“Spike, this is Robert. Robert, this is Spike my Number One Assistant." Twilight introduced them. Spike held out his claw. Robert shook it almost reverentially.

“S-something wrong?" Spike asked nervously.

“No. Just never thought I'd meet one." Robert answered. Twilight blinked. He seemed awestruck, in a way he hadn't even upon learning who she was.

“A dragon?” Spike queried.

“ A purple dragon." Robert answered, before sitting back on his haunches. “Tell me, do you have a copy of the Warp and the Weft here?”

“Sure.”

“Can you close your eyes and tell me from the nose of the statue where it is?" Robert asked. He seemed, eager to hear the answer. Twilight recognized the tone of voice from the other end. Spike closed his eyes, and gave an answer. It wasn't directions, but after working it out in her head, she realized he'd given a precise line from the statue to the book.

“Spike? How did you do that?”

“I... don't know Twilight.”

“The same way you perform Telekinesis, or your friend Rainbow Dash flies. Pure instinct." Robert smiled. “My mentor, taught me well the ways of dragons. Purple dragons, are one of the rarest species. They are dragons of knowledge. They might not know how they know things but they absorb knowledge just by it's presence. And since he lives in a library, with the Princess of Magic, it's hard to imagine him not being a Number One Assistant." Spike flushed.

“Th-thank you. Umm... I'm going to go..." he paused. “Back to work then. He seemed lost in thought.”See you later Robert. Twilight." he disappeared into the kitchen.

“Sorry about that.”

“It's okay. Where was I?" Robert asked.

“Tiger shaped stain." Twilight said, after looking at her notes.

“Ah yes, of course. Anyway, after my mentor learned that we differed in our strengths so much, he realized I would need more training than he could give me to earn my Stripes. So he sent me to Equestria to learn magic from the best he knew of. I asked around a little and found that she lives not far from here.”

“Zecora." Twilight said, having worked it out.

“Indeed. So you know her?”

“I do. And you're in luck. I'm supposed to have lunch with her tomorrow. You probably don't want to wander the Everfree forest at night, though... I suspect there's not much that would give you pause.”

“Except the Cockatrice of course." Robert shuddered. “Can't stand them." Twilight nodded.

“You and me both." Twilight remembered, vaguely her one encounter with them. Fluttershy had saved her and quite a few others. The crusaders had explained the whole thing. Twilight had a protection spell now, but she wasn't interested in trying it out until she had no other choice.

“Of course, I also only like two thirds of the Chimera's I meet." Robert the Tiger offered. Twilight groaned. Robert grinned.

“Anyway, Pinkie will be arranging a welcome to Ponyville party. You don't want to disappoint her." Twilight's tone emphasized her comment.

“So I have been informed.”

“How did you learn so much about us?”

“You don't know? The stories of your adventure are... told and retold. It's impossible to wander through Equestria without hearing your tale.”

“So we're famous?" Princess Twilight Sparkle wilted slightly.

“Mostly famous. A few places are less than pleased with you, but you cannot please all the ponies all the time" Robert shrugged.

“Great." Twilight sighed. “And Pinkie?”

“I met a young pony with a near equivalent bundle of enthusiasm. Or rather, I had an interesting conversation with his rubber chicken. It's... complicated.”

“Umm... Okay, if you say so." Twilight shook her head.

“It was quite the event." There was a knock at the door.

“Come in." The door opened to admit Applejack. “I'd like you to meet..." Applejack's reaction cut her off. The big mares nostrils flared, her eyes widened, and her ears laid back.

“I didn't believe it. I never thought." she shook her head.

“Applejack, what's wrong?" Twilight asked, concerned at her friends sudden change of disposition.

“Twi, you don't understand. You're a... you were born a unicorn." she shook her head again.

“Would somepony please explain?" Twilight demanded, stamping a hoof.

“Tigers, Twilight Sparkle, are carnivores," Robert answered, in an even voice. “and until relatively recent it didn't matter where it came from.”

“What happened then?”

“Three hundred and fifty years ago, five hundred years of internecine warfare came to a head.” Applejack blinked. “Sorry. Tigers and Earth ponies fought for more than five hundred years, and three hundred and fifty-years ago, it turned into a war.”

“Why didn't Celestia stop it before then?" Twilight asked, looking between them.

“Ah don't think that Celestia knew Twilight." Applejack shrugged. She'd relaxed slightly, though she was still watching Robert warily. “They weren't huge fights, or even fights at all usually. Someone would go out, and then just not come back.”

“It was not all one sided. No few tigers went off and never came home." Robert sighed. “We have put it behind us, and I hoped that the ponies had done the same.”

“Some have." Applejack nodded. “Some haven't." she didn't give any clear indication of which side she fell on.

“I understand." Robert looked down for a moment. “Twilight, I will understand if you wish to withdraw your offer of hospitality.”

“No.” Twilight shook her head. She looked at Applejack. “I can't do that.”

“I know Twi. I know you can't, and I wouldn't ask." she sighed. “Some ponies might ask, but I won't.” she turned and started towards the door. Twilight looked back at Robert, then at Applejack.

“Wait." Applejack stopped and turned back. "If there was a war, wouldn't there be a record? Especially if it ended, there should be some record of how? Right?”

“There was Twilight." Robert said. “There was a treaty that ended it. No tiger living knows what that treaty contained. Indeed, only two beings ever did. Celestia, and Black Tail, the leader of the Tigers.”

“Twi, if you want to know, you'll have to ask Celestia." Applejack nodded. “She's the only one who can give you an answer." She walked out the door. Twilight pushed it closed.

“Will you tell me what you know about the war?" Twilight asked.

“No." Robert shook his head. “I am a Tiger. My accounting is based on the teachings of my mentor, and I would be as biased as any Tiger. Your answers must come from Celestia, if they are to have any ring of truth.”

“I see. You said that until then, the source of your meat was not a matter of concern." Twilight's eyes narrowed. “And now?”

“Now, we have learned. We still eat meat. It is an essential part of our lives. But now we have another way to create it.”

“Which is?" Twilight pressed.

“Transmutation.” Robert answered.

“Really? Doesn't that burn more energy than it's worth?" Twilight shook her head.

“Not so long as you exchange mass for mass. And the more you transmute, the more efficient it is." Robert shrugged. “At least that's what I'm told by Tigers who are smart enough to say such things. It also seems that turning something, into something similar is more efficient. Plus, those who do the work are those with a gift for it. So we grow vegetables which keep us over the winter. Huge fields of onions, potatoes, and rutabagas." he shuddered at the last.

“Not a fan of rutabaga?” Twilight asked.

“No. he coughed. I was once on the receiving end of a transmutation gone awry, which ended with a giant killer rutabaga rampaging through the village. My father held it, while my mentor blasted it. I can still taste it. It was... awful." Twilight suppressed a grin. “Ever since, I've been unable to stand them.”

“You can transmute things?" Twilight asked. "I'd like to see that.”

“I can. What would you like me to transmute?”

“How about a sweet roll, into a cupcake?” Spike offered, entering with a tray of sweet rolls. Twilight raised an eyebrow. “Leftovers from breakfast." he shrugged.

“Certainly." Robert smiled and narrowed his eyes. Two sweetrolls levitated off the tray, and settled on the table. He stood and stretched, then shifted his stance until his feet were aligned north-south, east-west. His fangs began to glow slightly, a soft reddish-orange, not unlike a unicorn horn. The sweetrolls glowed the same, rising slightly from off the table. They hung in the air for a moment, and then began to change. They compressed and started becoming taller, rising and falling as they stretched towards their new shape, while fighting against snapping into their old. Then in a flare of red-orange light, they snapped into shape . One with cream-white frosting topped with molasses covered oats, the other with dark chocolate frosting, covered in tiny quartz chips. Roger staggered slightly, and lay back down. Twilight reached over and closed Spike's hanging jaw.

“That was amazing. I've never seen transmutation in action. I mean, I've done it once or twice, but never really saw it. I was always focused on the magic. That was something else.”

“I'm glad you enjoyed it. Go ahead and eat. My thanks for your hospitality." he waved a paw. Twilight bit in. Her eyes rolled. Pinkie's surprise cake was the last thing she eaten that had such a sweet taste. It wasn't a favorite, but it was good in small increments. Spike on the other hand, dipped in a claw and sampled the frosting, then ate a few more bites. Then finished it in one.

“Even with amber center." Spike looked to be in heaven. Twilight chuckled.

“Glad you enjoyed." Robert said, sounding very tired.

“Are you alright? You sound tired.”

“Transmutation is hard, and I haven't had the practice, necessary to make it easy. And since it's not my talent, it's even worse." He laid his head down.

“What about your wings?" Spike raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. “Isn't that transmutation?”

“Yes, but the energy is all internal. I use some, but very little is expended. The rest is restored once I release the wings. Transmuting other objects requires I expend energy I don't receive in return. So I get and stay tired.”

“Sounds like spell-strain. I get that sometimes when I cast too many spells at once, or when I'm already tired." Twilight nodded.

“Indeed. Perhaps not so much now, as when you were younger?” Robert asked.

“Right. And not at all since I got my wings." She looked at them. “Odd. I hadn't thought of it before.”

Roger perked up a bit. “ Perhaps...”

“What?” Twilight asked, still focused on her wings.

“Perhaps it's because of your wings. Or rather, your transformation from Unicorn to Alicorn. Perhaps the reason you stopped feeling spell-strain is because you are generating magic? Do you have a thaumostatic field resonator?" Twilight blinked and looked at Spike.

“Top shelf, observatory." he said, and ducked upstairs.

“If that's true, then it means that Princess Luna, Celestia and Cadence also make their own magic." she looked at Robert. “Makes sense, right?

“I suppose, though it could have another explanation. Your Cutie Mark. It could be a sign that you are not just a potent magic user. But that you have always brought magic with you. Perhaps the transformation to Alicorn simply grew it in strength.”

“I didn't think about that.” she hadn't considered it before. “What made you think of it?”

“Spell-strain only occurs after magic use, right? So it seems that it would deplete the natural reserves you have. So if you're generating it, or more than the average anyway, it would make sense that your increasing strength would lead to it taking more and more to incur Spell-strain in you.”

Spike returned with the Resonator, and it's tripod. He set it down on the table and setup the pod, then screwed the Resonator on. “There we go.”

“We'll need a baseline." Twilight said, and looked at Spike. The Resonator turned to face him. “Say cheese.”