The afternoon sun beat down heavily on the outback, but it seemed like it was being extra-harsh on the property the Ponies were on, as if it demanded recompense for the ponies making rain on its turf. The ponies were all resting on the back verandah, panting as the sun bore down three metres from their resting places. It had dried them off well after they'd gotten out of the pool, but it had started them getting hot again even before they'd reached the house. Now, after Lunch, they all rested in the hottest part of the day.

"I have got to get some shadecloth over that pool." Mark made a note as he rested there on a big wood-and-canvas deckchair, a cold drink at his side.

Each of the ponies had a metal mixing bowl in front of them with water and ice in it, a towel wrapped around each bowl helping to keep them cold. Azure sat beside Cathy, who was gently stroking his head as she stretched out on another 'squatter's' chair, as the specific style of chair was colloquially known. Her horn was still slowly edging out of her forehead, and was now five inches long. "Am I going to get lessons too, Stellar?" Cathy asked Stellar as the alicorn mare lay on a towel-covered cushion, Rumble laying with her between her and Thunderlane.

"Sure, if you think I can teach you more than Azure can." Stellar replied with a soft smile.

Cathy looked down at Azure, who chuckled. "I think that it's pretty probable that she could." He told Cathy.

Cathy looked back at Stellar. "Well?" She asked.

Stellar giggled. "Okay, okay... I'll give you both some lessons, but I'm sure that Azure can teach you the basics, like Levitation and light creation." Stellar replied. "I can download some primers I have stored in my Tome for you to read through." She added. "Since they're meant for foals, I think they should be easy enough for you to understand." Stellar grinned.

"Great. The unicorn equivalent of 'See Sam Run'." Cathy said. That got a lot of snorts, laughter and some comments from the others.

"So, are you still planning to leave tomorrow, Stellar?" Cecelia asked Stellar as she sat beside Thunderlane, gently stroking the pegasus stallion's mane and head, to him blissing-out beside her.

"Well, I would like to be in America by the morning of the Sixteenth." Stellar replied. "If we can get there a little quicker, then I could leave it until the Fourteenth to leave. That depends if an idea I've been working on really works well. If so, then we can fly a lot further at a better speed without using a lot of mana, as normal flying would." She turned and looked at Rumble, who was snoozing soundly beside her. "Rumble here's the deciding factor, because of his youth. He's not going to be able to fly as long and as far as any adult pegasus can. So if my idea works, then we can fly as a group, and Rumble will hardly have to spend any mana at all staying with us." Then she nickered as a big hand gently rested on her head and began to stroke her as well.

Mark was sitting with Stellar on one side of him and Flitter on the other side, where he could stroke them both. Cecelia was sitting on the other side of Thunderlane, with CloudChaser sitting on the other side of her, both of them getting stroked as well. All five ponies were becoming blissed as the stroking made them feel incredibly relaxed. "You lot really like being stroked, don't you?" Mark commented.

"Mmm... it feels wonderful, Dad." Flitter said.

"Yeah, Daddy. I feel so relaxed...." CloudChaser added.

Cecelia giggled softly. "I never thought I'd be stroking my daughter's... hair/mane and she'd love it." She commented to Mark. "Remember how much Sharrah hated having her hair touched?"

"Yeah." Mark agreed, grinning. "She doesn't now." He added.

CloudChaser moaned softly as her head collapsed on the cushion and she stretched out, wings limp and legs splayed, almost purring if she could. Soon, all five adult ponies, even Stellar, were the same way as they succumbed to the gentle, caressing fingers. "Okay, now we know how to subdue ponies." Mark chuckled. "Don't fight them or shoot them. Just stroke them."

Cecelia giggled as she continued her gentle caressing of her daughter and nephew. "Yeah... and it's so relaxing to do so as well." She said back. "I can't feel stressed or uptight when I'm doing this. It just feels so nice to do."

Mark sighed. "I know what you mean." He replied, then chuckled. "Imagine ponies going into hospitals and helping stress victims, or maybe into psychiatric care facilities and helping out those with problems. I bet they'd become the greatest therapy personnel under the banner of psychiatric care."

Cecelia smiled down at CloudChaser, who had the biggest grin on her face she'd ever seen. Her ears were drooped, her tail was drooped, her wings were drooped, her eyes were shut and Cecelia could swear she was sighing contentedly. "If she rolls on her back and begs me for a belly-rub, I am going to tickle her until she squeals!" Cecelia said to Mark, who chuckled out loud.

"What if I do that?" Thunderlane said in a slightly-muffled voice.

"You flash your wedding tackle at me, Nephew, and I will geld you." Cecelia answered.

"Not if I can help it!" Stellar yelled in a muffled-if-angry tone... but without getting up or moving. "I have a use for those, and any damage to them will result in one very enraged alicorn."

Mark could barely help himself. He finally burst out into full-blown laughter, holding his belly as he couldn't help but break up over the comments. Finally, everyone there was laughing, except for one very hard-napping Rumble. When the laughter finally died off, Stellar sighed and moved to nuzzle Thunderlane. "You still my snuggle-stallion?" Stellar asked him softly.

"Always." Thunderlane answered, nuzzling Stellar back.

As the afternoon wore on, Mark wandered into a shed, where Thunderlane's Landcruiser and Stellar's Crewman were being stored. A cover was over the Holden ute, but the bonnet on the 'Cruiser was up and Thunderlane was standing on the engine cover, his hind-legs on the bullbar as he looked the engine over.

Mark looked in from the side, as Thunderlane held the engine dipstick in one wing, checking the oil over. "So... will we be invited to the wedding?" He asked Thunderlane.

Thunderlane chuckled. "You've got more chance, Uncle, of being invited than Mum and Dad are, to be honest." He replied. "I mean, what they tried to pull while we were changing... I'm still sorry they dragged you into that, Mark." Thunderlane said.

"Eh. I've had to put up with Alicia since I married her sister." Mark said. "I know what a nutcase she can be at times. Frankly, if I didn't know she would have driven all the way up here to harrass you and us, I would have told her that you were helping out up here and that you were safe." He told Thunderlane. "I am still surprised you and Rusty turned out as good as you had been, to be honest. You two were the sanest blokes in the house." He said with a grin.

"Yeah. maybe we were being influenced by our pony selves long before we changed back, in that it kept us from going crazy." Thunderlane suggested. "Cathy swears Azure was like he was now, to a degree, before he changed. Maybe there was more of our personalities showing through than we considered."

"Quite possibly." Mark agreed. "So, you two and our girls are still going to follow Stellar off on 'some damn-fool idealistic crusade', then?" He asked.

"Yes, Uncle Owen." Thunderlane replied with a chuckle, referencing Star Wars just like Mark was.

Mark chuckled as well. "Well, your human memories are still in working order, I see."

"No, that hasn't changed." Thunderlane said as he slid the dipstick back into the engine.

"Damn, this engine's a beast." Mark said. "I see you cut down the shroud a bit and widened out both the front surround and the firewall to fit it in."

Thunderlane nodded. "Yep. And then rebuilt the wheelguards a little at the back for the twin turbos." He pointed out. "Everything fits... just."

"Yeah, just is right." Mark agreed. "This engine bay's tighter than an old Mark-VB Commodore with the three-oh-eight Vee-eight wedged in it." He looked closer. "Can you even change the spark... oh wait. It's a diesel, isn't it?"

"Yep. That's why it just fits." Thunderlane chuckled. "All mechanical fuel-injection and no spark plugs, so it's pretty low-maintenance."

Mark nodded. "Damn. You make me want to get one of the Seventy-eight-series 'Cruiser traybacks, just to get this done to it." He grinned at Thunderlane.

"Go ahead. I'll even give you the name and address of the shop that did it for me." Thunderlane told Mark.

"Oh, now you're really tempting me." Mark replied. "But maybe in a few years. I'll start hunting for the 'Cruiser ute right now, though. My old Hilux isn't going to last forever."

Thunderlane nodded. "Very few things in this world last forever." He agreed.

"Yeah." Mark sighed. "Stellar said she'd be able to get back here any time she wanted... Cee-cee and I want to make a request of you two." He said to Thunderlane.

Thunderlane nodded. "We'll try and make it so." He replied.

"We'd... we'd like it if the girls can make it back here for their birthdays every year." Mark requested.

Thunderlane nodded understandingly. "Well... you might have to throw all of us our birthday party, if that's what you want." Thunderlane responded. "After all, we all share the same birthday, Stellar included."

Mark smiled a soft smile. "I think we can manage that." He agreed. "But if you're inviting friends, call ahead, will you? Don't be like your mother and show up with a busload of protesters needing a place to stay while we're in the middle of getting ready for the Autumn sales."

Thunderlane chuckled as he winced. "Yeah, I remember that." He replied. "Don't worry. we'll make sure you get a message... and most likely, we'd bring our own supplies with us, in that event."

"That would help." Mark admitted. "Okay, then. We'll make sure to have enough supplies here for the five of you next year."

Thunderlane chuckled. "You might be needing some more, if the girls find stallions for themselves, or Stellar and I find ourselves with a nice little someone special before then."

Mark's eyes widened, then his eyebrows lowered. "You're really going to...?"

Thunderland shrugged. "We've been... practising." He admitted. "Even she's not sure what it takes to get an alicorn... that way, but She'll ask me sooner or later."

"So, it's the Mare that asks the Stallion, then?" Mark asked.

Thunderlane nodded. "As far as I know, yeah." He confirmed. "It's because the ratio of mares-to-stallions is seventy-thirty, as I told you before. So a mare knows that, if she's interested in a stallion, she has to ask first and fast before somepony else decides to get him first."

"Ah." Mark stated, nodding. "Makes sense. So... wedding rings?"

"Usually for unicorns, they go around the horn." Thunderlane informed Mark. "For others, they're more like bangles than rings, and just fit over the top of the fetlocks." He showed Mark where they'd sit.

"Right." Mark looked and understood. "Again, it makes sense."

Thunderlane nodded. "I just have to be patient." He told Mark. "Stellar will ask when the time is right. And I am not going to rush her, no matter what."

"Smart stallion." Mark agreed. "Just make sure she knows she has your heart, and if you're looking at other mares, it's not because you're going to ask for it back again, Nephew. A smart stallion knows where his heart lies."

Thunderlane nodded. "Oh yeah. Never going to do better than Stellar, that's for sure." He agreed.

Cecelia was looking for her daughters. She wanted to talk to them before they left, and it seemed like a good time, especially when she found them in one of their bedrooms. "How's my girls?" She asked as she walked in, after knocking.

As she dropped to her knees, the Twins walked over and gave their mother a huge double-hug, snuggling with her. "We're doing okay, Mum." Flitter said. "We're just... organising things so we can leave."

Cecelia nodded as she kept one hand on each of them as they sat together. "I'd always thought we'd have this chat... with you getting married, to be honest." Cecelia said to them. "To see you two in white, marrying two of the handsomest blokes around here..." She sighed. "I'd never thought you'd be literally spreading your wings and flying away from us."

That got a round of giggles from the mares. "Yeah... it still feels a little wierd to us as well, Mum." CloudChaser agreed.

"But whatever comes, Mum, we are who we are now, and we wouldn't want it any other way." Flitter added. "But that doesn't mean you aren't still our mother. We'll never forget you... barring interference from Discord, that is."

Cecelia nodded. "Your father and I would like you to try and get back home again for your birthday every year." She told them both. "But, if you can't make it on that day, a visit once a year will suffice. We still want to keep in contact with you, in more ways than just e-mails and phonecalls, even if you can video-call us these days." She grinned at them. "Nothing beats a hug in person."

"Yeah." Both mares agreed as they demonstrated how right their mother was. "So, you and Dad gonna be all right?" CloudChaser asked.

"Your father's got some interesting plans for diversifying our holdings, making use of my new abilities." Cecelia revealed. "It should prove interesting, to say the least."

"Really? Are you really thinking of making a business out of Geomancy?" Flitter asked.

"Possibly. That, and a few other ideas." Cecelia confirmed, a grin on her face.

"Ut-oh..." Flitter said, as CloudChaser giggled. "When Dad starts getting ideas..."

"Hush." Cecelia said, but with a wide grin. "Your father ran his ideas before Stellar earlier, and she didn't disapprove of any of them... if we do things the proper way, that is." Cecelia told her daughters.

"I guess that's one thing." Flitter replied. "If Stellar doesn't mind them, I guess they could be okay."

"Yeah. She'd veto anything she thought was off-center or underhanded in an instant." CloudChaser agreed. "Not that Daddy would do something like that. But sometimes he gets lost in the details."

"I have to agree there." Cecelia said to them. "But our family has successfully run this station for nearly three generations now. I guess we have to be doing something right." Both mares nodded in agreement. "So, any idea what you're actually going to be doing with Stellar?" Cecelia asked.

The mares looked at one another, then looked at their mother. "Um... apart from getting in contact with other ponies... I don't think even Stellar knows for sure what's going to happen." Flitter answered.

"Yeah, I mean, it's not like she can see the future or anything like that." CloudChaser said. "It's not like she's Celestia."

"There's that name again." Cecelia asked. "Who is Celestia?"

"Well, she was the oldest and most powerful of the Alicorns, one of the rulers of Equestria, before Discord trapped her and, we presume, sent her here." Flitter explained.

"Yeah! You saw what happened in the last episode of My Little Pony, Season Five." Cloudchaser reminded them. "Apparently, according to Stellar, that episode is really accurate."

"Hmmm..." Cecelia thought about it. "Maybe it's time to watch it again." She suggested.

"Okay!" The mares got to their hoofs and pressed themselves against Cecelia, as she wrapped her arms around their strong necks and hugged them both. Then she got up as well, and they headed out to the lounge room...

They found Stellar was sitting to one side with Rumble, Azure and a slowly changing Cathy. Her horn was now eight inches long and looked fully-formed, the fur on her legs above her knees now and barely moving. Her mane was right down the back of her neck, and there was peach-colored fur creeping out from under her mane as well.

Stellar was talking to Azure and Cathy as she worked with a small book, about the size of a paperback book, but looking a little more a fancy diary, with solid covers and a lock-clasp. The Twins and Cecelia could see words being inscribed on the pages as it hovered over Stellar's much-larger tome, the letters Cecelia could see being both Equish and Equussese characters, and she could read them. Azure nodded at that moment and his horn lit up, and a Pyrex bowl appeared before him in the air, wrapped in his magic, to Cathy applauding.

The mares looked at each other, then at Cecelia, who smiled softly. They sat down together, mother between mares, and turned the entertainment system on to watch the final episode again.

Mark and Thunderlane were walking back from the equipment shed, when Mark's phone beeped at him. He pulled it out and looked at it, and saw a glaring face looking at him through a camera he knew was on the outer gate. He sighed. "Hello, Alicia." He said, making Thunderlane start with shock.

"Where are they? I know they're here." She said, her voice level even if her tone was menacing.

"Curtis and Rusty are not here, Alicia." Mark replied. "But I know you're not going to take that as a positive affirmation, and you'll want to check for yourself." He added as Alicia shut her mouth, a long, screaming diatribe averted. Mark activated the outer gate's lock, and it slid open. "See you in half-an-hour." Mark added as Alicia drove through.

"Hey, how come you didn't know we were coming if you have security like that?" Thunderlane asked.

"Who said I didn't?" Mark answered. "But I knew it wasn't anyone we didn't know, because you opened the gate using the keypad. So it had to be the Twins." He explained.

"Ah, right." Thunderlane nodded. Then he groaned. "Bloody Alicia." He said. "Would you like a new statue for your growing garden? I'm sure Stellar could turn Alicia to stone if she gets too irritating." He suggested.

Mark laughed as they jogged and trotted for the house. "That sounds very tempting, but no. However, if Cecelia does it, then what can they say? A pony didn't do it." He said with a smirk.

Thunderlane joined in laughing as they headed up onto the verandah. "At least the 'Cruiser's hidden away in that little garage section." He said as they headed in. "Bet you twenty that everyone will just want to hide from her." Thunderlane dared Mark.

"You're on." Mark replied as he held the door open for Thunderlane.

Everyone looked up as Mark and Thunderlane came in. "Red alert, people and ponies! Alicia's here, and she sounds like she's on the warpath."

"FUCK!" came from most of those there.

Azure looked about, as Cathy looked concerned. "Is... this something to be concerned about?" Cathy asked.

Cecelia sighed. "Alicia is my younger sister. She is also somewhat certifiably crazy. She's come here looking for her sons, but doesn't know they've been pony-fied. So, are we going to do hide-and-freak, or just confront her with the truth?" Cecelia asked.

"Hide And Freak." Came the reply from the five ponies who knew Alicia.

Mark chuckled. "Okay, Thunder." He said, and pulled out a twenty-dollar note, handing it to the black stallion.

"I know my herd." He said back to Mark, as he slid the money away in his mane.

"So... where are we gonna hide?" Rumble asked.

"Barn." Flitter and CloudChaser answered. "We have a hidey-hole in there. Plus with the other horses below us, they won't smell us out, either."

"Good thinking." Cecelia agreed.

"Me too?" Cathy asked.

"Oh yeah." Stellar answered. "You can't possibly pass for human any longer, Cathy."

Cathy nodded and everybody got up, Stellar's tome levitating up, along with the little book. "I'll bring some supplies out as well, so you have something to munch on while we're waiting." Mark said as they started heading out.

"Thanks, Mark." Thunderlane replied as they all headed for the big barn, a very traditionally-shaped red building with stables underneath and a hayloft up above. It looked... a little out-of-place on an Australia cattle station, but Cecelia had wanted one when they started working the station, and the old stables needed replacing... so she got what she wanted. "A little work, and this would look like it's right out of Sweet Apple Acres." Thunderlane commented.

That got a round of chuckles and giggles as they headed inside. The pegasi flew up to the hayloft area, and Azure showed his growing talent by lifting Cathy up and then lifting himself up into the loft. Stellar then followed after making sure that Azure and Cathy were safe. The Twins led the group over to one corner of the loft, which was filled with bales of hay, and they triggered a switch with a hoof. Some of the bales seemed to come loose, and they slid out a door that showed a comfortable internal space. "Everypony inside!" Flitter said with a grin, and they all walked in. As they sat down and made themselves comfortable, CloudChaser started the small air conditioner as Flitter turned on the lights. There were cushions on the floor and two bunk beds at the back, a medium-sized television and DVD player as well as stacks of DVDs. Everyone found a comfortable spot, even Cathy, as Mark said "Give me a bit. I'll be back."

The Twins nodded as the others looked about. "So, how are we going to stay quiet in here? Our hoofs make a bloody loud clomp every time we move about." Azure asked.

"That's the subject of your next lesson, Azure. A noise-cancelling spell." Stellar told the unicorn stallion. "Once the door is sealed, we'll hit it with a secure spell, then the entire room with a noise-cancelling spell. That way we can do whatever we want to without being heard... well, except for maybe watching a Motorhead or Apocalyptica concert at full volume." She said, chuckling.

"You have eclectic musical tastes, Beloved." Thunderlane commented as he stretched out on a long cushion.

"I enjoy all genres of music... even a couple of rap-type songs. I guess Gangsta Rap is the only one I have never followed as a whole, to be honest." Stellar revealed. "I even enjoy Disturbed and some other death-metal bands. But my absolute favorites are the Piano Guys."

The Twins brightened visibly. "Oh yeah! We love them, too!" CloudChaser agreed.

"Yeah. It's what started us learning musical instruments." Flitter added. "I can play the cello passingly well, and CloudChaser can play piano pretty well, too."

Stellar laughed. "I bugged my parents for a piano from the day I could learn to play." She told them. "I learned how to play, then learned as many of Ron Schmidt's tunes and songs as I could. I love 'Waterfall' the most, though, although 'Falling in Love' is a very close second."

The Twins nodded. "Maybe we can play something together before we leave." Flitter suggested.

"I'd love to see if I can still play, to be honest." Stellar admitted.

"We'll do that later." Thunderlane agreed, as they heard Mark coming back in. Stellar and Azure trotted out, and they looked down at Mark, who had some bags of alfalfa pellets and boxes of other pony-friendly foods with him. "Here you go." He said, and while Stellar levitated the bags up, Azure brought the boxes up.

"Thanks, Mark." Stellar said, as he gave her a wave, then retreated. They moved the supplies into the room, placing them to one side, then Stellar sealed the door. She taught the noise-cancellation spell to Azure, and he cast it all around the room, even to the ceiling and the floor. "Hmm... you seem to have got it right." Stellar told a grinning Azure. "Congrats." She added.

"Thanks!" Azure's entire demeanour was one of satisfaction.

They all started to relax while, out in front of the house, Mark was waiting. Cecelia was finishing checking to make sure no trace of the ponies' existence would be visible to a predatory and suspicious Alicia, especially bags that weren't theirs. Fortunately, most of the luggage had been easily returned to the Landcruiser that was locked up in the enclosed garage within the machinery shed. All that was left belonged to the Twins, and was easily concealed in their bedrooms. As she joined Mark on the verandah, Cecelia looked worried. "I never like it when she comes here." She told Mark. "She always makes out like she runs this place."

"She tries that this time, and I will throw her out, my sister-in-law or not." Mark declared.

"Remind me to give you some extra-special snuggles once she's gone." Cecelia replied, smiling, as the dust cloud of Alicia's vehicle came closer.

"Yes, Ma'am!" Mark replied as Alicia went over the last cattle-grid.

Five minutes later, she pulled up in a modern Mercedes ML500 SUV. She barely had time to shut the vehicle down before she was out the door and looking around. Her husband, Alex, was more leisurely about alighting, the only really crazy thing he'd done in his life was marrying Alicia. He waved to Mark and Cecelia as Alicia started poking around. "Okay, where are they?" She asked Cecelia, getting up into her face. "If you tell me now, we can leave and let you get back to your peaceful, country lifestyle."

Mark shrugged as Cecelia answered. "We told you, repeatedly. They are not here. You can see for yourself, but if you pull things down on you like last time, we might not spring for the Flying Doctor to come and pick you up this time." Cecelia warned her sister.

Alicia snorted. "Fine." She replied, and stormed inside.

As Cee-cee followed her sister, Mark sat down with Alex and asked "Why is she so uptight this time?"

Alex shrugged. "Meh. She's got a bee in her bonnet that the government is doing wierd experiments with people, turning them into animals." Alex answered. "She's got a little hideout holiday planned, and she wants the boys with her." He explained.

Mark chuckled. "Business as usual, then."

"Yeah, pretty much." Alex replied as Mark handed him a cold beer. "I almost decided to stay home this time, but thought 'what the hell', and came for the drive."

Then from inside they heard "I want to check out that little cubby-house the Twins have in the barn, as well."

'Shit.' Mark thought to himself. He got out his phone and texted quickly...

Thunderlane was relaxing, when his phone went off. He picked it up and read the text. "Shit." He said, as everyone looked up. "Alicia knows about the hidey-hole and she wants to look it over." He told them.

"Great! Where are we going to hide, then?" Azure asked.

They all started worrying, when Stellar gave a chuckle. "I know where we can hide." She said, looking at them all.

"Where?" They all asked, looking back at her.

Stellar grinned. "Right out in the open." She told them.

Alicia was going through the house like a forensic team looking for clues in a murder. Cecelia was there making sure she didn't take anything apart while she did so, and was getting close to booting her out for good.

Mark got a message from the ponies, telling him to give them five minutes, then the coast would be clear. He frowned, but sent 'O.K.' back, as Alex and he relaxed.

Five minutes and two beers later, Alex looked at Mark after telling him all the ways Alicia had been going out of what little mind she had left, and asked "Anything new for you out here?"

"Yeah." Mark said. "The girls might be going overseas to study, and we have a new swimming pool. I just have to get some gates made up for the enclosure."

"Really?" Alex asked. "A new pool?"

Mark almost chuckled to himself. It showed how much interest Alex really had in things outside his own family. "Yeah. We did a bit of work on that old dam, and it's now quite a big swimming pool. Care to go see?"

"Sure." Alex replied, and they both got up. "I see you got a good bit of rain here, by the level of the grass."

"Yeah, but not nearly as much as we could have used." Mark admitted.

Alex chuckled. "I think that's universal out here, isn't it?" Mark also chuckled at that, as they rounded the house and headed across the House paddock. 'Say, were those gums there last time?" He asked.

"Yeah, but they were looking pretty dry last time. They've filled out a lot more." Mark explained.

"Ah. They're looking healthy now... and say, what do we have here?" He asked, as he saw seven little ponies clustered in groups under the shade of the trees. "Aren't they Fallabellas?" Alex asked.

"Yee-eah." Mark answered, surprised where seven real-world ponies had come from, instead of the technicolor wonders from another... world. 'Nah, they couldn't be...' He thought to himself.

Alex smiled. "They're cute." He said. "You got... lessee... two stallions, four mares and a little one?"

"Yeah. The young one's a colt, too." Mark confirmed, as he realised who these ponies actually were...

"Am I doing this right?" Cathy asked as she put her head down near Azure's and nibbled on the grass. "Ah wow! This tastes even better this way than as a salad."

"I know! Isn't that weird?" Flitter said as she grazed beside CloudChaser, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

Thunderlane chuckled as he sat in the shade beside a prone Stellar, the big mare keeping Rumble next to her, as if she was his mother. "Now I know what you meant by 'hiding in plain sight', Beloved. This is brilliant." He told Stellar as they all stood or sat around, looking like any regular Fallabella ponies from Earth.

"Well, a little illusion magic makes for great disguises." Stellar replied as she nuzzled Rumble, who whinnied at her lovingly.

Azure chuckled as he stood by Cathy, who was getting used to walking on four legs. "You make a magnificent mare, Cathy." He said.

"Thanks, Azure." She replied with a soft voice. "So, this is what I'll be like after I fully change?" She asked.

"Well... somewhat, yes." He replied. "Of course, as you have seen, we are not this... hairy, and you'll have your horn as well for doing magic, but otherwise it is rather close." He agreed.

"Cavey! Someone's coming!" CloudChaser said, as Mark and Alex moved around the house to the House paddock.

"Remember, talk only in that language I taught you." Stellar said at the last, then went totally 'horsey'.

Mark grinned as the pair of mares that could only be the Twins whinnied and trotted over to him, nuzzling his hips and rubbing against him. He gently reached down and scratched behind their ears.

"These two seem very friendly." Alex commented as he stroked Flitter's mane.

"They're all hand-raised." Mark explained, making things up as he went along.

"Ah." He said as he looked at the little colt. "Three groups by the looks of things?"

"Yes, and three different lots, too." Mark told Alex. "But be careful of the big mare over there. She doesn't like strangers getting close to her colt."

Alex nodded. "I can imagine. The stallion there looks pretty protective of her, too."

"Yeah. She seems to tolerate him around his colt, too... maybe because she knows she can boss him about if he tries anything untoward." Mark commented.

"Yeah, she's a big one all right. Finer features, too. Maybe she's got some Connemara in her." Alex suggested.

Mark was impressed. "I didn't realise you knew so much about ponies." He said to Alex.

Alex chuckled. "With Alicia so uptight about all these wierd ponies appearing everywhere, I decided to read up on them so that if she went nutzoid, I could point out regular ponies from the strange ones before she made some real mistakes."

"Yeah, good idea." Mark agreed as they continued to walk along, the two little mares following along with them.

"They do like being around people." Alex commented.

Mark chuckled. "Cecelia loves them." He admitted. "They follow her around everywhere when she's out walking or working. With the girls finally leaving the nest, so to speak, they're going to be good for her to look after."

Alex chuckled as they approached the big stone wall. "Wow, this is fancy." He said. "Local stone?"

Mark nodded. "Yep. The quarry's not too far from here, even if it only works part-time."

The mares stopped as they reached the wall and trotted back to the others, as Mark and Alex walked along the wall to the entrance. As Alex looked in, he shook his head. "This thing's huge!" He told Mark.

"Well, we got rid of that defunct dam, and with the massive hole, Cecelia said she wanted something different." Mark explained. "So I let her have her head, and this is what she came up with."

"It must have cost a fortune." Alex stated as he looked down into the crystal-clear water.

"Not as much as we thought it might." Mark informed Alex as they walked along the side of the deep pool. "Once we got rid of the muck, the river clay fill we took out went to someone else, and they paid well for it. So we really didn't have that much costs in the end."

Alex nodded. "Looks good. You used it yet?" He asked.

"Oh yeah, B-I-L. Went for a swim yesterday, and we nearly didn't want to get out again." Mark grinned.

"I can totally see that." Alex agreed as they walked back out. "I wonder if Alicia's finished yet?"

"I hope so." Mark answered. "Cecelia's this close to throwing her out on her ear and making her walk to Katherine if she keeps this up."

"Don't blame her." Alex agreed.

"Why do you put up with her?" Mark asked.

"Because when Alicia is in her right mind... she is every bit as gentle and loving as Cecelia is, Mate." Alex explained. "If she'd just stay on her meds, this type of thing wouldn't happen." He sighed. "But she keeps reading those fringe group magazines that tell her she needs 'natural therapies' to get rid of the 'nasty chemicals' the drug companies put in their pills, and this is the result. I have to almost make her take the pills now... And she is this close to going back into Belmont again."

Mark nodded. He remembered helping Alex take Alicia into the Belmont Psychiatric Hospital in Brisbane two years ago, when she was totally out-of-control. It hadn't been pretty. "But you're not going to leave her, are you?"

"Lord knows I am sorely tempted, Mate. Sorely tempted." Alex growled. Then he sighed and hung his head. "But no. If I don't help her... who will? You guys don't have one-tenth the facilities anywhere near you out here that Brisbane has for her... and I couldn't just dump her on you and take off. That just would not be right."

Mark nodded. "You know we'll help anyway we can." He told Alex.

"Thanks, Mate, really." Alex said back. "So... you really gonna tell me what happened to Curtis and Rusty?" He asked.

"Can't." Mark reluctantly said. "I promised I wouldn't tell you or Alicia before they tell me I can. That goes double for Cecelia. All I can tell you is that they are with the Twins... and Curtis might have someone special now. You might get to attend a wedding in a year or two's time if things work out."

"Really? Curtis has a steady?" Alex asked, Mark nodded. "Well, miracles shall never cease." He chuckled, grinning. "So, they're overseas, then?"

Mark nodded. "Well, they should be leaving either tonight or tomorrow morning, depending on which flight they're taking." Mark informed Alex. "And I have no idea what airport they're leaving from, so they might already be in Sydney or even Melbourne instead of Brisbane, depending on what their plans are."

Alex nodded. "Well, hopefully I'll get a nice postcard or letter from them soon. I don't blame them for flying the coop with Alicia as she is. I just wish I'd seen them one more time."

Mark chuckled. "I think you're the only one they'd write to, once they get settled, Alex." He handed Alex a mobile phone. "Keep this hidden. Curtis said if he calls you, it'll be on this." He told Alex.

Alex nodded and slid the small phone away in one of his cargo pants' pockets "Thanks for that, mate. It'll be good to hear from him."

Mark nodded. "Yeah, I know. But the time had to come, and it has. At least there's no real animosity between you and the boys."

Alex sighed, but nodded. "Yep. And at least they're willing to stay in touch. It could have been a lot... hey!" Alex said, as the bigger black stallion nearly knocked him off his feet, rubbing against him, as the colt bounced on its front legs at him, the big mare standing close, but not interfering. "Hey you two!" Alex laughed, as he went down and hugged the colt gently. "Well! This is unexpected."

"I guess they felt your sadness." Mark suggested.

Alex nodded as he hugged the little colt, then turned and hugged the big stallion. They nickered softly and nuzzled him almost affectionately. "These guys would make great therapy animals." Alex said, as he saw Mark hugging the two mares from before, the other stallion and mare standing by the big mare.

"Yeah, I know." Mark agreed. "It's hard to stay sad around them. I think it's one reason we took them in. Cecelia really loves being with them." He told Alex.

Alex nodded as he hugged the pair, then got to his feet. He approached the big mare, hand out, palm down, and let her sniff him. Then he gently put his hand on her neck and stroked her until he was stroking her mane. "Yeah, this mare is really a beautiful one, more refined and very regal." He grinned at Mark as he gently scritched her ears. She softly whickered at him and butted him gently. Alex laughed and smiled as she moved to the colt and put her neck over his. "Yeah. Be proud of your little colt, Big Lady. He's a fine lad." Alex said, before he walked over to Mark and they headed back to the house.

Thunderlane watched his father walk away, and he shivered. "You okay, Beloved?" Stellar asked him in a whisper.

"I was so close to telling him, Love." Thunderlane replied, as Rumble came up to them and pressed himself against his older brother. "I knew he always did love us both, but hearing it like that... I wish I'd had more time to talk to him about it."

Stellar nodded as the others gathered around. "Maybe you will, in the future. If we stay here, we can always come back and see him again."

Thunderlane nodded his head. Rumble was sniffling. "I'm gonna miss him, Bro." He said softly.

"So am I, Little Dude. So am I."

The others gathered around the pair of brothers and stood close to them, supporting them with their presence and their gentle touches.

Cecelia stood outside the hidey-hole in the barn as Alicia almost ransacked it. After making her put everything back again as it was, she looked at her sister. "Are you satisfied now they aren't here?"

Alicia looked as if she was about to burst a blood vessel, but then she sneezed and said "I'm getting out of here." And she headed for the stairs, Cecelia close behind her.

Once they were outside, Alicia then turned on her sister and asked "If they aren't here, then where are they?" She asked Cecelia.

"Considering what you've put them and us through, I hardly feel obliged to tell you, Sis." Cecelia pointed out.

"Don't give me your sanctimonious claptrap, Cecelia." Alicia said back in an angry tone. "They are MY sons. They will do as I tell them to."

"They are twenty-five years old, Alicia. They don't have to do a damned thing you tell them to anymore."

Alicia growled. "They WILL do what I tell them to." She said. "You'll understand one day, when your precious Twins turn on you, because you didn't keep them in their place..."

Then Cecelia turned and slapped Alicia right across her face, the force of the blow sending her to the ground. "Get out." Was all Cecelia said to her sister, but the intent in her voice was enough to scare Alicia more than any time in her life previously. Alicia looked shocked, crawled away for a little bit, then headed for the SUV at a sprint. She jumped in and started it, then raced off. Cecelia returned to the front verandah and watched her leave.

"Hey! Where's she going?" Came Alex's voice from behind him.

Cecelia turned to see Mark and Alex coming out of the house. "I don't care. The further away, the better." Cecelia told him.

Alex face-palmed. "You hit her, didn't you?" He asked, knowing what probably happened.

"I gave her a good slap, yes. And she deserved every erg of force I put behind it, too." Cecelia confirmed.

Alex sighed. "I knew she'd go too far this time." He said. "But maybe this time it might do her some good, coming from you." He watched the cloud of dust retreat into the distance. "Can I get a ride back to Katherine from you, Mate?"

Mark chuckled. "I think we can even go as far as Darwin, Mate." Mark replied.

"Cool. Well, it's a good thing I brought my bags out then, eh?" Alex grinned, and the three of them broke up into laughter.

The ponies watched as Mark drove off in his own ute, the car trailer behind it, as he headed out to take Alex to Darwin and the trailer back. Once they were gone, Stellar relaxed the illusion spell, and the illusions dropped away into the earth, revealing their true selves again... all except Cathy, who still stood there as a Fallabella pony. "Uh, what's going on?" She asked Stellar.

"Well, because you weren't through changing yet, I had to use a different spell on you, Cathy." Stellar explained. "Instead of a regular illusion, I used one called 'Perfect Disguise' to give you a total change. The thing is, only you can release it." Stellar told Cathy. "Just think of being yourself, and you'll change back. Don't think of being Human, or a pony, just leave the visualisation out and think of becoming yourself again." She counselled Cathy.

Cathy nodded and relaxed, thinking of being... 'herself'. As she did, the illusion shimmered and slowly fell away... to reveal a pony. Not someone in the final stages of becoming one, but a fully-changed pony.

Everypony there save for Stellar gasped, then the Twins went "Wow..."

Azure moved up to Cathy and looked her over. "You're... whole, Love."

"Yeah..." Cathy replied. She looked her hoofs over, they were the same peach color as her coat was. Her eyes were huge, like the others, and her mane was fluffy and bouyant. And after three days of being in-the-middle... she felt complete and it felt fantastic. "I'm me!" She shouted happily, and danced around everypony there, Rumble and the twins joining in. Then she trotted to Azure and nuzzled him lovingly... "Hello, Azure Love. I am..." Then she stopped and looked at Stellar. "You said... you know who I am?" She asked.

"You don't, yet?" Stellar asked back, surprised.

"I'm... not sure." Cathy replied, feeling... ambiguous. "It's like... I can feel I should remember... but I can't."

Stellar nodded as she moved close. "Apparently that happens sometimes. But I think I can jump-start your memories... Peach Delight." Stellar whispered in Cathy's ear.

Cathy's jaw dropped as her cutie-mark, eyes and horn lit up brilliantly...

"Mocha!" Peach yelled as she ran through the destroyed streets of Canterlot, looking for her younger brother, who'd ran off in the confusion. It had been nearly ten days of hiding for the pair after Canterlot fell. Her father, Frothy Brew, had stayed to help with the defenses... what little could be done, while she and Mocha had gotten separated from their mother and Flapjack, the crowd carrying the pair away from their kin. They'd managed to hide for a long time, edging closer to the Million Stairs' entrance, when she'd heard a squeal of a mare in distress. She saw Discord towering over the ruins, a mare in his hand, and he was whispering to her before she vanished in a blaze of white light.

She moved low and slow as she tried to stay out of sight, but it wasn't to be. His clawed griffon hand reached down and grabbed Peach with a predatory grin on his face as he brought her up to look at her. "Well, aren't we a pretty peach?" He said mockingly. "I know just where to send you..."

"Mister Discord, please?" Peach asked haltingly. "Can I just ask one thing before you do whatever it is you're going to do?"

Discord raised an eyebrow, but then he smiled a much nicer smile. "Why not? Even criminals get a final wish." He replied.

"Have you seen my little brother?" Peach asked, describing him.

Discord listened, then snapped his other fingers. "Yes. I found him barely an hour ago. He has already preceeded you to your new home. But you won't likely see him there for a while. He is in quite the different zone from where you might end up."

"Oh." Peach's face fell. "But... he is there, with everypony else?"

Discord nodded. "Yes. Now, I have indulged you by answering two questions, so do not struggle, or I shall send you half a world away instead."

Peach nodded and just hung there, limply.

"Excellent." Discord said, then started chanting "For five score, divided by four..."

The glow from Peach's eyes, horn and cutie-mark faded, but she kept remembering more, and more, and more...

Azure looked worried. "Is she all right?" He asked Stellar.

"I'm not entirely sure..." Stellar replied, as she scanned Peach. "It seems... she has an associative memory, and a strong one." Stellar frowned. "Well... if I had to call this anything, I'd say the proper term would be a 'Cascading Memory Reboot'." She stated. Stellar looked at Azure. "Go to her, Azure. Distract her. Bring her back to you." Stellar told him.

Azure nodded and hugged Peach to him, nuzzling her and calling her name. When that failed to rouse her, he turned her head and kissed her full-on.

Peach, who'd been becoming more and more lost in her memories, took a deep breath through her nose and returned to her present to find Azure kissing her deeply. She sighed through her nose and kissed him back, her forelegs wrapping around him and holding him to her.

Stellar, who'd watched this closely, smiled and nodded. 'A very satisfactory ending', She thought to herself.

Author's Notes:

Dun-dun, dunnnnnn! Alicia makes her big entrance, and we find out who Cathy is (If you hadn't worked it out already!)

Just like to say that Peach Delight, Frothy Brew, Flapjack and Mocha are all copyright to Goldfur, and are used with hir kind permission.