One mighty paw lifted and gently placed its weight upon the head of the curled-up mare, lightly stroking through her long pink hair in an attempt to offer comfort to the sniffling woman. Silence, beyond her quiet whimpers and sniffles, permeated the root cellar, but Harry the Bear liked the quiet. However, the bear knew it was only a matter of time before Angel noticed she was missing, and the bunny got loud when he was annoyed. “Better to call him down. He might try to comfort her... in his way.”

One massive paw lifted free of Fluttershy’s back, and gave a light tug on the bellcord. Normally they rang the bell upstairs, and the cord made his chime when they wanted his attention. But the same worked in reverse, and in the distance, he could hear the chime by the basement door ring at his small tugs.

Angel wasn't one for being quiet when called down the stairs. As short as he was, the bunny stomped down the staircase, yelling the whole time. "I'm busy, Harry! Fluttershy gave me this list of things she needs packed and now she’s suddenly gone and dis-" Realizing he had an audience for his ranting, Angel cut himself off and walked across the bare dirt cellar to Harry's side. Crossing his arms and staring down at the weeping mare, he gave a half-hearted sigh. "Fluttershy, you said you needed to pack, and now I find you curled up down here? Surgery or no, if you aren't up to helping pack, why don't you go to bed? It’s going to be a long hike, so you might as well get some rest, right?"

Lifting her head from the bear's chest, Fluttershy turned her teary eyes to the young rabbit, her free arm wrapping around his neck, pulling him into her lap and squeezing him against her heavy bosom. "Oh! Angel! It isn’t the surgery! They want us to go drive off a... a... a Dragon!" Torn with tears of raw terror, she returned to burying her face into Harry's fur, her hold on Angel unrelenting.

Shocked, but choking for air, Angel was forced to contend between the massive weight of Fluttershy's heaving chest, and her nearly unbreakable grip around his neck. He kicked with both feet trying to push off of Harry's body. After he managed to get into something of a serviceable position that allowed him to breathe again by pressing both hands onto the mare’s chest, he cried out. "Fluttershy, you're crushing me!"

As realization dawned on her, Fluttershy was first shocked and started to darkly blush before she quickly let go of Angel, quickly switching gears into a more attentive and concerned mindset, pushing away her embarrassment at where Angel’s hands were pushing against. With one careful hand, she soothed the bunny's ruffled fur, cooing softly with concern. "I... Oh, I'm sorry Angel. I was just so scared. I'd really hate myself if you ever got hurt!" Leaning in and planting a light kiss to his cheek, she moved her other arm from his throat to inspect it to comfort her own concerns. "Oh, dear. Well, I don't think it will bruise, but I want you to take it easy for a few days. Harry! You can help him run the clinic while I'm away, right??"

With ponderous care, Harry inspected the mare and bunny in his lap. Giving it some thought, he gave a slow nod, before speaking. "So, you will go?"

Releasing Angel once she was sure he was fine, Fluttershy looked up to the bear and stroked his cheek with her open palm. "I have to! I can't leave Rarity and Dusk and all the others facing a dragon! Even if just the thought of one makes my knees knock-"

While Angel quickly ran for freedom, Harry gave Fluttershy a very careful hug. "Then I will help. Little rabbit handles small things, I, big. We can hold together until you return. Promise."

Glad for the support and comfortable in the giant bear's hug, Fluttershy relaxed, if only a little. "Thank you both, really!"

Still rubbing his throat with care, Angel shot a glare at the mare. "And if all else fails, you could probably take it in a wrestling match."

Dusk walked down the line of gathered mares, inspecting each girl’s packages and trying to hide the fact the hot black coffee he was drinking had as much to do with his current upright posture as the supposed sleep he hadn’t taken.

Rarity's bags caught Dusk’s eye, forcing him to stop and look over the pile of eight bags she hovered over. Feeling the weight of his gaze, she turned, shaking her head. “I- I couldn’t decide on just what to bring. It’s a dragon living in the mountains, you see, so-”

Just as Dusk stepped forward to hush her, Applejack laughed and gave her a light shove on the shoulder. “It’s okay, sugarcube. You’ve got a few hours to figure it all out, and we can leave the rest in the cart when the road runs out.”

Shocked at Applejack’s clear thinking, Dusk had to pause, and give it to the mare. Turning back to face Rarity, he grinned. “See? AJ is right. Toss it all in, and worry about sorting through the important parts as we go.” In his own mind, Dusk couldn’t dismiss the fact he had been planning to simply make her leave things behind, despite the fact AJ’s applecart stood but a few feet away.

Bronze Feather’s voice cut through a gap in the conversation, forcing Dusk to turn to face her. “Excuse me, Ambassador Dusk? If Rainbow Dash doesn’t have a set of flight armor, I have a spare chainmail set with me.”

Dusk gave a shrug, looking next at Dash, who stood at attention in the flight suit Rarity had given her for her birthday. The high-quality aerial suit was only reinforced silk with wool lining. “It is a good idea, Dash. And it’s an excuse for you to get use to the weight of armored flight.”

Dash walked away from her two sacks, her eyes inspecting the light plate armor that the pegasus soldier wore. “I- well, I have flown with a load before, but not with armor restricting my movement. Maybe something light, like a chainmail vest?”

Bronze gave a nod, and opened the clasps of her heavy military backpack. Of them all, she was clearly the most prepared for this trip, with a single major pack designed to be carried on a long march, with two smaller bags attached to the bottom for extra storage. The only flaw of the setup Dusk could see was that it would prevent her from flying with the pack on her back, and when marching, the hanging bags would hit her in the thigh as they marched. The sound of metal rubbing against metal pulled him back from his attempts to figure out a smooth solution to both situations, and back to watching Bronze hand the polished metal shirt to Dash.

“So, I just put this on? Doesn’t the metal rub a bit roughly with your flight suit?” Dash’s worried look almost made Dusk snicker. It was clear she wasn’t so much concerned about ruining her flight suit, but the simply uncomfortable nature of the metal shirt.

The question made Bronze realize she had forgotten something. Returning to her pack, she removed a thick cotton shirt, offering it to Dash while holding the armor for her. “Put this on first, we always wear some padding below the chain to prevent chafing. It’s a bit warm, but once you get high enough, the breeze makes it manageable.”

Watching as Dash pulled on the large shirt, then the armor vest, Dusk’s eyes began to pick up the straps and clasps used to keep the armor in place in flight. As realization dawned, he stepped in, even as Bronze knelt down, to help Dash with the same straps. Nodding to the soldier, Dusk spoke up. “Shining Armor didn’t ask for my help with this much, but a few times, I helped him put on his own gear. This seems the same, just with extra straps and buckles to keep it from getting loose in flight.”

Giving him a grin, Bronze nodded. “Just so, ambassador. The only two that are critical are the straps under the legs, as the armor is prone to sliding forward during sudden changing of pace during flight.” Then came helping Dash slide her wings back through the slits in the armor and shirt, and binding those holes closed around the muscle of her wing base, that was a lot different, but Dusk caught up quickly, assisting with the straps towards the end. When it was completed, Dash stood, still proudly wearing her new flight suit, but now with the protective dull cotton and heavy metal chain on top.

Looking over herself, Dash shook her head a little. “Aww, man the Wonderbolts never look this lame! Do they have blue-colored armor or something to blend with their uniforms?”

Surprised, Dusk looked to Bronze, not really aware of the answer to that question himself. Bronze stood back, appraising the fit of some of the locks and buckles, before realizing Dash had asked a question. Stepping in to test a strap, she at last answered. “It’s more complicated than that. The ‘Bolts have display uniforms, like what you saw them wearing when they brought me to town. They’re mostly reinforced with silk and designed to allow for maximum movement and show. But when they go into the field, they have heavier suits, with the same outer layer of blue silk, but with chain mail sewn between the layers. Some of the strongest Wonderbolt flyers will even go with very thin mithril plates between the layers, but even that consists of only small plates, not a full suit. Just enough to protect their chest, throat, lower back, maybe between the wings. Really, from what I’ve seen in the armor in for repairs, the whole problem with the Wonderbolts’ armor is that it’s an attempt to find a compromise between protection and movement, as their speed is the ‘Bolts’ best defense.”

As Dash shifted the new weight across her shoulders in an attempt to get more comfortable in the armor, she tried a few stretches while listening intently to Bronze before speaking up again. “You know, this isn’t too bad. Sure, it’s another fifteen or so pounds, but I can get use to it. We did training in flying with weapons and leather armor at flight school back in Cloudsdale, you know.”

Bronze Feather laughed, stepping in to test one more strap and tighten it another few inches. “You should have grown up in Canterlot. Our flight school focused more on the Royal Guard’s armor. So we trained in plate mail from the age of twelve or so. Having a full set of flight mail weighing forty or fifty pounds strapped on and trying to learn how to dodge when somepony is throwing wooden spears at you was hard!” Turning back to her pack and resealing it, Bronze tossed it into AJ’s cart to rest among the other packages of food and the tents. Turning back to Dusk and Dash, she offered a smile. “Do you want to go try it out while the others get prepared? The last of the ‘Bolt cadets should be passing over town soon, we can meet up with them while you adjust to the weight.”

Turning to Dusk for permission, Dash gave a grin as she nodded and leapt into the air, her wings beating in an attempt to take flight… and for a moment she hung there, attempting to gain height as she adjusted to the weight across her chest. Together, she and Bronze would circle around and lift themselves higher into the air, before at last taking off into the the sky and heading to the northeast. As Dusk turned to look over the other mares, he pulled out his checklist again, lifting his voice. “Alright! So, before we take off, let’s just go over the checklist of supplies everypony should have, one last time, just to make sure.”

The combined groan of the gathered ponies was the last Dash heard as she soared ever higher. She really felt like a lead weight had been attached to her chest, and unlike when she carried something while flying, the weight was ever shifting, even with all the straps. Adjusting her grip upon the pole of her lance, Dash drew her arms up against her chest, while adjusting her grip to streamline her body, trying to test her body to the limit, and push for ever more speed. “I can do it. It isn’t easy, but I can almost reach my top speed. It’s even easier when I dive, but pulling out of a dive is so hard. It feels like my wings are going to snap when I go too fast.”

Pausing to look back over her shoulder at the trailing figure of Bronze Feather, the real shock of the situation dawned on her. While she had been testing her wings, testing the weight, Bronze had flown in a straight line, and had been nearly keeping pace with her. Pulling back and up, Dash turned in, until she flew level with Bronze, yelling to be heard over the wind of their flight. “So you practice flying in armor a lot, I take it, right? But with that plate, you must feel sluggish. But I’m guessing it makes it easier to dodge with a short dive or twist to the side, right?”

Looking up to the slightly younger mare, Bronze gave a nod, pointing to Dash’s lance. “It’s just like how you can use the weight of your lance to help pull your body into an unpredictable flight pattern, just by throwing the lance from one hand to another, giving you an easy advantage over somepony trying to attack you. I can’t do spirals, or recover from dives like you can. My armor is too heavy, it’d probably snap my wings if I tried it. But with care, I can dive bomb far harder than you can. If we need to pick somepony up, you’d be the better choice, I take too long to regain speed.”

Dash laughed, shaking her head. “After Nightmare Moon returned, we ended up having a ledge break off under our feet. With Fluttershy’s help, we avoided anypony getting hurt, but I get what you're saying. I was far faster than Fluttershy in flight, so I beat her in trying to catch Dusk.”

For a while, both returned to watching the land pass below as they flew, but a distant dot pulled Dash’s attention back to the sky. It was… “A cadet? Well, she said more were on patrol.” Turning to look at Bronze, Dash saw only focused on the mare’s eyes, while the still figure awaited their approach. While the Cadet waited for their arrival, Dash picked out small quirks in her movement, the wrinkles in her uniform, and the way she hovered. All of it suggested that she must have been pulling an all nighter.

Just as Dash began to slow down, the Cadet snapped a salute, if somewhat exhaustedly, before speaking up. “Final collection of reports for the ambassador. The next class of cadets will arrive tonight to perform new patrols.”

While Dash attempted to copy the mare’s salute, Bronze Feather reached out, and accepted the shoulder satchel that rattled with the collected scrolls contained inside. Bolting the stack to her armor, she returned the salute. “Thank you, cadet. Are you flying all the way back to Cloudsdale today? You look haggard.”

Blushing, and attempting to stand taller, she looked to the two younger mares. “I’m fine. But we are on orders to wait in Canterlot, to take over patrols at dawn tomorrow. With the two main Wonderbolt wings occupied, we have been assigned to give you all the assistance we can. Senior Cadet Surprise will lead the wing doing patrols tonight while Senior Cadet Misty Fly is leading our wing come dawn.”

Dash gave a shrug when it was clear that the Cadet has ran out of things to say, and smiled to the mare. “Maybe you should head back then. It’s getting late enough, and Canterlot has got to be nearly a three-hour flight, if you’re as tired as you look. Thanks for the news, and we’ll let Dusk know you’re watching out for us.”

Dismissed, and happy for it, the Cadet saluted again, before turning and flying off towards Canterlot. Turning to Dash, Bronze gave her a nudge in the ribs, through her new armor. “Good enough test flight? If so, let’s head back. The ambassador and the others will probably already be on the road by now.”

Dash drooped, and shook her head. “You’re right. I feel like we’ve been up here for a few hours. Carrying an extra twenty pounds really gets exhausting after a while.”

Lyra shifted hir weight, looking around Derpy’s storage barn. “Derpy was right, nopony comes to visit her here at the trainyard. It’s nice and quiet, maybe I have a chance to clear my head.” Alone in the wide storage barn, Lyra opened the clasps on the case of hir favorite harp, fingers tracing across the polished oak frame. The next few minutes were spent adjusting the strings, tightening them and testing the sound until they sung just right.

Letting hir fingers drift across the strings, the silvery tones of hir descending cords sang out, filling the air. Continuing hir aggressive dance of fingers across the strings of hir harp, shi let the music flood the massive barn and drown out all thought, all memory, all worries and fears.

Bent over hir instrument, the sudden memory of a single face kept returning to hir thoughts, a constant distraction that resisted hir attempt to clear hir head. “Bonbon? Why do you keep following me around? First it was breakfast and my laundry, then fresh flowers when I return from watching Dusk’s departure? You promise you're not flirting, yet I can feel your eyes are always on me, every second when I’m in your home.”

Leaning back on the box shi had perched upon, Lyra let hir fingers fall from the strings, and hir eyes looked off into the distance, not at the far wall, but past it. “Princess Luna and Silk’s orders. That’s when everything went wrong. They told me this mission was for Dusk’s safety, but why haven’t they replied to any of my reports? I’ve supplied details about all of their movements, not to mention Dusk’s daily routine. Yesterday, I sent off an update on Rarity’s routine, maybe a few more days, and I’ll complete Applejack’s. Not that she changes much up, but ‘worked on the farm’ doesn’t make a good report.”

“As for the other mares..? Well, Pinkie Pie’s… I think I saw a bit too much, but at least she spends all her time planning parties and baking treats. How can a mare eat that much and not get full?? Dash? Well, at least I won’t have to worry about Rainbow’s report. All she does is nap, train, or teach Scootaloo. Oh, and she eats out three meals a day. Can’t she cook at all? Can’t discern much about Fluttershy, that’s true enough. But that’s because she mainly stays indoors, or works around her little garden. And that bunny refuses to let me visit without an injured pet in need of care.”

As hir fingers continued to dance across the strings, Lyra felt hir mind drift to more pleasant thoughts. “And Bonbon? She does laundry, cleans up the public kitchen, and reads scripts while drinking jasmine tea. It leaves a really nice smell that lingers in her hai-”

The sound of somepony opening the barn door pulled Lyra from hir drifting thoughts, while Derpy paused to brush her hair from her eyes with two fingers, before noticing she wasn’t alone. “Oh! Sorry, Lyra! I know I promised you could use the barn for your private music practise. I’ll just pick up the package for Mrs. Cake and leave you in peace!”

Lyra needed only a moment to look over the mare to realize her work shirt was rumpled, and she had forgotten her mail cap. Unable to help hirself, Lyra began to laugh, and sat hir harp down upon the crate, before hopping up and nodding to the mailmare. “Then let me help you find it. It’s the least I can do to thank you for the privacy and use of your shed. Oh, by the way, you left your hat behind.”

Derpy winced, hands shooting to her head again to feel around for her missing mail cap. “What?!! Oh, darn it! Amethyst just finished stitching the logo back on for me and everything!” Pouting and stomping a foot, Derpy let her shoulders droop and walked over to the mail cage, followed by Lyra, who leaned in and gently straightened a few of Derpy’s long blond locks, moving to hook some of her hair behind her ears. Flushed with embarrassment, but happy for the attention, she grinned up to Lyra. “Oh! Thanks! Dinky offered to help me brush my hair, but she didn’t finish her school work, so I made her do that instead.”

Lyra laughed softly and stepped back to let Derpy fiddle with the new lock on the cage. “So, did Dash pay for that herself? After all the excitement as of late, I’m surprised you two had the time to worry about something as simple as a lock.”

Derpy twisted the key, and the lock at last popped open. “I was so worried! She showed up after everypony had fled town to help Dusk, and I was just standing guard here to make sure the mail wasn’t stolen. When she asked me to join the search team hunting for Dusk in the woods, I said I couldn’t, ‘cause the lock was broken! She looked really annoyed for a minute, and then flew off. Then five minutes later, she returned with Princess Cadence! And Cadence put a magic lock on the door and promised only I could unlock it, and all I had to do was touch it! So when things calmed down, I picked this new lock up, and it really worked! Just like the princess promised.”

Lyra was impressed. Shi watched as Derpy shuffled around boxes, still hunting for whatever package she needed to deliver. “The princess herself? That must have been a real honor. And you didn’t accidentally break something?”

Unable to hide her blush, Derpy wilted under Lyra’s keen scrutiny. “I… I kinda tripped, and broke her first lock spell. But it was Dash’s fault! She kept trying to make me rush out to go look for Dusk!”

Silently, Lyra added a mental note for hir report on Derpy. The mare had a heart of gold, and never broke any of her packages, or lost any of the mail. But with a streak of bad luck this long? There had to be some root cause.

Accepting a box handed back to hir by Derpy, Lyra leaned back into the desk, and found hir mind wandering back again. "A sweet smile and a soft voice, never asking penetrating questions, not to mention the smell of jasmine. A mare could get used to that kind of company."

Derpy’s sudden exclamation of joy snapped Lyra back again, and shi accepted the second package from the mail mare who turned back, locking up the cage. Grinning to Lyra, Derpy accepted the two boxes back before speaking up. "This time it wasn't even my mistake! The Cakes ordered a new baking coil for one of their fancy little cake baking ovens. You know, the ones that have the sweet-tasting frosting on top of it and baked into the middle?" When Lyra nodded, the enthusiastic blonde pegasus continued. "Well the company in Canterlot took their order, but forgot to send the mounting bracket! And the coil is very sensitive, so what with Pinkie Pie and everything, they felt it safer to store it in the lockup here until the bracket arrived! It's nice somepony trusts me despite my reputation." Pouting a little but keeping her chin up, she walked for the barn door, glad to have Lyra’s company.

A sudden knock on the door caught both mares by surprise and drew their stride to a halt. Just as Derpy shuffled her packages around to reach for the door and clear her throat, it was pushed open from the outside, and a skinny mare with a white horn and electric blue hair leaned in. She wore fuchsia sunglasses pushed all the way up to her nose and were square with her face. Flashing white teeth while snapping her fingers as she wheeled around the mail sack from the morning train, keeping it hovering in place with her magic. It was only when she spoke that her exhaustion showed through all her glamour. "Yo, Derpy! They dropped the mail off while I was getting my gear unloaded at the train. Figured the least I could do was deliver it here since you keep my special base in the lockup! Say, who’s-" Only for a moment as she turned to look at Lyra did she pause in her smooth flow of words. Despite the glasses, Lyra saw recognition in her eyes, and then she was talking again, as if she hadn't paused at all. "- this stunning giantess? New assistant in training? Rare for the mail to hire a unicorn in this small of a town."

Shocked by Vinyl’s sudden appearance, not to mention her swift flowing voice, Derpy threw her arms out to accept the mail sack, totally forgetting the packages in her hands.
Lyra was just as stunned to see an old face, even if it was one she had trouble recognizing through the heavy shades and skillfully-applied makeup, not to mention the wild new hairdo. But Lyra saw the packages falling from Derpy’s distracted hands, and swiftly wrapped them in a bubble of her magic, catching the fragile coil before it hit the ground. Returning the packages to Derpy and waving off the mare’s flustered mumbles of thanks, Lyra turned back to the newcomer. "It's a pleasure to finally get to meet you, DJ-Pon3. I used to go to all your shows in Canterlot! Oh, and my name’s Lyra. Not Derpy’s assistant, not yet at least."

Vinyl's arched brow extended up above the rim of those unpierceable glasses, and she gave a grin, one hand reaching out to shake Lyra’s hand. The presence of a note exchanging hands was done quietly, and with Derpy distracted with so much in her arms, it was totally missed. "It's always a pleasure to meet a fan, but you'll have to forgive me. It's far too bright out, and a bed, as well as my mare’s loving embrace, await me at home."

Derpy waved excitedly to the retreating mare, calling out to her retreating back. "Octavia and Amethyst are planning dinner for tonight! If you're up by then, you should come with her! Dinky loves your stories!" When all she got was a noncommittal wave of a hand over her head as a response, Derpy turned to Lyra and giggled. "Vinyl and Octavia are the best of neighbors! Hired Amethyst to do their laundry and such! They often thank us by treating us to dinner when they’re both in town! Except on their date night, of course!"

Lyra’s hand burned as she ached to open the note, but knew she couldn’t while Derpy was around. Fighting to keep herself calm, she gave Derpy a serious look before gesturing to the late morning sun. "I think you had better get going, Derpy. The Cakes will probably be delighted to finally have their new baking coil."

Gasping to herself and looking to the sun, Derpy muffled a soft curse that Lyra could have sworn was something cute and silly along the lines of "Oh! Muffins!" Adjusting her load she gave a small nod to Lyra. "You're so right! And thanks again for saving their packages!" Turning away and rushing off, she left Lyra at last alone.

The letter had a single seal, Silk had only just picked one, and Lyra still wondered if it had been chosen as a joke. A thin rapier and a brutal spiked mace crossed over a ragged pair of batwings, their leather torn and patched in places. Lyra broke the seal and read her first set of orders since she was dispatched. It only took a second.

"Agents Lyra and Minuette are to be recalled for immediate review following the ambassador’s return to Ponyville."

Dusk attempted to adjust his body between the sacks in the apple cart, every bump on the road caused him to thump against one rockhard sack or another. It had been Applejack’s insistence when she caught him trying to stifle a yawn. Now he lay with his head against Rarity's knee, while her fingers stroked his hair.

The sudden arrival of Rainbow Dash and Bronze Feather was loud, and a little more violent than Dash had been prepared for. "It's the damn armor! I thought I was getting used to it, and then I tried to land."

Pinkie was the first one to arrive at her side, bending in and nudging Dash in the side. "Dashie? Does it hurt half as much as it looks? ‘Cause it looks like you nearly managed to catch your balance after the second cartwheel!"

Deep in her own shame, Dash ignored Pinkie’s attempt to inspect her bruised ribs and help her stand up. Bronze Feather's arrival ended that, forcefully hauling her back to her feet, and brushing the worst of the dirt and grass from her face and hair. In her own way, Bronze looked both proud and embarrassed. "You did great, just gotta slow down a little sooner during a landing. It's my fault, I'm used to training foals used to wearing heavier armor than that."

Realizing that Bronze was trying to take some of the blame was almost funny. Dash couldn't help it, she snickered, and at last let Pinkie Pie in closer, giving into the mare’s need to give her a hug. The effort of resisting the need to laugh was outright straining, and it was good to see Bronze Feather returning her grin. "Nah, it's my fault. I've crashed enough times, I should have seen that coming from a mile away. Sorry about grinding so much dirt into your shiny metal armor."

Bronze cuffed Dash’s good shoulder, avoiding the one that had taken the worst of the impact with the ground. "Nah, don't be sorry. If Applejack doesn't mind, you can learn how to clean armor properly while sitting on the tailgate of the cart."

Dash’s smile died in that instant as she looked down at the ground-in dirt and grass that littered the chainmail. Pinkie’s light kiss to her cheek before cutting into the conversation didn't make the situation any more pleasant. "Don't worry, Bronze Feather! It's nearly my turn to take over pulling the cart, and I don't mind at all!"

Dusk used this situation as an excuse to sit up properly, taking the pressure off his stiff back, even if Rarity gave him a look. "Are you okay, Dash?" When she gave him a stiff grin and a thumbs up, he pointed to the sack bolted to Bronze Feather's armor. "More reports from the cadets?"

As if some magic bubble had been popped, Bronze Feather's smile died, and she snapped to attention, leaving Dash in Pinkie’s arms and quickly marched to his side. Snapping him a salute, she spoke with a more serious tone. "Yes, ambassador. The cadet also wished to inform you that Senior Cadets Misty Fly and Surprise will be leading two wings of Wonderbolt cadets to offer you eyes in the sky, and any assistance they can manage."

"Just... please, just call me Dusk. The titles are just for fluff, and I don't do well with titles." Dusk cut off his groan of annoyance when he realized one of the names Bronze had mentioned. Adjusting to face Bronze Feather as she approached, he reached out to take the sack of scrolls and began to untie the string that held the pouch closed. Dusk hunted for a hint in Bronze’s eyes. "You are sure you said Senior Cadet Surprise? Not one of the others? Say... 'Sun Rise' or 'Stormrise'?" When she shook her head, Dusk chuckled a little to himself, remembering. "She made Senior Cadet again? That's a bit of a shocker. I figured she was probably permanently demoted after 'the banana cream pie' incident. Were you there for that, Bronze Feather?"

Bronze Feather managed to keep her face stoic, attempting not to crack a smile, but Dusk caught the lines forming around the edges of her mouth, and at last she respected his request. "Fortunately, I was away at the time. Shining Armor had been put in charge of investigating who had trashed the Wonderbolt Cadet's dorm,-" Dusk could hear the very carefully measured tone in her next few words, practiced to perfection. "- an event that, I only know of due to my participation in the investigation. The fact feathers matching my own were found at the dorm is completely inconsequential." Again, Dusk caught that momentary quirk of her lip, the suppressed laughter trying to boil up.

For a moment, they stared at one another, like two actors reading from a script, before Rainbow Dash cut in without concerns for the fact she had no lines in this scene. "Wait, what? Somepony trashed the 'Bolts’ training dorm? How come I never heard about that? I'd like to clobber any knucklehead who'd show such disrespect to the Wonderbolts!"

Thankfully, Dusk and Bronze Feather's script included lines for just this situation. Of course it did, Princess Celestia had written it with great care, and after a few thousand years of juggling the balls that kept the political factions united, she had become quite the master. Dusk spoke up first. "If I remember the details of my brother’s report, nopony did. It was the result of some recruits attempting an unauthorized storm stunt on the nearby training field."

Bronze took up her side of the script, reinforcing Dusk’s words before Rainbow Dash started attempting to question the story. "Exactly amba- err Dusk. The cadets were properly punished. As were a few of the Royal Guard pegasus recruits who had been visiting the training field at the time and participated on the ill-advised stunt."

For a moment, everypony watched Dash’s reaction to the admittedly thin lie. Then, she shook her head, dismissing the story and pressing in on the topic that interested her more. "And the banana pie thing? What happened to get Surprise demoted?"

Dusk couldn’t help himself, he had to extend Dash a bone. She was a friend, after all. "Well, Surprise was visiting a friend who was a member of the guards, and was bringing him a banana cream pie. But when she arrived, Princess Celestia was reviewing the Royal Guard, since Shining Armor was out of town at the time. Well, poor Surprise got so excited when she saw her friend, she started to wave, forgetting he was in formation and couldn't wave back. Well, she got so excited, trying to catch his attention that she started to wave harder, and well-"

Dash’s amusement at Dusk’s story had melted away as he went on, and she crossed her arms over her muddy chest. "Surprise accidently hit Princess Celestia with a banana cream pie while trying to take revenge on the royal guards for trashing her dorm, didn’t she?"

Bronze Feather couldn’t stop herself from snorting, and most of the other mares were hiding laughter behind a hand, except for Pinkie Pie, who had collapsed to the grass, and was convulsing with unsuppressed giggles and snorts of laughter, not to mention the hint of drool at the edge of her mouth. Applejack as the exception, she simply waited, still holding the cart harness she had been preparing to strap onto the other earth mare before this story had driven her into a fit of laughter, but even she was grinning. Dusk gave in, nodding. "Unofficially, yes. Officially, she dropped it by accident. Either way, she is quite fortunate that Princess Celestia loves banana cream pie."

At last Dash joined the group's laughter, giving in to the humor of the image this conjectured up. "Alright, I get it. The cover story is to save face and avoid more infighting between the Royal Guard and the Wonderbolts. But who started it? And why single Surprise out for punishment specifically?"

Bronze Feather swallowed, pushing aside her own laughter. "I wasn't there, but apparently it was because she was the only one who threw their pie. All the others stopped the attack when they saw Princess Celestia giving her guards a stern dressing down. Plus, the rest had the good sense to flee, Surprise was laughing too hard."

Dusk at last came to Surprise's defense. "I'll admit, when Princess Celestia requisitioned my shower since it was located so close to the parade grounds, I swear I heard her laughing before leaving to get some of her handmaidens and a replacement dress."

Pinkie at last recovered enough of her self control to speak up, though she was still snorting, and kept stopping to catch her breath. “That’s-” A giggle. “That’s cousin Surprise!” Now a gasp. “She’s a giant barrel-” Next a snort. “of laughs!”

Now Pinkie had everypony’s attention, but Applejack, who was dragging her back to standing with one firm grip on her collar, lashing the cart’s harness across her shoulders. When she was tied in place, AJ at last spoke up. “How’s about you use some of that wild energy to help make up for this long break, and tell us your story while we walk.”

Happy to be of help, Pinkie lifted her hands to grip the harness, to occupy her hands while she started to force the cart into rolling again. Gleeful, she called out over her shoulder to her friends. “Oh, it’s nothing that big! She’s my mother’s cousin’s niece’s sister! We got to hang out one summer ten years ago at a family reunion, and we’ve been exchanging letters for years since! Oh! And ever since she got into the Wonderbolt Cadets, we’ve been writing each other at least once a week!”

Rainbow Dash was shaking Pinkie by her shoulders, interrupting her walk to the bushes, still in awe of the mare. “But she's your cousin... and a Wonderbolt..." Rainbow exclaimed painfully. "I love hearing everything about them! In fact, it's vital to my career that I know as much as I can about them, network with them, learn their moves, their tricks, get inside their heads! Why wouldn't you tell me about something so potentially life-changing that it might make my dreams come true, help me fulfill my life's ambitions, ascend to stardom... why didn't you tell me you had a cousin in the Wonderbolts?!"

Rainbow stared into Pinkie's eyes mournfully, like a puppy that had been kicked one too many times.

"...Because you never asked, silly!"

Releasing Pinkie, and looking down, Dash raised a finger. “Okay, yeah, you’re right. But she’s a Senior Cadet! You still could have told me! Do you know what training she does? How often does she go for sustained solo distance flights? What kind of diet does she have?”

Hiding her face behind a hand, Pinkie tried to suppress a snort of delight. After a day of long marching, with the sun beginning to set, it was finally time to set up camp, but so far since Pinkie had been released from her harness, Dash had been nothing but questions. “Oh, we don’t talk about that kind of stuff! She’s far more interested in my latest party, and I’m more excited to talk about her favorite game!”

Enthralled, Dash leaned in again, grabbing Pinkie’s shoulders and grinning with wild abandon. “She has a favorite game? What is it!!”

Distracted as she was by talking with Pinkie, Rainbow Dash never noticed somepony was sneaking up on her from behind with expert skill, until the sudden shock of fingers tickling at her ribs, and a voice whispering into her ear. "Surprise!!"

Dumbfounded that somepony could sneak up on her, Rainbow Dash leaped straight into the air, twisting about and trying to see who had been behind her. Nopony was there. Turning to look back at Pinkie, who had collapsed to the grass and was in another laughing fit, Dash glowered at her friend. “Hey! How’d you-”

Only to be cut off as she again found herself being tickled from behind, that same snickering voice came from somewhere behind her, despite her now flying ten feet off the ground. Dash twisted around in place, and a mare that could have easily been mistaken for Pinkie’s twin, save for her hair and tail color were a pale blond in contrast to Pinkie’s pink, and a few other minor differences in face and weight, leaned in until their noses nearly touched, grinning with wicked glee. “Boo!”

Falling back in shock and dropping to the ground, Rainbow Dash found herself caught by Pinkie, who leaned in close, while still suppressing a snort, and finally answered Dash. “That, is cousin Surprise’s favorite game!”

Landing beside the mares, Surprise saluted, but burst into a fit of soft laughter all her own. “Sorry, Rainbow Dash! But when I saw you pestering cousin Pinkie Pie about me, well, how could I resist!? Now where is the ambassador? Princess Celestia wanted me to check up on him and make sure he wasn’t stressing himself out over this dragon business. She said he apparently does that sometimes?”

It was Pinkie’s turn to groan a little, and pointed back towards the mostly empty applecart. “He does. And even I can only make him laugh occasionally. Applejack said she was going to take him to go chop some firewood for cooking dinner, and our campfire tonight.”

Surprise stood tall and gave Pinkie a serious salute. Snickering to herself slightly afterwards, she took off in the direction Pinkie had pointed, circling a little to gain height. From below, her cousin shouted up extra help. “Look for Bronze Feather! She said she was going with them to keep watch!”

Dash had finally managed to regain her footing as Pinkie’s cousin took off, and turned to look back at her still-giggling friend. “You saw her coming and kept me distracted, didn’t you?”

Pinkie gave a shrug, and started walking towards the bushes to ‘take care of her business’. “So? Even if I hadn’t, cousin Surprise is awfully good at sneaking up on a pony. I think it’s part of her talent!”

Dusk’s axe cut into the wood with a satisfying thunk. The fact Applejack was already carrying the logs she had picked out to make into kindling back to the camp didn’t bother him. She had shown how far her talent with trees went. What took him three swings of the axe to achieve, she only needed one easy blow, and it wasn’t just her strength. She could see the weak points in the wood and be able to splinter any trunk with a single blow. “Besides. It’s like she said, I’m here to get my exercise in for the day, sore shoulders or not.”

Dusk drew the axe free of the log, and lifted it high over his head once more, instantly eliciting a cry of pain from his tense shoulders, and stiff back. “It’d be so much easier to just cheat, cut up this rotten log with a quick little spell. But AJ? She would just know. Somehow, she’d figure it out. And I can’t stand to see her disappointed.”

Thwonk went his axe, as it bit through the log again, breaking it into two uneven chunks. He was sweating already, and was glad he had hung his fall jacket upon a nearby tree branch. At that moment, a whistle cut through the quiet thicket of trees from above, Bronze Feather’s warning making him freeze and look up.

The mare sat in the branches of the strongest tree, near the top so she could get a better line of sight. But she also stood out like a silver beacon in her polished armor, and was standing up, adjusting the lance she had taken from her supplies when they came to this clearing. A blue and yellow blur cut across the sky, and pulled to a sudden halt directly before Bronze Feather, snapping off a quick salute. “Senior Cadet Surprise to see the ambassador, unless you already fed him to the dragon?”

Dusk could have sworn he heard Bronze growl beneath her breath, but she lowered her lance and began to relax her wings, returning to the tree she had just lept from. “He is in the clearing below. And he doesn’t like the title, so call him Dusk. But don’t think I’m taking my eyes off you, Surprise. You might be a Senior Cadet again, but I’m still the head of his bodyguard.”

“Bodyguard? I’d never even thought of things in those terms. Does that change anything important?” Dusk waved to the Wonderbolt as she looked for him between the trees, before giving an excited giggle and waved back at him.

Undaunted, Surprise dove between the tree branches over Dusk's head, twisting around into a last-second midair cartwheel and landing before him, leaving enough distance between them to avoid an accidental swing of his axe. Snapping him a smart salute, Surprise couldn’t hide her grin. "Apologies, Ambassador Dusk Shine. I wanted to bring you my traditional greeting pie, but my second-in-command, Fall Gusts, suggested you might not find the humor in the offer."

The laughter that danced in those eyes reminded Dusk of Pinkie, the fact they were the same eyes, yet with such a different shade, only made her a more intriguing enigma. Dusk settled the head of his axe between his feet, blade turned towards the mare. "Hello, Senior Cadet Surprise. Is this your third time with that title now? Or only the second? You know some of your pranks have become local legend around Starswirl University."

Crossing her arms behind her back, and attempting to imply a coy innocence, Surprise curled out her lip to project how injured she felt. "But ambassador! I meant no harm! Besides, you must agree, Blaze and Spitfire looked way better as platinum blonds!”

Dusk leveled a stare back at Surprise’s attempt to hold her own pout of injured innocence, and he broke. Unable to stop himself, he gave a soft snicker and at last laughed, unable to keep back his own happy chuckles afterwards. "I wasn't there, so I didn't see Blaze, but Spitfire looked rather... put out when she came to watch the magicball game at SSU the day after."

Applejack’s hollering voice cut through their shared laughter. "Dusk! You can chop while she delivers her report, by the Light! You should have twice this much chopped by now!"

Unable to help but blush, Dusk shrugged an apology to Surprise and took a measure of the distance between them, before hefting the axe back over his head. "Mind stepping a few more feet back? Wouldn't want to hurt a Wonderbolt while chopping wood."

Happy to oblige, Surprise drifted back a few more feet, still watching him, and pulling her aviation goggles back into place. "Nah, no worries. My wing should be arriving in the next hour or two, so I should go collect Misty Fly's reports. If that Diamond Dog miner pack goes any further south, we might be forced to remind them about the terms of their mining contract." Turning around and grinning at Applejack, Surprise gave her a wink. "And don't be too rough on him, grumpy pants! A stallion with a smile is much better company than one overworked." Giggle-snorting as she flew off, Surprise spared just enough time to lazily salute Bronze Feather before flying out of sight.

Silken Flight took few, very cautious steps across the surface of the cloud. Any reassurances the two commanders had given her didn’t put a dent into her mistrust of the cloud island, and a fall from this high up was going to hurt, wings or not. All around the white base of operations, Wonderbolts of various ranks ran in practiced precision. "And that's the other thing. This high up, everypony has so much high altitude gear on, you can’t even tell a stallion from a mare!"

Most of the 'Bolts were wearing full mission-grade extreme altitude flight gear. The bodysuits were cut skin tight, in theory, but with the wafer thin mithril plate or chain mail and wool layers to keep out the cold, they all appeared more like an army of white and yellow exclamation points. Even that had come as a shock. "What had Fleetfoot said? Oh, yes: White instead of the normal blue. This high up, it blends with the clouds better, and nopony has eyes good enough to make out the difference between yellow and white this far away."

That's where everything had gone wrong, of course. Few of her tribe had ever made it into the Wonderbolts, so they had even fewer spare specialty uniforms built for the broader and heavier bat wings. In the end, the only uniform that had been close enough to be a fit was from a high-altitude flight suit from some cadet. The modifications to make it suitable for this height had been rushed, and left her feeling like a penguin. "And it leaks. The 'Bolts' seamstress swears she has triple checked every seam, inside and out. But every breeze rippled through this damn makeshift suit, leaving me half frozen.” So with a sleeping bag wrapped over her shoulders, she crossed to the command tent, and the two stallions on watch opened the flap for her.

Inside, four bodies clustered around a map of the mountain side, covered in black and green pins. Caves that had been searched, and caves in need of searching. Quickly, they adjusted their group to make room for her. The 1st Lieutenant returned to her report. "Pending any updates from the Princesses, and going at the current rate our scouts are covering the caves, I've put an estimate on completion at around twenty three hours. And if you remember Senior Cadet Surprise's report, Dusk and his crew will arrive in their danger zone in around twenty-five hours. Twenty if the Diamond Dogs stay out of the way. Currently, I put our top flyers at three hours at top speed, and they won't be in any condition to help when they get there."

Spitfire looked at her younger sister, shaking her head. "Our orders stand, Blaze. We can’t risk moving our camp closer, and we are already running double shifts on the scouts. They have thirty-odd cadets, all with at least two years training and a minimum of six weeks experience on patrols along the griffon border. We've given them every spare wing we have that can help. I refuse to order any of the green cadets into the field, they'd only cause trouble."

Everypony gave another glance at Silken Flight, even in her heavy bundle. She sighed, knowing the meaning behind their pause. "Our orders stand. I am here only to observe your units in action. If that changes, I'll be sure to inform you immediately. Until then, just keep running the situation as you interpret your existing orders, major."

"So you've never seen an adult dragon either, Dash? But I thought they let even potential Wonderbolt cadets go on tour to one of the friendly dragon broods!" Pouting, Pinkie continued to stir the heavy iron cauldron. The thick soup inside had finally began to bubble, and as dark as the broth was, bits of the mixed veggies she had put in occasionally floated to the surface. And mushrooms. Lots of mushrooms. Probably half the ingredients had been mushrooms.

It made Rainbow Dash question why Pinkie continued to insist everypony call it Lilly and Daisy soup. She had checked Pinkie’s food bags, and they only had nine lilies, and six daisies. "Besides! She has yet to add any of them to the soup!"

Keeping her cool, Dash dragged a smoothing stone over the mithril lance head, attempting to remove any burs that might have formed on the surface before speaking. “Yes, that’s the idea. But not until you are at least eighteen, except when escorted by a parent, or guardian. Dad-” She sighed a little. “Dad refused. I think he was just being overprotective.”

Pinkie started to shape her lips into a pout until the sound of approaching voices let them all know that Dusk, Applejack, and Bronze Feather were finally returning. Turning around to look at the arriving trio, she called out to Bronze Feather. “Have you ever seen a dragon, Bronze?"

Called over by Pinkie’s question, Bronze Feather joined them, but her eyes were drawn more towards the masterful workmanship of the weapon Dash was bent over with a silk cloth, polishing it further. "A dragon? Just once or twice. One was like Dusk’s daughter, you know? Two arms and legs... what do you call them?"

Dusk held a collection of bowls up for Pinkie to start spooning out the soup, and spoke up to answer. "Anthropomorphic is the technical terminology. Species gets a little tougher to determine with dragons beyond that point, but my research with Princess Celestia led us to several possible species: the noble Purgalabrah; the swift Gru-"

Bronze Feather looked like she might just put up with Dusk’s ongoing rambling dissertation on the list of potential dragon species Barb might have been born to, so Pinkie cut him off, finishing the last few bowls of soup and garnishing every bowl with one of each flower, save the seventh that had two lilies instead. "Give me the one with the two lilies, Dusk. I can’t short one of you guys, and I like the lilies better!”

With his attention pulled away from his list by Pinkie, Dusk used his magic to pass her the bowl she wanted. Bronze wilted a little now that Dusk wasn’t watching her, and gave Pinkie a nod of thanks before continuing. “Yes, anthro- whatsits. She was nearly fourteen feet tall and around eight or nine hundred years old, some elder dragon’s favorite daughter or student that had been sent to visit Princess Celestia. About a week later, Shining Armor took me along to deliver a present from that elder dragon to another one that lives on an island about three hundred kilometers out to sea from Fillydelphia. He was massive in comparison, I hadn’t finished my scout training, so I’m forced to guess based off memory and not the tricks we are taught about counting large numbers quickly and how to judge distance and scale. So let me just say his maw was big. Very big. Let's just say it was larger from jaw to snout then Princess Celestia is tall.”

The sudden sounds of a whimper, a small splash, and a thud made everypony turn to look towards the source. Fluttershy had collapsed backwards and her dinner bowl pouring out on the ground at her feet.

Author's Notes:

Go easy on me, guys! This is my first attempt at deliberately trying to be funny. I hope it goes over well!

Anyways. Notes time. I'm going to start using these notes as a little update kinda concept. So to begin!

Currently I am working with Wrabbit on the end of Interlude 3 Part 4's rewrite. It's going great, and I can't wait to see what you guys think of the improvements we've made, most of all thanks to Wrabbit pointing out I am an idiot!

Secondly, of late I've noticed a trend that I've been trying to ignore, but I've decided, just this once, I'd like to ask you all a favor. Most of you may not have noticed, but until now, the story has hovered around 218ish upvotes and 28 down. Now I normally wouldn't care, but in the last six or so days I've received another 4 downvotes with no comments left. I consider this story a FANTASTIC success, and don't think upvotes / downvotes make a difference to that, the feedback I get is what really gives me joy. But just this once, I'll ask: If you guys haven't upvoted the story, I would be very grateful if you could leave an upvote. I promise I'll never pester you guys with this kind of a request again, I just feel irate that I got so many downvotes in such a short period of time for no reason. I know, I know. I'm being petty. I apologize.

On the other hand: If you have downvoted my story, or have a friend who has, I beg you, please, leave me any comments at all! I'd love to know anything you've had a problem with, or think I can improve. I know this is silly to ask, since I'm sure the majority of people who have downvoted the story probably don't read it anymore, but I'm hoping this will get me some suggestions or advice. Again, thanks for any feedback you can provide!

And lastly: Thank you for taking the time to read my rambling notes! I hope you all have enjoyed it, and I can't wait to give you more to read.