by the unexpected voice. What they saw surprised them. It was a purple blob that seemed to be oozing...well, nonsense was one word for it. The ground literally appeared to be altering in its wake. However, the blob appeared to be forming into something.

"One thousand years in stone, and I appear to have lost my form..." the blob asked, its voice distinctly male, "Hold on one moment..."

The blob suddenly appeared to float, growing talons, a tail, what looked like arms, horns...wings...

It then emitted a bright purple glow, forcing Noct and Torpal to turn away for a moment. When they looked back to where the blob was, the two ponies quickly realized what they were looking at. Pony-like head, one horn an antler, the other the horn of a goat; oddly colored blue. The wings were similarly mismatched: one pegasus wing, one bat wing. One leg was a goat's leg, the other lizard-like, like the snake tail that looked significantly draconic in nature. He had a lion's arm on his right and a eagle's claw on the left. He had a horse-like mane, black; white bushy brows, a small white beard with a matching tail tuft. His entire body shape was more like a snake.

This was the dragonequus they had endeavored to free: Discord.

"So you're...Discord...?" Noct asked.

"It would appear my reputation precedes me..." Discord responded, "But yes, you are correct..."

Torpal remained silent. He looked around. This "Discord" certainly lived up to his legacy; he hadn't even fully exerted his influence and already he could see things...not behaving like they should. The ground completely changing was just a small part of it.

"I must say, gentlecolts, I thank you for releasing me..." The mismatched pupil size; yellow eyeballs, red eyes, seemed to be focused elsewhere. "You know, before Princess Celestia turned me to stone, I never bothered with turning ponies to stone..."

"I see," Noct said, completely unbothered, "I can see why you'd be angry about that. The fact ponies don't see her for what she is baffles me, to say the least..."

"Ah, ah, ah, I'm not done..." Discord continued, "But being imprisoned in stone has taught me something, something very important..."

Torpal braced himself. He tried again to get his portal going, but suddenly, he realized something important.

My magic...what...?

Torpal put his hand to his chest, and discovered something important. His eyes widened. My gem is missing!?

"And that would be...?" Noct continued his line of questions, seemingly not aware that his gem might have disappeared too.

"Being in stone doesn't pull away all your senses. I got to see the evolution of a boring society for the past millennium, with no real chaos to it for that time..." Discord grinned wickedly, his single fang totally visible. "So...I think I know how to reward you two for helping to free me..."

"That being...?" Noct sounded eager. Torpal snuck a look to his friend's chest. For some reason, Noct had discarded his cloak before they met up again.

"Noct, your gem...!" Torpal tried to warn him, but nothing could prepare him for what came next.

"Ah, ah, ah,"

Torpal's head was forcibly turned towards Discord. Noct hadn't removed his eyes from the creature of chaos, and seemed almost distant from what was happening.

"Eyes on me..." Discord's grin didn't leave him. "You two, my fine gentlecolts, will get a front row seat for the storm to come!!"

Torpal felt himself starting to stiffen, but he couldn't even move his eyeballs to check Noct's status. However, the rest of his face moved into position. He was able to think well enough, even as the rest of his body began to fail to respond to his will, stiffened into a permanent position.

What...kind...of reward...is this...?
----------------------
Discord could only feel satisfaction at what he'd done. Sure, those ponies would certainly get the show they wanted, but now he completely understood it. Turning living creatures to stone was certainly a good stress-reliever. He looked at the stoned forms of the ponies that had helped to free him, feeling absolutely zero remorse for putting them in that position himself.

"Sorry I can't hear your applause, though," Discord said, "I've got problems to resolve, ponies to torment..."

The dragonequus began to coil on himself as he made for Canterlot, leaving the statues at the Ghastly Gorge, not caring if they were broken or not by what was to come. He absolutely did not care what happened to his "rescuers"; he had much more important things to take care of. Revenge was on his mind.

"Problem one: neutralize those stupid Elements so they can't be used against me," Discord said. "Sure, it would be simple to just turn those ponies to stone too. That's the problem...it's too simple for my taste...I want to see those prissy princesses squirm for what they did to me..."

Discord's eyes became bloodshot, blue veins sticking out in the yellow eyeballs, "I'm going to torment those little ponies they care about...slowly, surely...They...will...be...broken... I will make them rue the day they tossed the true ruler of this land into a stone encasement!"
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The chariot ride was unbearably long to Azure, but it had taken maybe five minutes, tops, for Azure to get to Canterlot. He could see Shadow Ghouls still being cleaned up here and there, but he was practically landed on the front walk of the Canterlot Castle's courtyard. Princess Celestia was practically waiting for him already. He didn't know why, but she seemed particularly troubled; a look that he hadn't seen her have, not even on the night of the wrecked Grand Galloping Gala. Then again, the city was just attacked full-scale; perhaps that was why.

"Azure Courage," she greeted, "Please, come in. We have a lot to talk about."

Azure quickly followed the solar princess into the castle. The inside was void of Royal Guards, save for a few running through the halls. It wasn't that surprising, considering the cleanup work still going on. Azure felt a handful of the cuts on his side begin to sting.

"Would you like to have your wounds treated first?" asked Princess Celestia, now fully seeing the extent of his injuries after turning to him.

"No, I'll be fine..." Azure responded. "This isn't the worst I've gotten from them..."

"Of that, I am sure," Celestia smiled, "But I must apologize..." The two had finally stepped into her throne room. "Had I known what kind of dangers would follow, I wouldn't have asked you to protect the Bearers. But you have my never-ending gratitude that you have done so without hesitation."

The door shut behind them, a result of the princess's magic.

"Don't worry about it, Princess Celestia..." Azure started, "Actually, can I be honest with you about something?"

"I'd like nothing more than for my little ponies to be honest with me," Celestia smiled still. He'd only been in her presence a handful of times in his life, but he still couldn't believe how it felt around her. She may have been one of the most powerful beings on the planet, but she clearly never let it get to her. The princess of the sun gave off an aura of warmth that couldn't be defined; it wasn't stiff and upright like the city around her; and he hadn't heard of an actual incident where Celestia misused her powers. It absolutely baffled him, how ponies could possibly think she was anything other than this nice pony.

Azure nodded, "You don't have to apologize or thank me. Everything I've done, I would have done even if I hadn't been asked. As a matter of fact, even if you had told me to stay away from them that night I still would have done the same as I have."

Celestia didn't even falter, "I see...If I may ask, why do you believe that?"

"I don't know," Azure was at a loss--even before he met Twilight, he felt like he couldn't separate from the other five, "I mean, they're my friends, of course I'd want to protect them. But even before Twilight moved into town, I had always felt...pulled, towards them. I don't know how or why, but I know this much: it doesn't matter what happens to me as long as I ensure they see another day. I wish I had a better answer than that, but I don't care what the feeling is or why I act on it, the important part is, as long as I can protect them while I draw breath, I will be happy."

The princess remained speechless for several seconds. Azure could see it in her eyes. At the same time, he could almost see a sort of longing in them--perhaps for days gone by? He couldn't tell.

"You are true to your name, Azure Courage..." Celestia quickly grew serious, seemingly looking around. Azure noted the change; it was almost the same look she had before he even landed. "Now, we must get into the situation at hoof..."
-------------
As the two talked about the state of affairs, there was something watching them. Unbeknownst to either the solar princess or the azure unicorn, something was watching them. If a pony were next to the wall, they could just make out a whisper.

"Keeping secrets, I see?" a voice said, "What a shame. I already gave up on Celly, but apparently her bad habits have rubbed off on a new generation. Oh well...I guess I'll just have to mix things right..."

The voice faded away, laughing maniacally, knowing precisely where to hit now...

Chapter 38: The Secret Behind the Statue

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Chapter 38: The Secret Behind The Statue
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Azure wasn't quite sure why Princess Celestia was leading him back to the statue garden. He'd only ever been there maybe once, but even then, he was way too young to remember. Perhaps Virid or Blitz could have shed some light on what was so important about the statues here...However, the princess had told him to come with her "immediately" after they talked about the current situation with those ponies, so he wasn't going to complain. If there was something important here, then he really didn't know what else to do. He followed the sun princess, noting how worried she seemed.

She sure seems worried, but why? She was worried since I first showed up, and she's still worried when we're surrounded by statues... Azure thought to himself, slowing his stride, The statues aren't alive, are they?

Azure met eyes with a statue of a pony with a violin. However, for a split second, he could have sworn he saw it blink.

"What the--?" Azure began.

"Azure, what is it?" Princess Celestia asked, turning around to him. Azure debated whether or not to tell the princess what he saw, but decided against it.

"Nothing..." Azure said, "Cuts are flaring up, but I'm sure it'll go away on its own..."

"I see..." Celestia didn't sound overly convinced, but she didn't press the issue, "Well, we must get moving, if you are going to understand what their likely motive was here..."

Azure nodded, following after the princess. The two continued on, Azure closing his eyes.

Okay...Pretty sure I just imagined that. Azure thought, Just imagine what Twilight'd say if you told her about the moving statue...

Celestia came to a dead stop, and Azure looked ahead. What he saw was the crumbled remnants of a statue. He couldn't see the princess's facial expression, but she completely froze, save for that always flowing mane and tail, of course. The princess remained disturbingly silent, staring at the rocks that must have formed a statue. Azure followed the eyes downward, and saw, between the blades of grass, what looked like graham crackers, perfectly formed in the soil.

What the--

"This..." she began, a very small hint of composure-brokenness leaking into her tone, but Azure couldn't pick up on any other emotion.

"Was that what you wanted to show me?" Azure questioned, not quite getting it. It looked like any other statue, only broken. Looking around, though, Azure could see the statues around them were basically untouched. Only the one Princess Celestia was fretting about was the one broken. "Was the statue of somepony important?"

Celestia turned around to Azure, her gaze enough to pierce stone. He could see, very clearly, lines of worry and fury etched into her features. It was such a stark difference from her usual self the pony known for courage flinched.

"Azure, listen very carefully," Celestia said, "Something is wrong. Very wrong..."

"What?" Azure questioned, "You think they got what they were after? You...didn't actually explain that..."

"I don't have time..." Celestia said, "You're going to notice things are off soon enough, Azure...That statue contained something that was meant to be sealed for a bit longer...Those ponies with their creatures stirred up a lot of chaos..."

"Wait...why would that only break this statue?" Azure responded, again questioning it.

"Let's just say the statue was containing something that loves chaos...too much, as a matter of fact..." Celestia answered, gazing over Azure. He couldn't read her emotion, but it was clear there was something far worse going on than just a messy, half-destroyed town. "There's not much time, Azure. Just be careful. And if you see something that looks like it could be the cause, try not to engage it!"

Azure was at a loss.

"You...aren't ready yet..." She said, almost sounding regretful.

Something bad must be about to happen. Even when Nightmare Moon was about to come back, from what I heard, she hardly lost her composure this bad! Azure noted, What's got her like this?

"I must inform Twilight and the others to come here as soon as possible!" Princess Celestia called out, "Please, Azure, be careful...I don't know how this is going to go!"

With that, the princess quickly moved, teleporting away, but to where Azure didn't see. His ears stiffened in response to a noise he heard behind him.

"Typical Celestia, never explaining anything..." A masculine voice scolded from seemingly all around Azure. Immediately, Azure's horn lit up, and he looked around, trying to find the source.

"Where are you?!" Azure called out.

"A simple question to answer..." said the voice, "Perhaps this will answer your question, Azure Courage..."

"You know who I--" Azure caught movement out of the corner of his eye, and he turned, seeing, of all things, the stone statue from earlier that blinked at him, now swinging its violin, using its hooves like those hands that one unicorn always went on about. The cyan unicorn didn't distract himself with trying to remember that mare's name, though; he was too busy avoiding the attack. The statue brought its violin down at Azure, who stared wide-eyed at the moving granite, which now stood like any other pony would.

"That's it!" Though the statue was clearly that of a mare, the same voice of a male came from its moving mouth. "That's the look I want to see!"

"Is this your idea of a joke!?" Azure growled, recovering from the fact the statue was now very much moving.

"Hardly," the statue continued in that same baritone voice, "This, my little pony, is just a warm-up for what's to come..."

This has got to be what the Princess just got done telling me about... Azure thought, just as the statue moved again, attacking again, as Azure jumped away from the club strike. The violin cracked on the ground this time. The statue looked up, wordlessly. Something's clearly wrong here...

The statue, in clear violation of pony biology, began running toward him on its hind legs, dragging the instrument behind it as it charged. Azure stood his ground, his horn lighting up as this happened.

"I'm not your little pony, friend!" Azure shouted out, firing off a charged laser shot at the statue, which made no effort to dodge the attack. The cyan bolt hit its mark, causing the statue to crumble. Here, Azure could see wires extending off the rock chunks, almost like marionette strings.

"Well, well..." It was the same voice, now coming from above. The source, however, was obscured save for what looked like a griffin's claw hanging off the side of a pink cloud. The claw was holding a wooden construct which the wires were attached to. "You certainly live up to your reputation, Azure: shoot first, think later, worry about injuries after the dust settles."

A snake's tail extended off the edge of the pink cloud. A figure moved above it, slapping the cloud away with its tail and revealing the form of something Azure couldn't even process what it was he was looking at.

Who let Dr. Mare-in-stein out of the novel...? Azure thought to himself, noting all the various parts the creature was composed of.

"Allow me to introduce myself!" it declared, dropping the wood to the ground in front of Azure. The creature coiled its way down to maybe ten feet above the ground. "I am not a friend of anypony, nor do I want to be! This world is merely a playground for me! I am the harbringer of chaos, disharmony, and have been known to stir up storms of chocolate milk......My name? Discord!"

"'Discord'?!" A voice called out, one that Azure knew. "Is that why an unscheduled, off-color cloud went towards Ponyville just now!?"

Azure turned, immediately spotting his cousins and blind friend. Virid had been the one to make the comment. Silver couldn't see the being in front of him, but Virid and Blitz looked especially surprised.

"Ah, Virid Strategem, Crimson Blitz...Azure's cousins, I presume?" Discord asked of them. "Who taught him everything he knows: magic and xenophobia?"

"What?" Crimson asked, flatly, just as taken aback as Azure was about his foreknowledge.

"Virid, I really must commend you for your attitude towards non-unicorns," Discord continued, "It's a crying shame that others haven't followed your example...those days were plenty chaotic..."

"What are you talking about?!" Virid called out, "Azure attacked me!"

"Indeed he did..." Discord said, sounding almost as though he approved of that, "It's always such a treat when family members attack one another..."

"Forgetting someone?" Silver asked.

"Oh, my apologies," Discord replied, sounding just as sarcastic as possible, "Who could forget about the blind pony, Silver Espada? Tell me, how is your echolocation treating you?"

"Oh, it's treating me, alright," Silver responded, "It's treating me to a disgusting feel, coming directly from you...I can't even see you legitimately, but I know you're bad news..."

"That's right, you can't see..." Discord took on a pitying tone. "Why don't I fix that..."

Azure turned back to Discord fully. All functioning eyes were on Discord's lion's paw, which snapped two of its claws. For a moment, nothing happened. Then, Silver gave a shout.

"I...I can see...?!" Silver called out.

"Silver, everypony knows you can't see," Azure said flatly, "I've asked you enough times to know..."

Silver didn't respond straight away, which concerned Azure. He turned, seeing Silver gazing about the world around him with wonder, through eyes that weren't pale and blind, but, surprisingly, red, and definitely able to see.

"See?" Discord said from behind him, "Even I have a sense of helpfulness once in a while..."

At what cost? Azure thought, noting Silver usually had his senses right when it came to creatures and ponies alike.

Silver looked around, his eyes squinting. Azure assumed it was because of light; Silver had probably seen it for the first time. Azure and Silver met eyes, and Azure felt compelled to ask something.

"Silver..." Azure stated, "What color am I?"

Silver's eyes moved, but what he said next baffled Azure.

"What?" Silver asked, sounding confused.

"I asked you what color I am," Azure said, a little louder.

"What??" Silver questioned, now sounding concerned.

"Silver?!" Azure said, and Virid and Blitz gasped as the realization dawned on them. Blitz immediately moved in front of the formerly blind pony.

"Silver, can you hear me?" Blitz asked, point-blank, in a loud and clear voice.

"What?!" Silver now sounded angry, and directed his next question at Discord, taking two steps forward past Blitz. "What have you done to me!?"

"I would tell you, Silver," Discord said, smugly, "But I'm afraid you wouldn't be able to hear the news..."

Azure felt a lead weight settle into his stomach. His wounds from earlier didn't even matter now. He felt the familiar surge of magic enter him, as it so often did when he was well and truly furious, and his eyes began to glow a brilliant cyan.

"You made Silver deaf..." Azure said, in a dangerously low voice.

"It's just the trade-off you get," Discord said, "in a world of chaos..."

With this, Azure snapped, "What kind of trade-off...! I don't care who you think you are, Discord, but you won't get away with this!!"

"Oh?" Discord questioned, amused, "But I'm afraid I have, Azure..."

Azure gave a feral shout, far past the point of caring if this was going to be a repeat of his performances against Nightmare Moon.

"Azure!!" Blitz called out, in a warning tone.

"Hold on, you idiot!" Virid said soon afterward, but Azure barely heard them...
-----------------------
"Twilight, are you alright?" Rarity's voice brought Twilight out of her daydream. For some odd reason, she had stayed at the library long after Azure left. Neither complained, least of all Spike.

"I'm just fine," Twilight responded, turning away from her book, "Why do you ask?"

"Well...to begin with, darling," Rarity began, "You picked up that book nearly ten minutes ago and you haven't passed the first page yet."

Twilight blinked for a moment and looked; Rarity was definitely right. She knew she should have been further along in the book than she was, at least a sixth of the way given the book's size.

"And secondly, you are holding the book upside down..."

Twilight blinked a second time, turning the book back to its cover. The title was illegible, and the cover art was clearly, well, upside down. Twilight blushed lightly from the revelation.

"Something on your mind, darling?" Rarity questioned. The question hit Twilight hard; she flinched and began rubbing her foreleg, looking everywhere but at Rarity, feeling embarrassed about it. She knew it was the truth, but still...

"W-well, ever since Azure left for Canterlot, I've felt a bit uneasy," Twilight relented after a bit of silence, rubbing at one foreleg briefly.

"Is this about what he almost said?" Rarity asked. Twilight knew where it was going; she knew Rarity loved romance novels; no doubt what she saw the two do right before he had to leave was probably straight out of one. Whatever the case, it was this in the end: Azure had left, and Twilight suddenly felt familiar pains flare up in her chest.

"W-we don't know if he was going to say that for sure..." Twilight trailed off, sounding more defeated than she thought she felt; she thought she didn't feel defeated at all.

"You know," Rarity said, "Let's not think about it right now. How about we go outside and enjoy the fresh air?"

It wasn't an offer, it was a command. Especially since Rarity was practically pushing her to the door.

"W-well," Twilight said, "It's not like I'm getting any reading done..."

"I'm glad you see my point..."

In a few moments, the two unicorns were outside of the library, out through the front door. Twilight gave a slight giggle.

"Okay, okay, no need to shove..." Twilight turned and poked her head back through the door, "Spike, watch over the library while I'm gone," she said, with Rarity soon closing the door behind them. The two of them began to walk around town, seeing the sights and greeting the ponies busy with repairing damages from the earlier assault.

"See, doesn't this feel better?" Rarity asked, to which Twilight let out a content sigh.

What am I thinking... Twilight thought to herself, A pony wouldn't go through all that trouble if he didn't mean it...

"Alright, Rarity," The purple unicorn spoke up, "I will admit this cleared my mind..."

"See?" Rarity continued, "Just keep your mind off what may or may not been said. Even with all that happened earlier, it still is a wonderful day. Ponies are smiling and laughing, the sky is clear blue, and the clouds are speeding through the sky, colored pink..."

There was an awkward pause.

"Rarity...?" Twilight questioned, arching her brow, turning to the unicorn opposite her before both sets of eyes trailed upward. Immediately, Twilight stared in utter shock.

"The clouds are pink!?" Twilight exclaimed, "But how...why?!" Rarity soon entered her focus again, but the white unicorn's focus was elsewhere.

"What's coming out of that cloud...?" Rarity questioned, "Oh dear, Twilight, look out!"

Rarity immediately jumped away from the cloud, and Twilight sidestepped, seeing a brownish liquid seeping out of the pink cloud. Her mind tried to avoid considering the worst-case implications of that, but before she could try, somepony gave a shout.

"Stampede!"

Twilight and Rarity turned, seeing a sight they'd only seen once before. Rabbits were running into town. However, as the figures drew closer, the two unicorns quickly realized the wildlife were off model...badly.

"Are those rabbits!?" asked Twilight, totally in shock from the utter randomness of the events happening. The rabbits in question had spindly, deer-like legs, and were taller than most ponies with the aid of the four-foot-tall legs.

Twilight and Rarity avoided the oncoming stampede incredibly easily, but this wasn't normal. Both unicorns looked to each other, but the white pony spoke first.

"Twilight, please tell me I'm in a nightmare..." Rarity said, "One preferably caused by a fever..."

"I wish I could say that, Rarity, but this is actually happening..." Twilight continued, "But why? Was it because of those ponies?"

Twilight shook her head, "Figure this out later, Twilight...Come on, Rarity! I don't know what all this means, but we need to make sure the others are okay!"

The two began to take off through the town, trying to put the chaotic happenings out of their minds for the time being. However, Twilight remained fixated on the situation.

Why did everything get so...chaotic, all of a sudden?
-----------------------
It was a shock to those that could see and understand what was happening in front of them. Which, this time, included Silver, Blitz, and Virid; Silver having been somehow granted eyesight in exchange for his hearing. From what he gathered before his hearing was shut off, Silver sensed a truly disgusting presence which he could now see with his own two eyes. Blitz and Virid, from what they understood from Princess Celestia's testimonials, knew that Discord had been sealed in a statue, and was a big deal.

All of these things, however, were violated by what they were witnessing. Azure, probably the most angry he'd been in a good while, was beating about the dragonequus as though he were made of rubber. Azure would spring up, landing a good back kick into the face of the creature. He would then follow this up with a few lasers sent after him. Typically, this would result in Discord redirecting their course away from him with his own magic, but all the same, a few managed to slip past him and make contact.

"Could it be that being in stone all those years weakened him?" Virid asked, looking on as his cousin continued to thrash about the self-proclaimed harbinger of havoc around. Silver said nothing, unable to hear the ongoing conversation anyway.

Azure threw out a few fire spells, which caused Discord to summon more of his pink clouds to douse the fire with what looked like chocolate milk. This didn't stop Azure from being able to leap off said clouds. The clouds stretched a bit as he did so.

"What are those clouds made out of?" Blitz questioned aloud, "They aren't like the regular clouds across Equestria..."

"If I had to guess," Virid said, "I'd say...cotton candy? Something sugary that would stretch like that. Azure's making liberal use of his magic here..."

"Not that he has a choice..." Blitz responded. "Weakened or not, in order to keep up with it...from what I see, he's gotta keep it up."

"I can't hear anything you guys are saying," Silver cut in to break up the round of observations, "But shouldn't we help him?"

"From my viewpoint, Silver," Virid said, forgetting Silver's hearing was wiped out for the time being, "Azure's got it under control."

When no response came, Virid continued, "Hey, did you hear me?"

"Virid, he's deaf!" Crimson reminded him, "Remember?"

Virid shook his head, "Right. I'm so used to his sight being null and his hearing being strong it's hard to adjust..."
-----------------------
Azure dispensed his rage, getting close to Discord and landing just about as many hits as he could to that creature's smug face while he could see it. His horn was pretty much alight through the whole deal, casting gravity spells left and right to escape Discord's tricks; gummy clouds and redirected lasers be unexcused. The pony landed another fierce cross after leaping up again, causing the dragonequus to stumble back. Azure landed on the ground, panting.

"Why don't you just go back into your statue!?" Azure called out, "You're not wanted around these parts anyway!"

"It doesn't matter to me," Discord responded, sounding as if he were in pain from Azure's assault, "whether you ponies want me around here or not," He coughed, "I'm here to stay..."

"Doesn't look like it to me..." The cyan unicorn responded, charging a laser on the tip of his horn, "Now, you have two options: the easy way, where you be a good monster and go back into your statue, or the hard way, where I send you back anyway!"

"Like you could do such a thing!" Discord called out, spiraling towards Azure.

"Only one way to know for sure!" The unicorn in question responded, letting out a max power laser shot at the general direction of the dragonequus. The shot made contact right in between Discord's eyes, but when it made contact, the laser instead sent a shockwave down his body, causing him to shatter into pieces like a porcelain teapot.

The others gasped at what they saw. Even Azure didn't expect what happened, his eyes ceasing to glow.

"What the--" Azure said, "That wasn't..."

"Azure...!?" Silver asked, "I know he was a jerk and all, but...I think that's pushing it a little..."

"Wow..." Virid finally spoke up, after a hefty silence, "Didn't think I'd see a threat neutralized in such a brutal way..."

Azure turned to Virid, and nervously said, "Jeez, you think I'll get in trouble?"

"You're already in trouble..." Discord's disembodied mouth spoke up, directly next to Azure's left rear hoof. The four colts gasped in unison, and began looking at the scattered parts of the spirit of chaos: they were all moving on their own. "Gotcha!"

"You...!?" Blitz questioned.

"You really thought he had me all under control?" Discord's various chunks began to float, "Hah! Only harmonic magic can possibly contain me! With that pesky Knight out of the picture, and the Bearers still a good city away from here, I still have some free reign!"

Discord's chunks began to hover together ominously. The disembodied lion's limb reached up towards the head.

"Hm, speaking of which, I'm afraid I'm just about out of time..." Discord said, "Sorry, my fine gentlecolts, but I really must be going..."

The griffin's claw floated away from the body at this moment, heading straight for Crimson, who braced himself for an attack.

"What are you flinching for?" Discord mocked openly, "I don't usually kill my opponents..."

The griffin's claw hovered centimeters from the bridge of Crimson's nose, "But I've no time to play games with each of you...So why don't I just cut to the chase?"

The claw tapped Crimson, and Crimson's eyes began to alter into weird colors as he went into a sort of trance.

"Crimson!?" Silver called out.

"What the heck?!" Virid said soon afterward.

"His color...!?" Azure pointed out. It was true: every bit of color on Crimson's body, his fur, what little color in his tail and mane, even his eyes, when they stopped rapidly changing color, and his armor, lost their color, replaced by a sickly gray hue.

Crimson came out of the trance, sighting Azure, "Yo, Blue, still having those paranoid fits over everything!?"

It was so unlike Crimson to say something like that, and everypony knew it.

"That's better..." Discord said.

"You little--!" Virid said, his horn lighting up in amber light as he prepared to blast the still chunked-up griffin's claw.

"Ah, ah, ah," The pieced-up chaos creature said, "I'm in control now, Virid!"

The griffin's claw beelined between Virid's eyes, and the same thing happened; Virid lost his color, horntip to tailtip, armor and fur and eyes. When he recovered, he began to speak up, in a manner that wasn't him at all. In fact, it was actually worse than usual from him.

"Ah, jeez! What wastes of magical talent am I looking at?!" Virid announced, taking a step back as though disgusted. "I can't stand the look of you!"

"The feeling is mutual, Green Booger!" The obviously-also-incorrect Blitz shouted back, taking a step toward Virid, who took a step back.

"Go away!" Virid called out, "I don't wish to be around wasted magic!"

"Too bad," Crimson said, "Fight me, right now, you little..."

"I don't have time!" Virid grunted, stamping off with Crimson chasing him, horn flared in white as opposed to purple, "I must go tell that idiot captain of ours he doesn't know anything about magic! He must know the waste of talent that plagues us all!"

As his cousins disappeared in the distance, Azure felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. It was obvious that Discord had done something to them with his touch, and said touch was about to be mimicked on Silver's forehead as well. Silver backed away, unable to hear anything and still unused to sight.

"Silver! Watch out!" Azure forgot in his haste Silver couldn't hear him. As soon as he recalled that, he tried to run forward, only to be caught by the hind leg by the fully-reformed lion's paw of Discord.

"It's too late..." he sneered, most of his body already back together as well. His griffin's limb had also reformed fully, but was still over by Silver, landing that poke between the eyes. Like with Azure's own cousins, Silver's colors melted away, as he bowed his head, his eyes now obscured by the white mane. For a second, Azure said nothing, sure he couldn't hear him.

"Don't worry," Discord said in a mocking tone, "He'll hear you this time...But he won't be able to see what I will..."

"Silver...?" Azure asked, tentatively. He'd already seen this twice before and he wasn't sure what the color-drained Silver would be like, "Silver? Can you hear me?"

"I'm done..." Silver said quietly, almost robotically, like all the life had been sucked out of him.

"What?" Azure questioned. This wasn't like Silver at all either...

"I'm done, Azure!" Silver's head snapped up. His eyes were clearly milky again, and it was clear Silver had heard him this time. There was nothing but hatred in those blind eyes, not at all the Silver he knew, "I'm done helping you when you're in trouble! I came here with your idiot family members, to help, and all I saw was an idiot colt that never thinks about anything he's done! That's all you are, Azure! You never think things through and you never stop to think about who you might hurt until after the fact! By then it's too late!"

Azure was caught completely off-guard. Behind him, the reassembled Discord sneered, completely amused by what he was seeing. If Azure wasn't so focused on the gutpunch he'd just received, and had seen the smile, there was no telling how furious he would be.

"If I could have heard what you'd said during all that, I'm sure it'd be the same: a self-righteous foal that knows nothing, nothing at all about how the world works and relies on other ponies to help him do it!" Silver said. "You won't be getting that help from me, anymore..."

Silver turned his back. Azure was crushed. This was his foalhood friend, turned into an absolute...jerk wouldn't even begin to describe it. For the first time that day, Azure hung his head, his own eyes now obscured by his mane.

"Never talk to me again, Azure. You've done enough damage as it is..."

Silver began to casually trot away. Azure's ear twitched as he registered the sound of unapologetic maniacal laughter behind him.

"Oh, I bet that stung!" Discord said, putting a limb on Azure while making it abundantly clear he loved the sight of what had just happened, "Did it sting? Tell me, Azure...how does it feel to have your family turn away from you? How does it feel, Azure, to have your foalhood friend turn his back on you? I bet it must have felt absolutely terrible..."

Azure shot Discord the nastiest death glare he'd ever given in his life, rage completely settling in. He wasn't stupid, he knew Discord did something to them...

"Oh, don't give me that look," Discord said, floating back again, "You've brought this upon yourself through your actions!"

Azure shot a charged laser spell before he even knew he was charging it. He was beyond enraged, his eyes glowing brilliantly cyan. The spell made contact with a smug Discord, his body popping open like a party ball with confetti shooting out everywhere.

"You were the one who did that to them!" Azure yelled, looking around as a fog began to settle in the statue garden. "This is your fault, not mine!"

"The first stage is denial..." Discord stated, once more sounding like he was all around Azure, "Naive ponies like yourself tend to live in this stage...You can't see it, can you? The consequences of your actions...and how they affected those close to you?"

"I'm getting really tired of hearing your voice..." Azure groaned.

"You don't believe me? Well, that's true. Anypony who keeps secrets tends to never owe up to them..." the invisible enemy continued. Azure heard the rustle of paper and turned straight ahead. In front of him, an impossibly huge scroll of paper unfurled in front him, but it was blank. "Let me show you..."

Azure was shocked at what he was seeing projected onto the blank canvas. "That's..."

"That, Azure, is the day you left for Ponyville. You met five of six mares that would become your charges--excuse me--your friends, the Elements of Harmony...If I recall correctly, you didn't want to have anything to do with them..."

As Discord continued to talk, images of Azure's first meeting with each of the then-future Bearers began to play in front of him. "With Twilight, the feeling was certainly mutual. Neither of you had any idea you were each other's foalhood crush until recently...As poetic as Romeo and Juliet..."

"What...?" Azure seethed through his teeth, unable to come up with a response.

"A tragic romance..." He could almost hear the sneer; Azure reached his limit, incinerating the paper with a fire spell.

"What are you trying to say, Discord!?"

"Oh, so impatient!" Discord scolded from nowhere, "Just the same...Fine, I'll get to the point. You may think yourself to be this all important 'protector' of the elements, but in reality, you're nothing more than a double-edged sword." The fog reached its maximum thickness, obscuring any and all light.

"All your actions and approaches have been, as Silver put it, idiotic..." Discord taunted around, "You merely 'shoot first, think later'... You never once considered the consequences of what you were doing. And when the consequences came back to haunt you, you couldn't even figure out what to do next on your own. Or perhaps, you didn't want to..."

Azure heard movement out of one ear, firing a laser in that direction. He didn't hear it make contact with anything, and gritted his teeth.

"If I hesitate, you're just gonna hurt more innocent ponies!" Azure called out into the darkness.

"Oh, like you haven't hurt the innocent before..."

"I haven't!"

"Have you forgotten?" Discord questioned, "How callous, forgetting how easily you toyed with both the hearts of Applejack and Twilight?"

Azure took in a deep gasp.

"No consideration at all...they were like putty in your hooves....You enjoyed it, didn't you? They were waiting for your choice...How long did it take? To them, it must have felt like centuries..."

Does he really understand what went on there...?

"Shut up!" With more rage than he had ever felt before, Azure let off laser after laser into the darkness, "Shut up! SHUT UP!! I didn't realize what I was doing until it was too late!!"

After about ten lasers into the darkness, Azure stopped, hearing nothing more than more of the same unapologetic laughter around him, sweat running down his face.

"In the end, Azure," His voice was right next to his ear, taunting him, "Even your final decision on that whole matter was a heat of the moment thing..."

"No...it wasn't..."

Was it, though...? Was I wrong...?

"So if Applejack was the one to be taken, would your decision have stayed the same?"

Azure was completely unaware there was a stain of gray forming over his heart.

I...

"As I thought...In the end, you ended up stealing one mare's heart, and destroying another's...Applejack may have told you everything was okay, that there were no hard feelings...But did you believe that was the case?"

The fog began to lift. Azure looked up, feeling himself grow more and more confused as doubt began to glide into his mind.

"To have the colt she had grown feelings for, choose another mare, to have to see them together time and time again, I can only imagine how that stung..." Discord continued, "But what do you care? In the end, you got what you wanted..."

I...

Azure gasped when the fog fully lifted. He could see it, all around him, broken statues, no doubt a result of the lasers he fired into the fog. Dozens of them were around him, all of them ponies he loved or cared about. All of them were shattered to the point it took Azure a few seconds to realize which one it was. However, right in front of him, were Twilight and Applejack, the most beyond repair out of all of them.

I...I'm a monster...

The stain spreading rapidly over his body, just as it had with his friends, Azure began to fade; or rather, the Azure that the other ponies knew.

"Who cares about the collateral?" Discord asked. Azure felt himself reject the impulse to turn around, as though doing such a simple thing was the decision of a lifetime, but he forced himself with all of his remaining will. For some reason, Azure didn't remember Discord being so tall...

I...I...I'm...scared...!!!
-----------------------
Discord could only feel satisfaction at what he'd accomplished, watching the color drain from the pony that was once Azure Courage. His eyes flashed multiple colors as his colors finished draining, but Discord snatched the headband away, before that too could lose its color, and flipped the headband inside.

"Courage..." Discord mused, "That's not you anymore..." Discord released it to an errant wind. He didn't quite care where the band ended up. Azure didn't resist. The swirls left his eyes; his coat, mane and eyes down to grayscale. While Discord hadn't performed a riddle in a while, he'd figured he'd brush up on the art before going to the main course.

"The protection you offer is not commendable. Your protector status shows you find them expendable. Your decisions have wrought them nothing but pain, all for your own selfish gain. Your going to Ponyville was naught but a huge mistake. So tell me, Azure, what path will you take?"

Azure looked up, clearly terrified of the closest wind current, never mind him. Discord had never enjoyed breaking a pony so much, and he was only warming up.

"I...I have to leave..." Azure responded, sounding both sad and scared. The pony once known for courage bolted. Discord laughed as he watched the grayed-out protector recede away from the statue garden. He looked to the nearby hedgemaze, and grinned. He knew what he'd do to the actual Bearers, but first thing was first, he needed to get the Elements.

A snap of talons later, Discord had warped himself behind what he knew Celestia called a "sealed door". He knew he didn't have much time, so he quickly went to the box, and flicked the lid, causing it to spring open like a cash register. The six Elements were there.

"It couldn't hurt to try..." Discord said to himself, reaching down towards the Element of Kindness at random. "Perhaps since they're dormant, I can just infect the Elements with chaos, and be done with it...even if they should somehow emerge unbroken, it'd be nice to have a contingency pl--"

His magic surged to his talontip as he mused over his plan, dead-set on infecting the elements themselves. However, a countersurge of magic came out of the otherwise dormant element, and Discord felt pain surge up through his griffin's limb.

"Ow!" To him, it was like a mousetrap had just closed on his finger, but it was definitely enough. He sighed aggressively. "The six things I have not mastered..." He laid a talon on the tiara of the Element of Magic, finding just touching it alone did not hurt him. He then set the still-open box down where he got it, and with a nonaggressive application of his magic, began to float the elements themselves, closing the box behind him.

"Even if I cannot corrupt these directly and ensure they have no chance of fighting back, I can still send them through some twists and turns...By the end of it...all hope in Equestria will be broken...and I can not wait to see the look on Princess Celestia's face when she sees all her subjects lying in mental ruin..."
-----------------------
Azure had put at least a good two miles between himself and that strange being before he stopped. He had no idea where he was, but he knew what he needed to do.

He needed to move back in with his mother as soon as possible. There was nothing else he could do, utterly convinced of his failure in protecting the Elements from himself. Twilight and Applejack had been hurt bad, and he was now filled with confusion and doubt, not just over that, but over all of his decisions up until now. He knew, however, that moving back to Canterlot was for the best.

He looked around himself, the world all appearing completely gray. He saw ponies being chased by popcorn machines gone mad, light gray clouds raining chocolate milk indiscriminately on ponies. Azure didn't care. He was too focused on his inner turmoil, his fear.

With an aggressively mournful sigh, Azure closed his eyes and began trotting back to Ponyville, only to get his belongings and get out.

"What am I gonna tell them...?" Azure thought to himself, his voice dry and devoid of any emotion, "I can't say anything to them, but I have to choose something to say to explain what I'm doing..."

He wasn't paying any attention to where he was going...
-----------------------
Meanwhile, a blue band soared through the chaos, pushed by the wind. It bore the stitching "Courage", as well as an arch-shaped stitch of repair. The band sailed through the air, fluttering through the air like a injured bird. The winds shifted direction, blowing the band towards Ponyville, or rather, the place where its owner lived. The window had been left open, and a little chocolate milk had gotten through it; the sticky brown spots on the wood nearby proof of that. By mere chance, the band blew through the window...
-----------------------
After the chaos in Ponyville, Applejack wasn't sure what to think. Now, however, she knew who was to blame for it all. She and the others (except Spike, who remained behind, and Azure, who was still in Canterlot somewhere, she knew) had been summoned by Princess Celestia not too long after Azure left regarding the unexplainable incidents.

As it turned out, the cloaked ponies were far more trouble than they were worth, not only did they cause a still not-calculated amount of damage to Ponyville and Canterlot with their summons, the chaos they'd stirred up had released an old enemy of the princesses', Discord. He'd also stolen the Elements away, and in order to get them back, they had to solve his riddle.

"To retrieve your missing elements, just make sense of this change of events. Twists and turns are my master plan. Then find the elements back where you began..."

This riddle was the only clue he'd given. Twilight had deciphered that Discord hid them in the statue garden's maze. However, before they could go through the maze, Discord removed the horns--the magic--of the unicorns of the group, and the wings--the flight--of the pegasi.

After the walls came up to separate the six mares, Applejack had become convinced this game was no more than a farce, but nonetheless began the maze with the goal to reach the center, where the others were supposed to meet up, as Twilight suggested. However, the maze seemed to either be rearranging itself constantly, or she'd just had a bad sense of direction.

"Dead end again!" Applejack groaned, having ended up in yet another dead end. "I swear if I see just one more..." With a huff, she cut off her rant, preparing to find another way. She turned around, dead-set on doing so, when she heard movement. From personal experience, she knew sudden movement in a space like this wasn't exactly good, so she turned back around.

"What in tarnation...?!"

The wall blocking her way was sliding down into the ground like a door. As it slid away from her vision to reveal what was behind it, Applejack was understandably stunned. Right in front of her, behind the once-dead end, was a pony with his back turned to her. Spiky, green mane and tail, cyan fur.

"Az!?" Applejack called out, relief flooding into her, smiling. Azure turned around to face her, and a smile spread across his face. "It is you!" Throwing caution to the wind, Applejack quickly trotted up to Azure, not expecting to see him here; he wasn't there to start, which would explain why he still had his horn.

"So glad to see you..." Applejack said, closing her eyes, "How'd you--"

Something grabbed hold of her. Her eyes shot open, and she saw Azure's head at her side, eyes closed, forelegs around her in a very tight hug...

"I'm so glad you're okay..." Azure said, "I don't know what I'd do if you got hurt..."

Maybe it was the way he said it, maybe she still did hold on to some feelings deep down, but whatever the case, she blushed heavily.

E-everypony knows what you'd do...Az...

"I-I'm okay, A-Az, really..." Applejack stuttered out. She didn't realize it yet, but her forelegs were slowly moving to close around Azure, as though guided against her will.

N-no! This ain't right...You've moved on, he's with Twilight now...!

Applejack put her hooves down.

"W-we need to find the others..." She stuttered out, quickly pushing Azure back and trotting a few steps away from him. She didn't want to look back, lest he see the look on her face.

But...

"Applejack, I'm starting to think I may have made a mistake..." Applejack stopped midstep, caught completely off guard by this admission. Applejack slowly circled around, and found herself looking into the face of Azure, eyes closed, smiling apologetically, like he'd done something wrong and was feeling bad about it.

Is...There still hope?

Casting aside the faint voice in her head, Applejack stuttered out another question, "W-what d-do you mean?"

"I mean...that I may have made the wrong choice..."

Applejack stopped moving. What had gotten into Azure today? She knew he was being honest, her intuition wasn't lying to her. Yet...

"I've had a lot of time to think and a lot of time to wonder if I had done the right thing back then." Azure stepped forward as he spoke up, his eyes still closed. Applejack felt her heart betray her, beating faster and faster.

Am I...dreamin'...? Am I lyin' to myself that I'm over him? Still...

"And it wasn't until now..." Azure stopped a few steps from Applejack, inches from her face.

This is wrong...I should...! But...!

Almost as though hypnotized, Applejack began to draw closer to Azure's face, lips parted, eyes slowing closing, him doing the same.

"I realized..." Azure's voice shifted suddenly.

Applejack's eyes shot open. Azure had stopped leaning in for the kiss, but they were still close.

"That toying with others," His voice was deeper, cynical, and not Azure. Azure's eyes opened, revealing yellow eyeballs and red irides, not at all pony eyes. "Is just too much fun!"

Applejack could only watch in horror as "Azure" began to contort, sprouting two different wings, his horn becoming replaced with two very familiar horns, and generally, morphed into the visage of the villain himself, and he was shooting her a very innocent-looking smile on top of it all.

"Discord!?" Applejack felt her relief turn to anger as Discord shifted to unapologetic laughter at her expense. But like every other joke he'd played on a pony, the humor was only his to enjoy; Applejack was no exception, quickly picking up a nearby rock and kicking it at him. Discord avoided it easily, still very smugly staring down the opposition. "What in tarnation are you trying to pull?!"

"Oh, Applejack, I was merely trying to prove a point..."

"What point?"

"Your heart still belongs to Azure Courage..." Discord said, flatly, "Even after all this time you still have feelings for him, don't you?" He floated around Applejack calmly, sneering all the while.

"N-no..." Applejack stated, "He's made his choice...I've moved on!" She turned to Discord, aiming to give him a glare. But instead, her eyes widely opened.

"I don't think you have..." Discord said. In his lion's paw, he held on to a picture. It was from moment's ago, when Applejack thought "Azure" was about to kiss her. She was clearly not trying to pack down, "Would a mare who's 'moved on' attempt to kiss the coltfriend of her best friend?" The picture fell to the ground.

"N-no...it's not like that..." Applejack defended, feeling absolutely horrible as she stared down at the photograph of what she had almost done. "I would never do that to Twilight!"

"Do what?" Discord asked, "Take back what you deserve?"

Applejack couldn't respond for some reason.

"Think about it, all your life you've always put other ponies first. Whenever somepony needs help you're the first to volunteer, and you do so without turning them down. You've done the right thing countless times, never once asking for anything in return. But when the time came that you truly wanted something, it was taken away from you...by a mare that has never learned loss!"

I...I... Applejack couldn't respond. His words hit hard...because somewhere inside her, Celestia-knows-where, she did hold on to feelings for him.

"Twilight has had it all her whole life!" Discord continued matter-of-factly, his eyes changing to multi-colored swirls that Applejack felt herself be caught in. The eyes bored deep into her core, and try as she might they were pulling out her very essence, replacing it with something cold and nasty. And there was nothing she could do but look on, almost slack-jawed. "Upper class in Canterlot, school for gifted unicorns, and need I remind you she's Celestia's personal protege? I suppose the next thing she's gonna have is a princess promotion!" Discord blew a raspberry at the thought. "She already has everything! She hasn't lost a thing!"

"What have you lost, Applejack? Your parents...your crush..." Discord continued, "You don't have a whole lot! So tell me, who deserved him more?"

"Her?"

Discord materialized a large parchment in front of the hypnotized gaze of the mare. It was a picture of Azure and Twilight together, sitting comfortably on the sofa. Azure was holding Twilight warmly as she read a book. They looked as happy as possible. Applejack felt ice stab straight into her, as patches of gray began to manifest all over her body and hat.

"Or you?"

The picture changed. It was at the orchard, Azure leaning up against a tree, eyes closed, content smile. Instead of Twilight there, it was her, equally content o be in his hooves. Applejack raised her hoof towards the picture, as though trying to see it up close. Before she could get any closer, it disappeared in a puff of smoke. That was it.

That city girl don't deserve no more than she's got...

"Will you continue to lie to yourself? After all, Azure could still be lying too...maybe he's scared of what'll happen to him if he doesn't..." Discord chuckled, not that Applejack caught that.

"I..."

"Go on..."

"I..."

"Yes..."

"I deserve to have him!" Applejack vocalized as the last of her fell away, leaving her a grayed-out husk of her former self. Even her hat lost its color. "Not her!"

Discord had vanished, laughing maniacally about what he'd accomplished, bridging the neighboring path...
----------
"Applejack?" The now-earth pony Twilight Sparkle approached Applejack as the hedge fell away. Applejack looked...different, for some reason, but she just couldn't put her hoof on it. However, Twilight was happy to see one of her best friends in the maze. Applejack, however, didn't look too thrilled to see her.

"Thank goodness," Twilight continued, "I thought I heard voices over here..." Twilight looked around, seeing no other ponies around. "Who were you talking to?"

Applejack had trotted past Twilight without a word, which was unusual for her. However, when the two faced each other again, Applejack looked elsewhere for a brief instant as her face scrunched up.

"Nopony!" She quickly said, but then she made eye contact with Twilight immediately afterward, only to look away the other way. "Not that it's any of your business."

Applejack sounded unusually angry. Twilight was unsure of what happened, but she just didn't know what it is. Perhaps the stress of the day was beginning to get to her, too...

"A-are you okay, Applejack?"

"I'm fine!" Applejack quickly turned away, pointing her nose straight up into the air and speedtrotting off. "Let's hurry and get the elements!"

What's gotten into her...? Twilight thought, but she was unable to name the cause. She proceeded with her weirdly decolored friend, wondering what exactly had happened.

Azure...Where are you...?

Author's Notes:

I'm gonna get this out of the way now...you will NOT see all of Discord's antics from the canon; the ones that don't change anyway. I could barely stand to write the ones he has done thus far, to say nothing of what he will do. But, you know, this arc is needed.

Let me make one thing absolutely clear: No. I do NOT believe in Tyrantlestia. Further explanations will be saved for after the arc is over...provided I have the countenance to make it another three chapters. And once we're through Chapter 41, Discord will never appear in this story again with so much as a thinking part, never mind a speaking part. So enjoy it while it lasts, if you're the kind of guy that enjoys psychological torture as comedy. The rest of you, please, stick around, while I try to make it through this arc.

...Is it painfully obvious I don't want you to like Discord here?

Chapter 39: A Storm of Chaos

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Chapter 39: A Storm of Chaos
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Azure was guided towards his home almost like a moth to a flame. The only thing he was convinced of was that he should leave Ponyville. All other things in the path, before, during, and after the move would be contemplated like an endless series of variables. The grayed-out, headband-less pony continued back to his home.

"Should I take the train station? Should I walk?" Azure asked himself, a strangely distant tone from his normal self now. He sounded much less confident in his ability to decide for himself what to do. "If I walk, it'll take me forever to get back...and leaving the others behind is best if I do it soon...But if I take the train, I could get mugged! I couldn't fight back...I might wind up doing them far more harm than necessary, without meaning to...But if I don't, everypony'll wonder what's wrong, and then they'll know..."

Azure continued in this haze of zero confidence, not even bothering to help ponies in need, ponies he would have otherwise helped with no questions asked. "I should walk...no...train...Walk...? Train...?"

If Azure were himself, he'd have already made up his mind to get to the train. He also wouldn't even be considering this action in the first place, but he clearly wasn't himself, to anyone who cared enough to know him.

"I can't do anything right..." Azure lamented, continuing his path, "Can't even do something simple right...I'm a worthless excuse of a pony..."

The pony continued onward, dragging his hooves, trying to stall, as the sub-decisions of his move began to pile up.

"When I get there, should I really tell the others? Should I hang around long enough to explain things?" the corrupted Azure continued, "Should I...leave without explaining anything?"

Azure trotted along, dragging his hooves, trying to delay himself as much as possible. "Train...hooves...train...hooves...explain...don't explain...explain...don't explain..."

There was a cry of terror that Azure definitely heard, but he didn't even so much as look towards the potential danger. He just didn't care for other ponies enough right now.
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"What are you two doing?!"

Shining slid back, leaping away from grayish lasers. He wasn't quite sure what was up with his subordinates, but Crimson Blitz and Virid Strategem were definitely different. Even their armor seemed to have lost color; and Virid didn't seem to care that his armor was buffed out.

"Doing what needs to be done, you novice..." Virid sneered, "You need to know how worthless your magic is!"

"C'mon, Cap," Crimson taunted, "You know you can't beat us..."

Shining gritted his teeth.

"I'm not sure what's gotten into you two," Shining said, horn alight in a violet glow. "But I'm gonna take a page from your cousin's book...and knock some sense in your heads the old-fashioned way!"
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The hedgemaze was full of twists and turns, for sure, Twilight realized. At each turn she found one of her friends somehow twisted, no color and acting not at all like themselves. Pinkie was acting completely abrasive and way too defensive. Even smiling at her was bound to set her off now. Rarity was forcing her to lug around a gigantic rock that she was convinced was a diamond...somehow. Fluttershy was just plain mean now, not at all like her sweet self. And Rainbow, the one mare above all others who Twilight thought she could count on, was flying off. Though Applejack had obviously lied before that there wasn't anything wrong with her, this time, she was lying: there was Rainbow Dash, clearly flying off.

"How can that be?"

The earth began to quake as thunder roared around the lot, the sky overran with dark clouds--Twilight had to be sure they were not a shade of pink of any kind. There wasn't even any question as to what was happening.

"Well, well, well..." All heads whipped around to see Discord appearing from seemingly nowhere. "Somepony broke the 'no wings, no magic' rule," A snap of griffin's talons later, Rarity and Twilight had their horns back, while Fluttershy got her wings back. "Game's over, my little ponies. You didn't find your precious elements..."

Twilight couldn't hide her disbelief, and she could tell Discord relished in that fact as he gloated, "Game's over, my little ponies. You didn't find your precious elements...not that you had a chance in the first place..." Thunder roared again overhead as Discord conjured an unfolded umbrella out of thin air; the umbrella was actually inside-out without even any wind to make it so. "Looks like we might be in for a long-overdue big storm of chaos!"

His veritably mad laughter echoed around them as the others began to fight amongst themselves. Fluttershy was openly mocking Pinkie Pie, which severely annoyed the latter and amused the former. Applejack was maliciously lying about just about anything she could actually lie about. Rarity, meanwhile, was viciously protecting the large rock. It was like they were entirely different ponies.

What happened to them in that maze?

"Girls, why are you acting like this?" Twilight asked, but none of them seemed to care for her concerns, "We have to stick together!" Still nothing. Twilight's ears twitched, and she turned, watching Discord lay back on a couch, completely uncaring of the mess he'd made, munching on some popcorn.

"Stop it, Discord, you're not playing fair!"

"I'm not playing fair?" Discord questioned, "I'm sorry, perhaps we haven't met. I'm Discord, spirit of chaos and disharmony..." He got in Twilight's face, "It comes with the title! Besides, I'd say it's plenty fair...to me, anyway!"

"How are we supposed to find the Elements of Harmony when you took away the labyrinth before we could get to the end?"

"Oh, wait, did you--" Discord couldn't hide his amusement at the whole situation, "How funny, you thought the Elements of Harmony were in the labyrinth?" Discord asked, moving up beside Twilight. With a snap of his talons, a flash filled Twilight's eyes. She was now watching the events in the castle not too long ago. She could see the group, clearly with their colors intact, standing with Princess Celestia and listening to his riddle once more.

"Twists and turns are my master plan. Then find the Elements back where you began."

Another flash filled Twilight's vision. The two were now back in the present.

"I never said they were in the labyrinth," Discord said, still clearly beside himself. How humans like this guy is beyond me.

"But...but..." Twilight said, realizing they had all been given the run-around. Even before he started, he had, unapologetically, messed with them before he'd even lured them here.

"Keep trying, Twilight Sparkle," Discord continued to mock her efforts, "Maybe the magic of friendship can help you. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some chaos to wreak." With another snap of his talons, Discord vanished, leaving behind more of his calling cards: pink, cotton-candy clouds and chocolate milk rain.

"Chocolate?" Pinkie called out angrily, "I hate chocolate!"

"Think, Twilight, think!" Twilight grunted to herself, "Find the Elements back where you began..." She repeated this to herself a few times, trying to find out something she may have missed before. It was, however, hard to think with her friends continuing their out-of-character antics. Part of Twilight just wished they could be over with this so she could go home. She also wondered where Azure was in all of this. It wasn't like him to not be around in times like this. However, it finally occurred to her where she should look for the Elements.

"Wait a minute...home!" Twilight smiled.
--------------------------------------------------
Unfortunately, the solution to the problem was far harder to come by than Twilight realized it would be. Rarity refused to drop the rock, which she had taken to naming "Tom", so the group's pace was agonizingly slow. Not only that, but it seemed like reality around them was just getting more and more unpredictable. The ground seemed to change from dirt to other things, but it seemed like soap was the best. Not only that, but day and night were shifting every few minutes. Twilight wasn't sure what was going on. To add further insult to the whole situation, her friends were fighting amongst themselves the whole way there.

"And why are you laughing, huh?!" Pinkie yelled out, glaring at Fluttershy.

"Because it's funny."

"No it's not!"

"Then why am I laughing?" Fluttershy proceeded to let out several punctuated laughs for emphasis.

"Girls, stop!" Twilight yelled at them, trying to catch their attention. "We can't be fighting amongst ourselves. Now come on, we're almost to Pony-" Twilight turned back to where she knew home was, and let out a gasp at what she saw.

Ponyville was not normal. Buildings were floating in the sky. Some were upside down yet still connected to the patch of earth it stood on. Cotton candy clouds were everywhere; some random areas raining chocolate rain. The sky was now green, the ground now a plaid green-blue pattern.

"Do you like it?" With a flash of light, Discord appeared in front of Twilight and her friends, "Some of my best work if I do say so myself," He put his two vividly different arms to his sides as he admired his work.

"What have you done to Ponyville?!"

"Hey, compared to the state those other ponies left it in, I'd say it's an improvement..." Discord said, "Especially compared to the state you all seem to like it in, it's a big improvement!"

"Well, don't enjoy it for long, Discord, because as soon as we find the Elements you're going back to stone..." Twilight walked past Discord, only to find herself losing traction and sliding along the ground.

"Whoa!" She exclaimed before falling flat on her stomach and landing face-first into suds. That was only for a second before somepony crashed into her.

"Sorry," Applejack's voice abrasively called in. If Twilight didn't have eyefuls of suds she might have seen telltale signs on her friend's face it was just the opposite of the truth. However, Twilight began to rub the soap away from her eyes, squinting. As she began to finish wiping the suds away, she saw something; another pony. She couldn't make out the colors, but she definitely remembered the body shape.

Azure...!? Twilight thought to herself, getting the soap out of her eyes quickly. As soon as her eyes were clear, she saw there was no longer a pony there. Getting up, she looked around, still not seeing anypony else other than her grayed-out friends and a very smug-looking Discord.

"Did anypony else see that, I think I saw Azure..." Twilight said aloud. Most of the others didn't pay attention. Discord remained surprisingly passive for a creature that was probably still laughing quite openly on the inside, and Applejack...

"Az, where!?" She quickly snapped to full attention, looking around. Twilight definitely felt slightly suspicious at her very conspicuous smile, but opted not to say anything. After a few moments, Applejack's smile faded into a glare.

"I don't see him," Applejack said, "Now who's the liar?!"

Twilight felt slightly taken aback seeing Applejack so...aggressive, over what she thought was a dead issue, "I swear I thought I saw him..." Twilight said, "Really wish he was here right now..." Her worried glance would have been cared about, had her friends not been altered and were she not within inches of Discord.

"Oh, I bet you'd like that..." Applejack said, walking up to Twilight, "To have him show up every time you're lonely, just so he can comfort you..."

Over the earth pony's shoulder, she could see Discord with a tripod and a very conspicuous laugh, filming the spectacle for his own amusement.

"Bet you never even thought somepony else would like that too!" Applejack hissed, practically in Twilight's face.

"W-what's that supposed to mean?" The purple unicorn wasn't sure what had gotten in her friend. Applejack was scowling straight into her very soul for what felt like forever. Applejack eventually receded, letting out a huff.

"Nothin'," Applejack's face pinched again, "Don't we got Elements to find or somethin'?" Applejack walked away. Eventually, Twilight remembered she could move, and began again her way back to Ponyville.

Applejack...what's happened to you...? You and the others...?
--------------------------------------------------
Azure Courage knew one thing for sure: he couldn't face up to his friends. There was that strange abomination with them, too, who seemed to have opened his eyes to the havoc he himself had wreaked on their hearts with his unthinking ways. If he had been aware he was hypnotized, he'd have probably continued to deny the fact. However, as such, he was still unaware.

As for his decision on whether or not to take the train or walk, the decision had been made for him when he'd reached the train station and discovered that the trains had been changed into giant steel cobras. Had Azure been himself, he would have taken them on without hesitation. However, he wasn't himself. As soon as he saw the train-snakes, he immediately turned on his hoof and began sprinting away from the train station.

Now, his decision on whether or not to tell the others what he was doing was clear: he couldn't tell them at all what they were doing. Nopony bothered him; he could hear Applejack yelling at Twilight over him up there, and it made him feel horrible to be the one that caused it all. Not even the abomination from before that had opened his eyes to the "truth" of his actions seemed to notice him when he had shown around them.

The gutless pony continued to drag his hooves, finding the ground now an assortment of graham crackers. He didn't even care where he was going. He knew he was getting close to the end now. Soon, he'd be packing up and ready to leave Ponyville together. The pony continued to walk through the forest outside of Ponyville, steeped deeply in his own self-loathing and lack of ability to make a choice, when he somehow happened on a clearing.

The pony looked around, grayed-out eyes scanning the area. Something washed over him at this moment, something so intense he couldn't deny it was real...
----------
Azure had taken to meditating in this spot, to up his magic control. Very rarely did he get a lot of peace to get super deep into it. It was shortly after he was crowned the Protector. The unicorn had taken to it to keep his magic control up, and he knew he couldn't get a whole lot of peace even in his home since Pinkie knew where he lived.

However, this day was different. It was the day Virid and Crimson had visited, shortly after Azure had recovered from the whole situation with Trixie. He could see a pony who looked nothing like himself, facing against the very ponies that had entirely abandoned him themselves. To be precise, he had dueled Virid here, and had been losing, badly.

"If not for their numbers, the waste of space wouldn't be so bad, but seeing as how they are...they can't harness magic actively..." Virid said, in the past. "They have no worth. Come back to Canterlot with us, Azure. You should be able to find balance there..."

"You seriously believe what you're saying...?" Deep down, Azure faintly remembered this indignation...

"You've known me, how long, Blue Soap? I've always believed this..."

His past self's rage at his cousin's statement felt so distant yet so justified, so familiar yet so unlike how he should have acted. No...it was justified...who was he kidding...? The past Azure's horn roared to life...

"You fool! Whether you care to admit it or not, these ponies are not worthless! I won't ever be like you, Virid! I need them...I need them all! You've read my letters! I've shown why each one of them has their worth! But you ignore it in place of your magical bigotry! Magic use has no bearing on whether or not a pony is worthless! Yeah, sure, Crimson can increase his speed. Yeah, maybe you can change your magic to physical attacks! These six are the best of friends a pony could ask for! And that's why, Virid...that's why I won't lose to you!"
---------
Azure's eyes widened as the memory washed over him, but he quickly scoffed.

"What was I thinking..." Azure grumbled, rubbing his head. For some reason, it suddenly began to hurt for reasons other than the cuts that were still on his body. "Virid had the right to an opinion..."

Did he now...? A different voice asked from within. However, it didn't shake Azure's resolve to abandon those ideals he stated that very day. Or at least, it didn't shake it enough to make him stop and think about why he did the things he did, and what had really happened during each situation that Discord had called into question.

Azure trotted around again, trying to find his way through Ponyville. His home was on the complete other side of the town from Canterlot, but he didn't care. When he got home, he was moving, pure and simple. He continued his walk, past more troubled or altered ponies. However, as he happened upon a floating gingerbread house of sorts, Azure felt the sands of time wash over him again.
----------
Pinkie's spirit had been unshakeable, Azure knew. However, after the Shadow Fangs had attacked Applejack's farm and sparked the incidental attraction between them, Azure had went to check on each of his friends in turn, only to find them, for the most part, unconcerned, having faith in each other. However, when he got to Pinkie, he found something surprising...she wasn't exactly herself.

"You mean the spooky story you told?" Pinkie asked in reference to Azure's account of the two incidents prior to that winter; he'd told it to the ponies that didn't already know in Twilight's home just a few days prior.

"Didn't scare you too bad, did it?" The cyan colt repeated, making sure to keep his eyes on the mare's again.

"I'm not scared...It's just like my song..."

Pinkie sang again the song about giggling at the ghosties. Azure had his own solution to them at the time. While Pinkie had acted normally, Azure recalled there was something off about her...she seemed worried despite her cheery demeanor.

"Is that it, Azie? I need to get back to work so the Cakes don't think I'm not doing stuff..."

Azure remembered he'd picked up Pinkie's fear; it was strangely akin to his own at the time...

"You're scared for them, aren't you...? ... It's not that something might happen to you, it's that something might happen to the others..."

Pinkie's mane and tail deflated just a bit, tipping Azure off that he'd gotten it right. Azure would have been more convinced he'd hurt her, if his subconscious hadn't continued the scene.

"Pinkie, I can understand your fear...truth be told, I am too. But you don't need to be. They aren't helpless! Rainbow, Applejack, and Twilight can take care of themselves."

Azure remembered he hadn't included Rarity and Fluttershy in that list. In retrospect, maybe he should have, a voice echoed in the back of his head.

"I can tell you now, no matter what, I'll make sure our friends remain safe. I'll personally see to it none of our friends get hurt."

"You promise?" She looked to him, her eyes full of hope again. Not that they'd lost a great deal of it.

"I promise..." Azure smiled, but the look on his face quickly faded when he saw Pinkie's expression didn't immediately change. She started to smile, but she wasn't satisfied with just that.

"Uh-uh," The earth pony grunted the negative, "You have to Pinkie Promise."

"Cross your heart...Hope to fly, stick a cupcake in your eye."

"...Stick a cupcake in my eye..." Azure winced when he watched his past self do it.
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"Was I really this kind of pony...? Are all of my decisions really so harmful...?"
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"Thanks, Azie!" Again, her mood returned to the abnormal space he remembered it being ever since he'd known her. Quickly, Azure made the mental note to hurt the pony that would cause the mare to ever lose her smile, if only because the fact a sad Pinkie was a sight that depressed him just by schematic.

"Anytime, Pinkie..."

"Oh, and Azie? Nopony breaks a Pinkie Promise..."

"Don't plan on it..."
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The grayed-out Azure remained passively shocked. Was that memory true? Had he given comfort to a friend who he knew was not herself at the time? The memory of the "Pinkie Promise" he'd made intrigued him. There was no way...Weren't all of his decisions just "shoot first, think later"?

"I..." Azure stated, grimacing, as his head hurt more with the memory. "I...I have to get home..."

Azure began to walk, a much faster pace in his walk. He still walked past those in danger, still too afraid to help those accosted by possessed inanimate objects. However, if anypony could notice him as he passed them, they could see a very light, almost non-existent, spot of color among his gray, dismal coat.

Chapter 40: Remaining Hope

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Chapter 40: Remaining Hope
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Azure Courage, gray save for a spot of cyan over his heart, dashed through the rapidly degenerating Ponyville streets, feeling confused about exactly what he was doing. Up until remembering a time with Pinkie, he had been convinced all he was doing was hurting the mares he was charged to protect; never mind everyone around him. However, upon having that burst of memory, the unicorn felt indecision settle into him on this matter too.

"I have to know..." Azure's voice still sounded unsure and afraid, but he was regaining the guts he had not even a few minutes (or days?) ago forgotten all about. "...What mistake is the mistake I made...?"

The colt continued to his home close to the outskirts. Surprisingly, his home appeared untouched, save for a touch of random whipped cream that really didn't need to be there. Azure looked to the whipped cream, annoyed it was in his way, when another memory that didn't seem so distant as the other ones came rushing to him.
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"Will somepony please tell me what in the hay is goin' on here?!" Applejack yelled, stamping her hoof hard on the ground. At that precise moment, Azure felt his heart stop beating; more out of fear than anything else. Azure now felt his heart snap. It was like that creature had said...he really hadn't thought that one through...

"Okay, okay, calm down...this really isn't what it looks like at all..."

"Oh, really? 'Cause it really looks like you and Twilight found a way to keep warm during the night..." Rainbow Dash, always one to aggravate a situation.

"Rainbow!" The amount of anger in Applejack's voice was painful to hear. Meanwhile, Pinkie remained absolutely oblivious to what was going on.

"I hurt her...I hurt her bad...and I know it hurt Twilight too..."

"Well..." Azure started. "You remember the Shadow Ghoul attack on your farm, Applejack?"

"What's that got to do with--" Applejack started.

"Well, the reason why Twilight's wearing the glasses she's wearing now is because she's damaged her eyes doing a bit too much reading in poor light. I felt responsible, given I asked her if she could find a way to counter the summons so the unicorn summoning them would be weakened. Turns out light's their weakness. So, she came over here with those bags of books on spells, and we spent most of the night looking up light spells. We fell asleep before we could make it to bed..."

"Make it to bed, eh?" Rainbow Dash goaded.

"Oh, come on!" Azure yelled.

"Then why'd she come out lookin' like that?" Azure remembered the feeling of fear he'd experienced; now it was purely guilt in its place. Of course...he'd caused this! "Why'd you look like that? Huh? Explain that, Azure Courage!"

"That's right..."
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The cyan stain on Azure's gray body receded, as did the headache.

"I had hurt them, all because I was too focused on the problem..." Azure dragged his hooves through the door, finding nothing missing. He looked on his right, finding the saddlebag. He then went to his room, fully intent on packing things up. His horn lit up gray, not particularly caring at this point what order he put things in there, now just flat-out depressed about it all.

However, he stopped when he saw a hat, similar to Applejack's. It was his former color with a black strap around the crown. Azure stared at it, perplexed. He knew this was a gift from her right after she'd developed feelings for him, but didn't she take it back--

A memory hit him hard. This one roared through the fog in his mind, and Azure's eyes shot wide open, their color gradually returning...
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"Wait, Applejack!"

Applejack stopped at the door, clearly confused. Azure had picked up this very hat in his magic, and he felt very real feelings of regret for having lead her on like he had...ones that, no matter how much he or anypony else tried to deny they were an act at the time, were too genuine to be so.

"Unintentionally or not, I lead you on, and you're probably still hurting..." He relived the regret all over again. "You made this with your own hooves. If you want to take it back, I'll understand..."

Applejack took the hat in her mouth, almost at a loss for words. She removed the hat from her mouth with her hooves, and gave it back to him, putting it on his head. Oddly, Azure found himself remembering something was missing now that he thought about it...

"No, Az, I'll admit I had other reasons why I made that hat, but you still earned it. It's just my way of sayin' we're still friends..."
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Azure's now brown eyes were wide open, and he stared at the hat in disbelief. She had given it back to him when he tried to get her to do so, feeling unworthy for it given the circumstances behind it all.

"This..." Azure started, his head gradually starting to hurt once again, almost like something was threatening to burst forth from it; another horn, perhaps? He put his hoof to his forehead, in an alarming amount of pain. He looked around his room.

There, on a table he hardly used, was an object he hardly used; those goggles that Rainbow had gotten him...but that didn't make sense, didn't she just make things worse when they--
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"You're true blue, Az, just like me..."
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The memory hit him again. Rainbow and him were good friends, for sure. Azure twitched, looking to his bed. The blanket on it...wasn't that--
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"If you should ever find yourself...overwhelmed, I'll always be willing to listen."
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The pain seemed to have settled at the base of his horn, like a caged bird was ready to come out. Azure collapsed momentarily, the pain blinding.

"No..." Azure grunted, memories returning to him, "She...she called me...a two-timing...scoundrel...! But...why...? Why had she...helped me after...that...?"

Azure's eyes widened again...

"Friends...forgive...one another...?" Azure asked, almost like it was a fact that had eluded him. Which, given Discord's manipulations, shouldn't be so surprising.

More memories began piling on him now. It began to feel like his head was ready to tear apart starting at the base of his horn. Azure gave a sharp gasp. Memories of what he'd done for Rarity at the Gala in response to some royal pain, what he'd done for Fluttershy and what she had done for him when he needed it, what Pinkie had done for him without him even wanting the help...

And in turn, a lot of memories began flooding to him. Azure groaned, almost terrified were it not for the...invigoration? The memories seemed to be pumping life into him, and with that life came color, but even so, the color came back in patches. For every good memory that came back, a bad one came with it. But...the more of them that returned, Azure began to piece things together, what he was doing, what he was among harmony...

And why he had agreed to be the Protector in the first place...
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At the library, Twilight had finally managed to make her way back. Her friends had become even worse, openly tossing around a book that she was trying to look into to see if it held the clue she was looking for. However, she had finally managed to get said book, and discovered the elements inside. Fed up with today's events, the mare quickly assigned Spike the role of Rainbow Dash, who had taken off earlier and was nowhere to be seen. Despite Spike's objections, Twilight continued on.

"Alright, let's get this over with already," Twilight was irritated, and her voice and face showed it, walking out of the library, flanked by her now completely grayscale friends and Spike, who was continuing to voice his objections with having to play Rainbow so the Element of Loyalty had a wielder. "Let's just defeat Discord so that we won't ever have to talk to each other again!"

It was almost as though she had forgotten what had happened over the past year; her friends were getting under her skin so much. They didn't answer; probably agreeing with her assertion.

Why did I ever bother with friends...?

"Well then, allow me to save you the trouble in finding me," A voice said, drawing her attention. In a flash of light, Discord appeared, seemingly from nowhere. As always, his ego was on full display in the form of that sneer, and Twilight desired nothing more than to make it disappear.

"It ends here, Discord. I've figured out your lame riddle..." Twilight stomped forward. Discord was completely unintimidated. "Now you're going to get what's coming to you!"

"It would seem I've been bested in my own game...poor me," Discord stated, now looking overly defeated. "Well, it seems as though there's nothing left for me to do but accept my fate..." The monster proceeded to put an oversized pair of sunglasses on his eyes, and pulled out a round object from behind his back, placing it over his chest. It was a target, red and white rings. "You may fire when ready..."

"Formation, now!" Immediately, Twilight and the others took their positions. Their hearts weren't into it; they just wanted to get it over with. However, a quick headcount confirmed there was only five elements. Twilight turned to see a hesitant Spike. She groaned, quickly pulling him into position.

"Let's do this," Twilight's horn began to glow. Soon after, her Element began to glow. A magical glow radiated around her, and a line stretched out to the other Elements. Each Element linked together, except the Element of Loyalty, which was not in the proper place. The magic continued to swirl around them. Discord lifted his shades, but did not even budge. Suddenly, Twilight detected something was wrong: the harmonic forces surrounding her waned, and completely fizzled out all at once, leaving her and her "friends" to fall to the ground with a thump.

"What happened?!" Twilight asked, "Why didn't it work?!" She was utterly confused.

"Why indeed..." Discord said flatly, tossing aside the sunglasses and the ring target as he floated next to Spike. Spike removed the Element of Loyalty and placed it down next to Twilight.

"Sorry, Twilight," Spike said, backing away. "Guess I'd better get back upstairs and clean up the library." He ran inside, leaving the others behind. As he left, the others followed his example and removed their elements from their necks, tossing them to the ground uncaring. Rarity, however, picked up each element as they were tossed. As this all happened, Discord began to unapologetically laugh again.

"And after all that talk about defeating me...how disappointing..." Discord remarked, shaking his head. "Come now, why not give it another try?"

"Forget that," said Fluttershy, spreading her wings, "I got better things to do than hang out with these losers!" She flew away from the group.

"Yeah, I'm outta here!" Pinkie left in a different direction. Rarity pushed the rock, Tom, away. Applejack walked up to Twilight.

"How's it feel?" Applejack asked, "Not havin' somethin' happen just 'cause you wanted it? I hope you remember what it feels like to lose something, because this won't be the only thing!" The farmer mare began stomping away, leaving Twilight speechless. Her head bowed in despair as the only friends she'd ever known had abandoned her in her darkest hour.

"I do believe I'm having a case of deja vu!" Discord sing-songed obnoxiously over her sorrows, flying up next to her. "So what say you now, Twilight Sparkle? The Elements have failed you and your friends have turned their backs on you. Will you finally admit defeat?" Twilight caught the absolutely smug grin on Discord's face from the corner of her eyes. She wasn't going to indulge him...she still had some sources left...

"No! she snapped, stepping away from Discord and glaring at him, "My friends may have turned away from me...but I still have Princess Celestia, and I still have Azure...I know I can trust them, and I know we will find a way to defeat you!"

Twilight's confidence didn't unnerve Discord even a little. In fact, he looked pleased.

"I was hoping you'd say that..."

"What?"

"Before you start making plans, I think you should have a look..." Discord said, closing the distance between them again. Twilight and Discord were once again transparent in a different location. This time, they were in the hedgemaze from earlier.

"There's nothing you can show me that'll take away my trust in them, Discord!" Twilight said, only earning a chuckle from Discord.

"Not even that?" Discord simply pointed, and Twilight followed it. A pain in her chest flared up, worse than anything she saw as her jaw dropped. Azure was there, but so was Applejack, both having their color. Azure was holding Applejack, she was holding him back.

"Now...what was that about trust?"

"N-no...this isn't real. It can't be..." Twilight walked forward, away from Discord.

This has to be a trick...He...he wouldn't do that to me!!

"Oh, I assure you it is very real, Twilight Sparkle..." Discord said, "Here, listen to what he said before this..." Discord snapped his talons again. After he did, the scenery around them warped, as though it was going back. Another snap, and everything began to resume at normal speed.

"Applejack, I'm starting to think I made a mistake," said Azure to Applejack.

"W-what...?" Twilight's pains worsened, her eyes widened.

"I mean...that I may have made the wrong choice..."

No...

"And it wasn't until now, that I realized..."

Twilight's eyes closed, and tears began to stream out of them, her colors slowly starting to fade. One of the tears was in the shape of a broken heart.

"I trusted you!"
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Discord was thoroughly enjoying himself. In the span of a few hour-days, he'd managed to crush the resolve of the pony Celestia entrusted to guard the Elements, and crush the friendships that Twilight held dear. And he also successfully instilled resentment in Applejack over a subject he knew hadn't completely healed just yet. Now, he watched as the purple mare, the Element of Magic, began to literally shatter right in front of him. And he wasn't even done yet. He snapped his talons once more, bringing them back to where they were.

"So, tell me, where is that trust you were talking about? The colt who stole your heart dumped you for somepony else. Tell me, did it sting?"

"T-then why...why would he do everything he did if...if..."

"You should know..." Discord grinned wickedly. "He was merely following orders from the princess..."
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"Have fun being Celestia's lapdog, in the meantime!"
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"Y-you can't..." Twilight started.

"Why else was he called away earlier?" Discord said, "It was because she wanted to talk to the guardspony she assigned you without your knowledge..."

"You really thought it was mere coincidence that another pony who believed Nightmare Moon was back would move to Ponyville a week before you did? It was all a carefully constructed ploy, Twilight Sparkle. It was just her keeping an ever-watchful eye upon you! He chose you because the princess told him to!"

Discord oh-so-thoroughly enjoyed the sight of the tears streaming from Twilight's eyes as he sobbed, having robbed her of everything she cared about in one fell swoop. Now, he was ready to give the knife one final twist...

"Your friendships were nothing, your mentor and colt are a bust. So, Twilight Sparkle, who can you trust?" Discord asked.

"No one..." Twilight said, her color fully faded.

"Could you repeat that, one more time?" Discord asked, "Let the whole world hear your trouble..."

"Friends, family, loved ones..." Twilight's mane obscured her eyes, "In the end they'll all turn their backs on you...If that's the case, I don't need them...or anypony else! All I need is to be alone..."

Twilight began to walk away, not even looking up at Discord.

"I've done it..." Discord chuckled, "I've broken them all..." Unapologetic, sadistic, maniacal laughter issued from his mouth. "Harmony in Equestria is officially dead! It is time for a new world order..."
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Azure was still somewhere between cyan and gray when he finally managed to get to his feet. The unicorn wasn't sure of anything anymore. He felt like he had guts, but he didn't know where to use them. The pony wanted to move, but he wasn't sure if it was away from Ponyville he should be moving to. His head still throbbed uncontrollably, but it was something he'd manage to deal with.

At least, that is, until he saw something very near and dear to him, something that had somehow escaped his notice before.

A blue band...

Azure picked it up in his magic.

"This..." He examined it, turning it, like a curious animal with the ability to levitate things would. His magical glow was now a grayish cyan, like his coat was. However, he then got it at the right angle, "...Courage..."

The memories rushed back at him quickly. At this moment, Azure's head began to feel like it was tearing apart, but rather than fall to the floor in pain and confusion, Azure's gaze instead became eerily distant, and within his eyes, a cyan glow began to take form...
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"Son, whether or not this year's Summer Sun Celebration actually yields truth to that old ponytale has no bearing on what we, as family members, feel for you. Yeah, sure, do I wish you didn't bury yourself into training and learning spells that really, only higher-ups in the military should know, practically? You bet I do. But that doesn't change that your name, 'Courage', is true about you in more ways than one."

Azure felt like he was waking up after an extended nap. How long had he been out? He wasn't sure.

"Dad...?" Azure asked, dryly, opening his eyes. The colt quickly realized something was wrong. There was a thick purple fog everywhere. The fog had lifted, and he could see what looked like scenes from his life playing all around him, like a projected video. Most of them seemed to be partially obscured, but their voices were still coming through.

Azure eventually found the source of the noise: the day he originally left... The videos seemed to be arranging themselves now. He felt like he'd just heard these, calling to him, telling him something was wrong.

"...'Courage' is pretty much what defines you, Azure...I can guarantee that most other ponies would have abandoned your cause long ago had they taken it up when you did. But no matter how much we tried to talk you down and no matter how much you were disappointed, you never faltered. It's almost like you're not afraid of anything."

Azure began to walk through the foggy hallway, looking around as though he'd seen these memories for the first time.

"You don't care about the collateral..."

Azure looked around, confused, at the whisper.

"It is true, you are not a Harmony Element, but there is a vital role you play despite that. You can not have harmony without courage."

"That's true..." Azure grimaced, now feeling like he forgot something. That whisper from before sounded familiar.

"You manipulate others for your own benefit..." Louder, the voice was. Azure realized it sounded a lot like his own...

Azure began to think back to everything, wandering through the miasma that choked what he now recognized as his mental landscape.

"That's right..." Azure said, "I protected my friends...because I wanted to. I did get into a situation I didn't want to be in, with two mares I didn't want to hurt...but we forgave one another, and we were able to move on from it..."

Azure looked up, gasping. The purple fog seemed to be clearing around that door from earlier. The door was rattling on the hinges, and a strange white light seemed to be seeping out of the edges. Subconsciously, the fact he vaguely remembered having a killer headache registered in his head.

"Azure Courage..." The whisper was now a full-fledged voice--his own voice. "You know he's right..."

Azure whirled around on his hooves, and was both confused and horrified at what he saw. In front of him, was himself, but without any color. Except for the eyes, which were multi-colored swirls. A memory triggered in his head.

"'He'..." Azure's face immediately scrunched into anger, "You mean...Discord...?" The name suddenly sounded so familiar. The images he saw at the statue garden replayed again. The gray pony narrated over them.

"Your decisions have only brought your friends pain and misery..." The gray him continued, "You have killed each and every one of them on the inside, just for your own gain...You are nothing more than a spineless coward, unworthy of protecting the Element Bearers..."

"...No..." Azure said. Seeing the images again at the statue garden, where he fired aimlessly into a thick fog, and wound up breaking the statues of everyone he cared about. "...You're wrong..."

The gray Azure's brow furrowed, "You aren't listening..." In a flash, the pony was in his face, boring into his head with those hypno-eyes.

"You can't possibly protect them if you yourself are a threat..." The fake him said, "You have left two mares with heartache! How can you be so sure you haven't hurt your friends, those who helped you, those who you lead on?!"

"We're still together, aren't we?"

The gray Azure flinched, and backed off. For some reason, it seemed to be weakened.

"I am the voice of your truth," it said, sounding less sure of itself, "You are nothing but a lie! To yourself, to your friends, your family!!"

"Yet my family gifted me with the courage band...Virid let me stay even though I'd lost..." Azure began to gather strength. He wasn't sure why, but the more he told off his gray half, the less color the other Azure had in its eyes. "Silver still advises me if I'm lost. Applejack has moved forward enough; she's certainly not a pony to hold a grudge...because friends forgive each other..."

"Stop..." The gray Azure was cringing in fear.

"The whole situation between me, Applejack and Twilight was a result of my stupidity, but that was me being me. I wasn't deceiving anyone for my own benefit. I only realized it too late that I had gotten both of them..." Azure said, regretfully, "It hurt me as much as it did them. I used to have the bruise to prove it! If Applejack had been taken all that time ago, by those ponies, I'd have still fought hard to rescue them, but it would not have changed my decision!"

"Stop...!"

"I have never been more sure on this kind of thing...I fight to protect my friends, not because I want to mislead them or because I was told to!" Azure continued, as the fog continued to lift from his memories. And what he saw in the most recent ones...were scenes from just earlier, back at the statue garden when Discord began to make himself known... "Those eyes of yours...they're losing those hypnotic colors, aren't they...Now I remember...their eyes were those colors when he messed with their heads...Looks like he got me too, huh?"

"Shut up!!" The gray Azure answered, the color from its eyes totally gone as it began to very slowly rush the colored Azure. "You are going to vanish! There's no room in their world for you!"

"Funny..." Azure gritted his teeth, feeling a rising fury within him. "Because as I recall..."

The sound of something cracking resonated behind him--the door had fissured, just a little bit, more of the locks and chains shattering it did. The white light began to clear up the rest of the fog, and the gray Azure evaporated in the light. As the light began to fill his vision, the true Azure, friend first, bodyguard last, let out a yell:

"You can't have harmony without courage!!"
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Back in his home, Azure jolted out of his trance. He was still holding the headband, and, as soon as he was sure he was in fact himself again, put it on. His mane and fur had regained their vibrant colors. The unicorn's horn was ablaze with a light cyan flame, even after he had tied his headband securely. He turned, his eyes twin pools of white light.

"So that's how it is..." Azure grumbled, having never felt more fury in his life until that very moment. "Mess with ponies' heads, make them think they're what they're not..."

Azure took two steps, looking around his room. "All for his own amusement...And he says that whole mess was me being amused by it." He spotted the hole in the wall, which his horn had formed when he'd smashed it into the wall earlier.

"It hurt me just as much as it hurt them to do that to them..." Azure shook his head, "Even if Applejack hasn't completely dropped her feelings...I know she'll move on with time. She's a strong mare..."

With renewed fury, Azure stood up straight.

"I have no idea how I'm gonna beat an opponent like this...not even Princess Celestia knows...But I'm betting it has something to do with the Elements, like last time...And if that's the case...I've gotta get to the library!"

Azure's horn began to glow slightly brighter, knowing time was of the essence as he began to cast the teleportation spell on himself. His destination: the Golden Oaks Library.

I understand!
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At the local library, a grayed-out Twilight stormed into the library. Her heart was utterly empty, leaking out of her tear ducts. Her friends had abandoned her, her mentor didn't trust her, and her coltfriend had betrayed her, all in the same day. To twist the knife further, it was one of her former friends that assisted the betrayal. Twilight didn't know who was next...

"I'm...not going to give anypony else a chance..." Twilight said, pulling out an empty suitcase from under her bed. She began to pull her belongings from the various drawers and putting them in the case. She didn't know where she could go, but anywhere was better than Ponyville or Canterlot. Nopony could hurt her again...
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"Missed again..."

Azure shook his head, realizing he was still close to the library all the same. Although, when he looked at the world around him, he could hardly blame himself for missing. Everything was an utter mess, and Azure didn't need to be told what was the source of it all.

"With all that fog cleared, I can see what's he done..." Azure observed aloud to himself, "Makes me sick...He can alter reality itself to his whims and he's using it for tormenting other--"

Azure roughly cut himself off. "Focus. He'll get his soon enough..."

Azure looked over to the library and began running for it. Upon getting close enough, letting out a gasp, he saw the glass window had been broken open, by a large object.

Oh no...what...?

Azure quickly ran through the open door, worried out of his mind about what had happened in his mental absence.

"Twilight!?" He scanned the library, completely unsure. He didn't see Twilight anywhere, but he did see Spike, pacing in front of the stairs. "Spike?" The young dragon was surprisingly still purple and green instead of grayscale like Virid, Blitz, and Silver had been. Spike took a moment, before turning to notice him. Relief spread across the drake's face very quickly.

"Oh, good," Spike stated, "You're not gray too..."

"'Too'?" Azure asked, quickly walking towards him, "What do you mean, too?"

"All of the others, when they came back to the library, they were completely gray. They were acting strange, like they were...backwards! Fluttershy was mean, Rarity was hoarding things, Pinkie was grumpy, Applejack was...I don't even know, and I haven't seen Rainbow anywhere!" Spike paused, and looked up the stairs for a moment.

"I don't know what happened, but next I saw her, Twilight had lost her color too...she was muttering something like 'traitors'," Spike turned back to Azure, clearly worried, "I think she was crying." Both remained silent, Azure now looking up towards where he knew Twilight was.

"He got...everyone else, too?"

It's not over...Not yet! It subconsciously occurred to Azure that he heard more than just his own voice in his head saying that. But whether or not he was hearing it, it wasn't over yet, not if he was still in the right state of mind.

"'Too'?" Spike asked, sounding concerned. Azure was called back to reality. Confronting Discord could wait. Right now he was needed here. He could feel it.

"Don't worry, Spike," Azure said, taking a step forward to rest a hoof on Spike's head. This was only for a moment, however, as he continued forth, towards where he definitely knew Twilight was at.

"What're you going to do?" Spike questioned. Azure paused on the steps, turning his head back to Spike for the moment.

"I'm going to bring back harmony from this chaos..."

No longer waiting, Azure immediately sped through the hall, knowing where Twilight's room was. He had no idea what was coming up next, but he knew he'd have to deal with it. He knew firsthoof what Discord could do to a pony, and could only guess what Twilight was like now that Discord had laid a talon on her. Azure reached Twilight's room; the door was wide open, and he could see what was going on within.

Twilight's back was to him as she was stuffing more and more things into a suitcase. Azure immediately noticed her complete lack of color, just like with Virid, Blitz, and Silver earlier. He didn't know what she would be like, but he knew what he had to do, and this time he wasn't going to let a brainwashed pony attempt to spew Discord's lies at him until he submitted. Azure took a deep breath, knowing only one thing could happen right now.

"Twilight?"

Twilight's head jerked up. She knew his voice, at least. The gray mare turned to him, completely surprised. However, that surprise turned to a mix of fury and sorrow; that much Azure could see. Azure immediately began to trot, slowly, towards Twilight, guided only by instinct as he made his advance, eyes firmly on hers.

"Stay away from me!" Just like with Silver, Twilight was not at all happy to see him. Twilight was taking steps back, but Azure wasn't going to back down, not until he tried to shake her out of it. The mare continued to back away, her horn glowing. "I said, stay back!"

A book flew at Azure, but he dodged without even removing his eyes from Twilight's. Twilight continued to back off until she had no more room, against the wall of her room. Azure could see the world going mad just outside the window on his right, but his focus was entirely on the problem at hoof.

"What'd he do to you...?" Azure asked dryly, knowing it wasn't normal for Twilight to act this way towards him of all ponies. He reached up, trying to brush a bit of mane that had come undone.

Smack!

"He showed me the truth!" she yelled, having hit him across the face. Azure turned slowly back to her. She seemed utterly convinced that whatever "truth" Discord had spewed into her head overrode something she knew, "I know your secret! I know Celestia sent you to watch over me!"

Azure noticed she dropped the "Princess" part; that was definitely not Twilight. It was like she'd abandoned all respect, but still, Azure could only look to her. Twilight was breaking down; Azure could only listen as she continued on.

"Everything you've done was because you were ordered to! Even your choice was an order, wasn't it?!" Twilight yelled. Azure realized it now; Discord had instilled the same doubt in her that he had earlier instilled in him, with an entirely different result. The cyan colt didn't even react when she pushed her back. "Well, you don't have to pretend anymore...You can go be with Applejack, I know that's what you want!"

"Twilight, that isn't true..." Azure started, "You have to believe me!"

"Shut up!" Twilight hit him on the other cheek with her opposite forehoof. "I saw you and Applejack in the maze!" Again, another hit, "I heard what you told her!" Again. "I saw what you did!" Though she had kept hitting her, Azure didn't even react. He knew she wasn't herself.

Discord brought up the old wounds...He twisted the knife in them, rubbed salt into them, all for his own amusement... Azure thought to himself, I can't walk away from this...I wasn't even in the maze!

"I'm done being your mistake!" Twilight's eyes glowed, her horn doing so as well, her voice shaking the whole room as she screamed,"So just go!!" Twilight's horn flared; for a moment Azure felt she was going to start literally throwing the room at him. However, it died down almost immediately, and she continued to let tears fall.

"No..." Azure was still unaware of how he looked, "I'm not going to turn my back on you, Twilight,"

"Yes, you will...In the end, everypony is all the same. Eventually they'll desert you without a second thought." Twilight stated bitterly, "I wasted my time with them and you. They left me...And I don't need them, either. I don't need any of you, and I never did. I'm better off alone."

Azure couldn't believe what he was hearing, but it was painfully clear what Discord had done to all of them while his back was turned.

No...Twilight...I will not abandon you...

"I know you don't believe that, Twilight. After all we've been through..." Azure continued to speak. Twilight was only able to remain silent, "Discord turned you all against each other. He attempted to make me forget why I fought so hard; what you all mean to each other; how we all powered through the obstacles..."

Azure's entire body seemed to glow, but he didn't seem to notice, entirely focused on the task at hand as he cupped Twilight's face in his hooves; Twilight didn't even move. "Remember, Twilight...Remember everything, you've overcome thanks to the friendship; everything they've done for you..."
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Remember...friends...?

As quickly as the fog had glided into her mind, Twilight felt it start to lift. There was a single, white, shining light piercing through it. Memories began to reveal themselves anew; Azure's repeated reckless acts; the images of her friends' support during the long night of Nightmare Moon; the images of their support when Trixie came to town... Everything, everything, came flooding back to her all at once. Her friends had risked their lives to save her from her foalnappers. Nopony else would have pushed as hard if they didn't mean it.

"T-they...They were always there..." Twilight's eyes began to sparkle. Azure saw it; her color was beginning to come back. "For me..."

"That's right...and they'll continue to be there for you..." the cyan colt continued, "I will too...Twilight, you always got on my case for risking my life. But the fact is, I wouldn't have fought so hard if my heart wasn't in it. Even if Princess Celestia had forbidden me from doing it, I'd have still done it anyway..."

"H-how..." Twilight wasn't convinced. There was something in her that was still clouding her judgment, apparent in that she still had patches of gray, "How do I know that? How do I know--"

"The same goes for my love," Azure interjected, "Twilight Sparkle..."

Azure pulled Twilight closer, kissing her with all of his heart and soul. She gasped, completely stunned, as the feeling of love once again filled her anew. As it did, so too did the remainders of gray change to her regular color.

R-remember...Love...

Twilight's color finished returning by the time the two broke apart, and she had to take some time to make sure she felt alright again.

"Now," Azure said, "Guess it took a year, but you finally understand why I fight so hard when it comes to it..."

"I already understood, Azure," Twilight answered, "But when...they started deserting me one after another...I guess I must have forgotten...but then, why did Princess Celestia ask you--"

"Beats me," Azure replied, "Maybe she had a feeling those ponies would be out and about..."

"And your move to Ponyville?"

"All coincidence," Azure said, "And I couldn't be happier. Remember, I fought my own cousin over it, and I'd do it all over again!"

"Thanks, Azure..." Twilight finally knew what she knew all along was right, once more. "Azure..." She blinked, before realizing something she'd overlooked, "Are you...?"

"Am I what?" Azure asked.

"Your eyes and horn are still...glowing..." she finally said.

"They are...?" Azure questioned, "I wonder--"

"Never mind that, now, Azure," Twilight cut in, shaking her head and raising a hoof at him, "It's all clear now...Discord knows how powerful friendship can be! He was defeated by the Elements of Harmony before, and he's trying to destroy the friendships we have to prevent it from happening again!"

"I get it," Azure interjected, "Then...picking off me, Virid, Blitz, and Silver was just for kicks..."

"What?!" Twilight screamed.

"He left in such a hurry..." Azure responded, recalling it clearly, "Guessing he knew you girls were about to go get the Elements and wanted to beat you to it..."

Twilight's eyebrows arched, as anger swelled through her. The knowledge he'd done what he'd done to them, even Virid, sickened her, "We've gotta--"

"Don't worry, Twilight...We're going to fight to protect the bonds we've formed here..." Azure said, "But...listen...I have an idea..."

Though it wasn't exactly the most appropriate time to indulge in questioning Azure's logic, Twilight did so anyway: "What're you going to do, Azure? Go fight Discord, again, while I have the others remember who they are?"

"Well, Twilight..." Azure responded, his expression drifting into an almost smug sort of thought. Twilight knew Azure wasn't one for thinking things through, and wondered if this time would be different...
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Discord watched as the world went absolutely mad around him, and reveled in it. Ponies were running for their lives, no doubt wondering if they were gonna be used for his entertainment. He sat on a throne in the center of Ponyville, filling a glass with chocolate milk rain. He then took the cloud, and turned it into whipped cream. After taking all the time to prepare the beverage for himself, he took a nice long swig...of liquefied glass. After staring at the still-intact liquid and cream, Discord merely shrugged and threw away the rest, which promptly exploded on impact with the ground.

"Hm, did I hit somepony?" Discord asked, looking behind him. "No? A crying shame..."

A cyan-and-white surge of magic suddenly erupted in front of his throne. Secure in his victory, Discord could only watch with a neutral expression as the glow began to fade.

"You don't know when to give up, after all...?" He questioned the figure, at best mildly surprised. "Heh, I was just starting to get bored..."

The glow receded, save for the cyan figure's horn. His eyes, curiously enough, were twin orbs of white light. However, despite these changes, Discord knew perfectly well who this unicorn was. After all, he'd broken him once already.

"Discord!!!"

It was Azure Courage, quite thoroughly angry. A fact which Discord relished, knowing it was all his doing...

Chapter 41: The Return of Harmony

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Chapter 41: The Return of Harmony
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"Azure, Azure, Azure..." Discord said, rising calmly from the throne he'd erected in the center of Ponyville. Azure was already disgusted, but he knew why he was declaring victory so soon. "You certainly know how to disappoint everypony you ever meet..."

"If it means disappointing you, I'm all for it," Azure countered, already seeing he had Discord's full attention.

"Hold on a moment," Discord continued, picking out a hunk of what could have been just about anything; it wouldn't have surprised Azure anymore, "I seem to have had a piece of caramel in my ear. Did I hear that right? Is that to say you don't care about anypony anymore?"

"If I wanted my words twisted, I'd have asked for it!" Azure interjected, "If I didn't care, I wouldn't even be here...I'd probably still be in that mental trap you laid out for me."

"Oh?" Discord questioned, still a bit disinterested.

"Actually, if anything, I should thank you..." Azure continued. Discord leaned forward in interest.

"What's this now?"

"About a year ago, I was told there can't be harmony without courage...it made sense. A wise pony once said 'the only thing needed for evil to succeed is for good ponies to do nothing'..." Discord now went from interested to looking like he was about to fall asleep on his hand, but Azure kept talking, "But I now realize it works both ways...how can you even have courage, if you're scared to be yourself?"

"So what you're saying is I somehow made you realize that?" Discord questioned, stretching out on his throne. "Whatever, it really doesn't matter whether you've realized that little saying works both ways."

Discord leaned again, and his griffin's paw snapped its talons. The next moment, stone walls began to rise around them in a circle. Azure looked around as the ground quaked under his hooves. Discord's throne, meanwhile, began to rise with those walls, safely encased within them. In fact, when the walls finally finishing rising, he was in a position to look down on Azure.

"I have still won, Azure Courage," Discord said, a green crown of sorts descending onto his antler.

"Already declaring yourself Emperor?" Azure questioned.

"I see no reason not to," the dragonequus continued, "I've halted the Elements of Harmony from working with their Bearers, and nopony else can even hope to stop me, not even you. I have taken back what was mine, and I have two ponies to thank..."

Another snap of the talons later, two statues warped in front of Azure Courage. One of them was a pegasus he didn't recognize, but he did recognize the batpony.

"That's..."

"You know, for ponies, they clearly didn't know what kind of box they'd opened..." Discord said, "If I didn't know better, I would even say they were insane for wanting me free, but the fact is, I am..."

Azure stared at the statues, "So what, you expect thanks for bringing in two criminals versus the many innocents you've tormented just today?"

"Not really," Discord continued, snapping his talons again and causing the statues to warp away, "And who said I was bringing them in? I just wanted to know how it felt to turn ponies to stone after being turned myself...I have to say, not as satisfying as shattering everything they ever were..."

"And then you wonder why you were turned to stone..." Azure spoke, deadpan.

"You know, I'd let you continue to spout out stuff, but the fact is, I've grown bored with you..." Discord responded, all calmness, "I know not how you got free of the mind games I put you through, but there is no room in my empire for traitors..."

Azure would have retorted that in order to be a traitor, that would mean he was on his side from the start, but he didn't get the chance to. Lightning struck the ground in front of him, and the energy began to take form.

"I am the emperor now," Discord continued, "So please, put on a show for me before you die..."

"Still wondering why you think you didn't deserve being stoned..." Azure responded, "Murder isn't something ponies get to walk away from..."

"I've only ever killed one pony in my life..." Discord said, "He was in my way to creating something of..." He stood up, spreading out his arms, indicating the layer of chaos he'd gratuitously spread over the land. "greatness!"

The energy finally formed into something in front of Azure. Azure recognized the overall body shape: snake tail, lion head, goat head, massive size. However, when the light surrounding the chimera cleared, Azure realized Discord made his own modifications to it. When the snake tail hissed, a manticore's scorpion tail lashed out instead of a tongue. The goat's head, much like Discord's own, had an antler where a horn would be. The lion's head had a mane of pure red flames. The body itself seemed to be surrounded by a black aura.

"While you may not be in my way," Discord went on as his limbs dropped to his sides, "There's just no room here for harmony-loving ponies like you..."

"The funny thing is, Discord," Azure said, getting into a ready position, "Nightmare Moon tried all these things on me and they didn't work!"

"I am ten times the evil emperor she was!" Discord snapped, "I'm not bound by sentiments or anything else! Everything is merely my toy now! Could Nightmare Moon have said that?! Certainly not! All she was was a bitter pony who needed a friend! I don't need a friend, nor do I desire one!"

"I think I hit a nerve there," Azure observed casually, "Did it sting? Tell me it did."

Discord huffed as he sat back down on his throne, clearly unamused with the echo, "I'm not the one that has to fight," His lion's paw gestured, and the chimera's two heads roared, "You are. Brace yourself...your end will be slow...and amusing...well, for me, anyway!"
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Knowing Azure was likely in danger given what he was doing, Twilight was determined to not let his stalling go to waste. With Discord's attention supposedly occupied by Azure's recklessness, there was no way the spirit of chaos could know what she was going to do. She needed to repair that what Discord had tried so hard to destroy.

"There's no time to lose..." Twilight said to herself, heading for Sweet Apple Acres first. While all her friends certainly lived closer to her than Applejack, after what Applejack had said to her and what Discord had brought up, she felt she needed to confront Applejack alone. While it would have certainly made more sense to bring Azure along for at least that much, she had to agree that somepony had to try to draw Discord's attention.

As she made her way towards the barn, she noticed that Discord's influence had even begun to corrode the other ponies she knew; Big Mac was acting like a mole and dog put together or something, she didn't know. Granny Smith was also acting differently. Their colors had faded. But Twilight knew that if Discord could just be resolved, the rest of the problems he was causing would fade. And in order to do that, she had to break the influence Discord had over her friends.

It didn't take long for Twilight to find Applejack. The southern mare was leaning against an outer wall of the barn, eating an apple...in reverse. The apple was clearly already cored, but with each bite she took of what looked like empty air, more of the apple appeared, until the apple became perfectly whole.

"Applejack!" Twilight called out. Applejack immediately dropped the apple and turned to her. As soon as Applejack realized who had called her name, she shot the purple unicorn a nasty glare. Twilight flinched, but kept going. She knew now Applejack wasn't herself, and was determined to correct it. Applejack stood up as Twilight got close.

"And just what the hay do you think you're doin' here?" Applejack snapped at Twilight. Now that she was a few steps from her, Twilight could see; somehow, Applejack seemed even worse than at the library. At first glance, it seemed like she hadn't changed, but this couldn't be Applejack that was giving her a death glare at every opportunity...

"Applejack, please," Twilight was going to talk sense into Applejack; it had been how Azure had reached her, "You have to listen to me, Discord--"

"I ain't got to do anythin'!" Applejack spat, stomping her hoof on the ground, "You think just 'cause you're some big shot from Canterlot that you get to tell everypony else what to do?" Applejack stepped forward. Twilight took a step back; she'd never thought she'd see such a cynical Applejack, "Well, think again, Miss 'Faithful Student'..."

Twilight winced. It was a term of endearment that Princess Celestia always used in her letters; she usually returned it out of respect. But now, hearing the corrupted Applejack say it, for some reason, it made her feel...ashamed.

Am...I really that conceited?

Twilight shook her head. Azure had taken this risk for all of them so she could help them and then him; she couldn't let herself fall into self-doubt again. It'd be a ledge she couldn't climb up from this time. The unicorn stopped stepping back. Applejack stopped glaring a bit once she saw her intimidation wasn't working.

"Applejack, please, let me help you!" Twilight forced herself to focus. She knew something that work probably work better than work, "I want to break the spell Discord has over you!" Twilight's horn lit up.

Applejack leapt back out of range, "What spell?! He only showed me the truth! You ain't gonna get somethin' else just 'cause you want it, not this time!" Applejack's body language showed only one thing, and Twilight's spell faded entirely.

"I'm not going to fight you, Applejack," Twilight said sternly, keeping edges of aggression out of her voice. This wasn't a problem that could be solved with violence. Knocking around her friends only served to drive the wedge between them further. Applejack merely huffed.

"'Course not," Applejack once again turned away from Twilight. After a bit, Applejack turned her head around so she kept a grayed out eye on Twilight, "You've had it easy your whole life! Now that you gotta work for somethin', you back down..." Applejack began to walk away from Twilight.

"Applejack, that's not true!"

Applejack stopped dead in her hooves, "Yes, it is! Born in Canterlot, being raised in high class, getting into a school for the gifted, then gettin' to be Princess Celestia's student," Applejack continued to spew venom as she stepped closer to Twilight. "You've had everything given to you, while I've had to work my flank off so that I earn what I have..."

Now Twilight backed off as Applejack stepped closer.

"I...but..." Twilight wanted to argue, but she couldn't find the words. For some reason, the words did sound right.

"Prove me wrong, name one time you didn't have something hooved over to you," Applejack stated. Twilight's eyes widened as she continued to fumble for answers, her mouth opening, only to close as she realized that wasn't the case. Nothing felt like it was coming up. Twilight began to wonder if...

She's right...
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Azure didn't need to be told Discord was enjoying his struggle against the superchimera the spirit of chaos had created, especially after Azure made it a point to blast Discord verbally before the battle. He didn't dare look to where he knew he was; even if he got the chance, one look at the monster's smug mug and he might lose focus. This chimera was not out to frighten; it was out for blood.

The unicorn leapt out of the way as the scorpion tail lashed forth from the snake tail's mouth, not wanting to get poisoned by the thing. An attack from the left, Azure dodged away, only to be met with another lash from the right, which he managed to dodge. The scorpion's tail flicked dangerously, and Azure tensely put up his hooves. However, he found himself without traction so suddenly.

"What--" Azure said as his hoof slipped. He saw it: soap where there was dirt, just under his foot.

"I didn't say I wasn't going to interfere!" Discord's voice rang out. The scorpion's tail lashed downward, and Azure caught it in time, manifesting a partial barrier to parry the thrust. Azure quickly leapt up, winding up on the creature's back. The snake tail hissed at him, but Azure dodged the scorpion tail thrust, causing the creature to hit itself. Quickly, Azure charged up a laser, when he heard the roar of a lion. One eye trailed back towards the source of the sound, and Azure quickly realized the lion's head was going to bite him if he didn't move it.

Azure grunted as he leapt to the right, away from the attempted chomp, and performed a gravity spell assisted backflip away from the chimera, trying to figure out what to do about the toxic problem that was that snake tail. However, as he tried to rush forward, he found his hooves were stuck in something pink and sticky.

"Another one of these clouds?!" Azure blurted out.

"Who said chaos had to be fair?" Discord rhetorically questioned, "Well, it is fair--"

"Yeah, for you!" Azure grumbled, finding his hooves were stuck in the candy surface. "And for no sane pony, that's for sure!"

"Maybe, but that's the point..." the chaos spirit continued, "Get him!"

The chimera charged Azure, lion's head roaring while the goat's head prepared to bunt him backwards. The attack landed, and Azure, cloud and all, were sent floating backward. Azure felt dizziness set in, and he didn't need to know what that obnoxious sound was echoing around the colosseum: it was Discord's laughter.

Azure refocused, seeing the lion's head once again trying to bite him. He closed his eyes in focus, the cyan glow of his horn momentarily coating both him and the cotton candy cloud he was stuck in. The cyan colt cast a gravity spell--

Leaving the lion's head to get its teeth stuck in the stone wall behind him. Discord stood up from his throne. Despite the fact he had escaped certain demise, the chaos spirit still seemed oddly complacent.

"Well played..."

"I'm not done yet..." Azure stated.

"Good," Discord sat back down, "More of this spectacle for me to enjoy..."

Azure grit his teeth, refocusing on the task at hand. It was a bit of trouble to focus on keeping himself and the cloud aloft using the gravity spell, so he knew what he had to do. Azure aimed the cloud down at the still-stunned superchimera, and began to let himself fall down towards it. The lion's head had just extracted its teeth from the stone when Azure came down hoof first onto its lower back.

The snake's tail hissed at him; Azure knew he was facing away from it. The unicorn closed his eyes, focusing his magic. The cloud at his hooves began to sear and burn like candy, charring from pink to black incredibly quick. Azure began to once again prepare a gravity spell, and closed his eyes. The unicorn's ear twitched in response to a subtle crack; the scorpion's tail striking at him. He backflipped, his feet freed from the pink cotton candy prison they were in. The scorpion's tail once again lashed into its own body, but Azure wasn't done. As soon as he was back on his hooves he let off a series of cyan beams from his horn, aiming at the snake tail. The beast roared as the snake tail began to seemingly get burned from the attacks before they even landed; the black aura seemed to peel away as the offensive spell got close enough. Azure saw it, but Discord apparently didn't.

The snake tail, now punched full of holes, fell limp, darkened from the repeated laser burns, obviously down for the count; the dark aura having receded totally from that part of the body. The chimera bleated and roared out of its two remaining heads in anguish, turning to Azure. For some reason, the beast now looked slightly sluggish, but it shook it off quickly enough.

"So you took out its venom..." Discord said flippantly, "Oh well. You still have two heads to beat, Azure Courage!"

The lion's head seemed to get up with renewed vigor, its flaming mane flaring up aggressively. It then aimed its maw directly at Azure, and Azure gasped and scrambled to get out of the way as blue flames seared forth from its mouth, sweeping along the ground towards him. As Azure watched the flame attack go up the wall and die out, he realized the flames were hot; hot enough to actually burn stone and have it catch fire. The unicorn grit his teeth and stared back at the chimera, which scraped its foot along the ground and rushed Azure, goat head leading the charge. Azure focused hard, standing his ground and erecting a large frontal shield to catch the attack.

The deer antler hit the shield first, and Azure blinked; the aura on the antler and goat head seemed to erode as it collided with the shield. A moment later, the chimera once again gave its howl of agony, seemingly...burnt?

"What is this, now?" Discord still didn't sound annoyed, but he did seem slightly interested in the development, despite the fact Azure was winning. Azure didn't concern himself with that; he had to take care of this thing.

Azure's horn flared, igniting in flames. Azure noticed, but didn't immediately worry about, the fact there was a twinge of white flickers in the flame he summoned, throwing a lot of flame attacks at Discord's chimera. The goat head gave a shriek of pain, closely followed by another, and another, as the fireballs hit their mark. Like with the snake tail, it seemed more burned than it should have been as it fell limp. The dark aura receded from the knocked-out chimera head as well. The main body and lion's head still had the aura, but the lion's head seemed to struggle with the dead weight of the goat head.

Discord said nothing, no doubt enjoying the sight of Azure fighting. Azure resisted the urge to scoff; if Discord had thought he'd won, he was sorely mistaken. As the lion's head roared and Azure dove out of the way of another flame attack, the cyan unicorn took a brief moment to rest and wonder one thing:

Twilight...I hope you're doing alright out there... Azure thought, I may be able to hold my own against his beasts...But I don't know how long I can keep this up!
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"So Noct and Torpal didn't make it back...?"

A figure, shrouded in darkness, made its observation.

"You don't suppose my idiot brother decided to hang around, do you?" a feminine voice answered with its own question, "You warned him, right?"

"Of course. From what I've heard, it wouldn't surprise me if he did get to them first to 'thank them'..." the figure continued, "Still, we have the item at our disposal...and it certainly seems to be working,"

All eyes of the ponies in the room trailed over to a table of sorts. There were several slots carved into its stony surface. One of them was the stolen item that Tagane had earlier nabbed from the Royal Guards. It was glowing, feeding on the freed spirit of chaos and what he was creating.

"But, Boss, you are aware that he will be put back in his stone prison before the day is out?" The feminine voice asked.

"Tourna," the one called "Boss" answered, "My plan counts on that. If he's not imprisoned again, I might have to adjust my plans accordingly."

"If that's the case," Shade cut in, at another edge of the room, "Why'd you send us after the Element Bearers if you wanted Discord freed, only to send him back into his statue?"

The boss remained silent for a moment, "I suppose I just wanted to test how far they'd go to keep themselves together..."

"Tagane got captured, and I was nearly caught too!" Shade interjected.

"You both just got careless," Boss hissed, "Perhaps I should have sent Torpal with you if you needed a quick escape, but I thought I could count on the two of you to handle the colt that seems to bug you so..."

Shade fell silent, while Tourna began to speak again.

"Be that as it may, Boss," Tourna continued, "That colt is still a problem that must be dealt with..."

"Soon, Tourna, soon..." Boss answered, "If all goes according to plan, I will move on to my next phase..."
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The lion's head roared again, as it rushed Azure, trying to bite him. However, Azure quickly leapt left, out of the way of the attempted attack. The beast did not get its teeth stuck in the wall this time, however, and quickly slid to a halt, breathing more fire at Azure. Azure put up a shield, being pushed back by the blaze. However, when Azure's vision cleared of the blue flames, he realized Discord's summon was nowhere in sight.

Stay calm, Azure, the pony thought to himself, It's gotta be around somewhere...

A roar came from above, followed by the laughter of Discord. Azure looked up, the chimera had sprouted wings of blue flame while he was defending from the attack, and was now falling straight on him, teeth bared. The pony quickly altered his own gravity once more via the gravity spell, sliding along the ground under the chimera's body as the teeth came down just centimeters from his ears. Once again, the beast had gotten itself stuck.

The colt quickly rolled back to his hooves, igniting his horn brighter as magic surged into it, aiming to settle things in one burst. He knew the beast was merely a summon; not the real deal, that much was obvious given how it had appeared after Discord snapped his talons, so he didn't see the need to hold back. He charged a laser, a ball of pure magic energy forming on his horn tip. Subconsciously, the unicorn wondered why Discord hadn't tried anything else yet, but decided to not press his luck.

The chimera had just pulled its teeth free from the ground. It gave a savage roar, turning to Azure, its flaming mane flaring up in anger. It began to rush the unicorn again. The ball on Azure's horntip flared, and he held the blast, waiting for the right moment as he crouched down, preparing to unleash it. His eyes closed, filtering out the screeches of the monster he was fighting.

"Now!"

The beam took the form of a cyan-white wave, sustained by his horn. The attack made contact with the chimera, but Azure couldn't see the full effect for long; Azure's beam continued, engulfing both of the chimera's heads, and continuing past the monster, hitting a wall of Discord's arena and leaving a nice big hole in the side as the beam continued out into the skies.

Azure stopped sustaining the beam; his horn and eyes still glowing. He was slightly winded from the effort, though. He backed off from the chimera of Discord's creation. It was weakly mewling out of its remaining head, the dark aura completely stripped from his body, its entire upper body covered in scorch marks. The chimera hit the ground, unmoving, before beginning to fade in a cloud of dark blue smoke.

Only now that the battle was over, Azure dared to look over to Discord. He was dryly clapping, looking neither amused nor disappointed. If anything, he looked oddly complacent.

What's he got in mind next...?
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"Bravo, Azure, bravo," he condescendingly complimented, standing up. "A shame no pegasi were airborne in the path of your little laser there...that would have made the end of this just a little more rewarding..."

"And I'm still wondering how you think you didn't deserve to be imprisoned..." Azure responded, "Was this how it was centuries ago, too?"

"Not quite," Discord said, "But you know, watching you fight, has made me realize..."

The dragonequus coiled, vanishing in a puff of black smoke. He reappeared in front of an unflinching Azure, griffin's talon positioned behind him, with one claw extended.

"I could use a pony like you to keep dissidents in line!" He held the pose, as though waiting.

"Like Tartarus I will!" Azure responded.

"I didn't say you had a choice..." Discord thrust his claw forward, aiming for the spot directly between Azure's eyes. Azure tried to move, but his front legs were stuck in more of the cotton candy. He couldn't move quick enough. Discord's claw rested on his forehead, lightly pressing in. "I'm going to make sure this one sticks!"

Discord grunted a bit as he pressed on Azure's forehead with the claw. Azure expected to once more lose himself, perhaps in a way that this time would make him entirely subservient to Discord.

Is...this...how I--

"Wha--?" Discord grunted, sounding surprised, "Owww!! What is this, now!?"

Azure opened his eyes; he definitely still felt in control of things. He looked up, seeing Discord's griffin's claw sparking with cyan magic. The talons, surprisingly, looked scorched, just as the chimera had whenever Azure landed a magic attack on it. Azure was just as confused; what had happened in him?

"This magic...?" Discord continued, for the first time sounding genuinely caught off-guard that day. He looked to Azure, and blinked, "I see...so the princesses are starting to become afraid of their subjects, huh?"

"You won't instill doubt in anypony anymore, Discord," Azure countered, pushing aside the spirit's statement as no more than another lie.

"Maybe not you..." Discord said, his words all of a sudden, icy, "But that's because you won't be around anymore!"

Discord drew back his lion's paw, and a crooked sword materialized in it, "See you, never again!"

Azure's eyes widened, and he tried to move. Only, this time, Azure realized now his back legs and forelegs were stuck in the ground. This time, they looked like they had been swallowed in pinkish quicksand; no doubt clouds Discord had summoned directly underground. Azure kept his eyes open, not wanting to give Discord any more laughs if he could help it. Suddenly, a monotone, feminine voice rang out.

"Discord..."

Discord halted the killing swing, hearing the voice. Both of them looked over. Twilight, Pinkie, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Rainbow were all there. They were all wearing their elements, but surprisingly, they still appeared to be grayed out. Pinkie still looked like a grump, Fluttershy still looked like she didn't want to be anywhere near them, and Rarity was still hauling around a large rock. In fact, one of her gray eyes were locked directly to it.

"Oh...?" Discord questioned, "What are you six doing back together...?" He blinked, "Unless..."

He paused. All of a sudden, maniacal laughter emanated from his mouth.

"Must have missed a joke," Azure stated, deadpan.

"You truly don't know anything!" Discord stated, snapping his griffin's talons again. Azure realized he could take another step, but before he could reach his friends, he found himself picked up in Discord's lion's paw. "Now look here, Azure Courage: the Elements of Harmony are now mine! Or, should I say, the Elements of Disharmony!?"

"What?" Azure questioned, flatly.

"I have not only corrupted the Bearers of each of the elements, but now their corruption had managed to take hold of their precious elements too! Equestria...no...the world is no more than my playground now!" The spirit of chaos continued to ramble on, sounding so convinced of victory Azure wanted to puke. All the while, the Bearers in question stood there, looking quite emotionless as they watched the spirit of chaos posture.

"So what will it be, Azure Courage?" Discord finally questioned, "Will you join the new world order? Or shall you die at the hooves of your former friends? Because quite frankly, I can think of no better death for a harmony-loving pony such as yourself!" He burst out laughing, all but cementing the impression he'd completely won out.

Azure met eyes with each of his grayed-out friends. First was Fluttershy, who seemed to lose some of her cruel edge. Second was Rarity, who cast a brief, disgusted glance to the rock. This escaped Discord's notice. Third, Rainbow Dash, who seemed to be waiting for something, but what, nopony knew. Fourth was Pinkie, whose anger seemed to recede a bit, but Discord still believed he'd won. Applejack was second-to-last. Her dissonant look seemed to change to one of...regret?

"So, what are you waiting for?" Discord finally snapped back, "Choose!"

Azure finally met eyes with Twilight. She looked emotionless, like she didn't care. However, as soon as they blinked, Azure strangely looked...happy?

"I think you'd better have me killed by their hooves, Discord..." Azure said, "Fire away..."

"I was hoping you'd say that..." Discord produced the target he'd used earlier to mock Twilight, placing it straight over Azure's chest. "Okay, fire when ready, ladies!"

"With pleasure, Discord..." Twilight's voice morphed from monotone to regular. Discord blinked.

"Pardon?"

The elements quickly activated, glowing as a line between each of them and the Element of Magic formed. This time, the startup went as planned, each of the Bearers floating into the aura, eventually surrounded by a white glow. Suddenly, each of the Bearers began to gain their colors back, a fact which quickly dawned on Discord.

"Wait...if their colors came back...that means...!" Discord started, dropping Azure in surprise, "No!"

"Does it sting, Discord?" Azure asked from the ground, slowly getting back to his feet. "Does it sting to have your 'friends' desert you?"

"You...you tricked me..." Discord looked down to Azure, his eyes full of fury. He rematerialized the sword, his face twisted into a glare that would have caused anypony to stand down, "I'm going to take you with me!!"

The sound of a large blast rang out; the Elements of Harmony had fired, a rainbow blast coming straight down on Discord. He looked up, frozen in a hunched over position, having failed to run the sword through Azure. His expression changed again, to one of utter fear.

"No...no!"

Azure was blinded as the rainbow cannon made contact with Discord. The wielders of the Elements couldn't see with the torrents of magic surrounding them. If they could see what they were doing, they would have noticed two things.

One, that the constructs and chaos Discord had caused were receding as a shockwave of pure power emanated outward.

Two, a group of five objects floating up from where Discord had been hit, splitting up, going to the corners of Equestria...
--------------------------------------------------
He had been awake this whole time. He had seen the world slowly go mad around him. In a flash, he was hovering before that colt that had fought Noct and given Shade so much trouble facing off against what he assumed was Discord. Then he was returned to where he and Noct had been turned to stone. However, as Torpal watched the world return to normal, he realized he could blink his eyes and move his body freely. Moreover, when he found Noct also out of stone, he saw the gem was back where it belonged.

"Well, did you see what you wanted to see?" Torpal asked bitterly, "Was staying here worth it?"

"Whatever," Noct responded flatly, "Our operation obviously succeeded, and if all goes well, he'll have gotten what he deserved..."

"For what he did to us?"

"Of course..." Noct turned to him. "Now, weren't you gonna warp us back home before he showed up?"

"Much obliged," Torpal replied, using his gem's magic to create a portal. A moment later, he and Noct leapt through it, heading back home...
--------------------------------------------------
The light finally cleared. There was a lot of smoke where Discord was, but as far as Azure knew, there was a statue on the other side of that smoke. Internally, he hoped that Discord's face was frozen into that "hilarious" look of fear he seemed to love making other ponies make, just so he could point and laugh at the statue for a few seconds.

Azure looked around, finding that the world had completely reverted to normal. The arena that had been there just a few seconds ago had also vanished without a trace. The sky was blue, no sign of pink clouds, the sun was out and it was about the time it would have been had Discord not decided to mess with the sun and moon cycle. His friends floated down to the ground, the elements returning to their dormant state.

"It's over..." Azure stated with a sigh, and only then did the glow around his horn and in his eyes finally recede; once more, his eyes were brown, and his horn was without a glow. He turned to Twilight directly, and they met eyes.

"It all worked out in the end..." Twilight observed, triggering the memory in Azure's head. It was the first time he'd ever planned anything in advance, and even then he wasn't sure if it even counted as a plan given he didn't know how bad off the others were.
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"Don't worry, Twilight...We're going to fight to protect the bonds we've formed here...But...listen...I have an idea..."

"What're you going to do, Azure? Go fight Discord, again, while I have the others remember who they are?"

"Well, Twilight..." Azure stated, already feeling the thoughts surge through him, "We need the Elements, that much is for sure, but he might figure out you are all better before you can do anything..."

"That's true..." Twilight said, "Now that you mentioned it, all of them had gone gray..."

"So had you," Azure continued, "So, listen, after you cure the others, have them act like they're still under his spell. And, another thing...You remember that color change spell, don't you?"

"Yes, but--" Twilight cut herself off, and she smiled, "That's...I get it! You want us to...And then..."

"Yep. So just leave drawing Discord's attention to me..." Azure said, turning around, "It's high time somepony gave him a taste of his own medicine!"
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"He really didn't like the taste, I guess..." Azure said, closing his eyes. However, his silent moment of celebration was cut off by Twilight pulling him straight into a hug.

"He tried to order us to...if we hadn't--" Twilight's mind was now all over the place now that the crisis had settled, "I-I tried to not worry about you..."

Azure felt more awkward than the other times Twilight had said that to him, "I-it was..."

"I know, I know...'all under control'..." she practically sobbed, "But he...he was...a monster...I started to wonder..."

"Hey, Twilight," Rainbow came in to break up the mushiness, which, for the first time in Azure's entire life, was an act he was grateful for, "You saw that huge beam going out of the arena...He had something under control..."

Twilight finally released Azure, but it was clear that hadn't completely convinced her. Azure looked over and saw Applejack awkwardly looking away. He knew he'd have to deal with that problem soon enough after Discord dug it up, but right now, he wanted to celebrate his defeat.

"Well, Discord had already been convinced he'd won..." Azure recalled, "Before he even saw you all, he was already complacent. Even when I showed up to confront him again, he just conjured that huge arena and a chimera, and told me he wanted to make a spectacle out of my death...for his own amusement, no less..."

Azure turned back towards the smoke, as the others remained silent.

"But, we showed him that we're willing to fight hard for what we love..." Azure summed it up.

"You said it!" Rainbow cut in, "Wish I could've seen the look on his face when we blasted him with the Elements!"

"We might yet get to see it," Rarity, of all ponies, said, "After all, the last time he was hit, he was sealed up in stone..."

"And there's no reason it should be any different," Twilight finished for the group.

The group looked towards the smoke. It began to recede. Suddenly, Azure's brow furrowed.

"What's wrong, Az?" Rainbow asked, immediately taking note of his concern.

"The smoke's clearing...but no sign of a statue..." Azure observed.

"Look!" Applejack called out, as the smoke began to fully blow away. When it finally cleared, all of where Discord was, was a crater. The group gasped.

"D-did we...?" Fluttershy questioned, sounding far too scared to admit it. Azure grit his teeth, looking around, hoping to Celestia there wasn't a pink cloud anywhere that Discord was hiding behind. The group remained silent, some convinced they'd overdone the move that finished off Discord, others convinced he was somehow still around.

Suddenly, in the overall center of the seven ponies, a light gold flash burst out. A split-second later, a very much healthy-looking Princess Celestia appeared, looking just as concerned as she had when all this started.

"Princess Celestia?!" the group shouted. Azure noted the look on the sun princess's face, and immediately felt fury settle in.

"Darn it all...don't tell me he's still out!" Azure growled, immediately galloping for the crater, forgoing the show of respect for the moment.

"Az, wait!" Applejack shouted, sounding panicked.

"What're you doing?!" Twilight was just as if not more panicked.

Azure reached the edge of the crater, everypony else following on hoof (or in Rainbow's case, by air). He continued running down into the slight imprint the impact caused, spotting something at the center of the crater.

"What...?" Azure said quietly, confused at what he saw. As he drew closer, he began to see it very clearly. It was a corroded silver crown, which looked...slightly like the crown Discord had materialized for his own use. In the center of the crown, there was a dark green hexagonal gem.

He stopped upon reaching the center, mere feet from the crown. The others stopped, apparently seeing the item. Azure panted a bit, the day's events finally completely catching up with him. He looked to each of the others.

"This crown...?" Azure thought aloud as he turned. Eventually, all eyes except those of Princess Celestia's turned to Twilight's own tiara. The Elements definitely still looked shiny and usable; there was no denying that they had done their job.

"It looks like..." Twilight shifted uncomfortably as she looked to the harmonic artifact on her head, "The Element of Magic..."

Princess Celestia remained transfixed on the tarnished crown where Discord had been. She still seemed worried, but she also seemed...distant, for some reason. The others finally seemed to notice her looking at the crater, and Twilight broke the silence.

"Princess Celestia...what is it?" she asked.

The solar princess finally looked to her subjects, stern, "Please come to Canterlot as soon as possible, all of you...and bring that crown along. I will explain everything..." With a sigh, she added, "Just know, Discord is no longer a threat...and will no longer be a threat in the future..."

The silence that followed her command was thick, and Azure looked to the crown again.

If he can't be a threat to anypony anymore...why is this crown he left behind worrying us so much...?
---------------------------------------------------
The jewel that was drawing Discord's essence had finally stopped fluctuating with its glow and now remained with a dim, solid gray-ish glow.

"It's stopped..." Tourna observed, "So they managed to pull through Discord's reign..."

"Indeed, they have," Boss responded nonchalantly.

At this point, a portal seared through the floor, and Torpal and Noct leapt into the room.

"And there they are," Shade observed, "So what happened?"

"Noct got carried away..." Torpal shook his head, "And I got caught up in it..."

"Noct, didn't I tell you?" Boss questioned, "He isn't the type to be grateful for help; in fact, all we really did was speed up his unsealing so we could use his powers..."

"Speaking of which..." Shade cut in, "How'd that turn out?"

Boss leaned forward a bit, so his snout was in view. His mouth opened with a smile; a fang visible on his set of teeth.

"I'd say we can move on to phase two now..."

Boss leaned back in the shadows.

"Get the others. Have them in here within the next two hours. I will explain that part then."

Chapter 42: Grand Conspiracy

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Chapter 42: Grand Conspiracy
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Still bathed in the shade, his features hidden by the darkness, Boss passively awaited on his throne. The two hours were nearly up, and the remaining members were going to be in this room again. He had only risen to check to make sure Discord's essence, which had been siphoned while the spirit of chaos was out and about, wasn't escaping. After confirming it was locked securely within the stolen gem, he had dispatched a few Shadow Ghouls to make sure everything had gone according to plan. His eyes remained closed.

I know it is a bit early to get going after that stunt we pulled to get Discord out of his statue... he mused to himself, But if things went according to plan, we can't afford to sit around anyway...

Eventually, Boss's eyes opened. While one was hidden by a tuft of what could have been a mane--impossible to tell with most of his body covered in shadow, his other eye was glowing bright red.

"There you are...Perfect..." he said to himself.

At this point, several cloaked beings began to file in, varying in height and build. While some, like Shade and Noct, had their hoods down, most had their hoods up, obscuring most of their faces. One of them was chronically short, however, and had a bipedal stature. The rest of them were quadrupedal, and some clearly couldn't keep their wings shut.

"Perfect timing, everyone," Boss spoke directly to them. "I've just done some scouting with the Shadow Ghouls while you all were preparing for the meeting."

"And...?" asked one of the still-cloaked beings there.

"The plan worked out perfectly..." Boss responded, the glow in his eye dying down, "So, we will move on to step two now. That is why I've called you all here: we are going to discuss our new game plan now that we've gotten this far."

"No doubt those drones are on high alert after we freed Discord," Noct commented flatly.

"Settle down, Noct," Tourna reprimanded, "That much we could have figured out."

"Precisely, Noct," Boss continued, "But I do request you settle down, since those 'drones' are capable of exercising some level of free will..."

"But not nearly the kind we're after," Noct responded, but said nothing else.

"It's enough to the point that good intentions do not pave the road to Tartarus, Noct," their leader continued, "At least, not all of the time..."

A heavy silence followed.

"If we are all ready to listen, shall I start?"

"Please tell us..." Shade commented.

"Let me first preface this with a status report on Discord himself..." Boss began. When no one said anything, he continued, "He is dead, as planned..."

"And here I thought harmony didn't involve killing..." said a deep voice, emanating from a beak under a cloak.

"Indeed, it doesn't," Boss said, "Had we not interfered ourselves, he would have been re-sealed in stone..." He cast a nod over to the table.

"The item Tagane stole..." another male voice noted, coming from a pony's mouth, "It worked as planned, correct?"

"Right down to the spirit of chaos's fate..." Boss said, "Picture a rubber band stretched to its limits between two points. Now, tell me what happens when you cut into that band."

"I see," said a deep voice from the short bipedal creature, "So what you're saying--"

"No speaking out of turn, Tack!" reprimanded the beaked cloaked being.

"He became unstable because his magic, his life force, was being stretched between himself and the stone?" Torpal finished the question that "Tack" couldn't. "And therefore, he..."

"Yes," Boss finished, "Though Chaos magic by nature is unstable, it isn't so unstable it would kill without being weaponized by the user. But because his essence, his magic and life force, were stretched out over the distance between Ponyville and here, well...his being hit with the Elements again was actually hazardous to his health."

"So then, why did you want him...dead?" Noct asked, "To spread chaos, isn't that what our group was out for?"

"Our chaos is far different. His is undoubtedly self-serving..." Boss said, "We're not in this to rule the world, Noct, nor to be ruled by someone. But his death did bring something we needed for our own project..."
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Ever since the princess had them prepare for a meeting to discuss the events, Azure had remained in his home to think about everything that had happened. The day had been one of the strangest, if not the strangest, he'd ever had. He was trying to piece together what he knew and what he could infer.

"Princess Celestia said that those ponies were out to stir chaos this time, just to release Discord, but why?" The unicorn colt asked himself. "What kind of pony would want something like him out and about?"

Azure grit his teeth, "He reopened old wounds, all to drive us apart for his own amusement...only a pony with no sense of right or wrong or anything else would..."

Azure shook his head, "Never mind that, he's gone now...for a lot longer than any of us could have ever imagined...But why does that only worry the Princess...?"

He cast a glance to his bedside table, "Could this tarnished-looking Element of Magic have anything to do with it? The Elements didn't look any different after the fact..."

A knock at his door called Azure from his thoughts.

"That must be the others..." Azure grabbed the unknown crown and stuffed it into a saddlebag, making his way for the door. He stood up, ignoring the dull aches that had still managed to settle in after everything had finally cooled off, for the most part, and speed-trotted to his door, opening it.

On the other side was a purple unicorn mare and an orange earth pony mare with a hat he'd know anywhere. Azure realized none of the others were there, but couldn't immediately figure out why...

"Azure...You know just as well as I do we need to talk this out..." Twilight spoke up. Applejack still looked as though she were ashamed of herself for some reason, but she spoke up.

"Az, there's somethin' you gotta know about before we start..." Applejack started up.

"It's not your fault that you acted the way you did, either of you," Azure cut in, "He only opened the old wounds..."

"It was enough to nearly drive us all apart for good, Az! Or..." It became clear Twilight wasn't the only one that understood what Discord had gotten at in his egotistical haze.

"Azure," Twilight called the group together. "What happened at Sweet Apple Acres when I tried to bring Applejack back to her senses...she just wouldn't listen to me...And I feared she was right about me...That I didn't work for anything in my life..."
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"Prove me wrong, name one time you didn't have something hooved over to you," Applejack stated. Twilight's eyes widened as she continued to fumble for answers, her mouth opening, only to close as she realized that wasn't the case. Nothing felt like it was coming up. Twilight began to wonder if...

She's right...

Over and over again, Twilight could only think about what Applejack was saying. She couldn't think of anything that would prove Applejack wrong straight away. Applejack stared at her intensely, her colors just as faded as ever. She huffed.

"I thought so..." She turned around and began to walk away, leaving Twilight to bask in her supposed failure, her supposed prestige. It really did seem like, at that moment, Twilight couldn't fight for something she wanted due to what Applejack said.

"Who was I kidding...how could I have thought I could help them...?" For one terrible moment, Twilight thought that was it. It was over, Azure was going to fail because she couldn't bring any single one of their friends back to the light. But just as the last of her hope began to elude her once again, a voice rang out in her head.

Always remember who you are...Discord has filled their heads with half-truths and lies...I fell into that trapping myself...

Azure's words of wisdom from his earlier confrontation with Discord echoed in her mind, and she stood up straight, walking after Applejack with renewed determination, which caused Applejack to stop and turn to her.

"No, Applejack, you're wrong..." Twilight said, stepping towards Applejack, who faced her fully once more. "I may have lived a different life than you, but I did earn what I have today..." Applejack snarled, stepping forward.

"Yeah right!" she interjected, going back to spewing more of Discord's lies, "Like you've ever got your hooves dirty with some good old hard labor in your life!" The guilt trip didn't work this time; Twilight didn't back down. Step for step, the two mares matched each other.

"I won't stand here and say that I've worked hard like you, I doubt anypony in Equestria works as hard as you." Twilight closed the gap between the two mares as she spoke up, "But I did work hard, at everything. The Princess took me as her student because I proved to her I had powerful magic, and ever since then I'd studied hard and practiced harder still to control it. Just like you, I've had to earn everything I had! Some things came easier than other, but in the end I had to work for it all."

They stopped, face-to-face. Twilight finally felt like she'd understood Azure's need to fight Virid all that time ago. Though Virid had more or less been born spewing venom as opposed to Applejack being forced to...

"If getting my hooves dirty is what I have to do to save our friendship, then so be it!" Applejack, in her state at that time, was certainly not expecting Twilight to follow through by tackling her to the ground. Both of the mares rolled around, the whole time Applejack's hat somehow remaining on her head. Twilight could have used her magic, but she had a point to prove, not to Applejack, but to herself. The struggle continued for a few seconds, seeming it could go either way, but suddenly Applejack managed to get the pin down on Twilight, using her forehooves to press down, hard, into Twilight's shoulder areas.

"All that talk, and this is all you got?" Applejack asked. Twilight tried to struggle free, but Applejack was stronger than she was. However, Twilight realized she could still move her hind legs; Applejack had forgotten to pin her down there too. More hope surged into her.

"I'm not done yet!" With all her strength, she moved her back legs to Applejack's stomach and kicked outward, flipping her forward off of Twilight. Twilight quickly moved while Applejack had been dazed, and Twilight made sure to pin Applejack to the ground. She didn't have much time before Applejack would realize what was going on, but it would be enough.

"Now let's do this again..." Twilight said. Try as she may, Applejack couldn't move away. Twilight leaned in, her horn less than an inch from Applejack's forehead.

Remember, Applejack, remember who you are!

Applejack's eyes shot open as the memory spell took effect, hundreds of images flooding her mind. She began to remember it all, her friends, family, everything she'd learned from them, it was all slowly coming back. Applejack's body seemed to shine as her color returned, and the glow on Twilight's horn faded as the spell began to end. Applejack was once more orange-and-blond, and her hat was back to being its usual color.

With the spell done, Twilight backed off, letting Applejack figure things out for herself. After a few seconds of motionless pondering, Applejack blinked, and shook her head, standing up straight. Her mouth was ajar, her eyebrow furrowed. She obviously remembered what she was doing while Discord's mind was clouded.

"Applejack," Twilight walked up to her, "Is this you? Are you back?"

Applejack could only nod, feeling the shame of what she'd let happen well up in her. Twilight pulled her in for a hug.

"Oh, thank goodness!" Twilight said, relieved. Her spell had worked; she hadn't had a means to test it or anything before all this started. While Twilight was happy, Applejack wasn't.

"T-Twilight...About everything I said...I-I...I'm sorry..."

"It's not your fault, Applejack," Twilight said, pushing Applejack away so she could see the green in her eyes. "It's Discord's. He did everything in his power to destroy any bond we could form with each other. I don't mean to rush, but we have to get the others, now! Azure is getting Discord's attention as we speak..."

"Az is facing him alone!?" Applejack yelled out, clearly worried.

"Yes," Twilight responded, "But he's going to be alright, all we need to do is get the real Elements of Harmony together again, so we can put a stop to Discord...and after we're done here...I think the three of us should sit down and have a much needed talk..."

Applejack swallowed hard; she definitely knew what that was going to entail, but she knew she couldn't dwell on it. Right now, her friends needed her. Applejack stood straight up and nodded to Twilight. The two then, without much else said, galloped out of Sweet Apple Acres, intent on clearing up the mess Discord had made of things...
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Azure blinked, and sighed, "No wonder he was so confident he'd even corrupted the Elements themselves when he saw you...So confident he could tell you to kill me...But it all worked out in the end. Still, he made today hard on us all. But he hit you two especially hard. I can't help but feel that I could have prevented both of them..."

"No, Azure," Twilight shook her head, "There was no way you could have possibly known this would happen..."

"But it did happen, Twilight," Azure interjected, "Discord knew about the secret role the princess had assigned me even though I would have done it anyway, and he knew about Applejack's feelings. And he exploited them, with all the glee of a schoolyard pony going to his first day of school. If I had been honest from the beginning, Twilight, he wouldn't have been able to twist the truth so easily..."

Azure then turned to Applejack, "Applejack..." She avoided his gaze, ashamed of what she'd allowed herself to do, "Look at me..."

It took her a few seconds, but she mustered the strength to meet his eyes, "Even if you didn't say anything, I should have noticed you still hurt inside. And if I had, I would have talked to you again and tried to help you move on."

There was nothing but silence. Eventually, a smile tugged at the corners of Applejack's mouth.

"The truth is, Az...I was startin' to, I really was..." But then her smile faded faster than it had appeared, "But then...in the maze, when Discord went posin' as you..." Applejack took a deep breath, "You've gotta understand, Twilight, Az, I would never want to come between you two, but...I'd always wondered, 'what if''..."

"I think we can all understand that, Applejack," Twilight said, offering her a reassuring smile as she put a hoof to Applejack's shoulder, "If it had been the other way around, I'm sure I'd be hurting too..." Twilight turned to Azure, giving him a slight smile, "But I know, given time, I would be able to move on, because in the end I'll remember that both of you would be there for me, as friends."

"And the same goes for right now," Azure said, "Just because it's the way it is now doesn't mean my feelings for you are any less significant. You're one of my best friends, Applejack, one of the closest I have, and because of that I'll always be there for you when needed."

"We both will," Twilight added, "And trust me, you'll find the right colt someday..."

The three fell into silence again as Applejack let all of that sink in. Eventually, tears began to fall, but this time, they weren't from pain, or sorrow, but rather, pure joy. A smile spread across her face as she pulled both of the unicorns in for a hug. She didn't have to feel ashamed, nor did she have to feel alone.

"So...Az..." Applejack said, "Is Blitz single?"

This was followed by laughter. Laughter that only three close friends could have after enduring such a testing ordeal. It would still take time for Applejack to heal, but this time, it certainly seemed like she was going to finish moving on...
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Time passed quickly in the secret lair. Boss had, for the most part, explained the items they were to collect, and picked fitting enough ponies to go retrieve each of them. He noted one of them was already in the hooves of the harmonics, but he said not to worry about it for now.

"Alright, so we're all clear then on what to do?" Boss asked, looking over the retrieval unit he'd put together. "Shade and Mendex will go the settlement of Appleloosa for their assigned item. Mendex is the one that should hold it, Shade. It just fits him better..."

"Fine. I'm just in it to see if I can't put that cyan idiot in his place once and for all..." Shade retorted.

"Bronclav, you will take Tack with you to the Hayseed Swamps. If anypony asks, just tell them you're taking him on a field trip." Boss said.

"That's believable..." Tack mumbled.

"Do not speak ill of Boss's plan!" Bronclav did not take too kindly to the shorter member's snark. Tack merely dropped one hand to his side, but said nothing in response.

"Noct, Tourna, you two will proceed to the Ghastly Gorge, and then Las Pegasus. Two of the six are in that general area. Remember which ones you were assigned..."

"Torpal, wait here with Crugus for your assignment." Boss said, "One of the Elements also landed close to home for them."

"Is that what we're to gather, then?" A different, male voice said.

"No, Crugus. I'm going to be patient, first. Losing it now might result in some missteps..." Boss continued passively, "If they get another one or two of these items, it isn't a big deal..."

"How are you so certain?" Torpal cut in.

"Maybe your magic gem's ability, maybe not. I know not how we would get any we miss back, but we already are guaranteed to be short one of these items..." The leader explained away. "If we miss a couple more, it isn't enough to worry about."

"The harmonics will be out searching for these, too, correct?" Tourna asked.

"Almost certainly," Boss said, "You know what to do if they should come along...So, are we clear on the objectives?"

"Yes, sir!" All except Tack cheered; Tack merely nodded.

"Then move out..."
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At the Canterlot station, a train came to a screeching halt on the rails, blowing its whistle. Ponies were told to get on or off the train before the train went to its next destination. One of the cards, towards the engine, contained some special passengers. Twilight Sparkle, with Spike sitting on her back, was the first to disembark. Closely following her was Azure Courage, with a small saddlebag around his head. Close behind him, Applejack. Rainbow Dash was next, hovering her way out of the car. Pinkie Pie was next, hopping her merry little way along. Rarity and Fluttershy were the last to exit.

As per Princess Celestia's request, they had showed up as soon as they had taken care of some things, but none of them had more than the slightest idea why. All they knew was it had something to do with the tarnished silver crown that Discord dropped after the Elements hit him. However, the group knew that the Princess usually never disappointed when it came to explaining things...after the fact.

The group made their way away from the station, trying to get out of the crowd of ponies towards the station's exit. However, once they had made it to the city streets...

"Shining?!" Twilight called out, upon seeing her brother nearby, closely followed by a small legion of Royal Guards. Shining's professionalism fell away just a bit, however, as Twilight ran up to him.

"Glad to see you're okay, Twily..." he said. Upon realizing exactly who it was, Azure raised an eyebrow. If he was around, certainly--

"Over here, Azure!" Azure whipped his head around to see one of the ponies he expected standing just off to the left. A red unicorn pony who had more scuffs on him and his armor.

"Blitz! What happened to you..." Azure's voice broke off as he recognized the shellshocked, green unicorn to Crimson Blitz's right. It was an unrecognizably guilty look that Virid was saluting the ground with. Physically, though, he looked no better off than Blitz. "And him?"

"Well...apparently after Discord...altered us, we wound up going rogue...before we snapped out of it, we had been mid-battle..."

"With each other?" Azure asked. Blitz merely shook his head.

"It was with our captain..." Virid whispered, the guilt apparently eating away at him.

"Yeah...with our captain," Blitz commented.

Azure's jaw dropped, and he whirled around. While Shining did show some sign of being in a battle, he definitely didn't seem worse off than either of his cousins did.

"I don't think either of us could fight at our max capacity due to what happened to us before, but I don't think he went all-out either..." Blitz said.

Blitz and Virid, when they work together, they can do some amazing things...but for Shining to be able to outstrip them... Azure thought to himself, looking over at the reunion between brother and sister. As captain...

"We're just lucky he knew something was already wrong..." Blitz clarified. "And he isn't the type to hold grudges..."

"Huh..." Azure thought for a moment, "Wait...where's Silver? He was with us before...But..."

Blitz raised his brow and looked around, "Just saw him a little while ago..."

Azure looked around now, mimicking Blitz's suggestion, but a soft giggle from behind him. After this long, he'd know that sound. He turned, seeing Silver talking to Fluttershy, or rather, appearing to be finishing up a conversation with Fluttershy. Silver didn't look like he'd been in any other fights other than the ponies' assault on Canterlot.

"He doesn't remember what happened to him, though..." Blitz said, returning to his manual-mandated stony countenance alongside Virid as Shining began to refocus.

"Relief, really..." Azure nodded, "After what he was put through, I wouldn't want to..."

Silver said something to Fluttershy, and she nodded to him. Afterward, he walked over to Azure. After entering range, they bumped hooves.

"Glad to hear you guys pulled through in the end..." Silver spoke up.

"You and me both," Azure sighed, relieved none of Silver's other side was visible now, "It didn't come easy, I'll tell you that..."

"I can only imagine..." Silver chuckled. Azure could see it; unlike with the others and himself, Silver retained no memory of what Discord had done to him.

"...Azure..." Silver's next question confirmed it, "What happened when we confronted Discord? Last I remember, I felt this disgusting presence...and next I remember I'm standing on the edge of a roof..."

Brushing past the implications of such a position given what the corrupted Silver had said, Azure closed his eyes.

Oh, what a benevolent spirit he was...not. "Not sure if you'd want to know, Silver..." Azure responded, opening his eyes. Silver shifted a bit, but did not falter.

"Shouldn't I be the one to decide?" Silver questioned. Azure sighed. It wasn't going to be easy, but ultimately, undoing Discord's machinations did rely on jogging memory...

"If everypony is ready, we're going to escort you to the castle now," Shining announced aloud. Azure looked.

"Alright, I'll tell you along the way what happened..."

As the group walked, Azure picked up where Discord gave Silver his sight but took the one thing that was by far his talent: his hearing. After toying with Azure by making Azure believe he had won, he then quickly corrupted Virid, Blitz, and of course Silver.

"Then, you left after berating me for being stupid...." Azure finished.

"That...isn't me...at all..." Silver reacted.

"That was his point, but whatever happened with you after that I couldn't tell you for sure..." Azure sighed.

"So..." Silver said, "I could see, even for a moment, but can't even remember what I saw..." Then, something unexpected happened after some silence: he chuckled, and let out a "Well, that sucks."

"That's...it...?" Azure asked after taking a moment to make sure he had heard his blind friend correctly. "You find out you were given sight, can't remember what you saw, and all you say is 'that sucks'..."

"Honestly, though, it would have been worse if I did remember..." Silver said, "If he was the first thing in a world I got to see, I'd rather not have had sight to begin with."

"Wasn't exactly a sight for sore eyes, I can tell you that much..."

"If I ever have the chance to see again, though..." Silver's eyes were the milky grayish they were all his life, but Azure could see he would have been looking at Fluttershy, who was currently talking to Rarity in a very hushed tone (or: her regular tone), "I'd prefer it'd be...somepony else."

Azure chuckled. At the very least he didn't irreparably damage your sense of humor, Silver...
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It didn't take too long for the group to reach the castle. A few minutes later, they were inside the castle; later still, they were escorted to the hall where, just that same day earlier, both Azure and the Bearers had been separately. Now, together with Shining, Virid, Blitz and Silver, they had noticed the hall had barely changed since the last time they were there. Princess Celestia was waiting, standing up, much more calmer than she was before yet still looking stern.

"You've come..." The solar princess stated, "I know you've got a lot of questions you all want to ask right now, but let me first say this." She looked to each pony as she stated their name, "Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Azure Courage...thank you for the services you have done to Equestria for foiling Discord's schemes for Equestria. If you hadn't mended the bonds he tried so hard to sever, we'd surely would have seen an era nopony would have wanted to see..."

"Nopony in their right minds..." Azure mumbled under his breath, almost inaudible to himself.

"Virid Strategem, Crimson Blitz, Shining Armor, and Silver Espada," she continued, "Thank you for the services you have done in saving the capital..." She turned away for a bit, mouthing something about paperwork and watertowers, but quickly regained her composure, "And, anything you have done while under Discord's influence will not be held against you; you clearly weren't yourselves..."

Azure wasn't sure if he imagined Virid whispering something to himself or not, but decided not to press it now.

"However..." Celestia's voice went back to being unquestionably stern, "Though I wish we had some time to celebrate these achievements--"

"There's always time to party!" Pinkie interjected, seeming to have forgotten precisely why they were called there in the first place.

"...I do wish I could say that..." The princess continued, "But...there's something pressing we must attend to as soon as we can. First of all...those shady ponies' attacks had only one purpose: to free Discord. However, I could not figure out why until after I saw that Discord wasn't re-sealed, but seemingly gone, and in his place..."

"Azure..." Twilight whispered.

"Already getting it..." Azure reached into his saddlebag, withdrawing the corroded silver crown that had earlier been discovered.

"Yes, that crown..." The princess then sighed, "For all of his crimes, I still could not wish such a punishment on anyone..."

Azure wasn't sure if Discord was truly worthy of Celestia's compassion, but it wasn't his call to make, either.

"Listen to me, what happened to Discord was in no way your fault," Princess Celestia finally began to explain, "When they took the item from you two," She nodded to Virid and Blitz.

"Way back then, when he said it..." Azure mumbled, recalling Tagane's words on the subject.

"That item, as I said before, was meant to weaken Discord. However, even that alone wasn't supposed to do as it did..." Celestia finally said it, "But combined with the item, the Elements of Harmony caused Discord's physical form at least to be destroyed..."

The entire room gasped.

"That crown is a side effect of that...It is not an Element of Harmony. It, along with five other items which are now scattered throughout Equestria...form the inverse, the Elements of Chaos..."

Another gasp, and this time the entire room fell silent.

"I'm still not entirely sure; I did not expect this to happen," Celestia said.

Virid, who had been practically a lifeless dummy up until about a minute ago, finally came to life.

"If that's the case, then..." Virid said, "Would putting them all together mean bringing back Discord's physical form?"

"Perhaps, perhaps not..." The princess responded, "The Elements of Harmony came from an entirely different source than this..."

"And why didn't this crown go flying around Equestria with the rest of them?" Twilight asked.

"I believe that one is the most connected to Discord in terms of what it is...if I had to give it a name, I'd say...'Conflict', the opposite of friendship."

"With what he stirred up between us..." Applejack said, "Makes sense..."

"Each of the elements has their inverse, and as far as I know do not link to specific ponies," The princess continued, "But...even if their true power can be attained when all six are gathered, just having the one probably isn't going to mean as much..."

"So then, what you want us to do is find the other Elements of Chaos?" Twilight questioned, "But, Princess...we don't have a means to track them down...we don't even know where the first one would be..."

The room fell silent again.

"There has to be a way..." Azure said to himself.

"As of now, I can not say how to find these Elements of Chaos," Celestia walked toward the group by a few steps. "But I now have guards looking for anything regarding where they are, and as soon as we have any information, I'll--"

The door loudly banged open.

"Princess Celestia!" All eyes turned to a dark gray pegasus in armor, "I have a report from Appleloosa!"

Azure, who had been briefly startled by the noise, along with some of the others, quickly calmed down and shook his head a little as his body's aches came back on him. He hadn't been healed yet due to the rush that had occurred after the fall of Discord, as well as the retreat of those cloaked ponies.

"After what happened today..." Azure mumbled, "We're all a little on edge..."

"I understand," the pegasus stated, bowing his head. Only now was it noticeable he was clearly winded.

"Now, you stated you had a report?"

"Yes," the pegasus said, "Less than two hours ago, a strange light was seen falling from the sky. It went down and made some kind of impact close to Appleloosa." The others turned their heads to the solar princess, who only noded.

"Excellent...now, if you don't mind telling me, I would like to know the coordinates of where the light fell."

"Of course, Princess," The newcomer saluted, "But there's something strange about it..."

Shining arched a brow, taking over, "Strange?"

"Where the light landed, by the time teams got there, a maze seemed to have come up out of the ground, made of said barren ground. Flying over it was useless; if you tried to land right on top of it, you merely wound up back to start. Going on the ground, many teams exited the maze finding that no matter where they went, it just seemed like they were running into one dead end after another..."

The mares immediately let out a collective gasp.

"That's what Discord did to all of us in the hedgemaze here!" Twilight called it out. "Except...this time, at least, a book won't be hollowed out with the Elements inside of it..."

"I do not know how we can get to the center of the maze, or wherever the object truly is, but reaching the object is impossible..."

Everypony fell silent for a long while, but Virid eventually called the group to focus, having roused himself out of his depression. Crimson would eventually wonder if this was truly a strategy from his mind or if he just wanted to "make up" his behavior earlier to their captain.

"I think I know what we should do about not only this particular element, but about the situation in general..." Virid spoke up.

"Then, tell us, if you would..." said the solar princess, prompting Virid to give his key strategy...

Chapter 43: South Base

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Chapter 43: South Base
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It hadn't taken that long for the group to get their stuff together and board a train leading to Appleloosa--with a little help from Princess Celestia, of course. They didn't take much, only what they were sure they would need. One of the newly created Elements of Chaos might have landed there, and the entire group knew they needed to get them before the ponies did.

However, their assault had come unexpectedly, and had caused the release of the most vile creature that had assaulted Equestria. With the two back-to-back crises finally resolved, the adrenaline generated among the group had already begun to wear off. All this had happened in only a day, and it wasn't even over yet.

Though Twilight, Spike, and the other Element Bearers weren't feeling the exhaustion--at least physically--Silver, and the Royal Guards in the car with them had been through difficult fights one after another; particularly Virid and Crimson, who had to fight with their own captain. He'd been more or less able to hold them off, but even he was starting to feel the ache like the others did. However, they still hadn't suffered like Azure had.

After his encounter with the batpony, he had been covered in small cuts that had gone untreated during the fiasco with Discord. Even after all that, he narrowly had to be forced to be treated. Now, covered in bandages, he was napping on one of the beds in the cars, and had to be put there after falling asleep on in the train within about a half hour of it starting to move.

"He's out like a light..." Twilight said in a hushed tone as she drew the blanket over him with her magic.

"Who could blame him?" asked Applejack, making sure to not raise her voice too much.

"Anyone'd be that tired after fighting like how he did..." Rainbow said.

"You had this...batpony, and then, not once, but twice, had to go up against whatever Discord--"

"Don't mention that name..." Virid was about two octaves short of full on yelling at Blitz, which caused everyone to flinch a bit and look to Azure, who didn't so much as move. Everypony turned back to Virid, who only said, "Please...?"

"He's earned his rest..." Twilight observed, letting Virid's outburst go--after what Discord had done while he was free, she could hardly blame him for it. "And he's so tired I don't think any of us could stop him even if we wanted to..."

"Didn't Az miss out on when we went that first time?" Applejack asked, cutting in, "When we went to plant Bloomberg before?"

"Yep," Twilight responded, "He had something from his job he couldn't put off until he could get back to Ponyville, and he couldn't have come along."

"It probably wouldn't have changed too much even if he had," Spike observed from the edge of one of the beds. "Even if Azure had come along, he would have still wound up picking a side one way or another..."

The incident that had come out of the group's last trip to Appleloosa didn't involve Royal Guards or Silver either, but it was definitely one to remember. The local buffalo tribe were at odds with the settlers, and had treenapped Bloomberg. The orchard the Appleloosan settlers had upset the buffalo since that was their stomping grounds, so to speak. The group had tried to make peace between the two, but Pinkie's song somehow made things worse between the opposing forces. Fighting broke out quick, but after tasting the local's apple pie, the chief was quick to reconsider, and thus things were different between the tribes from then on.

Even though there was a great lesson to be learned from all of that, Twilight couldn't help but feel, upon reflection, that at least some of that conflict could have been avoided--

"Well, it'll be another day's trip to get there," Blitz said, "We'd better do something to pass the time..."
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The train chugged its way down the track tirelessly, as evening turned into night. Eventually, all of the ponies on the train went to sleep, and began to dream. For one that had been sleeping peacefully, dreaming was something he probably shouldn't have done.
-----------------------
For the most part, Azure’s nap had been dreamless, but he soon found himself in a place all too familiar—the area where Discord had been apparently killed off for real. The crater was still there, as was the mysterious item within it. Nopony was around, unlike when Azure had been at this point before. Azure found himself called to the jewel, even though a voice inside of him was urging him, begging him, to reconsider investigating it.

You have no idea what this thing can do, Azure, the voice scolded, You know it’s somehow related to him, and you’re just gonna walk right up to it like there’s nothing wrong with it…

Azure was now millimeters from the jewel, gazing deep into the dark green gem on the corroded silver crown. Once he looked into it for more than a few seconds, Azure felt as though something had pushed very fiercely on his hind end, and bounced him straight into a trippy swirling vortex. The rainbow that Azure could recognize as the Elements of Harmony seemed distorted, like the colors had been altered—what was red was now pink, orange now brown, and other such alterations.

At first, it was silence save for Azure’s confused yells. Then, distant voices became more easily heard over the din. It didn’t take long for Azure to realize who they were.

“Twilight?!” Among the screams of terror that were now ringing very clearly in his ears, Azure floated his way around the void, fighting at the torrents that threatened to rip his being apart. He whirled around, seeing only empty air, “Applejack?!”

Azure called out everypony’s names, one after another, hearing them all screaming in what sounded like horrific pain. As the screams died down, Azure became aware he was hearing evil laughter.

“You idiot…” Azure now felt a heated blade—or what felt like one—pass right along his side. Azure didn’t dare look—he was convinced it was a bad wound. “You really expected to be able to protect them from the forces of chaos?”

Recognizing the voice from that night at the barn so long ago, Azure whirled around, “Where are you!?”

An equally recognizable voice rang out as Azure suddenly lost the ability to move save for his head, “No need to shout…You’ll startle the masses more than they already are…”

Azure wasn’t quite deterred, but this was one of the worst nightmares he’d ever had in his life.

“Now that his essence has been split up into six parts, we can shape the world as we see fit…”

Azure could see silhouettes of the ponies he knew were part of the same group, including the one that had already been captured so long ago. But that wasn’t right; any one of the Royal Guards would have mentioned that the formerly empowered earth pony had escaped in all the chaos. That wasn’t the issue; behind them, Azure could see the silhouette of the one creature he had just gotten sick of seeing.

“What, and do exactly as he did?” Azure asked.

“Chaos isn’t dead…” a distorted voice answered, “In fact, it’s now more of a problem than ever…”

Azure felt pain. He looked, seeing his hooves moving against their will, connected by what looked like wires made of pure magic energy…

“You can’t halt those that control chaos!”
-----------------------
Azure sharply gasped, awoken from his dream at once, as though something had catapulted him straight out of the nightmare. The cyan unicorn was sure of one thing right now: he was no longer tired. He was wide awake now, the adrenaline from the nightmare still very fresh in his mind and body. In fact, it was a bit too much for him. He looked to his forehooves, which were now on the blankets in front of him, and he was shaking.

Azure ran a hoof along the side he could have sworn had been split open by an invisible blade. Nothing, nothing at all. Azure closed his eyes, setting his hooves in front of him and preparing to meditate.

It felt so real...but it was all just a dream...a terrible one... Azure noted to himself, hoping to calmly go back to sleep. He had a jam-packed schedule tommorrow, and even though he'd slept eight hours already, he didn't want his rhythm to mess up.

A pair of hooves grabbed hold, and Azure, against his better judgment, let out a slight gasp, opening his eyes. However, as he looked over, he saw one hoof over his--a purple one. Even in the dark, through the moonlight shining through the window, he could see Twilight had squeezed onto the bed right next to him. It was a wonder he hadn't noticed her straight away.

"Azure?" Twilight asked, clearly worried. She could probably still feel his hoof shaking, "Are you okay?"

Azure took a slight moment to himself to enjoy the feeling of Twilight's hoof on his own; after yesterday he certainly felt entitled to the soft touch. But he couldn't delay his answer.

"It was..." Azure paused.

Do I really want to worry Twilight over a nightmare?

He was just about ready to deny there was anything wrong, when everything that had just happened with a certain spirit of disharmony. Keeping things to himself had only made things worse--it didn't help that the triangle, which had happened entirely without "his" interference, was another result of such a thing.

No more secrets...I can't keep things from the others anymore...

"I had...I had a nightmare, a bad one." Azure finally said. Twilight shifted a bit, moving ever closer to Azure, such that their sides were now touching.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Twilight asked; Azure could only nod and scooted over to the wall so he could sit up. Twilight leaned in, resting her head on his chest. The two remained like that as Azure prepared to recall what he'd just experienced.

"I don't know what it was, but it started when I found myself in Ponyville standing in the crater," Azure began at last after a minute of silence, "That Element of Chaos, the crown, was sitting in the exact same spot, as though it hadn't been moved. For some reason, I felt compelled to approach it, even though every fiber of my being was warning me not to. When I finally reached it, it felt like I had been pushed into it.

"But instead of falling over the crown, I fell into the gem and went...into somewhere, like a vortex..." Azure was confused; Twilight was looking straight at him now, "Whatever the case, I couldn't get out..."

Azure halted. He didn't want to have to tell Twilight what happened next. However, she saw right through him.

"That's not all, is it?"

Azure could only smile, "You can read me like a book..."

Azure nuzzled Twilight as she giggled at the joke. However, it didn't last. Twilight reached up to Azure's face, grabbing hold of it gently.

"Tell me..."

Even in the darkness of night, Twilight's eyes were still so bright. Azure sighed, and leaned in until his forehead made contact with hers. Closing his eyes, he continued his story.

"I started...I started to hear screaming...yours, Applejack's...Rainbow's..." As he went down the list, Azure could hear them all over again in his head, "I could hear everypony...All of you scared, in pain, and I couldn't do anything to stop it..."

Azure's body began to shiver again, but he went on, not paying it any notice, "I don't know what it means...and it scares me."

"What if something bad is about to happen? Something I can't stop? What if something bad were to--"

Azure couldn't finish. Twilight had pushed her lips against his, kissing him; Azure blinked, not realizing it at first. However, he soon relaxed, kissing her back. They remained like this for what felt like forever--only maybe a minute in real time--before Twilight pulled back, looking Azure straight in the eyes.

"Azure, listen to me...I want you to look at everypony in this cart, every single one of them..." Twilight said.

Azure did what he was told. Everypony else was still asleep; they were, however, still breathing. Once he was done, he looked back to Twilight, who spoke up again.

"We're all okay, and we're all safe. And that is because you refused to let anything bad happen to us. You'll do whatever it takes, up to and including putting yourself in harm's way to make sure the ones you love won't get hurt...

"And you're not the only one who will do whatever it takes...your cousins, my brother, Silver, the rest of us...all of us will do what it takes to keep each other safe. No matter what it is, we'll always find a way to overcome it if we stick together."

Just like that, any doubts or fears lingering in Azure's mind finally cleared. His shaking finally stopped as a smile crept on his face.

"You've really gotten good at this relationship stuff," Azure said, pulling Twilight closer. She giggled, returning the hug, and closing whatever distance had been left in them.

"What can I say, I'm a fast learner..."

Both closed their eyes and fully relaxed. It wasn't too long before the rhythm of their breathing settled them back itno the land of the dreams.

No matter what was going to happen from here on, they could overcome it...together...

With the help of their friends.
-----------------------
As the train continued towards Appleloosa, a pair of darkened figures were making their way over the badlands on foot. They were taking their time for ponies that really should have been in more of hurry than they were.

"Shade, you know a fair amount about them, correct?" Mendex asked of his partner as the two made their way towards Appleloosa.

"I was involved in the first couple of brushes with them..." Shade responded, his gaze never leaving the horizon line, "All I know is, this one is going to be the last..."

"It's personal for you, isn't it?" Mendex questioned again, "Fighting to avenge that pride of yours as a summoner?"

Shade didn't respond, looking ahead all the while. "I owe them personally for what happened when we last met in person..."

"Don't lose your cool, Shade..." Mendex said again, "You know full well Boss said to keep it, even now..."

"Is there a point to any of this, Mendex?" Shade questioned directly.

"Actually, yes, but you went on a tirade..." The cloaked pony said, "Can I say why I asked now?"

When Shade remained silent, Mendex went on.

"Was wondering if you knew anything about them specifically that could be used to my advantage...You know what my skill is..."

Shade turned to Mendex, sneering, "Now that you mention it..."
-----------------------
The sun came up, and by noon, the group had finally arrived at their destination. Azure and Twilight were still sound asleep against the wall, and ponies inside the train were starting to take notice.

"Wonder what happened last night..." Blitz whistled, returning his focus to the task ahead as he got his things. Virid, meanwhile, looked as though he wanted to say something, but whatever it was, wasn't coming out today. Whether it was because his captain so obviously approved of what he was looking at here or if he just wanted to preserve the moment wasn't totally lost on everypony else.

Rarity took in the sight as she went about her business, obviously enjoying it like any other romantic-at-heart would. The others generally took in the sight, but it was Shining who finally got the group to focus.

"Could someone remind them what we're here for?" Shining asked, "Not that I don't approve or anything..."

"Right!" Virid snapped to attention, immediately executing his captain's orders as his horn became alight with an amber glow. A small pair of cymbals appeared just above the sleeping unicorns, and crashed together with a small flash and a loud noise, startling both of them.

Everypony turned to the source of the noise, as Azure and Twilight both jumped up and scrambled around a bit.

"I don't think...I ordered...the wake up call..." Azure quipped groggily, his tone very indicative of how much of a morning pony he was.

"Well, you can nap all you want after we've done what we have to do..."
-----------------------
As the group left the train, Virid had gone over the plan in detail.

"So to recap: since we can't run the risk of splitting up with how much power these ponies obviously have at their disposal, we have to go to each location together and hope to beat them to the item and recover them first. While we do that, units from other parts of the Royal Guards will scatter across the land, trying to find any other strange anomalies.

"It's a bit risky, sure, but it was a far bigger risk to let these items fall into their hooves. If they get their hands on what...that thing...left behind, we might be facing chaos all over again, and we don't know what it could do in the hands of a tactician like the boss of these ponies...We don't quite know what they have at their disposal outside of body modifications to non-unicorns to give them powerful specialized magic; perhaps even unicorns are given modifications like what we saw with that earth pony...

"Point is, we don't know exactly what we're up against, but expect to see some old and new faces among their ranks...If we are able to subdue any of them, we can do to them what they did to their friend. We also know what we're capable of..."

"Which is why I'm the way we know where the next one is?" Spike had to cut in at that point.

"Precisely..." Virid responded, "When the other teams find an item, they report back to the princesses, who will send that info to you, and that's where we go next..."

"What's stopping the other Royal Guards from getting the item themselves?" At this point, Rainbow Dash questioned.

"If this item's any indication, it'll be because it's unapproachable by their small squad..." Virid answered, "We're ten ponies and a dragon; we should be able to do what they can't if we work together...We shouldn't be here longer than a day, if all goes well."
-----------------------
"So everypony is clear, then?" Virid asked as he left the train alongside Shining and Blitz. The others had already stepped off.

"I can see what the plan is," Silver responded dryly.

"So we've just got to find the Element that dropped here, and get it out of enemy hooves..." Azure stated, following this up with a question, "How do we know if they haven't already been here and gone?"

"Town is still in one piece, the local ponies here don't seem any more disturbed than what the last report told us..." Twilight said.

"And I didn't get a letter in the middle of the night," Spike said, before adding under his breath, "Hate it when that happens..."

The group walked through the settlement.

"So..." Silver said, "First time in this town for a good few of us..."

"I didn't get to come along, so don't look at me..." Azure responded, "You feel anything off?"

"Not yet," Silver responded, "But I can tell this place isn't like Ponyville. Quiet, sure, but we're...in the middle of a desert, aren't we?"

"Shoot, "Applejack interjected, "My cousin's...Wonderin' if he's alright with all the commotion about all this..."

"Hmm..." Shining said, "The item did land somewhere not too far outside the town...and it does affect the landscape..."

"If that's the case," Virid interjected, "Perhaps we'd better split up into groups and find out if everything checks out. Some time has passed since the item landed. We don't want to find out we're in a maze."

"Alright then..." Shining responded, "Always quick to think, Virid...In that case, here's how we're gonna do this..."
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Shade and Mendex had arrived at the settlement, or rather, just outside it. They had managed to move past the buffalo without much trouble--a little help from Mendex's magic made sure of that. There they stood, on what appeared to be an ordinary orchard of apple trees. Beyond that was the quaint village that formed Appleloosa. However, if a pony stood close enough, they could hear ponies and buffalo alike within, crying out in confusion and fear. A group of ponies were nearby, no doubt trying to form a rescue party for the supposedly lost ponies.

"The Element landed in there?" Shade questioned, "Hardly looks any different..."

"It's a complex illusion, Shade..." Mendex responded, "That's just what it wants you to think, but when you walk in there it turns into an absolute maze..."

"Thought so..." Shade nodded, sighing. "Well, how are we gonna do this?"

"If the harmonics come along, they must be dealt with..." Mendex responded. "Otherwise, stay low...The ponies and buffalo here learned to work together some time ago. If either one sees you without me around, it's gonna be ugly quick..."

"Very well. I won't do a thing until I see them..."

"That will do," Mendex responded. His cloaked body began to become enshrouded in translucent gray magic. When it cleared, before Shade appeared a fairly ordinary buffalo, save for the silver eyes and darker-than-average fur.

"Now," the buffalo said, "I'm just making sure no one can tell me apart if I manage to find any pony in that maze...Let's go."

Mendex, still looking like a buffalo, made his way down the hill. Shade looked towards the settlement again.

"A shame the buffalo didn't roam all over this place...certainly would have saved us some trouble..." Shade quipped, sighing as he hung his hooded head a bit. "Oh well..."

Shade continued to watch the horizon and the opposite side of the orchard. There was a pony going in with a rope tied around one of his ankles. After a few minutes of him somehow getting lost in what seemed like a fairly ordinary orchard, the pony was yanked out, and he adjusted his hat in frustration. He said something, or at least it looked like something, when suddenly he looked back to the horizon, seemingly startled.

There, on the horizon...

Was a group of ponies, a few of which he recognized.

"Well, well..." Shade said, standing up. "They sure are early..."

His mouth opened wide into a grin as his horn, protrudng from his hood, became enshrounded in the blue-black aura. "In that case, why don't I reward them...?"

Chapter 44: Shadowed Heart

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Chapter 44: Shadowed Heart
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One of many citizens stood outside the orchard, just as confused as all the others. He was a light yellow earth pony, with a single red apple for a cutie mark. His mane was two different shades of orange, one closer to his mane, the other a darkish-light sort of amber color. On his head was a brown hat, on his body, a brown vest. His green eyes were the same as the other ponies' gathered: full of confusion.

He just didn't get it. Even though the item was clearly in the orchard, nopony could seem to find it. In fact, ponies and buffalo alike were getting lost left and right in the orchard. But why? The orchard hadn't changed at all since the item landed. Were it not for the simple fact some ponies were needed to explain the situation; were it not for the fact somepony had to stay outside the maze and try to guide the lost ones to safety, Braeburn would have gone in after them.

"T'aint right..." he mumbled to himself, "How are they gettin' lost in there? It ain't changed any..."

Several hoofsteps, rapid, headed towards the area, and Braeburn turned, expecting to see more of the townsfolk attempting to figure out what was going on. Instead, he saw, in no particular order: two ponies in white-and-gold armor; one red, one green, both unicorns; another unicorn, cyan, with a few bandages in some places, and a few familiar faces: a drake, purple, a blue pegasus, and of course...

"Cousin Applejack?!" Braeburn called out, completely off-guard, "When'd ya'll get here?! Wasn't expectin' ya to come!"

"I wish it were to visit, but..." Applejack could only nod to the unicorns in the royal guard armor. "We're here with them..."

Braeburn did a double-take, looking back to the guards who were there. They certainly didn't seem as stoic as he'd heard from a few of the recent migrants; or at least one of them didn't. And those manes...

"Oh, they're here about that thing that fell..." Braeburn stated, his face growing serious, "None of us get it...The place where it fell don't look any different, but..."

A chorus of voices echoed from within the orchard, though none could see any ponies inside the orchard either. All of them were different, but all of them were crying out for the same basic thing: assistance.

"Ponies're lost in there?!" Applejack called out, clearly concerned.

"Rainbow," Blitz said, looking to her, "Think you can do a fly over and see if you can spot anypony in there?"

"You got it!" she said, immediately flying off.

"So what's happened here?" Virid asked, stepping forth, all business, "When we last got word here, the item landed outside town--apparently in your apple orchard--And ponies were just having trouble finding it. Now it seems like they're having trouble finding where they are..."

"Not just that, but when they get in there, it's like they disappear completely, and can't seem to find their way out..." Braeburn responded, rubbing at the back of his head in confusion. "When we send ponies in there tied to ropes, they say the place looks totally different on the inside, like it's completely closed off...like...like a maze of apple trees! However they say that they have trouble hearing where the others are too...T'aint right...First the troubles with getting the townsfolk and buffalo to get along, now this..."

"That sounds like..." Applejack trailed off, recent experience making her uncomfortable.

"Only, it's all an illusion, nothing like what...he did before..." Azure said, gritting his teeth in anger.

"Pardon?" Braeburn questioned.

"This all goes back to an incident that happened in Canterlot and Ponyville yesterday..." Blitz began to summarize the incident, "After that incident was resolved, five items scattered across Equestria..."
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It was less of a problem that it seemed, but Mendex was aware that illusion magic, especially ones caused by an item that could passively affect the environment, wanted you to think you were secure; or otherwise that things were not as they seemed. Mendex knew that even if he did everything according to plan, at any moment the harmonics would come to the settlement and Shade would engage them. However, even if they all fled into the maze, it still would take them far too long to find the item.

Still giving others the impression he was a buffalo if he were to be seen by other lost ponies, Mendex began to conduct an analysis of the illusion surrounding him.

When I entered the orchard, it was like the trees slid closed behind me, and I was now in a maze of trees rather than a simple grove... Mendex thought, closing his eyes, Clearly it's progressed its effect on the landscape since we've gotten here. However, if I can just figure out exactly where the kinks in this illusion are, I should be able to nullify this illusion long enough to get the element we're here for.

The disguised earth pony began to block out the sounds of the ponies and buffalo whose spirits had long ago broken, taking only a brief moment to enjoy those sounds before getting down to business. No matter what, the item came first. He reopened his eyes, and his left eye began to glow faintly dark green.

As he gazed around the maze, he could see other ponies and buffalo, not getting too distracted or sympathetic. The images were translucent at first, but began to focus.

"Sure enough, every lifeform is rendered invisible to one another even if they were right next to each other..." After a quick lookaround. "The tree images are multiplied and arranged to be an inescapable maze. This item really does not want to be controlled...It's almost as if..."

Mendex paused, shaking his head, "I wouldn't put it past chaos magic, but nonetheless...I need to get a bit closer to the item's signature in order to be able to disable it..."

Under his cloak--had he not been in disguise--a dark green gem would have shone as he channeled his otherwise inaccessible magic. It made him able to discern illusions with a little effort, as well as cast them. Usually, he'd cast illusions on ponies simply to hear their howls of confusion, but even with that, Mendex had to wonder.

Was it really just because of his illusions that he was picked for this Element?
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“You mean ya’ll had to deal with that?!”

It wasn’t like Azure didn’t know why Applejack’s cousin was so stunned. If it wasn’t for the fact every sensation he’d felt during that incident was real, and the mental games as convincing as only a master could contrive, he wouldn’t have believed it. Remembering the incident and how it had affected not only him but everypony he cared about, though, only served to irritate him.

“That’s right…” Azure stated flatly, “And that’s why that item’s here, and if I had to guess, why it’s having the effect it is now on the landscape…”

Braeburn rubbed at the nape of his neck, momentarily at a loss for words. Before he could regain his ability to speak of the situation further, however, Rainbow Dash flew down, hovering feet above the ground such that she could see the others.

“You see anything?”

“Couldn’t see anypony in the orchard, but I swear I could hear them. But when I flew closer, the trees started movin’ like in that maze Discord tricked us with to try and trap me in them!” Rainbow Dash called out, “But that’s not even the half of it…I saw those monsters again!”

“What’s she talkin’ about?” Braeburn asked, confused, as everypony else tensed up. “Monsters?!”

Spike turned his head, and saw something, raising his claw in surprise.

“I think she’s talkin’ about that!!” the young drake called out, forcing all present to look over to where he saw them. Azure and Applejack recognized them better than the others did. While a few of them were the insectoid Shadow Ghouls, a good number of them were the much larger, comparatively wolf-like Shadow Fangs. And their color…

“He’s here again…” Azure snarled, his eyes lighting up cyan. “That unicorn from that night…and that pony who got away…”

“Well, this time,” Blitz said, lowering his head, “We’re gonna make sure he doesn’t!”

“Everypony, get ready, and be on the guard,” Virid warned, “We don’t know what their objective is…it could be to stall, but judging from the size…”

The green unicorn never finished his sentence, for a Shadow Fang leapt forth, aiming for the off-guard, unsure Braeburn, but Applejack was quick to act, flinging out the lasso and yanking the beast towards her.

“Let my kin alone!” she barked, bucking it hard enough in the face to send it on its back. Rainbow Dash quickly leapt back down on it to finish the job, causing it to disappear into smoke, before leading one of the airborne Shadow Fangs on a wild goose chase through the sky.

While the pegasus kept its opponent busy, Virid began to let off a series of amber bursts at the weaker Shadow Ghouls, making short work of them. Spotting an attack coming on his right, the unicorn dodged left away, snorting as the Shadow Fang’s claws scraped through the sand. He began to observe its patterns as it went for a bite attack, with the green unicorn avoiding that as well. As he continued to take in his opponent’s attacks, a second Shadow Fang attempted to blindside him with a claw attack of its own, and Virid quickly acted; ducking his front half down as his horn lit up in an amber light once again. This time, the glow expanded to his back hooves, and when his glowing feet made contact with the Shadow Fang’s body, an air pressure wave exploded outwards, putting a hole in the wolf-monster’s chest cavity. It went down on its back, exploding into smoke.

Virid was able to jump backwards from the first monster’s vengeance move, and quickly turn to the right to let off a defensive laser burst, smirking afterwards.

“I already know what moves these things are going to make now…” he observed, just as his orange eyes met-up with the Shadow Fang’s movement, and he leapt backwards, but didn’t quite dodge this time, the claws making an audible scraping noise against Virid’s armor.

“Oh come on!” Virid whined, “I just polished this before we left!”

“Not now, Virid,” Blitz flatly reprimanded as he blurred past, smashing into one Shadow Ghoul. The impact sent it backwards into a group of six, scattering them into smoky trails--if they had stayed solid, they would have instead scattered like bowling pins.

Braeburn and Spike both backed away again, not quite sure of themselves in this situation. It wasn't like they could have stood around and watched, but Braeburn hadn't exactly been known for being ornery like his cousin, who was currently putting her top-level applebucking skills to use, hitting the monsters hard as they came. The rope tricks she knew certainly helped her, as well. But the apple farmer knew he couldn't just keep backing off.

The creatures seemed to be mostly targeting the group, after all.

"We can't just sit here!" Braeburn called out, "They're after what fell here, right?!"

"That's right..." Spike said, "But what're we gonna do here?"

Braeburn looked back to the group. Rainbow Dash was streaking across the sky, before going into a low-flying manuever, right alongside Crimson Blitz, whose horn was alight with a purple glow and his body a blur as the two kept pace with each other. The two seemed to increase their speed ever so slightly, both plowing hard into an already injured wolfish creature, apparently killing it. Rainbow Dash then turned, as did Blitz, whose hooves scraped the ground hard as he began shooting blasts to the ghouls chasing here.

"I mean, any better than what they're doing..." Spike said, "Virid was right--we'd run into trouble the closer we were to the item..."

Speaking of the unicorn in question, he was currently laying waste to two Shadow Fangs. After he had learned their attack patterns, he was making it look like foal's play to take down two large monsters. Azure himself was picking up anything the others weren't.

"And, given who else is on the team, I wouldn't want to get in their way..."

"Wait, then why are you here?" Braeburn asked, after a moment of silence.

"Virid wanted me around in case I got a message..." Spike said. "I don't know how much use he'd have for those on his own. Perhaps he might plan something out based on that and have it ready before we get back together? I don't know..."

"I don't think any plan you all have in mind will work..." A voice Braeburn didn't recognize said, causing both him and Spike to turn around. A dark blue unicorn, jet-black mane and tail, showed up. His hood was lowered, revealing his horn was glowing a blue-black color. His eyes were a scarlet color.

Both Spike and Braeburn froze, turning to the pony that had been behind several attacks before the greater conspiracy began to reveal itself.

"Here, I think I know how I'll get them to drop their guard..." Shade's magic changed course a bit, and Spike and Braeburn began to lift off the ground against their will. At the same time, the summoned ghouls began to vanish one-by-one. All eyes turned, and everypony saw what was happening.

"Cousin Braeburn?!" Applejack shouted.

"Spike!?" Azure called out, instantly angered.

"Let 'im go!" Rainbow Dash started for them, but before she could reach them, it was Spike who acted first. Shade may have counted on the lure of the hostages once more, but he hadn't quite counted on Spike being able to breathe green fire in defense of himself. Shade was forced to take the burn, dropping Spike and Braeburn while he tried to extinguish the flames.

Applejack's lasso snapped out, yanking Braeburn out of the way, while Rainbow Dash flew in, saving Spike. It hadn't been too long, but soon, Shade, whose mohawk had been nearly singed back down to the roots, turned his furious scarlet eyes to the group.

"You must really want me to get serious, then?" he asked, "Fine...As before, three Taraxippi, coming right up!" His horn once again began to glow jet black.

"Terax--Torox--" Braeburn attempted to try to pronounce the word woozily, still a little dazed from the whiplash. Azure began to step forward, eyes closed.

"I don't know either," Azure said, "But they've gotta be even worse than those wolves..."

"They're tough monsters, too!" Applejack said. "It took all we had just to take down one o' them, but if Shining and the others hadn't shown up...!"

Azure's magic surged, as the pool of shadows from that day so long ago opened up in front of Shade. Three creatures, one after another, came out, all twice the height of a pony, all as vicious as Applejack, Rainbow, and all else who were there remembered. They each roared as they finished being summoned. Shade positioned them in front of him.

"I see..." Azure said, "Either way we were cutting it close back then..."

Azure's eyes opened, his eyes no longer glowing cyan, but pure white. His horn lit up, and remained that way despite the fact he didn't appear to be casting a spell. Virid and Blitz both did a double take, Spike and Braeburn both paused, and Rainbow Dash and Applejack could only think back to the day before, when they had saw Azure in the colloseum.

"This time, you won't get away!" Azure roared, sending out a laser attack from his horn. It hit one of the Taraxippi dead-on, and to the surprise of all present, the laser didn't stop on the thick skin of the beast, instead proceeding right through to the other side, leaving a large hole through it. The Taraxippus that was hit fell over, disappearing into smoke.

"What the--?!" Shade growled, positioning the remaining two.

Rainbow Dash rubbed at her eyes, at a total loss.

"It took us a whole lot o'work just to take down the one..." Applejack said, entirely shocked, "But with just one shot...!?"

Virid looked, almost dumbstruck, at what his cousin had done. Taking into account the others' reactions and the fact that they did look beat-up when they finally got to them, as well as Azure's current showing...

"What happened...?" Virid asked, "I didn't think Azure could be..."

He shook his head. He could wait until later to ponder Azure's growth. Right now, he needed to think of a plan of action. He wasn't quite sure if these ponies could see through these illusions due to walking the path of chaos, but still, there was one thing he did know:

If the Element Bearers were to be sundered or seperated in some way, the security of the country would be endangered, and Rainbow Dash and Applejack were, in fact, two of them...
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His illusion-dissipating eye still glowing, Mendex could hear the sounds of a battle outside the orchard. He could also hear the confusion of the ponies inside the maze, and even saw a few stray shots go past unnoticing ponies. This illusion was beyond anything he’d ever experienced, and he had to know what kind of power these so-called Elements of Chaos held now.

“I must be getting closer…” Mendex observed silently to himself, his eye and gem glowing ever stronger. Yet ponies who turned to see him either saw nothing but a dark emerald glow or nothing at all. Perhaps one of them had saw the buffalo he had projected himself to be to everyone else, just in case. The fluctuations in the illusion appeared to be growing ever stronger, as though he was nearing the source.

The transparent images of the orchard around me… the earth pony thought, gritting his teeth as he sneered with confidence, I have to be close!

Keeping an eye on his surroundings just in case the item’s magic went even more out of control than it was already, the disguised equine continued forth, with one eye on the ground. Eventually, despite the illusions around him forcing him to squint, he could see the source. Concentrating, Mendex began to channel magic from his chest into his hooves, as he went up on his hind legs.

Now I need to dispel the illusion, and take the item…and then…I’d better do a tactical retreat…The score is already one to zero, don’t wish to make that two-nothing if I can help it… Mendex thought, his gem burning brilliantly. The one flaw in the illusion being dispelled is that his own illusion—that of him being a buffalo—would also be dispelled, revealing his true form as a black-cloak wielding pony. Mendex was, however, confident enough he was close enough to the element such that even if he were discovered, it would be too late.

With a sharp grunt, Mendex released the magic within him, dispelling a dark green shockwave throughout the orchard. The glow in his eye died down and his true form was revealed as he began to check if he had restored the true image, for even a few seconds.

The trees that seemed to form nothing but dead ends and tunnel-like corridors were gone. The ponies he could see once more, and they looked around, confused to see their orchard was back. Quickly, Mendex made his move, seeing a corroded silver necklace on the ground.

He could see it glow as the powers within began to leak into the environment, and the ponies began to question his presence. He knew right now making an illusion was not the top priority right now, instead opting to grab the item first.

Mendex dove, taking hold of the item in his hooves. When it made contact with his body, the glow seemed to stop, allowing him to get a good look at it.

This…is the element of Deception? He asked himself, looking upon it. The necklace part was a corroded silver color; the gem inside was a dark blue color, and appeared to be “blank”, in a sense.

“Hey, who are you?!” one of the ponies questioned. Mendex turned around, deciding to himself to give the amulet before him a try.

“Just someone who was looking for this,” he stated flatly, putting the element on. As soon as he did, a fog began to glide in his mind, and he could feel his chest gem begin to surge. However, the former concerned him much more than the latter; the mental haze a cause for concern. He felt so focused, and now…now he felt a much more sinister urge than a tactical retreat coming on…

What’s happening…!?
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The other group of "Harmonics", as the dark group would put it, had asked around the town. Sure enough, the town itself seemed largely unaffected, though the townsfolk had been worried about what it meant. And, they were worried about their kin that had been lost in the maze.

However, as they began to hear the sounds of battle in the distance, the other group had began running for the other side of the town.

"Sure enough, it'd start without me!" Silver grumbled when he realized it, "Not that I like it when these ponies throw a wrench in the works..."

"Something I think we can all agree with," Shining had noted. The group continued to make their way towards the orchard, where the townspeople and buffalo who were more or less passing through pointed it out to be.

The group hadn't quite gotten there yet, and Twilight began to think about what was happening.

They've already gotten here? Azure...Applejack...Spike...please, please be safe...

Thus, the group continued onward, towards where they could hear the sounds of battle.
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A taraxippus sent one of its massive paws crashing down on where Azure would have been just a few seconds ago, had he not teleported onto its friend's head. The taraxippus attempted to swat Azure off with its tail, only to have it blasted off with a weak laser discharge. From there, the unicorn began to focus his magic into his front hooves, and as soon as he found a spot where he wouldn't slide down so much, he reared up, bringing both down and discharging a shockwave of magic, causing the front of the beast to bulge out intensely. It fell forward, downed.

"Sure enough, he's completely different..." Crimson noted, "This just isn't the same Azure from before...What's happened to him since his move..."

Crimson began to think back to when they'd fought the summoner's companion at the Ghastly Gorge. After Rainbow had shattered his chest gem and restored the unicorns' magic in the process, Azure's eyes had started glowing. He hadn't really thought about it before, but now...

"His horn and eyes ain't stopped glowing since he started!" Rainbow called out. It was true--since his supposed surge had kicked in, his eyes had never stopped shimmering, his horn had never stopped blazing.

"I don't know what it is, but I'm glad he's got it!" Spike called out.

Virid continued to study the situation, a rather pensive look on his face despite the epic success Azure was having in fending off the two ghouls on his own. He leapt backwards. Shade was towards the back, constantly positioning at least one of his ghouls between himself and the others.

One of the monsters leapt down at Azure, who leapt out of the way, finally putting that one to a stop with a few well-placed laser bullets, which caused the Taraxippus to finally disperse into smoke. Azure turned to the last one.

"Whatever's happened since last time..." Azure said, "I don't think we're that comparable anymore..."

"We never were to begin with!" Shade said, the glow around his horn fluctuating heavily. The Taraxippus in front of him roared, charging Azure, eyes glowing red as it tried to bring its forepaw down on Azure. Azure leapt up, aided by the gravity spell, dodging the attack once again, before using a fire spell, hitting it with a couple of fireballs.

It roared, reaching up at Azure with its other paw, but Azure fell safely out of the way, charging a laser shot next. As soon as Azure landed, he fired it off, once again having the same effect on the Taraxippus as he had before. The last one was defeated, nothing more than smoke scattering to the wind.

"It's over," Azure said, as the glow around Shade's horn faded, "You're not going to get away this time..."

Shade began to laugh, his head facing towards the ground, "Oh no, I think I will...with everypony else..."

"You've already pulled out all the stops!" Rainbow said.

"Wrong..." Shade said, using his magic to throw off his cloak, revealing his chest gem was glowing a black glow. The glow around his horn began to change to a dark black color. "I still have one more summon to make..."

Instead of the pool of shadows appearing in front of him like it had before, it instead appeared directly beneath him, wind blowing straight up from it as Shade began to cast the spell.

"On a scale of one to ten..." Shade continued, "This one's a twelve!"

"A twelve...?!" Blitz yelled. "You can't be serious..."

"But he is, Blitz..." Virid said, finally coming to life. He cast a look to the others, and then to the maze. As something began to take form around Shade's chest and legs, enveloping it all in a shadowy blob which began to rapidly change shape, Virid grit his teeth.

"Everypony..." he started, "I know it looks bad, but you all need to get into the maze now..."

"What?!" All present shouted.

"But that maze..." Blitz started.

"Is an illusion, yes. However, the item's in there too," Virid continued, "We need to try to get it back before they do!"

The blob began to take form, a body, which began to grow in size rapidly. It looked somewhat insectoid, but also serpentine. It was now twice, three times, four times as big as Big Mac, the biggest pony most of the group knew.

Azure grit his teeth, "Plus, at least you guys would be hidden in there..."

"I'm not going to hide!" Rainbow Dash said beligerently, "I'm going to stay right here..."

As a long shaft of darkness began coming out of the beast's body, Shade moved to about the center of its full length; about ten feet out of the large main body. The shaft of darkness morphed quickly into a head, which roared.

"Well..." Virid gritted his teeth. "Some of us need to be in there..."

"I'm goin' in with you..." Applejack announced, "Somepony needs to find the item, too, right?"

"B-besides," Spike said, "A-Azure can take care of himself...and the others aren't here...yet."

"I'll go in too." Braeburn said, "The sooner we get that item out, the sooner we can get back to our livelihood..."

"Alright then, Blitz, Rainbow Dash," Virid continued, "You stay out here and back up Azure! We'll go in!"

The beast Shade was now fused with looked down, as though about to lunge out at the ponies galloping straight into the orchard.

"Let them go..." Shade said, "Nopony could find their way in that maze...Focus on the ones that are staying behind...Make sure they know the terror of the shadows..."

With Azure, horn and eyes still glowing cyan and white respectively, Blitz, who took stance on his left and Rainbow, who hovered in the air on Azure's right, looking on, the beast roared again.

"Go..." Shade started again, "Shadow Hydra..."
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Mendex stood in the center of the maze he'd created within the orchard. None could see him. Rather than a buffalo, he was now part of the maze, at least on an illusory level. He now had complete control of the entire maze.

Feeling the power of his Element coursing actively through him, Mendex detected something.

"Ah...so some of the harmonics have entered the maze..." Mendex stated, "Perfect..."

Shifting his magic a little, Mendex smirked, unseen by all. "Well then...why don't I put Shade's intel to use...?"

Chapter 45: Surpassing the Past

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Chapter 45: Surpassing the Past
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Rainbow Dash flew higher, avoiding getting clawed by the monster that Shade had more or less fused himself to. She then dodged low, avoiding a follow-up strike. Blitz and Azure remained ground-bound, trying to get a feel for how the other two legs moved. The right foot crashed down where Blitz had been mere moments, ago, but a speed spell made sure it only hit the ground. Azure, meanwhile, did a gravity spell-assisted jump over a tail strike.

“It’s useless, I’m telling you…” Shade mocked from atop the beast, “You won’t be moving away from this!” This time, the beast’s head lunged out at Rainbow Dash, mouth wide open.

“Rainbow, look out!” Azure called out. Rainbow Dash waited for the perfect moment, and flew to the left of the head, the mouth biting down on empty air. The pegasus continued forth. Shade adopted a shocked expression. Rainbow clocked him hard across the face, causing the hydra to stumble back. Shade barely moved from the center of the beast’s neck, shaking his head.

“If you’re trying to hit me out of this, forget it!” Shade shouted. “I would also advise against knocking me out—I’m the only one here who can control this thing!”

“Oh, really, now?” Rainbow asked, flying back around for another go at it.

“Do you think you’re not out of control to begin with?!” Blitz called out, firing a few purple lasers at the body of the beast. The beast raised one of its forelimbs, blocking these attacks.

“I’m perfectly in control!” Shade shouted, swatting the oncoming Rainbow Dash down with the beast’s tail.

“You alright?!” Blitz called out, not moving over to her right away, as he and Azure dodged the beast’s attempt to smash them under its forepaws.

“Yeah…fine…” Rainbow Dash grunted, rubbing her head at the end of a small trench.

Azure slid to a halt, gritting his teeth as his horn’s glow brightened up, firing off his own lasers. His lasers were also blocked, though they seemed to do slightly more damage than Blitz’s own lasers—steam seemed to come off the impact zones. The beast roared, throwing its neck up high.

“Why don’t I show you just what this thing can do!?” Shade called out. His eyes glowed red—the hydra roared again, its own eyes giving off the same red glow. The beast’s head lowered, allowing Azure and Blitz a clear view: Shade was sinking deeper into the construct!

“What the--!” Azure called out. Blitz sped forth, but only crashed down on the beast’s neck where Shade had just been.

“Darn it, just missed him...” Blitz cursed, quickly leaping off the beast’s neck before it started moving again.

“Much better…” The hydra grinned, Shade’s voice seeming to come out of the Shadow Hydra’s mouth.

“He’s become one with it?!” Azure shouted, at a loss for other words.

“How did this organization get their hands on so many gems…?” Blitz said under his breath, “They give their users frightening power…”

Rainbow floated down next to him, just as Shade spoke up again.

“You want frightening power?” Shade questioned, causing the hydra’s neck to crane upward once again. “I’ll show you frightening power!”

The hydra’s mouth opened wide, and for a couple of seconds, nothing happened. However, all three gasped when they realized what Shade was doing, particularly as a large black ball began to form in its mouth.

The hydra fired the shot, though not aimed at the orchard, or the city, but rather, far off into the distance. The blast impacted, causing a distant explosion. The wind billowed through the ponies’ manes, and sent distant debris flying everywhere. Whether or not that was disrupting the illusion on the orchard, none could tell.

“That’s…” Blitz said.

“Don’t worry, I didn’t hit anyone…” Shade stated, “Not yet, anyway. So how’s that?”

“I still fail to see how you’re in control…” Blitz flatly stated, “If that was your idea of a warning shot, it worked…”

Blitz scraped his forehoof along the ground, his horn lighting up in a purple hue. “It showed me how much of a nut you really are!”

“We’re not letting you get away this time!” Rainbow Dash called out, straightening up her hovering stance. Azure said nothing, gritting his teeth. Blitz’s horn glow, meanwhile, began to expand along the rest of his body, and Blitz took off full speed at the hydra. Shade made no effort to dodge, even as Blitz began to leap up, obviously gravity-spell assisted.

“Bring it on…” Shade said, standing completely still. The red unicorn, cloaked in a purple aura, continued forward.

“Living Rocket!” Blitz called out, his momentum carrying him into the Shadow Hydra’s neck. Shade’s voice cried out in what sounded like pain as Blitz continued onward, slicing straight through the neck of the beast with his attack. He wound up high up on a mountain just behind him, between the two mountains that overlooked the settlement. The Shadow Hydra’s head hit the ground, dissipating into smoke.

For a few uneasy moments, nothing happened.

“Why isn’t it going away like all the other ones…?” Rainbow Dash questioned, staring at the headless, motionless body of the beast. Suddenly, from within the beast, Shade laughed.

“Do none of you know what a Hydra is?!” he taunted, the beast moving just fine despite its lack of a head. In fact, at where Blitz made the cut; the unclean cut that had been the result of his throwing himself through the beast, shadow energy was rapidly moving. “If you cut off one head…”

This time, instead of just one tendril, three tendrils shot upward, each reaching the length of the hydra’s head, before taking form.

“It gets…” One of the newly formed heads said.

“It back…” The second one picked up where it left off.

“And then some!” The third one said.

“Your light spells can’t save you this time!” Shade called out.

“We’ll have to see about that,” Azure said, gritting his teeth yet again as the three heads began to each charge an energy attack in front of them…
------------------------------------------
Sure enough, as soon as they had entered the maze, they appeared to get separated by the trees. Virid had a funny feeling it would come to this sort of stuff, but in here, at least they wouldn’t be found by one of the ponies if the summoner had backup. Virid couldn’t hear much of anything except the sounds of his own hoofsteps, and occasionally howling wind, but he couldn’t even hear how the others were doing.

“If any of you can hear me, do not panic!” he called out, “If the item can be found, it should stop the effects!”

If he was heard, if he’d gotten a response, he didn’t know. He couldn’t hear the others in the maze, and he wasn’t sure if they could hear him, either.

This illusion… Virid said, closing his eyes in focus, I don’t think any of us can break it without focusing hard enough…This isn’t my type of magic, either…but I have to try…
------------------------------------------
Braeburn walked around in the orchard, separated from the others by what looked like the trees. However, after talking to the others, he knew this was just that strange item that had fallen in causing the mess. Well, he’d already had a funny feeling it had something to do with it, but the meeting confirmed it. The earth pony walked around, finding nothing but dead end after dead end. He couldn’t see anypony around.

Now he understood why so many ponies were getting lost in the maze…
------------------------------------------
“Ugh! This is just like the hedgemaze back in Canterlot!”

Applejack huffed, turning around from what plainly looked like a wall of trees. “Dead end after dead end…”

Spike, who had been riding on her back, couldn’t think of anything to ask; he didn’t quite know what happened, but it seemed like Applejack got the worst of it from the way she had acted compared to the way the others had acted. They all had been mean-spirited, sure, but she seemed especially vicious.

“The item sure isn’t making it easy on us…” said Spike.

“You’re with Twilight’s books,” Applejack reasoned, turning to him, “Do you—“

“Usually, when Twilight’s studying, I’m…uh…napping, unless she needs me…” Spike admitted, rubbing at the scales on the back of his head. “But I don’t think she’s studied illusions yet…”

“I just hope Az and the others are doing okay out there…”
------------------------------------------
“ ‘Az’…” Mendex said to himself, able to hear everything perfectly. They were in his illusion after all. “I know we came here for the item…but I’m sure Boss wouldn’t mind if I tried to bring home a few extras…”

A wicked grin split his face wide open, “Well, if Shade’s intel is alright, I’ll use it…So let’s see how she handles this…!”
------------------------------------------
Azure leapt out of the way of a lunging head, letting it scrape along the ground. The light of the sun didn’t seem to be slowing down the Shadow Hydra any despite its increased surface area, and Shade was safely hidden inside it.

There has to be a way to defeat this thing, but what? Azure Courage thought to himself, I know I’m not going to let him get away here…

As the beast almost swatted Rainbow away again with one of its paws, Azure shook his head, Figure this out while fighting!

Azure began to focus, already recalling the basics of the light spell. Meanwhile, Blitz was speeding up the beast’s tail, trying to find an opening.

If we cut off its heads, it’ll just keep getting more… Crimson thought, The only obvious course of action, then, is to disrupt the magic holding this thing together!

He leapt up, slamming his forehooves into the beast’s back. The beast barely budged from the impact, and began swatting at him with its tail. Blitz tried to avoid, but due to the angle, he still couldn’t avoid the swipe. He fell off, bracing himself for impact, but Rainbow Dash flew over, saving him from that one.

“Thanks,” Blitz said as Rainbow set him back down.

“No problem, but we’ve still got that to deal with!” she said, pointing to the Shadow Hydra.

Azure grit his teeth as he began firing lasers, using the light spell to enhance them. The blasts hit the Shadow Hydra’s guard. Though the impacts of the spells gave off steam, the beast still remained standing, roaring in anger.

“I told you! Light won’t work this time!” Shade called out, speaking through the hydra’s mouths.

“Maybe not outside…” Azure said, taking a short breather. Taking the two spells together was still a bit much in terms of concentration. The beast stomped towards him, but before it could do anything, a voice shrieked the only thing that could be said about the situation.

“What is that?!”

All heads turned towards the voice: Rarity, with the other group close by. All of them were looking right at the hydra, even Silver, though everypony knew he couldn’t actually see it.

“It’s his biggest monster yet!” Rainbow called out. “He called it a ‘hydra’…”

“That would explain why it’s got three heads,” Twilight said, “But how are we going to stop it?!”

“To be blunt…” Shade said, speaking through the three heads, “You can’t…”

All three heads lashed out at once, the first one heading for Azure. He dodged it easily enough, leaping off to his left. The second headed for the group, but they knew enough to scatter in some way, leaving the head scraping along the group. Blitz and Rainbow sped out of the way of the third, with Blitz going by ground and Rainbow escaping into the air.

“You’re that summoner from before, right?” Shining asked, getting into position, “You won’t get away this time!”

“Every one of you keeps saying that, but you haven’t made more of an effort to bring me in,” Shade taunted. The hydra roared again after he finished his sentence. “It sure was nice of you all to come, but I’m afraid I don’t have much longer to do this…”

The hydra leapt impossibly high given its size, but it did not actually move from the spot it was at. It landed down in the same spot, hitting the ground with tremendous force—nopony could tell if it caused a tree to be uprooted or not, nor did they care straight away. Everypony was staggered by the shockwave the impact caused. Azure grunted, trying to adjust himself. All the while, Shade eyed his potential targets. Seemingly before anypony could react, one of the heads shot forth: its target, Shining, whose focus had faltered like most others.

“Shining!” Twilight called out, attempting to warn him, but just then, a cyan-white flash happened over to his right: Azure, teleporting over to his side and shoving him out of the way immediately after materializing. However, he had no time to react to save himself.

“A—Azure!!” Rarity called out, just as the hydra bit down, swallowing Azure whole. The entire group reeled in shock, with Pinkie being the first to state what happened.

“Oh no! It…it ate him!” she screamed, her mane losing a good deal of its curls.

“You…” Blitz started, finally getting back to his feet.

“Oh, no, no, don’t worry,” Shade said, laughing it off.

“Why shouldn’t I?!” Twilight yelled, tears at the corners of her eyes, her horn lighting up.

“Because you’ll be in its stomach, soon enough…”
-------------------------------------------
Azure could only see blackness now. At first, he thought for sure he’d died when the beast chomped down, but he realized he could still feel…a little slimy, but otherwise unhurt. The colt briefly began to wonder where he was.

“Doesn’t it…suck, to be food?” Azure thought aloud, seeing as how he was alone. He looked around, seeing nothing but blackness around him. “So this is what it looks like inside one of these things. Nothing but darkness…”

Azure closed his eyes, “I’ve got to find a way out of here…”

For a few moments, Azure didn’t exactly know what he’d do. But he remembered something: when it was dark, people reached for a light. When the light was on, the darkness would erode away from the light. The darkness couldn’t help but recede.

“The light may not have done much outside…” Azure began to focus once more on the light spell in his memory. “But what about inside?”
------------------------------------------
The fight outside the orchard-maze continued, with the others not wanting to get caught like Azure did, wanting to avenge the sacrifice he’d made by taking Shade down. Of course, some ponies believed that the pony wouldn’t go that way.

“Someone needs to cut this thing open, pronto!” Rainbow Dash called out, dodging the hydra’s attempt to grab her in its clutches.

“I don’t think it actually works that way in real life, Rainbow!” Twilight responded. Rainbow didn’t really respond—she figured Twilight would know.

“It’s useless, I’m telling you!” Shade taunted from within the hydra. Silver stood in front of the beast, aiming his horn directly at its stomach, his horn glowing brightly.

“Cough him up!” Silver commanded, letting loose a large blast of compressed sound, just as he had before. The sound blast hit the beast dead-on in the stomach. It didn’t take long for the hydra to recover from this, though, and soon it was back to causing trouble, sending out a few more blasts at the ponies that were causing them trouble. Shining quickly put a shield up, repelling the energy bolts aimed at them. Others went out into the distance and exploded.

The hydra screeched yet again, its roar deafening the ponies by a good amount. “Alright, I’m done here!” The hydra turned and opened all three of its mouths, energy balls charging in each of them. “Let’s see how well you deal with this!”

The hydra roared again, as the magic attack began to swell in size.

“No!” Fluttershy called out, being among the first to realize it.

“He’s aiming for the town!” Shining said, already rushing in front of the hydra, horn alight.

“It’s too late!” Shade said, safely within the hydra. “Let’s see if you can explain this failure!”

However, just as the hydra bit down on the attack, the hydra’s eyes widened, and the energy seemed to leak out in smoke form from between its teeth.

“What?!” Shade yelled in confusion. “No…no…!”

“What’s gotten into him—“ It was only when the hydra roared high into the sky, light seemed to pour out of its eyes and ears, that Shining finally got it. “Uh-oh…everypony, cover your eyes! Quick!”

Most of the ponies did as they were asked, having seen the light as well. Had they not taken Shining’s advice, they would have been blinded by the white light that literally burst the Shadow Hydra apart. In the blinding light, even Shade himself was blinded. The only one who could actually see despite the massive amount of light was Azure, and he was falling down on top of Shade, horn and hoof alight with magic...
------------------------------------------
The sound of what could only be described as thick glass breaking was heard by Silver. He couldn’t see it, but he knew the Shadow Hydra had burst wide open. It was only when he put two and two together that he let out a small chuckle.

“Jeez, Azure…” he said, “Don’t scare us like that…”

The light finally cleared, and the others turned their heads back to where they saw the hydra several seconds before. Now, they saw a panting Azure, standing just a few inches in front of the summoner, who was more or less out cold, the gem on his chest, shattered. The cyan colt’s horn had returned to normal, and his eyes had stopped glowing.

Twilight was the first to move towards him, practically tackling into him; Azure held his ground, however, so the most he did on impact was tilt heavily to the left before gradually leaning back to normal.

“One year…” Twilight said, tears in her eyes yet again, “And you’re still doing this kind of thing…”

As the others swarmed around the two, and the unconscious unicorn, Azure sighed, “I know…but I also know I would have had to jump down there myself anyway…”

“Yeah, Twily here and your cousin would have never forgiven you…” Shining continued onward, “Or him, for that matter…”

“Actually…” Azure said, “I think the stomach was a holding area…not like anything else…”

“Captain,” Blitz interrupted, “He may have been subdued, but the others…they went into the orchard to try to retrieve the item.”

“They haven’t had much luck, then…” Shining said, “Hopefully somepony’s gonna figure out what the secret to the maze is…”

“The orchard is meant to look the way it does from the outside as a trap,” Twilight continued, “It’s an illusion generated by the item itself…There’s no other explanation!”

“Yeah…so…what do we do?” Azure asked.

“To be honest…” Twilight responded, “I don’t know…I’ve never studied illusion magic before…at least, not specifically…”

“Then how do we get rid of it?” Rainbow cut in, “We’ve gotta know if we’re gonna get the others out!”

“I only know that it’s based around truths that the caster believes may be useful…” Twilight said, “If I had to guess, I would say it might lie in seeing past what’s in front of you…”
------------------------------------------
Dead end. Dead end. Dead end. No matter where she went, Applejack and Spike kept running into dead ends. Spike had still ridden on her back throughout the whole ordeal—Applejack had come very close to asking Spike to try to send the orchard into an inferno just to try to get past the maze. However, she knew it wouldn’t work. The maze was not going away; whatever created it was still around.

“Can anypony hear me?!” Applejack called out in the maze. Once again, she was met with silence. This illusion was certainly powerful; before, all her friends were with her, now, she was left with Spike, who had been on her back at the time.

“Really wish we could find the others…” Spike commented, scanning the area for any signs of life besides them. He knew just as well as Applejack that they were around somewhere. The farmer mare could only nod, walking forward. Eventually, the two reached a fork in the road. Applejack looked down each path, seeing nothing but lines of trees down both directions. She knew, however, she had to pick a way.

“Spike…”

Spike looked up with a “Huh?” as he turned around. He knew somepony just called his name, but he saw nopony in sight.

“Did you hear that?” he asked as he turned to Applejack.

“I don’t hear anything,” Applejack responded, turning to him with an arched brow and perked ears.

“Guess I was imagining it…” Spike sighed, scratching at the back of his head with a claw. Applejack nodded, turning back to her decision. She chose left without saying it, walking down the path in question, when Spike heard the voice again.

“Over here, Spike,” Spike whipped his head back around, spotting something this time. Just around the corner, in the path on the right, Spike saw the rear end of a pony taking the corner: lavender fur coat, a cutie mark of one large star surrounded by several small ones. It didn’t take Spike long to guess who was calling his name.

“Twilight!”

Spike hopped off Applejack’s back, running towards where he saw Twilight, “Wait up, we’re over here!” He saw her disappear around the corner. Applejack took notice of Spike, but not of the Twilight Spike saw.

“Spike, wait!” Applejack turned, running after the drake. She noticed how fast he was moving. It was like he was running at super speed, somehow—he was moving far faster than he should have been, anyway. Spike took the corner, and disappeared from her sight. She picked up her pace a little, skidding to a halt the moment she reached the corner.

“Spike!” She called out into the illusion, looking down the path. Immediately, she drew back—the path that Spike had just taken was now empty. “Did he just—“

Refusing to accept that line of thought, Applejack immediately took off down the other path, full speed, hoping to find some trace of him somewhere.

“Spike, where are you!?” Again, her call went unanswered. She continued down the maze, spotting another corner. Hoping she’d spot Spike if she took that corner, she lowered her head, about ready to skid to a halt. She hit the corner, skidding to a halt and looking down the path. But, instead of spotting Spike, she saw another pony looking back at her.

It was a very familiar unicorn colt—cyan colt, spiky green mane and tail, and covered in light injuries. Azure Courage was standing there, his back initially to her. However, having heard her, he turned, and immediately gave a relieved smile.

“Az?” Applejack smiled back, feeling relieved to see somepony she knew in the maze other than Spike—it wasn’t that she wasn’t still worried, but she finally saw somepony else here. “How’d the hay did you find me?!” She walked up to him, and Azure walked towards her. However, when they were five paces apart, Applejack stopped. Azure, however, kept going.

“You didn’t think I’d let some maze keep us apart did you?” Azure questioned in a low, reassuring voice. Applejack blinked, her eyes widening.

Why’d he say it like that?

“I…I guess not…” Applejack felt confused, and also like she’d been here before at the same time, but she had to make sure of something. “What about the others, are they in the maze too?”

“Who cares where they are right now? All that’s important is that I’m here…” Azure raised his hoof off the ground and put it to Applejack’s cheek. “With you…”

Applejack’s eyes opened wider, but this whole situation seemed weird.

“Az…what’s gotten into you?” she asked. Azure may have cared ‘bout Twilight the most, but it didn’t……

“It took me a while,” Azure continued onward in response, “But I came to the decision that I may have made the wrong choice before....”

Applejack’s expression became unreadable. It felt like things had been this way before too. Things seemed…off.

No…

“You don’t know how glad I am to hear that,” Applejack said, smiling and leaning into the colt’s hoof. As she closed her eyes, she didn’t notice Azure’s smile; it wasn’t his usual smile: kind-hearted…no, it was cynical.

Applejack’s smile turned to a frown after a few seconds, and she removed her face from Azure’s hoof. Applejack took a few steps away from him now, turning her back on him.

“But what’re you going to tell Twilight?” Applejack questioned, “I don’t think she’d take it well…”

“She’ll just have to accept it,” Azure stated very flatly, as he closed the distance once again, “She means nothing to me now…all I want is you!”

Applejack closed her eyes, shifting her weight forward ever so slightly as she sighed.

“I guess so…” Applejack continued, “But before you do, there’s something I should tell you…”

“What is it?” Azure asked. Applejack opened her eyes, slowly, turning her gaze to him…

You low-down, dirty…

“I don’t fall for the same trick twice!”

Her open eyes filled with rage, she launched a perfect back kick straight into “Azure’s” chest.

Azure has never been that way…!

Azure’s eyes bulged out, and he was lifted from his feet, caught totally off-guard by the attack. Azure hit the ground, grabbing at his chest, groaning. Now Applejack could see his form shifting and distorting. The pony’s horn receded, his cloak seeming to grow out of his brownish-gray fur. One silver eye opened, more surprised than anything. His mane and tail were slicked back, black in color. He was clearly an earth pony. Applejack saw what she had hit on the pony’s chest: a gem, dark gray in color.

“So you’re with those other ponies…the ones who keep going after my friends!”

“H-how’d you see past my illusion?” The pony asked, grunting as he got back to his feet. He was still stunned from the critical, crushing blow to the chest.

“You think you’re the first one to try pullin’ that on me?” Applejack took four slow steps towards the pony, more furious than she’d ever been in his life, “You ain’t the first to use what I had with Az against me…And, I’m not sorry to tell you that it won’t work on me a second time!”

Over the center of her chest, something began to glow: green. As the glow intensified, Applejack continued to speak.

“My friendship with Twilight, Az, and everypony else had already been tested, and in the end we all bounced back stronger than ever!” The glow turned into a full body aura, and as it happened, the illusory maze began to distort heavily. The multiple lines of trees began to morph back into their singular forms.

“My illusion’s being dispelled?!” The pony yelled in disbelief.

“And I’ll tell you right here, right now,” Applejack kept right on going, a few steps from the still-recovering pony. “No matter the lies you feed us, our friendship will only grow stronger as time goes on, and it won’t ever be broken! Not by you, Discord, or anypony else!” Her entire body shone with the green light, and it formed straight upward, releasing a shockwave that filled the entire maze/orchard.

The cloaked pony was lifted off his feet once again, blasted back by the shockwave—the impact of which shredded the rest of his cloak. As he flew backwards, he could do nothing but watch: the light of…whatever Applejack had just done, pierced straight through the illusion that had kept the various creatures trapped in the maze: they all began to come into focus within the light.
------------------------------------------
“The illusion’s been wiped out!” Twilight announced, as the light cleared. Sure enough, it had: the orchard was back to normal, with confused ponies and buffalo alike in the maze. The group that had been outside of the orchard quickly moved in, to where they saw the light coming from.

“That was…Applejack?!” Azure reacted, seeing the light die down around her alongside the others. All present were stunned. Applejack looked ahead, looking as though she were seeing somepony. All heads turned, to see an earth pony in a shredded cloak. His back was to the tree, which kept him upright. He was breathing hard, one eye still closed.

“He’s one of them,” Applejack spat, “Tried to trick us again…”

“That’s not all!” Blitz raised a hoof, “Look!”

Around the neck of the pony was a corroded silver necklace, with a blue gem in it. The others who had seen the item Discord had left behind when he’d been killed, immediately gasped.

“That must be one of those Elements!” Rainbow shouted, “I’ve got him!”

“Wait!” Shining snarled, suddenly extremely alarmed.

“Wha—why?!” Twilight said.

“Just at his hooves…”

All looked down now, to see a portal opening at the pony’s back feet, which began to rapidly absorb him. The earth pony gave a chuckle.

“Looks like they’re taking me back…too bad…I was hoping to get you all in my next illusion,” the earth pony said, already halfway into the ground. “But it seems my job is done…”

“Why you…!” Rainbow charged the illusion-maker, aiming to apprehend him. However, before she could reach him and knock him out of his escape route, the pegasus instead found herself hitting the ground headfirst, bouncing.

“Rainbow!” Applejack called out, everypony else running in, “You okay?”

“…He got away…” a familiar voice spat. All heads turned; Virid was standing there. Braeburn and Spike came in from different directions.

“Ya’ll alright?” Braeburn asked, looking around.

“We’re fine…” Azure said.

“But his partner just got away…” Applejack said, as Rainbow got to her feet. “And he had that element, too!”

A silence hung over the group, broken only by the sound of belching. Spike burped up green fire, and with it, a scroll. Immediately, Twilight went over to him, intent on opening it, having a good feeling of where it was from.

“It’s a notice from the Royal Guard…” Twilight said to herself.
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To Captain Shining Armor and the retrieval party:

We have reason to believe one of the Elements of Chaos, as they’re called, may have landed in the Hayseed Swamps. Units have reported the wildlife is much more aggressive there than it usually is. Please be advised that the group opposing us may have already made a move there by this time. At this time, our search parties have returned. They are uninjured, but can not get past the unruly wildlife…

Best of luck to you all…

Chapter 46: To the Swamps!

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Chapter 46: To the Swamps!
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It wasn’t long before the group was back on a train, heading for the next destination. The group had a bit more confidence now following the defeat and capture of Shade, though most people suspected he wasn’t going to talk, just as his partner from the kidnapping hadn’t.
“Hate to disappoint my cousin like that…” Applejack mused, staring out the window.

“It couldn’t be helped,” Blitz cut in, drawing her attention, “We need to collect these before those other ponies do, after all…”

He nodded over at a box, which was guarded by a rather eager-looking Virid—in posture rather than in face; Celestia help him if he broke the rules on that. In it, was the tarnished crown.

“We’ve already lost one to them, though…” Shining observed, “And we can’t afford to keep losing them, either. We have to keep moving as soon as we get intel—why we’re on course to Dodge Junction, the closest we can get to the Hayseed Swamps.”

“The wildlife there’s gone….for lack of a better term, wild,” recounted Twilight from the letter, Spike close by, “It sounds like a lead, alright…”

“So what are we going to do?” Spike asked.

“Same thing we’ve been doing,” Virid responded, not moving from his post, still in that haughty, over-eager stance. “Right, captain?”

“Well—“ Shining started, unsure.

“I mean…” Virid began, trying to explain himself.

“Um…” A quiet voice tried to interrupt, but Virid ignored it.

“Judging from the report, I can’t say the wildlife…”

“Can I just…”

“…will be so easily tamed without a little violence.”

“I’d expect something like that out of you…” Twilight responded, turning to Azure. At this, Azure’s face flushed.

“Well, I didn’t suggest it!”

“Hey!” An unusually sharp-voiced Silver cut in to the argument before it could progress further. All heads turned to him. In turn, he turned his head towards Fluttershy, who up until now couldn’t quite be heard over Virid’s suggestion. “Okay, Fluttershy, go ahead,” he said gently to the pegasus mare.

“U-um,” She seemed a little uneasy from Silver’s means of getting their attention, but proceeded anyway, “I-I could…use m-my skills with animals, t-to…”

She faltered, but Rarity picked up where she left off, “I understand, darling, you want to avoid causing harm to the animals...”

“Can it really be helped?” Crimson cut in.

“Don’t doubt her skills with animals!” Rainbow came to Fluttershy’s defense, “She calmed a raging manticore, and even dealt with a full grown dragon! If anypony can reason with raging beasts, it’s gotta be her!”

The train car fell into silence afterwards.

“Maybe she can reason with animals…” Virid cut in, “But…but…” His face screwed up in shame, and he bowed his head.

“Let’s just say when it came to loyalty, things Discord did really skewed them…” Shining said flatly, ending the discussion then and there.

“Pretty much…” Azure picked up, “We were close-knit, yet we all were eager to turn on each other the instant he came into the works…and I felt like I was in a vortex of self-doubt the whole way.”

Fluttershy hung her head, which drew everypony’s attention, “B-but…”

“Fluttershy,” Silver said, “If you can’t reason with them, there really won’t be any other choice…But…I promise…If it does, I won’t do more than I need to…”

“Same here,” Azure cut in, “And I’m sure all of us can agree to do only what we need to...”

“Glad that’s settled!” Shining said, stamping a forehoof onto the ground in approval, “Alright, everypony, take a rest. We’ll need it for when we get there...”

Nopony objected, everypony else seeming to do their own thing.

“You know, Shiny, I haven’t really seen you in action until recently,” Twilight said.

“Protecting the state is serious business,” Shining responded, waving a hoof as though it were no big deal, “You all should know that better than anypony else, after all!”

“Just wish you guys didn’t have to look like statues while doing it, though,” The blue pegasus mare motioned to Virid with a hoof, who immediately took offense to what he was told.

“It’s a rule!” shouted the offended unicorn, “Article IV, Section Six, page one hundred and two of the handbook! ‘When standing guard or on official duties, your countenance must be stony, unbreakable, not to let people know what you’re thinking!’”

“Uh…Nicely done,” Shining said, “That’s pretty much it.”

“Honestly, Virid, you don’t gotta impress anypony with your memory…” Rainbow cut in.

The sound of several hooves colliding with the bridge of ponies’ noses filled the air in the train car.
-------------
A few hours passed. The train finally pulled into the station, screeching to a halt. The conductor’s voice filled the station.

“Passengers, we have arrived at Dodge Junction. You may now exit the train.”

One by one, the retrieval unit began to file out of the train, gathering the belongings they did bring with them and moving to the platform.

“Feels good to able to move again!” Rainbow shouted, hovering in the air, likely stretching her wings.

“This place ain’t all that different from Appleloosa,” Applejack observed, looking around, “Might have to come down for a proper visit once we’re done with this fetch quest!”

“Right, well,” Shining cut in, taking command of the situation, “The Hayseed Swamps are not too far from the east edge of town; just gotta cross a dirt road and then go through the forest, towards the south…Virid Strategem…”

Virid narrowly teleported in front of his captain. Most there swore he would have, but he hadn’t—had he leapt into action just like that?

“Yes, Captain?” he asked. Azure was still visibly disturbed—all he could remember of Virid was him being a general jerk. But ever since he’d joined the Royal Guard he’d been…odd. The fact he exhibited this behavior towards Twilight’s brother wasn’t much better for him.

“Have you formulated a general strategy to retrieve this Element?”

“Of course!” Virid said, launching into an explanation without even waiting for an actual order—nopony was quite sure if this was standard procedure for those three, though. “The Hayseed Swamps are deep in the forest, and from reports, the wildlife is very aggressive—more so than they should be.”

“Therefore, unless we need to, we must stick together. If Fluttershy’s skill with animals still works here,” Virid’s voice dropped low, but Azure could have sworn he saw Shining’s ears twitch, and one of his eyebrows creased. It didn’t take long for Azure to guess what exactly Virid might have uttered under his breath, but Virid continued without interruptions, “we can conserve our strength. However, if we need to deal with the animals by force, we will. Speaking of force…there is a chance the enemy might already be here. If they are…surely you know how we deal with them by now…”

The group gave a collective “hmph” of agreement.

“Conserve your strength, everypony. We’re going to need to if we want to be efficient in these swamps,” Shining took over, “Alright, let’s move!”

With Spike riding on Twilight’s back, the group began to make their way east, the Royal Guards in front, Rainbow flying, and Fluttershy and Silver towards the back of the group for the time being.

The townsponies that they passed cast confused looks towards the group, but the thought to stop and explain what was going on did not occur to them.

“Say, what’re the Royal Guards doing with that group?” asked one pony sitting at a local bar, watching them as the passed.

“Who knows?” asked his friend, sitting across from him, “Could be some kinda trainin’…”

“Ain’t you guys heard?” A third asked. “Royal Guards have been fanning out over the land, and strange things have been goin’ on all over the country! Why, not too long ago there was somethin’ strange goin’ on in Appleloosa!”

As the group disappeared from sight, the two turned to the third guy.

“Appleloosa? Ya mean that new settlement out west?”

“Yep. From what I heard their apple orchards were goofing up recently…” The third said. This was, however, cut into by a fourth pony, whose eyes were out to either side of his head.

“The end is coming!” he shrieked, “All these events are pointin’ to the end of us all!”

“Not now, Gong Mad…” said the first pony, burying a hoof into the bridge of his nose in annoyance.
--------------
Back in Canterlot, as the day began to come to an end, Princess Celestia trotted through her castle, a very pensive look on her face. Her beloved student, Twilight, her coltfriend, Azure, the rest of the Element Bearers, the Captain of the Royal Guard, and a couple of high-ranking officers, were all out on the fetch quest. Though the fact so many were missing wasn’t a concern—it wasn’t a time of war, it was the nature of the quest they were on. It was hard not to worry after all that had happened since last spring.

Twilight and Fluttershy had gotten foalnapped following a string of incidents about cloaked ponies. Said cloaked ponies apparently had an organized gang, and they used this to bring back Discord, just to bring about the Elements of Chaos. It was obvious what they had planned to do. She had sent them into action, action she would have definitely indulged in during her younger years, but alas, she had affairs to run aside from raising and lowering the sun.

“Sister, what ails you?”

Affairs that she also feared her sister would be unable to run in her absence, to say nothing of her other family members, what with the current state of affairs. She looked over to Princess Luna, who had come down to run the Night Court, among other affairs. It was her shift now, and while the royals had accepted the moon princess with few doubts, there was still lingering distrust there.

“You’re worried about them?” Luna saw right through her—she’d been getting good at that recently, “It’s about those ponies that freed Discord, isn’t it?”

“Yes…” Celestia said, “It’s not that I don’t have faith in them—I do, they’ve come through time and again when they needed to; for each other and for all of Equestria, but…Those ponies are dangerous. They’re bad news…The worst part is, we still don’t know just what they’re planning—we don’t even know just how organized they are. I’m not just worried for them…I’m worried for our subjects as well…”

“I know not what they are either,” Luna responded, “It’s all become so strange…”

As Celestia’s horn lit up, as she prepared to lower the sun, so too did Luna’s, a cerulean glow. The skies began to move, the sun starting to set.

Twilight…Everypony, please…Be careful. You’re the only ones we can count on…
--------------
The sun began to set on the group’s end as well, passing into the Hayseed Swamps. The group had more or less kept moving through the day and had hardly stopped since arriving. It would have been easier to teleport, but they had no idea where the item was. This in itself was what forced them to go on hoof. They did, however, know what they could look out for. By now, Fluttershy, with Silver and Rainbow close by and everypony else trailing behind, had taken point.

“I do hope we find this item sooner rather than later!” Rarity commented, her nose wrinkling. While the swamps weren’t the most foul-smelling place in the world, it was clear that Rarity didn’t have the tolerance most of the others had.

Azure shook his head slightly as Crimson cut in, turning his head back.

“No use in complaining about it, now…” he said flatly, “Just think about the good we’ll do while we’re here…”

“They’re not even fazed by it!” Pinkie announced.

“Have you tried standing in armor for eight hours?” Virid asked. “Or…being around ponies who have?”

Rarity’s nose wrinkled, and tears began to form at the corners of her eyes, no doubt imagining the smell.

“Think you went a little too far there…” Crimson responded.

“Look!” Spike said, pointing. All heads turned to some movement in the trees, and the group stopped, waiting to see what was about to come out. The group waited tensely. Could this be the out-of-control wildlife about to make an appearance?

Two birds flew out of the branches, causing the weaker-willed members to jump a little. However, their song seemed to be benevolent, a sweet little tune. The group sighed in relief.

“Alright, let’s keep moving…” Shining commanded, moving the group forward. Their steps were a tad more cautious now. They didn’t get too much further. Silver suddenly stopped, putting a hoof out.

“I can feel something…It’s definitely an animal…And I don’t like this feeling…” Silver commented, looking ahead with his milky, dead eyes.

The group once again held still, waiting for something to happen. After a few tense seconds, a bobcat, seemingly covered in moss and not much bigger than an average pony skulked forward slowly, towards the group.

“It’s a mosscat,” Fluttershy identified, seemingly in a trance over the sight of the creature, “An animal whose fur keeps it warm, and acts like a plant…”

“An animal with photosynthetic fur?” Twilight questioned, “I’ve…never read about anything like that…”

“It doesn’t look too friendly, though…” Azure noted, “As expected.”

“Go ahead…” Silver said to Fluttershy, voice neutral, eyeing the creature as though he could actually see what was going on.

“Okay…” Almost in her element, Fluttershy’s inhibitions were completely absent. The only thing that was scaring her is that, like with the manticore way back then, she didn’t know if this was going to work out so well. She took just two steps ahead of Silver. The mosscat eyed Fluttershy as she came in closer, but it did not stop its slow gait.

“Excuse me, Kitty,” Fluttershy addressed the mosscat, who didn’t stop moving. However, it did flick its ears, seemingly listening to the meek mare’s words, “Would you mind letting us by? We need to get something from the swamp here, and—“

She was cut off by the mosscat letting out a deafening screech. Fluttershy froze in a mix of disbelief and fear. The mosscat lowered its head. At once, two things happened. A rainbow shot past the front of the mosscat, seemingly making Fluttershy vanish. Not one second later, a transparent pulse collided with the mosscat’s chest, lifting it from its feet and knocking it flat on its side. Silver stood, head lowered, horn glow rapidly fading.

“Looks like it won’t work out after all…” Virid observed, sounding not surprised at all. “Given what he was capable of, it’s really not so surprising.”

Several mosscat cries could be heard in the distance now, and they were definitely coming to attack.

“I thought they were like plants!” Rarity called out, in confusion.

“Some plants can still eat food…” Twilight corrected, “Like a venus flytrap, for instance. They may be photosynthetic, but it doesn’t mean they don’t need food…”

“Spread out a little! Don’t get separated!” Shining barked. A few moments later, something green, slimy, and croaky hopped on his face.

“Captain!” Virid shouted, his horn alight in an amber glow. Crimson, seeing this, immediately executed a mild back kick into his comrade’s side.

“Virid, you idiot!” he shouted, the laser missing, landing in the swamps, causing mud to splatter on impact. “You’re about to shoot your superior by mistake…and besides, we can’t kill the animals…”

“I knew that!”

“More of them!” Applejack called out, hearing more croaking sounds. At least ten frogs were hopping up, no…more than that!

“Please, everypony, don’t…” Fluttershy’s voice echoed from above as Rainbow began to set her down, “Don’t do more than you need to…”

“Don’t worry, ‘Shy…” Rainbow reassured. Just then, a mosscat’s screech came up from behind her, and she turned, landing a powerful back kick to the charging beast’s shoulders, knocking it on its back. “I’m sure everypony understands your feelings…”

Azure backed away, his horn alight with magic, trying to actively restrain himself. There were frogs hopping about in earnest now, and they were unusually aggressive—not only were they making efforts to hop onto his face, but they were lashing out with their tongues as though they were trying to eat him, smacking him. While these attacks weren’t damaging, they were getting annoying, and it seemed like everypony else currently on the ground engaging said frogs were facing one of these two problems.

Azure stamped a magic-infused hoof down, letting out a mild shockwave, which sent the amphibians bouncing away against their will. A mosscat leapt down at him, trying to bring out its claws, but he quickly leapt forward, managing a roll and began to face it down. The beast began to charge him, ready to swat him away, but a magenta-translucent burst hit it from the side. This was odd, Silver’s magic wasn’t—

“Twilight?!” Azure yelled, slightly stunned.

“Been working on that one since I heard of it…” Twilight explained, Spike more or less close to her, batting away frogs that dared leap at her with a stick.

“Ah, get it off, get it off!” Rarity whined, seeing nothing but frog belly, one of the slimy creatures having hopped very eagerly onto her face. She swatted it off easily enough with her hooves, rising up on her back legs to do so. However, doing so left her open to a mosscat rising up from behind her, claws out and ready to pounce—

“Yee-haw!” Applejack bellowed, her lasso finding its mark easy enough. The farmer mare hadn’t had much cause to hogtie wild creatures recently—mostly because said creatures weren’t even real, but now that she had to worry about that detail, this wasn’t too hard. Within a few seconds, the mosscat that had tried to get the drop on Rarity was instead on its back, rope around its four feet.

“Thanks, Applejack,” Rarity said.

“Now ain’t the time for it, sugarcube,” Applejack responded, “There’s still a lotta wild animals to take care of.”

The Royal Guards weren’t quite so prepared for animal control, but it wasn’t hard for them to apply themselves to this situation. After shaking off the “frog on face” incident, Shining more or less weaved around the wild animals, erecting mini-shields with his magic, causing the mosscats to more or less blunt their claws on the magic. Occasionally, he would throw out a kick that would knock out an animal or shake off an encroaching frog, but overall, he played it defensively.

The same could be said for Blitz, who was using his speed spell to run around a mosscat. It couldn’t quite keep up. When Rainbow Dash decided to fly circles around its head, it made it so dizzy it fell, with a “timber!” from the blue pegasus to send it off in style.

Virid, however, was not following this example at all. His horn cloaked in amber light, he slammed both of his forehooves on the ground, sending out a concentrated shockwave, causing hapless frogs to disperse in either direction. The shockwave hit a mosscat, knocking it flat on its back.

Fluttershy, from behind Silver, could only watch with a pained expression as she watched her friends deal with the out-of-control animals.

“Fluttershy…” Silver whispered, “I know this isn’t what you wanted…But…we don’t have any other choice…”

“I—I know…” Fluttershy responded quietly, flinching heavily when Silver’s hoof was forced once more to act, “B-but…it’s so hard to watch…”

Silver grit his teeth as he sensed yet another magical discharge, probably from Virid. They couldn’t keep it up forever—even if their opponents weren’t too terribly strong, they were going to wear them down before long…
--------------
“Looks like it’s started…” Tack said, hearing the sounds of battle elsewhere in the swamp. His hood was still up. His griffin companion, also still cloaked, turned towards him.

“That much was obvious, Tack!” Bronclav shouted, “Sure enough, looks like the harmonics have just arrived…”

After a brief pause, Bronclav turned fully to face Tack. In turn, the smaller cloaked being turned to face him.

“Stall them,” Was the lone words out of the much larger cloaked being’s mouth.

“Are you sure?” Tack questioned.

“Don’t question me!” Bronclav picked up Tack by the head, yelling almost directly into his face, “The animals here can’t put up much of a resistance, even if they’re holding back!”

A bear snuck up on the two. The taller being heard it coming, though, evidently, dropping the one called “Tack”. From the cloak, a talon shot forth, curled into the best fist one could get. It struck the wild bear straight in the stomach. As it fell, Bronclav grabbed it by the throat, heaved the bear over his head, and knocked it out.

“The Element’s got to be close by…” Bronclav noted, “Why the animals are acting up more than they should…Hm, maybe that’s why you’re questioning so much…”

Tack scoffed, but didn’t say anything more.

“You know what to do, Tack. Just wait here for them. They’ll be through here…” Bronclav stated, pointing at Tack. “I’ll go on ahead and get us the Element that’s here…”

Tack watched as Bronclav left, head slightly down.

“You really think that I can truly go along with what you guys believe in after what you put me through...” he grumbled, “But it’s all I know…”
--------------
The group had taken off through the forest, opting not to waste much more energy on the animals gone rabid. They had to have knocked aside an untold number of frogs and several mosscats, all driven mad by the item. The further they went into the forest, the more animals they passed, all looking more and more feral as they went in.

“We’ve got to be getting closer…” Silver noted, “I can feel it…”

“The animals look so…agitated…” Fluttershy said, sadly. The previous animal abuse had still lingered with her, but she knew that there hadn’t been much choice for the time being.

The group continued to run, the guards close behind the “animal experts”, when Virid gave a shout.

“There’s something standing still, up ahead!” he observed. Azure could see it. It was…surprisingly short, standing upright, and cloaked.

“It’s gotta be one of them…” he said. The group began to slow down. As they drew closer, Fluttershy let out a gasp.

Next thing Silver knew, Fluttershy had darted ahead of him, but why?

“Fluttershy, what’re you…” Silver started.

The short bipedal cloaked creature didn’t so much as move towards her, turning his head for just a little before turning ahead. The others took notice of what had Fluttershy so concerned.

A bear, unconscious at best, was sprawled out on the swampy ground. Fluttershy had practically warped over to it, and was low to the ground next to it, stroking its head with one hoof.

“I do apologize for the condition the bear had to be left in…” The short creature said, his voice deep, “My associate just can’t control himself when it comes to this kind of thing…”

“So…you’re part of that group, then?” Shining asked, cutting straight to the point.

The short creature mumbled something, shaking his head. A clawed, scaly hand reached up to his hood, and as it fell, everypony gasped, Fluttershy briefly looking up from the injured bear.

“He’s…?!” Twilight started.

“Another dragon…” Spike finished. At this, the cloaked dragon looked up.

“Huh?” The dragon asked, having seen Spike. He covered his face with one hand, “So I guess both sides are guilty of using dragons for their own ends, huh…”

“What?” Twilight asked, narrowing her eyes.

“Nothing, never mind…” The dragon said, “I’m just following orders… and I’m afraid I can’t let you through…The guy who’s with me is just up ahead, and he says he’s close to finding the Element…”

“And how do you plan to stop us?” Virid asked, “Last I checked, baby dragons can’t do a whole lot…”

“Hey!” Spike shouted, taking offense, “Without me you guys’d be totally lost on this fetch quest!”

Tack merely crossed his arms. Suddenly, something happened. The scales and grooves on the drake’s body began to glow a purplish color. The others could only pause, watching as his body began to swell. The glow extended to his whole body, and he began to grow rapidly.

“What the—“ Virid started, looking up.

“Is he like the others we’ve seen…?” Blitz asked himself.

The glow faded from Tack’s body, his cloak now merely a cape. He had rapidly aged to a teenage form, now a lot taller than the average pony. Fluttershy gaped at the sight, before cowering behind the nearest thing she could find…the bear.

The others stood, unsure, as the now large dragon looked down upon them.

“Surprised, huh?” he asked, his voice still the same now.

“So that’s why your voice was so deep?!” Pinkie squealed.

“Correct…”

At this point, Azure trotted forward, eyes closed. A second later, both his horn and eyes became alight with a magical glow.

“Most ponies I know would run away…” Tack commented, “But then again, none of your allies have either…”

“Everypony, keep going!” Azure called out, “I’m afraid we can’t let you guys walk outta here with another item!”

“You’d face a dragon one-on-one just to buy everyone else some time…?”

“He’s not going to be doing this alone!” Twilight called out, trotting up. Spike was still on her back, but it was clear he didn’t want to do this. “Spike, could you help Fluttershy with the bear?”

Spike went over to the bear. Fluttershy had at least gathered herself just enough to realize there was a fight that was going to break out, and if it did, the bear would be caught in the crossfire.

“Love to stay and help…” Silver said, “But I’d better help move the injured out of the way…”

The dragon did not so much as move when Silver went to help them. He seemed…perplexed?

“You two ain’t gonna do this alone…” Applejack stepped forward as well, “I’ll help you two out…”

“Can’t let you have all the fun—“ Rainbow was fully prepared to also help, but it was Shining who stopped her.

“Wait!” Shining called out, “We don’t know how strong the other one is. We’ve already budded off enough…Alright, Twily, Applejack, Azure, you can stay here. Everypony else who isn’t tending to the wounded, with me. Ready? Go!”

“Do they really think they’ll…” The dragon asked himself, shaking his head, “Alright, whatever. I doubt I could keep you all tied up anyway…Just watch out. He’s…a little…brutal.”

The beast’s words hung in the air for several seconds as the rest of the retrieval unit went around him. He looked down upon his three opponents, and got into a stance.

“Alright, is that it?”

“You were under orders…” Azure noted, “Yet you let them pass…”

“Enough talking! I still can’t let you three past me!”

A tense standoff…

Two ponies and a dragon tending to a bear…

What would happen in this swamp would be the tiebreaker in the race to get the items…

Chapter 47: Brutal Adversaries

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Chapter 47: Brutal Adversaries
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“Alright, let’s get started!” Azure called out, not even bothering to wait to see what his opponent was capable of. His opponent stood taller than him—however, he was nothing compared to the fully grown dragon from way back when Fluttershy proved she could be assertive. Tack wasn’t too much taller than him, but definitely bigger.

Tack lowered himself down onto all fours and began rushing towards him. Tack had a reach advantage and tried to take it, slamming down one of his claws as he rushed towards him. However, Azure was a little faster than he gave him credit for, the attack just nicking his tail hairs. The very next moment, the unicorn slammed his back legs into the dragon’s underbelly, lifting him off his feet—by a few inches. Tack tried to slam down, but something wouldn’t let him, like something was holding him up. He glared over, seeing Twilight, horn ablaze, holding him up so he couldn’t just smother Azure.

Applejack moved in next, Azure sliding aside so he could get out of the danger zone. She mimicked his maneuver, smashing the dragon not once but twice with her powerful back legs. Tack finally decided enough was enough. He moved his arms, despite Twilight’s best efforts to keep him in check, and grabbed hold of the earth pony, who began to wiggle frantically to dislodge herself from the grip. Tack began to lift her above her head as the orange pony began to utter a series of unintelligible grunts that amounted to “let me go”.

“Applejack!” Twilight shouted; Azure whirled around, horn having been alight this whole time—as were his eyes. The last thing on Twilight’s mind was the fact this wasn’t the first time she’d seen him exactly like this. The two both shot a single shot—one into Tack’s left arm, the other into his right, setting the farmer mare free and allowing her to fall, four hooves directly onto Tack’s face.

Tack roared in pain as the hit took hold, gritting his teeth. Thinking quickly, Twilight yanked Applejack away via a telekinetic pull. Good timing too, for Azure was letting loose with a few more lasers. This time, they were aimed for the dragon’s chest. However, Tack put his full attention on Azure at this point, blocking each of the shots in turn.

Applejack and Twilight then watched as the glow on Azure’s horn began to change from cyan to orange—he was about to use a fire spell.

“Azure, wait!” Twilight called out, a little too late, as Azure shot a blazing ball of flames at Tack. The morphed dragon offered no resistance, allowing himself to take the full brunt of the shot. With that, Twilight groaned.

“What’s the matter, Twi?” Applejack asked, but it soon became clear. Tack merely brushed his chest, looking completely unfazed.

“Dragons have flame retardant scales…” Twilight summed up, her hoof to her face.

“And…” Tack seemed to pick up where she left off, “They can also…”

Azure braced himself as Tack inhaled, stretching out to his full height. After that deep breath, the dragon went down on all fours, blowing out a stream of flames in Azure’s direction. Azure remained in the spot, his horn lighting up as the blaze seemed to engulf him. As the flames gave way to an incredible amount of smoke and a blackened path, Tack turned to the mares.

“I’m surprised…” Tack said, “For friends, you guys sure didn’t seem to care…”

“It’s not that we don’t care…” Twilight responded.

“We just have faith in each other…” Azure’s voice came from the other side of the smoke and embers. Tack turned, mildly alarmed, to Azure, who had put up a shield, blocking the flames from hitting him.

“I just wish you’d not put yourself in obvious danger like that!” Twilight shouted at Azure, rather unnecessarily.

“What’d I just say?!”

“…Faith…” Tack grumbled, utterly baffled at this display, “Right…”

“This ain’t the time to be fightin’, you two…” Applejack scolded, “We still got to take care of this big guy first…”

Tack looked around, eyes wide, but whatever he was looking at wore off, and he hunched down, “Yeah, we’ve still got a fight to carry out…You’re on your side, and I’m on mine…”

Azure stood upright, his shield having long since vanished. He dragged his hoof twice along the ground, before jumping impossibly high—an application of his signature gravity spell—and beginning to come down at Tack. Tack responded in turn by catching the pony and throwing him back, aiming to scrape him along the ground. Azure shifted his weight, lessening the impact.

Tack began to fire fireballs.

“Applejack—“ Twilight started, ready to move in and offer her coltfriend some assistance, with one of her best friends at her side, like usual.

“Sorry, Twilight,” Applejack shook her head, “Guess I thought I heard—never mind.”

With that, Applejack took the lead, Twilight following just behind her. Applejack again pulled out her lasso, and began to twirl it with her tail. Azure continued to dodge, but he dragged a little on his foreleg—the foreleg Twilight remembered, he’d hurt so long ago—did it still bother him from time to time, even now?

“Wide open!” Tack shouted, aiming to bring a claw down on Azure’s body. Applejack threw out her lasso, just barely stopping the attack from connecting. The bookish mare was the next to make a move, firing out a few lasers which more or less amounted to warning shots. Tack dodged to the left, the shots wide right of both him and Azure. However, Twilight had forgotten a small detail.

Applejack was still holding on to the lasso, and was thus finding herself dragging her hooves as the dragon leapt right, taking her along. Applejack struggled to hold her ground as Twilight reached Azure.

“Are you okay?” she asked, “Does that leg still…”

“Leg?” Azure asked, “Oh…” He looked at it, “It used to. Guess I just messed up my landing a bit…More importantly…”

Twilight snapped around. Applejack was still being dragged by Tack, who was spreading his wings—his wings?!

“Applejack, let go!” Twilight shouted. Applejack released the lasso, grunting as she began to fall. Azure was the one to act this time, leaping into position to catch her on his back.

“Thanks, Az,” Applejack said, but there was no time for Azure to say anything back (or for Twilight to say anything about this), for a few fireballs began to rain down. The ponies began to move about, dodging the flames as they landed either in the murky swamp water, the mud, or dry land, the latter two seemingly flammable and the former sending frightened animals running away in a hurry.

“He’s out of control…” Twilight noted.

“He’s still got that rope tied around him, though…” Azure said, crouching low, his belly nearly touching the ground.

“You’re not—“ Twilight cut herself off, having long ago realized such an argument was futile. Azure didn’t even answer her, and he made what Twilight could only describe as a super jump.

“What the—“ Applejack said, “I knew he could jump, but not…”

“It’s the gravity spell…” Twilight said, “He’s made himself lighter so he could leap up there and…”

Azure grabbed the end of the rope in his teeth, dangling precariously on the edge. Tack turned his head to the side, seeing the unicorn there, and scoffed.

“Well, you caught me!” he snapped, “Now what’re you going to do!?”

Azure smashed his jaws together as tightly as he could and more, so much so it felt like his teeth were going to shatter under the pressure, as Tack began to fly crazily, aiming to shake Azure off. However, suddenly, Tack found Azure’s weight was…increasing?

He turned again, seeing not only Azure’s horn glowing, but the rope itself glowing.

Twilight squinted her eyes above, and her eyes widened.

“No…Azure…” she started.

“What’s he doin’ up there?!” Applejack asked, “Can’t see even with my hat providin’ shade!”

“He’s making himself heavier…!”

Tack struggled to hold on, but ultimately, he began to lose altitude. Azure continued to focus, using the gravity spell to increase his weight and the rope’s weight, and within a few seconds, Tack began to plummet, Azure holding on to the rope. Azure let go, quickly shifting his own weight back to normal with the gravity spell and attempting to cushion his fall—it wasn’t going to be pretty anyway. Tack, meanwhile, struggled with the heavy rope; trying to hack it away with his claws.

Azure was heading fast towards the ground, gritting his teeth.

Darn it, I think I bit off more than I could chew… Azure thought, closing his eyes—

He hit a body hard, and a feminine grunt sounded. He looked down, nervous. His eyes opened real wide when he saw who had broken his fall.

“T-Twilight?!” Azure asked, concerned as he got up off of her, “Are you alright?”

Twilight coughed a little, “Good thing you made yourself lighter…That would have been—“

“Don’t even…” Azure started, “Are you sure you’re…”

“I’m fine, just trying to catch you knocked the wind out of—“

Applejack scoffed, running forward, “While you two apologize to each other, I’m gonna make sure he can’t lift off again!”

“Just try!” Tack shouted, taking another deep breath and burping out a fireball at Applejack. The orange mare gasped and quickly dodged to her left, gritting her teeth as it singed her side just a bit. This was all the time Tack needed, for he rose to his feet and cracked his neck.

“That hurt…” Tack undid the knot on the lasso before dropping it to the side. He then hunched over again, “But it’s gonna take a lot more than that…”

“Yeah…Dragons aren’t known for being pushovers…” Twilight said, getting to her hooves, Azure looking over to her, “And they are pretty resilient…”

“Sounds about right,” Azure said, “You alright to continue?”

“It’ll take more than you falling on me to take me out of this,” Twilight assured him for the third time.

“And I’m still okay to continue…” Applejack assured before Azure could ask her.

“Alright…” Azure said, “Just don’t want you two to get hurt because of something I did…again…”

The battle continued again, Tack letting out a roar as the second round of the fight commenced…
------------------------------------------
Guided mainly by the increasing ferality of the wildlife, Bronclav advanced deeper into the forest, knocking aside any poor souls that happened to get in his way. Behind him, he could hear the sounds of battle, and crackling fire, and knew Tack had cut off the harmonics. Perfect for him. He could find the item and get out of here without them noticing a thing.

He reached a sort of clearing, the trees above giving out light, but the ground still as swampy as it had been before. Bronclav stood as upright as he could, making use of his keen eyesight as he took a look around the clearing. He could feel it. Something was close by. He had nothing but his instincts to go on—it had to be here, but where…

The setting sun shone down through as the griffon looked around, growing more and more agitated by the second.

I can’t stay here forever… Bronclav said.

“I think there’s somepony up ahead!” a distant voice called. The griffon’s mood worsened. Hadn’t that foolish dragon cut them all off?

Suddenly, he caught sight of something. It was a mild glint, coming from a nearby mudhole. Bronclav’s eyes widened—was this…

He stuck a talon directly into the muck with only a small pause. He dug it out—a corroded silver bracelet, covered in mud, the jewel at the center a dark bluish color. The griffon smirked.

“Hold it right there!”

Bronclav turned, stowing the Element into his cloak, surveying his opponents—three of the Bearers, three Royal Guards—one of whom might have been the captain, considering his armor was purple in color. The lattermost of the ponies had been the one to give the order.

“You’re not going to take me in quietly,” Bronclav said, “Why don’t I make this quick?”

The griffin rushed forward, ignoring the guards. If he could get one of the Bearers back, he could—

A wave of pressure slammed into his side. Bronclav flipped over in the air, spreading his wings and stopping his trajectory with a gentle landing. He looked up, gritting his teeth. The green unicorn was the one who’d attacked, but it was the Bearer of Loyalty who spoke up.

“You won’t be walking right out of here with another one of my friends!” Rainbow shouted, “We stopped you guys once, we can do it again!”

“You all could have just kept your noses out of this…” The griffon said, raising his talons. “It’s not like this concerns you…”

“If it’s a threat to the safety of our country, it’s a concern of ours, alright,” The red unicorn retorted coolly, “Bonus points if it could potentially be a concern of the whole world…”

Bronclav scoffed, “You don’t understand anything at all…It’s a shame…”

His talons curled up ever so slightly. Then, without warning, his hands burst into flames.

“I guess I’m just going to have to burn you guys up to get you out of my way!” Bronclav shouted, pounding the ground and sending a few waves of fire towards his opponents, “Something I’m alright with!”

The attacks struck, but not their intended targets—the captain’s horn was alight. The griffon’s eyes were wide; the shield was a lot bigger than it should have been.

“Amazing job, Captain!” The green unicorn shouted.

The shield faded, the captain beginning to make his own moves.

“Alright…Rainbow, Rarity, Pinkie, try to stay close to one of us; we’re going to try to make sure he doesn’t pull a fast one!” Shining shouted, “This time, we’ll recover an Element!”

Bronclav ignited his fists again, Virid speaking up.

“I’ll bet even he has his own chest gem…” Virid said, “Last I checked, griffons aren’t able to use magic…”

Bronclav scoffed, “So you guys know then…oh well…”

The griffon began to rush the group, “It doesn’t change a thing!”

As the battle began, the cloaked creature beginning to grin, he thought to himself,

Little do you realize, Captain of the Guard… he thought, thinking of what he’d already secured, I’ve already pulled a fast one…But I don’t mind pulling another…
------------------------------------------
Even if they weren’t still relatively close to the battle, the blind colt had a feeling he could still hear the battle against that dragon without the hearing bonus. He could also hear another battle taking place. He remained close to Spike and Fluttershy; the latter of whom was currently tending to the bear’s wounds, not willing to move from its side until she was healthy. However, as he continued to stand guard for the pegasus and dragon, a question began to form in the back of his head.

Do I really have to stand here…?

“Something’s not right,” Silver announced, his pale eyes narrowed in the direction of where he’d left Azure to himself—ironically, with the mares he’d entangled himself in a triangle not too long ago.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Spike asked flatly, not sure at all. Which wasn’t too hard to believe; he hadn’t really seen the cloaked ponies in action.

“He knows we’re here, he knows you’re defenseless…” Silver responded, “No offense…” He turned his head back to the others. Spike seemed offended for a few moments, but ultimately shrugged it off; Fluttershy didn’t seem to hear him over caring for the bear.

“Your point being?” the drake asked, still unsure.

“Why hasn’t he tried to take advantage?” Silver asked, turning back to the battle.

“Hey, hey!” Spike shouted, stunned, “You want to jinx it or something?!”

“No, far from it…” Silver explained, “But it didn’t stop them before. The other members had always been ready to try whatever they felt was necessary to get whatever they were after—even if it was underhooved. But…with this dragon…It’s like he never even considered it.

Spike stepped next to Silver—it was easy to figure it was him given he walked on two legs on the muddy ground.

“Then what makes him so different?” Spike asked. Silver could almost see the fight like it was happening in front of him, his auditory talent providing for that.

I can see the strain of the effort he’s putting out to subdue them. I can feel he’s trying as hard as he can…but…at the same time…It’s like he’s…not into it…

“His heart…” Silver mumbled after some silence.

“What about it?” Spike questioned again.

“From every other pony I’ve been around; every encounter I’ve been at, I’ve noticed it…” Silver continued, “Regardless of the situation…regardless of how reprehensible it was to the rest of ponykind…they enjoyed what they did. Every last second…But…not him…”

“Then why’s he fighting so hard?” Spike was on a roll with asking so many questions.

“He…probably never had a choice in the matter…”
------------------------------------------
A stream of fire rushed through the swamps; the unicorns and earth pony getting clear. Tack landed hard on the ground, all fours, before rushing Azure, teeth bared. The cyan colt didn’t back down, jumping over the dragon’s head. This was then followed by him dropping hard between the dragon’s wings, causing him to hiss in pain. Azure took a breather, shifting about there, his opponent seemingly stunned.

“Az, watch it!” Applejack warned. The dragon’s tail swished down at him. Azure managed to form a shield, but it didn’t hold, the shock of it breaking sending Azure back. As Azure tried to recover, Twilight sent a few laser shots Tack’s way. Tack maneuvered one of his wings to block the attacks, and looked towards her. He blindly fired a couple of fireballs in her direction. Twilight attempted to move, but she was in a bad spot; the mud causing her to slip. She gasped, a magenta flash quickly surging from her horn. The next, the fireballs went through thin air, impacting the nearest structure behind where she just was.

“Twilight!?” Azure called.

“Um…” Azure looked up, seeing Twilight clinging to a branch, sheepishly grinning, “Guess sometimes I can’t do it right…”

“Most of the time you do it, though…” Azure said, “I’m still not sure how it works completely…”

“Are you done with this already?” Tack asked flatly, “I don’t like this that much more than you…”

Tack spread his wings, slowly beginning to hover. Applejack grit her teeth in frustration at this.

“Every time he starts takin’ off we can’t do much about it…” she griped, just as Tack began to go into the air, ready to start another aerial bombing raid. “Wish Rainbow had stayed back with us…”

“No, the others needed her, too…” Twilight asserted, “We don’t know what the other one’s capable of—they always seem to work in pairs, too…”

“So what’re we gonna do about that?!” Applejack shouted, as another barrage of fireballs came down, Tack having thrown them down. They scrambled to dodge, and found a rock that seemed like cover enough for the time being.

“I’m sure…we have a way to get airborne that…isn’t so risky…” Azure thought aloud, looking to Twilight, “Twilight…Do you still remember that wing spell?”

“Well, I mean, I do, but…” Twilight began.

“I’ll cover the air,” Azure said, “You two can stay on the ground in case he tries to come down again.”

“But…you’ve never…Back during that time in Cloudsdale…” Twilight responded, unsure.

“There’s no time…” Azure replied, looking up again. Tack was circling, no doubt looking for them again—it was a wonder he hadn’t tried to light the whole swamp on fire by now, “You’re just gonna have to trust me on this…”

Twilight bit her lip, unsure. It was true Azure had proven himself time and again, but…now, Azure was about to try flying with wings, in the midst of a conflict, no less! Had he taken time to practice something like this—

“Twi, it’s Az we’re dealin’ with,” Applejack commented, “I don’t think he’s gonna mess up if he knows what’s at stake…”

That was enough to get Twilight to relent. Sometimes she wondered if she worried too much about Azure—but, a small part of her told her it was her right to do so as his marefriend.

“Okay…just…be careful, Azure…” Twilight nodded, her horn igniting, “But don’t make me regret it!”

“Don’t worry,” Azure said, feeling the spell starting to take effect, “I won’t!”
------------------------------------------
Tack flew around, sticking close to the battleground, baselessly wondering what he was to do if the ponies he was fighting didn’t show themselves. He didn’t dare check on Bronclav; he’d just get lectured about how the griffon most certainly did not need his help. Even though his time with all those creatures had told him it would have been fair play to torch the forest if it meant drawing the enemy out of hiding, he didn’t want to do that. He figured they’d show themselves sooner or later if he let up on the firepower for a bit.

His superiors had also told him attacking non-combatants was A-OK if it meant he could claim a victory or use them as a bargaining chip; given how close the other non-guard unicorn, the Element of Kindness, and that other dragon were, it wouldn’t have been that hard. However, he didn’t want to indulge that, either. Why was he hesitating? He’d been raised in an environment where nothing but success mattered; to Tartarus with the rest…

His introspection was cut short by an array of cyan bolts flying awkwardly at him. Tack pulled up a little, easily dodging the wayward attacks. Tack looked up, growling just a little…and was summarily shocked by what he saw.

It was the cyan unicorn colt; horn and eyes still alight with magic, now sporting a pair of what looked like translucent pegasus wings…

“Still not quite perfect,” Azure said, looking as though he were having a little trouble, “But something had to be done about your ability to fly…”

“Indeed,” Tack responded, his shock abating, “Tell me, when could you grow wings…?”

“Just an upside to having a very talented marefriend…” Azure brushed it off.

“I see…” Tack felt himself once again be confused. Sure, they did occasionally yell at one another—but they also yelled to one another. The dragon shook his head, remembering what he had to do here, “Well, I must admit your sudden flight is impressive, but it won’t do you much good!”

Azure flapped his wings hard, seemingly straining, “Not quite used to the wings, but I think I’ll prove you wrong!”

With battle yells uttered from both sides, the two began to fly at each other…
------------------------------------------
It was significantly harder than Bronclav thought, though he shouldn’t have been too surprised—his opponents composed of a pegasus that was clearly showing she could hold her own, a unicorn and earth pony that if nothing else served as distractions, and three very well-trained Royal Guards.

Bronclav tried to take flight again, only to find Rainbow Dash waiting for him there. Griffons were naturally a lot bigger than ponies, making her an annoying target. Bronclav tossed a few fireballs at her; she was a bit too fast for each of them, though.

This battle’s taking forever… Bronclav thought. He then noticed the all-too-familiar sight of a rainbow charging him, and gritted his teeth—however that worked with beaks, anyway. He moved ever so slightly, as though he were trying to frontflip over the pegasus. His talons grabbed onto Rainbow Dash…however, her momentum didn’t make the attack so easy. Bronclav’s arms began to pull, putting him in the awkward position instead. He tried to right himself with his wings, but while he was distracted with that, something slammed hard into his back, causing him to release Rainbow.

While he was distracted, Blitz had managed to ram into the griffon’s back, at his own top speed. The red unicorn began to fall, shouting but two words.

“Now, Virid!”

Virid’s horn, alight with a very bright light, blasted out a pressure wave. Bronclav couldn’t dodge—the pulse of pressure was coming at him far too fast to keep up with. The attack slammed into his back, causing him to fall to the ground, his wings pretty much de-aired. Bronclav landed on the ground, catching himself on all fours.

“Give it up,” commanded their captain, taking a few steps away from Rarity, “I don’t think you stand a chance against us right now…”

Bronclav rose to his feet, “That’s what you think…”

“With the way things are going, you can’t possibly pull a fast one on us!” Rainbow declared, floating down just a bit.

To this, Bronclav chuckled, alarming those present and not on his side. He began to reach into his cloak, pulling out a tarnished silver bracelet with a blue jewel on it.

“That’s…!” Rarity gasped, recognizing the look of it all too well.
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The griffon grinned wickedly as he slipped it on. The instant it reached the right spot on his “wrist”, the Element of Chaos released a sudden shockwave. The others braced themselves as the shockwave burst outward-once only.

Shining knew, without anypony needing to point it out, that things just got a lot more serious. It seemed like the Elements of Chaos doubled as charms…

And judging from the grin on the griffon’s face—and his general look—oh, Celestia, he almost looked bloodthirsty now—things just got a fair bit more complicated.

“Watch out, everypony!” Shining announced, taking full control of the situation—not that he wasn’t already, “I don’t think he’s going to be so easy anymore!”

Chapter 48: Brutality

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Chapter 48: Brutality
-------------
The griffon stared down his six opponents, with an unsettling look in his eye. The others didn’t really know what to expect now; the Element of Chaos appeared to have changed him the instant he put it on. He looked like he was in a hurry, more or less. Now, however…

He moved, rushing the group, his wings flapping mightily as he rushed his targets.

“Watch yourselves!” Virid shouted.

Suddenly, Bronclav stopped short of the group, raising a talon. The claw ignited in fire, and a malicious grin split his face, his eyes glowing. The griffon swiped his claw, sending a stream of fire. Instinctively, the group scattered—Rainbow grabbing Rarity and Pinkie Pie, the Royal Guards managing to jump clear.

The heat seared past them, but didn’t remain there, going beyond. When the stream reached the point of entry for the group, the flames spread, forming a semi-circular ring.

“He cut off our retreat?!” Blitz shouted, initially more confused than anything else.

“So why don’t we enjoy ourselves, then…” Bronclav asked, his voice seeming to have a different quality to it than he had not five seconds earlier. Rainbow flapped her wings hard, rising into a hover. She didn’t remain there long, though; rushing towards Bronclav.

“Wait, you idiot!” Virid shouted in response, but Rainbow didn’t listen. Bronclav, meanwhile, began to rush back. Like a few moments before, Rainbow’s attack was dodged and she was grabbed by the griffon. However, Bronclav quickly dropped, slamming her into the ground and causing her to cough a little.

“Rainbow!” Rarity gasped, effectively summing up the group consensus. Bronclav followed this up by tossing Rainbow like a hoofball away from him. He made a move to pursue her to keep going, but the group reacted, Pinkie moving the fastest, however. Strangely, her mane seemed…flatter than it had been for most of the crisis so far.

“You meanie!” Pinkie squealed, her voice sounding still so chipper—entirely dissonant from her current expression. However, this did little to intimidate the now crazed griffon.

“That’s it…that’s closer to the face you should be making in times like this!” Bronclav shouted. Pinkie hopped up, bouncing off the griffon’s head…but that did little more than make him turn towards her, and once again finding a pony in his hooves. Rainbow Dash was charging him now, angered, for two reasons: one, her ego had been more hurt in that whole thing, and two:

“Let her go!” Rainbow shouted, rushing close.

“You want her?” Bronclav questioned, “Go ahead then…”

Faster than anypony could react, Pinkie was thrown, ramming into the onrushing Rainbow, who could do nothing but brake and attempt to catch her. The two carried on for several yards before impacting a tree, where they ultimately stopped, leaving a terrible dent in the tree.

Rarity let out a shrill gasp—this just wasn’t the same griffon that they had just been up against! Bronclav looked over to the stunned, motionless mares, still grinning widely.

In that moment, the alabaster mare found she had never moved faster in her life—quite a feat considering all that she’d been up against since the group all came together. Before she realized it, she was running past him—Crimson Blitz would later tell her she threw basically anything that wasn’t securely attached to something down, and even things that were. She even stepped in the mud a few times.

The next thing she remembered, she was in front of the griffon gone mad(der), shrieking at him.

“Don’t you dare lay another talon on my friends, you ruffian!” Her lower coat was splotched with mud, and the stress of the situation combined with the fact she had momentarily lapsed in sanity had even caused a few of her curls to go out of place. Rainbow and Pinkie groaned slightly, but didn’t move.

“Or what?” Bronclav asked, his attention entirely on her, almost entirely unfazed by the barrage of…everything. “You think you can do better?”

His talon erupted in flame, and his wicked smile seemed to get worse. However, before the fire could be thrown, something big, red, and fast slammed into the griffon’s back, causing the flame to dissipate. Bronclav grunted; Blitz quickly blurred out of the way, putting himself between them and the mares. A few moments later, a few amber bolts of magic hit him.

Bronclav snarled, and tried again to do his attack, but abruptly, something slammed into his back: a purple…bubble?

All heads turned to Shining, who appeared to be focusing intently on Bronclav now.

“Virid, Blitz, make sure he doesn’t do any more damage,” Shining commanded, “I’ll take it from here…”

“But, Captain, your main magic has been—“ Virid tried to interrupt, but—

“Doesn’t the manual say something about insubordination?” Blitz questioned. Virid grit his teeth.

“But…”

“I’ve got this, Virid,” Shining said.

“Exactly what do you think you have?” Bronclav asked. The shield that Shining had formed was still pressing between his wings as a flame began to form on his talons, “This isn’t anything!”

Shining responded by forming another, slightly bigger bubble around himself, immediately before leaping backwards and kicking it at Bronclav; the barrier hit the first one. Both shattered, and sent Bronclav flying forward from the force of the impact.

Rarity gasped, the crazed griffon was flying towards them. Quickly, Virid and Blitz turned around, both executing a double back-kick together, slamming Bronclav back again. The griffon slid backwards on the swampy ground. At this point, Shining himself slid in front of the two, making sure the griffon couldn’t directly get to them anymore.

“Alright, big guy, it’s just you and me,” said Shining, his horn lighting up. Bronclav scoffed, rising onto his legs. He soon grinned.

“One-on-one, huh?” Bronclav asked, “I’d be careful if I were you, Captain…”

The talons of the beast lit up in fire once again, and he held out one of his arms towards the group in a threatening matter.

“I don’t think you’ll want to play with me forever!”

He threw a few fireballs, Shining blocking them all with a quickly-formed barrier. With that, he rushed towards the griffon, Bronclav doing the same, going for a punch down at Shining, whose horn had lit up again.

“Captain--!” Virid shouted, but there was no need.

When it looked like the fist would connect, suddenly, a shield appeared directly over where the point of contact would be made. The shield shattered, but instead of caving it, the magical construct instead exploded outward, knocking Bronclav back.

“What the—“ Bronclav grunted, his smile finally being totally interrupted for the first time all battle.

“It’s a type of barrier that repels an enemy attack, and throws it back at them…” Shining said.

“But it only works at close range…” Virid mumbled, “Which is how he got us when…”

As the green unicorn tried desperately to forget that horrible time where he’d attacked his commanding officer, the griffon began to speak again.

“Bah! No matter…” Bronclav said, “I’m going to enjoy picking you apart!”

“Come on and try it!” Shining shouted, “I’ll make sure you don’t get past my defense, this time!”
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Silver could sense it without having to see it: the feeling of the running animals, coupled with the distant crackles and pops. However, it was Fluttershy who made the observation.

“Oh no, the swamp’s…!” Fluttershy gasped. By now, the bear was showing signs of life. They would probably need to move before long.

“You think that other dragon caused this?” Spike asked.

“No, he and Azure have been up in the air this whole time…” Silver responded, “But it’s weird. Around the time Azure left into the air, something in the air over where the fire is, changed.”

“Changed…?” Spike asked, Fluttershy tending to the bear’s wound. Neither of the males could notice her change in demeanor upon realizing the swamp was being set on fire.

“How to put this…” Silver paused, before nodding to himself, “Before, it was like we were wandering through a gradually thickening fog of aggression; the closer we got, the thicker the fog seemed to get. Now, however, it’s condensed into a single cloud…”

“You mean…”

“I think they beat us again…” Silver observed. After a few moments, he grit his teeth visibly. “Oh, no…!”

“What is it now?!” Spike yelled, already knowing that particular statement. It sometimes followed a given study session, after all—but with all that had happened, he really began to start fearing the worse with this cloaked group.

“He…The other guy, I mean, not the dragon…” Silver began, “Fluttershy…”

Fluttershy remained focused, and didn’t even move. She was still helping the bear with its wound. However, a moment passed, and her ear flicked. With almost startling precision, she turned to him, and began to speak:

“Yes, Silver?” Fluttershy was sounding like she did at the Gala all over again…which did not do well for Silver.

“Two others are…down…”
-------------
Azure flapped his wings hard, barely recovering from a hit from the dragon opposite him. He breathed hard, gritting his teeth, seeing the wall of fire. Tack turned back, again.

“You’re worried about them, aren’t you?” The dragon asked, taking a quick look over his shoulder. He shook his head. If Azure didn’t know better, he’d have said the dragon didn’t approve of what he was seeing back there. However, past dealings with the cloaked creatures who had given him so much trouble didn’t exactly leave an impression of caring.

“Yeah, I am…” Azure grumbled, flapping his wings hard, “But the best I can do is leave it to my cousins and Shining for now!”

“You’re not even used to your wings!” Tack shouted, shortly before inhaling, shooting three fireballs out at Azure, who allowed himself to fall slightly. He tried to right himself, barely managing to stop himself from completely falling, but then a weight pressed down into his back, hard, slamming him belly-first into the ground.

“Gotcha!” the dragon shouted. Azure laid flat on his stomach, definitely de-winded. Tack backed off, surprisingly enough. The unicorn colt stood up, spreading his still intact magic wings. He looked over to the transformed dragon, incredibly confused.

“Why…” From past experiences, this didn’t work, “Why’d you let me up?”

Tack grunted, “We’re still on different sides…”

Azure wanted to press the matter further, but…

“Az!” This was a rapidly-approaching Applejack; Azure cocking an ear towards his rear.

“Are you alright, Azure?!” This was Twilight.

He’s right…Even if we’re not trying to take each other down at any cost, we’re…still on opposite sides… Azure thought to himself. He seems…different, but…

A sudden surge of fire caught his attention, Azure blocking it with a magic shield. The cyan colt grit his teeth, sure of what he would need to do here.

But I’ve got friends I’ve gotta protect, and no one is gonna take them from me again!

With that, Azure’s horn glowed slightly brighter, as he unleashed an onslaught of laser spells towards his opponent, who braced himself for the impact…
-------------
Shining slid back, a shield covering part of his body, his hooves digging into the soft mud below. Bronclav had opted to attack him physically this time, but he couldn’t quite fire off that counter-spell every time. He hadn’t quite gone through the battle without taking damage—his fur was covered in burn marks, his armor appeared mildly charred now, but he was still going strong.

Bronclav still looked like he was bordering on insane, his own body covered in burn marks now as well, mostly from a few errant fire spells that had been reflected towards him.

“Hold still, why don’t you?!” the griffon shouted, bringing his talons together with a resounding clap…because Shining had leapt backwards out of harm’s way.

“Sorry, I’m not into getting creamed…” Shining said, leaping backwards just a little. Bronclav threw out another fist, to be met with yet another dodge, followed by having a purple shield shoved into his chest, pushing him back once again. Bronclav slid to a halt, momentarily stunned.

“To think that one of you alone could hold out so long against me…” Bronclav said, before his grin returned to his beak, seemingly growing more and more sinister each time he cracked it, “Amazing! You’ll be fun to take down! Just make no mistake Captain, when I’m done here…”

His talons ignited in flames, and he sent more fireballs at Shining as he shouted, “Your allies over there are next on my list!”

As Shining began to put up yet another barrier to block the fire attack, the others on the sideline could only watched.

“He seemed like he was in a hurry before,” Virid noted aloud, watching Bronclav’s behavior, “Each of his strikes were more efficient than actually brutal, and I don’t think he used as much of his strength.”

“And he didn’t seem like he wanted to hang around for long, just deal with us swiftly and get out of here with the item in tow…” Blitz added, nodding.

“But after he put on that Element, he became an entirely different griffon,” Virid continued, “He seemed to delight in causing opponents as much pain as possible, perhaps even…” He trailed off, “But faced with the prospect of a worthy opponent, such as our captain, he’s more focused on fighting him one-on-one, than getting out of here with the item…”

“Perhaps it just put forth his worst traits, or amplified them…” Virid noted, “Whatever the case, these Elements of Chaos we were tasked to gather…They really are that dangerous…”

Shining managed to reflect a few more fireballs back towards Bronclav, who punched them out with more burning fists. Afterwards, Bronclav rushed Shining. A purple shield appeared over the point of impact again, but this time the shield stayed rather than redirecting the attack like it first had.

“What’s wrong?” Bronclav threw a few more punches, Shining seemingly unable to move under the repeated attacks, “Running out of gas?”

Bronclav went for yet another punch, but his fist caught against the shield. Only now, did everyone realize that the shield hadn’t quite given way under the pressure the griffon was trying to put on it—and its creator. Shining looked up.

“Not quite.”

One moment later, the shield once again seemed to “bounce” outward, giving off a shockwave. However, this time, the shockwave was a lot worse, both combatants getting sent back a ways. Bronclav fell backwards, flinching and holding his chest. Shining also bounced back a little, but began getting to his feet with little time in between. However, seeing this still didn’t sit well with a certain somepony…

“Captain!?”

“It’s fine, Virid,” Shining said, “Guess I just underestimated the kick the counter would cause…”

Bronclav slowly got to his feet, his eyes bloodshot, one talon clutching his chest. He moved his hand, revealing the gem that was there, clenching the talon into a fist.

The gem was cracked from the force of the knockback. At first, Bronclav looked…extremely upset. However, the griffon’s face quickly twisted into an absolutely crazed expression, one where fury met excitement and insanity, his eyes wide and bloodshot, his beak cracking an absolutely vicious grin.

“This…is…life!” he shouted.

“He has absolutely lost his mind…” Rarity was numb with horror—was this merely the kind of monster those cloaked ponies were all along?

“Glad you feel that way…” Shining responded, “But I’m going to have to end your high soon enough…”
-------------
After a long day of dealing with bureaucratic affairs and worrying about her subjects tasked with the retrieval of the Elements of Chaos, Princess Celestia had retired to her chambers for some relative peace. Her sister, now that she was back, as usual, would handle the night affairs. Well, Celestia knew her job wasn’t done yet: she still had some things to attend to besides completely lowering the sun.

She had quite a bit of paperwork to catch up on, after all. She really needed to stop taking so many tea times during the day. For a while, she went to work, though she began to wonder what all was going on. In the privacy of her chambers, she could do nothing but think.

I still can’t piece it all together…Discord can’t be behind this, he wouldn’t have orchestrated this kind of event. He wouldn’t miss out on something like this. In fact, he would have specifically tried to make it worse than it already is… But we know nothing about these ponies…

At this point, there was a frantic knock on the door, derailing her train of thought. She looked up towards the door.

“Please, come in,” Celestia opened the door with her magic, allowing a Royal Guard to enter. He appeared like he’d hurried to deliver something.

“Princess Celestia…” He panted, “There’s been some urgent news…”

“Is it related to the search?” Celestia had to be sure.

“I wish it were, Princess, I truly do,” the guard continued, “But this is worse…this…this…”

He fished out a letter from his armor, and walked up to her desk, setting it down in front of her.

“It’s…It’s a...direct threat, Princess…”

Princess Celestia felt a migraine coming on. It just seemed like her workload was getting heavier and heavier. But, after a thousand years of ruling alone, she’d gotten used to that sort of thing. With that in mind, she unrolled the parchment.

As her eyes scanned the parchment, they went from frustrated to wide with apprehension at what she had read.

“The Captain of the Guard…he’s still out with the retrieval unit, but he’s the only one with skill enough with shields to…” Celestia began, her eyes closing in thought. “On top of that, we have guards across the countryside trying to look for the inverted Elements…”

“Awaiting your orders…” The guard saluted. There was no denying this guard was green—then again, Equestria had hardly had wars for a long while now. Everything was peaceful until recently. Now, however…

This is a difficult position…we need to find these Elements, but I’d never forgive myself if something happened to my subjects…

The solar princess had to wonder if this new threat was a coincidental occurrence, or the mark of a truly cunning strategist on the enemy’s side…

Whatever the case, I must make a decision now…

Chapter 49: Chaos Under Control

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Chapter 49: Chaos Under Control
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The griffon swung out with yet another fire-infused punch, only to find his unicorn opponent putting up yet another reflect spell, knocking him back. Shining Armor looked up, breathing slightly hard now. Bronclav, meanwhile, spread his wings, stopping his backwards momentum. The white unicorn gave a small snort as his opponent rushed back in, the unicorn’s horn glowing with a purple hue.

A shield appeared where the griffon attempted to make his strike, blocking the strike, cracking severely. Bronclav swung his talons for another strike, more shields popping up to defend from the attacks. The griffon’s attacks continually cracked Shining’s shields, more so than before.

“Has Shining been hurt that much?!” Rarity called out.

“No,” Blitz shook his head, “He’s been fighting him one-on-one for a while now…I think the captain’s starting to run out of steam.”

Virid stood to the side, gritting his teeth, “Yet the griffon doesn’t seem to have lost too much steam…”

“Either that, or he’s too crazy to care he’s running out of it…” Blitz said.

Shining backed up a step, his shield appearing over his body again. Once again, Bronclav’s hit was deflected by the defense. The griffon cocked his fist back, fire appearing over his left talon. The white unicorn erected yet another magical barrier in response. However, this time, the empowered enemy’s fire punch shattered the shield completely, and kept going with enough momentum to strike the captain.

Shining coughed as he was lifted off his four hooves, landing on his side on the swampy ground. He lay still for a few moments, doing nothing. Rarity let out a shrill gasp.

“Not good…” Blitz said. Bronclav turned to Shining, who was in the middle of recovering.

“Is this the extent of your ability?” Bronclav asked, beginning to advance on him. “It was fun…probably the best fight I’ve had in my life…But now, it ends…”

Shining didn’t bother with a retort, shuffling his way to his feet. As he did so, Bronclav rushed in, seeming to increase his running speed. However, before he could successfully make good on his statement, a large wave of pressure slammed into the griffon’s back, knocking him off balance. He fell into a crouch, his eyes wide and bloodshot. He turned, seeing a wide, angry-eyed Virid looking at him.

“You…” Bronclav growled, his attention now on Virid.

“Virid!” Blitz called out, “You of all people should know what your orders are…”

“Yeah, but Celestia knows she’d never forgive us if something happened to him…” Virid muttered.

“She…?” Blitz asked, “What are you—“

“You intend to interrupt a one-on-one fight…” Bronclav grumbled, before his face once again twisted into an insane visage of cruelty, “Fine! I don’t care! Go ahead and throw whoever’s left at me! I’ll go through all of you like tissue paper!”

The griffon whirled around, spreading his wings and charging Virid. Virid braced himself, fully ready to take over the fight—

Three purple laser bolts suddenly slammed into the back of the griffon, causing him to once again stumble. Virid looked up, his face only having concern.

“C-Captain?!” he shouted. Shining was visibly breathing hard now, likely from fatigue.

“Virid…what’d I tell you?” Shining asked, “This is my fight to finish…”

Bronclav turned, seeing that his former opponent had in fact managed to get another hit off, “Yes, that’s right…but it won’t be going on much longer…”

“Then why don’t we end this, already?” The unicorn continued, scraping his hoof across the swampy ground, his horn lighting up once more.

“Fine…” Bronclav said, “I’m going to give it all I’ve got…Don’t forget! Once I’m done with you…” His talons cracked, igniting in fire as he raised both arms together, readying what looked like a fearsome attack, “They’re next!”

“I haven’t forgotten…” Shining said, “But I promise you, you won’t be going any further than this…”

For a few more moments Bronclav remained there, charging his fire fists. Shining remained still, seeming to focus. At last, the tension broke, the griffon rushing his unicorn opponent.

“Captain, watch out!” Virid shouted, “He’s definitely giving it all he’s got!”

Shining didn’t respond. Bronclav continued to draw closer, his beak once more adopting a crazed grin. Eventually, Bronclav reached his desired range—aiming to bring down his blazing fists onto Shining, he shouted:

“This is it!”

Shining looked up as the attack came down. A large purple shield appeared over the point of impact once again—the reflect spell. Bronclav’s fists remained against the barrier for a few more seconds, before an explosion of force and fire went off, knocking both fighters back. Bronclav went flying back left, his chest gem seeming to fissure a little more under the pressure. Shining flew backwards until he hit a tree, gritting his teeth and lying down, breathing harder still. Bronclav eventually slid to a halt, grabbing at his chest, where everypony knew the gem was at.

The griffon continued to clutch his chest, a faint glow radiating from under his talon. Bronclav lurched forward, hacking violently, blood coming out. It was only after he removed his hand that the others could see clearly what had happened: his gem had not only cracked, it had cracked severely; there were deep fissures, hairline cracks, and other deformities in the jewel—it was a wonder it was still together.

“It’s over!” Shining shouted, soon as he realized what exactly had happened. Bronclav looked over, then back to his shattered gem, unable to believe it himself.

“I…I…lost…?” Bronclav asked, more to himself than anything else. He looked down, towards the ground, looking more like a lost child than an enemy. However, he mumbled something guttural, and the other ponies suddenly felt uneasy.

“What’s this pressure...?” Virid asked, looking around, “The air…feels heavy, for some reason…”

“No…” It was here, the ponies realized Bronclav was still on his feet and he was hyperventilating, bad. He looked up, his eyes growing wider, veins becoming more and more visible. “No…”

The air around Bronclav began to ripple, like a fire was being lit on his very body. The general area seemed to become sweltering, like the group had suddenly stepped into a lit oven.

“No!” The griffon shouted, gritting his beak so hard that blood was beginning to leak out of his mouth. A powerful shockwave came from his body, causing the ground to crack beneath him—the mud that was at his feet before was hardening, despite the fact the group was in a swamp.

“I refuse!” The ground beneath Bronclav, and the griffon himself, engulfed in flames, his eyes white with fury.

The others could only watch in shock. “Burn…Everything burns!”

Orbs of fire shot out of Bronclav in all directions, setting more of the swamp ablaze in the process.

“He’s gone completely mad!” Shining called out, taking a step forward. However, he noticed an orb of fire was coming down at him, forcing him to jump back. As soon as he landed, he’d prepared to charge again, but he realized quickly that he wouldn’t get the chance to move, not this time.

Bronclav was charging him, through the fire, talons extended. Shining didn’t have time to do another reflector, and quickly put up the most powerful barrier he could muster. But the moment the griffon’s talon made contact, he knew it wasn’t enough. The next, the shield had shattered under the force of the attack, carrying enough force to send him flying backwards.

Shining hit the ground hard, rolling to a stop, limp on the ground.

The attack didn’t even hit me…and yet he was able to knock me back… Shining thought, C’mon…get up!

Shining looked up, hearing the sounds of footfalls approaching him. He looked up into the face of his adversary. It was clear to the captain now what was going on.

His sanity has all but eroded… he thought to himself, And I’m his only target right now…He’s only guided by pure, white rage…!

“Burn to ashes!” Bronclav’s beak broke into the most wicked grin he had ever seen, raising a talon. His wings and lion tail were starting to singe from the sheer heat he was letting off. But even if he had known, it was pretty obvious he wouldn’t have cared.

At this rate…!

“Enough!” A shadow dropped from the sky—a pegasus pony at least, judging from the wings and height, positioning itself between the insane griffon and the injured unicorn. Shining lifted his head off the ground, trying to see who had intervened. He saw it a few moments later: canary yellow coat and feathers, pink mane, pink tail, butterflies…

No!

“F-Fluttershy,” Shining groaned, trying to get himself to move, “You have to get away!”

Fluttershy didn’t even seem to hear him. As Shining continued to struggle to try to get himself back into shape, he realized something: Bronclav had stopped moving, his fiery aura having somewhat diminished. His pupils had returned, though they had shrunken to pinpoints. Here, Shining realized something was off with the griffon’s eyes.

Is that…fear?

“What…is this…?” Bronclav asked, seeming to have regained some frame of mind looking down at the mare any living creature would usually regard as meek and gentle. Yet, here she was in front of them, her frame now looking more rigid, rough. Yet, she never once raised a hoof, instead starting to raise her voice.

“Now listen here!” Fluttershy was in full Stare mode now, “You think that just because you’re big and can use magic that you can just do whatever you want? Well, you can’t!” Fluttershy took only a single step towards Bronclav, who, to everypony’s shock, actually seemed to be taking a step back.

“How is she doing that…?!” Blitz wondered aloud, utterly stunned at this development.

“As we told you before, there is nothing more terrifying than Fluttershy’s Stare,” Rarity said, for the first time since Rainbow and Pinkie got knocked out, sounding confident.

Bronclav’s eyes were slowly beginning to regain their pupils as Fluttershy took yet another step. His eyes quickly narrowed once again.

“No…! I will not be defeated by you!” Bronclav’s fire reignited, and seemed to get hotter than it had been before Fluttershy stepped in. The heat was enough to singe some of Fluttershy’s feathers on the tips of her wings, but she didn’t falter, even as Bronclav continued to make his threats: “I will burn every last one of you!”

“Stop it right now!” Fluttershy raised her voice just a little higher, stamping one of her forehooves down. Bronclav took another step back, the fire lessening in intensity once more, “You are going to put out this fire, give us the Element, and then, you’ll leave us alone! Have I made myself clear?!”

Bronclav was trembling now, and he didn’t like it. His own body was trembling, in fear from something that by all rights couldn’t even hurt a fly.

“No…” Bronclav said, his pupils vanishing again, “I won’t accept it!”

The fires burned brightly once again, Bronclav’s eyes once again blank, his body becoming more and more burned as his own magic seemed to fail him. He didn’t care though, raising his talons, roaring like an eagle.

Everypony could only gasp in horror, watching as the talon became covered in even more intense flames.

“The Stare didn’t work…!?” shouted Rarity.

“Get out of there!” Virid barked.

Fluttershy stood her ground, even though she clearly wasn’t the one using an intimidating look anymore.

However, before anything could happen, before Bronclav could bring down his attack on the frail pegasus pony, a loud boom filled the air. A mere moment later, something struck Bronclav square in the center of his chest, where the already heavily damaged gem was. The griffon could only let out a pained howl as his eyes were pure white, no veins to speak of. His gem shattered into several pieces as he flew backwards, crashing clean through a tree. The source of the magical fires destroyed, the fires Bronclav had created began to die out.

Fluttershy released the tiniest squeak as her back legs finally gave out, her wings pinning themselves to her sides, now that the crisis was over for now. This was then followed by a heaving sigh of relief.

“Fluttershy!” Rarity called out, running over to Fluttershy. However, she stopped as soon as she realized somepony beat her to the punch. It was Silver, who had managed to rush up to Fluttershy, and had pulled her close for a hug with one of his forelegs.

“You okay?” asked Silver, turning his blind eyes to the pegasus.

“I-I’m fine, thanks to you,” Fluttershy said, turning her head to try to hide her blush with her mane.

“Sorry that took so long, I couldn’t find an opening ‘til the last moment,” Silver said in apology.

“That’s okay…I know I could trust you…” She slightly turned towards him at this.

“Well, what do we have here?” Rarity asked, unable to contain herself any longer at the sight. Fluttershy let out a small “eep” in response, taking a small step away from Silver, growing even redder. Silver only smiled at Fluttershy’s timidity over the whole issue. However, he only held his gaze on Fluttershy for a moment longer before turning to Rarity.

“Is everypony okay?” he asked.

“Nothing too major, though Rainbow and Pinkie will be sore after today, without a doubt…” Rarity responded.
------
A short time later, the group gathered together. Rainbow and Pinkie were finally up and ready again. The Element of Chaos had been retrieved. Bronclav was still out cold, but he’d live.

“You did well, both of you,” Shining said, addressing Fluttershy and Silver, “But it’s not over yet. We still have the dragon to take care of…”

“Maybe not…” Silver said.

“What do you mean?”

“Take him with us,” Silver nodded to where he remembered Bronclav was knocked to, “I have an idea…”
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More fire soared at Azure, whose horn sparked as he put up a barrier to defend from the fire. Strangely, though its nature was magical, it appeared to melt under the heat of the blaze. Azure grit his teeth.

“His wings were destroyed a while ago…” Twilight noted, “Yet,” she nodded to Tack, “He hasn’t made a single move towards us. His attention is entirely on Azure…”

“It may be how Az wants it,” Applejack commented, “But I don’t like it…”

Tack rushed in, the cyan unicorn matching his charge. His weight lowered, allowing him to travel faster. However, as he and Tack began to get in range, once again, Tack’s much larger reach was rendered moot as he and Azure skidded past each other. Azure leapt up, putting both his back legs into the dragon’s back, knocking him off-balance.

The headband-wearing pony proceeded to stand up straight—on his back legs, taking up his cousin’s posture. A short moment later, a magical shockwave expanded out of his hooves, knocking the dragon back. A few moments later, Azure began to fire laser shots at Tack. Some of them missed when Tack did a ground recover, the others making their mark.

The dragon stood up quickly, however, and began to breathe more fire, directing his stream at Azure, who made sure to once again stand still and defend from it with yet another shield spell.

Moreover…how is Azure not completely drained of his magic? Twilight noted, His magic’s been surging up since this fight started, his horn and eyes haven’t stopped glowing at all…What could it be about?

Tack sustained the fire for a bit longer, walking closer to Azure as he did so. By the time he stopped sustaining it, he was a step or two from being in punching range from Azure, whose shield definitely appeared to have melted from the heat of the dragon’s flames. Tack threw a punch, shattering the weakened shield and continuing on to hit Azure back, who rolled to a halt.

Tack stopped for a moment, watching as Azure began to rise once again. The dragon scoffed, “Don’t you think this has gone on long enough? We’ve been practically at a stalemate this whole time…”

“I won’t give up,” Azure remarked, fully rising to his feet, “It’s just not what I do.”

“Az!”

Azure blinked; Applejack and Twilight were running over to his sides, Twilight standing just a little closer than Applejack was.

“I…I thought…” Azure started, confused.

“We can’t just stand by and watch a friend fight,” Twilight said, “You don’t need to put it all on yourself…I don’t know how you managed to go it alone this long, but…I think that’s enough…”

“So you’ve finally decided to use your strength in numbers, again?” Tack asked, with a sigh, “Fine then—“

“Hey!” A familiar voice rang out.

All the ponies and the dragon stopped, turning to the source of the voice. Silver, with the rest of the retrieval team, stood there. What was most surprising about the picture, though, was what was floating off to Silver’s right: the unconscious Bronclav, his chest gem clearly missing.

Tack looked over, spotting his unconscious partner and letting out a scoff.

“So that’s how it is, huh? I back down, or you finish off my comrade?” asked Tack.

“No.”

Tack’s eyes widened at the blind pony’s words, and more so when he saw that Bronclav was being gently floated towards him.

“We have what we came for. We only wanted the Element of Chaos. There’s no need to keep fighting.” Silver continued.

Tack knew what his orders were. But his opponents outnumbered him twelve-to-one no matter how beaten-up and worn down they were.

“You want me to believe you’re just going to let me take him and go?”

“Silver?” Twilight asked, not quite understanding the point either.

“That’s right, you can take him and leave. We won’t follow or attack you. Not unless we’re given a reason…” Silver continued onward in response to Tack’s question.

Azure looked back, confused at what was going on. Eventually, though, he made a single comment.

“I understand…”

“Az?” Applejack asked.

Without another word, Azure walked to join the rest of the group, his horn and eyes finally no longer glowing. Twilight and Applejack, slightly confused, followed his lead.

“The choice is yours,” Azure said, standing with the rest of the group, “What will you do?”

Tack stared at the group blankly, in clear disbelief. He looked down towards the injured griffon—even with all that had happened, he was only unconscious. Eventually, the larger dragon made his decision. He picked up his injured friend, and flapped his wings hard, lifting the two into the air.

He looked down towards the group for a while longer, before flying away.
---------------------
“You sure we’re alright just lettin’ them off like that?” Rainbow grumbled, hovering low to the ground with a hoof pressed to her forehead.

The group was making their way back to town, not intending on stopping until they got to Dodge Junction, at least.

“The griffon wasn’t a threat anymore,” Shining said, “And Silver...”

“I noticed there was some kind of…indecision, deep down.” Silver spoke up, “I’m not sure what it was, but he didn’t seem to be as into it as any of the other members of his group, at least, judging from the ones I’ve encountered so far.”

“That sound magic of yours give you that kind of insight?” Azure asked.

“Always does…”

“More importantly, we now have two of the Elements of Chaos,” Twilight recapped, “They still only have one…”

“Right,” Azure said, “There’s still three left out there somewhere…”

“We don’t even know where any of them—“ Spike tried to point out there was a flaw in the group’s plan, when suddenly, he burped out something in a burst of green fire. The fire took the form of a scroll before too long, which Twilight caught using her magic.

“It must be Princess Celestia…” Twilight said, “Maybe she’s got information about where the next Element of Chaos—“

She stopped short as her eyes fell on the scroll for the first time, her eyes wide.

“What is it, Twilight?” Pinkie asked.

“It’s addressed to…Shining…” Twilight revealed.

“Me?” Shining asked.

Twilight handed the letter over to her brother, who looked over its contents carefully. Once he did, his eyes widened.

“Well, everypony…” he finally said, his voice betraying none of the confusion or worry that was deep down in him, “Things just got a lot more complicated…”