The dragon of exceptional size moved through the hangar with great care, so as not to disturb any of the airships moored inside of the massive building. The dragon, not an enormous dragon, but merely quite large, was a little over twenty feet in length from nose to tail. Much smaller ponies scurried around him, mindful to not get in the way.

Kartoffel, as the dragon was known, had a stiff upper lip and was one of the best mechanical engineers in all of Equestria. He was brilliant, outgoing, somewhat mad, and so very fabulous. He made no attempt to hide his fabulousity and was very in-your-face about the fact that he was fantastically, flamingly gay.

“Oh, sweetie, hi!” Kartoffel gave Tarnish a somewhat limp-wristed wave with his lispy, hissy hello. “Ooh, kisses!” Before Tarnish could protest, Kartoffel’s head darted down and he planted a smoky smooch upon Tarnish’s cheek, then Daring Do as well. “I had to work miracles to get the old girl serviced in time… it really cut into my disco dancing schedule!”

“I’m… sorry?” Tarnish replied.

“Oh, don’t be!” Kartoffel gave Tarnish another limp-wristed wave as he pulled his head away. The dragon’s face changed and a serious look of concern overtook his scaly features. “I pulled a lot of bullets out of the tail end of the ship. Are both of you okay?”

“I wasn’t the only one that got shot in the ass.” Tarnish tilted his head back to look up at the dragon, who was now wincing while waving his raised claws around, it was as if he was trying to fan the horrible words away. “Things got pretty tense, Kartoffel.”

“Oh, sweetie, how dreadful” Kartoffel’s outburst made Daring Do roll her eyes. “There are so few perfect, pert, plushy little pony asses in the world”—the dragon made a hissy inhale and continued—“I would go overseas with you, but I’m a pacifist! Why, the very idea of violence makes me feel lightheaded, like I’m going to faint or something!”

Daring Do snorted, as she had in fact, seen Kartoffel faint dead away. He had done so in a movie during a particularly hearty slap given by an offended lover to her beau. Ponies feared dragons when they rampaged, going on a spree of violence and mayhem. Daring Do feared dragons when they fainted, as she had been pinned beneath Kartoffel when he keeled over.

“I’ve made some modifications,” Kartoffel said, getting down to business. “There have been some technological improvements and I’m able to do more with less. You’ll be able to coax a little more power from her now, meaning a bit more speed. It probably won’t be noticeable, not unless you are heading into a headwind. The turbine got a full servicing, I took it apart myself and gave it a complete rebuild. The thirty-six millimetre auto turrets both fore and aft had a complete inspection. She’ll be shipshape in time for your departure.”

“I hope we don’t need those,” Daring Do muttered.

“I’d hate to be shot in the ass with one…”

The big white mare had trouble fitting into the small, dainty wrought iron bistro chair. The teacups and coffee cups had a distressing lack of size when seen next to Helianthus. Tarnish found the whole thing amusing, and he sipped his tea with a pleased, somewhat manic grin on his face.

“My counterpart is in a bad mood” Helianthus said as she held a little pony-sized coffee cup in her fetlock. “You’ve really put her in a snit, Mister Teakettle.”

His smile vanishing, Tarnish didn’t say anything in reply, but just sat there, staring at Helianthus, wondering if perhaps Princess Celestia was listening or watching now. He shifted his weight away from the aching, pulsating painful place on his plot and his ears splayed out to the sides, tugged on by the stiff breeze.

“I am not Celestia,” Helianthus said, affirming her own independence. “I think that you should do this. You did the impossible once already, Mister Teakettle.” A look of unmistakable pride could be seen on Helianthus’ face as she continued to heap on the praise. “You, very much like the poison joke that you represent, thrive on the impossible. You survive bleak, poisoned, desolate, barren wastes. You bravely spit into the eye of the single most evil entity this world has ever, or will ever know. You are not even two decades of age yet, and you have made a name for yourself. You stand as an equal with the esteemed Daring Do. I think that you will go to Skyreach, discover whatever it is, and I think you shall return.”

“Thank you, Helianthus… I needed to hear that.”

“Tarnish…”

“Yes, Daring?”

“She’s right about what she said, I do see you as my equal. It is the sole reason I agreed to become your mentor and your boss. I know I am very hard on you—”

“You are,” Tarnish agreed.

“—but it is only because I have such high expectations of you. I wouldn’t even bother wasting my breath otherwise. Most ponies aren’t worth pushing because they are spineless, snivelling wretches that piss themselves and cower the moment that danger rears its ugly head.”

“I needed to hear this,” Tarnish confessed. “My frail, tattered ego has taken quite a beating lately, and I know that I’ve been hiding it well, but everything that’s happened has left me feeling insecure. Maud and I keep fighting. Celestia’s reaction to all of this has left me shaken. I keep wondering if I am somehow repeating the mistakes of Dodge City Junction all over again… I’ve gotten big, famous, and I keep wondering if I’m just being young and stupid. Everypony keeps telling me I’m reckless, I’m careless, and Cloudy… oh, Cloudy… she let me have it finally, I guess Maud talked to her, I don’t know. Cloudy gave me the business.”

“Tarnished Teapot,” Helianthus said in a low voice. “Professional hero. Scholar. Druid. Husband. Father. Beloved son. Heart of iron, ego of glass.” She raised her teacup to Tarnish in salute. “Here is to being friends, Mister Teapot.”

“To being friends.” Daring Do raised her own cup to join the toast.

Tarnish raised his own cup and managed to smile “Here’s to hoping my friends save me from getting shot in the ass again.”

Author's Notes:

Yes, I am aware what I named the dragon.