Twilight said her farewells, and caught the train back to Ponyville. Robert stayed in Canterlot. The princesses returned to the castle, and he found himself at a bit of a loss. Unicorns being what they are, bars are not particularly common, and after the concert, he did not feel up to a nightclub. The 'music' in them always hurt his ears. Which led to considerable surprise when he bumped into Vinyl Scratch outside a normal bar.

“Hello.” he said. She stared at him for a moment.

“Hello. Do I know you? I'm certain I never forget a face. Not when I'm sober at least.” she stared at him.

“Pinkie introduced us.” he said patiently.

“Oh right, Robbie right?” Vinyl asked.

“Close enough.” he sighed. “What are you doing here? This isn't your typical venue.”

“Hah, I'm not playin' tonight. Caught the concert and figured I'd get stinkin' drunk and forget about how good it was. Care to join me?”

“Why not.” Robert shrugged.

---

Twilight arrived in Canterlot just after noon. The guards bowed, and showed her to central booking. “Care to explain?” she asked Robert, as he was escorted out.

“It's all her fault?” he said hopefully, pointing at Vinyl, who was being bailed out by Octavia, who was busy speaking with one of the guards. It was not the first time she'd been there, and knew the guard personally.

“Hey, I'm not the one who couldn't keep his mouth shut.” Vinyl retorted. Octavia laughed.

“Who threw the first punch, screaming about Luna's honor?” Robert demanded. Twilight raised an eyebrow.

“How was I to know that was the High Shadovar?” she snapped. Twilight's eyes widened.

“Wasn't me telling you to leave the High Shadovar alone enough?” Robert asked.

“I never listen to people telling me things!” Vinyl answered. Octavia snorted. Twilight's horn flashed once.

“You started a fight with the Shadovars?” she demanded in the sudden silence.

“I didn't start anything.” Robert replied, clearly offended. “I just tried to finish it. Would have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for them being freakishly strong.” Twilight stared. “I don't think anyone would have called the guards if they hadn't thrown us over the bar.”

“Us? I seem to remember you going over clearly enough.” Vinyl snorted.

“I didn't get stabbed in the ass by a Pegasus.” Robert turned, revealing a stab wound in his right hindquarter. “If the horn fits, you must have flown.” Vinyl flushed brilliantly.

“Ugh.” Twilight threw her hooves up in the air for a moment. “Come on, let's go.”

“Thanks.” Robert said, as they exited the guard house.

“For what?” Twilight asked. “Bailing you out?”

“Yes.” he answered. “And for not being too upset about it.”

“Oh, I'm definitely upset.” she shook her head. “What were you thinking?”

“I was thinking that I wanted to have a nice quiet drink. I didn't realize I was going to have to fight half the bar because the pony I went drinking with had a big mouth.” Robert grumbled.

“I thought you'd have known better.” Twilight said.

“She said she was a friend of Octavia's. I thought that meant she had sense and good judgment.”

“Oh please, I'm friends with Rainbow Dash.” Twilight shook her head. “Sense and judgment don't mean anything.”

“Well ouch.” Robert said, leaning away. “I presume there's some distaste for me there as well?”

“I don't think you want to hear that.” Twilight replied, looking away.

“We cannot grow and change if we are not made aware of our own shortcomings.” he shrugged.

“You're arrogant for one thing. You're also a show off. And have you ever failed? At all?” she demanded.

“I fail often, and many would wish to define me only by my failings. I am arrogant. I am big and strong. Most would call that arrogance enough. But I am arrogant because I do not accept that I should be anything less than my best. I might fail, but I will continue to try. If one thing does not work, I simply move on to the next. I do not forget my failures, but I do not dwell on them either.” he drew himself up. “I am a show off. What skills I have are hard learned, and fought for tooth and claw. Do you hide your wings? Your horn? I have heard the stories of the first time Trixie visited Ponyville. Have I not learned her lesson? Do I boast of things I cannot accomplish?”

“I was born with my horn. And I earned my wings.” she replied. “But I take your meaning.”

“I do try to be humble. To not deny others a chance in the spotlight. If I should outshine them, it is not because they did not shine at all. I know my place, my path, and my destiny. I do not begrudge others theirs.” he sighed. “I didn't want to be a Shaman. Did I mention that?”

“I think so.” Twilight said.

“I wanted to be a warrior. Like my mother, and my father, and all my brothers. Even my sister. I spent days railing against my fate when I learned I was to be a Shaman. I didn't want it.” his head drooped.

“I didn't want to be a princess. Not after that first rush of excitement. I asked Celestia if she could undo it.” Twilight sat down.

“What did she say?” he asked.

“That she couldn't but I could. She even showed me the spell.” Twilight smiled at the memory. “I spent hours staring at it, trying to decide. Luna came and talked to me. So did Cadence. Neither one of them even mentioned it. We just talked. Celestia came back later. She brought tea.”

“I see you decided not to cast it.” Robert said.

“No, I didn't. It was Luna that made up my mind though.” Twilight said. “She told me that the spell was my choice. That destiny wanted one thing for me. And that if I didn't want it, I could cast that spell and change it. I realized that I did have a choice, that even though I was given these?” she ruffled her wings. “I still had the option to say no. It meant I wasn't trapped, and that was something I never wanted.” she smiled. “What about you?”

“Dawn-seer. I went to him and told him I didn't want to be a Shaman. I wanted to be a warrior to defend the tribe. He asked my why I thought I couldn't do that if I was a Shaman. Then he gave me my first lesson. I've mentioned I'm not a Dreamwalker right?”

“Yeah, you've said that.” Twilight asked. “What does that mean?”

“It means that I can't enter the dreams of others on purpose, and even if I do end up there, I can't change anything. I can only control my own, and only with considerable effort. Anyway, he took me into a dream world, and we saw griffons under attack by dragons. He showed me how to help defeat them.” Robert smiled at the memory. “When we returned, he told me that I was still a warrior, just defending from a different kind of threat. I'd never thought about Shamans as any kind of warrior. It made me feel better.”

“I think we missed the train.” Twilight said, watching smoke disappear down the tracks.

“It's okay. I don't really feel like a train ride. Too much moving.” Robert said, and then threw up.

---

“Oh, yes, flying is much better on an empty stomach.” Robert said, as they winged south to Ponyville.

“We should probably have stopped to apologize to the two you threw up on back there.” Twilight called over the wind.

“They should be honored. I don't vomit on just any pony.” Robert answered indignantly. “Besides, I think I mostly missed. It's hard to tell though. That one was already lime green.”

“That's disgusting. What were you drinking?” she asked.

“Lime tequila. A lot of it I think.” he answered. “Hence the green.”

“I see.” Twilight said, shaking her head. Ponyville hove into view. “What on earth?” she back winged into a hover. Robert saw her stop, twisted his wings and swept around.

“What's the matter?” he asked.

“That tent looks familiar.” she said, and tipped forward. She swept downwards, and caught up to Applejack as she was leaving. Robert shrugged, and continued towards town. Derpy was just starting her route when he landed outside the post office.

“Morning!” she said cheerfully, shifting her bag.

“Morning.” he replied. “Setting out?”

“Yep, on my way in about five minutes. They're looking for a package.” she grinned. “Where were you?”

“Went to Canterlot, got drunk, got tossed in the hoosegow.” she paused a moment, processing the statement.

“Why were you in jail?” she asked.

“Ever met Pinkie's pal Vinyl Scratch?” Robert asked. Derpy laughed maniacally.

“You poor, poor fool. No one goes drinking with Vinyl Scratch and avoids going to jail.” she continued to laugh even as Special Delivery, the package handler brought her the package. He raised an eyebrow. She explained. He started laughing as well.

“Thanks.” Robert said, swished his tail and went into the post office. There were two jobs on the wall. One to Manehattan, wanting the fastest delivery possible, and one heavy load to Vanhoover. He plucked the Vanhoover ticket and took it to the desk.

“'s a big job.” Long Division said. “Eighty pounds of precious gems. Normally it'd go on the train, but it's a big rush job. Gotta be there in two days.” he flicked through the papers. “Here we go. The college there wants them for something. Do you think you can do it? Boss's been getting' antsy about getting them out of here.” he glanced over his shoulder at the door to Poste Haste's office. The stallion inside was scribbling on paperwork, moving from page to page, possibly without reading them, possibly assembling a flip book. There certainly looked to be enough paper for the job in his office.

“It always that bad?” Robert asked.

“Nah. It's worse around the holidays.” Long Division shook his head.

“Well, I don't have a problem with the weight, and I've never actually been to Vanhoover so it'll be an interesting experience. That said, I've never been there, so if you've got a map...”

“Trust me, to get those out of here, the boss will draw you one by hoof if he has too.” Long division laughed.

---

Robert shifted the weight carefully. “Seems balanced. I'll have to check it in the air, but I shouldn't have a problem.”

“Just take care. These things are worth a fortune.” Long Division said.

“Pillow cut fire agates? You bet. Good thing we didn't have a unicorn load them. One wrong spark of magic, and we'd have to start the town over again.” Robert shook his head. “Good thing you didn't send them on the train.”

“They're that dangerous?” the earth pony asked, backing up slightly.

“Only if you don't know what you're doing. That's why I insisted on having the unicorns out of the room when I saw the box.” Robert replied.

“Are you going to be okay?” the earth pony asked.

“Probably. If not, I'll never know it.” Robert smiled grimly. “Wish me luck.”

“Good luck, you'll need all you can get.” Long Division laughed. “Seriously take care.”

“I fully intend to.” Robert said, then he spread his wings. He took a few steps, built up momentum, then threw himself into the air. The weight was more than he had anticipated, but after the second bounce, he got enough lift to get truly airborne Vanhoover's flight path took him over Sweet Apple Acres, where he saw the Apples knocking a tree into the water. He shook his head, and kept flying. Wings cut through the air as he swept north. The Unicorn mountains came into view not long after he left the demesne of Ponyville. Technically, he figured that these were part of the white-tail woods, though he couldn't be sure. Most of the maps he'd seen didn't get that specific. Of course it didn't necessarily matter, but he liked to know where he was. It was noon when he crossed into the mountain range proper. A jagged edged peak was the first place he saw that qualified as a mountain even in technical terms. For a moment, he couldn't explain the jagged edge, then he hove closer to it. There, lying at the base of the mountain was what he knew instinctively was the peak of the mountain. It looked almost possible to land on it, though he decided not to try until he was on the return trip. The gems would probably not appreciate him slipping and falling and landing on top of them. He wouldn't be pleased either, for the few seconds before they exploded.

Climbing up to avoid the hazardous winds sure to swirl around the peaks, he continued north west, cutting across the mountains like the birds that surrounded him. He was no Fluttershy, but still he knew the habits of birds and so long as they did not scatter, he was largely safe. More mountains came within view, taller still than those he'd seen before. The birds swept north to slip around them. Robert considered their path, and decided against it. Yet he could not climb above them. Instead he turned south, slipping through the upper peaks. The mountain tops grew closer and closer together until they fused into one huge mountainous ridge. Wings stretched for balance, Robert all but landed, instead skipping paw to paw and gliding from touch to touch across the narrow ridge. Rocks slipped and gave way, but each time a wing beat lifted him and set him on his way.

It was just approaching sunset when Robert reached the northern edge of the mountains. A small hamlet below was just lighting the town square, lamps igniting from the center out. He spread his wings fully again, and swooped down, landing on the road leading into town. To say that he was the center of attention of the town as he walked in, was an understatement. Several ponies half started to run when they saw him, others shuffled colts and fillies behind them. One or two guards appeared.

“What do you want?” one of them asked, hammer hooves clicking on the ground.

“Just looking for a place to spend the night.” Robert asked, shifting his weight. “Guess this isn't it.” he started backing away. The presence of the guards was not lost on him. He did not intend on turning until he was well out of town, but a smirk on the face of one guard caused him to stop. The wind was coming behind him, and he sniffed. Two more, both earth ponies. Not wearing hammer hooves, or extremely good at walking with them. Change of tactic then. Robert took a half step backwards, then lunged forward. The ponies started, and tried to fall back. He couldn't fight with the weight on his back and turning was going to be a challenge. But Twilight wasn't the only pony he'd learned from, and an illusion leaped into the air, claws spread, jaws wide as he jerked to a stop under a cloak of invisibility. Turning, he leaped from the ground, and caught the wall of a building, claws digging in as he drug himself to the roof.

“Find him!” one of the guards called out. “He's got to still be here somewhere.” the others fanned out. Robert watched them from the roof. Not a single pegasus, or unicorn among them. An earth pony town then. He smiled to himself. A few hundred years ago, the report of such a settlement would have sent a tiger tribe into a tizzy preparing for a feast. Now though, it simply let him know that he was in a town which did not tolerate strangeness or outsiders.

“How did it get away?” he heard one of the residents ask.

“Some kind of magic. Probably has a unicorn partner around, if it wasn't one in disguise itself.” another answered, the light from their lantern bobbing as they walked.

“Had to be a unicorn. It would have eaten any 'partner' long before it got here.” the first one said.

He considered dropping onto the pair and teaching them a lesson, but some little voice in his head warned him against it. A moment later the quiet clicking of two pairs of hammer hooves showed him he was right. He waited until they died away, then rose. The leap from house to house was tiny compared to what he was used to, and not even the shifting of the stones on his back gave him away. He circled the outskirts of the town, moving roof to roof until he was on the north west side. There was one minor problem he discovered.

Out in the field were a number of lanterns he hadn't seen coming into town and which he now suspected were only lit when they had 'prey' inside the circle. A number of earth ponies held crossbows. He certainly wasn't interested in crossing that distance with it lit. On the ground or in the air he was a pretty big target. Wind magic was not his specialty, so what he attempted cost him more energy than he anticipated. Far back in the woods, he reached, magic guiding his awareness, until he reached the edge of the mountains. Wind fell off them, propelled by the sheer cliffs above. A wall of energy cut the wind, sending some of it whipping down the path towards the town. Magic suffused the wind, making it glow with a faint yellow tinge. Changing the color of magic is no mean feat, but it was another skill he'd learned.

By the time the wind hit the town it was lessened some from the howling gale it had been at the base of the mountains, but it was still enough for his needs. The glowing yellow wind shattered as it reached the edge of town, blowing out lanterns and candles as it went. The cold air sliced through the armor and clothing of the residents and guards, chilling them as though somepony had crossed their graves. Fear could be a powerful motivator, and cold was a powerful progenitor of fear. The wind swept through them, inspiring terror as to what else could happen through the night. It cut through town, putting out ever lantern and candle it could find, then it swept away to the north east, leaving a clear trail for any who wanted to follow. Some did. Others spread out to cover those that had moved to follow, and still others tried to relight their lanterns.

Robert leaped, wings spread and sailed over the heads of those between him and escape. Out of town, he kept away from the road, and moved through the woods. Once he was convinced he was far enough away from town, he found a tree, and lay out on one of the branches. Before he slept, he reached out, and lay a ward, stretched across the ground in a circle first, then woven up into a web that formed a dome. Anything that crossed would alert him. He lay his head down and went to sleep.