Spike lifted his head from his palms, slowly looking up at the landscape before him. From the hilltop tree stump he sat on, he could see what seemed like all of Equestria. From the green forests before him, to the misty marshes beyond, and beyond those, mountains, rising up to touch the painted sky, the majesty of his exposed homeland stole his breath.

The sun was setting off to his left as he faced the white-capped northern mountains, turning the clouds pink and red, and every shade of gilded beauty in between. He turned around to look back behind him, to see much the same; the green and orange of the forest's canopy looking back at him, extending into the distance to the familiar ivory towers of Canterlot, glinting in the distance.

He could hear a creek softly gurgling as it ran its course nearby, and from his woody seat among the alders and the blackberry bushes, the smell of the forest was tranquilizing. The birds were singing; probably jays, a sparrow or two, maybe a red-winged blackbird. He didn't know for sure; Fluttershy would, but he didn't.

A slight breeze rustled the leaves; it was cooling and pleasant, and Spike closed his eyes as he simply listened to the quiet. When he opened his eyes again, as it had continued to do so, the beauty of the meadow danced in his eyes like a work of art; but not any simple painting...a masterpiece.

Yet, for all the breathtaking beauty before him, for all the serenity and peace, for how good he should have felt, he still felt miserable.

He'd come so far already; he still had another horizon to go.

It wasn't right for Twilight to have to go away for something he'd done. He was the one that had destroyed Ponyville...sorta. Well, it was him, but, it wasn't like he'd done it on purpose. It was an accident, but he was responsible, and he'd nearly hurt those he cared most about, and destroyed every essence of home he'd ever known.

Reconstruction was under way back in Ponyville; all the damage would be forgotten soon, but, would its cause? Probably not, he thought. And, even if the ponies back home ever came to forgive him, he wasn't sure he'd be able to forgive himself. He wasn't even sure going back at all was a good idea.

The words of the ponies after his involuntary rampage still lingered in his ears. Were they right? Was he a monster? Was he as dangerous as they said? Was he fit to live in the company of ponies?

If they were right, then where would he go once this was all over and done? He was a dragon, and never denied it, but, he'd lived with ponies all his life. Would he even belong with others of his own kind? Did he belong anywhere?

Spike sighed as, once again, he buried his emerald eyes in the palms of his hands, and tried not to cry.

With nopony around to comfort him, he tried to find solace in the song of the forest, but found it lacking in what he truly needed. He missed having consolation in friends and family. He missed Twilight. But, still, he wondered if he deserved them, if he was being selfish for wanting them, when he knew full well he was capable bringing them great pain.

He forced himself up; he needed to keep moving. There was only perhaps an hour or so of daylight left, and he had yet to find someplace to spend the night. Since he had no idea how to build a shelter, and even less about survival overall, a cave or hollowed out log would have to do.

His stomach growled...it'd been a long time since his last gemstone, but still, he was reluctant to go into the stash he'd packed in a small red bandana, tied around a stick to serve as his sole item of luggage on this journey. He shouldered his baggage, resting the stick on his shoulder, and kept walking. But, as he trudged onward, he couldn't help feeling like he was being followed.

It took nearly half an hour of wandering, each hundred yards harder than the last, until he found a felled tree, its trunk's interior withered away by time and beetles. He eagerly crawled inside, and rested his head on his hands as he curled up for the night. But, he still couldn't shake that feeling.

Brand was still upset when they finally arrived at the home.

Twilight tried to make as little noise as possible when he stormed in through the doorway, and immediately went to the corner, planning on waiting for him to cool down before she herself even acknowledge her own presence. She'd never even seen him angry in the least, but now, he was furious.

He kicked the bed and a few chairs as he snorted, sending them skidding across the wooden floors. That seemed to purge at least some of his aggression. He stomped around the room for a bit, breathing heavily, but, after a few minutes passed, he had at least calmed down enough to talk; granted, he still spoke angrily.

"Why does he have to be so proud!?"

Twilight hoped the question was rhetorical as Brand began pacing, talking to the ground as he simply vented.

"He has always been like this! Always! He is like a brother to me, but he always thinks of himself before others!"

He reared back as if to strike the wall, but withheld his hoof.

"If he was not the chief's son...He does not deserve to gain his father's title. He is too selfish! Why?!"

He turned to Twilight, despite her attempts to be as small as possible in the corner of the room. She couldn't help but notice the fire in his eyes seeming to come forth at her. She just hoped he would restrict his aggression to the furniture. She trusted he would.

"You have done nothing! Why does he think you are a threat?! You are too weak and too civilized to be anything more than prey to him!"

"Thanks," Twilight muttered a bit sarcastically.

"He has always been like this! Anything new, he hates! Anything that he does not know, he tries to destroy! And he is to lead us! He was like this with the merchants, the dogs...and now you!"

The stallion stormed around the room for a bit longer, but eventually, calmed himself enough to slow his breathing. He ran a hoof over his mane, and recomposed himself again, finally becoming the peaceful, mellow stallion Twilight had known since her arrival.

"I am sorry," he said.

"What for?" began Twilight, "I'm the one that's been causing the problems."

"No. None of this is your fault..."

"Look. I don't want to come in between you and your family."

"You are not. Thresh and I...this did not begin recently."

"Maybe it would be better if I just left in the morning."

"No," said Brand firmly, "That is not a good idea. If you leave, it will raise suspicion. My brothers and sisters will think you had a reason to flee. They will suspect you, maybe even hunt you. It would not be safe."

"Well if I'm in danger just being here, then sticking around doesn't seem like a much better alternative!"

Now it was Twilight's turn to be angry.

"Who are you to tell me what to do anyway! I came up here on my own; I can get myself back just as easy! I don't need any of this! I chose to try and better my homeland by learning from you, but if it kills me, then I might as well have stayed back in Ponyville!"

"You have to trust me," encouraged Brand, "Leaving will be more dangerous than staying."

"Why should I trust you! I don't even know you!"

Brand stepped forward, fire from the center of the home dancing fiercely in his amber eyes.

"I saved you, remember! You did not find us on your own! You were prey on that mountain when we found you, and if it was not for us, you would be a pile of bones in a cave somewhere! If I wanted you dead, you would be dead! Yet, you live. Is that not reason enough to at least trust me?"

He lowered his voice as he took a step back from the unicorn's wide lavender eyes.

"You must stay, because I can keep you safe. Uncle told the clan to treat you with respect, and they will. The only one bold enough to disobey what he says is Thresh, and I can at least keep you safe from him. But, if you leave, the entire tribe will think you have done something, something you must run from. They will go after you, and I will not be able to stop them."

Brand, again, retreated a small distance away, going to the cauldron in the center of the room over the fire pit, and began filling a pair of wooden vessels with broth.

"You came to learn, and I promised to teach you. I will if you let me, but you must believe in me."

He came back over to Twilight, and gave her her dinner; it was the exact same meal they'd had for breakfast, apparently kept warm over the home's perpetual fire all day.

"You must believe that I will keep you safe, that I know the things I say to be true, and that I will take care of you."

Twilight refrained from eating as she continued the conversation; Brand did not.

"But what about Thresh? He seems to be pretty influential, if everypony sees him like Kroll does. If he wants me gone, it won't be long before the others feel the same."

"Let me worry about Thresh," Brand encouraged, taking a sip of steaming soup, "You worry about learning. Now, what questions do you have after your first day?"

Twilight fought the remnants of the argument, swallowing them down to a place where they would soon be forgotten. Se closed her eyes and refocused, and then, lifted her head when she was ready to begin again.

"The hierarchy..." she began.

"Hm?" answered the stallion.

"Well, would I be right in assuming it's based on age?"

"Yes," Brand responded, "Respect is measured by your rider's cloak, and the length of your braid."

"I see," she agreed, taking a small sip of broth, swirling it around the inside of her mouth before swallowing, "The foals have the shortest braids and no cloak, so...they have to farm?"

"Each pony has a job to do, based on how old they are," explained the navy stallion, "All foals farm every day, and gather from the trees when their parents go down the mountain. This is the lowest ranking job, but one of the most important. They do this until they have their first hunt; after their first kill, they choose a job that they will have forever, and if the chief thinks they are worthy, then they inherit their role in the clan. There are many jobs to choose from. Some want to be smiths and make weapons and saddles and tools. Others choose to watch over the farming. Others may want to become builders, and make and repair our homes. But, most want to become hunters."

"Hunting is a job?"

"Yes. We all hunt, but the threshen, the hunters, do so every day. Their job is to make kills and provide enough meat for the dragons, and enough skins for clothes and blankets for the village. When the others hunt, they do so to train, but they make use of the kills of course."

"So, how long will I be farming?"

"Not long. Foals farm because they are not yet wise enough or strong enough for the other jobs. Farming is hard; it makes muscles strong fast, and bodies that will be able to survive the harder tasks like hunting or forging metal. But, you are already grown. You don't have long to wait before your body is ready. Once you prove you are not weak, and you have learned about farming, we will see about your first hunt."

"And, when do the dragons come into it all?"

Brand smiled to himself a bit, taking a long drink from the wooden saucer in his hooves before speaking again.

"You wish, more than anything, to see these dragons, don't you? But, we all did."

"What do you mean?"

"Dragons must be earned. Not everypony gets to interact with them everyday. It is another symbol of prowess among us. A braid's length tells of age, a job tells of skill, but a dragon tells of strength. All these are treasures to us, because they signify who we are. Respect is everything, and these things bring with them respect."

Twilight nodded as she began to understand.

"So, not everypony has a dragon?"

"No. But most of us do. Those that do not are the young ones, and they usually receive their first eggs when they come of age."

"So you raise the dragons from birth?"

"If we can, yes," he said, placing his bowl on the floor, "I raised Perilax from a hatchling, but Thresh caught his dragon."

"How?"

"That is a lesson for another time. That sort of knowledge must be earned."

Twilight sighed.

"Well, what else can you tell me...about dragons?"

Brand chuckled a bit.

"You are asking me to give you my greatest treasure, you do realize that?"

A short pause separated his speech as he raised an eyebrow at the unicorn.

"You will come to know all things in time. When I take you to meet Perilax, you can learn on your own. But, as you raise your own dragon, you will learn even more."

Twilight groaned.

"So, you're not going to tell me anymore about dragons tonight?"

Brand shook his head.

"Well, then...that's all I really wanted to learn about," she said a bit dejectedly.

"Good. Then you can go to bed early. Tomorrow, we rise early, and we finish the work in the fields."

Dawn came earlier than normal the next morning. Twilight was woken by a rustling within the home; Brand was already up and about getting ready for the day, first washing in a small basin, then dressing in his rider's cloak. Twilight rolled over as he was taking his quiver, filled with dozens of arrows and his bow, off its place on the wall.

His ear twitched.

"Good morning," he said without turning around, adjusting the single leather strap of the quiver around his torso, pulling it tight.

"Morning," Twilight agreed, yawning.

"Sleep well?" Brand asked.

"Good, I guess."

"You were snoring," he said, turning his head to look over his shoulder at her as he continued adjusting his apparel.

He gave a sly smile, then turned back around, and grabbed a belt with a knife sheath and a small satchel, and began fastening it around his waist.

"What time is it?" asked Twilight.

"The sun is halfway above the horizon," he responded quickly.

"How come the birds aren't singing?"

"Birds?" he asked, turning around as he finished securing the belt, "There are no birds this high up. Too cold, and no food for them."

Brand made his way over towards the front of the home, pulling his hood, adorned with the ram's horns, forming a full curl at his temples, up over his head.

"I'll be back," he said as he pushed through the threshold to the outside world, letting the cold air in, "be ready when I return."

He pulled his facemask up over his muzzle, and like that, he was gone.

The cold air woke Twilight up in a hurry, even quicker than a cup of coffee, or even the strongest tea. She quickly rolled over, and kicked off the blankets of the bed that had been made hers since her arrival. She rolled over and rubbed the sleep from her eyes, and after that, went over to where her saddlebags still laid on the home's table.

She first found her parka, folded neatly underneath her luggage, and put it on. Then, she pulled her saddlebags on, after checking that their contents, or at least, the ones that hadn't been lost or eaten already, were all present. She was adjusting the pack when Brand came back.

"Are you ready?" he asked as he re-entered through the front door.

"Yeah," she responded, "where are we going?"

"Down the mountain, to the valley."

"Why?"

"Just come. We need to go fishing."

Brand turned to leave the home, and Twilight hurried to catch up.

"Fishing?"

"Yes. For the crops."

"What?!"

Twilight stopped as she iterated the question, but Brand kept walking.

"Are you coming?"

Twilight quickly stopped asking questions, only for a moment, and hurried after Brand, who was already getting away. She caught up to him as he walked briskly down the dirt road, heading east towards the edge of the terrace.

Out of breath, and struggling to keep up with the quick pace of the stallion, she refused to stop asking questions.

"Why do we need to go fishing?"

"I told you," he responded, looking at her as he continued walking forward, "to feed the kreb."

Twilight groaned as she rolled her eyes.

"What is... kreb!"

"Hey," Brand said calmly, "quiet down. You can't make this much noise when we get to the trees."

As he finished talking, he stopped, and looked straight down. They'd reached the edge of the terrace, and were now looking down the slope of a very steep decline profuse with shale, leading straight to a patch of evergreens, about two hundred feet below them.

Brand adjusted his cloak, and pulled up his facemask...Twilight could still see his breath. As he adjusted his apparel, Twilight dreaded what she thought he was about to do. Not because he was going to, but because she would have to follow.

He placed one hoof on the edge of the terrace, and turned his head to look at Twilight.

"I'll see you down there."

He turned and bent his knees, but before jumping, he relaxed, and turned back around.

"Oh, and kreb. It is just cabbage."

With that, he stepped off the edge of the terrace, and slid down the shale ridden slope to the trees below. Twilight could still see him, but he looked much smaller, and as he came to a stop, he turned and looked back up the mountain to her.

"Are you coming?" he yelled.

Twilight growled to herself.

"If I survive this, I swear..."

She took a deep breath in, and jumped.