High Moon Ch. 24:

New Meaning

After everyone had finished bathing, and gotten dressed, Wolf’s pack started to make their way towards the temple. Wolf again took the time to go over what everyone should be doing tomorrow. Isis will start overseeing the reconstruction of the city ruins and will be taking note of any material that she would need to do so. Spike, Quill, and Frost will follow Wolf to the nearest town called White Tail Valley. Lily and Blaze were free to do anything they please so as long as they were back before the moon.

Everyone agreed to the tasks that they were assigned for tomorrow as it will give them all something to do and focus on. Right as they made it back to the temple, Blaze had tried to apologize for peeping over the cliff to Spike, but was waved off by the drake. All but Wolf was impressed by the drake’s willingness to overlook something like that but Blaze made a mental note to make it up to the drake somehow.

Soon, the moon started to slowly make its way up the darkened skies and dinner was starting to be fixed by Spike and Frost. That’s when Wolf thought about the sphinx’s diet and asked Isis what kind of food she preferred. At first, all she would say was anything Wolf thought was good for her to eat, but Wolf kept pressing on. She soon revealed that she preferred fish and other aquatic sea-life. However, she also enjoyed a good fresh fruit or vegetable, which made things easier since she was an omnivore that didn’t have much of a heavy preference.

Wolf took note of this and made sure that he start adding fish to the list of animals to hunt before the winter. Once the two chiefs were done, dinner was served to the right diets. A plate of fruit salad for Blaze, Lily, and Isis, and a few chunks of seasoned meat for the carnivores.

Of course, the phoenixes weren’t forgotten as Quill and Spike took turns tossing up sliced apples. Wolf than noted that they’ll need to start planting seeds for fruits and vegetables if they were going to continue to grow in the way they were.

He then asked if Blaze had any more of that rapid-growth potion she made a few months before the twins showed up. However, when she went to check in her chest of items, she was slightly miffed to say that she didn’t, and would have to make a new batch tomorrow.

Soon, everyone finished their food and Lily, Isis, and Spike started to make their way towards the mansion ruins for the night with the phoenixes following close behind them. After helping Frost cleanup, Blaze lead Wolf to their room for ‘dessert,’ and Frost did the same for Quill.

Once behind closed doors, Frost pushed Quill to the bed, and pouched right on top of her. The two’s fingers intertwined as so did their tongues and Quill took her role as the dominant one. Frost started to moan when she felt that same intense wave of heat coming from Quill as from the waterfalls and started to crave more of the overwhelming feeling. She moved her free hand down Quill’s hardened body and slipped them in her shorts.

Quill felt Frost trying to use the same spell she used their first time together and suddenly sat up, pushing Frost to her back on the bed. Frost was caught off-guard by the sudden change in position and was forced to pull her hand out of Quill’s dragonesshood. “Q-Quill?” Frost looked up to the bright shine in Quill’s purple eyes, much too bright for it to be simply just her nightvision, but Frost couldn’t think much past that part.

“Frost,” Quill started in a low seductive voice, one that sent a chill down Frost’s spine, and continued to baffle her. “Tonight, let’s not use a spell. I got a better idea,” she continued as she reached a hand out to the green shirt Frost borrowed from Quill and lifted it from her body. It wasn’t two seconds after before Quill’s mouth latched around the icy-blue nipples and her hands around the sides to massage them.

Frost did her best to keep her moans down so Wolf and Blaze wouldn’t hear them but Quill’s sharp fangs and claws were almost too much for her. She couldn’t believe how sensitive her breasts where, or how Quill continued to bring such joy to her. With just her own touch, she didn’t feel much of anything, but with Quill doing it; it was so much more.

Her nipples became incredibly harder, to the point she thought they would be stuck like that. Her knees would always feel weak when her dragoness was claiming her, and it was near impossible to think straight. From Quill’s slightest touches, waves of tingling moved from each nipple to the rest of her body, and quickly increased in their speed and power throughout her body.

Quill opened one eye to peek at the pleasure written on Frost’s face. She took pride and joy knowing that it was her to be the only one to enjoyed such a beautiful sight. However, the large round breasts wasn’t enough for Quill’s groping hands. As she snaked her hands down to Frost’s slightly larger flanks, Quill took her time dragging her claws slowly through Frost’s fur to get a slight whimper from her before she grip her mare’s flanks through the tight purple shorts.

Frost’s squeals were muffled by her biting down on her lips as he hoped Quill would move on already. To her luck, Quill quickly became tired with teasing her lover, and released her breasts but not before pulling on the nipples and letting them snap back into place. The rough treatment was enough to get a hushed squeal from Frost and caused her body to shake a little.

Quill sat up on top of Frost’s waist to take in the sight of her handy work. Frost already had a line of drool going down her mouth along with her heavily breathing. But what made the slight more rewarding for Quill, was the bright blush across Frost’s cheeks.

A violent shiver went down Frost’s body when she felt the large amount of lust coming from Quill’s hungry eyes. The shiver only grew when she dared to met her lover in the eyes as they peeped over every inch of her bare chest making her feel slightly subconscious. “Q-Quill quit staring, its making you drool…”

Quill licked her lips in a more dragon-like display, only adding to the mare’s subconsciousness as she leaned into her ear, and started to nibble on it while her hands went back to Frost’s breasts.

Frost’s swarmed around under the dragoness’s pleasurable treatment and whimpered a moan when she felt Quill remove her teeth from her ear. “I’m drooling because I have something to drool about.” Frost’s body shook from the low whisper in her ear as she started to lick her tongue across the side of her cheek before sealing her mouth in a kiss.

Frost again started to moan when the intensity feeling returned to her, reaching out to her soaking marehood, and oddly to her chest. She couldn’t possibly fight off Quill’s tongue long enough to figure out what was the intense and wonderful feeling taking her body.

’I-is this what it means...to love someone,’ Frost questioned while Quill’s hands moved back to her flanks. She never once felt this burning wave before and the only explanation she could think of was the fact that Quill did in fact love her, not just cause of the physical relationship, but because that’s what her heart told her.

It was incredible!

For a changeling, feeling true love from another was enough to bring them to their knees, and make them do anything to keep that source of love going. It was like a drug. Upon first taste, she needed more, and as long as Quill continued to return her love her, she’ll have it.

Frost had heard rumors of a changeling actually finding someone to love but would have never guessed that it would feel this great. Everytime she was remained of Quill’s love, it felt like an inferno was started in her chest, and spread to every part of her body.

Just from the slightest touches from Quill was enough to send a shiver down to her knees. This was only added on top of the fact that Quill had to be intensely powerful. Sure, that halfbreed from Ponyville had the strength that reminded her of her montours father, but Quill was something different.

She had power that exceed her magic, she had power to get things that needed to be done, and knew when to pick and choose her battles. The more Frost thought about it, the more Quill seemed to be everything she had ever thought of a mate; kind, funny, loyal, and due to her instincts, powerful.

Frost could only think of three short powerful words to describe how she feels about her lover. “Quill, I love you,” Frost moan while Quill was busy toying with Frost’s collarbone. The changeling’s words were enough for her to break out of her own dragoness mating instincts and down into her lover’s shining icy-blue eyes. “I-I’ve never felt this way about anybody before, and it’s not just because of how strong you are.” Tears started to stream down Frost’s face, reflecting the shine in her eyes, and making them that much more captivating. “You have a good heart Quill, you may not do the smart thing all the time, but you always have good intentions.”

Quill moved down to lick away the tears, tickling Frost’s cheek, and sealing her lips with another soft kiss. Frost’s hands latched around Quill’s neck to pull her closer while Quill’s hands moved to her back, close to the base of her wings. For an entirety, the two remained locked in each other’s lips, and took that moment of foreverness to explore every inch of the other’s mouth.

Unfortunately, biology demands air for their lungs, and forced them to part ways for a moment. “Frost, I’m the one how should be saying that,” Quill started staring into Frost’s shining eyes while her hands reached the base of her bat-wings. “Before I found you in that storm, I didn’t know what I’ll do. I was mad, betrayed by my closest friends, and I couldn’t take the weight of everyone’s faults any more. But, you took all that away, and you help me see that I can’t run from everything.” Frost started to moan when Quill started to toy with her flight muscles in the base of her wings and from the pure love from her words. “Frost, I...I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”

Frost’s heart and mind stopped at the dragoness’s words as her eyes shot open to see Quill move in for another kiss on the lips, of which she greatly accepted, and pulled her lover in closer with her hands around her head-spines.

Another moment of foreverness ended with Quill trailing her lips down Frost’s body, leaving bites and kisses down, and stopping for a moment to play with Frost’s breasts. Frost moaned in approval when Quill’s teeth nibbled on her hardened nipples and resumed groping the large flesh.

Soon, the mare’s hushed begging was enough to get Quill to move back down the rest of her body, dragging her tongue the way down, and again tickling her fur. Frost had a hard time picking rather to laugh uncontrollably or moan Quill’s name, however, the latter soon became the case as Quill removed Frost’s shorts, and started to dance her tongue over her marehood.

The experience was new for the both of them as Quill’s fixable and untrained reptilian tongue wildly moved about Frost’s marehood, lapping up any sweet juices that she could taste, and savoring the icy taste.

Frost was left squirming under Quill’s inexperienced tongue, only her moans could be used as singles of where Quill should move her tongue next. She never experienced something like this in her life. Sure she went into heat before and learned, and used, a number of spells to deal with it.

However, she never felt anything like this. Quill’s wild and untrained tongue moved over every inch of her marehood, quickly becoming more focus as she went on, and drove Frost up the wall. It wasn’t just Quill’s tongue work, it was how quick she was learning, and adapting to the new experience.

It quickly got to the point where Frost couldn’t keep still and prevent Quill from fully enjoying the sweet taste of Frost’s marehood. After having her head moved out again by Frost her legs closing down, Quill grabbed onto Frost’s wide thighs, and spread them wide.

Frost squealed in surprise when Quill did this and violently blushed when she felt her dragoness’s lust grow stronger. Quill quickly dived back into the open space between Frost’s legs and started to attack her outer walls. Now unable to move her legs, Frost was left to moan from Quill’s tongue work, and could feel a climax building.

However, Quill didn’t listen to any of the changeling’s warnings, and continued to greedily drink any of her pre-cum. Wanting more, Quill thought of slipping her tongue in Frost’s marehood, and was rewarded by a loud throaty moan and a new wave of taste.

Quill’s mind did its best to determine the taste, warm--hot even--yet cold like an ice-cube, and the conflicting sense drove her wild. Each drop had Quill wanting more so she could understand the wondrous mystery that is her marefriend, Frost.

With her lover’s fixable and shift tongue moving inside of her marehood, Frost was forced to bite down on her own lower lip to keep her moans from reaching the ears of Wolf and Blaze. However, this task was almost impossible to do as Quill continued to push more of her serpent tongue within her depths.

It wasn’t long in Quill’s exploration did she find a spot in Frost’s marehood that forced a shiver down her entire body. Once Quill noticed this, that one spot became the focus of her assault, and again was rewarded with a long throaty moans of approval from Frost.

The mare soon started to buck her hips into Quill’s face to get more of the tongue's magical feel within her. Even going as far as to place her hands pushed Quill’s head further into her marehood to enjoy every time her tongue found it’s way towards that spot.

Although, Frost could feel a climax quickly approaching, and did her best to fight it off for a little while longer; just another moment. She wanted Quill to know that she had to continue to work to please her. To know that she wasn’t just some mare looking for a quick fix. That she was one to know how to make her work to achieve her goals.

It wasn’t hard for Quill to tell that her mare was about to reach release, as she felt Frost’s marehood clenching down around her tongue the same way it did when she had that shaft in the cave and knew that she was trying to fight back her climax.

Quill took this as a sign of a challenge from Frost, saying that if she couldn’t get her to come, that she shouldn’t be the one in charge in their relationship. Not liking the idea of being at the mare’s mercy, Quill quickly upped the pace of her tongue, and redoubled her efforts on that spot deep in Frost’s depths.

Soon, an idea of getting her lover the release her body craved soon came to Quill’s head and she started to softly bite on the swollen marehood. The soft nibble with Quill’s fangs was the final straw for Frost as her body started to violently shake.

Quill couldn’t pull her tongue out of Frost’s gushing marehood, so instead, she started to greedily drink the small torrent of mare-cum, and even continued to play with the sensitive spot in Frost’s marehood.

Frost’s eyes started to roll to the back of her head while her hips bucked wildly into Quill’s face. She wanted to scream, oh so how did she wanted to shout out the one that brought her such joy, but she didn’t in fear of waking Wolf and Blaze.

Fortunately, yet unfortunately, Frost started to calm down from her high, and slumped down to the bed in a sweaty mess. However, Quill didn’t remove herself until she lap up every drop of the delicious cum.

Once licked clean, Quill finally removed herself from Frost’s marehood, and licked off the cum around her cheeks. “Mm...I think I can get used to this,” she said, looking down to the ragged mess of her lover, and holding pride that it was her that did this.

“Y-you...are e-evil,” Frost half-joked, barely able to catch her breath, or hold a moment of thought together. Quill giggled to herself as she moved to the left side of Frost’s head and gripped Frost's right breast with another--slightly darker--giggle. “I’ve c-created a monster.”

Quill started to toy with Frost’s still hardened nipple and started to nibble on her ear, getting her to softly moan. “No, I’ve always been this way, but you woke the beast in me,” Quill joked again, not sure if she was really just joking or not. “Night Frost, we got things to do tomorrow, and Wolf usually get up early when he have things to do.”

Frost turned around to face Quill in the eyes and placed a kiss on the top of her head. “Then we better get some kind of rest.” The two lover wrapped each other in their wings and closed their eyes to dream about the life ahead of the both of them.

“So they sent you instead,” Rainbow questioned after Dusk had finished his story of what’s been going on in her absence. Over the last hour and half, Dusk was going over any knowledge he had of the elements and twins to Rainbow Dash, and had answered all of her questions in full.

Now however, Rainbow didn’t care much of listening to the halfbreed, and didn’t care that the elements didn't have the guts to come meet her in person. “So, two months, and not once have they thought of going to my house to check on me.” Dusk slightly nodded his head, giving Rainbow all she needed. “Hmuh, figures. So what you wanted anyways? Or should I say, what they wanted, message-mutt.”

Dusk took in a deep breath as he pinched the bridge of his nose. “Okay,” he breath out in a tired sigh, holding up two fingers in the air. “Two things,” Dusk started, snapping his purple eyes open, and holding up one finger. “One, I’m going to overlook ‘massager-mutt’ for now, and two…” he paused again with another sigh before continuing with a softer tone. “they just want to know how their friend is doing.”

“Fine,” Rainbow forced out a chuckle while she looked up to the white ceiling above. “I’m doing just fine if they really needed to know. But it sounds like they have seen better days.” When Rainbow didn’t hear anything from Dusk, she turned her head back down to see the flat expression on his face, and knew that he wasn’t satisfied with her joke. “Okay, look like that letter already says, I need time alright? I mean,” Rainbow pushed herself from the couch and started to walk around the room with the look of frustration on her face. “I need time alright? I shouldn’t have to be expected to come to their rescue because they can’t move on.”

Dusk nodded his head in understanding, it would be unfair for anyone to ask Rainbow to bare the weight of others when she has her own to carry. “I understand that but your friends are just worried about you,” Dusk continued on, “Don’t you think that you could have, you know, left that note at one of their houses? That way they would have at least known that you were alright.”

“He’s right you know,” Mia called out from the kitchen where she and Sky Bloom were fixing the three of them dinner. Rainbow, Dusk, and Arctic turned towards the tall pegasus as she sat a pot on the stove to boil. “If you honestly wanted your friends to know where you were then you would have left it at one of their houses.”

Rainbow turned her head away from her cousin’s friend that’s been living with her just as long as she has while the mare herself started to walk towards her with an obvious, yet still, natural sway of her hips. She stopped right in front of Rainbow, who refused to look her way. “So the question is, why you didn’t?”

A long pausing silence overtook the living room as everyone waited for Rainbow’s answer. However, she seemed to be unwilling to answer the question, and Mia didn’t let her get away with this one.

“I think it’s because you didn’t want them to find you.” Rainbow’s body jumping was more than enough for Mia to know that she was in the right field and continued to press in that direction. “Perhus, you no longer care about the other elements, and you just want to be alone. But really, you’re scared.” Again, Rainbow’s body jumped from the alicorn in disguise. Rainbow’s hands even started to tremble at her sides while her mane hid her face. “Be honest Rainbow, you’re afraid that blame could somehow fall on your shoulders from two months ago.”

Rainbow started to wordlessly mumble something to herself, most likely a silent demand to get Mia to stop speaking the truth, but she wasn’t of fortune. “Now you think just cause you hid away for two months that you have the right to denounce them. Well, it doesn’t work like that, if anything, they have the right to denounce you for abandoning them.”

“I didn’t abandon anypony,” Rainbow whispered with venom lacing her tongue.

Only Mia and Dusk were able to hear the low whisper but the other two pegasi could feel something wrong in the air. “Aren't you supposed to be the element of loyalty? So why are you here and not there, helping your friends?”

“I didn’t abandon anyone.”

Mia started to frown at the same repeated words she would always get when Rainbow was back into a corner. She knew any further would spark a violent reaction in Rainbow so she left it be to attend to the cooking again. Mia caught the worried look in Sky’s eyes and shook her head, knowing that she couldn’t do much else.

However, Dusk couldn’t stand to see the mare so conflicted by whatever was keeping her in Blatimare, and didn’t drop the subject. “So you’re just going to hide,” he asked, standing up from his seat in another couch in the room, and taking a step closer to the mare. “You are just going to stay here while your friends deal with the mess that’s left behind. I may only know small bits of what happened two months ago but what I do know is how the twins felt out of place. I mean look at me,” he paused to wave his hand over the room and then himself. “How out of place can you get with a dragon and diamond dog halfbreed?”

Rainbow looked up from her mane with one eye directed towards Dusk. When he saw the lostness in her eyes, Dusk shook his head and started to walk back to Arctic’s stuff sitting in the corner of the room. “Rainbow,” Dusk started as he was picking up Arctic’s duffle-bag and suitcase. “I’m going to tell you something I learn a long time ago. You can’t run from what needs to be done, one day or another it will catch up with you.” Dusk took one last look back to the lone eye sticking out of Rainbow’s mane, it still had hesitation in it. “Come on Arctic, let’s get to Ponyville before it gets too late.”

“Alright Dusk,” Arctic started, standing from her seat in the couch, and bowing her head towards Mia and Sky. “Bye Miss. Bloom, Miss. Light, and Miss Dash, I hope...I hope everything works out in the end.” Sky and Mia waved off Arctic while Rainbow remained rooted to her spot. Arctic tried to think of something to say to Rainbow, but seeing the barren look in her eyes reminded her too much of her own. “B-bye.” Arctic grabbed her roller suitcase and followed Dusk out the door, but right before leaving, she heard Sky tell Rainbow that Dusk was right.

Dusk closed the door when Arctic was fully outside and puffed a gray cloud of smoke towards the darkened skies above. Arctic looked into the bright shines in Dusk’s purple eyes, the Dusk she once knew would have dragged Rainbow against her will back to Ponyville, but it seemed that he had done more than grow in these two years.

“You think she is going to be okay?” Dusk didn’t answer Arctic’s question right away as his eyes and mind were busy listing all of the stars he could remember his mother teaching him when he and his siblings were younger.

All Dusk could think that would begin to answer the question was a saying only kept in the republics. “All lives start as one, all lives gather together, and all lives end as one,” he recited from a young memory. “All find their place in the world, all strive for a goal, and all make their lives with their hands.” A slow pause took the two back to their homes in the republics, one just saying goodbye to the lands, and the other longing to see them again. “Come on Arctic, let’s go home.”

Arctic nodded her head and followed Dusk as he took flight towards the darkened skies to fly back to the warmth of his home; to the waiting arms of his mares.

Finally, after two hours of flying and resting, both Arctic and Dusk made it to Ponyville, and expected a slight night to rest for tomorrow of looking for a job for Arctic. Dusk just wanted to finish off Jinx’s gem noodles she made for him the other night, and after getting Arctic settled, go to sleep.

However, the makers seemed to have another plan for him.

“What the hell,” Dusk wordlessly questioned the air transport sitting outside of his house while Arctic was trying to catch her breath. A few moments passed before he came to the conclusion that the elements, Celestia, and the Solar guards thought to wait out in his house. “Perfect, ‘cus I really want to deal with them right now.”

Arctic, skipping over the air-transport, looked over to her friend when she recognize the dull tone in his voice, and knew that he wasn’t in any mood to deal with any more questions. “Dusk,” she started, placing a hand on his shoulder to gain his attention, and continue when he turned back to her. “Are you going to be fine?”

Dusk took in a deep breath and let out a small gray cloud. Right now, he didn’t want Arctic worrying that he’ll revert back to his old self, and he didn’t want either of his mares to think the same thing. “Yes, yes...I’ll be fine Arctic. Come on, you must be tired, and I still got a job to finish.”

After staring into Dusk’s eyes for a few more moments, to see if he was in fact telling the truth, Arctic released Dusk’s shoulder so he could walk over to unlock the door. However, right before walking in, Dusk took in a deep breath, and let out a slightly darker cloud of smoke.

Once he finally pushed open the door, and turned on the light, Dusk was greeted with a sight that he didn’t like very much. All five of the elements found some spot on his couch to sleep, the Solar guards took chairs from the kitchen to circle around the living room, and Celestia was snoring in the recliner.

Before the halfbreed could say anything about the unwanted guests, Jinx and Sketchy made their ways down the stairs to greet their missed friend. “Oh Arctic, it is so good to see you,” Jinx cheered, waking a few of the ‘guests’ up from their sleep. “Dusk was nice to you on the way back right? We all know how he gets when he doesn’t eat.”

“Ha-ah, Jinx, you are super funny,” Dusk quickly retorted, only getting the mares to laugh at him some more. Once Dusk cut a glance towards the elements to see their questioning gazes, he turned back to his mares, but more specifically, Sketchy. “Listen, why don’t you girls get Arctic all situated while I entertain our ‘guests.’ I’ll try and not be too loud or anything and it shouldn’t be too long either.”

While everyone else thought that Dusk was just talking normally, Sketchy knew that he was telling her to take Jinx and Arctic up stairs, and to place a soundproof barrier around the downstairs. “Sure, Dusk,” she started with a slight spark of her horn as a response to his message. “Come on Artie, all that flying must have you tried.”

Sketchy turned towards the stairs, taking Arctic's heaviest bags off of Dusk’s shoulders, and leading the two other mares upstairs. “Oh come on Sketchy,” Arctic started, not aware of Dusk’s and her’s plan. “I’m not the same weak flyer that you remember.”

“Of course you’re not Artie,” Sketchy replied at the top of the stairs with another few brief flash of her horn telling Dusk how long it would take her to get everything in place. “Jinx could you show her the way to the bathroom? I’m sure Arctic wants to be all, how you put it sometimes, ‘squeaky’ clean.”

Jinx’s ears perked up at this, excited of what those words met to her. “Sure, I can do that,” she again cheered, taking Arctic’s hand, and leading her to the guest bathroom so she could bath. With some help.

While Arctic was looking for a way out of that, Sketchy did as Dusk silently asked her to do, and placed a soundproof barrier over the staircase so he could freely speak to the elements. Over the five hours that they were ‘camping’ out at her house, Sketchy had to several times stop herself from yelling at any of the elements for their somewhat selfish view of Rainbow Dash and the twins, but if anyone can set them straight it was the cold teenager from two years ago that’s inside of Dusk.

Once Sketchy walked off, to find other ways to keep Jinx and Arctic busy while he dealt with the elements, Dusk took in a deep breath, and let out a crawling cloud of smoke at everyone in the room.

He, however, paid no mind to their whining compliances as he wordlessly walked to the kitchen to fix him some late dinner. Obsidian and Celestia were the only ones to recognize the sudden drop in his attitude, as both had acted in a similar manner at some point of their lives.

Once he was at the fridge, Dusk pulled out a large white styrofoam cup, marked with his name on it, and placed it in the microwave. Everyone remained silent while he fixed his dinner, lest they say or do something to further anger him. Soon, the sound of the microwave cried out, and Dusk reached into the nearby drawer to pull out a pair of chopsticks.

Dusk open the refrigerator up again with his tail while he spun the chopsticks around in a performance type manner. “So, it’s like totally cool that you all just stay in my house while I’m out helping you out,” he finally started, bobbing his head to a fast-pace tone in his head, and pulling out his dinner along with a can drink from the refrigerator.

“But whatever,” Dusk paused to slam the microwave door close with his free hand and the refrigerator door close with his right foot and started to walk back to the couch.

Applejack and Fluttershy quickly moved out of the way to let Dusk sit down as he started to dig into the gem filled noodles. Soon, the only sounds that came in the room was him slurping up the noodles, and crushing up the gems with his teeth.

“So,” Dusk again finally started after finishing more than half of the meal and placing the styrofoam cup on the table. “Your friend Rainbow,” he paused as he moved his tail, which was still holding the grape soda, to his face and popping it open with a claw. “Isn’t happy.”

Dusk started to drink the bubbly drink while everyone tried to figure out what he meant by Rainbow wasn’t happy. Well, most of them anyways. Obsidian was still trying to understand why the halfbreed was acting in such a cold tone but something told him that if he keeps talking that they will learn why.

“Also,” Dusk again started, with a slight chuckle that sounded like a mocking one. “She reminds me of my brother Volt when he was a pup. One, impatient, and two…” Dusk started to bring the can to his lip again before speaking, “a coward.”

Applejack shot up from her seat and slammed her hand down onto the wooden table in front of Dusk. “What ya say!” Even with the mare yelling at full volume, Dusk remain unfazed by her demanding tone as he continued to drink his soda with his eyes closed. “How the hay ya say that our Rainbow is a coward. She got more back-bone in her whole body than you do in you tail.”

Dusk looked over to the burning fire in Applejack’s eyes and returned the stare with a much darker one of his own. “Oh, really?” Suddenly, Dusk’s tail crushed the can in a simple and fluid motion that frightened Applejack a little, and flicked the can into the trashcan that was behind the couch. Dusk slowly reached out to the styrofoam cup to finish off the rest of his dinner.

“Tah’ don’t prove nothing,” Applejack shouted in a huff before sitting back down and refusing to look Dusk’s way. However, the halfbreed didn’t care much about the farm-mare’s attitude towards him, and simply continued to eat. “And could you stop tah’ slurping?”

Dusk cut the ball of noodles with his shredded teeth and started to munch down on the small bits of gems in them. “In my house,” he started with his mouth full of the yellow chicken-flavored noodles. “I eat any way I so please.”

“Fine,” Applejack snorted, tired of dealing with the halfbreed’s sudden poor attitude, and wanting to move the ‘conversation’ onward. “So what ya mean that Rainbow isn’t happy and tah’ she a coward?”

Dusk again placed the cup down onto the table, but still kept the chopsticks in his hands, and sighed out another plume of black smoke, this time, to the tv instead of anyone’s faces. Dusk sat back in his seat, kicking out his feet on the table, starting to spin around the chopsticks.

He took this moment to think to himself of the best way to explain everything he was able to pick up on the mare. “Rainbow, she hesitant, impatient, can’t handle the truth when it is smacking her in the face, irritable…”

While Dusk continue to point out every single fault that he found with Rainbow, Rarity, sitting next to Applejack, started to clench her hands as well as grit her teeth, but was able to retain some of her composure until...

“Oh yeah, I almost forgot, a coward.”

“That tears it,” Rarity suddenly shouted at the halfbreed as she shot up from the couch, activated her element, and started to drive her saber towards Dusk’s head before anyone could stop her. However, the stainless pure white steel was stopped by Dusk gripping it with the two wooden chopsticks, and keeping the blade’s point mere inches from his head.

Rarity tried to move the saber away from him put the halfbreed’s grip on the chopsticks outweighed her’s on the saber. “Give it a rest already,” Dusk started in a hollow tone while his eyes were hidden beneath his black hair. “I hate to say this, but, only Sargent Obsidian and princess Celestia here can have a chance of beating me in a fight.”

“Rarity,” Celestia started, just as upset with Dusk’s attitude as the rest of the others, but had a feeling that he was somehow testing the elements. From the looks of things, they were failing said test. “Withdraw your weapon and allow Dusk Flare to fully explain himself.” The mare glared down at Dusk for another moment, not getting any kind of reaction from him, and soon doing as Celestia instructed. “Now Dusk, just why is it that you feel this way about Rainbow.”

“Simple your highness,” Dusk started, sitting up in his seat, and stretching out his sore wings. “When I told her that you guys just wanted to know why she hadn’t came back just yet, she just went on and on about how she ‘needed more time.’ When really, she just too afraid to face what happen here.”

All of the elements’ faces soften when they realize that he was talking about the twins leaving two months ago. “Also there was this other mare,” Dusk stated, quickly forcing both Obsidian and Celestia to come to the same conclusion. “Tall, very beautiful, and had the body of a supermodel yet the brains of a psychiatrist.”

“You must mean Mia Light,” Obsidian broke in and getting a nod from Dusk. “Yes, she is...a friend of my marefriend, and I met her not to long ago.”

Dusk nodded his head in acknowledgement before continuing. “Yeah that’s her, from what I can guess, she been pressing Rainbow this entire time. Because as soon as she started to speak, Rainbow started to show her true colors.”

Dusk started to chuckle at his pun while Obsidian had to stifle a laugh of his own. “Half-blood, this is hardly the best time to be cracking jokes,” Obsidian said, paying the elements’ glares no mind.

“Sorry, too easy,” Dusk manage to cough out, “So anyways, Mia went on to say that Rainbow was afraid to come back because of her own inhibitions that she refuses to get over. However, she just froze up and just kept saying that she didn’t abandon anyone, and I don’t blame her.” Applejack was going to shot up to shout at the halfbreed but look towards Celestia told her not to. “Girls, there’s just something I, no, you have to ask yourselves. Do all of you really care about Rainbow?”

The room again became silent as the elements’ brains started to process what the halfbreed was to them. He was wrong of course, they cared and loved Rainbow Dash, and nothing could ever change that firm belief that they had. Anytime she needed them, they were there no matter what happened...until the twins ran-away.

“I mean really,” Dusk started to break them out of their thoughts while he continued to spin the chopsticks around. “Two months, you all had two whole months to get over the twins, but none of you did. And now, you own weakness cost you a friend.”

Truth, this was the truth, and it was eating away at the elements every second they faced this fact. A pony that they dared to call friend counted on them to move on their own and watch out for each other while she was working out personal business. She trusted them to band together and stay strong until she came home. She gave them the chance to come speak with her.

They didn't.

Twilight locked out the world, Rarity became slightly hollow, Applejack tried to bury her emotions in her work, Pinkie tried to force smiles on everyone's face, and Fluttershy just sat and cried. None of them were deserving of Rainbow’s help, of her trust, or of the truth.

How can they be entitled to such liberties if they can’t be trusted enough to care for themselves? How can they be expected to help others when they couldn’t even help themselves?

They couldn't.

“That brings me to another thing I wanted to talk about,” Dusk started again, standing up from his seat, and glaring down to the lost and angered face of the elements. “I think you girls need to start at square one.” The room’s collective attention fell on the halfbreed as he started to walk towards the stairs. “None of you have any remote idea what real power is or how to use it.”

“And by that you mean,” Twilight started, standing up with the others, and more than tried with his attitude. “If you haven’t notice, we've fought off many threats to Equestria, and have proved our bonds to be stronger than-”

“Cut the crap,” Dusk barked at the mares, getting them to back down as he took a much more roomy seat on the stairs. “Threats to Equestria, what a joke! At the most any of you have done was defeating princess Nightmare and Luna, other than that, you girls have been tools.” Applejack would have jump over the couch and gave Dusk piece of her mind if it was for Fluttershy and Pinkie holding her back, not like she could do anything to the halfbreed.

Dusk looked at the struggling mare with mild-amusement. Honestly, he was expecting them to be much more than this, but he should have known better. “If your ‘bonds’ are as strong as you claim they are,” he started, getting Applejack to stop struggling for a moment. “Then why haven’t any of you notice that Rainbow was in Blatimare this whole time?”

Applejack opened her mouth to speak but no words were made. The others tried the same thing but they too met the same helpless faith. Another long pause overtook the room as the elements mindlessly opened and closed their mouths looking for an answer but not finding one.

“See,” Dusk again broke through their thoughts as he stood from the step. “None of you knows what it really means to have a bond with another, and if you somehow do, your too irresponsible enough to act on said bond.” Dusk looked in each of the elements’ eyes, all speaking lost and hesitation just like Rainbow. “Pathetic.” Turning around, Dusk started up the stairs to finally get some much deserved sleep, but not before casting one final look down towards the group.

While the elements came to the realization of how weak their bonds truly were, Obsidian was musing over the fact that they weren't dealing with the man Dusk is today, instead, the cold teenager he was, and knew that he had officially lost all of his respect towards the elements.

“Get out of my house.”

Author's Notes:

Sorry for the wait, been messing around with friends, and trying to now get a job since school is out. None of you should ever worry about me stopping anytime soon. I have little plans of doing that, but I can't control the world so...stuff can happen but whatever. As always, any thoughts of how this is going and of the different characters is greatly welcomed.

-Till Next Time~