Tuesday, March 29th, 4am. Dusk Shine’s Library.

Bronze never needed an alarm clock; a lifetime of rising with the guards before dawn and drilling until her hands went numb had tuned her internal clock to perfection.

Moving with care by the faint starlight that shone through her open blinds, she dressed and collected her weighted bracers and shin guards. While together they hardly broke twenty pounds, Bronze enjoyed the reminder of just how heavy her real armor was in comparison. It made her normal workout a pleasure against memories of exercising in full mail.

With her weights attached, Bronze stepped out into the hallway, only to be shocked to see that a dim light emanated from the library. Walking carefully on the carpeted floor, she peeked around the corner.

The sight of Dusk passed out over two open books on his desk, snoring quietly in the gentle glow of a crystal lamp, was mesmerizing. Watching his steady breathing and the way his hair fell across half his face made her pause a moment, and she couldn't help but smile.

Entering the library, she approached Dusk where he slept at his desk. Gently gripping his shoulders, she pushed him back against the headrest, pulling a spare blanket from the couch to wrap over his shoulders. For what felt like an hour, she looked for excuses to linger, first smoothing back his hair, then listening to his quiet breathing.

Finally, she bookmarked the two thick research books on his desk, making sure to get the right page. Cleaning the rest of his desk, her eyes were drawn to the gold filigree title of one of the books. 'The Grand Disasters of Ancient Equestria'. Emblazoned on the cover, an image she remembered from her grandmare's foal tales. The two princesses stood together at the base of a mound, surrounded by the six Elements of Harmony. Atop the hill, a towering stallion stood, dressed like a madman, his head thrown back in laughter.

Whispering to herself, she felt the hair on the back of her neck rise from some shared fear of the stallion pictured. "By The Light! This is the kind of thing he researches when things calm down!?"

Finally the rising glow of the predawn sun told her that she'd lingered too long. Going to the door, she looked back one last time at the sleeping stallion, memorizing every line in his face and the way his body lay, tension visible even now as he slept.

Outside the library, the air was crisp and she could see her breath, but it was nothing a brisk jog couldn't solve. Setting her stride, Bronze stretched out her wings in a way she couldn't manage inside the house, enjoying the early morning’s quiet breeze between her feathers.

Turning onto the main road, a heavy scent in the air came directly from the smokestacks over Sugarcube Corner, making her mouth water. Turning another corner, she tried to ignore the smell of fresh baking, continuing on in a straight line, until she encountered the thin, rutted perimeter road indicating she'd hit the edge of town.

The echo of a rainy night’s patrol with Shining Armor as he visited the lower city's guards came back to her just as she prepared to follow her usual routine and turn right, to jog around the outside limits of Ponyville.

"Now, young squire, why do we never follow the same path from the upper city and palace, down to the lower court and guard houses?"

Shining had been a titan, even five years ago. Then, he was the youngest of four lieutenants who shared most of the responsibility for Canterlot's detachment of the Royal Guard. Bronze had hardly come up to his ribs, yet after only two weeks of running errands for him on top of her normal training and duties, she'd been ordered to grab his shield and go on her first patrol with him.

Staring wide-eyed up at the knight, she could only shake her head, still too awed by the giant unicorn's presence to question him.

He smiled at her and ruffled her hair, his voice friendly. "Because sometimes in the execution of our duty to The Goddess, the guard make enemies. Be they the family of those criminals we catch, or simply foals up to misguided mischief. That is why a guard never walks the same path, why you never form a habit of following a routine. You only provide opportunities to those who wish you ill will. Now lift your torch high, and we will go have a word with the lower city guards."

Bronze stopped just before she turned the corner, her ears twitching. She was no scout or ranger trained by the Wonderbolts, but she could swear that...

Backing up as quietly as she could, Bronze prepared to take a running start at the opening between homes that formed the alley. She beat her wings for height, and leaped into the air so she could soar across the open mouth of the alleyway.

Twisting around in mid flight, she was shocked and a little horrified to see that it was no ambush, but a skinny mare who knelt just around the corner of the house, raking the loose dirt, probably to build a garden. The mare gasped at her antics and Bronze landed again, realizing she'd embarrassed herself with paranoia. "I- oh, sorry ma'am! Didn't mean to surprise you, I was just-"

The pressure of a hand on her shoulder made Bronze freeze, but Lyra's voice was friendly, even playful. "You know how hard Dash can be on new pegasi in town, Lily. I was just showing her the path she likes to take when she's testing how agile a mare can run."

Restraining herself from jumping out of her skin, Bronze raised a hand and scratched at the back of her head. Thankfully, the mare calmed quickly and gave them a worried nod. "Ohhh, Dash can be so demanding of new members of the weather team! I understand now! Ever since that incident last fall, Roseluck wouldn't stop talking about how Dusk and that griffon mare nearly ripped the sign off her shop when they went jogging together. What a disaster! She still won't let Dash in her flower shop!"

Dismissed by the mare who returned to her gardening, Lyra grabbed Bronze by her shoulder, directing her to follow with a jerk of hir head before taking off at a casual jogging pace.

Reading the mare's signals, Bronze turned, following after the older mare and matching her pace. For a while, Lyra remained focused, and jogging appeared to be hir only interest, driving Bronze mad with questions she wanted to ask.

Nearing the end of her patience, Bronze blurted out the first thing on her mind. "Shining Armor and Silk argued for hours if I should know you were here. The real reason, I mean."

Never turning hir focus from the rutted path around Ponyville, Lyra's voice was calm, hir breathing easy, as if the jog was no effort to hir. The unconcerned tone of hir response nearly drove Bronze mad. "And?"

Almost ready to tear out her hair, Bronze simply spat it out. “In the end, Princess Celestia told them to tell me what was relevant, but not more. You were sent here to keep Dusk safe from Trixie, and when your cover was ruined you were recalled. But Dusk requested you return and now you’re listed as ‘in reserve’ for special missions, whatever that means.”

When Lyra stopped jogging and turned to stare at her, Bronze did as well, but already on a roll, she didn’t bother waiting, and pushed on. “And I know you’ve got somepony as a contact directly to Silk and Princess Luna. And right now, Rarity thinks we should be mad at him from overworking himself with the earth ponies, but Applejack thinks he did a good job, and I caught him passed out reading at his desk again this morning, and I know if I take that to Applejack, she’ll probably just shrug it off, but if I go to Rarity, she’ll use it as proof they need to talk to Princess Cadence during his check up this week because while he tries to hide it, it’s really clear his back doesn’t just hurt him occasionally, it’s an everyday pain that isn’t getting any better, and there is just so much going on, and I’ve never had to worry about everypony else’s feelings, and I really need somepony I can talk to!”

As Bronze panted to catch her breath after losing her cool and spilling everything that had been bothering her since Winter Wrap-Up, Lyra’s neutral face split into an actual grin, and shi threw hir head back at last, laughing openly, while one hand squeezed firmly on Bronze’s shoulder. Flustered by her outburst, all Bronze could do was stare up at the older mare. But at last, Lyra finally answered her. With a new question! “You’ve never been in a herd before, or even a stallion, have you, Bronze?”

Shaking her head, but unable to break that hypnotic gaze, Bronze tried not to answer, but at last gave in. “I- Well, it's not like that! I never had time for- What I mean is, I couldn’t afford to let little things like stallions distract me- I mean, well, nopony ever suggested I need be part of a herd, or anything! It’s just that-”

Laughing at her, Lyra gave her a small shove and turned, returning to hir jogging pace. “Well now, let’s walk and talk, you clearly have energy to burn.”

Forced to run to catch up, Bronze had hardly pulled parallel when Lyra answered her, and with shocking self assurance. “The truth is, I was part of a herd once. Years ago, now. It’s a balancing act, every day, Bronze. You have to take other ponies’ feelings into account for everything you do. Tell Princess Cadence about his research, and everypony gets mad at you. Tell Rarity, and she goes to Princess Cadence or Nurse Redheart. Tell AJ and nopony does anything, and then somepony ends up hurt.”

Rolling her eyes, Bronze glared back at Lyra. “And?! So what? I know that! That’s all basic stuff! I’m not a filly!”

Playfully punching Bronze in the shoulder, Lyra arched an eyebrow. “Are you sure? No, don’t glare at me, seriously, you are young and haven't had to make big choices like this on your own, right? So you need to think about these kinds of things. You’re scared for Dusk, right? Well, I can try to help, we went to school together, but I don’t think he’d listen to much I have to say, I was friends with his brother, but he’s a lot smarter than I am. So coming to me doesn’t help much. You could go to Princess Cadence or Celestia, but they might overreact and get involved, and that could mean major changes, maybe even dragging Dusk back to Canterlot and ruining your comfortable new niche.”

Impressed with how thoroughly Lyra had thought this through, Bronze gave hir a nod. “Exactly! You see what I’m talking about! I’ve been trying to think of a way to get a grip on him. But Rarity, Cadence or Celestia would take charge, Pinkie isn’t serious enough, Barb is worried but doesn’t want to say anything, and Applejack isn’t going to budge, Dusk has her all dreamy-eyed after his hard work on the farm the other day. If you don’t think you can help, who do I go to for assistance?!”

Laughing openly, Lyra poked her in the ribs, jogging sideways as shi kept the pace even with Bronze. Hir eyes dancing with mirth. “You go to you, Bronze. Find a way to make him listen to you. You’ve got a new job now right? You’re his ‘deputy’, right? So find a way to use that new job role to make him listen to you. And if you’re still struggling, what about Nurse Redheart? She and Dusk seem to have a bit of a tug of war of wills going on. She probably wouldn’t go to Cadence right away, since she knows Cadence is coming to town this week anyways.”

Shocked at Lyra’s insight, Bronze lost her pace for a moment, and again had to push herself to catch up with hir, having not really noticed that Lyra had upped their pace quietly while they talked. When she pulled level again, Bronze had to give it to Lyra. “You… you might be right, Lyra. I suppose I could recruit Nurse Redheart’s assistance. She’s on her last nerves with his refusal to sleep, she will know how to handle him, and if she can’t, she should know about some stuff that’s been happening so she can be prepared for when Princess Cadence arrives.”

Lyra playfully nudged her with a shoulder, hir eyes full of laughter. “So come on now, what’s Dusk reading that’s keeping him up so late? Another ancient textbook that nobody’s cared to read in two hundred years like back at school?”

A chill at remembering the book’s cover ran down Bronze’s spine, but she shook it off and joined in with Lyra’s laughter and good mood, glad at least to have somepony to talk to who wasn’t invested in Dusk’s companionship. “No, nothing like that. It was an old history book, talked all about different disasters throughout history. I think he was taking notes, but he didn’t have any notebooks on the table. The worst part, get this, was the cover. It was Princess Celestia and Luna fighting some stallion who stood nearly a foot taller than them with the Elements of Harmony. But for some reason in the artwork, he wasn’t taking them seriously. Strange, right?”

Lyra gave her a nod, shrugging as they continued to run. “Somepony who was so powerful and confident that they didn’t fear the Princesses combined power AND the Elements? That does sound like some kind of walking disaster. Did you see what the book called him?”

Cursing herself for being too shy to pry further into his book, Bronze shook her head. “I- No. I didn’t want to interfere, so I just bookmarked it where he’d been reading and threw a blanket over him. I think the section he was on was titled ‘Lord Tirek’, whoever that was.”

9am, Ponyville Hospital.

When the nurse called Dusk to a private room, Bronze made her move and rose with him, following them to the room and ignoring the way the nurse eyed her as she entered with Dusk, shutting the door after she entered. Dusk lifted an eyebrow, but when she returned the gesture, he remained silent, and moved to rest on the exam table, unbuttoning his shirt and laying face down.

For a few minutes, they waited, Bronze ignoring the awkward silence that hung in the air. Without a knock, Redheart swept into the room, her face deep in a clipboard. “Alright, Dusk, just what’s up? Your blood pressure has doubled since last week, and I keep hearing that you were trying to match the earth ponies at snow plowing? Have you simply lost your mind, or do you have some secret reason I should be made awar-” Stopping in her tracks, Redheart had finally looked over her clipboard and noticed Bronze’s presence. Squaring her shoulders and slamming her clipboard down against the table, she glared directly at Bronze. “Just what are you doing here!? This is confidential, you can’t just wander in!”

Holding her ground, Bronze watched to see if Dusk would react, but when he simply looked back over his shoulder at her and raised his eyebrow again, she turned back to Redheart. “I’m his Vicarius. His health and well-being is my business now, Redheart.”

Now it was Redheart’s turn to look at Dusk, her exasperation clear as day. “Are you seriously going to let her bend the basic rules of a hospital on a whim?!”

Dusk’s lip curled and laughter entered his eyes. Turning to the side and leaning a little to the watching Bronze. “Well, historically, a Vicarius was the second to a magistrate and empowered to replace or overrule him in matter of great importance. I wouldn't advise she push her luck trying to order anypony around, but on the matter of my personal health specifically, she is technically correct."

Scowling at Bronze, Redheart snatched up Dusk's clipboard, scribbling furiously on the chart before shoving it into her hands. "Fine! I'm so glad you are here to help, Bronze. Currently, I'd like to prescribe 5 mg of Ramipril to the magistrate until his blood pressure levels out, or he admits to whatever it is he's been doing of late that's driven it up, again. Is that suitable in your opinion, Vicarius?"

"Oh, no. We talked about this before, Redheart. I know you mean well, but no drugs. It's bad enough I still get nervous urges every time I talk to Zecora. No drugs!"

Bronze accepted the chart and pretended to read it, it gave Dusk time to rant and her to think. She hadn't gone far with her field medic courses and could understand only the most basic information on Dusk's chart, but it gave her a moment to catch her breath and review the cards she'd already dealt. "Okay, I've pissed off Redheart, but I think she'll take me seriously now, and I have Dusk trapped by his own word. Now to let Redheart see the rest of my hand and hope she doesn't go straight to Princess Cadence."

Clearing her throat to try and stop what was clearly an ongoing argument between the two, Bronze made her move. "It's a blood thinner, right? Keeps a stallion's heart from exploding, relatively few side effects. Correct?"

Her rebuttal interrupted, Redheart returned her crossed focus to Bronze, and it appeared that her use of basic medical care hadn't impressed the medic. "Yes, of course. But after his episode with an emergency supply of Black Lotus, he refuses any medical advice that requires drugs. Even though he is well aware when Princess Cadence arrives, she will only prescribe the exact same dosage. And with his phantom back pain coming and going, we need to get his blood pressure under control before something catastrophic happens."

"And what if I could provide you with at least two of the sources of his increased blood pressure?"

Bronze couldn't look at Dusk as she spoke, the hurt and fear in his eyes screamed at a part of her that might have forced her to shut up. Suddenly, Redheart was the one with a growing smirk. Crossing her arms over her chest, she leaned back against the examination table. "That would be something I'd welcome hearing more about, my dear Vicarius Bronze Feather."

Bronze didn't give Dusk any time to interrupt her, as bad as it hurt to betray him, she needed to make sure he was okay first; he could hate her for betraying him later. "I discovered Dusk passed out in the library this morning, several hundred pages into two different text books, one on law, but the other was a very detailed history of living disasters, creatures or ponies who did world-ending things. And his back pain isn't phantom, he just hides it well. Take it from a mare living in his house; it's constant and flares up in his shoulders constantly, regardless of whatever he might try to claim."

Now it was Dusk's turn to give her a frustrated glower that matched Nurse Redheart’s earlier glare. Except he didn't, for just a moment his eyes twinkled with something, a laugh? Then he shrugged his shoulders and lay his face flat on the exam table surface. "I've been outmatched. I surrender. She is correct on both counts. I've been working on a special project for Shining Armor, my brother, head of Princess Celestia's royal guard, if you remember. The subject of my research is obscure, but he asked me to try to find a solution to a problem Princess Celestia has worried about since nearly the foundation of Equestria. I've been using half-doses of your tea to nap occasionally during the day to give me more time to research when I wouldn't scare anypony with the horror of the subject matter, but now that it's out, I suppose that's all been in vain. Too bad, I made great progress this winter."

The lack of annoyance or anger in his voice shocked Bronze, but Redheart didn't give him a moment of peace, and stepped up, unscientifically jabbing a finger into the ball of his shoulder. The momentary wince was so brief, Bronze almost questioned if she'd really seen it. But Redheart didn't, and pulled the clipboard from Bronze’s hands, scribbling furiously. "How long has it been this bad, Dusk? Is it spreading? Any numbness?" Shoving her clipboard back into Bronze’s hands, she gave a small gesture with her hand for Bronze to flip to the note paper. "If you can scribble his answers while I examine his back; I'll be able to transcribe proper notes later, and thanks for bringing this to my attention, Bronze."

The rest of the exam became a blur of blood, reflex, muscle and memory tests, and Bronze did her best to keep up with the blur of instructions Redheart kept throwing at her. Two pages of notes written in clipped sentences and military shorthand later, and finally Redheart sent the last vial off to the lab for examination.

Moving to sit by his head, Bronze reached out nervously for Dusk's hand, but he bridged the gap and squeezed her hand with a reassuring pressure. "Don't worry, Bronze. I'm not sure if I like this side of you, but it does remind me of the way two important mares in my life behave when I tried to hide things from them as a foal."

A little shocked, she tried to stay calm, and enjoyed his firm grip. "Two mares you hid things from?"

Winking at her, Dusk's voice was playful. "My mother and Princess Celestia. They both always knew when I was trying to hide something, or get away with anything. One time, before she could talk, Barb ate one of Shining Armor's favorite Hearth's Warming decorations off the tree. I must have spent hours trying to make a replacement that looked just right out of gold foil and glue, but somehow when Princess Celestia showed up to read us the story of Hearth's Warming, she knew right away, even though Shining hadn't even noticed yet."

The quiet laughter in his eyes was soothing, and she found herself relaxing, her free hand unconsciously snuck into his hair, brushing through his long, loose locks. "Oh, the poor thing. Hopefully she doesn't feel too guilty."

Dusk winked at her, before relaxing under her touch. "She occasionally threatens to eat whatever loose jewelry we leave around the house, but she didn't get nearly as many sweeties from Shining Armor that winter."

Redheart snapped her metal clipboard closed, returning to Dusk’s side. "Alright, Dusk. You clearly plan to continue this research you're doing for Shining Armor. I'll give you two choices. Take the medication willingly, twice a day, as well as at least six hours of continuous sleep a day until Princess Cadence's visit, or I recruit Barb and Bronze to sabotage every meal you eat with any one of a dozen sedatives to make sure you get proper sleep until the Princess convinces you to listen. Take your pick."

Deflating a little, Dusk extended a hand to the nurse, giving in for once. "Alright, alright. I yield. No need to threaten, just give me the script and I'll take your medicine. But don't think I can't change Princess Cadence's mind."

Grinning with just the corner of her mouth, Redheart winked. "When it comes to your health, Dusk, I think Cadence will be on our side."

3pm, Ponyville School.

Bronze could hear the distant sound of the the school bell striking as she left Dusk's library, locking the door and turning towards the noise, muttering under her breath. "That's what I get for taking a nap."

Setting off at a jog to warm up her stiff joints, basking in the heat of the afternoon sunlight, but adjusting to a quicker pace as soon as she felt comfortable, letting a long stride eat up the distance. Rounding the last house before the massive school yard, the sight of dozens of foals leaving reassured her that she wasn't as late as she'd feared.

Cutting across the exercise field, she realized Dash was still in town, standing on the hill and talking quietly to a pegasus filly. Struggling for a moment to remember the girl's name, Bronze called out to Dash. "Hey, Dash. You got the message to meet at Applejack's today, right? Didn't think you'd be hanging around town on a sunny day like this."

Interrupting their conversation, the filly glared up at her for a moment and finally Bronze was able to make the connection. "Oh, Scootaloo. Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt."

The filly hardly gave her a second glance, but Dash looked over her shoulder and did a double take, rushing to Bronze’s side, her voice low enough Bronze doubted anypony else could hear her. "Hey, so uh... problem. I normally spend at least an hour or two after school helping Scootaloo build her wing muscles back up. Today's kinda the first time I can't just say: 'Sorry, Scoots, gotta go fight a dragon, we’ll train tomorrow, promise.' Can I get a little help here, please?"

Looking over Dash’s shoulder to the filly, who had squared her jaw and was glaring at them. “What had Nurse Redheart and Dusk said about her? I wish I’d been paying proper attention!” Bronze tried to find the right memoires, and in the end, could only snag at a few facts she remembered.

Cursing herself for not having Dusk’s fantastic memory for such small details, Bronze grinned at Dash and pushed past her, walking over to Scootaloo’s side. “Hey, kid. So I was talking with Nurse Redheart about Princess Cadence’s visit this week. You excited to show off for her?”

Still shooting her an evil eye, Scootaloo shifted into a defensive stance, crossing her arms over her chest. “Of course I am. After all the time Dash’s put in helping me get my wings in shape, who wouldn’t want to show off for the princess? But why are you guys all running away from town, and how come Dash can’t tell me what's going on! Is it another dragon!? Or has Nightmare Moon returned!?”

As the filly grew excited and got carried away with her own imagination, her defensive stance turned to something far more hopefully, hands clasping together pleadingly she stood on tiptoes and leaned towards Bronze, eyes wide with wonder. Suddenly Bronze felt thirteen again, and remembered watching Shining Armor sparring for the first time as his squire. Now she knew why the filly and Dash were having troubles! Cuffing the girl on the shoulder, she winked at Dash. “Tell you what, kid. You promise to keep a secret, me and Dash’ll bring you along and let you watch, okay?”

Shocked, Dash crossed the short distance between them, grabbing Bronze’s shoulder and glaring around before leaning in close. “But Dusk said we needed to keep this quiet! You wouldn’t believe how long he spent drilling Pinkie on what to say if she was questioned yesterday! He doesn’t want anypony starting a panic!”

Behind them, Lyra’s cool voice cut into the conversation. “Scootaloo is good at keeping secrets. She might get overexcited sometimes in class, but she doesn’t go running to blurt everything she thinks to other students.”

Scuffing her foot against the ground, Scootaloo gave Lyra a little nod. “I would if I had more classes with Apple Bloom or Sweetie Belle. They understand what I’m talking about... or at least they try!”

Cupping the filly’s chin, Lyra grinned down at her. “Yes, but you do have several classes with them and still don’t talk to them much. You could do with friends besides Rainbow Dash. Try, okay?”

Looking up only as long as she was forced to, Scootaloo gave Lyra a nod before rushing to Dash’s side and grabbing her hand. “So can I come along now? Oh please oh please oh please?!”

Bronze laughed, and wrapped an arm over Dash’s shoulder. “I’d suggest you say yes. Otherwise we will have her trying to trail us all day. Sorry I’m late to meet you, Lyra, but as you can see, somepony else got in the way.”

Shaking her head dismissively, Lyra gave a shrug. “Did your morning improve like we talked about?”

Watching as an excited Dash and Scootaloo got lost in their own conversation, Bronze couldn’t help but wink at the spy in teacher’s clothing. “As if you don’t already know?”

4pm, Apple Family Farm, deep in the orchard.

With the fields newly cleared and planted, Bronze had spent much of Monday with Applejack and Big Mac deep inside the apple orchard, finding a good clearing they could use in relative privacy. Now with a forty-foot ring cleared so they could properly begin, Bronze looked up at Lyra, yet the mare simply stood watching in silence, watching her instead. Nervous, Bronze looked to the other side of the clearing where Dusk and Applejack stretched together, while Dash and Pinkie talked. A silent Big Mac stood at the edge of the clearing, simply watching the others. Fluttershy and Rarity had set up a bench, and sat with the fillies, Rarity busy dancing her needle through some stitching, while Fluttershy gushed over three baby squirrels with the fillies.

Taking a deep breath, Bronze tried to prepare herself, and spoke up at last. “Dusk has asked me to find a way to help prepare some kind of a self-defense course for you six. Knowing what challenges have already come to test you as the Elements of Harmony, I made some orders from Canterlot, and prepared a basic training regimen that you all can follow. Lyra has reassured me she can help with the basic fitness side of things, so that leaves weapons.”

Now Bronze had their full attention. Well, she had everypony but Fluttershy, Rarity and Sweetie Belle’s attention. They had remained mostly fixated on their own activities. Walking to Mac’s side, Bronze grabbed one end of the thick leather canvas and gave the stallion a nod. Together, they cast the cover off the display rack, revealing the results of Bronze’s efforts. Six basic quarter staffs, reinforced with leather binding at both ends, and three points across the length to provide options on how to grip the long, thin wooden pole. “These are what we will concentrate on most of all, since it would be odd for anypony in Ponyville to see you carrying a weapon openly and Dusk has requested we keep this low key. The quarterstaff is a weapon you can find almost anywhere, and if you can’t, a good stick or pole can be used to at least mimic the training I can provide. Dash, since you’ve the most experience with polearms and quarterstaffs, I hope you can help me train the others.”

Shooting to attention, Dash snapped off a sharp salute. “Not a problem at all! After drilling with lead-reinforced staves in school at Cloudsdale, I’m more than ready!”

Stepping down the rack, Bronze had to use both hands to heft the next item, awkwardly supporting it on her shoulder as she walked to Applejack’s side. The handle, a finely polished dark oak, was easily five feet in length, and led to a thick steel hammer head with a wicked pick on the back. “Applejack, considering your strength, this might seem a little extreme, but it’s a weapon with real heft. I also got you mithril-reinforced boots, light enough for everyday wear, but strong enough you should be able to kick a hole in the side of a house without risking a broken bone.”

As Applejack accepted the warhammer with one hand and Bronze caught her breath, her eyes caught sight of the boots still hanging on the display rack, a sparkle of delight shone in them. “But they just look like some good old-fashioned leather work boots. You sure they didn’t just rip ya off?”

Straightening up and smoothing out her light leather vest, Bronze grinned at the mare. “I checked. Tried to drive a nail through the metal at several points to make sure they properly lined the whole boot with mithril, not just the heel. Princess Luna’s assistant, Silken Flight, took great care in personally ensuring these all were made properly. But please, AJ, don’t wear the leather out using these when you’re going to be working around the farm. It’s hard to find a good leather worker who can weave over metal and keep it comfortable.”

Testing the heft and swing of the warhammer, Applejack grinned a little. “I’ll try, Bronze, I promise. But a good kicking boot is hard to find, and I like the look of ‘em a lot.” Stopping to look over the other items, she raised an eyebrow. “Now, wait a minute. If this hammer is for me, who's the other one for? It looks too heavy for Dusk.”

Mac took Bronze’s nod as a signal, and hefted the other hammer, this one a double-headed metal affair with two very broad and circular faces instead of the more utilitarian square single head of AJ’s warhammer. The look of shock on the stallion's face as he hefted it was clear as day, and the question in his eyes was clear, so Bronze cut him off before he got disappointed. “I’m sorry, Big Mac, I ordered two, but since the one for you wasn’t a priority and is quite a bit larger, it isn’t done yet. This one is made of mithril and for Pinkie Pie.”

The stallion merely shrugged, and with one hand hefted the five-foot hammer onto a shoulder, walking casually over and proffering it to the giddy mare. Accepting it, Pinking made a few quick swings, marveling at the sound it made through the air. Dash, however interrupted, questioning Bronze. “Wait, what? What’s the point of a hammer made of Mithril? Don’t hammers work because they’re heavy? Why make one light?”

Stepping back as Pinkie got carried away with wide, arcing swings of the hammer, Bronze gave a lazy gesture to Pinkie’s current antics as if they alone were a clear answer. “Because the mithril didn’t take much of the weight away, and the hammer is still reinforced with lead in the core. It means it’s light enough so Pinkie can swing it around and stay active, but heavy enough to leave anypony or anything she hits smarting. I didn’t include a pick on hers since she isn’t as strong as Applejack and keeping her active seems like a more powerful defense for her.”

Twirling the hammer around before settling it on one shoulder, Pinkie grinned. “I like it, it’s all ‘woosh!’ and ‘swoosh!’, and if I hit someone with it, they’ll go ‘bong!’” Pinkie, in her usual overactive way, mimed the likely effect of being staggered by the lighter but larger of the two hammers on display.

Applejack scowled a little now, and gestured a thumb at Mac. “What do you mean ‘his hammer’? Big Mac’s gotta stay home and take care of the farm; he ain't got no time for adventuring with us!”

Bronze was about to answer, but the big stallion put a hand on AJ’s shoulder and spoke up for once, and since it was so rare, Bronze let him finish his thoughts. “Adventure all you want, lil’ sis. If you’re in trouble, I want this training too. Never know when trouble might follow you home.”

Squeezing her brother’s hand on her shoulder, Applejack gave in. “Only as long as the farm don’t suffer. If it does, I expect you all to throw in the time to get things back up to snuff.”

The shared laughter was good, and Bronze remembered Dusk talking about all the trouble they’d had last fall with harvest when Mac had broken his ribs. “No wonder, they still worry something like that could happen again.”

Clearing her throat, Bronze played the serious one, once enough time to laugh had passed. “Moving on! I know that Fancy Pants and Fleur are coming to town to deliver you and Rarity some proper fencing weapons, and those at least can be passed off in public as relatively normal for a noble unicorn from Canterlot to wear. I’m sure you two can come up with some kind of a cover about traditional unicorn garb to make everypony forget about Rarity having one as well. And Dash, I know you’re already properly equipped with your mother’s lance. That just leaves, Fluttershy-”

“No.”

If she’d somehow doubted that the mare was listening, that sudden sharp word from the gentle-natured mare made things clear. Still scratching one squirrel across the jaw, Fluttershy didn’t look up, even when Sweetie Belle froze up and stared at her, wide-eyed with shock. Clearing her throat, Bronze tried again. “It’s nothing like that, Fluttershy, I just want to make su-”

“No!”

The air went quiet as Fluttershy’s forceful refusal echoed through the quiet clearing, giving even the squirrel cause to pause, despite Fluttershy’s playful fingers. Bronze stomped over to the display rack, snatching up the tools she had very carefully researched and spent days finding the right master to craft. Stomping over to the mare who still refused to look up, Bronze shoved the gloves under Fluttershy’s nose. “Look, you don’t like hurting anypony. That is admirable, Fluttershy. But by The Light, take the damn gloves. They are silk, but with mithril weave. If you ever have to protect somepony you care for, maybe this time you won't break your hand and the dragon’s face. Alright?”

Silence hung between them for what felt like forever. A sniffle came from under that mass of hair, and Bronze was worried she had gone too far. Then soft hands took the silk gloves from her, and Fluttershy’s voice whispered back up at her. “O-Okay, but… but only to make sure I can protect other ponies.”

Reaching down and squeezing one of Fluttershy’s hands, Bronze gave her a big smile, hoping the mare might look up at her. “I promise. I wouldn’t ask you to ever hurt anypony, Fluttershy. Until you’re comfortable, just join us for the exercise and company at least?”

Finally looking up at Bronze, Fluttershy’s eyes were full of tears, but a small smile formed as she looked deep into Bronze’s eyes. “I... alright. I’ll come. If only to hang out with Rarity and the fillies…”

Giving a little nod to the mare, Bronze grinned, squeezing with both of her hands and shaking her head. “I understand, Fluttershy. Having your company would be really nice.”

Returning to the center of the clearing, Bronze gave a small wave to Rarity, who had returned to her needlepoint once the situation with Fluttershy had resolved itself. "Dash, since you learned a decent amount of hand-to-hand in Cloudsdale focused on kicks more than punching, can you go over things with AJ and Pinkie? As they are earth ponies, Cloudsdale’s style should work better for them. Lyra and I will go over more basic stuff with the others."

Happy to show off, Dash back flipped, kicking at the branches of a nearby tree while crying out in excitement, and earning a glare from Applejack who openly muttered. "Can't wait to see how long this lasts. Come on, Dash, let's see if you can teach me anything about kicking."

Laughing, Bronze tried to smooth things over with AJ. "Go easy on her! Dash probably can't teach you anything new about kicking, but the two of you together can show Pinkie some of your best tricks and at least see whose style she likes more!" Returning to serious business, Bronze gave a nod to those still waiting by the log. "Rarity, Dusk, since you two are waiting for Fancy Pants to teach you how to properly use a sword, I'd like to show you at least a little basic hand-to-hand self defense."

Dusk stood up, and Bronze gave a small motion to Lyra, who paired off with him and quickly began showing him a series of grab and holds. Looking up from under her thick locks, Rarity looked astonished, and shook her head, unmoving from her spot on the bench. "Oh, no! That's really not necessary, dear. I can already handle myself quite well, really."

Shifting herself into a sparring stance and dancing a little in place to warm her feet up, Bronze lifted both hands and gave the reluctant mare a tugging gesture with both hands. "Oh come on, Rarity. I know getting dirty isn't your thing, but that's why I warned you to wear something like a sweat suit or some kind of jogging gear. Come on, I promise; no throws today, alright?"

Lowering her needlework with a sigh, Rarity gave another attempt to make Bronze give up. "Really, darling. I don't want to hurt you."

Grinning, Bronze waved at Rarity one more time. "Oh, come on, Rarity. I don't think you need to worry about hurting me. That's why I wear this leather padding. And I'll be careful to make sure I don't hurt you. Don't worry, I was second in my class for boxing and hand-to-hand."

Finally giving in to Bronze’s urging, Rarity passed her work to her little sister, giving the filly a few instructions on how to finish the piece off before crossing the field to stand in place where Bronze waited. "If you're really sure about this, dear... I don't want to cause you any harm..."

"It's fine, Rarity. Let's start with a simple hold. I'll go slow and you just grab my wrist, alright?"

Bronze lifted a hand and began to swing a lazy punch at Rarity's shoulder, but it was all over in a blur of motion, leaving Bronze's head spinning as she sat flat on her ass, leaving everypony but Sweetie Belle in stunned silence, who continued quietly humming to herself as she continued to stitch.

Jumping up to her feet and crying out in shock, Scootaloo made up for the others’ slow reaction time in raw volume. "By The Light, Rarity! When did you ever pick something like that up!?"

Dusting her hands off and offering Bronze a hand back up, Rarity smiled at the filly. "When I was a filly around your age, I had a period where I felt very vulnerable, so I took up self-defense classes to help me feel more self-confident." Turning back to Bronze, Rarity looked meek again. "I did try to warn you, dear. I've been practicing this for nearly 12 years."

Laughing a little at herself and accepting Rarity's assistance in standing up, Bronze gave a shrug. "You did. You really did. How about you practise with Lyra instead? She's much more experienced at hand-to-hand than I am, and clearly you're already beyond my level."

10 pm, Bonbon’s Apartment.

Lyra found hirself whistling a little as shi turned the corner away from the others, heading off alone for home. Behind hir, Sweetie cried out, her voice warm and playful. "Thanks again Miss Lyra! See you in class tomorrow!"

Stopping to look over her shoulder, Lyra waved back to the ever-cheerful filly. "Just promise you'll remember to tell everypony Apple Bloom got the black eye while you were playing in the barn, and not because of Scootaloo."

Puffing her chest and wings out with pride Scootaloo buffed her nails against her chest. "I told her I had picked up what Bronze was showing us faster than she wa- ouch!"

The light swat across the back of her head had been playful, but was hard enough to get her attention. Agitated, Dash glared down at the filly. "You hit her in the face when she tried to throw you over her shoulder. If you'd really been paying attention to Bronze, you'd have remembered to pull your punch in training. Now let's go see Nurse Redheart and find out how long she plans to ground you for."

Watching just a minute longer as Dusk, Dash and Scootaloo went one way, while Rarity and Sweetie went another direction, Lyra enjoyed the lingering memories of how enjoyable the day had been.

The moment they were out of sight, shi shifted her mind instantly into a more serious gear. Hir sore muscles and stiffening back were pushed aside and forgotten, while shi set hir shoulders and turned hir thoughts to what had to come next tonight.

Two blocks later, shi lifted hir key to unlock the door, only for it to suddenly swing sharply open before hir eyes, the delighted voice of lighthearted joy a sudden violent clash against the professional set of mind shi was in. "Lyra! You're finally back, but it's so late! Come on inside, please! I'm just making some tea before bed, but I'd really like your company for a while if you're not too tired!"

Stunned into a moment of silence at the violent mental gear shift she hadn’t been prepared to make, Lyra forced hirself to smile no matter how awkward and uncomfortable it felt at the moment, nodding stupidly to hir landlord.

If Bonbon noticed that shi was acting oddly, thankfully she didn't mention it, instead linking arms with hir and dragging hir bodily into her living room, pushing Lyra into the more comfortable lounger before returning to the small kitchen, calling out over her shoulder as she left the room. "What do you enjoy? Honey? A little sugar? I'd imagine since you were out at AJ's farm they fed you well, but I've got these fantastic honey and gram baskets that are simply wonderful!"

Lyra’s hand on the arm of the sofa tensed as she double-checked her mental clock, trying to figure out how much time shi had before they expected hir at the meetup, until Bonbon revealed she knew about where shi had been all night. A slow panic swept over hir, washing away hir thoughts about tonight's mission. "By The Light, how did she ever catch us?! We were so careful, and nopony ever came close to the orchard except Big Mac. Just who has she told? Is she a double agent? Or another of Silk's undercover mares keeping an eye on me? Should I answer her? Will she gossip with the neighbors? Should I el-"

Bonbon’s cheerful voice finally got loud enough to break Lyra from hir dark musing. "Lyra? Are you okay, you stopped answering me. Don't tell me you drifted off to sleep."

Forcing hirself to straighten up, Lyra tried to play it cool, yawning audibly and stretching on the chair, just as Bonbon came back into the room with a small and very plain silver tea tray, including all the usual fixings, and a small platter of gram biscuits. Covering a fake yawn, shi offered Bonbon a half-hearted wave and a few answers to see just how much the mare knew. "Sorry, just a little sleepy. Applejack is a nice mare, but she can always find more things that need just five extra minutes to finish up."

Bonbon’s delighted laughter was a high-pitched titter that made Lyra’s breath catch. Pushing hirself to keep talking, shi kept to safe topics. "I'd love a little dollop of honey in my tea, Bonbon. Between Mac and AJ, a mare will never go hungry helping out around the farm, but I'd take a cracker or two if you don't mind."

To Lyra’s shock, Bonbon settled the tea tray on the high table by hir elbow and with one hand daintily sweeping her skirt under her legs, and settled onto hir knees. Working swiftly, she prepared Lyra’s tea as requested with the raw honey stirred in for sweetness, then with her long, slender fingers lifting one of the gram crackers, she tickled the rich brown honeyed biscuit across Lyra’s lips before pushing it in enough for hir to snap off a bite. Handing over her tea to wash the crumbly treat down, Bonbon waited for Lyra to finish swallowing before clapping her hands together with delight. "Well? Is it good? My dear friend Hoity Toity insisted I take some home with me the last time I was in Canterlot for work, but I usually make everything too sweet so I've never been a good judge."

Still trying to process Bonbon's style of flirting, Lyra needed a minute to chew and swallow the biscuit and tea before shi could finally answer. "I'm afraid that I might not be the right mare to ask, Bonbon. I drink so much of the really foul tea my trainer brewed up to help reduce muscle fatigue and exhaustion during training, I hardly even taste what I drink anymore."

Laughing gently, Bonbon batted Lyra's shoulder playfully, shifting closer against hir so she could rest an arm around hir shoulders. "Oh come on, Lyra! Try some more. It's really nice, it's got a nice herbal blend with a hint of jasmine in the scent."

With Bonbon's arm around hir shoulders and playfully stroking through hir hair while teasingly tugging a little at hir earlobe, Lyra found herself again fighting the distraction of Bonbon's sweet perfume and tender rump's weight in hir lap. Accepting the offer of tea as a distraction from the lovely mare, Lyra took her time, and really let the tea linger on her tongue, enjoying the soothing taste that helped even out her frayed nerves.

Passing the tea back to Bonbon's free hand, Lyra found hir own hand had wandered to the mare's hip and was toying with her tail, coiling it around hir finger, and hir thumb was now stroking over the trapped hair. Bonbon's response was a throaty moan that sent a chill down hir spine and only returned hir thoughts to Bonbon’s devious distractions.

Realizing shi'd totally forgotten about Bonbon's question, Lyra leaned against the smaller mare, her husky voice a breathy whisper in the mare's cute little ear. "I like it, Bon. It soothes my tired muscles but doesn't make me riled up like my tea does."

The smile that earned from Bonbon made Lyra feel suddenly very short of breath, making it a struggle to keep calm. Lowering the empty teacup to the tray she'd brought into the room, Bonbon thrust her now free hand between their bodies, grabbing the bulge of Lyra’s private protector and giving hir trapped flesh a teasing squeeze. "Oh? So you're saying all of this is my responsibility? I'm flattered."

At the same time as Bonbon's very suggestive tug pulled on hir hidden flesh, a face, scowling in annoyance, appeared in the window on the far side of the room, where Bonbon couldn't see. The hooded mare’s gestures were silent, but spoke volumes, and Lyra almost wanted to cry at the internal debate between hir orders and what hir body, no, what shi wanted, badly, now.

Releasing Bonbon’s tail, shi gestured back, behind the mare’s back and then cupped Bonbon’s hip, hir voice sad and reluctant. “Bonbon… I have school in the morning. I wouldn’t want to get carried away when I can’t do this properly. Maybe sometime on the weekend we could continue?”

Disappointed, the mare deflated and collapsed against Lyra’s chest, pouting a little up at her, but smiling all the same. “I wish I could, but I go back to Canterlot for work at noon. I’d hoped to ask you to look after things with the other tenants while I’m gone, but that sorta slipped my mind at some point.”

Feeling Bonbon’s fingers still toying with hir hair, Lyra looked back to the window, but the mare outside the window was gone. Shi returned focus to Bonbon and leaned in, dragging a lingering kiss over the mare’s lower lip, raking hir teeth across the trapped flesh before finally letting it pop free. Rubbing noses, shi cooed just a little, trying to catch some semblance of Bonbon’s flirty tone. “I’ll do it for you, Bon. As long as you ‘pay up’ when you get back?”

It appeared hir gambit worked, as Bonbon shot up, her eyes alight with mischief. “Very well, Lyra. I intend to pay well for all the ‘work’ you’ll have to do while I’m away. I suppose you’d better go, or I’ll have you up all night and probably make you late for class in the morning.”

As Bonbon slipped from hir lap, Lyra finally stood up, but part of her demanded shi continue the game just a few seconds longer. Catching Bonbon’s hips, shi pulled her back for a moment longer, resting hir hips against Bonbon’s flank. “It would be worth missing class, but then I’d have to make you late for your train in revenge, and we can’t have that.”

Another long kiss held them up a minute more, and then Lyra at last left the mare behind. Upstairs, she unlocked hir door, preparing for the mare waiting inside. Impatient, she’d pulled out Lyra’s change of clothing from the hidden drawer in hir dresser and prepared everything on the bed. Snapping around when Lyra entered, she started signing aggressively, but Lyra didn’t bother reading, shi knew what was being said.

Stripping without a word, shi started dressing quickly, and when the other mare finally stopped, shi arched an eyebrow, hir voice a near whisper. “That’s great, but your electric-blue hair is sticking out. Might want to tuck that away, you’re way too recognizable.”

Hissing in frustration, the mare adjusted her cap and re-tucked in her hair, her voice, just as low, came as a gruff reply. “Let’s just find this book and pray to The Light Silk’s forgery is good enough to trick him, alright?”

Author's Notes:

Here we go! The ball has started rolling, and what can stop it? Who knows?!

Another deep thank you to my editors. If you guys didn't work yourself to the bone, scenes like the conversation between Bonbon and Lyra towards the end would be a real nightmare to write.

Please note: This is the version 0.99 release. Due to RL issues, one of the editors hasn't had a chance to do their edits. If you happen to notice small mistakes, please understand. *small bow*