Soarin tapped his hooves idly on the edge of the carriage as he hung over the edge of the roof to look in through the window, boredom having overcome him to the point where if he didn't do something he was going to scream. "So, Fleur, haven't had much of a chance to talk lately. How you been?"

Fleur glared back at him. "I literally cannot tell if you're being serious or not. My horn's been cut off, my hooves are mangled, and I've been given a design that would be rather pretty if it weren't for the fact that it's been agonisingly burnt onto my leg. How do you think I am?"

"Well yeah, I can see all that. Doesn't mean I know what's going on in your head, does it?"

Fleur stared blankly at him, her mouth slightly agape before shutting abruptly. "You know Soarin, silence is a highly underrated sound. Perhaps you should attempt to make it."

"How can I make a lack of something?"

"Just... shush."

Ivory cleared her throat delicately, "It seems like you two know each other."

"We've met a few times," Fleur confirmed. "And every time we do our conversation devolves into something imbecilic and puerile, and usually ends with him sleazing all over me."

"Hey! No it doesn't!" Soarin suddenly chuckled, "Okay, most of the time it does, but not always! Besides, you can't blame me for wanting to make some conversation. Especially since I'm not totally sure what I'm doing out here."

"It was in the briefing Soarin," Fleur growled before sighing. "You phased out didn't you?"

"No!" Soarin said, when he totally had. He hadn't previously appreciated just how cute of a butt Summer possessed. "It wasn't like that briefing was heavy on details! I mean, I appreciate a decent level of succinctness in my plans, sure, but 'we're going to meet Hayfield and hopefully convince him to encourage the southern ponies of influence to join us,' is a little too succinct by far. There wasn't even a mention of what I'm here for, so can you blame me for getting distracted by Summer's ass?" Soarin blinked and cursed. "I wasn't supposed to say that last bit... Can I have a do-over on this?"

"W-was that why you were staring at me through all that?" Summer whimpered, curling up on herself a little and tucking her tail between her legs, which only served to make her cuter.

"Heh..." Soarin pulled back from the edge of the carriage until only the end of his muzzle was visible. "Sorry."

Fleur sighed irritably, "Smooth Soarin, real smooth. Almost tops you betting me ten bits that you could bed me that one gala."

"I was horrifically drunk when I said that, and you know it!"

"Really?" Octavia said quietly. "He offered me five. I guess supermodels get a higher rate than musicians." Octavia wasn't going to mention, ever, that she might just of had a teensy crush on Soarin in the past, and had almost said yes. There was something about a toned pegasi that she found rather pleasing to the eye. Or had until said pegasi bet her five bits to sleep with her.

"Did you do it?" the filly slowly asked Fleur, not entirely sure if she wanted the answer.

"I gave him ten bits on the spot and left."

"Most lucrative rejection I ever got. Seriously, it was the perfect win-win."

Fleur pointed her hoof at Soarin's head. "See? This is what I'm talking about! Imbecilic and puerile! I'm not even sure how he does it! Or how he manages to subvert his own conversations."

"Oh no, this is all going perfectly to plan. I'll win you all over with my amazing charm and good looks yet, just you wait!"

"I'm not sure I have the life span to wait that long," Fleur snarked at him.

"Ooh, catty."

"Okay!" Ivory said suddenly. "What do you want to know?"

"The plan, and why I'm here taking part in it."

"You're a glorified messenger pony," Fleur said happily.

"I'm a what? You mean I'm going to be here with you, living the high life, while Fleetfoot and Spitfire are off on dangerous missions, on the off chance you might need a message delivered somewhere?"

"That is indeed pretty much it."

There was a short silence. "Awesome! I totally lucked out there! I thought you were actually gonna need me for something, or something."

Octavia laughed bitterly, "Heavens forbid you should actually be expected to do something useful. Couldn't Fleetfoot have come with us instead?"

"Sadly not," said Soarin. "It's almost like fate is pushing us together, so clearly it's meant to be. How can you even try to resist the unstoppable whims of fate?"

Octavia rolled her eyes. "I'm sure I'll find a way."

The filly giggled gleefully, "I can already tell this is gonna be fun!"

"This place is weird," the filly said as she looked out of the carriage window at the small town they were looking at on the way to Hayfield manor.

She pointed at where two pegasi and a unicorn were laughing and joking while playing cards. "Prime example. You would never have seen that sort of thing before you guys came and started freeing the pegasi. Has this place always been like this?"

"They're still wearing their collars," Octavia observed.

"They'd have to do that to comply with the Duke's laws regarding pegasi," Ivory told her. "Even I'm surprised to see them living with the rest of the ponies here though."

"I don't know," said Soarin from his place atop the carriage. "I can see one of those caged compound thingies. Maybe they're allowed to mix with everypony during the day, but have to sleep in there at night?"

"Maybe... I'm sure we can get the full story off Hayfield when we see him."

They rolled on through the town, their passage gaining more attention the further they went. While many of the townsponies seemed curious as to who was inside, it couldn't escape the notice of those within that many appeared to be nervous. It was possible they thought that whoever was in the carriage was sent by the Duke.

The crested the hill to the manor, marvelling at the vast, red bricked building as they pulled up outside where a collection of ponies, including the maids for some reason, were lined up. Ivory smiled as she saw the short orange stallion with a tufty grey mane and mutton chops, dressed in a white dinner jacket. Beside him was a white and silver maned unicorn, still good looking despite her advancing years, and to the left of her was three more unicorn mares, white like their mother, but tall like Fleur with red, orange, and yellow manes.

"That's Hayfield, his wife Lockett, and his daughters Ruby, Topaz, and Beryl," Ivory said to the rest of the ponies in the carriage, "so be respectful." She opened the door and stepped out onto the gravel, "Hello Hayfield."

If he was surprised to see her, it didn't show beyond the slight raise of an eyebrow. "Ivory my dear," he said in a low, southern drawl, "you were not the pony I was expecting to see."

"Who were you expecting?" the filly asked cheekily as she jumped down behind Ivory.

"Well nopony actually, since I usually get a bit more warning, rather than luckily spotting the carriage coming up the hill." He eyed the filly for a moment before looking back to Ivory. "I'm not so brave as to assume she's yours."

"She's with me," Fleur said from within the carriage.

Hayfield stepped forward to investigate the carriage once Octavia had stepped clear, and his eyes widened with shock at the sight of Fleur. "Oh my dear, what in the world happened to you?"

"Nothing you want to hear," Fleur said lightly, hoping to keep some levity to the situation. "Let's just say I had a run in with some of those unicorn hunters, and leave it at that."

"I see." He then looked across the carriage to where Summer was sitting. "And a wounded pegasus, without a collar, like the one sat on the roof. You do realise this isn't a hospital, or a home for escapee pegasi?" He blinked and squinted at Summer, "Do I recognise you?" Summer froze and shook her head rapidly. "You sure? You look a lot like that poor mare the Viscount used to keep on his dammed riverboat."

"Don't worry, she's not," Ivory said smoothly, cutting into his view, "and we're not here for treatment. Although, if you have a pony here that could take a look at Fleur's hooves that would be very appreciated. We're actually here in the hopes you could help us."

"Us? As in the ten of you?"

"No, us, as in the Mareitania Liberation Front."

Now Hayfield was surprised. "You're with the rebellion!?"

"We are. I was hoping you could help us with something that your skills are well suited for."

"But of course. Perhaps this is something best discussed over dinner, away from prying eyes and overeager ears. I'll have somepony take your belongings to our guest rooms once I've made arrangements." He turned and headed inside, with Ivory following close behind, leaving the rest of them to mill around.

Fleur stared out the window of the carriage, feeling that her introductions could go better if the other pony didn't immediately start asking about her injuries. As she was thinking about this, she noticed out of the corner of her eye two blue wings slowly unfold until they were fully erect. She followed the direction of Summer's stare, finding it ended on Hayfield's daughters.

Fleur smirked, "You like?"

Summer jolted, and she turned to see Fleur watching her. She blushed furiously and swallowed before nodding. "Mmhmm."

"You have good taste." Fleur briefly wondered if Summer found her attractive, as there were a number of similarities between herself and the three mares outside. Or at least there had been before Fleur's visit to High Rock's dungeons.

An idea came to her upon seeing Summer watching those three mares, and she grinned devilishly. "Excuse me!" she called out, "Excuse me! The three beautiful unicorns?"

The orange maned one, which Fleur could only hopefully assume was Topaz due to the order Ivory had said their names in, stepped forward. "Do you mean us? Can we help you?"

"Me? No. But I was wondering if you could assist my friend here," Fleur said, indicating Summer with a hoof. "She was wounded in a fight against the Duke's forces. She fought valiantly, but alas there were too many of them for her, and she took an arrow to the shoulder."

"Oh you poor brave thing!" the yellow maned Beryl gushed. Summer stared at Fleur, fearful yet unsure, like a rabbit watching a timberwolf read a book on vegetarian cooking.

"She'll need to have her bandages changed soon, and I was hoping you could take her somewhere private, and possibly assist her?"

"Of course!" the red maned Ruby said as she stepped forward, "We'd be honoured to help such a brave pony."

"I knew I liked the look of you three! It's nice to know you're as beautiful on the inside as you are on the outside." Fleur knew she was laying it on a bit thick, but she didn't care, she was loving this way too much. "I will warn you though, she's rather shy until you get to know her, so be patient."

"What about you though?" asked Beryl.

"Oh don't worry yourselves about me. I'm afraid I cannot walk until my hooves are better, so I'll have to ask one of these strapping stallions to carry me instead." Fleur gestured towards the door with her head, hinting that Summer should get out, which she did, albeit slowly. "You go on now Summer, and let these darling mares take good care of you."

The three mares led Summer away, letting her lean on Ruby for support. Summer looked back briefly, her face an interesting mix of nerves, terror, and excitement.

"You couldn't look more smug if you tried," Octavia said to Fleur once they were gone.

"And what about me?" Soaring whined. "I'm injured too!" He raised his right wing to reveal a small bruise on his ribs. "Ohh, the pain! The paaain!" Seeing that they weren't buying it he let his wings droop down to the floor, "So unfair."

"Sadly Soarin, I like Summer more than I like you."

"Hah! You said you like me! We all heard it!"

"No I didn't. If I say I like... I don't know, split hooves more than dentistry, it doesn't mean I like split hooves, does it?"

Soarin drooped again in defeat. "I'll defrost your heart some day you evil ice queen..."

"Just kiss already," the filly muttered to herself.

"You do realise that every one of those mares might be straight, right?" Octavia said in the hopes of stopping whatever was going on between Fleur and Soarin.

"Or they might be as gay as I think they possibly are," Fleur said back. "My gaydar rarely leads me wrong. Either way, best of luck to her."

"So..." the filly said after a drawn out silence. "What exactly are we meant to be doing?"

"I don't know," said Fleur. "I'm still waiting for somepony to get me out of this carriage." Soarin fluffed his feathers up as he sensed his moment. "Somepony that isn't Soarin." And unfluffed them again as the moment flew by, slapping him in the face as it passed.

"Are you ever going to cut me some slack?"

"Are you ever going to stop trying to get under my tail at every social event we meet at?"

"Sooo... you're never going to cut me any slack then..?"

"Apparently not."

Fleur lay on the bed of the room she was sharing with the filly, while the filly herself was doing something in the adjoined bathroom, her hooves echoing off the tiles.

"Damn Fleur, this place is great! And it has everything! Drinking fountain tastes a bit funny though..."

"Drinking fountain?" Fleur's eyes widened as she realised what the filly was talking about. "That's not a drinking fountain!"

There was a short, unsure pause. "Um... what is it then?"

"It's a bidet. It's for... Never mind. It's not a drinking fountain though."

There was another short pause. "I've inadvertently done something disgusting haven't I. Is there a specific thing in this room for throwing up in? Or should I just assume any one of these will do?"

"The toilet, please." Fleur looked around their room to distract herself while the sound of retching emanated from the bathroom. So far she had been impressed with what the mansion had to offer. Sure the place she shared in Canterlot with Fancy Pants was slightly more stylised and polished, but due to Canterlot being what it is, size is rather limited. Not here though. Here in the countryside, ponies built big. And used wood. Lots of wood.

As she was pondering this, there was a knock at the door, which was pointless since the pony knocking entered regardless of what answer Fleur was about to give. It was Octavia, pushing in a wicker, three wheeled wheelchair.

Fleur raised an eyebrow, "What the jolly bastarding fuck is that?"

"It's a wheelchair. Hayfield had it dragged out of storage for you." Octavia cocked her ear as another retch sounded from the bathroom. "Is the filly being sick?"

"Yeah, she drank from the bidet. Now I do-"

"Ew."

"Yeah, gross, I know. Anywa-"

"Why in Equestria would she drink from the bidet?"

"I thought it was a drinking fountain!"

"What?"

"It's not like I know what any of this stuff is in here! Especially not these damn seashells!"

Fleur rolled her eyes, "I wouldn't worry about tha-"

"Seashells?" Octavia interrupted, "What seashells?"

"No, it's fine, just keep on interrupting me..."

"The three seashells above the toilet. They're made of metal so they can't just be for decoration, right?"

"The seashells aren't important!" Fleur shouted. "And don't you dare lick them to find out what they are!" Fleur took a deep breath to compose herself. "What is important is you thinking I'm going to get in that death-trap."

"Death-trap?" Octavia scrunched her nose up in confusion, "How is a wheelchair a death-trap?"

"Look at that thing! It's ancient! That thing's probably planning an amusing accident for me as we speak, involving rolling uncontrollably, a brief amusing moment where you all try to catch me, and a soggy ending likely involving a pond and some ducks, or maybe a pig sty!"

"It has a hoofbrake, look." Octavia pulled a big lever on the side of the chair, locking its brakes into position. "Are you normally this paranoid?"

"Only since I've learnt to dislike pain so much."

"You'll be fine. There's no way in which any of that bizarre scenario you came up with can happen. Look! There's even a handle at the front so you can steer!"

"Lucky me," said Fleur, her eyes half lidded.

"Come on, get yourself in and let's go to dinner."

"Is dinner ready?" the filly asked excitedly as she galloped out of the bathroom. "Sweet!"

Octavia's face twitched with a hint of disgust. "How could you possibly be thinking about food when you just threw up?"

"Exactly! I just threw up! So now I'm hungry again!"

"Unbelievable..." Octavia pushed the chair up to the bed and waited, wincing with empathy at every gasp of pain Fleur made as she was forced to walk into the chair. Fleur found a belt and strapped it around her waist before wriggling her rear to get comfortable.

"This is exactly as uncomfortable as I thought it'd be. I'm so glad there's no paparazzi around to see me like this."

"What's a paparazzi?" asked the filly.

"Imagine a cross between a pony, a vulture, and a weasel, then take away their morals and give them a camera."

"Oh." The filly considered this for a moment. "What's a vulture and what's a camera? Also, I'm only vaguely aware of what morals are, in a round-about, need not apply to me kind of way."

"Oh for goodness- I'll explain it later. Let's just get this dinner over with."

"One question before we go," said Octavia. Fleur looked at her expectantly as Octavia grinned mischievously, "Would you like a blanket to keep your poor old hoofsies warm?"

Fleur glared at Octavia, wanting to wipe that grin off her face. "When this wheelchair loses control, I sincerely hope that I run over your hooves. When that happens, do you know what I'll say?"

"Feel my pain?"

"Feel my- Uh, yeah actually, exactly that. Way to steal my thunder."

"Mmhmm. I'm also going to point out that you'll probably be screaming too much for witty one liners."

"Challenge accepted."

"What?"

"I don't know. Let's go to dinner and forget all about this."

Fleur, along with the filly and Octavia, were the last ponies to enter the dining room. Everypony else was already seated, with Hayfield's three daughters clustered around Summer, much to Fleur's delight. The little blue pegasus was blushing profusely, but also smiling widely. With good reason if the traces of lipstick on her cheeks were any indication.

"Now that we're all here," said Hayfield from his position at the head of the table, "perhaps we can see what the cooks have prepared for us this evening." He waved to a unicorn in the corner, presumably a butler, who stepped out through a double door, only to return a few seconds later with a train of serving maids behind him.

The starter appeared to be a tomato salad served with some kind of cheese, to be washed down with a white wine. Fleur stared at it with polite interest, even after everypony else had started eating.

"Is something the matter Fleur?" Ivory asked after a couple of minutes.

Fleur held up her bandaged hooves. "I'm not so rude as to just stick my face in and eat in such polite company," she said, even though that was precisely what the filly was doing. "I'm not used to doing this without a horn." Even Summer was doing her best to use the cutlery, in-between moments when one of the daughters fed her a choice bit.

"My apologies Fleur," Lord Hayfield said quickly. "Ruby, be a dear and assist our guest."

The red maned unicorn sighed, but stood to comply. "Yes father."

The clank of cutlery on plates and the sound of chewing were the only sounds in the room until everypony finished. As they were waiting for the main course to be served, Ivory decided to address the elephant in the room.

"I suppose you're wondering why we've come to ask for your help Hayfield."

"It is a thought that's been rolling around my mind for a couple of hours now, yes. Seeing as how I've sent you supplies and some willing ponies, I have to admit I am wondering how else to help you."

"Political leverage," said Fleur, having recovered from being fed like a foal for now.

"If you're suggesting I try and convince the Duke to surrender, I might just have a bridge I can sell you."

"Nothing like that," Ivory said smoothly. "There are plenty of other ponies like you that are wealthy, and own large tracts of land. I was hoping that with your help we could convince some of those ponies to join our cause instead of supporting the Duke."

"Good luck with that," Hayfield said dismissively. "Very few of the other Lords and Ladies would be willing to abandon the Duke in favour of you."

"Why not?" asked the filly.

"Because many of them share the same values as those you're trying to defeat. Not all believe in freedom and equality for earth ponies, unicorns, and pegasi, and many would not wish to go against the Duke and his army."

Fleur clasped her hooves together, "Do you believe in equality for all?"

"I do, hence why I'm supporting you."

"Then why are those pegasi outside still wearing collars?"

"While I doubt you're trying to insinuate that I'm still enslaving those pegasi, if I were they'd be the best kept pegasi in the country. Those collars they wear are fake, and purely for appearances. They aren't as free as the rest of the ponies here, true, but that has more to do with the way pegasi are treated in this country. I protect them, and they stick around to do their jobs."

"How long have you been doing that?" Octavia asked.

"Since I inherited this land off my father, who treated pegasi as awfully as everypony else I might point out. Sad as it is, I still need pegasi to control the weather around here, so I have to appear to at least keep them as the slaves they were born as."

Ivory nodded, fully understanding where Hayfield was coming from. But those were the Dukes' rules, not the rebels', "Would you remove their collars if you formally joined us?"

"You mean throw my full support behind the Liberation Front? Is this how you hope to get other ponies like myself to join you?"

Fleur shook her head, "Not quite. Do you know ponies that share similar views to your own? Or that could be at least persuaded to see the benefits of doing so?"

Hayfield rubbed his cheek as he thought, fluffing up his mutton chops. "Some yes, but that's less than a dozen."

Ivory nodded, "It'd be a start. If you could convince them to aid us, if not outright join us, then others could be more easily convinced."

"And how do I do that?"

"Throw a little soirée," suggested Fleur. "Bring them here and we'll all do our best to convince them that joining us is the best course of action."

"Hmm..." Hayfield's eyes went distant as he thought, and Ivory and Fleur shared a look, knowing that this moment was probably the only chance they had of pulling this off. "No."

"No!?" Fleur and Ivory shouted simultaneously.

"No. If one of those ponies refused to join then suddenly it's no longer a secret that I'm supporting you. As soon as that gets back to the Duke he'd march in here and end us. Obviously this effects more than just me and my family."

"Then we'll kill any that don't agree with us!" the filly said, far too happily.

Hayfield narrowed his eyes at the filly's outburst. "There'll be no spilling blood on my land."

"You'll have to excuse the filly," said Fleur, "but she's not wrong. We won't kill them on your land, but if they continue to support the Duke we'll have no choice but to eliminate them. Surely you have some friends among them that you wouldn't want that to happen to?"

"We're sorry for the position we're putting you in," Ivory added.

"And if the Duke does come after us here?" Hayfield growled.

"Then we'll protect you."

"Protect us? Your army is small and untested. You'd be fools to think you can protect us and protect your own holdings."

"I'm guessing you haven't heard of recent events at Puddingarde then?" Fleur said sweetly.

"What events?" Fleur explained it to him, even the part where Twilight died and came back to life. An amusing range of emotions travelled their way across his face, ending in mild surprise.

"Fine, so your forces are effective, no doubt about that, but your numbers are even less than they were before."

"We'll rebuild."

They ceased their discussion as the main course was brought out, a nut roast served with seasonal vegetables. It was rather good, leaving Fleur wishing Ruby would shovel the food into her mouth a bit faster than she was.

Hayfield placed his knife and fork on the table and drank a mouthful of wine. "I'll need time to think about this, as what you're asking is no small thing. You'll have your answer by tonight, one way or another. In the meantime, please enjoy the comforts of my home."

"Do you have a music room by any chance?" Octavia enquired politely.

"We do indeed. I suspected by your mark that you're a musician, so feel free to use the room as you please."

It would've been hard for Octavia to smile any wider.

Octavia breathed deep, the smell of vintage musical perfection filling her nostrils. Hayfield hadn't been joking when he said music room, as the amount of instruments in there could have outfitted at least twenty ponies with a different instrument.

She searched about, looking in hope for the one instrument she desired above all others, and found it sitting to the side, its polished wood inviting her to run her hooves down its body, gaining a little shiver of anticipation from the mare.

She picked up the bow and ran it across the strings, making her frown as a few sour notes made themselves heard. She twanged the strings, picking out the offenders, and tightened them until all were perfect.

Minutes later, rich music filled the room as much as it filled Octavia's soul, lifting her spirits which had flagged so dangerously low of late. The melody ebbed, becoming slow and deep as she played through her pain, and rose as what joys she had echoed through her music. She wasn't cut out for what the rebellion needed of her, that much was obvious, but why should she be any different? She had no right to hide when ponies, no different to herself, marched into the jaws of death with a song in their heart and a fire in their soul.

There was no easy answer, she knew that, but for at least some time she could ignore the question, focusing instead on her art, her true love.

Time flew by as the bow massaged the strings, bringing forth streams of beautiful music that didn't stop for a single moment. Until that was, a hoof knocked at the door, totally destroying her concentration. "Come in," she huffed in annoyance.

"Sorry to disturb you," said Soarin as he pushed the door open, "but I couldn't sit out there listening to you play any longer without telling you what you're playing is beautiful."

Octavia could feel herself blushing, despite the various warnings that unheard parts of her brain were telling her. "Well, thank you Soarin. I know you said you've liked my music before now, but I never thought of you as a true fan of the genre."

Soarin shrugged easily, "I like music that suits my mood, and right now, what you're playing suits me just fine. Please, continue."

"Oh, uh, very well." Octavia started slow into a new melody, slowly building it up into a energetic number that she was truly at her limits playing. Perhaps it was the need to play pushing her on, or the sight of Soarin sat before her with his eyes closed, waving a hoof in time with the music, or her previous crush on him clouding her judgement that encouraged her to push her unpractised self as much as she could.

The tune ended, and Soarin opened his eyes to smile at Octavia. "That was amazing! You really are talented to be able to play like that. I struggle to even whistle decently at times."

Octavia relaxed slightly, hugging the neck of the cello. "I rather fear that I might have misjudged you Soarin. I would never have expected you to have a taste for the music I play."

"Eh, I'm a stallion of many depths. I also feel that some of my past actions with other mares might have encouraged your negative view of me. Rightfully so, for which I am very regretful."

"Well, betting five bits you could sleep with me was a bit, shall I say, tasteless."

"I did that?" Octavia nodded, "Oh. Sorry. I don't know if you noticed, but I'm a bit of an idiot when I've had a bit to drink. Honestly, an amazing, talented mare like you is priceless, and I regret not getting to know you sooner so I could realise that." Soarin stood and stepped nearer to her, and Octavia clutched the cello a little tighter, blushing brightly.

"Listening to you play tonight has truly taken my breath away..." Soarin leaned in, and even though quite a lot of her knew what she was getting herself into was likely a mistake, Octavia leaned towards Soarin and met his lips in a kiss that lasted several seconds before breaking. He smiled at her, the confident smile of a pony that knew what they wanted, a smile that said 'tonight, you,' and Octavia found she had absolutely no resistance.

"Why am I doing this again?" the filly grunted as she tried to push Fleur's wheelchair along one of the many corridors of Hayfield Manor.

"Because Octavia ran off as soon as dinner ended, in case you didn't notice the way she damn near sprinted out of the room. That mare has a serious problem with cellos."

"What about Soarin then?"

Fleur sighed, "Even if I knew where he was, I really wouldn't want him doing it."

"Why not?"

"Because that would involve him talking to me and being near me. I swear, if he's creeping after Ivory or something I'm going to murder him."

The filly pushed the wheelchair into the lift and slid the door shut before cranking the handle around that raised and lowered the platform. Thankfully that wasn't too hard but by the time she had made it to the third floor she was exhausted.

She managed to push the chair out of the lift, but that was as far as she made it. "I'm... sorry... Gah... Fleur, I don't think I can keep pushing you like this. Should I go find somepony else? Because I'm going to die if I keep doing this."

"Oh for crying out loud," Fleur grumbled. "Fine. I guess I'll just sit here like a lemon, right next to these wonderfully steep stairs, shall I?"

"I knew you'd understand!" the filly said before galloping off down the stairs, the shout of "I was joking!" following her down. The filly didn't actually want to leave Fleur there, and had every intention of finding somepony to help, but that didn't mean she had to rush since she didn't actually know where anypony was. Sensibly she could've asked one of the maids for help, but since the idea of servants was totally foreign to her, it never crossed her mind.

She cantered down one of the many corridors of this oversized chateau, hearing giggles coming from one of the rooms. She put her ear to the door, hearing what sounded like Summer.

Having no reason to think not to, she pushed the door open and froze at the sight of Summer lay on her back on a bed, Ruby to her left, Beryl to her right, and Topaz facing her rear to the door as she did something between Summer's legs that the filly didn't want to speculate on too much.

"Ah! Filly!" Summer shrieked at noticing the intruder to their private party. "Pleasedon'ttellanypony!"

The filly didn't move for a second, slowly letting a grin grow on her face. "Summer, I'm not into mares or anything, but seriously, right now you are my fucking hero. Guess Fleur was right about you three as well." The three unicorns blushed as one.

"Filly, I'm serious, please don't tell anypony," Summer begged.

"I might tell Fleur since she... y'know, encouraged you towards this, but I promise that will be as far as it goes."

Summer breathed deeply, then nodded. "Okay. Thanks filly."

"Any time Summer, any time. I'm gonna leave you to your harem now." She shut the door behind her and stood as she tried to bleach some of what she had seen out of her brain. It didn't seem to want to work, and only became worse when the giggling started again.

"Bleeeaaaahhhh..." the filly groaned before running away as fast as she could. She sprinted down the corridor to the end, cantered down the stairs at the end, and ran up the next corridor as well, skidding to a halt as Octavia stepped out of a room in front of her. "Octavia! I need your he-" The filly cocked her head as she saw just how dishevelled Octavia's mane and tail was. "Octavia, what have you been doing?"

"Making mistakes. Terrible, terrible mistakes." Octavia turned and walked stiffly down the corridor, the filly catching the scent of two ponies that had formed the beast with two backs. "I need a shower."

"Is everypony busy getting laid or something?" The door creaked open, and Soarin stood in the doorway, a cocky grin showing the filly that Octavia really had made a mistake. "You've got to be kidding me."

"Hey kid, what do you mean is everypony busy getting laid? You mean we're not the only ones? We could've organised an orgy?" Soarin was a little too excited by that for the filly's tastes.

"No, Sum- Nevermind. I need help wi-" The filly remembered Fleur's strict instructions on it not being Soarin. "Never mind. You reek of... musician. Go wash before Fleur smells it on you and murders you."

"Why? Is she going to be jealous?"

"Heck if I know, I'm just giving you my recommendation in aid of you living past tonight, since you got jiggy with her friend and all."

"Ah." Soarin looked up and down the corridor thoughtfully. "Good point. Maybe Octavia will want to share her shower." There was a small shriek from down the corridor. "Don't worry, she'll come to appreciate these moments together some day."

"I wouldn't count on it," the filly said, fully supporting Octavia's view on the matter. "I'm gonna go since I'm way too young to be hearing this shit."

Fleur flicked a hoof on the brake of her wheelchair, strangely enjoying the dull throb it made in her hoof, which also helped to alleviate the crushing boredom of being stuck in said chair.

She'd only wanted to go and sit out on the balcony. Not a huge thing to ask for, yet somehow even that was too much. She sighed, feeling slightly guilty at getting annoyed at a filly that was barely half her size, and a pegasus as well, lacking the pushing power an earth pony would have.

"Maybe Twilight's right," she said to herself. "Maybe I should go home, stop being a burden to everypony." She hit out at the brake in frustration, crying in pain as it reminded her that her hooves weren't in the best of conditions. She clutched her hoof to her chest and squeezed her eyes shut as tears leaked from their corners.

"Sonnuva bitc-ah!" She yelped as the front wheel of the wheelchair slipped over the edge of the stairs, the wheelchair resting on its bottom on the edge. It had never occurred to her that hitting the hoofbrake in the direction it was pushed to disengage was probably a bad idea.

She sat, not daring to move as every time she did the chair slipped just a little bit further. Tentatively, she reached out to pull the brakes back on, but the handle just flopped uselessly in her grip. "Uh-oh."

Her heart jumped in her chest as the chair slipped a little bit further, balancing the entire chair on the edge of the stairs. "No-no-no-no!" She grabbed the steering handle and screamed as the wheelchair made its way over the edge and plummeted down the stairs.

"Ud-ud-ud-ud-ud!" Every bounce pushed her breath out of her, but she held on. Whether out of luck, or skill, she kept the chair upright and she hit the floor at the bottom of the stairs with a bone shaking thud. Her momentum kept her moving, rolling along the hallway at a fast trot that due to the nicely polished wooden floor, offered no resistance, and she barely slowed as she sped along the entire length of the hallway to the stairs at the other end.

She was tempted to run herself into the wall, but figured that doing so would cause damage, which would hardly endear her to Hayfield, so she persevered, gulping with nerves as she neared the top of the next set of stairs.

She bounced down them, making the turn in them through a mixture of steering and bouncing off the opposite walls, and safely made it to the bottom, rolling at a faster pace than she was before.

Octavia stepped out of her room with a towel on her head, and widened her eyes at the sight of a high-speed wheelchair barrelling down on her. "Fleur!"

"Feel my- Fuck!" Fleur swore as Octavia took a tiny, almost imperceptible step back, letting the wheelchair and its screaming inhabitant whizz past the end of her nose before chasing after it.

"Hold on Fleur!" Octavia shouted as she started chasing after the chair.

"What do you think I'm doing!" Fleur shouted back. She found the filly with Soarin further up the hallway, and slightly shifted her aim towards Soarin, figuring he might at least slow her down. It wasn't to be though as the pegasus jumped into the air and hovered, allowing Fleur to pass right beneath him, while the filly jumped to the side. "Damn it Soarin!"

"What did I do?"

"Shut it Soarin!" Octavia shouted as she galloped past him, still chasing after Fleur.

The main staircase was ahead of Fleur now, and stood at the top of it was Hayfield and his wife, along with Ivory, leaving her no choice but to turn down the stairs, her wheelchair teetering on two wheels as she desperately tried to not totally scupper their chances of an alliance with him. Unfortunately this also left her heading straight towards the main doors outside.

"Open the doors!" she screamed at the butler that was trying to lock them. He pushed them open and dove out of the way just in time as she was the barest second from hitting him, although that might have been preferable to what was now before her.

She flew over the last steps out of the manor, her wheelchair taking flight for a brief second before thudding down onto the ground with enough force to wind her. It didn't stop though, and she regretted asking the butler to open the doors as the wheelchair carried her over the gravel just far enough to meet the hill that the manor was built on.

Dust streamed out behind her as she gained more and more speed, and the wheels screamed in protest at their treatment, along with Fleur who really wanted this to end now. The flapping of wings caught her attention, and she glanced to her left to see Soarin lazily flying alongside her.

"So, what do I get if I stop you?"

"Nothing!"

"Aw come on, it must be worth at least a kiss, right?"

"Fuck off Soarin! I'd rather crash than give you the satisfaction!" She veered the wheelchair towards him, although he easily dodged it.

"Your choice," he said before pulling up.

Fleur tightened her grip on the steering bar, suddenly determined to finish this without the help of Soarin, who was quietly keeping pace above her, not that she knew.

She raced through the center of the village, leaving behind a trail of dust and apologies as she dodged around what ponies there were. A group of ponies scattered before her, letting her race through the middle of them and out through the other side of town, still racing down the hill.

It began to flatten out though and a small incline started to slow her down, giving her chance to breathe before throwing her down another hill. It was only short though, and the hill on the other side was enough to stop her completely, leaving her rolling back and forth until coming to a complete stop.

Elation filled at having successfully navigated her way through that disaster without hurting herself, or anypony else. "Hah! I knew I could do it! Take that!" she shouted at nobody in particular. "That was actually kinda fun," she said with a happy sigh before sniffing the air, "Why do I smell burning?" She looked down, seeing that the wheels where smoking. "Oh."

Soarin landed beside her, "So, do you want me to push you back now?"

"No thank you, I'll wait for the others."

"Oh come on! I'm not even asking for anything! I've had enough fun watching you come down here. Lemme just-" He pushed the chair slightly, and with an agonising groan the right wheel snapped off, tipping the chair over and throwing Fleur into the dusty road.

"Ah! Mother fucker! Soarin!"

"Yeah, I'm just gonna wait for the others to get here."

"I told you this would happen," Fleur grumbled half-heartedly as Octavia ran a wet cloth over her, trying to wipe the dust off. It would've been simpler to have a bath, but doctors orders were to keep her leg and hooves dry. "I totally fucking called it."

"You broke the brake Fleur. If this happened, it's because you made it happen."

Fleur rolled her eyes, "What does it matter how it happened? It still happened is my point."

The filly smirked at her, "It was still kind of awesome though."

"And you! Never leave me in a position like that again!"

"Alright! I'm sorry! Octavia should've been the one helping you, if she weren't too busy getting funky with Soarin!" Octavia froze, and grinned nervously as Fleur turned to glare at her.

"You didn't..."

"I'm afraid so."

"What in the world convinced you to do that?"

"What? He's very charming when he wants to be. Charming... and persuasive. It's also the first time I'd got to play since that damned riverboat, and I might've been in a good mood, okay? Believe me, if I could take it back, I would."

"That bad huh?"

Octavia sighed, "He was very self congratulatory. I don't think a pony ought to high-hoof himself for getting laid." She sighed and rinsed the cloth out, "At least he didn't ask me to get him a sandwich after." Octavia narrowed her eyes at the filly who was failing to hide a snigger.

Fleur rolled her eyes, "I can't believe you didn't see through what was an obvious attempt to get you in bed."

"It was over the piano seat... Not that you needed to know that."

Fleur shuddered, "Yeah, no, we didn't." The filly stood and whispered into Fleur's ear, a smile growing with every word, "Really? All three? At once? I never knew she had that in her."

"Who had what in where?" Octavia asked. "And I realise what I just said. Please don't."

The filly smirked, "Please don't what?"

Octavia flicked the cloth at the filly, getting water on her. "Please don't anything, except tell me what you're talking about."

"Summer and those three unicorns," said Fleur. Octavia's eyes went wide.

"Blimey." Octavia ran the cloth over Fleur one last time. "I don't think I'm going to do much more here. We will have to change those bandages though."

"Yeah, I know." Fleur looked away as Octavia unwound the bandage on her leg. "I can't wait until I'm able to bathe again. I think I'm going to go to city hall and spend half the day in the tub." Fleur's eyes flicked to Octavia, "How's it look?"

"Not too bad actually. It's still a bit red, but the swelling's gone down, and it doesn't look infected, so I'd say it's going well. Another week and hopefully you'll be allowed to have that bath."

"Splendid. I'll have to start picking outfits with sleeves to hide it though. Or maybe wear long gloves... Socks would work, but I'd probably look silly wearing socks all the time."

The filly frowned, "You're going to hide it? And what's the difference between a sock and a glove?"

"Intent, mostly, and of course I'm going to hide it. Wouldn't you?"

"No way! It looks too cool to hide it!"

"You wouldn't be saying that if you got it the way I did."

Hayfield had gathered everypony back to the dining room, promises of answers drawing some ponies, and promises of dessert drawing others, like the filly, who was eyeball deep in a bowl of trifle, which she didn't have a very high opinion of but was still eating on the basis that free food is good food.

Hayfield stood and rang a spoon against his glass, "So, I guess you're all waiting for what my answer is." He sighed, and seemed to grow older in the space of a few seconds. "I'm in." The filly whooped while the others passed quieter, celebratory smiles to each other. "There's no point trying to fight a rising tide, so I'm going to do this in the hopes of not getting swept away. I will say though that I am doing this reluctantly. If this comes to backfire on me, I expect you to get my family, and everypony here to safety."

Ivory stood and nodded, "Of course we would, and thank you so much for agreeing to help us do this."

Hayfield shook his head sadly, "I wish I could say it was my pleasure. I'll have the invitations sent out tomorrow to have the dinner party this weekend, since I'm sure you all have things to get back and do sooner rather than later. I'll be inviting some ponies that I think would likely see it our way, as well as some I think could be persuaded."

"Wouldn't some of these ponies join us in the hopes of keeping their wealth should we succeed?" Octavia pointed out.

"More than likely," Hayfield answered her, "but what does that matter? As long as they treat ponies how you want them to be treated, you'll have no quarrel with them, right?"

Octavia looked to Fleur, who appeared as though she shared the same concern. "And if they don't treat ponies the way we want? I know ponies around here have a bad habit of being stubborn." Fleur asked.

"Then that is up to you. I'm just trying to give these ponies a better alternative to you killing them simply because they're in your way."

Fleur cleared her throat to hide her awkwardness, "Fair enough. I don't suppose you know a pony that could help with my hooves since we're going to be here a few days? If I could walk at this party I'd feel a lot better."

"There's an apothecary just moved into town from Whiplash you might want to ask. If he doesn't know how to help you, then I'm afraid you're stuck with that wheelchair. I'll get somepony to fix it up for you anyway. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some invitations to write."

They waited for him and his wife to leave, before bursting into excited chatter. "I can't believe he agreed!" Ivory exclaimed. "I'd pretty much convinced myself he'd refuse after earlier."

"He doesn't seem very happy about it though," said Octavia.

Fleur shook her head and shrugged, "Can you blame him? We might as well have told him 'do this or we'll kill your friends. By the way, sorry if we put your entire family in danger while doing so.'"

"Which is why we have to pull this off without a single hitch," Ivory agreed. "So I suggest we keep Summer and Soarin somewhere out of sight until after Hayfield gives them their choice."

"Fine by me," said Summer.

"Yeah, it'll be great!" Soarin nudged Summer, "We'll find a cozy little nook together and spend some time getting to know one another."

"Please don't touch me," Summer whispered.

Fleur glared at him and he took a step back. "Sorry, anypony but her, got it."

"Darn right," Fleur emphasized.

"Still, this is a good opportunity for us," Soarin continued, "and even now I like to think we've all learned something from our time here so far."

Fleur rolled her eyes, "And what could possibly have made its way through your thick skull?"

"Well, I've learnt that Oct-"

Octavia slammed her hooves on the table, "Don't you dare Soarin! Don't you even dare!"

"Okay then, what did you learn?"

Octavia narrowed her eyes, "Don't trust a stallion with a silver tongue."

Soarin deflated slightly, "Oh. Good lesson. How about you Fleur?"

"Don't trust wheels."

"Filly?"

"Trifle tastes better if you don't eat the jelly bit."

Soarin nodded sagely, "A most excellent wisdom there. Ivory?"

Ivory snorted, "I've learned that I really don't care for moments like this."

"Fair enough. Summer?"

Summer thought for a moment. "I've learned a lot I think. I didn't know you could do half the things with a unicorns' horn that I found out today."

"Eurgh," the rest of them said together upon hearing that.

" Sorry. Too much information?"

"Just slightly darling," confirmed Fleur.

Author's Notes:

Just a bit of silliness so I could do something different. I probably could've polished it a bit more, but Doom's out tomorrow and I want to play it before it gets banned for causing shootings of some kind, stupid sensationalist media...