Two days after Sumac had little Shadowbuck begins like any other in our household. The smell of coffee, bacon, and eggs in the air. Magpie is in the kitchen getting it ready for us. Archer and I let Sutures sleep in and are greeted by Magpie smiling and telling us, “Badger has already headed into the stable to see if he could get another couple of days leave to help with the foals.”

I smile at this as does Archer who then says, “I wish him luck on it. I just don’t know if his commander can afford for him to be gone again.”

As we are eating our breakfast, Ginger joins us and as she enters, she shakes her head and asks, “Why do so many foals get born so late?”

I see Archer chuckle a bit as he tells her, “Now would you rather have had him be late at night, or early in the morning? At least you could go to sleep after he was born.”

She sighs and as she starts to drink a cup of coffee, she asks him, “Papa Archer how can you be so alert already this morning?”

He takes a bite of his eggs and shrugs his shoulder as he tells us, “Perhaps it is because I know we get more sleep than we normally do when we are deployed.”

I see Ginger cringe when he says this and she replies, “Ok, ok, papa, I get it, but poor mama Sutures has to keep getting up at night.”

He nods his head and tells her, “Yes she does, but she knew that would happen when she took the job.”

When she nods her head Archer puts a hoof on her shoulder and tells her, “Ginger, it all comes with the job. Each job has its own responsibilities and for her, that is one of them.”

“Still papa, that is rough on her. I miss seeing her so much.” Ginger tells him.

He nods his head, “Yes dear, it is. But she feels she is needed, and to tell the truth, she is. We almost lost mama Sumac the other night and Shadowbuck if not for her. She is good at it and to her, saving the lives and helping to bring them into the world is worth it.”

Ginger nods her head at that, “Ok papa, I get it. I just wish I could spend more time with her.”

He smiles at her and tells her, “I wish we all could spend more time with each other, but that does not seem the way the Goddesses want it right now.”

After Breakfast I grab my kit and head into the stable with Archer. We are walking holding tails when he tells me, “Just so you know the commander of your mortars, Longbow, he is good. The same goes for your artillery commander Slide Rule. They both seem to be easy to work with. Also, Slide Rule was with some artillery units that were supporting the Talons when they made the second attempt to drive the slavers out of Fillydelphia. She has combat experience and is a transfer in to build up our forces.”

I nod my head as we walk, “OK, sounds good, anything else I should know about them?”

He scratches his head and then tells me, “Well Long Bow came up through the ranks and was the one in charge of the mortar crews that supported the diversion forces that hit Hereford when we broke out for the expedition. He actually all but begged for this assignment.”

Again, I nod my head and asks, “Ok, what about Slide Rule?”

He sighs a bit and tells me, “According to her stall mate, she has nightmares still from Filly. I heard she either has or had a family that was from a little village that had been hit pretty hard by Red Eye’s troops during their round-ups, so from what I understand she really wanted to get assigned back into the fighting in Filly.”

“Dang, I hope that will not cause her to be a problem,” I tell him.

He looks at me then back ahead, “No, I don’t think she will be a problem, but you never know.”

“Ok, best to be prepared is all. Thanks, Dear, I really appreciate it.” I tell him, then I realize we are getting close to the base so I step ahead of him and stop him and give him a kiss that promises more later. We are just breaking the kiss and getting ready to head the rest of the way to the stable when Badger sees us and calls to us, “Hi guys.”

Once he is close, he smiles and says, “Well I am on my way back to the farm, they gave me two more days off. Now Mollygirl, do you think I might get a bit of what you just gave Archer?” after which he raises his eyebrows a couple of times and grins more.

Instead of answering verbally, I take a hoof and wrap it around the back of his head and drag his muzzle to mine as it opens and I give him a very good kiss also. Once we break the kiss I ask, “Was that satisfactory my love?”

He smiles like a young buck and tells me, “Oh yes, now we all best get going. I will catch you back at home tonight.” He tells us and goes on his way. Once we get into visual sight of the gate for the base, we stop holding tails and become strictly military again.

We show our PipBucks as we go by the gate guards and then Archer turns and heads to the Artillery Park, while I go to my HQ to see if there is any news from overnight.

As I reach my office Paper Work lets me know that there is nothing pertinent that has come through yet. However, as I am drinking my tea, Chain Lighting knocks on my door and tells me, “Ma’am, the Sergeant Major was on the horn. He says that the Colonel wants to see you, me, and Captain Dull Beak asap.”

I feel my stomach drop out when he says this as it is never good when the Colonel says he wants to see us asap. I grab my soft cap and then Chain, Dull Beak and I head to the Regimental HQ.

As we arrive there the Sergeant Major guides us right into the Colonel's office. The Colonel then tells us to take a seat.

Once we are seated, he leans forward on his desk with his forehooves and tells us. “Ok you three, your battalion will officially deploy in three weeks two days. Starting in two days I want half your troops to go on stand-down leave for a week. When they get back, the other half will do the same. The last week before deployment will be spent making sure everything is packed and ready.”

“Ok Sir, sounds good. Any idea where they are going to send us yet?” I ask.

I see him shake his head, “No, they are not saying. From what I understand they will tell us when the departure date is closer. All I know is that it is not Fillydelphia.”

While I am glad to hear the last part, I am not overly enthused about not knowing where we are heading yet.

Then Dull Beak asks, “Sir, is it a case of they don’t know where they are sending us yet?”

I watch as Chappy sits back in his chair and just stares at Dull Beak. Then he asks, “Captain, why would you ask that?”

I watch as Dull Beaks feathers ruffle a bit and he then says, “Colonel, They knew they wanted your forces for Filly, but seeing that was a condition of the agreement for membership in the NCR, they may be trying to decide where and how to best use us.”

I see Chappy take a deep breath and let it out, “You know Captain, I had not thought of that. I had just assumed it was operational security. But let’s just go with what we have for now.”

“Sir, is there any particular way you would like us to determine which troops go on leave when?”

He smiles at me and tells me, “Major, I would just send half of each unit at a time. The Artillery and Engineers are already doing so. Oh, and by the way, Sergeant Taser has asked to head your MP contingent. You will not have any problems with that will you?”

For the first time since I have entered his office I smile, “No sir, I can work very well with him sir.”

He then smiles back and tells us, “Ok, then Dismissed, and Major you are to take the second week's leave. Dull Beak I want you to take the first. Just make sure that the company commanders are not all on leave at the same time. Now get out of here you three, I have paperwork I have to do before I can leave tonight too.”

As we are walking back to our HQ, I ask Dull Beak, “Any idea of what you may want to do with your time off?”

He gives me a smirk and tells me, “Honestly Major, I don’t know. I was not expecting it and I really don’t know too many around here.”

I smile at him and tell him, “Well you can always visit us at the farm, or you could go spend some time in White Cloud. I know Trouble and Blondie have their place just down the road from us.”

I see him put a talon under his chin as he thinks about it. Then he tells me, “Ya know that is a thought. I did get along with most of them. I will think about it. It’s not like I have a lot going on here anyways.”

“No matter what we should at least meet for a meal at the pub in White Cloud,” I tell him.

Beside me, I see Chain Lightning just shaking his head and smiling, so I ask him, “Well Chain, any ideas for your leave?”

“Just spending some time here in Manesville. I have some old acquaintances there. I will probably spend some time at the Trough too.”

I think about it for a bit and then I tell him, “Well Chain, if you ever want a home-cooked meal during that time, let me know, we would be glad to have you at the farm for dinner sometime.”

He smiles at that and tells me, “Ma’am, I will consider it, but I don’t want to put all of you out that way. Especially with all the foals.”

I nod my head and tell him, “Ok, I understand, but know the offer is open. Speaking of that I should talk to Paper Work about having him and Choo over for a visit too.”

I see him raise an eyebrow, “Ma’am is that appropriate?”

I smile at him and tell him, “Well Choo is like family to us, especially after the expedition, and since she and he are dating. I do not see a problem with it.”

He shakes his head, “And ma’am, what if I wanted to bring a date with me?”

I smile at him and tell him, “Chain, both of you would be welcome.”

I see him nod his head, “Perhaps ma’am, we will see. Now we need to get ready for the morning formation.”

After he says that I realize I need to go to the morning meeting with the XO and trot down the stable corridors to make it in time. I am the last to arrive and She just shakes her head and says, “Glad to see you could make it. Everything go ok with the Colonel this morning?”

The other battalion commanders both look at me and I nod my head as I answer, “Yes Ma’am, just got the word when we are leaving and for stand down leaves.”

She smiles at me and says, “Good, that saves me some time. Now as I was about to say…”

That night I have the duty again. Archer surprises me by spending some time with Windy and me in the evening. When I ask him about it he smiles and tells me, “Well dear, you are leaving soon, so I am getting as much time with you as I can.”

I shift and bury my face against his neck, “Thank you, love, you do not know how much that means to me.”

As we cuddle on the couch on one end, Windy is on the other with her usual blanket and snacks. She smiles at us and says, “You know you too are so cute too. At times I almost envy your family and its relationship.”

At that Archer raises an eyebrow and asks, “Almost?”

She smirks and then adds, “Yeah, but dealing with one husband is hard enough. I can only imagine what your family is like at home.”

Archer then smiles and holds up his PipBuck and tells her, “Well Windy it does help that we all figured out how to set up a schedule program on this so we can make sure we get to spend the fair amount of time together.”

I see her jaw drop and her eyes are wide, she then asks, “Did you really do that?”

He just smiles and tilts his head a bit while looking at her. She then shakes her head and tells us, “I don’t know what part scares me more. The fact he might have really done that, or the fact you need a calendar.”

He begins to laugh at that. As the movie begins Windy asks, “Ok Archer, just between friends, how does it work having straight partners in your relationship?”

He laughs at her question and tells her, “Well Badger is one of my closest friends now. We share almost everything. We care about each other almost like siblings. And like siblings, we all have our squabbles and disagreements. But we put our family first.”

Then she asks us, “But what about Sumac?”

Archer looks her straight in the eyes and says, “What about her? Perhaps the next time you and your family come over for supper you can ask her. I will not speak for her on this.”

I see Windy blush a bit and I notice that her wings had started to rise and were going back down as she says, “Oh, ok, sorry if I asked something that personal.”

Archer smiles at her pats her hind leg that is on the couch nearest to him and tells her, “Windy you are my friend also and I will gladly answer for myself, but I will not speak for others, especially on what they may consider such private matters.”

Again, I see the blush and watch as she shifts her wings, and then she tells him, “Archer, thank you for explaining that and helping me to understand. I am sorry about prying where I shouldn’t have.”

I watch as he smiles back and tells her, “It is fine. At least you were not asking me about what we do when it is two bucks and a mare like Sunset did. I swear that buck has no shame.” Then he turns his head and starts to pay attention to the movie we have loaded up.

After the movie is finished Archer is the first to get up. He smiles at Windy and tells her, “Thank you for letting me share this night with you two sweet mares.” Then he extends a hoof to help me get up. Once I am standing he comes over and nuzzles my cheek. We then exchange a kiss and he leaves for the night.

After he has gone and we are back in our stall I see her staring at me. I then ask her “Ok, what?”

She shakes her head and tells me, “I just wonder how you found two such wonderful and caring bucks. Don’t get me wrong, I love my husband, but I do not think he could be such a Gentlecolt as Archer or as helpful with the foals as Badger.”

I smile at that and laugh a bit, “Don’t let them fool you. I think Archer also needed a break from all the foals and made up an excuse to the others as to why he is late getting home tonight.”

She shakes her head and laughs with me as we get ready to hit our beds for the night. Just before she turns off the light above her bunk, she tells me, “You know Mollygirl, you have the weirdest luck. You have a weird, yet wonderful family, but then you have to leave them.”

I laugh lightly because I know just what she means, “Yeah, your right. By the way, you and your family need to come over again before we leave.”

She smiles, “I know, the last time we were there I could not get over how fascinated that my youngest is with your Millie. I mean he liked the others and seemed to be trying to get to know Woodrow too, but I noticed he kept spending his time with her.”

This makes me smile some and I tell her jokingly, “Who knows what the future holds. Maybe we will end up family. After all, there is something to be said about those feathers. Besides, you guys need to come and meet Little Shadowbuck too. He is a cutie also.”

I hear her laugh back as she clicks the light off and tells me, “Ok, we will soon. Have a goodnight's sleep Mollygirl.”

“You too Windy. See you in the morning.” I tell her and I turn over in my bunk. Before I fall asleep, I think to myself, yah, it has been a good day.

__________

The next night when I get home from the stable, I see Archer sitting in the dining room helping Ginger and Xochitl with their math homework again. As I come through the door he smiles and raises an eyebrow as he asks, “How was your day?”

I smile at him, “Not too bad. Those who begin their leave the day after tomorrow are all excited so some of the project work that has been neglected. But that is why we have the time set as we do.”

He nods his head, “Yeah I can understand that. I heard Slide Rule say the same thing.”

“Well, at least this time we had a proper amount of time to get ready, unlike with the expedition. I mean we did not have near enough scouts or supply train set up. Heck, we had to scavenge replacements from the whole CDF.”

I see him smile as I talk, Ginger and Xochitl both stop and look at me. Then Xochitl says, “I guess it was a good thing we snuck along then.”

I sigh when he says this and tell him, “Ok, I will admit, you two really did help a lot. But this time, you stay here. Choo Choo has already received orders about that.”

I see both of them look down and Ginger says, “Yeah, we know, we already talked to Choo about it.”

Archer then tells me, “By the way, Sunset and Pages are joining us for dinner tonight.”

I smile when I hear this. I have not gotten to see near enough of Sunset since we got back, and I know Magpie will be thrilled to spend time with Pages.

I hang my weapons up on the wall and put my kit and uniform away. I grab my apron and my mother’s scarf and put them on. After that, I leave the downstairs bedroom and check on Millie and the others. When I get to the nursery Badger is changing Shadowbuck’s diaper. I notice that Woodrow is not in his crib and when I ask him, he tells me, “Magpie has him with her in the Kitchen. He was acting up a bit today and climbed out of his crib twice.”

Needless to say, I am surprised and I tell him, “He really is getting around. How was our Millie today?”

He smiles at me and tells me, “Pretty good overall. She should be getting up from her nap soon. I think I heard her trying to talk earlier, but when anyone is around, she quiets up.”

I smile when he says this and I then go to her crib. When I get to her, Millie is awake and I see her forehooves reach up when she sees me. I take her out of the crib and take her to the rocking chair for a while. After a bit, she lets me know she is hungry so I feed her, and then I rock her some more.

As we are sitting there rocking, me with Millie and Badger with Shadowbuck, Ginger comes into the room, I first feel then I begin to hear Millie trying to speak. She keeps looking at Ginger and I hear her sound out, “Gi, Gi Ginja!”

Both Badger and I are stunned. We both look at each other and shrug. My only child that I will give birth to and her first word is not mama or papa, but her sister's name.

Ginger gets a big grin on her muzzle as she comes up and says, “Hi Mills, how you doing lil’ sis?”

I then watch as she reaches and stretches for Ginger and Ginger comes up and gives her a nuzzle. Then Ginger tells me, “Ma, the table is set. Mama Sutures said you two should come out to the dining room as Sunset and Pages are coming down the road now.”

As she says this, I hear a knock on the door and I put Millie down for a second while I get up out of the chair. I then carry her with me as I go to open the door.

When I get to the door Magpie is already there letting them in, she is just giving a hug to Pages when I see Sunset block the door with his wing and scoop Woodrow up. I then hear Sunset laugh as he hooves him over to Magpie, “they sure do move, fast don’t they?”

Magpie takes him from Sunset as Pages closes the door behind them. Then we all head to the dining room. As Magpie walks past Pages, Woody reaches out both forehooves and yells, “MAMA!”

Pages looks confused at first, shakes her head, and points to herself as she tells him, “Pages.”

I almost fall out laughing when I see Woodrow get a thoughtful look on his face and he says “Mama Pppages?”

The look on Sunset and Pages faces is priceless as Magpie tells Woody, “No dear, just Pages,” Then she points to Sunset and says, “Sunset.”

Before I can say anything, Archer stops snickering off to the side and tells them, “Sorry about that, with all the mares in the house, he assumes any mare is one of the mamas.”

Sunset looks funny and then asks, “And he doesn’t have a problem with stallions like that?”

Badger comes up behind me carrying Shadowbuck and tells him, “No, but I think that is because the only buck they see around here normally other than Archer and me is Xavier, and being that Xochitl only calls him father, and Ginger by his name, I think he did not become confused on it.”

I see Sunset smile a bit at this and he turns to Pages and tells her, “Well I guess that explains that then.”

Xochitl then excuses himself and heads home for the night, before he leaves, I see him first say goodbye to the foals. Then he gives Ginger a brief kiss on her cheek and I hear him tell her, “By the way, my mother said she would be very happy to teach you how to cook some of the dishes that she makes for me and my father if you would like to learn.”

I see a side of Ginger I had not expected yet, as she nods her head and tells him, “I would love that. Especially how to make your favorite meals.” Then she hugs him and gives him a quick kiss and he leaves for the night.

Off to the side of the dining room, we have a small corner fenced in for the foals to play in while we eat. We place the three of them in there along with a few toys, and then we put dinner on the table and begin to eat.

As we are eating, we begin to first talk about work. Little things like rumors around the stable. What our troopers have been up to lately. Then Pages looks over at the foals and I see her sigh. I watch as Sunset notices and puts a wing around her.

As we continue to eat Sumac then asks, “So has there been any big changes for you guys since the NCR took over? I mean Badger, Archer, and Mollygirl talk about things, but they never talk about anything changing.”

I see Sunset shake his head and say, “Well not really. Other than a lot of the newer troops are coming from outside the Co-op or former Enclave now.”

I see Pages nod her head as she says, “Yeah, some of them are not too bad, but some seem just two steps short of having gone raider. In our Regiment, we have been keeping an eye on them.”

I see the worry that comes over Sumac and Magpies faces as Pages says this. Then I see Badger nod his head and he says, “Sorry for not telling you about that Sumac and Magpie, but dears, you have enough to worry about already.”

Then Pages tells me, “Oh, Major, tomorrow night the Enfields are supposed to be having a big pre leave party. Rumor has it they are getting the initials ER or EE branded on their front left shoulders, all the Oldtimers are even talking about having CEF branded there.”

When she says this I simply sigh and facehoof as I shake my head. Then I ask her, “Pages, you didn’t happen to hear where this was, did you?”

She laughs lightly and tells me, “No, but I know a lot of them seem to favor hanging about in White Cloud, so that might be a start.”

I nod my head and tell her, “Thank you Pages.” Then I notice Woodrow trying to jump over the foal pen and I get up quickly and make him sit down as I give him a different toy to play with before I go back to finish my meal.

When Ginger finishes her meal, she asks to be excused from the table and I have to smile when she trots upstairs to her room and returns with a storybook and begins to read to her siblings.

As she does that, I see Pages glancing their way with a hurt look in her eye. I had not realized she wanted foals someday. Sadly, I do understand how she feels. After the rest of us finish dinner I help take dishes into the kitchen to wash. Magpie and Archer stay out in the parlor with our guests while the rest of us clean up.

Once the dishes are done Sumac and I bring out a dessert of deep-fried bread with fresh butter and sugar. I see Sunset raise an eyebrow and Badger laughs lightly and tells him, “Really it is pretty good Sunset, it is an old Co-op treat for us. We just don’t make it as often anymore since we started trading more with the outside.”

Beside Sunset, I see Pages smiling and shaking her head, and then she tells Sunset, “Yeah, it is one of my old favorites.”

I see him smiling and he tells us, “I’ll take your word for it an try’em.”

I then notice Ginger peaking around the corner as she says, “Ma’s, Pa’s Woody needs changed.”

I see Magpie grimace and as she goes to get up Badger tells her, “Dear, you have not seen Pages in a while, I got him,” as he puts a hoof on her leg and then he gets up and recovers his son and takes him to the nursery to change him.

After he is gone, I see Sunset looking surprised and he says, “You mares really let him do that?”

All of us nod our heads and before we can say anything Archer tells him, “Sunset, they are our foals too. We should help when we can. My father did the same thing. Raising our foals is not mares work, it is family work.”

I see the surprise on both Sunset and Page's faces. Sunset finally says, “You really mean it. Back in Thunderhead we would have been the talk of the town and made fun of for doing mares' work. But when you put it like that, I can see where you are coming from.”

After he says this, I see Pages cuddle closer to him and nuzzle him slightly. As she does this, I see him wrap a wing around her and kiss her on the tip of her muzzle. Then he says, “Well I guess it don’t matter anyways, because even if Pages and I were married already, I still can’t have any foals.”

From between me and Archer, I see Sutures shake her head and tell him, “Sunset, if I remember from when Blondie showed back up you were surgically sterilized correct?”

He nods his head and says, “Yeah, but it has been so long that healing spells won’t work, and there are no facilities around her for reversing it like we had in Thunderhead.”

I see her thinking for a bit and she tells him. “I might know a way, but it does involve a minor surgery and there is a chance of scarring that may prevent it from working.”

I see Page’s eyes open wide with hope as she says this and she looks at Sunset. I see him think briefly about it and he says, “Pages, I will do this, but understand If I do, we wait to get married until after I am tested to make sure it works.”

She then looks at him and tells him. “Thank you, love, but I already told you I would be willing to adopt a foal if we can’t have one of our own, and yes while I want to be a mother, I would forego it for you. I want you to be my husband, not just your special somepony. You are the one who insists that we not marry if you can’t be the natural father.”

I see him first blush when she says this and then smile. Finally, he tells her, “Ok Pages, if it is what you really want, then I will marry you.”

On hearing this Sumac says, “This sounds like something to celebrate. I have some Old Overmare and Cider if you would like.”

Both of them nod their heads. As Sumac gets up to get it, I notice Sutures looking at me and she gets up and joins Sumac in the kitchen.

When they return they have enough Ciders for everyone but me. Sutures looks at me and says, “Dear, I have a Sparkle Cola for you instead, I hope you do not mind.”

I shake my head and tell her, “No dearest, I do not mind,” however part of me is upset that she did it. It sounds so good. But I know she is right. Instead of griping or fussing, I smile at her and tell her, “Thank you for being so thoughtful.”

As we all give a toast, I realize this means one of my best friends is getting married to Magpie's best friend. Sometimes life amazes me.

After they leave for the night I watch as Sunset and Pages head into the night walking tail in tail, and one of his wings wrapped around her. Again, I wish for wings that I will never have and sigh into the night. As I turn and go back into the house Sutures stops me and asks, “Are you ok Love?”

I nod my head and reply, “Yes, it's just something silly in my head.”

I see her smile a bit at that and she asks, “Ok, dear what is it?”

I am glad that the lanterns on the porch are turned down already so she can not see me blushing as I tell her, “Wings, that’s all. I wish I had wings. Instead, I am just an earth pony. If I had wings, I could hold you with them. I could fly,” I begin to feel my eyes get moist, “So many different things.”

I feel her hoof on my cheek and she uses her TK to move my forelock so she can look into my eyes. As she does this it feels so good. Then she tells me, “I am sorry love. If I could I would give you those wings. But Mollygirl, you will never be just an earth pony. You are very special.”

I am embarrassed when she says this and I start to say, “Sutures, you just do not understand…”

Before I can finish the sentence, she puts her hoof over my muzzle, and then she tells me, “Let’s go in and go to bed love. Maybe I can make you forget about those wings for a while, and make you realize how special you really are.”

“What about Archer?” I ask.

She smiles at me and says, “Don’t worry about him tonight,” then she wraps her tail around my neck and leads me inside, I close the door quickly and she leads me to the downstairs bedroom. As I pass the parlor, I notice the lights are already out in the rest of the rooms except the nursery. Everypony must have already gone to bed. I follow her and when I get to the room, I notice that it is just us two.

She smiles at me and says, “I hope you don’t mind?” I shake my head and feel my pulse quicken as she leads me to the bed, removes my scarf and apron, and as she kisses me slowly guides me to the mattress with a caress that promises so much more.

The next day I awake with Badger and Sutures cuddling me. I quietly disentangle myself and get up to get ready to head to the stable. As I am getting dressed Badger comes over and kisses me on my neck. He then asks me, “I hope you did not mind me joining you two last night. I wanted to sleep closer to the foals.”

I lean against him and his cheek and tell him, “Of course not my love. I was very happy to have you with us. I am sorry I woke you though.”

He smiles at that and tells me, “You did not wake me, I was still trying to fall back to sleep from changing Shadowbuck again. I swear I go to put a new diaper on him and he thinks it target practice time.”

I have to laugh at that and tell him. “Well, hopefully, he will stop that then. But you know a loaded weapon is dangerous.”

He laughs lightly at this and shakes his head. Then I see him turn and look at Sutures and smile again. He places his muzzle next to my ear and then says, “She really is something, isn’t she? I can see how come you fell so hard for her.”

When he says this I whisper back, “Does this mean you understand now why I was the way I was when you saw me again at the Valley?”

He nods his head and whispers back, “I will be honest, in a way it still hurts that you were willing to leave me for her and Archer, even if I can understand it. To be honest I have fallen in love with her too.”

This brings a smile to my face and I tell him, “I am sorry I hurt you, but I am glad you feel that way. Now have you told her?”

He nods his head, “Yeah, I have.”

I look him in the eyes and I ask, “Have you told her you love her other than when having sex?”

In the dim light of our room, I see him blush and he looks down before answering, “No, I guess I really haven’t.”

I then quietly tell him, “Then don’t you think it is about time you do. Sometime during the day when you are with her, just tell her. Let her know how you feel.”

I see him blush and he asks, “You really would not mind?”

I shake my head, “No, love, I would prefer you to tell her that. In fact, I damn well hope you have told Sumac you love her as well.”

I see him blush again and he tells me, “Yes dear, I have told her that long ago. Before we came to help those of you at the Valley. It’s just with Sutures, she seems so special to you and Archer. I don’t want to hurt our relationships with each other.”

I smile at that and I tell him, “And that is why you should tell her. Let her know.”

I see him smile bashfully and he replies, “Thank you, I will let her know then.”

I smile back at him and I tell him, “I may be late getting home tonight, I have to try and track down that party to see if they are really going to do the brandings like Pages mentioned.”

He nods his head and asks, “Have to stop them huh?”

I catch myself blushing and tell him, “Yeah, got to stop them.” Then I kiss him on his muzzle and I finish getting my uniform on for the day.

The day passes fairly uneventfully. The only big change is since we are going to begin deploying the Colonel has decided we will be modifying our officer’s duty rotations. Our executive officers will be in the rotation with the Battalion commanders. This will change my rotation to a six-day rotation rather than a three day one, except for when one of us is on leave.

This sounds really good to me at first. Then I realize it means Windy and I will end up having different duty days. But it is only for a few more weeks anyway. As I am walking down the halls of the stable I run into Clock Work and ask him, “Hey Clock Work. I heard your troop has a party planned for tonight any idea where it might be?”

I see him look at me, “I might could have heard a rumor ma’am. My people have been busting tail getting ready for this deployment so they really do need to blow off some steam. I hope you are not going to tell me to stop it.”

I shake my head, “No, I am not going to try and stop it. I am worried though as I heard a rumor about branding.”

He shakes his head, “Ma’am, I don’t know nothing about that. Besides, even our medics are going to be there to make sure everyone is ok.”

I nod my head, “Ok, I just want to make sure everyone is safe. Besides, I had thought about stopping by informally.”

I see him nod and smile at that and he tells me, “Ma’am, why don’t you meet me at the pub in White Cloud later this evening. Perhaps bring your wife Sutures too.”

I smile at him when he says this and tell him, “If she is not working tonight, I think I will. I will see you later then.”

He smiles back at me, “See you later Major,” he tells me, and then continues on his way.

I stop back in my office briefly to grab my kit before I head home. As I get ready to head back out, I see Chain Lightning leaning against the frame of the door to my office. He then asks, “Ma’am you got a moment.”

I nod my head and he enters, closing the door behind him and I asks, “So what is up Chain?”

He smiles at me and tells me, “Major, I know you heard the rumor by now about the Enfields having a party tonight.”

I nod my head, “Yeah I have Chain, why?”

He looks at me seriously and tells me, “Ma’am, you have heard about them branding themselves with the unit marks, right?”

I nod my head and he sighs and says, “I hope you are not going to try and stop them.”

I look at him from the corner of my eye and ask, “Why do you ask that Chain?”

He looks at me with his head turned just enough that I can see his scar also and he tells me, “Ma’am, they are going to do this no matter what. You and I both know how much it hurts, but I helped set up having a couple of extra medics there to make sure it is safe.”

I look at him a bit more and ask, “So you agree with it then?”

He neither nods his head nor shakes it instead he tells me, “Ma’am, I just understand it. Some of the more elite units in the Enclave used to do the same thing,” As he tells me this I watch as he uses his wings to open his shirt up and pull down his right shoulder. On it I see the Enclave symbol with a 103 RR branded on him.

I look at it and ask, “What does it stand for?”

He smiles and tells me, “the 103^rd Recon Regiment. Of course, the lower is for the Enclave itself,” he pulls his shirt back on and as he is buttoning up his blouse, he uses his hoof to point at his cheek and says, “I got it after I got this one.”

I am surprised and I ask him, “Why Chain?”

He finishes with his shirt and puts his wings down and tells me, “Mollygirl, I already knew what the pain would be like, besides, this time it was my choice. The same goes for those troopers of yours there. They know it is going to hurt, but they are doing it together. For me, it overcame what Silver Spite did to me. To them, it is bonding them together as a unit. So Major, Mollygirl, I am asking you, do not stop them.”

I smile at him when he says this and tell him, “Understood 1^st Sergeant. You have my word Chain.”

After I tell him this he smiles and says, “Thank you, Ma’am. Have a good night.” Then he turns and leaves my office.

Shortly after that, he leaves, I pick up my weapons from the armory and head home. Once I get there, I see Badger and Sutures sitting on the porch snuggling. Badger smiles at me and tells me, “Hi Mollygirl, the youngsters are all taking a nap right now. I thought you would be late tonight.”

I smile at them and tell him, “I had figured so, but Sutures, I would like you to accompany me tonight to a party that the Enfields are having.”

I see her look at me with a bit of concern on her face as she asks, “Why do you want me particularly?”

I can understand her concern and I tell her, “Love three reasons, One, there is going to be alcohol there and I want you there for support. Two, the rumor Pages told us last night seems to be true and we may be able to use your skills, and three,” I say as I look at Badger and her I tell her, “I want to sneak a bit of extra time with you if Badger does not mind.”

I see him smile, at that and he puts a hoof on her shoulder and tells her, “I understand, besides, I think Sumac would like some more time with me if you don’t mind Sutures.”

I see her smile and have a faint blush as she tells him, “No, I don’t mind,” Then she faces me and says, “Sounds good Dear, when do we leave?”

“Well, just after supper we are supposed to meet Clock Work in the pub in White Cloud. He will lead us to the party from there.” I tell her.

She nods her head and kisses Badger on his cheek and begins to get up. As she is standing up, she looks him in the eyes and tells him, “And yes Badger, I do love you too.” Then she heads into the house with me and we begin to set the table for dinner.

After dinner, we head into White Cloud. Unexpectedly we are accompanied by Archer, Badger, and Xavier, who just want to have a pint of cider tonight. As we enter the pub, I notice how busy it is. I see several of the locals there eating and having a drink as well as some of the troopers from E troop. It takes me a couple of minutes to find Clock Work, but when I do, he is in a corner booth along with one of his lieutenants, Trip Hammer.

He waves us over and we take a seat with him. Both Trip and Clock Work stand and greet us, then I see Trip Hammer get excited as he tells Xavier, “It is so good to see you old buck. It has been too long.”

I had not realized that several of the new troopers in the pub had not seen Xavier before and were a bit upset acting until they see this and I watch them visibly relax. As we sit there, I have a Sparkle Cola while the others, including Sutures, have a cider.

After a while, Clock Work asks, “So Ma’am are you ready to go visit with my troopers?”

I smile and tell him, “Sure, let’s do this.”

I see a look of worry come over his face when I say this and I put a hoof on his and tell him, “Don’t worry, I won’t ruin it for them.”

So, we all get up and head out following him. As we do, I see the young troopers begin to follow us out. We walk down the main road towards Donovan about a half-mile to a farm that I can see is in the middle of being recovered. I can see a couple of smaller fires burning as well as a bonfire around which I see most of the members of E troop. As we get close, I smell the stench of burned fur and flesh. We are almost to the yard when I hear a cow start to bellow in pain, but cuts it off. Then I hear several of the troopers cheering her on.

I see the look of concern and indignation come over Sutures’s face and I tell her, “No dear, we are not here to stop them. Only to help them heal properly.”

By now we are next to one of the smaller fires. I see it has several branding irons in the fire. I also notice one of the non-coms from H-troop is there. She was the one we heard bellow in pain. I look at her shoulder and I see she has had herself branded on her shoulder with CEF. I see the fear in her eyes when she sees me there along with several others.

The stallion who has just branded her steps back holds up a hoof and says, “Ma’am, I can explain.”

I shake my head and I see his eyes go wide in fear, then I tell him, “Trooper, I am next for that iron now get it ready.”

Badger grabs me and tells me, “Mollygirl, you can’t be serious.”

Beside him, Sutures eyes are open wide and she tells me, “Mollygirl, you shouldn’t do this.”

Behind Sutures I see Archer nod his head and smile as he says, “I am after the Major.”

They both look at us and I tell them calmly, “Look at me. Look at all my scars. This one will be my choice and it is something that means more to me than you can imagine.”

Badger shakes his head, “Mollygirl really, think about this. It is permanent,”

I smile sadly at him and cup his chin with my hoof and I tell him, “Love, the CEF left its mark on me in many ways. Now I want to show it.” Then I turn and walk over by the fire. I look at the one who is doing the branding and I tell him. "I am ready when you are."

I watch as he picks the now red-hot iron out of the fire with his mouth and approaches me. I feel the terror of what Silver Spite did rise in me and I fight it back. He has it close enough I can feel the heat and smell some of the fur burn, and I tell him, “Now.”

He moves his head straight and level and I feel the surge of pain. I want to scream, but I refuse to. I see spots in front of my eyes and tears form, but I do not let them fall. Then he pulls the iron away and returns it to the fire. Around me, I hear the troopers cheer and I hear Sutures say, “Oh Mollygirl,” as she puts balm on my burns and covers it with a bandage.

I step to the side and have several of the NCO’s and officers who are there come over and pat me on my other shoulder. I turn and then watch as my Archer goes through with it also. Sutures then goes and takes care of him. As she does this Badger comes over to me and asks, “Why Mollygirl?”

I look at him sadly and tell him, “Badger, I am sorry if you do not approve. If you no longer want me as your mare because of this, fine. I will not fight you. But this was for me. My way of telling the world of what I survived. I hope you understand that.”

I see a sadness in his eyes, “No Mollygirl, I do not want to get rid of you. I just worry about you, my love. I just don’t get it.”

I look at him sadly and I gently kiss him. Then I tell him quietly, “Badger, you won’t get it, because you were not there. Maybe Archer can explain it better, but I can not even begin to figure out how to explain why.”

I see him nod his head, “Ok, I will just take that as enough explanation. Just know I do love you as do our other spouses. No matter what.”

Eventually, our group drifts over to the bonfire area and I am offered a bottle many times. Finally, Clockwork comes over to me with a Sunrise Sarsaparilla and offers it to me. “Thanks, Clock. So what did you get?” I ask when I see his bandaged shoulder and upper leg.

He smiles at me and tells me, “EE and the enfield silhouette. I hope the Colonel and the other higher-ups are not going to hold it against us.”

I smile and tell him, “Don’t worry Clock, I got all of your backs on this.”

We spend the next couple of hours there. Sutures helping the other medics to apply salve and bandage the brands. During all of this, I notice that Xavier is hanging out with several of the old volunteer troops. I hear them offer to brand him too but he smiles and answers, “I appreciate it, my comrades, I really do, but my wife would kill me, and my son would be jealous so I will decline for now. But know in my heart that you are also my brothers.”

I then see him getting hugged by several of them and sharing drinks with them. When we are heading home later, he is walking next to me and tells me, “Major, thank you for letting me come with you. I had forgotten how much I missed some of them. It felt like old times.”

I smile at him and tell him, “Your welcome, my friend. I am glad you enjoyed yourself also. I just hope Persimmon will not be upset with us.

He smiles at me and tells me, “Do not worry Major. I told her I might be out late, but that I would be with you and your spouses. So, I think we are fine.”

It is getting pretty late as we get home and we all give Xavier a hug good night and tell him to sleep well. Then we head back to the house. As I climb the steps, I notice the pain in my shoulder again. Yes, it hurts like Tartarus, but to me, it is worth it.

Once inside Badger kisses me and Sutures good night and tells all of us, “Goodnight, I will see you in the morning,” then he heads to Sumac's room.

Sutures, Archer, and I head to the downstairs bedroom and get ready to sleep. As I get ready to get into bed, I hear Millie crying and I go to her. I see Magpie asleep in the rocker with Woodrow and put him back into his bed. Then I take Millie out of her crib and feed her. While I am doing this Magpie wakes up and asks. “So how was it?”

I smile at her and tell her, “It went pretty good. But both Archer and I got branded.”

I hear her suck in her breath and she asks, “You did what?”

So, I tell her again, then I explain why to her. I see her form tears in her eyes as she tells me, “My love, I am so sorry you still hurt so bad. I wish I could do something for you.”

She has come close enough to me as we talked that I put up a hoof and touch her cheek, she steps closer and I kiss her gently and I tell her, “Just be here for me and know I love you Magpie. That is the best you can do for me.”

She smiles at me and tells me, “I will dear, I will.” Then she realizes how late it is and tells me, “I best head upstairs to bed. Sumac is expecting me.”

I raise an eyebrow at that and she smiles bashfully and tells me, “Mollygirl, she is a very special mare and I have become very close with her.”

I smile at her and kiss her lightly again and I tell her, “That is good, now you get going and I will put this little one to bed so I can get some sleep too.”

Once I have Millie back in bed, I turn down the lanterns on the wall and I head back to bed with Sutures and Archer. They are both asleep already so I climb in behind Archer and spoon with him so both of us can have the burned shoulders up. As I get comfortable, I feel Sutures hoof move over Archer until it touches me. I feel Archer shift just a bit into me and I hear him mumble in his sleep, “I love you Mollygirl.”

I shift just a bit and I gently kiss him on the back of his neck and I whisper into his ears. “I love you too Archer.” Then as I close my eyes and begin to fall asleep I think about the day’s events and I tell myself. It has been a good day.

Dear DJ Pon3,

For some time now I have had a mare I have loved, but I have refused to marry her because I cannot father a foal for her. Finally, I have given in and am going to take her as my bride. I have a hard time trying to tell her how I feel, but there is one song that I think sums it up best. If you could, would you please play Time in a Bottle for me.

Thank Ya,

Sunset, Manesville, NCR

In this chapter, I mention the branding of Mollygirl and the others with the unit. In no way am I advocating for, or against it. To me, this is the Pony version of a tattoo. I have known people in the service who have gotten unit tattoos as well as a few people who have been branded. The one person was a Q-dog and if you are familiar with some college fraternities the Q-dogs are a special group. The man who had it showed me his and explained what it was like, and told me why it was important to him. That was almost 30 years ago and I still remember it and still respect him.

For those who want to hear this chapter's dedication song, the YouTube link is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnWWj6xOleY