Colgate felt consciousness long before she opened her eyes to greet it. She didn’t know it by thought but rather by pain. She groaned slightly and felt her eyes tear up in response. It was painful even to breathe. Her chest hurt, and her head ached. Every piece of her from horn to hoof felt like one large bruise. She felt herself soaked in perspiration, and as great a discomfort as that was, it was nothing compared to the general feeling of brokenness that enveloped her entire form.

It was a long time before she could think clearly about what happened. There was no forgetting how Daemeon had wrapped her in his vice hands. She could not believe how strong they were. The thoughts of Daemeon finally prompted her to open her eyes. She was greeted with the light thrown off from the ceiling fixtures and the whiteness of the walls and couches. There was no immediate sight of Daemeon from where she could see.

Colgate sighed, wincing in pain, and thanked Celestia that she was alive. After seeing Daemeon’s cruelty, she thought for sure she was going to die. Especially after he’d thrown her against the wall. She couldn’t believe she was still alive after that. Until she moved though, she couldn’t be certain she hadn’t escaped without any broken bones. The pain of her cut hoof was nothing to her now. What was still apparent however, was her famished state. She might have just ignored the hunger, but it had been equally as long since she’d had anything to drink. Now, her mouth was parched as well. She quickly came to the conclusion that she would have to eat and drink something soon or her present condition could only worsen.

With great effort, she managed to turn her head about and get a better view of her surroundings. Her heart started to race as her eyes fell on a large, crumpled up figure across the room. Daemeon was curled into a ball and almost completely motionless save for the soft movement that suggested breathing from his chest.

Colgate wanted nothing more than to get as far away from the wicked ape as fast as she could, but she knew it was an impossibility. She didn’t know what sort of magic could bind souls, but she was sure that there was nothing she could do to overturn Princess Celestia’s powers. Even as Daemeon might be deadly or trying to kill her, she still could not leave him, nor could he leave her. Colgate shivered at the thought of having to stay with Daemeon, which caused a rattling of pain throughout her body. She ever so slightly curled into a ball herself and inwardly cringed. The pain was almost excruciating.

The pain did not change her need for water though, and Colgate was eventually forced to lift her head. She grunted through the pain, feeling perspiration stream from her body, and rolled from her side to place her hooves against the ground. She stopped with her chest pressed against the carpet and panted. Her eyes went to Daemeon as she briefly considered what she should do with him. He looked to be sleeping, but she had no clue why he would be sleeping in the living room when there was a bed in the other room. If he was asleep, then she could maybe tie him up and keep him from hurting her.

Colgate furrowed her brow and did a quick sweep of the room to see anything she might use to bind him. The living room and the joined kitchen were very sparsely decorated, and there was nothing just lying about. It almost seemed like that there was nopony living there. She quickly gave up as there seemed to be nothing in sight that could do the job. She was more worried about getting something to drink anyways.

With tremendous effort, and a fair share of whimpering, she struggled to her hooves and gradually walked to the ‘big’ fillies room. She entered and made her way over to the tub. With a blaze of blue light, she turned one of the knob and slipped her snout underneath the stream issuing forth. She yelped and yanked her head back as she got singed. She promptly unturned the first knob and turned the second. With a bit more care, she slipped her snout under the stream and drank as much as her little mouth could manage while leaning over the high walls of the tub.

In the other room, Daemeon was aroused from his slumber on hearing Colgate’s yelp. He groaned silently. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been in that much pain. Scratch that. There was that time many years ago when he’d first been introduced to the bottle. It ended with a simple, sweet talk robbery gone wrong. Daemeon remembered that day well as being a failure he could have prevented. Alcohol had a way of slowing his mind to the point where he couldn’t think on his feet. If he was to continue living the way he was then he’d decided that he couldn’t afford to drink. The world had rarely known a stricter shrew of intemperance since. A quarter century later, and he hadn’t touched a drop. The memory didn’t help his present situation though. This failure was unprecedented as he dealt with powers far beyond his comprehension.

As the thought passed through, he remembered very suddenly that he had thrown Colgate in a fit of rage. He winced, hoping she wasn’t dead. It would be a shame if he’d killed his future protege. He opened his eyes and was faced with a white wall. He couldn’t remember having laid down. “I must have passed out,” he thought to himself. “Screw that little pony and her horn magic crap.”

Daemeon groaned again as he rolled over onto his back. His entire frame from nose to toes felt like one giant bruise. He couldn’t believe how much power she had. If she was alive, he would have to deal with her a bit more carefully. He didn’t want her dead, but it was clear that he couldn’t hurt her without retaliation. That was going to make his job difficult. “Don’t worry yourself Daemeon. You still got the upper hand. She can’t leave you, and she’s reliant on you for food and water.”

As soon as he thought about water, he realized he heard the sound of running water from down the hall. Daemeon turned his head to find light showing in the hallway from where the bathroom door was open. “Well, I may as well get up and tell her what’s what.”

With a great amount of effort, Daemeon came to his feet. It hurt severely, but the plotting man was not unaccustomed to pain. He did feel the need to cross his arms over his chest as he walked, though. It seemed like his ribcage hurt most of all. He got to the entrance of the bathroom and peered in to see Colgate lapping greedily at a stream of water pouring from the bathtub faucet. Daemeon noticed that she trembled as she drank. She must have been very thirsty.

Without waiting for her to notice him, he startled her by saying, “Your power is much greater than I’d thought.”

Colgate whirled around. The sudden movement hurt her so badly that she crumpled to the floor pitifully. Her ears fell back, and she shuffled backwards away from Daemeon and screamed, “Stay away from me!”

Daemeon uncrossed his arms and held up a steadying hand saying, “Calm down, Colgate. I don’t want a fight with you. I know now that harming you could only cause you to harm me more.”

Her brow furrowed in confusion, “Huh?”

“Well,” explained Daemeon, “clearly this magic of yours is more powerful than I thought. If you are to be my protege, I need you to be alive. I might have harmed you to get you to cooperate, but that no longer seems like a valid option. So, despite any contempt I might have for you, it seems as though I shall have to be nice to you to get what I need from you.”

Colgate’s ears came forward a bit as she asked, “You got hurt too?”

Daemeon cleared his throat, wincing at the sudden sharp pain it caused, and admitted, “Of course. Weren’t you using that magic of yours to crush me back as I crushed you?”

Colgate shook her head softly and explained, “No. I can’t focus my magic when I’m being hurt like that. I wasn’t doing anything to you.”

Daemeon chewed his lip and ran his fingers through his short, handsome hair. “Huh,” he said thoughtfully. “Why was I hurt then?”

“Um,” she answered, “maybe it has something to do with the tether.”

Daemeon raised an eyebrow, “The tether?”

Colgate nodded and explained, “You and I are linked with magic. We can’t leave each other, or it seems like we’ll die. Maybe that same magic that’s keeping us together is also making sure we don’t kill each other.”

Daemeon considered the small, blue unicorn and asked, “So, not only can I not hurt you, but you can’t hurt me?”

Colgate shrugged her shoulders and said, “I guess so.”

“You’re lucky then. I suppose I’ll have to be nice to you from now on.”

Colgate’s ears perked up completely, and she lifted her head with hopeful eyes and said, “Please be nice to me. It really hurts. I’m hungry, and you haven’t fed me anything like you promised.”

Daemeon sighed, defeated. It had been a while since he’d felt defeated, decades even. A memory sprang to mind, but he could only guess as to when it had taken place. While certain memories stood out in childhood, they did not stand out for any linear reason. Birthday parties should be important, but who remembers all their birthday parties? True memories, the ones that stick with you, are not founded on logic. The greatest and most tragic memories stand out equally with memories so mundane that the mind can hardly fathom why it remembers them. Daemeon’s memory partook of the former form. Defeat was an emotion he remembered well from his childhood. It was one he did not enjoy reexperiencing.

Daemeon spoke, “I did promise you, didn’t I?”

Colgate nodded again and stood up on shaky legs. She grunted through her teeth and said, “You promised me ice cream.”

Daemeon consented saying, “I did.”

Colgate shuffled slowly over to Daemeon as she continued, “But you can’t leave without me.”

Daemeon’s eyes followed her. She was pretty brave in approaching him considering how he’d thrown her against a wall earlier. Daemeon bent down to the floor and nodded to her as she came.

“So,” she drew out emphatically, mimicking the language he’d used earlier on her, “I guess you’ll have to take me with you.”

Daemeon did not like the idea. He would have given anything to be able to argue the point with her, but he didn’t see any other recourse. He had to leave the apartment at some point. He’d just come to the place recently, and he still hadn’t bought any food. He usually ate out anyways, but that looked to be a habit he’d have to break. So, instead of arguing, Daemeon conceded the point saying, “I guess I will. Do I have to explain to you again how important it is that you not reveal yourself to other people. Not only would the want to do all that terrible stuff I said before, but now you know we’ll both die if we’re separated.”

Colgate shook her head and said, “No. I’ll be good.”

Daemeon placed a calculated hand on Colgate’s head behind her horn and gave a soft scratch saying, “I’m sorry I hurt you earlier.”

Colgate gave him a cold look and pulled out of his reach saying, “No, you’re not.”

Daemeon was taken aback, something that was happening far too often for his taste in recent days and asked, “No, I’m not?”

Colgate didn’t answer him except to glare and demand, “Are we going to get ice cream or what?”

Daemeon gave her a curious look and stood up. His movements came heavily. He was certain he’d be sore for a while. He turned around and walked to the bedroom, Colgate in tow. He reached into his large tote on the bed and pulled out a backpack. A quick flick of the wrist unzipped it and revealed it empty inside, just as he’d left it. He knelt to the floor, stood it up, and reached for Colgate.

Colgate saw his hands coming towards her, and she backed up frantically, flashing a mean and untrusting look, and said, “Don’t touch me!”

Daemeon sighed and gestured to the bag saying, “You’ll have to get in if we’re going out.”

Colgate thrust her head forward aggressively, a comical sight in light of her stature, and declared indignantly, “I’ll step in the bag myself, thank you very much.” She cantered over and lightly hopped into the backpack. She tried to be graceful but found herself tripping into it, issuing a drawn out moan, “Ouch.” Daemeon almost felt he should chuckle. He instead reached over and zipped the bag most of the way shut, leaving a small opening for her to breathe through.

Colgate promptly lifted an eye to that spot and peeked out at Daemeon asking, “Can you see me through this easily, or do I have to keep away from it?”

Daemeon looked and found her almost completely obscured in the darkness of the backpack. “It looks good. I can barely see you even when I’m looking for you. Just be sure to try to keep away from the opening if you notice someone looking in your way too closely. I think though, even if someone were to see you, they would probably figure you for a stuffed animal if you didn’t move. Like I said, there aren’t any small, talking, blue unicorns in New York, at least, none that I know of.”

Colgate chuckled, making light of the painful and dreary situation, and said, “That’s a shame.”

Daemeon stood up and grasped the shoulder straps and gently swung the pack over his back. He grabbed up his wallet and an umbrella. He glanced out the window and was relieved to see that it looked like the storm had died down for the most part. Certainly it was much better than on the trip home. Daemeon spoke to Colgate over his shoulder, “You’re going to want to avoid making any messes in there. If you do I can’t just take you out in public. Also, it’s not machine washable.”

Colgate cringed in her little confine and asked, “Are we going in a ride in another one of those things again?”

“No,” he said, “we’re just going to walk. It’s not a long walk either, just down the street.”

Colgate sighed, “Whew, good.”

“Are you ready?”

The small blue mare shivered and laid her head against Daemeon’s back saying, “As ready as I think I’ll ever be.”

With that, Daemeon strolled out the door and descended into the street. He was greeted with a few stray raindrops persisting and quickly met them with his umbrella. The night was cool and the walk was pleasant in a sort of grim, Poesque sort of way. The thin trees planted at regular intervals sprang out of squares of grass amidst the concrete boulevard. Other men and women were shuffling up and down the street to get wherever they were going, not a single one of them suspecting anything of the people they walked past without greeting. Everyone went about their own business just as Daemeon and Colgate did theirs.

Daemeon turned a corner and the brightly glowing blue and green store popped into view. His pace quickened as he shuffled to the Walgreen's. He very much appreciated the convenience of having one close by. “I’ll have to stick around in this place as long as I can.”

Colgate felt Daemeon’s pace quicken from inside the backpack, and she peered out of the small zipper hole. She was surprised at how brightly the building glowed and how the windows stretched from the ground to the roof. It made her wonder how these humans could build buildings with glass walls.

As they closed in on the building, Colgate was surprised to see the doors open by themselves as Daemeon walked towards them. The doors were nothing compared to what she saw next though. There were many more of the big monkeys, the humans. Not even on the initial ride to Daemeon’s home had she seen another person, but now she was overwhelmed with their many different shapes and sizes.

She was mesmerized as Daemeon took off down a massive aisle bordered by two huge racks stacked high with all different kinds of foods. There were loaves of bread of all different colors and shapes and cans of soup, most of which had names she didn’t understand. She understood vegetable stew, the thought of it making her mouth water, but words like beef, chili, and tuna stuck out in her mind. She made a mental note to ask Daemeon about them later.

As Daemeon walked, he picked foodstuffs off the shelves. His knowledge of cooking was something less spectacular than his knowledge of other things though. Sandwiches he could do. He might even do a boxed meal if there were no complicated steps beyond stirring something in a pot. Canned soup was his saving grace as he slid over a dozen off a shelf into his cart. Chunky was good crap. He steered clear of the fresh meats aisle; he wasn’t going to be cooking anything that good.

Colgate watched his collecting with wonder. Ponies in Ponyville didn’t just grab things willy nilly like Daemeon was. She was starting to get suspicious that he was stealing until she noticed that the other people did it too. While Daemeon stood torn between whether to get vegetable beef or sirloin burger, Colgate got a good look at what she could only imagine was a female human. She was a little shorter than Daemeon, still a giant to Colgate but shorter nonetheless, and had long blonde hair in contrast to Daemeon’s shorter brown hair.

It was not only the way she looked that stuck out. Her movements were soft and graceful as she would pick up two different items and compare them. Her countenance was analytical as she compared a couple cans of soup, but her face was not like Daemeon’s. His seemed always to be cool and calculated save for when she had gotten him angry. Colgate fairly shivered at the thought. She would be sure to never make Daemeon mad again. The very presence Daemeon exuded scared her. After tempting her with thoughts of chaos, she was almost certain that he was a cruel and evil creature.

Now she had been left wondering whether all of the big monkeys were wicked like Daemeon. He had worked hard to impress upon her the idea that they were, but as she looked at this blonde haired woman, Colgate was starting to seriously doubt Daemeon’s claim. “How much has he lied to me about?” she wondered to herself. She would liked to have studied the other human closer, but Daemeon turned away and continued walking down the aisle.

Colgate was saddened to leave the specimen but was soon caught up in the curiosity of the next aisle over. Where all the other aisles had just had shelves with different foods stacked up, this one had door after door leading right into what she assumed to be ice boxes by how blue and cold they looked on the inside. Colgate pressed her eyes against the zipper opening and tried to read all the boxes and bags they passed by. She had no idea what pizza or hot pockets were. She was pleased to note the assortment of frozen vegetables was diverse. She saw plenty of peas and carrots and corn. What really got her attention came as they turned into yet another aisle labeled Frozen Desserts. Colgate squeed in delight as she poked her face further out from the bag to get a better look.

Daemeon did not notice the sound as he was engrossed in the decision of which ice cream to choose. He felt his mouth water a little bit as his eyes rested on a tub of Blue Bunny Rocky Road. Daemeon shut his eyes and tried to think back to what Colgate wanted. He knew she didn’t want the rocky road for some reason but couldn’t remember why.

His musing was interrupted by a soft feminine voice whispering excitedly, “Get chocolate!”

Daemeon looked over his shoulder to be greeted by the eager pony’s sparkling white teeth. He scowled in turn and whispered aggressively, “I told you to stay in the bag!”

Colgate responded by sticking out her tongue and saying, “I will. I just wanted to make sure you got chocolate. Remember, no nuts.” She turned towards the Rocky Road Daemeon had been eying and scrunched up her face saying, “Not that one. That one has nuts.”

Daemeon poked his head at her and rather childishly declared, “But I like nuts.”

Colgate rolled her eyes, “Then get two! Just make sure you get chocolate for me.”

“Oh!” Daemeon epiphanied aloud, “I hadn’t thought of that.” His look of self wonder degenerated back into a scowl as he opened his mouth to tell her to get back into the backpack.

His words were interrupted by the ecstatic squeal of a little girl down the aisle, “Oh my God! Mommy, Mommy, that man has a kitty in his backpack!”

Both Daemeon and Colgate turned to see what looked to be a five year old girl wearing a pink skirt and flip flops. She bolted towards the pair as fast as her little feet could carry her, and her face was brought level with Colgate’s before Daemeon even had a chance to react. Upon getting a closer look at Colgate, the girl exclaimed, “It’s not a kitty. It’s a unicorn!”

Colgate hadn’t removed herself to the confines of the backpack. She found it far more enjoyable to glut herself in the attention and adoration of the little human. It seemed to her to be far less threatening than any of the others she had seen. Her enjoyment ended though as Daemeon reached a hand over to shove her back into the pack and zip it shut.

Just as he zipped it shut, the blonde woman from the previous isle rounded the bend to see her daughter jumping up and down asking to play with the unicorn. Her face was serious as she walked up to Daemeon, her heels clacking against the floor, “Not just what’s going on over here Samantha? What was all that screaming about a unicorn?”

The little girl, Samantha, stopped her jumping and pointed at Daemeon saying, “That man has a little blue unicorn in his backpack, Mommy. It had a horn and blue and white hair and everything.” She ran up to her mother and begged, “Can I play with the unicorn, Mommy? Please!? I’ll be good, I promise. I won’t pick it up by the ears or anything.”

Colgate cringed at the thought of being picked up by her ears.

Daemeon quickly interjected before the mother could talk, “I have no idea what she’s talking about, miss. There are no such things as unicorns, and I most certainly do not have one.”

The woman’s stern visage softened, and she began to chuckle until Samantha’s face, which was beet red with anger, bellowed, “He’s lying, Mommy! He has a blue unicorn, and it smiled at me, and it’s in his backpack!”

The mother’s light hearted chuckle fell into a frown as her daughter spoke. She turned to Daemeon and asked him seriously, “What did she see?”

Daemeon faked a laugh and said, “Oh please. She didn’t see anything. She’s just making it up.”

Her look grew suspicious as she said, “She obviously saw something that got her worked up. Now tell me what she saw.” Her face suddenly bore a serious scowl as she demanded, “Did you show anything inappropriate to my daughter?”

“No,” he shouted, “I just. . .” He stuttered. A quick glance showed that they had attracted onlookers, and it was a very public place to be getting accused of something inappropriate. The man of cool calculations bit his lip as his eyes shot from the angry little girl to the pissed off mother. He knew he had to handle this carefully. There was no way he could tell the truth, but he certainly couldn’t keep up with the lie he was telling. A good substitute came in a flash, and he wanted to kick himself for not having thought of it before. “She didn’t see a real unicorn, she saw a stuffed one I’m carrying. I was just putting it in my backpack when she came by.”

The mother put her hands on her hips and raised a skeptical eyebrow and asked, “If that’s true then why didn’t you say that in the first place?”

Daemeon opened his mouth but shut it again when he found nothing reasonable to say. He was usually the greatest actor ever, and, now he was tongue tied. “What a time to be without a plan.” He instead said the first story that was just awkward enough to be true, “I didn’t want to say anything because it’s mine.”

The girl’s mother burst out laughing. Several onlookers joined in, and Daemeon could feel the tension in the aisle disappear with her laugh. Samantha started laughing at her mother laughing, and even Daemeon faked a laugh. The mother ceased her laughing and asked breathlessly, “So you’re telling me that you’re embarrassed because you are a grown ass man who likes little stuffed unicorns.”

Daemeon set his eyes with steel and said with as much intensity as he could, “Yes. That is exactly the reason.”

Both adults turned their eyes when Samantha asked in a little voice, “Does this mean I can see the unicorn, Mommy?”

Daemeon cringed at the question, and the mother answered her, “Well, I don’t see any reason why not. If this man’s little unicorn is just a stuffed animal then there should be no harm in your seeing it. Isn’t that right Mr. . .”

Daemeon wanted to use any name save his own, but he knew Colgate could hear him and had no wish to form some other convoluted story about why he’d changed it. While it was bad to attract attention and then leave a name to be remembered by, he deemed it less of a threat than the little pony’s crazy magic. He decided finally to answer, “Daemeon.”

“Yes, Daemeon,” she said, taking a step closer to him, “can you open your bag so I can see the little stuffed unicorn?” She leaned in a little and asked dangerously, “Or do we have a problem with that?”

Colgate listened to the conversation without moving a muscle. While she was certain that they weren’t as dangerous as Daemeon said, she also knew that she couldn’t be separated from him. Her heart skipped a beat as the conversation came to a pause, and Daemeon said, “Sure you can see my stuffed animal.”

Colgate did not miss the emphasis Daemeon put on the words. As Daemeon shifted the backpack around, Colgate fell back on her rump and stuck her four legs out in front of her. She gave a tight lipped smile and remained stock still as Daemeon opened the bag. Her large, unmoving, blue eyes were met with two more pairs of crystal blue. She saw the mother gasp and the little girl squeal. The mother exclaimed, “It looks so real!”

Daemeon could feel the sweat beading on his forehead as the pair looked. He could only stand and hope that Colgate wasn’t giving herself away. The little girl, Samantha, began jumping up and down excitedly and begged, “Can I hold it please?!”

Before the mother or Daemeon could answer, the little girl shot her hands towards the backpack. Daemeon instantly pulled it away and zipped the bag closed saying, “I’m sorry, no. It was very expensive, and I don’t want to risk anything going wrong with it.”

The little girl turned large, pleading eyes to her mother and begged, “Can’t I play with it Mommy? I’ll be good.”

The mother smiled and knelt down to the little blonde beauty and explained, “No honey. You can only play with his stuffed animals if he says you can. I can’t make him, sweetie.” She stood, leaving the little girl to pout, and said, “Kids are the best aren’t they? Do you have any kids of your own?”

Daemeon could not help but breathe a sigh of relief as he answered, “No. I’m single. I’ve never had the joy.”

The mother smiled radiantly, flashing brilliantly white teeth, and exclaimed, “Oh, that’s a shame. A handsome man like yourself should have kids.” Her smile reddened suddenly as she clasped the hand of her daughter. She looked at the floor and asked quietly, “My name’s Alexis. Would you perhaps like to go out on a date by any chance?”

Daemeon balked in confusion and asked, “Aren’t you married?”

Her eyes shot up and she stuttered, “Oh, uh no. I mean . . .”

As she stuttered, the little girl, Samantha, rose her voice to answer, “Daddy’s up in heaven.” The two adults turned to see her face besmirched with a timid frown as she went on, “He died almost a year ago.”

Daemeon flashed a mutually understood frown and said, “I’m so sorry.”

Alexis raised her hand and furrowed her brow saying, “Please don’t be. It’s in the past and we.have to move on.” She reached into her purse and pulled out a little pad of post it notes and a pen. She quickly scrawled down a number and handed the sheet of paper to Daemeon. “I understand if you’re not interested, but if you want to, here’s my number.”

Daemeon extended his hand and softly took the yellow square of paper. He’d no intention of redeeming the offer, but he still was in no mood to cause more of a scene than he already had. He put on a gentle smile, as was his trade, and watched as the mother and her child left the frozen food aisle while waving goodbye. As Daemeon gave a return wave, he heard the little girl cry, “If you do come over, I want to play with your unicorn!”

Daemeon faked a chuckle in response, and after he decided they were out of earshot, shot a vicious tone towards Colgate, “Did we completely forget what I told you earlier? What were you thinking? We were damn near caught! You’re lucky I know how to deceive little girls so well.”

Inside her stuffy little prison, Colgate just crossed her forelegs and harrumphed in derision. To her, they clearly weren’t as dangerous as Daemeon said they were. That still didn’t change the fact that they couldn’t afford to be separated. She huffed with stuffy indignation and grunted, “Let’s just get the ice cream and go.” She winced a little as she knocked her bad hoof against Daemeon’s back and added roughly, “And don’t forget about the gauze.”

Daemeon shook his head and muttered, “That unicorn and her gauze, I swear.” He opened the freezer aisle door and pulled out a bucket of ice cream. His hand stopped before he could drop it into the cart. His eyes regarded the flavor, Chocolate, and his tongue swept out to glaze his lips. It had been a long time since he’d had ice cream. “Why has it been so long?” he asked himself.

Colgate felt Daemeon shiver a bit as the thought crossed his mind. She perked her ears up and asked, “Is something wrong, Daemeon?”

Daemeon didn’t immediately answer as he bit his lip and squeezed his eyes shut. He knew the answer to his own question, but he didn’t dare even to think it to himself. He instead shook his head and answered, “It’s nothing. I’m fine.”

Colgate furrowed her brow and laid her head against Daemeon’s back. There was a noticeable change in his voice. It did not reflect the aggravation or anger she was becoming accustomed to. A tremor of wonder shot through her, “Is it distress?” She scrunched her face in disbelief and instead inquired as to the ice cream, “Did you get both flavors?”

Daemeon’s eyes shot open and went from the Chocolate in his hand to the Rocky Road still in the freezer. He felt his breath quicken and his brow furrow as indecision attacked him. A bead of perspiration formed on his temple and, had anyone been standing in the aisle to witness, they would have seen his face redden. It was such a simple question, yet he felt himself suddenly at an impasse he was otherwise very successful at avoiding. For two minutes he stood completely absorbed in himself. There was no good reason to not get the ice cream. That was not the problem. What bothered him was that there was actually a good reason to get it.

“Daemeon?”

Without giving another thought, Daemeon shot his hand into the freezer and pulled out the bucket of Rocky Road. He placed the two buckets side by side in the cart and dropped his hands on the push bar. His weight fell forward as he let out an exasperated sigh saying, “Yes. I got both.”

Colgate felt a touch of concern seep into her voice as she again asked, “Are you sure you’re okay? I’m sorry I almost got us caught. I’ll be more careful from now on. I just didn’t think it would be so bad if the girl saw me. She seemed nice to me.”

Daemeon hitched the backpack higher on his shoulders and started pushing the cart again. He answered her, “It’s not about that. You’re alright.”

The small blue mare pressed, “Well, what’s it about then?”

“Nothing you need to worry about,” he huffed as he rounded the corner of the frozen foods and slid into the pharmaceutical section.

As Colgate’s annoyance couldn’t be seen visually, she emphasized it in her tone as she asked, “Does it concern you?”

Daemeon bent down to browse the boxes of gauze on a lower shelf. A cursory sweep caused him to wonder, “Why on Earth would they need five different brands? They all do the same thing.” His gaze slipped to his hand. The cut was still fresh and ugly. He lifted a finger and gently brushed the length of the wound, wincing as he brought it down a little too hard. His eyes went back to the gauze as he thought to himself, “I may as well get the best brand. I have to keep Colgate happy too.”

On cue, he felt a thudding on his back as his unicorn counterpart pressed, “Don’t just ignore me you big meanie! Is something wrong?”

Daemeon shrugged his shoulders roughly and grunted, “I told you. It’s nothing you need to worry about. Now just drop it.”

At any other time, Colgate would have just dropped the subject. Now, though, she was quickly beginning to realize that, with the tether linking their souls, Daemeon had no real control over her. He couldn’t hurt her. He couldn’t leave her. “In fact,” she thought deviously to herself, “he has to do everything he can to protect me.” A smile lit her lips as the thought crossed her mind. It was the first substantial fact that she had come across in this new world and was perhaps the only assurance she had that she was safe. So, with authority in her tone, she demanded again, “Does it concern you?”

The question’s strength surprised Daemeon as he grabbed the gauze off the shelf and stood up. He was silent for a moment while he continued down the aisle. The cart was almost full, and he had no idea how much he had spent. Frugality was not his strongest trait. When he ran out of money, he would just go out and get more. It was as simple as that. The circumstances had changed however, and now he could not just go off all willy nilly as he liked. “Tact is in order. Now everything I do needs a plan.” He scrunched his face at the thought and answered Colgate roughly, “Yes. It concerns me. It does not concern you however, and I would prefer it if you would kindly stop pestering me about it.”

“Well,” responded Colgate, having foreseen the answer, “it seems to me that if it concerns you then it probably concerns me too you know. What hurts you hurts me too, doesn’t it?”

Daemeon felt his patience coming up short. “Stop talking.”

The blue mare responded by jabbing his back with her horn and prodding, “Don’t just give me the brush off. It’s not like you can just ignore me forever. You’ll have to tell me something.”

His next words dripped with venomous anger, “Drop it.”

“I’m not dropping it you foal! Now tell me what’s wrong or I’ll. . .”

Daemeon suddenly screamed, “I said shut up!”

Silence fell over the entire store as everyone within eyesight turned towards him, and others peered around corners. Daemeon’s face quivered and glowed red with anger and the unwanted gaze of so many people noticing him. Without another word, Daemeon made his purchases and strolled out of the store, carrying his bags as he went.