Ponyville Jail, 9PM

Connor groaned as he awakened in a jail cell, leaning with his back against the wall. “What a shitty headache. Why did he have to hit me in the head twice today!?” His hands and feet were bound and that confounded anklet still was tightly around his ankle, preventing him from using any of his magic.

“Fine, I’m done trying to help him. If he’s going to be this way, I’ll just have to guide his path from afar.” He muttered quietly, rubbing the rope tying his hands together back and forth against the wall to try and break it. “Where's Trixie and Faelan when you need them…,” He grumbled. Just then at the small window to the outside, came a shuffling noise. “The hell is that?” Suddenly a small nose poked through the window of the cell.

“Connor..?” A small familiar voice asked quietly.

“Faelan!” He whispered excitedly. “Oh am I glad to see you. Where is Trixie? She couldn’t of gotten far. I still haven’t repaired the wagon.”

“Oh well… I don’t know where she is, but I’ve been listening to the guards since that tan pony dragged you in here. They’ve been saying that some Princess is coming to see you.”

Connor’s eyes widened. “Then we have to get out of here! You have to find the key for me Faelan.”

Faelan pulled his muzzle out and glanced around before looking back into the cell. “I’ll do what I can Connor. It shouldn’t be too much trouble. The guard here seems a bit lax, like they don’t believe anyone would try to break you out.” Connor grinned at that.

“All the better then! Let the jailbreak commence!” A moment later, Faelan ran out of sight. “Now I just have to continue working on these ropes." The threads on them began to fray from Connor’s constant attention to them. Pausing for a moment as the clip clop of hooves began to approach his cell, Connor sat up straight, smirking as a familiar pony came into view.

“Oh, if it isn’t Josh’s babysitter. Or since your a pony, would it be foalsitter? Nevermind, could you untie these ropes already, they’re starting to chafe,” Connor said as Dawn glared at him from the other side of the cell bars.

“What was your goal, having Trixie attack the town while you lured us away?" Dawn questioned. "You should've known that she wouldn’t have been able to defeat the elements. In the end, Josh didn’t even assist them with taking down Trixie.”

Connor shrugged his shoulders, smirking. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I was just here to train him, but you had to talk him into leaving, so what else could I of done?” Connor scoffed. “If he doesn’t completely learn how to control his untapped potential, then there is no way he’ll be able to defeat the Master when the time comes.”

Dawn shuffled from side to side as she thought for a moment. What if he’s right and he was honestly here to train Josh? He’s been completely honest with everything he’s told us so far so… Why do I feel this uneasiness around him? Shaking her head, Dawn smirked.

“We’ll see what the Princesses decides. Perhaps if they believe your story, they’ll allow you to assist Josh. But from everything they will be learning about you and the dead griffons in the Everfree, I really don’t see that happening.” With that she turned and began to leave the dungeon.

“You’re making a mistake you know. What I’m doing is honestly for the benefit of… And she’s gone.” Cursing to himself, he sighed and began to work on the ropes again.

Faelan paced back and forth just out of the light shed from the lantern hanging outside of the prison. The guard that was standing in front of it hadn't noticed him, but that could change at any moment and Faelan wasn’t too keen on giving him the opportunity. Sidling up against the wall, Faelan got as low to the ground as he could and quietly crept behind the guard into the prison.

“So Princess Luna should be arriving tomorrow with her sister then?” Faelan’s ears perked up slightly.

“Yeah, both Princesses will be here to welcome the dignitaries from Saddle Arabia. I’m just glad that deal with Trixie ended as quickly as it started. I was not happy being a potato…” Faelan continued to sneak past the guards down a couple of steps and through a door in the direction that Connor’s cell was in.

“Yeah, you said it…”

The voices cut off abruptly as the young wolf quietly shut the door behind himself. Faelan hopped down a couple more steps and stopped suddenly. Up ahead he could see a figure approaching. Scanning the room, he could see a table off to the side with a chair pushed up under it. Making a quick dash for the table, Faelan curled up under it only to have a tan pony walk past him shortly after. As soon as the door shut, Faelan quietly padded over to where Connor’s cell should be.

“Hey Connor. Are you there?” The pup peeked between the bars of a few different cells before reaching Connor’s, finding him still at work on the ropes.. “Hey, Connor. I’m here, how do I get you out?” Connor looked up and grinned.

“Hey, glad you got here. Okay so did you see a tan pony pass you on the way here?” Nodding his head slowly, Faelan tilted his head confused.

“What about it?”

Connor rolled his eyes as he moved back and forth. “That pony has the key to this.” Connor motioned to the magic nullification anklet that he wore. “I need you to get it from her otherwise it won't matter if I get the ropes off, because I won't be able to get out of here.”

Faelan frowned, looking over his shoulder before backing away. “Oh, okay. I’ll see what I can do Connor.” Grumbling Connor continued to work at the rope on his wrists as Faelan turned and went back up the corridor.

Ponyville Jail 9:20PM

Dawn finished working on the documents for Connor’s transfer to the Canterlot prison and from there the castle dungeon. “Now we just have to worry about the other Scions.” Walking over to a filing cabinet, Dawn pulled out a folder labeled ‘Classified’. Opening it up, she flipped through a few of the pages. “Drex, Stelma and Darcy are the only other ones we know about. With Connor that makes four… When will the other three show their ugly mugs I wonder…” A shuffling noise caused Dawn’s attention to drift away from her documents as she narrowed her gaze and looked around the office. Not seeing anything, she went back to reading. Hearing the telltale creaking on the door to her temporary office, her eyes narrowed as she put down her work and walked around her desk and out of the room.

Faelan, eyes wide, did his best to calm his breathing as he walked back through the door leading into the dungeons. The keys to Connor’s magic dampener jingled lightly as the young wolf made his way back to the cell.

“Hold there, wolf!”

Faelan’s eyes widened as he bolted down the hall, the clopping of hooves on Cobblestone echoed behind him as he approached Connor’s cell and tossed the keys to Connor.

“Damnit Faelan! I thought wolves were supposed to be stealthy.” Keys in hand, Connor fit the key into the lock and turned it, cursing to himself as he removed the key and tried the next one.

Looking over his shoulder at the quickly approaching mare, Faelan felt his knees start to shake. “Hurry Connor! She’s almost here.”

A click echoed in the dungeon as the magic dampener suddenly unlocked and rolled off of Connor’s ankle. “Hah! That’ll show them, and just in case I may need it again…” Connor stashed the keys and dampener into his robes. Looking up, Dawn had backed Faelan up against the bars of the cell. “Oh, well then. Would you kindly back up a few steps, Dawn? You’re frightening my friend.” Making a cutting motion in front of himself, a ripple opened up right beside Faelan. Reaching through and picking up the pup, Connor pulled him to safety.

“You’re not going to get away Connor,” Dawn growled.

“Oh that's where you’re wrong little earth pony. I already have. The fact that you put me in this cell was just a minor setback.”

“If you have any hope of redeeming yourself, and maybe explaining everything you have planned, you’d stay right where you are!" Dawn exclaimed.

Connor grinned as he raised his arms, stretching. “I think not. You and Josh as well as everyone else on this world have already proven that you don’t trust me. I understand that and can accept it. You all will come after me anyways though and that is perfectly fine with me. In the end it all comes down to whether Josh and Twilight can take out the rest of the Scions with or without my assistance.” Snapping his fingers, Connor muttered a few words under his breath which caused a new ripple opened.

“Give my regards to Josh by the way, he has already made more progress than I expected him to. Princess Luna has done a fine job teaching him Equestrian magic. The other Scions won’t be expecting it’s use from him.” Turning to the ripple, Connor stepped through it, leaving Dawn to stare at the empty cell, dumbfounded.

That Night, Josh’s Dreams.

Josh laid under the tree at the top of the hill in his dreamscape, a lake spread out off in one direction with a lone island and a gazebo situated in the middle of it. Josh gazed at the night sky, twinkling with constellations.

“Nice place you have here. It's really calm.” Josh looked over to see a familiar pony walk over and sat down beside him. “Every time I visit your dreams, you continue to use the same night sky you’re used to,” Luna said, smirking. “I can’t blame you really, even I can see the appeal of these constellations in comparison to the ones in my own night sky.”

Josh smiled, nodding. “I just don’t have your sky memorized yet.” He glanced over at Luna. “Of course the nice thing about yours is that you can change it whenever you want.”

Luna nodded, sighing to herself before glancing over to Josh. “So my sister and I heard of what happened today due to a report from young Twilight. We… I appreciate everything you and Dawn have done. I have received word from the Celestial Guard that you are interested in the way of the polearm, instead of the sword.”

Josh smirked, raising his arms, stretching. “What I’m learning with the sword training that Dawn has me focused on is definitely useful and I believe that having the swordplay knowledge will benefit me in the long run. But I got to thinking.” Josh sat up and glanced over at the Moon Princess. “Since my strengths, magic-wise, center around wind and electricity, a spear would be an amazing weapon because it could be used like a lightning rod to direct the flow of current.”

Luna raised a hoof up to her chin in thought. “You might be right, there. That isn’t such a bad idea,” She sat in thought for a moment before looking wide-eyed over to Josh. "I have the perfect pony to teach you what you want to know." Her gaze narrowed slightly. "But you have to keep practicing your magic too. It's extremely important that you are proficient in both Equestrian and Elven magic."

"Of course, it wouldn't be very smart to just throw away what I've learned in favor of a weapon. I'll keep practicing and learning how to better use my skills." Turning, Josh looked out over the lake in the dreamscape. After a moment, he said, "So, Luna, I have a question..."

"Hmm? What would you like to know?" She asked curiously.

"Well, during the battle with Drex, Darcy used some sort of rune magic to teleport their group away. Have you and Princess Celestia had any luck with tracing where they would of ended up?"

Luna frowned, sighing quietly. "I didn't really want to give out this information so soon, and I was hoping that we'd still have a bit of time but I can only imagine that we have less than two weeks before we should start an assault."

Josh looked at Luna, confused. "What do you mean?"

"We have traced back the portal that Darcy used to its destination. They traveled to a pocket dimension located over the Palace of the Two Sisters in the Everfree Forest. I also have some other news. With how protected the enemy's dimension is, my sister and I will only be able to send you and one other pony in undetected."

Josh stood up, eyes wide. "We have to get going then! I should wake up and start preparing. I need to tell Twilight! Ah hell, she's going to be peeved."

Luna placed a hoof on his side to calm him down. "Settle down Josh, I know you worry about what Twilight Sparkle would say, and I also know that you want to take the fight to the Master, but you need to wait a little longer." Josh's brow furrowed as he crossed his arms over his chest, giving Luna the opportunity to explain. "Celestia will give Twilight the news when she needs to know. Please try to keep it under wraps for now. Celestia and I were supposed to pull you both aside and tell you at once, but I felt you should know right away."

Josh took a deep breath to calm down, nodding. "No, you're right. We have two weeks, you said. That should be plenty of time for what I have planned."

Luna looked at Josh, questioningly. "Well what is it that you have planned?"

Josh grinned and focused on manipulating the dream. A few moments later, a small table appeared with some blueprints. Towards the other side of the table stood a small stand with a black device on it, lightning bolt decals on the sides.

"This is something I've been working on," Josh began to explain. "Twilight has been helping me come up with the blueprints, but the best way to describe it is as a weapon that can fire whatever magic is stored into a gem that has been inserted into the cylinder." Picking up the magic revolver, Josh opened the cylinder and brought it over to Luna, showing her where the gems could be loaded. Josh removed one of the gems and began to fill it with magic. After a moment, he replaced the crystalline round, closed the cylinder, took aim at a far off distance, and pulled back the hammer with his thumb. Grinning at Luna, he turned his attention back to the device and pulled the trigger. A loud crash was heard, like the sound of thunder, as the magic was quickly and violently ejected down the barrel in the form of a bolt of electricity, disappearing into the distance.

Luna sat stunned. The potential that the weapon Josh had just shown her had honestly frightened her. She had never seen a spell so focused come out of a weapon so small. Clearing her throat, Luna shook her head and looked at Josh. Her student was so focused on the blueprints as he seemed to ramble excitedly about different ways he could change the weapon.

"And you said that you had blueprints for something like this?" Luna inquired, visibly shaken.

"Yeah, drawing up blueprints of various things is something that I've been working on when I have nothing else to do. This was just one of many different ideas."

Luna nodded and walked up to the table beside Josh, looking between the different drawings. "I will endorse this project. While my sister is in Ponyville with the delegates from Saddle Arabia today, I would like to ask that you pass the blueprints over to her. I'll see if we can get our top scientists to look at them and possibly expand on the ideas."

Josh nodded, smiling at the Lunar Princess. "I hope that we can just be fast enough so that this Master of theirs doesn't get any stronger..."

Luna nodded in agreement, frowning as she did so.

Golden Oaks Library, Thursday: 6:20 AM

“What do you mean he’s gone!?” Twilight nearly shouted as Dawn relayed what happened the previous night. “Oh sweet Celestia, Josh isn’t going to be happy when he hears this…,” Glancing up towards the stars, she frowned and turned back to Dawn. “Do we have any idea where he could of gone?”

Shaking her head, Dawn sat down on the couch, groaning. “Do you mind waking me when Spike is up, Twilight? I have to send a message to Princess Celestia.” Shutting her eyes, Dawn sighed. “I really should’ve been paying more attention to that sly creature.”

Twilight shook her head and walked over, levitating a pillow and blanket behind her and placed them beside Dawn. “You had no way of knowing that Connor had an ally, well besides Trixie anyway. But she left town.”

Dawn raised her head, eyes sparkling. “That’s it! Twilight Sparkle, you’re a genius! All we have to do is find Trixie and she should be able to lead us to Connor.”

Twilight paused for a moment, thinking over Dawn’s idea. “That wouldn't be a bad idea, if it wasn’t for the fact that she has almost a twelve hour head start and we wouldn’t know where to even begin looking for her.” Dawn laid her head down on the pillow. “We’ll have to think of something…,” Twilight muttered quietly while Dawn turned onto her back and stared up at the ceiling.

“I think we should let him go.” Twilight and Dawn turned their attention to the stairs, only to find Josh mosey on down, half awake. Opening his mouth in a yawn, he scratched the back of his head, looking between the two and catch them staring at him. “What?” Josh asked while Twilight frowned and Dawn blinked, confused.

“But… This is the guy who knows where the enemy base is!" Twilight groaned incredulously.

Josh shook his head. “As much as I want to go after him right away and throw him back in prison, it’s not going to do any good. This is Connor. He’ll just escape again.” Stretching, Josh walked into the kitchen and began to brew some coffee. “Even if we did find out where Connor was, and we did get him to lead us to the enemy base, how do you propose we even go after this 'Master'?” Josh questioned, making air quotes upon mentioning the Master. “As far as I see it, I need more training. The way I am right now, I couldn't take on any of the Scions by myself."

Hearing a high pitched whistle, Josh turned and removed the water off of the stove. Then he poured himself a cup of coffee.

“Even more training?” Twilight asked confused. "Aren't you already pushing yourself to the edge of your ability?"

Josh nodded, turning back to the two, sipping on the coffee while sighing happily. “Yeah, but I have reason to believe that we'll have to go on the offensive soon. And I'd prefer to have the opportunity to attack first rather than play defensive. I can only hope that we'll have as much time as we need in order to prepare,” Josh nodded to himself, lost in thought. "Princess Luna has a couple of ponies coming over tonight to help Dawn with my training, a pony named Whirblewind and her coltfriend."

Dawn grinned sleepily. "Whirble huh? Out of all of the Night Guard, you really can't get much better than Whirble. We used to be drinking buddies. She is one Thestral you do not want to mess with."

Josh raised an eyebrow, taking a sip of his coffee as Twilight poured herself a mug. Sitting down on one of the stools in the kitchen, Josh winced, holding his side as he did so. "Princess Luna informed me that they've been looking into tracing back the teleportation magic that Darcy used to find out where they went. Once they find that out, we could get the drop on them."

Twilight climbed up onto a stool beside Josh, looking at him with a worried expression. "If that’s so, then they could be done any day now. We don't have much time," Her tail flicked in agitation as she stared into her mug, draining the last of the coffee from it and then placing it on the counter.

Placing a hand gently on her back, Josh looked over to her, meeting her gaze with a smile as she turned to him. "Hey, chin up. We will at least have enough time to come up with a plan that will catch them off guard."

Sighing, Twilight shook her head. "Yeah but, there are so many unknowns. We don't know if their base of operations is here in Equestria or somewhere else. We still don't know who the last two potential Scions are, but I can only imagine that they may be more dangerous than the other four. We don't even know what this 'Master' of theirs is. And for some reason I have a feeling that Princess Luna and Princess Celestia have encountered him before."

"If memory serves me right, and mind you it doesn't always," Josh grinned, looking over at Twilight. "You and your friends, as the Elements of Harmony, go into danger quite often with no real plan and so many unknowns." Josh gently ruffled the mare's mane. "Nightmare Moon, Discord, Chrysalis, and King Sombra. I mean heck Twi, that right there is four for four."

Twilight took a deep breath before nodding in agreement. "You know what, you're right. We have to stay positive." Hopping down off of the stool, Twilight placed her mug in the sink and left the room to get her saddlebag. "Josh, I'm going to be out for most of the day. Dawn, don't push him too hard. That burn on his side could still cause him some problems."

Dawn waved a hoof, still trying to fall asleep. "Oh come on Twilight, I'll be fine. I need to get some practice in anyway."

Twilight, saddlebags on her back, looked to Josh, sighing. "If I come home and find you hurt again, I'm going to take you to the hospital and inform them that you cannot leave until you're better." Smiling softly, Twilight walked over to him and looked up. I'll be back before Princess Celestia shows up with the ambassador and his wife, I just have to make sure the stage is properly set."

Josh nodded, glancing over to a sleepy Dawn. "I think I may take the guitar out to the park, let Dawn get some sleep. Seems she's had a rough night."

Twilight looked over to her and nodded. "I better leave a note for Spike then so he knows to take a letter for her when he wakes up." Levitating a quill and notepad out of her saddlebag, Twilight wrote down a quick note for Spike and hung it on the fridge where he would see it. Turning to Josh, Twilight smiled and walked towards the door. "I'll try and stop by the park later then if that’s where you're going to be."

Josh placed a hand on his chin. "Yeah, I'll be there. If it's clear enough, I may do some magic practice as well, but only if there aren't too many curious ponies around. I'll see you later though Twilight, don't work too hard." Josh added with a grin.

Rolling her eyes, Twilight smirked and waved a hoof as she left the library.

Waving back as the door shut, Josh glanced over to Dawn and shook his head. Walking over to a closet beside the door to the basement, he pulled out a blanket and brought it back over, laying it over the tan pony. "Welp, time for me to actually get something done." Heading up to his room, Josh slung the guitar over his shoulder before heading on out towards the park.

As Josh walked through Ponyville on his way to the park, he watched as some of the townsponies had begun to set up their stalls for the day. Spotting Applejack setting up her stand, Josh walked on over and looked through her apples.

"Hey there Applejack, how much for an apple?" Josh asked.

Applejack finished moving a bushel of apples from her cart to the stand before looking up at Josh. "Well, howdy there Josh," she said with a grin. "Eight bits per apple."

Josh raised an eyebrow. "Wow, that seems quite pricey. Well, you have to make a living." Taking a pouch with bits that he had tied to a belt loop on his pants and started to count out the money. Placing the bits on the stall, Applejack blinked, confused.

"Oh consarnit Josh. Has no pony told you how bartering works?"

Josh looked at Applejack, unsure. "I know the idea of bartering, is that normal here?"

Applejack nodded before explaining the concept to Josh.

"Ah, I believe I get it," Josh said grinning. "Four bits then." He smirked.

"Seven bits."

"Five bits!"

"Six bits."

Josh shook his head. "Five bits is as high as I'll go. Take it or leave it."

Applejack looked at Josh, dumbfounded. "Hey now pardner, y'all aint s'posed to make the final offer. That goes to the pony who is doin' the sellin'."

Josh's smirk widened. "You do want my business right? And I know that five bits for one apple is still a profit for you."

Raising a hoof, Applejack adjusted her Stetson. "Well I suppose you're right. That sure was fun though sugarcube. You picked up the game pretty quickly and even caught me off guard. Not many ponies can do that."

Josh chuckled and shook his head, pushing the bits towards Applejack and taking an apple from her. "It was definitely something I'll have to get better at." Applejack nodded and waved to Josh as he took a bite from the apple and waved back, walking off in the direction of the park.

The weather was just perfectly warm as Josh sat on one of the benches in the park and began to tune the guitar. A sudden gust of wind caused Josh to turn his attention away from the guitar and watch as Rainbow Dash landed and hopped up onto the bench beside him.

"Hey there Dash, what's up," Josh greeted the pegasus.

"Oh you know, just being awesome. Planning on playing some sick jams?" Rainbow Dash asked Josh.

Josh shrugged, turning his attention back to the guitar. "Thinking about it, not really sure what to play."

Rainbow nodded, looking around. "It's kind of quiet right now anyway, you probably would want more people around before you play something right?" Rainbow asked, grinning.

Raising an eyebrow, Josh shook his head. "Not necessarily. I just really don't know what to play." Leaning the guitar against the bench, Josh stood up and stretched. "Well, time for plan B," Josh said grinning.

"What's plan B?" Rainbow inquired.

"Well, you should recognize this move." Josh stretched his arms out in front of himself as electricity began to dance between his fingers. Turning his hands, palms up, he looked at the scarring on them from the last time he attempted the ability. "This time I won't be using a thundercloud though." He chuckled dryly.

Rainbow watched with a hint of interest as Josh stretched his hands out to his sides, the electricity build up getting stronger and stronger as he continued. All of a sudden, a green glow encased both of his hands, covering the current and molding it into the all to familiar claws that Josh used against Drex during the assault. After it was stable, Josh cut off the flow of current but continued to hold the electricity in place with his Equestrian magic.

Taking a deep breath, Josh glanced back at Rainbow and grinned, raising a hand up to wave. "Check it out! No more electrical output and the drain on my magic has dropped since I'm not continuously channeling. I'm sure I could keep this up for quite some time without feeling any negative effects."

Rainbow's eyes were wide as she watched Josh. "So um, if you could do this, then why did you need the storm cloud before?"

"The reason I had you get the cloud before was because the amount of magic I had available to me was all but drained. It was really a last ditch effort to hold back Drex as long as possible. And even though I can take in energy using a storm cloud, I really shouldn't." Dropping the spell that held the claws in place caused the electricity to dissipate. Holding up his hands, Josh showed two strangely star shaped scars on his palms to Dash.

"Oh wow, those are cool!" Josh blinked, causing Rainbow to cough and look away. "I mean, dang, I'm sorry."

Josh chuckled and shook his head. "It's fine. I just know that I shouldn't be doing that again." Dash nodded in agreement. "I think I'm going to see what else I can do, using a combination of Equestrian and Elvish magic." Flicking his wrist nonchalantly, three blades of wind flew from his hand, trisecting a branch on a nearby tree.

Rainbow Dash watched Josh for another hour before she had to go do some weatherpony work. Josh continued to practice, weaving his spells together in more and more complex ways. Where the Elvish magic came naturally to him, the Equestrian magic was a bit more difficult to grasp.

Josh continued to focus on practicing what he had learned, manipulating the Elven and Equestrian magic together, trying to form different energy weapons, similar to his claws. Anything that extended more than a foot from his arm, like a magical construct of a sword, just became too draining, leaving his breath ragged.

"I see you're hard at work. That's good. You'll need all the practice you can get." Dawn said aloud, breaking Josh's concentration.

"Oh hey Dawn, I was just testing other ways to use my magic but I believe I may be at the end of my rope for today."

Dawn nodded to Josh before looking around the park. "I see, I apologize for not being able to assist you more today, I had plans but those seemed to have fallen apart because of the stunt your 'friend' pulled last night."

Josh sighed, running a hand through his hair. "It's not your fault. I just wish I knew Connor's true motive. It almost seems like he's neutral in the conflict, and at the same time he pulls off his own plans like what he did yesterday. I wish I knew why he does what he does..." Josh shook his head, frowning. "Were you able to get Spike to send your letter?"

Dawn nodded, patting the ground beside her with a hoof. "Come sit down, you've probably been standing all afternoon practicing. I'm amazed you didn't get tired sooner." She watched as Josh finally relented and walked over, sitting down. "Spike woke up shortly after you left. I had him take my letter before going to sleep."

"Oh, well that’s good. The Princess should be here tonight and we can start planning for the assault of The Master's realm."

Dawn nodded in agreement. "I met Twilight on the way over here and she wanted me to ask you if you could assist her with her final preparations for the delegate's entertainment."

Josh shrugged. "I don't see why not." Standing up, Josh stretched and popped his back. Walking over to the bench, he picked up the guitar he had meant to play but hadn't got around to it. "Where is the event going to be?"

Dawn stood up and pointed towards the far end of Ponyville. "It's not too far. I'll go with you. I have some things I want to prepare for the Princess before she arrives anyway. You're going to be getting the condensed version of your training starting tomorrow since you have so much to learn between now and the Assault."

"Yeah, our Thestral friend should be arriving tonight with the Princess right?"

Dawn shook her head. "No, Whirble sent a letter while you were out training to let us know that she will show up a bit later than expected. She has the rest of her night shift to finish before she will be heading here. She had told a fellow night guard that she would cover their shift."

Josh nodded in understanding as the two began the trek through Ponyville. "Well, I'm just glad that everything seems to be going smoothly today. With how my luck usually is, I'd expect something crazy to happen."

Dawn didn't respond as she stopped and pointed to a wooden stage that some ponies were setting up with two of bleachers flanking it and what looked like a royal viewing box on the far end. "Twilight should be over there, finalizing the preparations. I'm going to go to the Library and prepare a place for Whirblewind to stay when she arrives." Josh raised an eyebrow. "I've already spoken with Twilight about it, she'll be sharing a room with me."

"Ah, alright." Josh said. "Well then, I'll see you later tonight Dawn." Waving a hoof, Dawn turned and walked to the library, leaving Josh to continue his walk on over to the stage.

Trixie's Wagon, 6PM

Connor stepped back from the fixed tire and smirked to himself. "Have you ever seen such a well repaired tire?" He grinned, crossing his arms.

"I've never seen a tire like this before until you showed up." Faelan replied, sitting down.

Frowning, Connor glanced down at the young wolf. "So, were you able to find any trace of your parents in this part of the Everfree?" Connor asked curiously. Shaking his head, Faelan sighed, laying down on his paws. "A shame, sorry to hear that. We'll keep looking, little buddy." Connor waited a moment but Faelan didn't reply. Shrugging, Connor walked into the wagon, only to have Trixie latch onto his waist, tears streaming down her face.

"You were right, Connor." She sobbed. "You were right. Trixie's amulet was cursed."

Blinking in confusion, Connor leaned down and wrapped the distraught magician in a hug, patting her on the back. "There, there, all you have to do now is make amends. That won't be too hard, right?"

Trixie sniffed and backed away a step, looking up at him. "Trixie doesn't believe you have any room to talk." Connor chuckled and scratched the back of his head. "If anything, you've made an even bigger mess of your situation." Trixie remarked, prodding the wooden floorboards of the wagon with a hoof.

"Oh come on, we both made mistakes over the last day, some bigger than others, but we can still come out stronger." Connor said, grinning. Trixie glared up at Connor, turning away with a huff. "Let's stay out of sight for now, we don't need to stir up anymore unnecessary trouble." Connor continued.

"No, I think I'm going to go back to Ponyville later. Trixie feels the need to apologize for what she's done." Trixie walked over and picked up her wizard's hat from where she had thrown it on her bed. "It's something that I need to do." She muttered quietly.

Connor watched her silently before groaning and sitting down. "Fine, I'll stay here with Faelan and wait for you. Just be sure that you don't lead them back here when you return. They're extremely insistent that we're on the same side, and even though we are, you do not want to be associated with me." Connor looked up, meeting Trixie's eyes. The Azure Unicorn frowned at him, confused. Shaking his head, Connor raised a hand, "Just leave it at that for now." Smiling at Trixie, he nodded. "Just be safe okay? And be wary of Josh, he's a good kid but what happened yesterday really killed the little bit of trust that had for me." Connor chuckled to himself quietly.

Trixie's ears folded back. "I'm sorry Connor, I really had no control over what I was doing. The amulet completely blocked out my mind."

Connor grinned at Trixie, shaking his head. "Don't apologize. Save that for Twilight Sparkle and everyone else in Ponyville." Digging through his robes, Connor withdrew a flask and took a drink, "You probably should be going soon. It's not like we're getting any younger." Trixie nodded in agreement, throwing her cape on as she turned and walked out of the wagon.

The Stage, 7:00 PM

Josh greeted Princess Celestia as she arrived with the delegates from Saddle Arabia. They gave him a curious look, but beyond that, they carried an air of nobility. "I hope your trip was easy Princess Celestia." Josh said, bowing slightly.

Princess Celestia raised an eyebrow. "Why of course, young Josh, it was a smooth flight. The delegates and myself are looking forward to the performance." Leaning closer, "How's Fluttershy taking everything?" She asked quietly. Pointing to Fluttershy beside the stage, they both could see her shaking as Spike patted her back while watching Twilight prepare. The animals had all surrounded her and were jumping up and down, chattering excitedly.

"She's doing as well as you'd expect." He whispered back. Standing straight, Josh bowed once again and held out an arm, gesturing towards the box where Princess Celestia and the delegates could watch the show. "If you would follow me, I will lead you to your seats." Josh turned and began walking over to the box with Princess Celestia and the delegates following shortly behind.

The guests and Princess conversed as the festivities were being prepared. And soon it was time for Twilight to begin her event. Walking up onto the stage with a parade of woodland animals following her, she bowed first to Princess Celestia and then to the delegates. Turning around she looked to both stands flanking the stage and waved a greeting to the townsponies who had decided to show up.

"Thank you all for coming tonight," Twilight began, beaming happily, though underneath Josh could see how tired she was. "I will start off tonight's festivities with Fluttershy's amazing animals!" Bowing once more as applause filled the air, Twilight's horn lit as she slowly took each critter one by one, and lifted them into the air.

Soon the air was filled with the small woodland creatures flying in circles and doing figure eights. Josh laughed at one point when they looked like they were doing synchronized swimming while in the air, eliciting oohs and ahs from the guests and attendees. After the animals were slowly lowered to the stage, Twilight and the animals bowed as one. As applause filled the air once more, fireworks lit up the sky.

Raising an eyebrow, Josh gawked up at the fireworks. Then he looked back and met Twilight's eyes. Confusion was etched on her face as she tried to find the source of the fireworks. A spark of magic shot up from the far end of the stage and launched into the air. High in the sky, the spark blew up in a brilliant explosion of light.

Walking over to the edge of the stage, Twilight peeked down only to come face to face with Trixie. Going wide-eyed, Twilight backed up a step. "Trixie? What are you doing here?" She asked, walking off of the stage.

Levitating her hat back over her horn, Trixie looked down and prodded the dirt with a hoof. "It's the least I could do." Gazing back up to Twilight, she sighed. "I treated you and your friends so horribly when I was wearing that Alicorn Amulet." She shook her head at the memory. "I just couldn't control myself. You can forgive me, can't you..?" She asked, looking up at Twilight with hope in her eyes.

Twilight stared at Trixie for a moment, caught off guard by the mare's apology. "Hmm... sure." She said finally, smiling. Josh could be heard behind her as he introduced the next performer onto the stage.

"Oh.. Good." Trixie said quietly with a look of relief.

Twilight coughed into her hoof, as she looked at Trixie. "We're going to have to have a talk about yesterday though."

Trixie blinked before sighed again, nodding in agreement. "Yes, we really should. Trixie would like to get a few things straightened out." Trixie murmured quietly.

Twilight glanced at the stage, and watched for a moment as Octavia began to play her cello. "You don't plan to leave in the middle of the night, do you?" Twilight asked, turning her attention back to Trixie and raising an eyebrow.

Trixie shook her head. "No. Trixie has... I have some things that I need to get out in the open." A moment of silence covered the two as Twilight watched at Trixie, lost in thought.

"And that was Octavia Melody playing one of her original pieces of work," Josh announced from the stage, getting the attention of both mares. "Next up, we will be having...," Josh shook his head. "DJ P0n3 joining Octavia for a duet..?" Josh peered at Octavia, confused. The mare shrugged. Running a hand through his hair, Josh continued, "Give a round of applause for these two mares!" The ponies in attendance stomped as Vinyl carried her turntable up onto the stage and took a spot beside Octavia.

Trixie stared at Josh as he walked down the stairs and joined the two mares.

“Well, if this DJ is as good as the audience makes her out to be, I may have an idea for a project." Josh said more to himself as he sat down beside Twilight, who then leaned against him. Looking at Twilight with a raised eyebrow, he looked over to Trixie who had raised a hoof and had her mouth open as she tried to put together words.

"Hey Josh, meet Trixie," Twilight said happily as she smiled up to him.

Raising an eyebrow, he looked over to the magician. "Trixie, as in enslaving Ponyville, ally of Connor, Trixie?" Twilight nodded, causing Josh to cover his face with his palm. "And let me guess, you two have made peace." Once again Twilight nodded, causing Josh to groan. "No, I'm not going to ask anymore." He looked from Twilight over to Trixie and narrowed his eyes. "We're going to have a talk though."

Trixie's eyes widened as she took a step back and cowered a little.

"Oh come on Josh, calm down," Twilight muttered, prodding his side with a hoof. "Turn off those sparks too." She said, looking up at him with a frown.

Groaning, Josh raised his hands in surrender. "Fine, fine, sorry." He turned back to Trixie. "I'm sorry... I'll try not to be so hasty in judging you." Trixie continued to stare at Josh, not saying a word. Blinking, Josh glanced to Twilight. "Do I have something on my face?"

Twilight face-hooved and coughed, getting Trixie's attention. "Is something wrong Trixie?" Twilight asked.

Before Twilight could continue, Trixie took a step forward. "Are you two… an item?" She questioned, curiously.

Josh's eyes widened, feeling Twilight moved away from him as he glanced to her, only to find her blushing brightly.

"N... No! Nothing like that." Twilight stammered, biting her lip, as she looked away from Josh.

Trixie's eyes widened. "Hah! You cannot fool the Great and Powerful Trixie! Trixie sees your adoration, though as to why you would be attracted to this hairless ape..." Josh stared at Trixie, in shock at what she called him. "To each their own, Trixie supposes. Each mare has her own interests."

"Hairless ape?" Josh asked, confused, not sure if he should be offended.

Blushing up a storm, Twilight stood up and took a step away. "I.. I have to prepare for the next performance,” Taking a deep breath, she shook her head before turning to Josh, smiling. "Do you mind keeping Trixie company for now?"

Josh's brow furrowed, still a bit confused by the most recent exchange, his mind a bit conflicted. A few moments later, Trixie prodded his knee with her magic.

"You know it's rude to ignore a lady,” Trixie grumbled.

Josh looked at Trixie, only to cast his eyes around the area. "Wait, where did Twilight go?"

Trixie rolled her eyes, pointing to the stage as Twilight introduced Pinkie Pie, who was, to Josh's growing confusion, preparing to play six instruments at once. "So, you're the 'friend' of Connor's then?" Trixie asked Josh after a moment.

"Friend? Hah! As if,” Josh couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of that question. "He's done nothing but make my life a pain since I met him and brought me to this world."

Trixie frowned. "But Trixie believes there may be at least a little good in what he's done, if it brought you and Twilight together. And it definitely seems to Trixie like Sparkle has feelings for you."

Josh shook his head and chuckled. "There's no way..."

Trixie held up a hoof interrupting Josh, her eyes turned back to the stage for a moment as she watched Twilight walk back towards them.

"Why are all stallions this blind…,” Trixie muttered to herself. She waited until Twilight was close enough to hear before continuing, "It's obvious to Trixie that Twilight likes you and Trixie has just met you." Raising her nose into the air, Trixie turned and walked back as Twilight arrived.

Curious as to what their exchange could have been about, Twilight looked to Josh who was staring at the spot where Trixie had previously occupied. "What happened here?" Twilight asked, concerned.

"Hmmph! Trixie was just educating this stallion on the obvious is all,” Trixie scoffed.

Josh groaned, running a hand through his hair, his thoughts conflicted. "I need to... talk to the Princess," Josh said after a moment before standing up and walking toward the royal viewing box.

"Wait, Josh. What's going on?" Twilight asked worriedly.

Glancing back, Josh gave her a small smile. "Don't worry." He chuckled dryly. "I'll be right back."

Twilight watched him walk away before looking at Trixie with a steely gaze. "What did you tell him?" She asked firmly.

Trixie tilted her head, her ears laying back as she placed a hoof to her chest. "Moi? Trixie just told him that you have feelings for him."

Twilight's eyes widened, as she sat down and stared at Trixie, a blush returning to her face. "W..Why? Everything was going fine."

Trixie rolled her eyes. "Oh come on, how long were you going to go without telling him? It's obvious to Trixie that this 'Josh' has no idea what your intentions are." Trixie took a step closer to Twilight. "How long ago did you start developing feelings?"

Twilight raised a hoof off of the ground, her ears folded back as she stammered, "W...what? You suddenly show up after yesterday, apologize for what you did and now feel like you can give out relationship advice!?"

Trixie's shoulders slumped. "Trixie was just trying to help," she sighed.

Twilight huffed, glancing toward the viewing box, watching as Josh laughed with Celestia and the delegates. Shaking her head, Twilight blushed and looked back at Trixie. "Be that as it may, I would appreciate it if you tried to help a little less." Coughing into her hoof, Twilight turned back to Trixie, "I still have some things to do tonight before the event is finished. If you would like to continue with the fireworks, that would be appreciated."

Trixie's ears perked up as she smiled at Twilight.

Up at the Royal Viewing Box

Josh stood dumbly as he gaped at Princess Celestia and the delegates, Haakim and Amira, while smiling awkwardly. "Wait, what…?"

Princess Celestia smiled, nodding. "I say you give it a shot." The princess suggested, her smile becoming slightly wider.

"B... but we're not even the same species!" Josh almost shouted, flabbergasted.

"A mare does not choose who she wants to be with on a whim," The Amira stated matter-of-factly.

Haakim nodded in agreement with his wife. "Race, species, color, it does not matter. In the end what matters is that you follow your heart."

Amira smiled kindly. "How do you feel about this mare?" She inquired.

Josh spread his arms wide, unsure what to say before he sighed. "I mean... she's an amazing friend. I can see that she cares for me. I just didn't realize how much." Josh crossed his left arm over his chest while using his right hand to rub the bridge of his nose.

Princess Celestia laughed softly, placing a hoof on Josh's shoulder. "I believe you have some things you need to think about. Just be sure you're kind to young Twilight Sparkle when you let her know how you feel about the two of you."

Josh gazed up at the Princess, nodding to her. "Thank you." Josh turned to the delegates as well. "All of you. I guess I do have some things to think about. Enjoy the rest of your evening. The next event should be starting soon." Josh cleared his throat before walking away.

"Josh." Amira said, catching his attention as he looked back at her and her husband. "If what is truly holding your feelings back is your difference in species, remember these words. Your eyes won't see a flaw, as long as your heart loves her heart." Haakim nodded in agreement with his wife as she pressed her side against his.

Looking towards the ground for a moment, Josh turned his attention back to the three once more. "Thank you all again. Enjoy the rest of your night." With a wave he walked down the steps and out of sight.

"What an interesting creature. What race did you say he is?" Haakim asked curiously to Celestia.

"Josh is a Human at heart, although due to our world's magic, his body was transformed into what he calls Elvish," Princess Celestia explained.

Haakim nodded, mouthing the strange word.

"I just hope everything goes well for him," Amira stated, smiling while eyeing her husband. "He's like a young colt with his first crush."

Haakim blushed, looking away while rubbing his chin with a hoof, eliciting a laugh from both Celestia and Amira.

Golden Oaks Library

Josh walked into the library and looked around. There was a single light on under the door to the basement, hinting that Dawn was still preparing for Whirblewind. Walking into the kitchen and over to the fridge, Josh opened it and stared at the contents before shutting it and walking to the front room.

"What am I going to do, heh," Josh sighed. Collapsing onto the couch, he covered his face with his hand.

"Well, what do you want to do?" Came an unfamiliar feminine voice to his right.

"The hell?" Josh opened his eyes and scanned around the room. When he couldn't find anyone, he sat up and placed a hand on his shirt where his burn was. The pain from it had diminished a bit, but it was still giving him problems. "Must be going batshit too."

"That's offensive, you know?" The voice came from his left this time.

Jumping to his feet, electricity crackled from his fingers as he peered around the room. "Where are you?" Josh demanded in annoyance.

"Ugh, why do they never look up." This time the voice came from directly behind him. Spinning around quickly, Josh looked up to see a purple maned grey pony mare hanging from the rafters, giggling at him. Her leathery wings were wrapped around her torso as she held herself in place with just her tail. "Hey there, you're quite the tall one, aren't you?" She grinned, lowering herself until she was face to face with Josh.

Clearing his throat, Josh stared into the mare's slitted teal eyes for a moment before nodding. "You must be Whirblewind?"

Nodding, she flipped rightside up, letting go of the support beam and dropping to the floor. "Yep! That would be me," Whirblewind replied. As her mane settled, she took a step back and placed a hoof to her chin as she inspected Josh. "Hmm... Princess Luna told me you want to use a spear." Slowly walking around him, she prodded Josh's legs with her hoof.

"What are you doing?" Josh asked, watching the mare.

"Hmm? Oh not much, just making sure you'll be able to take on the skills that have been passed down to me," Nodding to herself, Whirble walked over to the front door where a spear rested beside it. She wrapped her tail around the spear. Opening the door, she looked over to Josh and grinned, "Come on, I'll go ahead and show you some things."

Josh picked up his gun blueprint from the desk before following the thestral. As he walked behind her, he got a good look at her mane and tail. "Well I honestly never expected to see a pony with drill hair." Whirble glanced back, grinning. "Weren't you supposed to be here with your coltfriend?" Whirble's grin evaporated as she turned and continued walking. Jogging to catch up, Josh frowned. "I'm sorry if I said something wrong."

Whirble shook her head, "No, nothing like that. He just wasn't interested in coming out here with me." Her grin returned as she turned back to Josh. "But that's fine with me! I get you all to myself. Do you have any idea how popular you've gotten in Canterlot since the attack? Apparently the mages at the university are trying to replicate that spell you used where you gave yourself lightning claws! When they heard that there are other types of magic, they've been wanting to send ponies out here to Ponyville. Thankfully, the Princess has been denying them. Almost everypony has heard how you evaded the reporters."

Josh blinked as he listened to her continue to ramble. If she had been any bouncier, he would of thought that she was related to Pinkie Pie. "Hey Whirblewind."

"Just Whirble is fine," She hummed.

"Well, Whirble, do you think we can stop by the event grounds over there real fast? I just have something I need to give to the Princess before she leaves." He pointed across town to the festivities that were still happening.

"Oh! Of course." Flipping her spear into the air, it came crashing down and lodging into the ground. Whirble then hopped up on to the end of it and balanced there. "I'll wait for you here!" She chirped happily.

Shaking his head, Josh laughed lightly at her silliness as he jogged over to the event grounds. Upon approaching it, he noticed that the festivities were winding down and Princess Celestia and the delegates were preparing to leave. As Josh caught up to the Princess, she turned and looked at him curiously.

"What has you in such a rush, Josh? What do you have there?" She asked curiously as Josh handed over the gun's blueprint to her, holding his side as his burn flared up from the running.

"Y... you're sister told me to give that to you when you while you were here tonight and I almost forgot," Josh gasped, clutching at his side.

Celestia unrolled the blueprint and examined it, her eyes widening. "This...," She paused and rolled it back up. "I'll have to talk to my sister about this, but you can be sure you'll have a response about this the next time Luna approaches you."

Josh nodded in understanding. A purple glow suddenly enveloped his side for a moment as the burn feeling faded. Looking towards the stage, Josh watched as Twilight approached him with Trixie following her.

"Are you alright? I saw you holding your side. The burn didn't blister did it?" Twilight began to lift the side of Josh's shirt, only to have him go wide-eyed and pull it down.

"I-I'm fine!" He stammered, blushing.

Twilight blinked and looked at Josh, only to go wide-eyed and look away, blushing as well.

"Oh this must be the filly he was telling us about," Amira commented, smiling peacefully. Josh could feel his face burn as she regarded him and Twilight. "I wish you two the best." She winked at Twilight and followed her husband into the sky carriage.

Princess Celestia peered between the two, lost in thought for a moment before nodding to herself, "I'll be looking forward to an update on any information you can get from her." She finally glanced at Trixie who shied away, staring at the ground. "Take care young Twilight Sparkle and Josh." Turning, she climbed into the sky carriage with the two delegates. A moment later it, took to the skies and flew back to Canterlot.

The three stood in silence for a minute before Josh coughed into his fist, "I'm a... I have something I have to do." Turning, he began to walk away, only to feel a tug on his sleeve. Looking back, he made eye contact with Twilight as she stared at him worriedly. Offering her a smile, he nodded, "We'll talk. I just need some time. Please understand Twi."

Folding her ears back, Twilight let Josh's sleeve go. "I'll be looking forward to it," She said finally, returning his smile as he waved and walked off back to Whirblewind.

"Trixie thinks Twilight Sparkle has a strange taste in stallions," Trixie remarked.

Twilight rolled her eyes and proceeded to walk back to the library. "Says the pony who likes older stallions," Twilight retorted, smirking.

Following Twilight, Trixie huffed, "Trixie does not like older stallions, whatever gave you that idea?"

"Well, you were traveling with Connor for so long, I can only suspect that after that long you would feel close to him," Twilight concluded, her smirk increasing as she continued. "How long were you traveling with him anyways? It would have had to have been at least two months, maybe longer."

Trixie huffed again as they reached the library. "Trixie does not have feelings for Connor. Trixie admits that he was paramount in Trixie's survival, but that does not mean that Trixie likes him the way that you like Josh." Trixie smiled in triumph as Twilight blushed and walked over and sat down on the couch in the living room.

"So, Trixie." Twilight cleared her throat, trying to change the subject. "Shall we begin?" Levitating a notepad and quill to herself.

Near the Everfree

"So how long have you been up? I'm assuming that since you're with the lunar guard that you're more nocturnal?" Josh curiously asked Whirblewind.

The Thestral nodded as she surveyed the area. "I've been up for about five or six hours. I had to cover a night shift for a fellow lunar guard before flying here from Canterlot." Whirble prodded the ground with a hoof before nodding. "This spot should work." Turning to Josh, she grinned and threw her spear into the air towards him. Gazing up, Josh watched as the spear flew through the air, spinning end over end before aiming at Josh tip first and shooting towards him. "Catch it, Josh! You have crazy magic, use it." Josh's eyes widened. He leapt to the side as the spear shot past him.

Flicking her tail back, the spear turned around in mid-air and shot towards him once more. Glaring at the spear, lightning flickered between Josh's fingers as he raised his right hand and held it palm first towards the weapon. Whirblewind stared at Josh curiously, she had been using her pegasi magic to control the air around the spear, guiding it to go where she wanted it to.

The electricity finally arced from Josh's hand and came in contact with the spear, locking it in place mid-air as it seemed to fight against Whirble's grip. Making his hand into a fist, Josh gripped with the electricity and pulled the weapon seamlessly out of the air-hold and over to himself. Once the weapon was in his hands, he grinned and spun it around himself before pointing it towards Whirble.

The thestral looked to Josh with a smile, nodding happily. "Not exactly what I had planned, but it definitely worked!" She happily acknowledged him.

"How were you even controlling it through the air like that?" Josh asked, walking over to Whirblewind and handing over the spear to her.

Whirble smirked and took the spear back from Josh with her tail. "Pegasi magic," She said simply. "Princess Luna informed me that your magic was similar to a pegasi's, but your control was like a unicorn's. Unlike you, I cannot set my hooves alight with electricity. I have to use what's already around myself and just give it a nudge. My spear is actually enchanted with a wind enchant, so I can nudge it around just like I can with the air around us."

"So you wouldn't be able to do what you did with the spear with a regular weapon, or another spear that does not have that enchant?" Josh asked curiously.

Whirble shook her head. "No, just this specific spear or any other weapon with a similar enchantment," Whirble answered matter-of-factly.

Josh nodded his understanding and watched as Whirble spun her spear through the air, moving with it in almost a hypnotizing dance.

"As lancers, or spear users, we utilize our positioning and combinations to maximize our damage." She began to demonstrate hoof to hoof combat in sync with her spear as it floated beside her, making different thrusting and slicing motions against her invisible enemies.

"You never want to lose sight of where your enemy is," She calmly advised Josh as she continued. "Think of the circular path of each movement. While using a spear or lance, every movement is in a curve or circle that has no ending or beginning. Let everything flow together seamlessly." Silence overtook them both as Josh watched Whirblewind in awe. The mare's eyes were shut as an air of calm had surrounded her.

Josh held a hand up to his mouth as he yawned, trying to silence himself as to not interrupt Whirblewind. Whirble smiled to herself, spinning her spear in mid air and thrusting it into the ground. "I think that'll be all for tonight," She said softly as she looked to Josh. "We'll have to get you accustomed to staying up later. Or I suppose I could take a nap and try to wake up when you do so we can continue in the morning."

"Yeah, I'm sorry Whirble," Josh muttered. "I've had an interesting couple of days and I'm just worn out. It's definitely been a pleasure to meet you."

Whirble grinned as she walked over to Josh and pressed her side against him. "Aww, you're not falling for your new teacher are you?" She bumped him with her hip as she walked past him.

Stammering, Josh walked to catch up with her, "N-no. I already have my eyes set on someone."

Whirblewind glanced back to Josh mischievously. "Oh? Who's the lucky mare?" She then gasped playfully. "Oh! It's a stallion isn't it." She wiggled her eyebrows cheekily.

"No, it's a mare. She's actually the owner of the library we're living in."

Whirblewind's eyes widened as she stopped in her tracks. "Wait, you have the hots for the Element of Magic, Twilight Sparkle?" Josh looked away, blushing. "Aww, that's cute. It's okay, aunty Whirble will be cheering for you." She began to hum a small tune. "Does she know?" She asked curiously.

Josh nodded, scratching the back of his head. "She's actually the one who um... liked me first. I only just learned today. Though now that I think of it, she's probably had feelings for me for a bit." Josh groaned and gazed up into the night sky. "It's a strange situation. Where I come from, my race is the only sapient one. So having these feelings for some... pony... is strange."

"Oooh... I see. That is a bit of a situation," Whirble agreed. The two walked in silence for a bit longer before Whirblewind broke the silence once more. "I say you should give it a shot." Josh looked over to the thestral who smiled warmly at him. "You never know unless you try, Josh. Don't let what she looks like decide if you can fall for her or not."

"I know," Josh murmured quietly. "It's just going to take a little bit to sink in."

Whirblewind stopped in front of Josh and turned around, flapping her wings as she hovered in front of his face. Placing her hooves on his shoulders she looked him in the eyes. The slits of her pupils became more intense as she stared.

"Um, Whirble...?"

"Shhh, one moment Josh," She muttered quietly, as if searching. Another moment passed before she released him and dropped to the ground. She smiled up at him. "I can see why she would like you," She giggled to herself. "You've still got a kind heart even though your eyes say you've sacrificed so much to get where you are. Normally that would have hardened the softest of hearts." Patting his leg with one of her hooves, her smile grew as she looked up at him. "Don't worry. Once I'm through teaching you and you're ready to move to the next step, you'll be able to protect the ones you care about with no issue," She said, nodding, and then walked towards the library once more.

Josh stared after the strange mare before jogging to catch up. Running past her, Josh reached the door first and held it open for her. Nodding her thanks, they both turned their attention to Twilight and Trixie who were sitting down and talking in the front room. His eyes met Twilight's. They both blushed and glanced away suddenly. Whirblewind noticed the exchange and laughed lightly to herself, muttering something about 'Young love'.

"Everything go well?" Twilight asked as she shut her notebook and placed her quill aside.

"Yeah, Whirblewind was just giving me a preliminary lesson. I think I have what it takes." Josh said, smirking.

Rolling her eyes, Whirblewind scoffed, "That's putting it lightly. I've trained other ponies in this art, and you were the only one able to grab my spear out of the air."

Josh scratched the back of his head. "You know, I'm not one hundred percent sure how I pulled that off. I just wove my electricity around your weapon and then willed it over to me. It's something I'll have to play with If I did what I think I did then I may be able to create my own shield soon. A really, really dangerous shield." Twilight tilted her head curiously. "I'll tell you more about it later Twilight. Who knows, you may be able to help me with the science of how it's done."

Upon hearing the word 'science', Twilight's eyes sparkled and she clapped her hooves together. "Oh! I can't wait to see, it sounds exciting."

Josh chuckled to himself.

"Well, I don't know about you ponies, but if I want to be up early enough to help Josh with his real training, I should go take a nap. It was nice to meet you, Twilight." Whirble said, glancing to Josh and winking. She left the room and went to the basement.

Trixie cleared her throat and watched Josh cautiously. "Is it true that you beat Connor, twice?" She asked, a bit shocked.

Josh shrugged and walked over, sitting on the couch beside Twilight. "The first time I fought him, I beat him on my own, but only because I confused him. The second time I had Dawn capture him while I kept him sidetracked."

Trixie nodded, a worried look covering her face. "Connor was the strongest non-alicorn that Trixie has met. If you were able to beat him, then you're way out of Trixie's league," she sighed dejectedly.

Josh grinned cheekily. "Connor knows more about magic than I do. I just know a bit more about strategy than he does," Josh said, grinning. Raising the side of his shirt, he showed Trixie the burn that was covered in gauze. "I can't say I got away uninjured the second time." He lowered his shirt when he caught Twilight staring at the burn.

"I should change the gauze before bed...," Twilight offered, mumbling a bit.

Josh blinked, blushing. "O...okay," he replied quietly.

Trixie coughed, breaking the two out of their reverie. "Can you two love ponies go elsewhere? Trixie would like to sleep and Twilight already offered to let Trixie sleep on the couch that you two are hogging." Twilight and Josh's faces darkened as they nodded and stood up together, causing Trixie to giggle softly. "You two are hopeless."

Scrambling up the stairs, the two made their way to Josh's room where Josh sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Alright, shirt up," Twilight commanded, only to blush a moment later. Lifting his shirt off, Josh tossed it over beside the door. "Okay, let's take a look at this," she muttered softly, levitating fresh gauze and antiseptic over to herself and then removing the used gauze from Josh's side.

Josh winced as the tape holding the gauze in place came off.

"Shh... I've got you,” Twilight softly reassured him while applying the antiseptic gently and taping new gauze to his side. "There, all better." She smiled, admiring her work. Clearing her throat, she looked around and then hopped off the bed. "I uh, should let you go to sleep," She stammered as she began to turn and walk out of the room.

"Twilight, wait,” Josh blurted out, hopping off of the bed and walking towards her. Glancing over her shoulder, her eyes widened as Josh got down on one knee and held his arms open. "Going to leave without a hug?" He asked smugly, causing Twilight to laugh.

"I was hoping you'd offer," she said as she trotted into his arms and wrapped her hooves around his neck, nuzzling his cheek with hers. They held each other for a couple minutes in silence before Josh took a deep breath and pulled away, holding Twilight at arm's length. He stared into her eyes as she shuffled a bit, slowly becoming worried, only to have Josh smile at her and wipe away her worries. Smiling back they hugged briefly once more.

"Twilight... would you…,” he choked up, anxious as to what her response would be.

Twilight pulled back and kissed his cheek, removing all worries from him. "Would I what..?" She asked, blushing and grinning at once.

"Would you be my marefriend? I don't have any experience outside of my species, but I would love to give it a shot, if you would have me."

Twilight smiled happily, the corners of her eyes becoming wet as she nodded. "Of course I will Josh." She kissed him once more on the cheek before backing up, wiping her eyes with her hoof. "We," she cleared her throat. "We need to get some sleep. I'll see you in the morning okay...?"

Josh's heart was going a million miles a minute as he nodded to her. "Goodnight Twilight Sparkle, sleep well."

Twilight laughed softly, nodding, rubbing her eyes once more. "Goodnight Josh." Walking out of the room, she shut the door behind herself.

From inside the room, Josh could hear her 'squee' happily as she pranced back to her room.

Dark Monastery

Darcy watched as Drex and Stelma had changed since they were given the food from Slough and Aqua. Thankfully, unlike the other two, Darcy always made sure to scan her food with her magic before eating it. Upon finding some strange element in the dish, she had discarded her portion without eating any of it.

After they had returned from Drex rescuing herself and Stelma, the Master had pulled her aside and questioned her on her failure at retrieving the crystal heart. She had thought it rather odd when the two elementals were all too quick on wanting to make them a welcome back dinner. Whatever was in it seemed to have manipulated their cognitive thought processes. Darcy crossed her arms in thought as she sat at a desk her in room.

"What are you planning, Master... and why is there an elven on Equestria? Why is Connor's student an elf... I was supposed to be the last one, the Master saved me from the same fate that everyone else had fallen upon. Fighting for him was supposed to be my way of paying him back for saving me... but after what Slough and Aqua have done to Drex and Stelma I can only assume that he was the one who ordered it." Standing up, Darcy walked over to her window and peered out it. The walls of the pocket dimension shimmered, hiding the Scions and their Master from the ponies outside the bubble.

Turning back to her desk, she stared at a sheet of paper that had the most recent response from Connor on it. "He's really not siding with the enemy is he…? If anything, we look more like the villains here." Frowning, Darcy sat back down and began writing a response.

Connor,

When Drex, Stelma and myself returned from Canterlot, the Master was furious. Threatening to kill each of us then and there if it wasn't for the fact that we could still be of some use to him. That night, Slough and Aqua put something in our food, though I didn't eat any of it. Drex and Stelma have not been the same since. They have slowly become more and more distant from the rest of us. Their eyes seem hollow and I refuse to peek inside of their minds to see what they're thinking. I can only imagine I'd be in the same predicament if not for the fact that I didn't touch any of the food. I believe that the two elementals are suspicious that I've not succumbed to the same ailment that has afflicted Stelma and Drex. Please respond soon, I know you've left the Scions, but I still consider you a friend, if not family.

Darcy.

Author's Notes:

Hey everyone, I believe I'm back in the swing of things. I wrote the majority of this chapter (7k words) in the last three days and I really hope you enjoy it. ^^ My profile page will be updated (if it hasn't been already) with a couple pics of our new friend who has joined our group. What do you guys think of Whirblewind? I've had art for her since before I started writing my fic, I just wasn't sure how I wanted to add her in and I really hope I did an alright job. I have a new editor! Severith has done a great job helping me and I hope he continues to be awesome, this chapter would not of been possible without him! Take care everyone and thanks again for enjoying my writing. I don't deserve your support ^^;...

-Kyllier