Twilight was not too excited about being a wolf. She was not happy at all. And the fact that she was the reason her and her friends were stuck in this mess seemed to weigh quite heavily on her mind. Raycaster was silent. Twilight tried to make small talk but failed miserably, Raycaster’s replies were short and quick. He wouldn’t delve into too much detail unless Twilight asked him to.

     “So, how’s it going?”

     “Good.”

     “How are your friends?”

     “Fine.”

     “No, I meant what do you think of them?”

Raycaster exhaled deeply before talking again.

     “I don’t know. I have mixed feelings. Frenzy, a great little ball of energy with only his own preferences weighing him down. If only he was as enthusiastic as the others when it comes to hunting. Atlasbreaker, a natural leader, but he’s smart enough to know not to try and take my place. At least not yet. Then there’s Backdraft, a once great hunter with a troubled past. Honestly, if me and Backdraft had a fight, he’d win, he thinks he can be a better pack leader, and I believe him, but there’s a reason why Project Vortex fell apart. He’s the last of his breed, and to be honest, I feel kinda bad for him, all alone with none of your friends, could you imagine? Then there’s Covert, bless his poor soul. He’s great with animals, he’s the only one they don’t run away from. And last but not least, Kenshin. He’s great when it comes to stealth, and he likes hunting. So, I’m kinda neutral on him.”

      “Um...”

Raycaster rarely expressed emotion. He walked through the forest. Absolutely no other wolves were around. Raycaster paid this fact no attention and instead continued walking as if he was used to being alone. Raycaster eventually led Twilight to a clifftop overlooking Ponyville.

      “What do you do anyways?” Twilight asked

Raycaster’s eyes were glued on the city as he responded.

      “We protect.”

      “Protect who?”

Raycaster motioned his head towards the lit up town of Ponyville.

      “Them.”

      “Ponyville?!”

      “Of course. Who do you think keeps the monsters away?”

      “But-but?”

Twilight’s understanding of the wolves had pulled the e-brake, did a 180 and sped off in the opposite direction.

      “Why you ask? Because, long ago, we wolves were known for being noble, majestic creatures. Until that one day, one idiot just had to go and murder a pony. Why? Even we still don’t know. From that day onwards we were labeled as cold-blooded killers. With no mission in mind except to kill, kill, and kill. For years and years to come we’ve been watching after the citizens of this small town, in hope of clearing our name. And yet we have made no progress. But still everyday, we hunt, we protect. And still we’re the monsters. Why? Because we can take it. Because seeing them living their lives undeterred is a reward all on it’s own. We’re not heroes. We’re silent guardians. Watchful protectors. Dark knights.”

Twilight tried to talk but no words escaped her mouth. She was still too stunned by her new discovery to talk. All this time, she had gotten it all so wrong.

      “Well, I think we’re dangerously close to dawn. Time to go to sleep.” Raycaster said

Twilight could only nod. She still hadn’t gained control of her lips yet. She followed Raycaster back to the cave. Before they could even begin Kenshin and Rarity popped out of nowhere. Kenshin had a huge smile on his face, even Rarity had a small smile.

      “Oh hey there Kenshin.”

Kenshin was trying hard to try and hold in his laughter.

      “What’s so funny?” Raycaster asked

      “Oh I think you know.”

Raycaster thought for a while before replying. I’m pretty confident that an alpha as smart as him will surely-

      “I don’t.”

Nevermind.

      “C’mon Ray Ray.” Kenshin teased

      “What?”

Kenshin looked at Twilight. Then Raycaster. Then Twilight again. Then Raycaster, then Twilight. He finally caught on.

      “It wasn’t like that.” Raycaster protested

      “Sure it wasn’t.” Kenshin teased

      “Shut up.”

The two seniors walked in front while Twilight and Rarity followed behind.

      “So, how is he?” Rarity asked

      “Well, he’s a great senior.”

      “Not as a senior, as someone closer.”

      “Rarity!”

      “Darling, you know you want him.”

      “No I don’t!”

      “Twilight, you don’t sound so sure yourself.”

Rarity was right. When Twilight looked at Raycaster, she saw a noble wolf that she respected. But alongside that respect was another kind of feelling...

      “No!”

During the whole journey back Rarity kept teasing Twilight, unaware that their seniors too were stuck in the same predicament.

      “C’mon Ray Ray, stop lying to yourself.”

      “Kenshin you’ve gone insane.”

      “It seems to me YOU have gone insane. You’re battling your own thoughts, self denial.”

Kenshin then proceeded to keep poking Raycaster repeatedly.

      “AdmititAdmititAdmititAdmititAdmititAdmititAdmititAdmitit”

      “No.”

      “AdmititAdmititAdmititAdmititAdmititAdmititAdmititAdmitit”

      “I said no the last time, what makes you think this time’ll be any different?”

      “AdmititAdmititbecauseyoureannoyedAdmititAdmititAdmititAdmititAdmititAdmitit”

In one swift move, Raycaster had Kenshin on the ground and one paw on his neck.

      “Have I ever told you the definition of insanity? Insanity is doing the same fucking thing again and again, expecting shit to change. THAT is crazy.”

      “Okayokayokayokayokayokayokayokayokayokaypleasedontkillme.”

      “At first I thought that it was bullshit, until you came into my life.”

Raycaster let Kenshin go. The white wolf coughed and gagged.

      “Lighten up man. It was just a joke.” Kenshin complained

Half an hour later...

The four wolves had finally arrived at the cave. Inside, Atlasbreaker and Applejack were together in a corner, sleeping ever so peacefully. A few feet away from them was a sleeping Frenzy and Pinkie.

      “See? Even a tough guy like Atlasbreaker has to soften up once in awhile.” Kenshin pointed out

Raycaster groaned.

      “C’mon! They look so cute together.”

Raycaster growled. Kenshin shut up.

      “I see Covert and Backdraft isn’t back yet.” Raycaster murmured

      “Well, some of us do ENJOY the company of our new juniors.” Kenshin said

Raycaster gave Kenshin a “seriously bro?” kind of look. Kenshin simply shrugged in response.

      “Well, I ain’t gonna argue. But if they fall asleep tomorrow night, somebody’s gonna get it.” Raycaster warned

Kenshin found a comfortable spot and curled up into a ball. Ready to sleep. Rarity followed and fell asleep herself.

Raycaster and Twilight too fell asleep, but unlike the others, there was some distance in between them, not daring to give Kenshin even more evidence.

The next morning, when Raycaster woke up, the first thing he saw was the face of a black wolf looking down at him.

      “Yo what’s up?” Next Chapter: Meet Pyromaniac (And RW) Estimated time remaining: 20 Minutes