The next day, Ivan left the hospital awkwardly, but no poorer. While walking on three legs was going to get old pretty quick, he was glad national healthcare had seen him through.

With his money situation averted, he at least had enough bits to keep him fed for a little while. Next order of business would be his normal morning ritual, followed by finding a job he could do with a broken limb…

“…I’m sorry, Rarity, but Spike has a cold. I’m afraid that you’ll have to find somepony else to hunt gems with.”

“I see… well do let him know I hope he gets well soon. I’ll send a basket of rubies along la- Oh, Ivan!”

“Ivan? Who…” Rarity had caught sight of him rounding the corner. As he was quite enjoying the feel of his improved coat and bags, walking over to say hello seemed appropriate. With her was a purple unicorn he was unacquainted with.

“Good morning.”

“Good morning to you too! How are you enjoying my work?” Ivan opened his mouth to reply, but was cut off. “Of course you’re enjoying it! Everything that passes through my boutique becomes a masterpiece of fabric!”

“Rarity, who is this?”

“Oh, forgive me darling, this is Ivan Hooves. He arrived in town yesterday and was the center of that accident I told you about.”

“That would explain the leg… I’m Twilight Sparkle, I run the town library. Where are you off to today?”

“Finding odd jobs.” Rarity turned to him with an appraising eye.

“Looking for work? I might have something for you, if you like.”

“Rarity, what’s he going to do with a broken leg?”

“Don’t let that hat of his fool you, he’s got a perfectly good horn under there. Speaking of… I couldn’t help but notice how, erm… sharp it was… did you have it done that way?” Ivan politely lifted his hat with his horn and displayed it for the two mares.

“Mother from Prance. Born this way.”

“Ah…” Rarity replied, put off by his curt manner of speech.

“Oh, I read about that once! Is it true that horn fencing is a school subject up there?” Twilight piped up, studying his horn with a piqued interest.

“Wouldn’t know. Never been.”

“Why not? You look like a traveller…”

“Overseas. Expensive.”

“Fair enough… well I really should be getting back to Spike. I’ll have him healthy again in no time at all!”

“Farewell Twilight.” Rarity said as her friend took her leave. Ivan nodded his goodbye as he replaced his hat, and turned to the remaining unicorn.

“…Job?”

“Oh, yes, of course. Normally Twilight’s dragon friend assists me with stocking my gem stores. I’m running low, and a large order’s come in. I don’t suppose I could ask your help in gathering more? I’m willing to pay for your trouble.” Ivan nodded.

“Cutie Mark Crusaders Prospectors!” Three fillies yelled, jumping out from behind a nearby bush.

“Oh, my beautiful ears… am I to understand that you want to accompany us?” Rarity asked, recovering from the sheer volume of the cheer and looking over the assembled crusaders.

“You bet ma’am!” Applebloom answered back. “We definitely haven’t tried this yet!”

“’Cause digging for rocks is boring…”

“Hush you!” Sweetie Belle hissed to Scootaloo. “We need to be there for Ivan!” Rarity was perplexed, but decided in the end that she didn’t want to know.

“I don’t suppose you mind the little ones accompanying us?” Ivan, deciding that refusing was infinitely more trouble than it was worth, shook his head no and braced his ears.

“Yay!”

“Er… right, well then if you’ll follow me Ivan, I’ve got a wagon and tools ready at my boutique.” Ivan said nothing, and fell into step behind the artist. The crusaders, in turn, fell into step behind him.

--

“Hey, how come you hide your eyes like that? They’re not evil or anything. We made sure.” Said Scootaloo as they walked up the trail to Rarity’s normal hunting grounds. Ivan shrugged.

“Just do.”

“…is it your horn? Are ya ashamed of it?” Applebloom asked.

“Is that also why you wear your coat?” Sweetie Belle added, looking at the concealed flank in question.

“What on earth would he hide with a coat?” Rarity asked, looking back at the fillies that were now crowding Ivan. Concluding that his lack of cutie mark was probably a secret at this point, Applebloom thought up a quick lie.

“Erm… a scar! He’s got this huge scar down his back! Ugly too!”

“That sounds too awesome though…” Scootaloo pouted, wondering secretly what Rainbow Dash would look like with an obscenely cool scar. Or maybe an eye patch…

“Oh, how dreadful…” Rarity said with a slight shudder. Ivan raised his eyebrow, but didn’t comment. He did however nod his thanks to a beaming Applebloom.

“So why do you hide your horn? It’s pretty awesome.” Scootaloo asked, craning her neck to get a look under Ivan’s brim.

Ivan met her gaze (or at least, she thought he did, the hat hid his eyes entirely, how did he see through that?) and stated;
“Some don’t know. Assume the worst.”

The crusaders were rather quiet for the rest of the walk.

--

“Alright then, we’ve arrived.” Rarity announced. “Now, I’ve developed a way to douse for gems. How strong are you with your horn dear?”

Ivan responded by lifting the entire cart.

“Oh… my. Well this shouldn’t be much trouble for you at all then. There’s a shovel in the back. Simply dig up the gems, and I’ll put them in the cart.” The shovel lifted out of the back of the cart, and balanced itself quite nicely between Ivan’s saddlebags. He nodded at the unicorn, as if to say ‘after you’.

Rarity turned on the magic and got to work.

“Right then, let’s see what we can’t find…”

“Hey, Rarity?”

“Yes Sweetie?”

“Can you teach me that spell?” Rarity smiled.

“I don’t see why not. We can make it a family secret.”

“…But Twilight knows.”

“Yes, well, we couldn’t keep magical secrets from her if we tried.” Unbeknownst to the ladies present, Ivan stiffened ever so lightly. He made a mental note to avoid Twilight.

“…So Twilight doesn’t count?”

“She’s almost family anyway dearie. This’ll just be between the three of us.”

“Okay Rarity!”

“Alright, now do as I do… No peeking now Ivan.” Ivan turned his head away from the unicorn siblings respectfully, and studied the landscape as the filly practised.

“…hey, Ivan?” He turned his gaze down to an inquisitive Applebloom.

“Does your leg hurt at all?” She asked, poking the cast with a tentative hoof. He shook his head no as Scootaloo trotted over.

“…you know, it’s awfully boring looking.” The pegasus wondered if she was getting used to the silent stallion. She could practically tell when that eyebrow of his was lifted.

“Can we sign it? When we get back to town I mean. Make it look a little cooler?” Ivan didn’t see the harm, though he felt that as long as they were waiting on the sisters, there was no time like the present to get it out of the way.

One of his saddlebags opened, and out floated a well-used pen. He offered it to the two fillies as he slid the cast out of its sling.

“Right now? Ya mean it?” Applebloom asked, looking excited at the prospect. The pen shook a little in the air, perhaps a little impatiently.

“Alright! I’m going first!” Scootaloo declared, taking the pen in her mouth and attacking a portion near his knee.

“…You’re doing well Swee-… what on earth are you two doing to poor Ivan?”

“Schinin ‘ish casht!” Scootaloo struggled to say around the pen in her mouth.

“Oh, I see.” The tailor said, smirking a little. Perhaps the traveler wasn’t as standoffish as he pretended to be…

“Hey, I wanna sign it too!”

“You can after Applebloom dear. Now come on, you’ve almost got the spell. Try again.”

The little filly turned away from the giggling of her two best friends and tried her very hardest to concentrate on the spell Rarity just finished explaining.

She didn’t use her horn for much except writing, since she couldn’t lift much without fumbling it. It was why Rarity often didn’t let her help whenever she was working. Besides her tendency to make huge messes.

…maybe if she impressed her this once…

“…I think… I feel some…”

“Where?” Rarity asked, grinning wide.

“…under my hoof?” Sweetie Belle said, backing off of the plot of land she was standing on. Looking closer, the magic allowed her to see something gleaming under the dirt.

“Hey! Hey Ivan, over here! Dig here!” Sweetie yelled excitedly, fidgeting at the thought of her first treasure.

The stallion’s head snapped up at the sound of the cry as Applebloom was finishing her signature. Nodding at the little earth pony, he took back his pen and moved to where the sisters were.

The shovel bit deep into the dirt, and it wasn’t long before the find was uncovered.

“…just one?” Sweetie Belle whined, slumping in disappointment. Sure enough, in the small hole was a single opal. A somewhat large one, but still just one.

The precious stone floated out of the ground at Rarity’s whim, and she gave it an appraising eye.

“This isn’t just any gem, Sweetie.”

“It’s not?”

“No. It’s the first gem.” She said with a warm smile. “The first one you’ve ever found. Look how it sparkles!”

Sweetie Belle looked at her gem with new eyes, gently taking it from Rarity and looking it over.

“Hey, Rarity, can I keep it?”

“Of course you can dear. This one’s special.” Sweetie giggled before going to place it in her saddlebags…

Before she realized that she wasn’t wearing any.

Upon inspection, neither was her sister or her two friends.

Putting it in the cart might get it mixed up with the other gems they would find…

“…hey, Ivan?” She asked shyly, approaching the quiet stallion. “Could you hold this for me? Until we get back to town?” She offered the gem, and tried to make herself as adorable as possible.

Whether the added cuteness made the difference or not, Ivan didn’t seem to mind, agreeing without taking any time to think it over. He took the opal and slipped it into one of his bags for safe keeping.

“Now Sweetie, see if you can find any more.” Rarity said, looking somewhat proud of her sister. “You’ve caught on to the spell rather quickly. See what else we can dig up.” Nodding exuberantly, Sweetie Belle cast the spell again, putting all the effort she could muster into it.

“…I can’t find anything… was that the only gem here?”

“Oh no, don’t be silly.” Rarity said, casting the spell herself. “It seems your range doesn’t extend too far. Keep practicing and you’ll match my talent in no time at all. Ivan, over here dearie…”

“…That was pretty cool Sweetie Belle.” Scootaloo said as the adults moved on.

“Yeah! Let’s see if ya can find anythin’ else! Ah want a gem too!”

“Sure!” Sweetie Belle agreed, turning on the gem detector again and pacing off in a random direction.

If they followed the adults, Rarity would just find all the gems first.

“Follow me!”

--

“You see?! You see?! The little one can find the gems too!”

“…but the last time we tried thi-“

“I know, it was horrible! But this one is young. We can train it.”

“…alright, alright, we’ll do it. Let’s go.”

“At least it can’t be any worse then last time…”

--

“…Hey, I think there’s some gems right here!”

“Great, let’s dig for ‘em!”

“…kinda hard to dig with hooves… think we should go get Ivan?”

“Depends… how deep are they Sweetie?”

“Not real deep… we could just dig these up ourselves.”

“…but then what would we carry ‘em in?”

“…let’s go get Ivan and Rarity then.” Scootaloo sighed, turning around to locate the adults before bumping roughly into a rather tall figure…

While her other two friends were clueless, Sweetie Belle wasn’t. Her sister told her about the diamond dogs, and her last run in with them.

…she neglected to tell her how scary they looked though… large jaws, huge claws… she and her friends were frozen to the spot in fear.

“You’re coming with us.” The beast stated, pointing right at her. Two other dogs stomped out of whatever hiding place they had concealed themselves in, grinning at the now trapped fillies.

“Rarity!” Sweetie Belle just barely had time to scream before the earth swallowed them.

--

At the sound of her sister’s desperate cry for help, Rarity’s heart stopped. She wasted no time taking off at top speed to where she heard the scream.

She arrived to a familiar looking mound of upturned dirt.

“…Ivan. Will you help me save my sister?” She asked, not tearing her eyes away from the closed tunnel. She heard the cart stop moving behind her, and a few clumsy steps forward.

The shovel whipped by her head and buried itself in the earth. The speed at which he started digging surprised her.

“…My thanks, Ivan. Now let me tell you what we’re dealing with…”

--

“W-where are we?”

“Underground.” The diamond dog answered, twisted grin never faltering.

“Why d-did you bring us h-here…?” Sweetie Belle was the only one who could ask questions, as she was the only one who could still talk. She had no idea why they had looked so proud of themselves when they bound and gagged her friends.

“You’re going to dig up gems for us. Now find them!”

“B-but I’m not very good a-“

“Then you’d better get good.” The dog growled, pointing at her defenseless friends.

“No! No don’t do anything I’ll find all the gems you want please!”

“Then start looking!” The dog roared. And as the terrified Sweetie Belle scampered off, horn aglow, he turned back to the other dogs and smirked in a way that plainly said ‘I told you so’.

“You know, I can’t get over how good you are with the pups…” One said, chuckling.

“You know how it is. Firm hand. Give ‘em the back of it if they complain. Now throw those two in a cell. A few days in there’ll quiet ‘em up.” And as another dog threw the two crying fillies over his shoulder, he turned back to where Sweetie Belle was frantically searching for gems.

This batch of slaves was turning out much better then the last.

--

“It might be a bit late to ask, but how well can you defend yourself with your leg the way it is?” Rarity asked as they walked down the catacombs. Ivan lifted his hat, revealing his horn.

“Manage.”

“Ah, yes, of course.” Rarity remembered he lifted a cart with little effort. Granted the cart was empty, but still...

“Where?”

“Oh, I’ve worked up a spell for just such an occasion, actually. My sister and her little friends are… active. I make sure I know where she is whenever I can.” Rarity’s horn lit up with a different kind of dousing spell, and followed its pull down the chosen tunnel.

“She was always such a rambunctious little thing growing up. Still is in fact. Perfecting this spell was necessary to looking after her.” What little exposure to the crusaders Ivan had made this easy to believe.

“Calm down.” Said the stallion.

“I’m perfectly calm.”

“Shaking.” Ivan stated. Rarity fell silent. For a time, the tunnels were silent, except for their hooffalls.

“…I’m worried.” She confessed.

“Natural.” He allowed with a nod. “Breathe. Slow.”

She did. As evenly as she could manage.

The dark tunnels seemed to stretch on endlessly…

--

Sweetie Belle collapsed, dirty, sweaty, and completely exhausted. A cart nearly full of gems gleamed silently beside her.

“Is… that… enough?”

“Not enough.” The dog replied. “Get up. Not time for you to sleep yet.”

“I can’t move…”

“It’s either you do it, or your friends do.”

“B-but they don’t have horns! They can’t cast the spell!”

“That just means more digging until they do find them.” The dog said flippantly. “If you rest, they work.”

Sweetie Belle choked back a sob and shakily got to her hooves.

Her horn was starting to throb in the worst way. She recalled hearing that using too much magic was bad for you.

…she hoped that her friends were alright. Rarity and Ivan too. She hoped that they weren’t too worried…

--

While on the trail of Sweetie Belle, they came across a wall of unguarded cells. One of them was occupied.

“Oh, Applebloom, Scootaloo! You’re safe!” Rarity cried, pressed up against the bars. Her horn made quick work of the ropes and gags binding them.

“Rarity, Ivan, Sweetie got taken down one of the tunnels! They’re making her dig for gems!”

“…yes, they would be doing that, wouldn’t they?” Rarity said, voice oddly chilled. She turned to the drifter.

“Ivan, can I trust you to look after them? I’m going to get Sweetie. I’ll come back here when I’ve found her.” At his agreement, she fired up the dousing spell again, and took off down one of the nearby tunnels.

Ivan turned to the two fillies, watching him expectantly.

“Stand back.” He ordered as his horn’s glow showed even under his hat.

--

Rarity didn’t know what to expect when she finally found her missing sister. Truthfully, she was trying not to focus on what Sweetie’s condition might be, since she found she had a tendency to envision the worst.

While what she found wasn’t quite approaching the worst, it wasn’t far off.

The little unicorn was bruised, bloody, dirty, crying, and trying desperately to get up from the ground. The dog with her was yelling at the poor thing, ordering her to find more gems while threatening the other two crusaders.

Her eyes narrowed dangerously as ice crept into her blood.

“This simply will not do.” The surprised dog whirled around and regarded her with something approaching alarm, before settling into something fitting of a self satisfied thug.

“Got your sister.” He taunted smugly. “You’ll be digging too if you want her to stay safe and fed.”

“…I remember being told bedtime stories of dragons and monsters that kidnapped little fillies and colts that didn’t listen to their parents when I was young. I remember not believing a single word. I couldn’t fathom the existence of something so vile as to spirit away the young.”

“Do you think I’m afraid of the pretty pony? Get to work, or you’ll get much worse then the pup here.”

“And now, that same fictional breed of monster shows itself, steals my sister, and presumes to make demands of me?” The glow in her horn grew brighter as the air around her became charged with something the dog tried desperately not to be intimidated by.

“I think not.” And when Sweetie Belle looked up, realized her sister had come to save her, and tried to call out to her, the words died in her throat.

Nothing could have prepared her for the sight of her sister firing lasers from her horn.

The bright burst of light lanced forth and nailed the dog clean between the eyes, blowing him off his feet and leaving a badly burned patch on his forehead.

The enraged dog leapt to its feet and stomped forward, intent on making the unicorn pay for the sudden pain.

A second shot was fired over the dog’s shoulder, bouncing off of several gems embedded in the wall, before striking the dog in the lower back. The dog lost his balance, stumbling forward into Rarity’s hooves. The sudden kick easily knocked the dog out cold, sending him into a wall.

“…I might not be as… robust as our Applejack… but I believe that blow would’ve emptied an apple tree quite handily, don’t you think?” Rarity asked Sweetie as the glow from her horn died.

“…can you teach me to do that?”

“Not until you’re much older, I think. When you’re the same age I was when mother taught me.” Rarity replied, lifting the filly onto her back and starting the walk back to where she had left Ivan.

“Aww c’mon! I’ll be good I promise!”

“Certainly not. There’s another spell I have in mind for you…”

“…hey, Rarity?”

“Yes dear?”

“…why didn’t you tell me you were the coolest pony in the world?” Sweetie Belle’s little forelegs hugged her sister’s neck, and Rarity laughed quietly.

“Darling, I don’t believe I’ve ever had to tell you.”

“…Hey! She’s getting away!” They both heard behind them. Looking back, Rarity spied a mob of dogs. Expert markspony though she was, the odds were heavily stacked against her.

“Hold on precious.” The older unicorn ordered under her breath as she turned to gallop off, firing beams into the gems on the walls.

The ricocheted lasers were definitely hitting dogs, she could hear, but they were losing ground rapidly…

“Cutie Mark Crusaders: Getaway Drivers!” From a nearby tunnel, a cart full of gems and ponies barrelled out, propelled by the force of Ivan’s horn alone.

“Get in!” Scootaloo shouted, while for some reason wearing Ivan’s hat. Rarity barely made the running leap inside, turning back to begin firing on the advancing crowd again.

“Alright Ivan, they’re in! Go go go!” Applebloom shouted from the front of the cart. Ivan, seated next to her, forced the cart to move faster.

“Sweetie Belle, are you alr-… is Rarity shooting lasers at the monsters?!” Scootaloo asked, mouth hanging open.

“You bet she is!”

“Holy moon, your sister’s almost as cool as Rainbow Dash!”

“What the hay do you mean almost?”

“Hey, hey, problem!” Applebloom interrupted, pointing a shaking hoof forward. Fallen rocks blocked the tunnel ahead.

“We’re gonna crash!”

“I’m too young to die!”

“No.” Ivan stated quietly, lowering his horn.

And after a brief moment of concentration, he fired.

--

Local wildlife scattered and took flight when the sound of a huge explosion rocked the countryside. Rocks of every size flew out of their path as they launched out of the tunnel and into the open air.

The cart landed hard as they coasted downhill, slowly coming to a stop some distance away from the catacombs.

“…are we safe?” Applebloom asked just above a whisper.

Almost as if answering her, one of the dogs exploded from the ground next to the cart, roaring angrily.

Rarity whipped around and shot it, causing it to run off whimpering.

“…alright, now I think we’re good.” Scootaloo said, hopping out of the cart. “So was that awesome, or was that awesome?!”

“That was pretty boss, yeah.” Applebloom agreed while trying to help Ivan hobble out of the cart himself.

“By the sun, Ivan, did you open the way for us? While driving the cart?” The hat on Scootaloo’s head immediately whipped back over to Ivan’s.

“Yes.” He answered, eyes now safely hidden. If Rarity thought the behaviour was odd, she didn’t get the chance to comment on it. The next voice came from the little filly still on her back.

“Hey, Ivan?” He turned to face the sisters, waiting to hear what Sweetie Belle had to say. Her voice was quieter then his own, tired as she was.

“Thanks for helping my sister save us. Can I sign your cast now?”

Ivan thought for a moment, wondering if he should let her use any more magic in the state she was in. He looked to Rarity in question, and she pondered it.

“Would you like me to sign for you dearie?”

“No! I wanna do it!”

“…Alright, but after this, no using your horn until after we see Nurse Redheart.”

“’Kay Rarity…” Sweetie agreed, lifting her head to watch Ivan. The pen floated over to her, and she grasped it with the trickle of magic she had left. Just enough to sign her name and a small message. Afterward, she slumped into her sister’s back, muttering something about a nap.”

“I think I’ll sign it as well, if you don’t mind.” Rarity said, catching the pen as it fell. Ivan offered her the cast too, and she signed it with a flourish.

“…Well then, I do believe this is quite enough gems for one day. The sun’s nearly set, so we should be heading back. Ivan, do you remember where we left the other cart?”

Ivan said nothing, instead taking back his pen and starting off, magically tugging the jewel filled cart behind him.

--

I’ll make it all up to you, I swear!!!

-Scootaloo

We’ll be there for you until all your problems are solved!

-Applebloom

You’re a true crusader.

-Sweetie Belle

Thank you for being such a kind hearted stallion. You’ll always be welcome at the boutique.

-Rarity