"Wake up please."

Twilight Sparkle groaned as she rolled over under the blankets of the bed, refusing to open her eyes.

"Wake up please," the same voice petitioned a second time.

"Five more minutes," she mumbled, craving nothing more than a few more moments of restful comfort under the soft sheets.

"Wake up now please, Twilight," came the voice again as her blankets began to be removed, "We must go to your council."

"My council?" she groaned, morning grogginess plaguing her thoughts.

Then, rapidly, she sat up, causing a bit of a recoil from the navy blue stallion at her bedside as she finally remembered where she was. Brand reached out to her and placed a hoof on her shoulder, calming her a bit as he slowed her awakening, and, like before, leaned in close to her, staring deeply into her eyes.

"Torra serra," he said, and then, casually, he withdrew, and stood upright beside the bed.

"Dream well?" asked Brand, smiling a bit, "You slept nearly an hour past dawn."

"I guess so," she said rubbing her eyes, "Is that sort of thing unusual for you?"

"Yes. We rise and set with the sun each day. But, I understand you came from the valley, and you need rest to heal," Brand said as he pointed to the bandage still around her head.

Twilight turned, hanging her back hooves off of the side of the bed as the covers slid off of her tired body, and Brand reached out to her. He touched her forehead gingerly, and began unwrapping the bandage around her head, folding it around his hooves as he did.

"It looks good," he said reassuringly, "No more blood."

He set the bandages aside, and, as he had the night before, held out a wooden bowl filled with a dark brown sludge.

"Last bowl," he said, smiling "I promise."

Twilight took the medicine, grimacing a bit at the smell alone, and reluctantly, gulped the entire vessel's worth of liquid down to just be done with it.

"I know, it tastes bad, but it is good for wounds."

Brand stood up and walked back to the center of the room, the only room of the entire home, and stood above a cauldron over the still burning fire. He filled two more bowls with broth from the large pot, and brought them over to the bedside.

"But this tastes much better. Breakfast for you?"

He held out one of the bowls as he finished, and Twilight, at the request of a growl from her stomach, took the bowl in her magic. She drank deeply, and found it to be a sort of hearty stew. She finished the bowl hungrily, licking her lips clean of broth as she finished, an Brand gave her a smile.

"So, this council?" Twilight began.

"Ahh yes," Brand said as he downed the last of his breakfast.

He took her bowl from her, and rose to take them back to the cauldron, explaining the plan for the day as he did.

"We must go to see my uncle, the chief. He will ask you questions, and you must answer them with truth. Then, he will decide what to do with you."

"Well, what sort of things would he do with me?" Twilight asked as she stepped onto the floor, standing on her own after what felt like days in bed.

"Oh, it is hard to say. He is a wise chief, but he, like most of us, may be a bit weary of travelers ever since the merchants from Trottingham. But, if everything you have said is true, and you remain honest, nothing bad will come to you."

Twilight nodded to herself a bit as Brand came back to her.

"Are you ready to go?" he asked.

"I think so," she said, sighing a bit.

"Well then..." Brand began as he pushed through the flaps of the home, which acted as a door.

Twilight followed, squinting at the bright sun as she stepped into the crisp morning air. Once her eyes adjusted, she took in the sight of her surroundings...it was beautiful.

She was in a small village erected on a mountain terrace, the homes all built from simple wood and tanned animal skins. The mountains above and below were extremely steep, dropping off from the perimeter of the village in a sheer cliff. The sierras above were obscured by a lingering cloud, and she could not see more than a hundred feet up, but she could see the world in its entirety below her. Rivers, distant forests...she thought she could see the reflective ivory of Canterlot's towers, glinting in the sunlight.

Each home in the village had a small garden, and some even had livestock, mostly pigs and chickens, and an occasional dog. But, for all the dwellings around her, not one of their inhabitants were visible.

"Hey, Brand," she said quietly as she followed him through the dirt paths, weaving around the homes.

"Yes?"

"Where is everypony?"

"Waiting for us, at the Gathering."

Twilight nodded a bit, realizing that this civilization was, well, different. That they would all be present at her council would imply that either it was something important enough to demand everypony's attention, or, that all were somehow involved in the decision-making. Her mind flashed back to Thresh the night before in the home, namely, how he, and apparently others, were mistrusting of outsiders.

She swallowed hard, hoping that the chief, whoever he was, would be understanding.

"How much farther to the gathering place?"

"The Gathering is just a bit farther," he said, gesturing ahead to the rising white smoke of a definite bonfire, "Oh and a piece of advice."

The stallion turned around to look her in the eye, and Twilight knew what he was about to say was serious.

"Make sure you look everypony in the eye, and do not look away before they do, especially the chief. Do not speak until you are spoken to, and try not to move around too much. Everything depends on your first impression. The entire village will be there, so you need to represent yourself well."

"Ok," said Twilight, growing nervous, and Brand continued.

"You must address the chief as Thappa, Father. You must call him this, even though the rest of us will not."

"Can I ask why?"

"Of course," Brand responded, turning back around to lead the way towards their destination, "You are not one of us. Those who are a part of the tribe, the 'Windriders', as you call us, are all equal, and the chief exists to give order and guidance, because he is the oldest and the wisest. We call everypony, even the chief, Sorra, sister, or Therra, brother, because we are all the same. But, you are not one of us, so you are not recognized as equal to the chief, or, for that matter, any of us."

Brand looked down as he finished, as if he resented the truth in his words, but Twilight understood what he was trying to say, and that he was just trying to inform her.

"So, wait, then why..."

"Shh, shh," Brand interrupted, "We are here. Remember what I told you."

He reached out to her, pushing her up as he emphasized that she needed to stand up straight, and hold her head high.

"The Gathering is around the corner," he explained, nodding towards a wooden home just before them, "Do not forget what I told you, and you'll be fine. You'll probably be fine anyway, but just to make this easier for both of us."

"Both of us?"

"Yes, both of us. I am here to protect you, so don't anger the others, or I will be in trouble too."

Twilight nodded, noting how serious he was, amber fire prancing about in his eyes.

"Are you ready?" he asked to receive another nod, "Follow me."

Brand led the way around the corner of the home, revealing a large congregation of ponies gathered around a large bonfire. They were all seated on the ground, and deathly silent, nearly one hundred pairs of eyes, young and old, turning to meet Twilight as she became visible. Unlike before, all the ponies weren't wearing any sorts of animal skins, and were bare skinned, exposing their true hides.

Twilight saw no dragons; a bit disappointing, as she'd expected them to proliferate the very village itself, yet, they remained hidden. They were very stoic, neither happy nor sad, and watched her with silent eyes as she made her way after Brand, making sure to look those around her in the eye, and trying to appear confident; she didn't think it was working.

Brand came up very close to the fire, and stood at its side, looking through the flames and smoke to an old, haggard pony on the far side of the flames. Twilight stood at his side, and mirrored his gaze at who she assumed was the chief. He was beige with a dark mane, a sprinkle of gray hair thrown in, twisted into a long braid, the longest present. He was a bit wrinkled, distinct frown lines on his face and one eye blinded by cataracts. He was wrinkled, but his bones were straight, and he stood upright, unlike the others on the ground. It was strange; he wore nothing that signified him from the rest of the ponies present, and nothing other than the way he carried himself alluded to his authority. At his side sat the two from the night before, the stallion and the mare, Thresh and Merda, Brand's cousins.

Twilight stopped for a moment at Brand's side, staring through the fire into the stern eyes of the chief, making sure not to divert her gaze. It was deathly quiet; the only sound was that of the crackling fire, and a distant, howling wind in the clouds far above.

It seemed like ages before the chief finally spoke.

"Wudar terra, pa qua reta a ve?" said the chief, raising his voice at the end of his sentence.

Twilight knew the question was addressed to her, but she had no idea what had been asked. For the first time since she arrived, she looked away from the chief, turning her confused and worried eyes to Brand at her side, imploring him for help in silence. He met her gaze with equal concern, before he himself addressed the patriarch.

"Therra, la ne konos lenos ton."

The chief looked at Brand, confused for a bit, but then, he nodded, apparently having understood something. He leaned over to Thresh at his side, and whispered something, meanwhile Brand turned to Twilight on the other side of the fire.

"He asked you why you've come, but I told him you didn't speak our tongue," he whispered, confirming Twilight's thoughts.

Before another moment passed, the chief, in the same quiet, but firm raspy voice, spoke again.

"Wanderer, what brings you to us?"

Twilight cleared her throat while all present seemed to lean in closer awaiting her answer.

"Sir," she began, only to have Brand elbow her in the ribs.

"Thappa," she corrected, making sure to pronounce the term correctly, "I am not a wanderer. I have come from my home in Equestria to find you."

Some quiet whispers came from those gathered, but none arose to speak in full.

"And why have you found us?" the chief pushed, his voice, like Brand's, devoid of an accent, and careful and methodical in pronunciation.

"To learn," she said, keeping eye contact.

"And what do you wish to learn about?"

Twilight sighed a bit, debating over whether to explain, or simply state facts. She thought it better to explain.

"Where I come from, we have a problem. That problem was a dragon. Your legends have spread from here to the lands below, and I was one who heard them. I have come in hopes that you would teach me about dragons."

More whispers came from those around the fire, more loudly this time, and even the chief seemed taken back. Eventually, he raised a hoof in the air, and the rabble immediately died down.

"Others have come before you to learn," the chief said slowly, "It is hard to teach a thief about what they try to steal. Greed is blinding, and also deadly."

The chief's tone had changed; it was more menacing now, but his expression remained the same, and his blank stare beckoned Twilight for an answer.

"I am not a thief," she said sincerely, "I come honestly by my own accord, and I surrender my future to your wisdom."

Twilight stole a glance at Brand at her side as she lowered herself into a bow; his expression said, "Not bad.''

She picked herself up again as the chief suddenly walked from his side of the fire to Twilight's. He walked right up to her, and she didn't know whether to be afraid or concerned by his interest. He came to within feet of her, the chief, Brand and Twilight being the only ones standing in the entire congregation.

He began circling her, just now devoting his eyes to her body instead of her face. He encircled her, inspecting each aspect of her body, even poking her in the flank or back a few times, not deterred in the least by a concept of personal space. On his third pass, the chief, without looking away from Twilight's features, addressed Brand.

"Where did you find her?"

"The scarred mountain."

The chief's eyes widened a bit, but he quickly diverted them to their normal size. His gaze found her forehead, only a trace of a wound where the rock had struck her left.

"How was she hurt?"

"A rockslide. She was fending off the pack of wolves that had been raiding the nests. We killed them off, but before we could take to the sky, another quake hit, and rocks began falling. She took a harsh blow."

The chief completed another circle around her, flicking her mane with his hoof, and likewise to her tail. He stepped before her once again, now no more than a few feet from her with no flames to separate their eyes.

"You came from the valley alone?"

"Yes," Twilight responded, not looking away with great effort.

"You stood against the wolves?"

"Yes."

"You braved the scarred mountain?"

Twilight nodded.

"All of this, under your own accord?"

"Yes."

The chief shook his head up and down, stepping away from her, his inspection apparently complete. He walked back around the fire pit, and retook his place amidst his children. Then, he turned to the others, and raised his voice.

"What would we do with her?"

Hundreds of answers were shouted at once, some in Equestrian, some in a tongue unrecognizable to Twilight's ears. Among them were, "Send her back,", "She can't be trusted,", and, "She is not one of us,", but also several saying things like, "Her heart is worthy."

The chief let the open session lag on for a while, listening to all answers, until, after a short while, he held out his hooves, and there was silence.

"She has the foundations of courage in her heart, and her devotion is strong; few have dared the scarred mountain and returned, and fewer still have faced down a wolf pack unarmed, and lived on."

The chief stopped for a moment.

"She has come to learn, not to take, and under her own will. Her heart is strong, as is her mind, and her body is enduring for a pony from the valley."

Twilight was beginning to feel more confident as the chief went on.

"So, we will teach her. She will know how to be one of us, and then, when she returns to her home, her tales of our greatness will remind the valley of our strength, and our legends will live on!"

Twilight tried hard to suppress her growing happiness, until she finally gave up, and a smile spread on her face.

"She is not an outsider any longer, but she is not yet one of us," continued the chief, "Respect her as if she were a sister of the sky, until perhaps, she becomes one."

Twilight could tell that the others were experiencing mixed emotions about her verdict.

"Brand, you brought her here. You will be her teacher. Make our ways into hers, nephew, and maybe, we can both learn from each other," said the chief as he finally sat down, giving Twilight the first smile she'd received since arriving at the Gathering.

Brand nodded to the patriarch, shooting a grin at Twilight at his side. The congregation began moving about, some getting up to leave, others going about their business as usual, but the chief and his kin stayed where they were.

Brand leaned over to Twilight, and whispered, "Good job."

The unicorn smiled a bit, and followed as Brand turned to leave back the way they came.

"So, what is it you would like to know first?"