“Puddle,” a gentle voice roused Puddle Splasher out of a light sleep.

She looked around and found herself in Stable 9’s classroom. The eyes of her friends and classmates were all on her. Some were amused, others irritated. Rhiannon, her teacher, showed patience, as ever. Puddle brushed a strand of mane out of her eyes as her cheeks flushed and her ears burned.

“S-sorry Miss Rhiannon!” she squeaked. “I… guess I didn’t sleep well last night!”

Rhiannon smiled warmly.

“Well, then perhaps, my little pony, you should spend a little more time resting, and a little less time waiting up for your parents to return?”

Puddle scrunched up her muzzle, and nodded. She had been staying up a bit later than usual. Mom and dad were helping expand the lower level of the Stable and no matter how late it got, she just couldn’t settle until they came back up. She couldn’t help it! Knowing that they were both working with those huge, rickety old digging machines scared her. She knew Rhiannon had a point about her needing to get a little more sleep, but still...

“As I was saying,” Rhiannon continued, trotting over to the well-worn blackboard. “Knowing that we all have our place here in the harmony of our Stable is very important. The Journal of Two Sisters teaches us that Princess Celestia and Princess Luna both recognized that friendship was key to maintaining harmony in Equestria. And that there are many ways in which the Elements of Harmony flow through each of us. Puddle Splasher, do you remember what are the six Elements of Harmony?”

Puddle nodded as she was called upon.

“The Elements of Harmony are the aspects of all of us that help create the magic of Friendship,” she recited from memory. “Those six elements are Kindness, Honesty, Generosity, Loyalty, Magic, and my personal favourite, Laughter! I mean, what would life be without something to smile about?”

“A very good question, Puddle,” Rhiannon replied. “Just remember, however, that you don’t get to choose your element. The element chooses you. You may also show all of those elements at different points in your life as your friendships grow. While Element Bearers are rare, I like to think that everypony can draw upon those elements to keep their friendships alive and vibrant.”

“Even if you happen to be the Element of Fart Jokes?” Puddle quipped.

The class broke out into a fit of giggles as Puddle beamed widely.

Rhiannon chuckled, but then her pretty blue eyes fell.

“Well, that may be for now, Puddle Splasher. But, do you always have to be Laughter? Because rumour has it that you are also quite kind. And, in its own way, comedy has a way of being honest about topics that are hard to discuss.” She gazed at the whole class. “I just want to caution you against buying into the idea that you can force yourself to be one element or the other, my little ponies. It is an attractive idea to be an Element Bearer. But! Given that there are only ever six at a time, the odds are not in your favour of you being one.”

She gave each and every student a sad, but soothing smile.

“Remember what Stable residents passed down from generation to generation. If you can simply learn to live by the Magic of Friendship, you are doing far better than the generations that came before us. Now, more about the Elements…”

Puddle zoned out a moment as Rhiannon reviewed content for the younger students. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to pay attention to the lecture. She just had a hard time believing somepony wouldn’t know themselves well enough to know which Element of Harmony they represented in their group of friends!

She made eye contact with Sagittarius. The midnight blue bat pony gave her a knowing smile and a shrug back.

Sagi – as most of their friends called him – was a bold, popular colt in their grade. She was happy to be his friend. He was also rather cute, which didn’t hurt things either. Though, it often meant that Puddle and her friends Sour Drops and Emerald Flash competed for his attention.

Besides that, Sour was just competing with Sagi to settle who was the better flier as often as she was with Emerald and Puddle for his attention. The pegasus filly often teased Sagi that she could fly circles around him; though it was even odds as to who won whenever they raced through the high parts of the cavern housing Stable 9’s field crops.

The clock on the wall chimed loudly and the entire class stirred around Puddle.

Rhiannon sighed, “Well, I suppose that’s it for today. Those of you who are interested in further reading can come by the Library Oak this afternoon. I have plenty of books on the Elements of Harmony. If you’re on your best behaviour, I might even let you look at Twilight Sparkle’s journal!”

The students began to file out of the classroom as Puddle got up from her desk and trotted over to Sagi. A twinge of annoyance rippled through her as a flicker of green coat and brown mane flashed into view next to him. Emerald had just learned her first teleportation spell and insisted on using it at every opportunity, even if it was just to cross a room.

“Hey Sagi~” Emerald purred as she leaned on the colt’s desk. “Doing anything this afternoon?”

The unicorn filly tried to give the colt her best smoulder as Puddle and Sour Drops trotted over to Sagittarius’ desk. Sagi scratched the back of his head with a wingthumb.

“Um… actually, yeah!” he said, earning Puddle a little bit of satisfaction as Emerald’s face fell. “Balmy Breeze and I are actually due to help out in the apple fields this afternoon. I also kinda promised him I’d help him work on his flying. Sorry about that, Emmy.”

“I-I mean, if you wanted to come too, th-that’d be okay, Emmy!” Balmy spoke up as he trotted up to the group.

The pegasus colt with a turquoise coat blushed brightly as he spoke, tugging lightly at his long mane. He’d had a massive crush on Emerald since the group of friends were little. That hadn’t changed much as they’d grown up either.

Emerald sighed, “Balmy, what do you expect me to do while you two work in the field? Watch? Supervise?! Cause, I sure as heck am not gonna be able to go flying with the two of you! Hmph!”

“Aww, come on, Emmy, don’t be like that!” Sagi soothed. “I mean, if you, Puddle, and Sour wanted to join us, you could always swing by the Library Oak to study. Balmy and I can grab you fillies when we’re done with our work for the day!”

“W-we’re not actually going to grab you, though. At least not, like, physically. That’d be rude,” Balmy added, hiding behind his blond mane. “Just um… maybe go by the canteen later for snacks?”

“I’d be up for that!” Sour said, putting a wing over Emerald’s withers. “Besides, I think it might be a good idea for Puddle to swing by the Library Oak and apologize to Rhiannon.”

“What for?” Puddle asked defensively.

Sour rolled her eyes. “For falling asleep in her class! You know that she only teaches a few days out of the month. I thought you liked her lessons on Harmony!”

Puddle pouted, which she’d found was a useful tactic when she was trying to get the colts on her side.

“I just get worried when my folks are helping dig in the lower levels. I know it’s been ages since we had a cave-in but…” she trailed off.

She felt a light, feathery wing land on her shoulder. Her face warmed as she looked up to meet Balmy’s dark blue eyes.

“I’m sure they’ll be fine, Puddle,” he said gently. “But I can see why it might be keeping you up at night. Still… you really should make that apology.”

“Are you sure she wouldn’t just accept that I take my title of ‘Element of Fart Jokes’ and wear it with pride?” Puddle asked, only to sigh as Balmy shook his head. “Well, fine. I’ll go say sorry to her. And… anyway, I wanted to see if she had any more books on the Element Bearers themselves. I’m sure there’s some stories about them that we’ve not gone over!”

Sour looked thoughtful.

“I’m… not sure. I know that the Princesses were the Element Bearers when they defeated Discord, but… beyond the Ministry Mares? Hmm. Might be something for you, Emmy, and I to do while the boys are busy.”

Emerald sulked a moment, but gave a noncommittal and distinctly unfilly-like grunt in response. Sagi rolled his eyes and shrugged, before looking down at his pipbuck.

“So…” he started, “we meet up at the Library Oak at sixteen-hundred, and then go to the canteen?”

“Is that gonna give us enough time to help dust the trees, Sagi?” Balmy asked.

“Hey, think of it this way, buddy!” Sagi said, springing out of his desk to give Balmy a noogie between the ears. “We’ll make it work if somepony can work on his flying!”

Balmy blushed and nodded. “Yeah yeah… two buns, one hoof. That sort of thing.”

Puddle smiled.

“Alright, alright. We, girls, will go see Rhiannon. See you at sixteen hundred, okay?”

The young ponies parted ways in separate groups. The girls made their way toward the centre of the Stable, the Atrium, leaving the classroom and school wing behind. As her friends took the lead, Puddle slowed down, feeling she'd forgotten something.

As she entered the Atrium, Puddle looked out across the broad, three-level structure as her two friends chatted ahead of her. Even though she’d been outside of the Stable a few times in her life, it always struck her at just how tall the Stable was inside. Built with a flying populace in mind, it made sense for the massive structure to give Pegasi and bat ponies some room to spread their wings.

Puddle squeaked in surprise as a white hoof waved in front of her face.

“Hello! Equestria to Puddle? CQ CQ CQ DX?” Sour teased, her blue eyes shining as Puddle startled.

“The pony you’re trying to reach is currently unavailable. Please leave a message after the boop!” Puddle said, reaching a hoof up to poke the end of the pegasus’ snout.

“Ack, Puddle!” Sour protested, batting at the earth pony with her wing.

Emerald rolled her eyes.

“Are we going to the Library Oak or are you two just going to start mud-wrestling or something?” she sniped, a pronounced look of displeasure on her face.

Sour shot the unicorn a glare.

“Look, just because you’re all pouty because you couldn’t keep a boy’s attention doesn’t mean you have to take it out on us!”

“Well, I’m not the one who let Sagi go off on his own with Balmy! You know he flies like a concussed radroach, those chores are gonna take hours! They’d be done way quicker if you’d have joined them!”

“I was on tree-dusting duty last week!”

Puddle sighed as her friends started to bicker. She knew Emerald would get out of her rotten mood eventually but... given how colt-crazy the filly had become in the past few weeks, Puddle held out little hope she’d be back to normal sooner rather than later. The times when Puddle could just have fun hanging out with her friends, free of drama or awkwardness over who liked who felt like they were getting more distant by the day.

“Yeah, well- hey, Puddle, isn’t that your dad?” Emerald asked, stopping mid-argument to point down toward the end of the Atrium.

Puddle leaned up onto the railing for a better look. Sure enough, her father, mother, and the digging team were walking toward the canteen.

“That’s… weird. I thought they were working late tonight,” she said, before turning back to her friends. “Um… can we take a detour, girls? I wanna see what’s up.”

The two fillies nodded and all three broke into a race down the two stories to meet with the arriving ponies.

“Mom! Dad! Is everything okay?” Puddle called out, nearly tripping over her mane as she rammed toward the pair of earth ponies.

Magma Spritz sat down on her haunches and opened her forelegs to embrace her daughter.

“Everything is fine, dear! We just got recalled because the scouts spotted a group of ponies approaching the Stable!” the red-maned mare replied, nuzzling her cheek against Puddle’s. “Your father and I are part of the welcoming team, you know.”

Puddle felt her heart flutter at the mention of outsiders. Stable 9 had experienced contact with foreign ponies before. Though a few of the outsiders now lived in the Stable, the most recent encounter with a group of wasteland ponies in a little town called Hoof River hadn’t ended well.

“Wait! No! You can’t go!” she cried, squeezing her mother’s black leg tighter.

High Dive patted Puddle’s shoulder.

“Sweetheart, I know things didn’t go well in Hoof River. This time is different. We’re meeting these ponies outside of the Stable door. Security will be there, ready to intervene. I know you’re nervous about this, Puddle, but honestly, everything is going to be fine!” the stallion said, lightly rubbing his daughter’s back with a hoof.

“Yeah, Puddle. It’ll be great!” Sour said, circling above the trio of earth ponies. “I’m sure if anything goes wrong, Mr. Solidarity will make sure everything works out.”

Puddle frowned at the mention of the Stable’s constable. He was a nice enough stallion, but a very gruff one when it came to dealing with younger ponies. Especially those that often got into trouble because of some of Emerald’s schemes.

“Right, right…” Puddle said, releasing her mother’s leg. “Sorry, you’re right. And… I should probably let you get washed up before you go meet these new ponies.”

Puddle brushed the pulverised rock that had rubbed off Magma Spritz’s dusty coveralls from her Stable 9 jumpsuit.

Her mother planted a kiss on the top of her head.

“Maybe you should start thinking of a comedy routine to give to our new friends, Puddle,” Magma said, getting up to all fours. “We’ll be meeting them in an hour or two, so you girls go have fun. Maybe Rhiannon will let us throw a party!”

Puddle had to admit that a party did sound like fun.

“Alright mom. You and dad be safe, please?”

“Darling, when are we not safe?” High Dive asked, chuckling as he and his wife made their way toward the residential district.

Puddle doubted his less than convincing arguments. She knew how her father had gotten his high diving cutie mark. She focused as a feathered wing landed on her shoulder.

“I’m sure it’ll be okay, Puddle,” Sour said, patting the green filly’s back. “Come on, let’s go see Rhiannon. Then we can catch up with the boys after they’re done with their chores. I’m sure Sagi will have Balmy whipped into shape and they’ll both be done on time. Right, Emmy?”

Emerald looked up from the small compact mirror that she was using to fix her mane.

“Hmm?”

Sour rolled her eyes.

“By the elements are you vain, filly…”

“What?! We’re seeing Sagi later!”

“We see Sagi every day!”

“So a girl shouldn’t look her best?!”

Puddle chuckled as her two friends bickered. Slowly, she nudged at Emerald and Sour’s rumps enough that they started moving toward the Library Oak. The trio of friends made their way through Stable 9’s Atrium into its vast subterranean fields. High above them, a cavern had been painstakingly carved out of Mt. Hoof, providing a lacuna a good one hundred and fifty metres tall. Massive sunlamps dotted the rocky ceiling, shining down warm light over the fields of corn, wheat, and grass below. At the centre of it all nestled in a tiny, flower-studded meadow stood the Library Oak.

According to her history class, when Twilight Sparkle heard about the Stable project, she was initially appalled by the idea. However, at Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Apple Bloom’s urgings, she’d relented, allowing the trio to use acorns from the Golden Oaks library in Ponyville to grow a new Library Oak.

Eventually, Twilight allowed the new library to start saving the knowledge of Equestria. She personally donated books from her collection later on in the war. Story had it that crates of books had arrived by accident from Maripony the day it all ended. Some of the colts and fillies also whispered that the Journal of Friendship, the book written by Twilight and her friends, was not originally intended to be in the Stable at all!

The small bell above the door rang as the fillies entered the library. Puddle smiled at the crisp smell of old books and wood as they made their way into the library proper. Looking around, they found themselves alone, save for a tall blond pegasus mare.

She turned to them, offering the trio a smile.

“Oh! Hello girls! Can I help you find anything?” she asked.

Puddle swallowed, trying her best not to stare at Lunar Skysong’s right eye. The big blue pegasus was a wastelander that had made her home in the Stable after she’d been branded a Dashite by the Enclave for her research into storms, which was forbidden for some reason. Pegasi had weird hangups when it came to the weather, seems Enclave was no different. Lunar had dreamed of restoring the wasteland with her years of work, but all that had been snuffed out in a single day.

Some would say she got off lightly for a Dashite; she’d only lost her left cutie mark. Though she’d also been blinded in her right eye. A bottle of captured lightning exploded in her lab as she’d fought against the group of Enclave thugs sent to brand her.

The mare often wore an eye patch but never could hide her whole scar. It radiated from below her eyebrow and coursed up to her paralysed ear. The mangled skin still pulsed with a light purple glow, the residual magic from the bottled storm giving her the appearance like her coat was a window that had a bullet shot through it.

“Um… I was wondering if miss Rhiannon was in,” Puddle replied, looking about the library. “I was wanting to ask her if we had any books on the element bearers. Well, any more books, that is. I’m pretty sure I’ve read all of the ones I know about.”

Lunar shook her head.

“I think she went home after she taught today’s friendship lessons, girls,” she said with a smile. “She asked me to cover for her, though. I can find some books on the element bearers, if you’d like!”

Puddle shrugged and trailed behind Lunar over to the library terminal. Sour and Emerald followed, the latter choosing to rest her forelegs across Puddle’s back.

“Do you know if we have any books on Ministry Mare Rarity?” Emerald asked as Lunar typed.

“We do!” Lunar replied, slowly clicking through a list of books. “In fact, if you’re interested in her, might I recommend her Elements of Fashion?”

“Where?!” Emerald demanded, zooming off into the shelves after Lunar provided her with the catalogue number.

“Was there something specific you were looking for, Puddle?” Lunar asked, watching the green unicorn vanish from sight.

Puddle frowned. She was supposed to be here to apologise to Rihannon, but since it would be a shame to waste the trip...

“I guess… I wanted to know if we had any books on why the element bearers were selected. Like, what made them the elements they were!” she replied.

Lunar took on a pensive look and clicked through a few more screens before shaking her head.

“To be honest, Puddle, I don’t know if even Twilight Sparkle wrote anything about that. She and her friends were… special. But I’m not sure that even the Ministry Mares themselves knew quite why they were bearers,” Lunar tabbed through a few more screens with a frown. “Even the books we have that Princess Celestia herself wrote don’t really talk about the elements in that kind of detail. Most of those we have on the topic are children’s books, honestly.”

Puddle’s ears drooped.

“Well, it was worth a shot. Thanks, Lunar! At least you were able to-”

A loud sound rumbled into the library from outside. Puddle and Sour froze, listening intently. Lunar’s left ear swivelled rapidly back and forth.

Emerald slowly made her way back to her friends.

“What was that?”

A moment later, sirens began to sound within the Stable. Puddle paled.

“Mom, dad! No! Don’t open the door!” she cried before bolting out of the library.

“Wait, Puddle!” Sour and Emerald called after her.

The little earth pony had already dashed through the door, rapidly making her way toward the Atrium.

Just a few hundred metres. Puddle told herself. Then up the ramp to the Stable entrance. Everything will be fine. Just fine! I’m sure it was just fireworks!

Something big and heavy tackled her from behind.

“Let me go!”

“Quiet!” Lunar hissed in her ear. “Listen!”

In the unusual deathly stillness of the Atrium, a small series of staccato sounds echoed down from the main entrance to the Stable. Puddle froze, trying to figure out why they would be setting off firecrackers.

...Those were gunshots.

Lunar lifted Puddle from the middle of her barrel and soared up to the third level.

“Stay here!” the big pegasus ordered, before darting into the Stable Security office. “Constable, I think we’ve got a problem.”

“Ya think?” Solidarity replied, nearly bowling her over as he hustled out of his office with three magnum pistols holstered in a gun belt trailing behind in his magic. “Locker five, Skysong.”

Without a word to Puddle, the stallion’s already lit horn blazed with his grey magic, and he disappeared with a crackling pop.

Puddle looked back and forth between the Security office and the corridor that led to the main entrance to the Stable helplessly. Were her parents okay? She had to do something!

Lunar’s reappearance startled her out of what probably would have been a bad decision. The tall mare was dressed in jet black Enclave power armour, and just the sight of the usually happy and gentle pegasus encased in the bug-like carapace fixed Puddle to the spot.

“W-where d-d-did you g-get that… that...” Puddle blubbered.

The visor to the power armour slid down.

“Enclave took everything from me. So I took something of theirs,” Lunar explained. “I’m gonna go help the constable. Puddle, I want you to stay hidden. If anything happens, I don’t-”

A bullet cut Lunar off as it ricocheted against the railing close to Puddle. The filly yelped, diving between Lunar’s legs. The pegasus reared up. Through the small space that made up the railing, Puddle spotted an iron monster. The creature looked up at Lunar and the pair of weapons at its side elevated to follow its gaze. Two loud bangs shook the Stable wall.

Lunar’s armoured chest piece soaked the blow as she took to the air. Puddle could only watch frozen with fear as the pegasus fired back.

Bright purple lances of magic streaked down from the strange looking weapons on Lunar’s battle saddles. The first shot missed. The second scoured the armour along the monster’s flank.

It fired back, missing as the surprisingly agile mare performed one of the tightest immelmann turns the Stable would likely ever see. Her hooves pushed against the Stable's metal roof before she dove to the Atrium’s first level. Lunar shrugged off another hit from the monster’s paired weapons and fired back.

The violet energy beams boiled away divots of metal from the monster’s front armour. As Lunar flew past, she drove her power armour scorpion tail through the hole she’d seared into the monster’s chest and latched onto its hindquarters. Lunar refused to let go as the monster made a strangled sound, stumbled and dropped.

“Puddle, I want you to hide in the Security Office!” Lunar called out with a mechanically distorted voice, drawing the reinforced tail out of the hole which was now gushing with blood.

Puddle shuddered as she stared at the monster and the ever widening pool of red that surged out of the creature’s chest wound. They bled. They weren’t monsters if they could bleed.

“Puddle! Go!”

Puddle jumped, startled, and started to stumble to Solidarity’s office. She waved to the brave pegasus, and at that, Lunar turned quickly and sped up the long hallway that led to the entrance.

Puddle tried to wait and be still as gunfire and explosions continued to ripple down the entrance hall, the Atrium magnifying the horrible sounds. She crawled to hide under the head of security’s desk, covering her ears as she tried to drown out the din of battle. One final explosion startled her to jump and bump her head on the underside of the desk. A macabre stillness soon filled the Stable.

Puddle sat in silence beneath the desk for a long moment, her ears straining to pick up any sound. After a minute or two, she decided she couldn’t take waiting any longer, and crept out from beneath the desk. She wasn’t sure what to do. Nopony was coming back from the entrance to the Stable. No more of those monsters were coming in either.

Looking up, she spotted the yellow and pink butterflies of a first aid kit and quickly raided it for the healing potion, bandages, and bottles of pills it contained.

Have to help mom and dad, she thought to herself. Maybe they’re just hurt! This will help!

Puddle galloped down the stairs that led to the Atrium’s first floor, then bolted toward the entrance. Halfway up the long ramp that led to the surface, the smell of cordite, sulfur, hot iron, and copper reached her nose. Several other smells made her wish she could cover her muzzle. Gagging, Puddle stepped around an L-bend in the entrance hall, and froze.

Bodies and pieces of bodies littered the floor in front of her, painting the entire hallway in crimson and brown and other colours she didn’t wish to think about. The metal walls were warped and twisted. Thick panels bore dents with scorch marks splashing outward from violent impacts. Small, clear, and clean circles peppered every surface. Those circles scared Puddle more than the rest. Everypony who’d stood near them were tattered and broken like pink teddy bears tossed into a shredder.

Puddle wanted to move, but couldn’t. She didn’t know what to do! She had bandages, but bandages couldn’t fix this!

“Mom! Dad!”

A loud, stuttered set of hoof-falls caught her attention. She looked up, eyes wide with fear as Solidarity made his way around another corner, supporting Lunar.

“Puddle! What the fuck are you doing here?!” he shouted. “Get out of here! It’s not safe!”

Puddle’s lip quivered as it dawned on her that she couldn’t see her parents in the mass of bodies.

“B-bandages!” she shouted.

Solidarity helped Lunar limp closer to the petite earth pony.

“I-I h-have b-bandages and p-p-p-”

Solidarity snatched up the healing potion that Puddle pulled from her saddlebags, and forced it to Lunar’s mouth.

“Drink.”

“Look, constable, there’s-” Lunar protested.

“Filly, you just took a pair of anti-material rounds to the barrel. Only reason your insides aren’t your outsides is because that armour’s good at keeping your bits together. Now drink. These folk are beyond any help we can give ‘em,” Solidarity snapped, before tapping a button on his pipbuck as Lunar swallowed the potion. Pulling out an ear bud, he spoke into the small microphone. “This is Constable Solidarity. The enemy has been repelled, but we need medical teams up at the gate entrance now!”

Puddle sat down hard, seemingly unaware of the crimson liquid that soaked into her clothes.

“M-my parents?” she asked quietly, hearing the sounds of running hooves as the medical ponies made their way to their position.

Solidarity’s muzzle became a hard line. “Puddle, I want you to watch miss Lunar. Don’t you worry none about your parents. I’m sure they’ll be fine.”

Puddle sorely wished she couldn’t tell that the Security pony was lying.

Pressing a bandage over Lunar’s wounds, Puddle broke down into tears. But no comforting wing fell over her back. Lunar didn’t say any of the soothing words that her mother had said that horrible day.

She was supposed to, though. Puddle knew the script of that night’s tragedy.

Puddle looked up at the mare, and screamed as she realised that Lunar wasn’t moving. Blood trickled down the mare’s nostrils. She’d stopped breathing.

Puddle began to panic. That hadn’t happened! Lunar hadn’t died that night! What was going on? Where were the medical ponies!

“Wake up!” she screamed at the mare. “Wake up, Lunar! You’re supposed to tell me everything's gonna be fine! Wake up! Medic!”

But Lunar didn’t wake up, and Puddle was alone. So very, very, very alone.

All at once, she heard a voice. One she could just barely recognize but that had cast her loneliness away at times.

“No. What I must do is get out of here. I’m opening my eyes. Now!” the voice said.

Puddle dearly hoped that this time and the last were just bad dreams, that her parents were still there for her, and that they’d be waiting for when she finally woke up.

Author's Notes:

Yay! I got a new chapter out! And it didn't take almost 3 months this time. >///< I've been really enjoying writing the X-chapters because it gives me a chance to spotlight characters who haven't been given much life before. And it's a challenge to make sure that they sound unique and fun. Special thanks to Tsitra for letting me borrow Lunar, as well as my other patreon sponsors for having the patience it takes for me to get stuff written. Thank you all for reading as well! I've got a discord server if you ever want to talk ponies! Send me a PM on Fimfic for a link!