Twi and I, with Magic Dowser in my forelegs, reappeared back in the park. I carefully put Magic Dowser down in the shade of a tree; even as I did, outside of a bit of muttering, he didn’t wake up. I looked around to see that everyone was still here, outside of Scorpion and Minty.

“Scorpion took Minty on a tour of the city.” Thirdclaw whispered to me when I backed away.

“Did she give you any trouble during the mating?” I whispered back.

“Outside of fainting when She of Hourglass and Dragon FireWyrm fucked, no.”

How Prey Brother? She of Hourglass questioned while looking at him. She appeared extremely tense.

“Threw up... then claimed he was doomed because he never could live up to dragons romantically. Fell asleep from exhaustion.”

“DragonWyrm Heart…” Twilight warned me, in a tone that spoke volumes.

I sighed. “Magic Dowser and I got into a tiff, and I quipped about the parallels between She of Hourglass’ and Magic Dowser’s life, and Twi’s and my own…”

She of Hourglass smacked me with her tail. Firstclaw, stop teasing Prey Brother.

“I deserve that.” I resisted the urge to rub the back of my head where she hit. She may not have a tail weapon, I think, but she can hit quite hard with it, nonetheless.

“Yeah, you do…” Twi deadpanned. “I know you are worn out emotionally, mentally, and physically, but you could have shown a bit more restraint… For example, while there are parallels in our lives, and telling him about them may have helped him, the genderbent discordian universe comment did not.”

She of Hourglass smacked me a second time before she turned her attention back to Magic Dowser. Though, as a wyrm, she was no longer as expressive, her eyes dimmed in sadness. Those two were like two peas in a pod… I was glad She of Hourglass had a mate and clan; I didn’t think she would be able to handle Magic Dowser’s death very well, when the day would come, otherwise.

That thought saddened me, reminding me of the imminent death of one of my hoard, History Seeker. I knew it was coming, and I knew it was going to be painful. It was already worse than any other time that I lost hoard, like with Medallion and Quartermaster and his mate, as the pain has been drawn out, as he has been slowly wasting away from illness for months now...

“Your hoard still loves you.” Twi put a reassuring hoof on She of Hourglass’ paw. “He’s just a bit afraid that you won’t be the sister he hatched and grew up with, anymore.”

She of Hourglass nuzzled Twi in thanks before she went over to Magic Dowser, who managed to remain asleep, even with the whole conversation going on. She of Hourglass tilted her head one way, then the other. Without warning, her serpentine tongue shot out and tickled a spot on his front right shoulder. Magic Dowser tittered from it. I had to hold back a laugh, so as to not wake Magic Dowser up. From the looks of Wanderer and Caretaker, they, too, were struggling not to laugh. She of Hourglass’ tongue snuck out a second time, and tickled him again.

“Stop! You know I’m ticklish there… I… the only one that knew about that was… Ruby!” Magic Dowser looked up in shock to see a very large, red scaled snout. He tensed up for merely a second, before recognition flashed across his eyes. “Bah! Ruby don’t do that!”

Everyone cringed at Magic Dowser using her old name like that… and, as expected, She of Hourglass didn’t seem to like it, either, as she growled angrily at him. Magic Dowser didn’t seem to care as he scrambled to get up. From the looks of it, one of his legs appeared to have fallen asleep.

“You hush!” Magic Dowser bopped the tip of She of Hourglass’ snout. “I spent twenty three years being called Dowsy! It's time for a bit of payback.”

We shared a knowing look when She of Hourglass’ eyes shone with the same glint that Dragon FireWyrm would give went he was being ‘sneaky’ about his playfulness. Without warning, at least for Magic Dowser, her tongue zipped out and tickled him in the same spot.

“You are so getting it for that! And I know exactly how.” In a flash, Magic Dowser had teleported to the top of She of Hourglass’ head. “You know, now that I can ride on you, I can finally get revenge for all the times you used to use me as a mount.”

She of Hourglass rumbled in a strange mix of confusion and horror.

“Oh, you hoped that my memory loss would include that?” Magic Dowser smirked, looking down into She of Hourglass’ eyes, so she could see. If there was any doubt about them being siblings, that would have ended right there. Few can understand a wyrm, and when one considered that Magic Dowser was a pony, it made it all the more special...

Go on. Dragon FireWyrm growled out. She of Hourglass, with Magic Dowser riding her, went bounding down the street, both laughing. I swore I could even hear Magic Dowser scream out “Faster!”

“That brings back memories..” Twi cooed, looking at them with eyes full of nostalgia. Warning bells went off in my head when I saw the look in her eyes

“Oh, no, not going to happen.” I backed away as a grin formed on Twilight’s muzzle.

That grin turned into an evil smirk, as her horn lit up and she summoned a saddle.

Where did she get that!? I thought in horror, trying to find a way out of the embarrassing situation I was about to endure. Sadly, my family seemed to find it amusing, as they laughed at my soon-to-be misery.

“Dragon FireWyrm, help!” Dragon FireWyrm shook his head as I pleaded. “I suppose I should have kept my tongue in check…”

Dragon FireWyrm merely slowly blinked to my admission. I swear I could see an ever so slight upturn on the edge of his mouth.

“Twilight has the right idea. But who needs a saddle when you can hide bareback?” Thirdclaw quipped as he literally mounted Caretaker, the musk of his arousal starting to overtake She of Hourglass and Dragon Firewyrm.

“My clan is a bunch of traitors!” I yelled out as I make a hasty retreat, with Twi hot on my trail, saddle still in her aura.

Ruby was soon running so fast that I had to hold on her hair-like spines like my life depended on it. But the more she navigated the city, the more it seemed like she knew exactly where to go. How does it seem like she knows the streets so well? I was lost within seconds. I could vaguely remember that the streets were laid out in a discernible pattern, but that was from the air, not on the ground, and during daylight… which, judging from the fact that the sky was beginning to lighten, would be fairly soon.

Suddenly, Ruby came to a complete stop. I have no idea why, or what caused her to do that, as, in my rush to keep myself on her, I had wrapped some of her hair spines around me, and now I was in a complete tangle and, I think, upside down now, if the blue that I could see through the sea of orange was any indication.

<Hey, She of Hourglass!> Scorpion called out. Well, I now had an explanation for the sudden stop. I would have said something, but I was too busy trying to get my dizziness down. I am so going to smack Ruby for stopping with no warning. That is, once I can figure out how to get out of the mess of hair spines I’m tangled up in.

<I see that you have a brother in your hair spines…>

Ruby growled out angrily. I grunted in annoyance. Just what I need to be, the butt of a joke.

<That may be true, but I can still tease you, as a fellow clanmate.>

“Can we stop teasing my sister, and help me get out of her hair spines.”

<How did you get tangled up in her spines?>

“She never brushes them.” I deadpanned.

I was roughly, and slightly painfully, pulled out by Ruby, and she then berated me in her growling language. Or at least, I assumed it. I really had been guessing on her reactions, so far. I sighed. I knew from experience, and from what Twilight and DragonWyrm Heart had said, that Ruby would be different but... with there now being a language barrier, would we drift apart one day, and stop being brother and sister?

<What’s wrong, Magic Dowser?> Scorpion questioned.

I sighed; I knew I would not escape this, Ruby would not let me. “I can’t understand my sister anymore...”

<I think you understand your sister a bit better than you think.>

“But we don’t even speak the same language anymore!”

Words... phrases

To my shock Scorpion started to flippantly list off words… outloud! I could feel a magic power with them… a familiar power...

Chittering... chattering
Howling... growling
Vowels... consonants
All from the mouth is worthless

Scorpion pulled out the guitar that was on his back, and added it to the magic of what I now recognized to be a heartsong, and he was only speaking before! No wonder he never spoke outloud! His voice was… whoa...

Listen to the song of your heart
It knows the truth of the matter
Hear the soaring melodies
Drifting in the cloudless sky

Like two peas in a pod
Two sides of a coin
You know each other better

Words merely tickle the ear
Love transcends the noise
Breaks through to the matter
The matters of the heart

All you need is to listen

I had to hold back tears as the the sound and magic of the heartsong faded away. I could vaguely see that Scorpion was putting away his guitar. He was right; I always understood Ruby, even when she would try to hide something, like her dreams. The joke we shared sometimes was to annoy mom by finishing each other's sentences at the dinner table.

Suddenly, I could feel something long and wet comb my mane and backside. There could only be one thing that could do that, and, with a slight turn of my head, I could see that it was exactly what I thought it was. Ruby was licking me, like a cat or dog. “Oh gross stop!” I yelled, mortified at what Ruby just did.

Meanwhile, Minty was fighting hard not to laugh, and Scorpion was, if I’m not mistaking the look, d’awing. I could feel my face redden from either embarrassment or anger. I was about to berate Ruby, when I realized she was giving me what seemed to be a confused stare. I think. Her expressions were now nigh on impossible to read. It was only because I’d known her as a brother for so long to be aware of her most likely reaction, that I realized that what I was getting was not fake innocence.

“Ruby?” I looked up, worried at the way she was suddenly acting. My annoyance at her actions was gone.

<She of Hourglass is a wyrm, remember? The way she thinks is wyrm-like, and a lot of the pony cues are going to be confusing for her.>

“But she grew up around ponies!”

<I know that, but she thinks on instinct, not logic. She may have memories of the social cues of ponies, but has no understanding of what they mean, any more. Dragon FireWyrm has the same problem, though in his case, he has zero memories on pony cues. To her, you were upset and with you both unable to communicate fully… She was trying to calm you down, as licking is one of the common ways for dragons that are family, or close friends, to calm each other down.>

“Do I look like a dragon to you!?”

<Well… with the way you act…>

“I don’t act like a dragon!” I snapped back.

<Could have fooled me, with the way you try to hoard her....> Scorpion sniggered. Ruby seemed to find it funny, too, as she started laughing along with him.

I mumbled a few choice words. Meanwhile, I could hear Ruby growling out something, followed by some silence. I waited for Scorpion to translate, but he seemed to just stare at Ruby. After a moment, Ruby growled out some more. It was clear by now that she was having a conversation with, most likely, Scorpion as, before a moment ago, he never spoke outloud, but in our heads. I looked over at Minty, who shrugged. She was just as lost as I was.

<That could work…> Scorpion finally ‘spoke’ publicly.

“That’s great!” I snarked. “I have no have idea why, because you two decided to have a private conversation in fron... Hey!”

Ruby wasn’t looking at me, but I knew it was it was her that smacked me. Especially since both Minty and Scorpion were avoiding eye contact in a suspicious manner.

<Anyway…> Scorpion coughed. <The Migration will be in Hourglass for another seven days, and, given your sister’s leeriness around other dragons, some of the activities during the Migration would not be a good thing for her to watch or be around. Same goes for yourself, for that matter. She of Hourglass has suggested that you and her spend some time together, just the two of you, so that you can learn the Wyrm language before you need to go.>

“What you mean, need to go?”

I suddenly felt like a prey frozen in fright, about to be pounced on by the biggest predator around. I did not like the look that not only Ruby was giving me, but Minty and Scorpion, as well.

<Were you planning on staying in Castle Town your whole life?>

“Well I… That is... You see… Ow.” For the third time, I was slapped by Ruby’s tail. “What was that for!?”

“Oh, Dowser.” Minty facehooved.

<You overprotective. Even not mate with mate need own life. You need own life.> Scorpion translated Ruby’s ‘growlings.’ <I wyrm. Can handle self. If not, mate can.>

“I know… it’s just… I’ve always been there for you, and now, it seems like… you don’t need me any more...”

<Silly Prey Brother, wyrm need hoard. You hoard, always need you.> Scorpion spoke as Ruby grumbled, as she nuzzled me. I couldn’t hold back anymore, and I started to cry like a little foal. I didn’t even care that Ruby was licking up the tears.

I held back a yawn. The spell that I was using to keep me awake was beginning to fade. As much as my bed of gems called for me to curl up in it, I sadly had to stay up for another six hours or so. Basically, until night fell again. Then it would be Dragon FireWyrm’s turn to remain awake for twenty-four hours, though it would have been more like thirty two hours for me, by the time that came along. Stupid short straw... A small price to pay for having the Migration here in Hourglass. Though it wouldn't have been so bad if I had gotten a decent sleep within the last few days.

I pulled out my emergency fire ruby when I yawned again. Hopefully, the spiciness would help. I popped it in my mouth, avoiding the urge to chomp down on it, I needed it to last. I had barely had it in my mouth for two seconds, when I heard a pair of roars. It appeared that I would have to break up a fight, again. I sighed as I chomped on the ruby, before flying off in the direction of the roars.

<Firstclaw, I’m hearing a possible...> Phoenix Wave mentally called out to me.

<I got it, Captain.>

<Very well, Firstclaw.>

I found the offending dragons fighting near Medallion's Museum. I could see that a few dragons had gathered to watch. Must have been a fight over a hoard item, or a playful tiff. Either way, the rules that the dragons had for coming on this leg of the Migration was to have all of those types of fights at the stadium. I was mad, but not overly so. Occasionally, a dragon would forget, in the heat of the moment. Dragons were never ones to live in cities, so the need to be careful around buildings was not something that was ingrained in most dragons. This was why one of us had to stay up in shifts, so that we could help Captain Phoenix Wave in his guard duties, as Hourglass was just too large for him to handle it all alone.

I summoned a magic construct sword and rocketed at the two dragons, at high speed, and in a way that would put me between the two. I roared in defiance, and the air around me darkened in response to my anger-fueled mana. I managed to time and aim just right to land between the two fighting dragons, mana crackling off of me like lightening. Love that trick. It occurred when one sped up to high speed, then very quickly stopped in a short amount of time, using mana. It was a great way to display power, which would immediately stop the fighting and keep the street from being damaged too much. I did not want to have to fix a crater in the street… again.

“Take it to the stadium!” I snapped at the now separated dragons, holding myself and the sword in a ready to attack position.

“Sorry, DragonWyrm Heart.” Both dragons apologized in unison.

“Congrats on the new clanmate.” One of the spectating dragons winked at me as he followed the now retreating dragons.

“Thanks.” I smiled, even though I felt a bit of guilt over it. She shouldn’t have been forced into the situation like she was. It did bring up something that was still puzzling me, how did she find Hourglass? Did she just follow the last direction the Compass of Harmony gave, or did she get lucky?

I sighed as I sat down on the edge of a nearby building’s roof. Only six more hours… I looked over the city once again to look for any trouble, and saw She of Hourglass in a nearby park, sprawled out, with Magic Dowser lying on her side, both sleeping, if I wasn’t mistaken. I watched as Dragon FireWyrm creeped up to the sleeping pair.

I smiled warmly as I watched Dragon FireWyrm lay down next to them, spreading one of his wings over She of Hourglass and Magic Dowser. Magic Dowser shifted in his sleep, pulling on Dragon FireWyrm’s wing like it was a blanket. Dragon FireWyrm gently nuzzled She of Hourglass, and settled down to sleep, himself. I never thought I would see the day that Dragon FireWyrm would warm up to someone that wasn’t a clanmate. Sharing a wing and sleeping together was not something that a wyrm or dragon did lightly. Though I knew it was because Magic Dowser was part of She of Hourglass’ hoard, and by extension of being mates, Dragon FireWyrm’s. Still, it gave me hope. Hope for the future of Hourglass.

“Hey, Twi.” I greeted her without looking, as she landed beside me. I knew it was her, as feathered wings sound very different from leathery wings, and Twi has never been a very quiet flier.

“A bit for your thoughts…”

“I believe you mean coin? Bits haven’t been used as currency in nearly two thousand years…”

“Details…”

“Says the pony that likes to reshelve her personal library using a completely different organizational system than ever before, just as a way to relax.”

Before Twi could quip back, or I could give her an answer to her original question, I could feel the familiar feeling of incoming mail. Given the timing it was most likely… I blew out a flame, and the scroll that was sent to me appeared with a barely audible pop. The scroll was not the normal light tan that was typical of scrolls used to contact me; it was dyed black. I didn't even need to open it; all I needed was conveyed in the fact that the scroll was black.

“It’s time isn’t it?” Twilight sadly asked me, as she noticed the dyed scroll.

“I’ll get the sleeping mates and Magic Dowser. You notify the rest of the clan. Make sure that someone brings Minty.”

I sighed as as I stretched my wings in preparation to fly down to Dragon FireWyrm and She of Hourglass. To think that a day of such great joy would end in great sorrow.