I opened the door to the Carousel Boutique and saw Rarity tending to a display. "Just a moment, dear," she nicely said as she finished up her spot of detail work. "There we go. Now then-" she turned around and saw me. "-How may I help you, Yang?"

"Could you make some new dresses for me? I want some more." I tapped the small chest of bits I brought in, just to be safe.

Rarity sheepishly answered and looked away. "Ah, well, you see, Fleur Dee Lis came by earlier this week and asked me not to make any new dresses for you for a couple months."

"What? Why?"

"She said something about a, ah, bad habit, or something like that? You have a lot of dresses already, made almost entirely by me, no less. It's not that I don't appreciate the business, far from it, but I'm getting concerned for you, Yang. As of now, barring any special occasions, I will not make any new dresses or outfits for you."

"But, but, I have bits." I held the chest out and opened it so Rarity could see the coinage inside.

The fashionista took a calming breath. "And I want those, too. But, I must stand firm on this. I'll still do repair and maintenance work on anything you bring me, and I'll still sell you small accessories, but I won't make anything new for you."

I closed the chest and held it close. "Nothing new?"

"Nothing new. Yang, you should see about getting a hobby, something not related to dresses, and not related to the Carne Den. Don't you have a workshop in your shed? Maybe you could build something there, or clear out some of the forest and start a small garden, or go out and practice your magic skills. You have options, Yang. Just get out and do something else."

"Alright, I'll give it some thought." With a dejected sigh, I left the boutique and drove off, letting my thoughts wander as I went around the parts of Ponyville that had less hoof traffic.

After I parked Bumblebee and picked up the chest full of bits, I looked around the shed. All kinds of tools were along the walls. Saws, hammers, drills, clamps, vises, just sitting around and gathering dust. "I really should clean this up. Maybe. . . Maybe I could make a dress display?" I glanced down at my chest for a moment. "Nah, I'd need to carve the right shape and I'm not that skilled. Maybe later."

When I finished contemplating what I could do, I left the shed and went inside. With my morning errand done, I took the bits back upstairs, changed to my work clothes, and started getting ready for another Friday. Standing behind the grill was always relaxing, and not just because of the heat. "Maybe it's because it keeps me busy? The same can be said for the kitchen. Just staying busy. Too much energy, not enough internet. Busy busy busy. I wonder how Shamrock's doing?" The griffon was at the back of my mind as I went through the mail and did some prep work for the day. It wasn't distracting, but it was there.

"Hello, Yang."

"Good afternoon, Twilight. What'll it be?"

"A bacon and cheese sandwich, please."

"Six bits."

After the coins went into the jar, Twilight produced out a scroll. "I talked to Discord yesterday to see if he knew anything about the Hunter."

"It wasn't much of a fight against him."

"Pinkie called it a 'lazy two page beatdown'. Her exact words. Anyways, I got some information out of him that you may find useful. No pressure, just read it when you feel like it."

I accepted the scroll and set it under the grill. "I'll be sure to look at it tonight." Moments later, I had the ingredients for Twilight's sandwich on the grill, adding the pleasant aroma of bacon to the air.

After the closing paperwork was done and everybody went home, I opened the scroll to see what it had to say.

Dear Yang,

As I told you, I spoke with Discord about the Hunter, who referred to him as his older brother. He recognized the weapons you collected (I didn't show him the actual ones you kept, just illusory replicas), and. . . Let's just say Discord didn't have many nice things to say about him.

When I asked about his father, Discord seemed very confused. He doesn't remember having one, though he does remember the Hunter. I think whatever or whoever messed with Celestia's memories probably did the same with Discord. It would explain why he has no memory of this Za-something entity.

I know it isn't much, but we now know that there's another source of information besides Celestia. That being said, I advised Luna not to delve into Discord's dreams. I'm sure she would be fine if she did, but, well, it's Discord. Chaos magic and all that. Personally, I have a feeling that this entity is one of the sealed ones, and you will have to fight him at some point.

Sincerely, Twilight.

"Discord's father. Well, that'll be a fun family reunion. Maybe I could talk them into making peace over barbecue. He's probably not as nice as Shamrock if he had to be sealed, though. I wonder how he's doing?"

Near a modest house on one of the Griffon Empire's shores, a sleeping griffon sneezed, sending a small pile of sawdust flying. Waking up, he looked around, groaned, and got to his feet. "I fell asleep working on the ship again. At least she's almost done. Just hold on a bit longer, Yang."

"I'll give him a big steak when he comes back. And a barbecue baked potato with burnt ends. No, that's just more of the same. Chicken would be boring. Bacon! A potato loaded with bacon strips! It'll be perfect. I hope he sends a letter ahead of time." I started losing myself to my thoughts as they focused on him, and the things I would do with him.

It was when my thoughts started going towards the gutter, and possibly even the downspout, that I pulled myself out of the fantasy and back to reality. "Focus, Yang. The emotions and feelings are okay, and so is cuddling, and dressing up to look pretty for him, but avoid intimacy." There was an unspoken 'for now' that hung in the air after the statement. "My life story is weird."

Author's Notes:

Yeah, it's a short chapter, but Shamrock's coming back, and I have plans for his and Yang's relationship. Feel free to speculate, but don't make any assumptions.

The next chapter's going to be a special one, so look forward to that.