Slowly shifting her weight, Princess Luna found herself lying on something soft and downy. The air felt warm and smelled pleasantly like raw wood. She rubbed her head against the soft thing below her and mumbled a few words.

A sudden wave of pain shot through her whole body. The last events rushed into her mind. All her drowsiness subsided in an instance and her eyes shot open.

She couldn't see much of her surroundings.

The flickering light of the fireplace revealed only about half of the room. She managed to make out a large bookcase accompanied by a desk below a window. Assuming it was still dark outside and the glistening glass was really a window pane.

The hearth was in the opposite wall from the desk, somewhere next to her. She could hear the crackling of logs burning inside. The one who ignited it couldn't be far.

Luna felt a lump in her throat. But if that pony didn't kill her when she was asleep, they wouldn't probably do so now, right? Right?

With a groan, she turned her head to take a peek at the part of room bathed in shadows and, by extension, at her injured wing. Her sore body protested. For a moment she just stared into the darkness, waiting for the new surge of pain to wash away.

After a while, her eyes became accustomed to the dimness. It was just a second, but did something move there? Cold sweat formed on her forehead, the tiny beads slowly leaking down to her muzzle. Maybe the throbbing in her head was just playing tricks. Her pupils shifted and tried to get over the pain to accommodate her vision.

Suddenly, the flames in the fireplace flared up and lit more of the room.

Luna looked in horror at the glints of light in two fixed eyes. Below the eyes shone bared teeth with their ends—covered in blood? Luna gasped.

The stranger raised their head from her injured wing joint and neighbouring wounds.

Adrenaline rushing back to her head, Luna shot a hoof forward with lightning speed.

Surprisingly, the hit never landed. The stranger hopped away just before the princess could deal a blow to their face.

The pain from the abrupt movement followed almost immediately. The regal alicorn was forced to curl into a fetal position, muffling a shriek.

Crouching, the stranger crawled to the lit part of the room. Hooves shuffling on the floor and pupils shrunk from the light of the fire, there stood a young mare.

"No. Drinking. My. Blood. Get. AWAY!" Luna stammered out.

The young mare stepped out of the shadows completely. She tilted her head to one side and cocked an eyebrow, the movement revealing a horn on her forehead. She watched the princess wriggle and writhe, howling in pain. Slowly, she lifted her hooves off the ground and firmly pressed them down on Luna's shoulder and hip.

The princess twitched slightly, teeth clenched. Slowly, she relaxed her limbs and head back down, her gaze firmly fixed onto the glistening amber eyes of the mare.

Assured the alicorn wouldn’t start thrashing around again, the unicorn backed away. Calmly, she said, "I’m glad to know you are awake.” She turned her head to the side, drawing out a large, silvery-blue dagger with her mouth.

The blade shimmered in the firelight, its glints beaten only by that of two blue gemstones. The hilt was masterfully crafted into the form of an owl spreading its wings, with the gemstones making up the bird's eyes.

Luna would have watched the blade with amazement. She could easily imagine it being a museum exhibit or a prized item at one of the Canterlot auctions. However, now it was pointed at her, blowing all the beauty out the window.

The unicorn bowed her head, letting the weapon drop loose from her grip. Both mares watched it clatter and rock on the ground. “I'm not some wild savage pony,” said the mare, breaking the silence. “You can talk normally to me. And to prove I pose no threat, here is my only weapon.” She nudged the blade on the ground towards the princess.

Luna nodded her head silently, wincing.

The mare continued, "I may get away if you wish so, but that also means I won't be able to finish cleaning your wounds, Your Highness." She bowed her head slightly, emphasizing her last words.

"I—I am sorry?" the princess offered. She noticed just now the bits of cotton lying around her wounded wing joint. "Of course you may continue. I was just... puzzled by your look and the blood on your teeth."

The mare bent her head, her hoof drawing away a short lock of dark mane from her eyes. She sighed at the sight of her coat caked in mud, topped by a filthy rug tied around her neck and a torn saddlebag at her side.

"Seems like I can't really blame you for your assumptions." She smirked. "Making sure you are okay seemed more important than taking a bath.” The mare started chewing her lip mindlessly, tiny crimson beads shimmering where teeth met the skin.

Luna lay quietly, giving her a wary look. After a few moments, the mare just shrugged and shook her head.

She bent down to the princess’ side, slowly maneuvering one of the cotton pieces with her horntip back and forth.

"Could you try lying back and relaxing the wing? I can't get around it."

"I—I can," Luna said, slightly puzzled. "But why not use your horn?"

The unicorn straightened back up, eyes twitching between the wound and her horn. The lump of cotton hung haphazardly from its tip.

"But I'm using—eh. You mean like... why don't I light it up?" She rubbed the back of her head.

"Exactly."

"Long story short, I can't... But it's still better to touch something possibly contaminated with my horn rather than mouth, isn't it? And hooves are too crude for the job." She bent back down, carrying on wiping the edges of the wound.

"Does it have anything to do with the attack earlier toda—was it even today?"

"Please Your Highness, try to lie still and don't talk.” The mare waved a hoof over her. “It was tonight, but it has nothing to do with my issues. Right now there are more important things at hoof. By the way, I've already sent a letter to your sister, explaining what happened. So, worry not about your duties."

"How have you managed to send a letter to my sister in such a late hour?” Ignoring the hoof waving through the air, the princess tried to sit straight. “Is it not dangerous to have a fireplace in a room made wholly of wood? Would it not be better if you escorted me to a hospital?"

The mare gasped, her horn nearly penetrating Luna's chest.

"So much for not moving..." she sighed, rubbing her temples. "I should add some logs in the fireplace, if I don't want to harm you even more. But at least it's certain that after what you have endured tonight your mind stayed intact." She chuckled, followed by another sigh.

Dropping the cotton, she turned around and trotted across to the hearth. "About the letter... I've quite an influence on a few postal birds. They can transfer some easy tasks onto other birds. So I gave a sealed letter to my owl messenger, and when he begins to feel tired, he’ll pass it to the nearest bird along with information about the receiver. I guess by this time your sister's phoenix—it was her phoenix that caused the little mishap sometime ago in a nearby village, right?—should be pulling her out of bed with a letter in its talons," she said, shuffling around with the poker.

"Your injury is something I and my companion can easily handle. In fact, escorting you now at night through the Everfree would be only asking for trouble.” She hissed as a few burning embers slid the wrong way.

“My companion's a master in fixing wing shoulders. I think I can hear him coming already. He was just making sure there weren’t any more unwanted guests in the Forest. That's another reason why it would be better to not have you sent to a hospital. I think you know, by yourself, that you can't trust anypony now." She kicked a log in the fireplace, a tinge of bitterness present in her voice.

There was a rustle of leather and a gust of wind. The window burst open, clicking shut again almost immediately.

"Everything safe and secured. Timberwolves surely took care of at least one of them,” said a slightly cheeky male voice from the windowsill. “I set up the protection spell around the whole tree, just to be sure."

Princess Luna stared at a small dragon folding his wings on the ledge. Light blue scales shimmered in the light of the fireplace and so did the tufts of darker blue hair on his head, chest and tail. "Another baby dragon? And which spell?"

The dragon lifted his head, gliding next to her across the room. Luna was surprised how large his wings actually were.

"Her Highness Princess Luna, Regent of the Moon, if I'm not mistaken." The dragon gave her a light kiss on her hoof. He lifted a claw to the air, a presage of the incoming lecture. "It’s adult small northern dragon to be precise. We don't grow bigger than your foals, though we are far more lean." The creature smirked, then cocked his head. "I'm not sure what you meant by ‘another’."

"Probably the baby earth dragon. What was his name... Spire? Pike?" added the mare, circling her hoof through the air.

"About the protection spell, that's dragon magic," continued the dragon flatly. He shifted next to Luna’s wing, scales shimmering with each agile movement. Gently, he took the bruised appendage into his claws and tugged on it, slowly unfolding the feathers apart. His tail ran back and forth over the limb, tapping on bones and joints.

"The same explanation goes for your question about fire safety in a room made out of wood; dragon magic," the mare called from a corner of the room, rummaging through a cabinet. Luna shifted her head between them, not sure which one of them would start the next sentence.

"Hmm… dislocated, nothing broken… effusion?" The dragon prodded the joint with a claw.

Luna kicked back with a cry.

"Anything else you wanted to say?" The dragon eyed her, unamused.

The princess shook her head, trying to regain what little composure she had left. In hope to direct the surge of pain somewhere, she bit down on the furry blanket below feverishly. Only now did she notice the black and yellow markings on it.

She spat it out, backing to a more upright position. "Was—was this once a real living animal?"

"Yes, it was a gift from our Zebrican friend. If you have issues with it, you can just throw it off and lie on the hard table below, Your Highness." The mare returned with a few bottles and bandages on a tray.

"I second that," the dragon called, hanging down from her wing.

Luna sighed, putting her head back down. Her bemused frown made it clear she hadn't said her last word about this topic yet.

She watched the dragon twist and fiddle with her shoulder, a hiss of pain occasionally escaping her lips. With a loud pop, the bone clicked back into place. She tried to extend her wing fully, but quickly returned it to the original half-folded position with a howl of pain.

"Don't tell me you were expecting it wouldn't be sore, Your Highness. It'll be better if you let it rest under a bandage." The dragon patted her wing, smearing some sort of acrid salve over it. Her wing twitched slightly, eyes watering at the stinging feeling.

"We are going to move on to your open wounds now." The dragon motioned to the various scratches and slashes marking her blue coat. "It's possible you'll feel a bit chilly, I need to play a little with the air molecules that are in the close vicinity to your wounds. Dragon magic can't build barriers out of nowhere, like you unicorns do, after all."

"You're saying it like I should know that." The alicorn cocked an eyebrow, biting her lower lip. The small reptile only chuckled in response, flexing his claws above the largest wound.

Luna's eyes widened in amazement as she saw thin, silk-like strands form between the edges of the flesh, slowly pulling them back together.

"Dragon magic," she whispered absentmindedly, a faint smile nesting on her lips.

"That's not all." The mare smiled and motioned with her head. Luna looked back at the wound and saw the strands getting more dense in certain areas, creating small branched tubes.

"Veins?" Luna gave her a quizzical look, earning a nod of approval.

"They are not necessary here, it's just an unskippable part of the spell." The dragon turned his deep blue eyes to her and opened his mouth. With a sharp click his two long fangs moved to a more upright position, revealing small canals at their back. "This is much more useful."

He turned back, letting drops of yellowish liquid form at the tips of his fangs.

"What is he doing?" Luna cocked her head, pointing a shaky hoof at his head.

The mare just sighed, rolling her eyes. "He’s using his venomous teeth—"

The alicorn winced, swiftly covering the wound with a hoof.

The unicorn rolled her eyes and continued with a reassuring smile, “—to channel the healing solution into the wounds." She extended her own hoof, trying to gently push Luna's out of the way. The princess gave her a puzzled look and slowly drew back the limb herself.

"Sorry, Your Highness—uh, would you be okay if I called you just ‘Princess’?" After receiving a hesitant nod, she continued, "I often forget that small dragons are unknown to most ponies… In this matter, all of them are venomous. But they are of course immune to their own poison. Part of the liquid kept in their venom glands has healing-accelerating effects, which of course comes in handy when they get hurt. When a dragon hatches, they have only this part and they need to get the venom either by licking their parents' teeth or eating certain plant species. Once the venom is in the gland, it initiates its own production.

“Sev never had the opportunity to get the venom in by any of these ways. The ability can be obtained only within two weeks after hatching, so he is left just with the healing liquid in his teeth."

"That's sad truth. But since no one can guess that it isn't venom, it's still useful as a scare off." Sev grinned and turned to the mare. "What about your neck? Don't try hiding it. After all, I can smell that it is still bleeding." He licked his nostrils, tapping a claw on the table impatiently.

The mare straightened up, untying the piece of white fabric around her neck, all the while muttering quietly.

Luna watched the thing that looked like a thick scarf unfurl. Her eyes widened at the sight of a fresh deep slash over the neck and chest of the mare. "You dared to tend to my superficial scratches with this on your neck? I take it that living in the Everfree Forest with a half-venomous dragon can harden anypony, but moving around with blood literally streaming down your chest?"

"Please, don't exaggerate that much, Princess. I made sure it's stable before I started to do anything else. I wouldn't be much of a help if I passed out here on the floor, now would I?" The mare chuckled, pricking up her ears.

She tried to stand up, but Sev sat her back down with a simple growl. His magic was already working miracles on the mare’s chest.

She sighed, looking over to the shaking window pane. "Could you please try standing up and opening the window right there?” She motioned with her horn, earning a huff from the dragon at her side. “It looks like my messenger has some trouble getting inside. Also, I think that letter is for you."

With a hesitant nod, Luna slowly slipped from the improvised bed and gingerly took a few steps. One of her hooves was sore, the bandage pushed against her wing a little and her right side was tingling from lying still, but she was able to move. Trudging to the window, she tried pulling the handle with her magic. Just a few short-lived sparks emitted from her horn. She eyed her reflection in the glass. Her mane hung limply, missing any sign of the excess magic that usually overflowed it, causing it to move and sparkle.

She lifted her hoof and nearly fell to the floor from the sudden change of stability. Regaining her composure, she opened the window, immediately getting hit with something soft in her face.

The soft thing appeared to be a barn owl that didn't lose any time after finding itself again, simply leaving a scroll slid onto her horn and disappearing into the next room.

The princess shook her head and caught the falling letter in her mouth, taking it to the table, then read it aloud.

Dear Miss Greenlock,

I sincerely thank you for saving my sister's life and letting me know about what happened.

I will immediately launch a secret investigation on the whereabouts and motives of the three stallions. If they really were members of the Royal Guard, we cannot trust anypony now. That is also the reason why I would be immensely thankful to you if you let my sister stay at your place for a few days till this contemptible act receives its deserved punishment. I gathered from your letter that you know your way around taking care of injuries and I believe you that my sister's state is stable now. If there is any form of medicament you would need, do not be afraid to ask. I and Philomena will do our best to deliver it in the fastest way possible. Furthermore, my sister does not have to worry, I can take care of all her duties for the time of her absence.

I will inform you if we find any new piece of evidence and I beg you to do the same.

My warmest thanks to you once again,

Princess Celestia

P.S. Just for Luna: Does this mean I can sleep in your bed again? You know how much softer it is… I apologize, that was very foalish of me.

Luna chuckled and shook her head, then turned to the pony. "So, Miss Greenlock, am I allowed to stay here?"

"This will definitely turn into a nasty scar," the mare mumbled, inspecting the now-treated wound on her neck.

With a flick of her head, she snapped out of her thoughts. "Oh… I forgot to introduce myself in the first place, right?" She awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck. "Please, call me Hedvika, my second name isn't something I'd like to hear every time somepony addresses me. And this is Sev." Hedvika motioned to the dragon.

"To your question, well, do we have any other option? I can’t really throw you out into the Forest. There are many… uncommon animals around and all, but you'll get used to them really quickly, believe me." She smiled.

Luna gave her a quizzical look, but didn't question anything. After all, she had just endured a week with a bunch of ill-mannered griffon delegates, this couldn't be much worse. She shook her head, removing a lock of limp mane from her face. "Could you two now just sit down and explain what happened tonight, how does it come that you live in Everfree and why don’t you use your horn?" Her eyes bored holes through Hedvika, the mare shrinking back slightly.

"If you don't want to sleep, we can try to explain. I'll just fetch us something to drink and eat." Sev stood up and disappeared through the door. He stuck his head back inside the room, looking at the mare with a smug grin. "And Hedvi, you should take a bath."

A few minutes later Luna sat by the fireplace wrapped up in a blanket—this time of clearly non-animal origin—with a mug of tea next to her, ready to listen to the story she unwillingly become a part of.

Quiet clings and clangs resonated through the room. A silver teaspoon slowly circled in a cup, driven by a small spark of magic.

A white mare stood behind a window, overlooking the capital city below and watched the very last red hues of the day fade into the western horizon.

She didn’t turn an inch when the door creaked behind her, eyes fixed to the western sky and her horn still peacefully channeling magic.

"Your Highness?" a certain Solar Guard pegasus spoke up, bending over in a fit of coughing and gurgling. His armor was scratched and crumpled like it was made of paper. Its owner looked tired, beaten and extremely dirty from mud. Unmistakable odor of sweat and moist fur drifted through the air.

"What happened to your fellows?" the mare said, still intently staring out the window.

"Th—there was a young mare, she—she must control some sort of d—dark magic. The Timberwolves and other creatures seemed to a—attack at her commands. I at least managed to strike at her and then retreat, but my companions—I don't think they survived."

"I must admit, that is making me curious. We better keep an eye on her…" The mare turned to the guard slowly, a hint of a smirk playing on her face. Her magic danced around the stallion's chin, slowly raising it. "Does this mean you don't know what happened to… your target?"

The stallion sputtered over the lump in his throat, "I… don't, Your Highness. But the Timberwolves probably took care of her too. She was nearly unconscious. And if they didn't, she would be out of the way for a few days for sure—"

With a rattle of armor, he collapsed to the ground.

“You wish so.” Her Highness turned her attention back to the scroll that arrived not so long ago, stepping over the fallen soldier.

Author's Notes:

Questions or comments?
Please report typos in the form of PM.
My earnest thanks go to PonyPoet21, labba94, and Boulder for proofreading and editing.