The little girl ran, or she tried to. No matter how fast she pumped her legs, heaving for breath, the woods never really seemed to move very fast past her. The wolves were catching up with her.

She would be torn apart. She had to run faster, but she couldn't. She was going to be caught.

With a burst of silvery light, the forest was illuminated suddenly. The baying of the dogs faded away. A horse of all things descended, dark purple with a gentle smile. The little girl returned the smile, confused, but happy. "Are you a fairy?"

Luna inclined her head faintly. "I do not believe I am, but I am here to help. What troubles harry you that you simply cannot escape?" She touched the ground weightlessly before her mass seemed to return as she sank down to be at level with the small human. "You may speak freely with me."

The girl glanced back at where the dogs had been, but it was quiet, even sunny suddenly when it had been gloomy and overcast. "Oh... um... I..."

"You are nervous, and that is alright. I am Princess Luna, guardian of dreams. You are within Equestria, and your nightmare drew me to your side. I will not judge your words against you. Speaking your problems can make them smaller, and give you new perspectives. Would you care to speak to me?"

Without asking, the girl suddenly approached and placed her little hands on Luna's snout, feeling the fur and exploring the princess with a shy but increasingly bold smile. "You are so pretty, and soft, and warm." She was but a small child, that had found a great and wonderful thing to explore.

Luna allowed it. Pony foals did that at times, simply taken to awed glee for a time when they first saw her. Like them, it did pass, with the human child on her back as if to ride her. "Dad wants to move, to your kingdom. Mom doesn't. They're fighting a lot, and I don't like it."

With that, Luna knew exactly what was wrong... but how could she fix that? At the least, she could calm the child before she continued her rounds. There was so little the girl could do herself to improve the situation, other than being a good girl.

Krowa did a slow pan with a meaty hand. "Welcome to The Summit. There aren't any larger gatherings of power."

"A privilege," agreed Crane, glancing across at the room being gestured at, still full of leaders. "We had an institution much like this on our own world; where leaders from countless countries gathered to debate, argue, and make rules."

"I will hazard a guess that it was your country that hosted it, regularly."

Constantly would have been a better word. "I did mention we often saw ourselves as the policing force for the world."

"Well you are not here." He thrust a finger at Crane, but didn't touch him. "I'm not a fool. Even if you agreed to tear apart all your world-enders, how could we know? How could we ever know that such a threat has ever truly passed? The answer is simple; let neutral agents have full access to destroy them, all of them. Let not a speck of this technology persist."

That was sure an idea he couldn't agree to. "An interesting proposal."

"One other thing... Your airships are decidedly more of a threat than most other nations." He raised a brow, eyeing Crane. "You understand that if we see one, we will react. If you have the right to 'police' your air, then you should have little objection to us doing the same."

The fact that he seemed confident he could defend against it was the most interesting part. "I see. They are quite fast, even the commercial varieties."

"Are you suggesting you would defy our sovereignty?!"

"No, no, of course not." He gently waved the accusation away. "But it's not easy to police what you can't target. Then again, one pegasus did manage to catch up to one, once. The details are still hazy on how that was accomplished. Can your people fly so quickly?"

"Our capabilities are something I imagine you'll be just as eager to share." He dusted his vest lightly. "I have a coalition to oversee. Good day."

"He takes being a bore to a new level. So many creatures to bedevil."

Crane jumped, caught by surprise by the new voice just behind him. There was a pair of zebra, watching him with calm gazes. They wore golden hoops around their necks and dangling from long fuzzy ears. The male of the two nodded his head. "A pleasure to meet you."

The female continued, "Even if you cause trouble to brew."

"We are the speakers of our nation."

"We can understand their frustration." The female inclined her head towards the others, her rings clinking in the motion. "You are a mystery most deep."

"But to war we will not leap," finished the male with a soft nod. "Tell us true and tell us plain--"

"--what is it your people most wish to attain?" Both of their eyes were trained on him. Neither had angry looks, more curious; almost as curious as their rhyming speech.

"Nice to meet you both. Thank you for taking a level approach to things." They were silently waiting. "As for what America 'wants', that has changed considerably since our arrival on your world. Right now, stability. My people are struggling to achieve a new status quo."

"To greet tomorrow as today."

"A calm and comforting pathway." The two nodded together in agreement.

The male pointed. "But that is impossible."

"Not while new species remain responsible," the female finished. "How many were in your old home?"

"How many races did you know before you had to roam?" finished the male, the two seeming in casual sync without conferring one another.

Well... "There were many varieties of human to--"

"Only yourselves, and still you saw differences?" cut in the male.

"That does not paint the most flattering of images." finished the female before she suddenly thumped the male, producing a jingle from both of their worn metal bands. "That was a difficult one."

"Easy ones are no fun," argued the male with a gentle smile. "I was confident in your ability."

"Let us focus on our civility." Her eyes returned their focus on Crane. "Are your people pleased or terrified."

"To know there are others they are now allied."

"Or perhaps to wage war--"

"--if violence gives a roar."

"I hope to avoid that." Crane gestured at himself. "You have me at a disadvantage. You know my name."

"President--"

"--Crane" spoke the two in their unnerving completion. The male pointed to himself. "I am Dham."

"I am Abaaboo." The female perked an ear, making a gold ring dance. "Your name is curious."

"To assume you fly is spurious," finished Dham, their rhyming returning without any visible cue.

"Just the name my parents picked. Tell me, and I don't mean any offense, but you both have an interesting way of speaking. Your words have a thick accent. Do you... have another language?"

The two glanced at one another, then looked back at Crane. "We confess," started Abaaboo. "This is part of why we are here."

"Not simply for new friends to endear," concluded Dham.

"We had a language, this much is true."

"But it is lost, just as yours was to you." Dham sighed softly. "A crime most foul, but we worked around."

"The rhyming verse our chosen curse, to remember what our words sounded like." Abaaboo dipped her head. "You have our sympathies."

"To lose a language leaves a culture with injuries," concurred Dham with pity in his eyes.

"If you can, we would like to hear--"

"Whisper if you must, lip to ear." Both of their ears were erect towards him.

What did they want to hear? Oh, it hit him. They wanted to hear their lost language. His dutifulness in learning Ponish before that attack meant he knew a great deal of English after it had swept past. "(Hello. It's nice to meet you. I am President Crane and I am speaking English.)"

Both of their eyes went wide. Dham put a hoof over his mouth. "You are a sacred keeper!"

"You...--" Abaadoo trailed off, struck wordless a moment. "We lost... so much. Pray forgive me, brother mine. I must speak plainly." A tear spilled from her eyes. "You hold it. You... must pass it on. Never let it go. Do not lose what we lost."

"To learn the local language, at a terrible cost," finished Dham, continuing the rhyme despite Abaadoo's abandonment. "You cannot write it."

"No! No... you can't... We tried that... It will become the local tongue in time. Only lip to ear."

"Lip to ear," agreed Dham. "Hold it close."

"Hold it dear," urged Abaadoo. "Let it not fade to shadows."

That raised a... thought, even as the zebra's impassioned plea shook him. "Are you from another world, like we are?"

They glanced at one another before they moved in closer. Dham spoke quietly, barely a whisper, "we are from afar."

"Come to this land bizarre," finished Abaadoo. "Zebrica greets its brother in pain."

"Zebrica dips its head towards this uniting chain." Dham reached up, placing a hoof on Crane's front. "We see and we know."

"We have felt the sting of this terrible blow." Abaadoo raised a hoof to join her brother's on his front.

He hadn't heard a Zebrica rushing to join the new coalition during either of the rushes of names of countries being called out. He hadn't heard Zebrica voting for anything, save for in favor of their being admitted to the summit in the first place.

"I would like to hear more about your country and your people," offered Crane with a light smile. He reached for their hooves and they seemed alright with him giving both a little shake. "We have several things in common, it seems. I appreciate you not taking a knee-jerk reaction to a credible danger."

Dham drew his hoof back, sitting on his haunches to allow his forehooves to gesture softly. "Yours is one danger among many."

Abaadoo reflected his actions, gesturing her hooves in the air. "In this magic world the hazards are many."

Dham rolled his eyes suddenly. "Using the same word?"

"My eyes are still blurred," defended Abaadoo from the accusation of poor-quality rhyming, wiping her eyes with a fetlock.

Outside, national leaders were exiting, which meant a feeding frenzy for the press. Cadance reared back as a camera was shoved towards her. "Missus Cadenza," greeted a reporter. "How did the meeting go?"

A shield popped up around her as Shining Armor stepped free from the guard's hall. "Thank you for your interest, but she is tired from a full day of debate, I imagine."

Another reporter tried their luck with the she-cat. "Excuse me, Miss? Can I have your word on how today went?"

The cat paused, considering a moment with a low purr. "Mmm, what bold creatures you humans are... Any such person in my kingdom would approach like scared kittens." Her claws sprang free. "It's refreshing in its forthrightness. Mmm, what do you wish to know?"

The reporter smiled as if they had won a million dollars. In a way, perhaps they had. "We don't mean to bother, but our viewers are very interested in this summit. You are...?"

The cat reached forward, casually plucking the microphone from the human. "This is what I speak to?" When the human nodded, she held it up as if it just came naturally. "Hello, people of America." She was facing the camera with a predatory smile. "You were quite the stage hogs today, commanding a great deal of our time. You should be proud."

"Too much time," grunted the Saddle Arabian representative, hurrying past.

"Ignore him," bade the feline. "I am the rightful ruler of Abyssinia, Queen Birman." Her coloration was true to her name, with a dark center of her face and lighter ring. "A pleasure to meet you all."

Author's Notes:

Finally, some interviews! The zebras have a deep sympathy for humanity.

Enjoy the writing? Help me stay afloat and show your support by joining the Patreon!

Join my discord to chat!