The first rays of sun shone through the yellowed curtain, causing the sleeping inhabitant of the small double room to awaken. First she shielded her eyes because she was used to the darkness, then slowly opened them. Tired, and with a moan, the filly turned around and looked to the second, empty bed in the room. Surprised, she blinked a few times. “Where is Dad?” When she had first met that irresponsible being, she had never thought she would consider him as a part of her family, but no one could see the future. Yes, Thiemo was often childish, even more childish than her with her eight years, but he had always defended and cared for her. It was the nearest thing to a father she had ever had, and after they had been traveling together for a more than a year, he more or less became one.

She sat up and shook her head like crazy to get her mane out of her view. Slowly, her brain woke up as well, and she remembered how her dad had patted a gryphon's head. She groaned, mumbled, and left for the bathroom. By her assumption, her dad had allowed himself to get roped up in something and was either sitting bleeding in a corner of the saloon, or she would have to pick him up later from the sheriff's office. He had this unbelievable talent to either be totally likeable or incredibly annoying. For her, it was a mixture of both. For most other people, it was the first, but to the kind of people one didn’t want to anger, he appealed to them in the more unfitting way.

After she finished her daily routine and tamed her mane, she went to the backpack near the empty bed and scavenged for coins to pay for breakfast. Sadly, the black bag of coins was missing. “I swear if he wasted it all on more of his junk...” The small reading light was already unnecessary especially since they didn’t even have a book, and for a normal lamp, the light was too weak. Then there also was the antique junk he bought at every corner, claiming he could repair it. Until now, he'd only managed to blow up half of it.

She left her room and walked down into the saloon. Even before she reached the end of the stairs, she saw the old barkeeper mopping the floor. He noticed her as well and waved at her. “Good morning, young lady. Slept well?” he greeted her.

She yawned, covering her mouth with a hoof. “Sorta. It was a bit loud down here for a while. I hope my father didn’t cause you any trouble.” Until now, she was always the one who had to clean up his mess, and at times, she asked herself which of them was the adult.

“Well, your father did cause me trouble, but he also defended my stock. I’d say we are even.” The stallion put the mob back into the bucket and shoved both aside. “So how about some breakfast?” Aura slowly circled her hoof over the freshly cleaned floor and spoke without looking up.

“Umm... I have no money here, and I don’t know where my father is.” She didn’t want to admit, but she had taken the human into her heart. He had become a part of her life. She was a foal, physically and mentally, and she needed a father figure. Thiemo was smart, logical, and strong in his own manner. She wanted to keep up with him, show him that she could be just as strong as him, that she was also there for him. But that was only a charade. She relied more on his help than the other way round. He just saw it as the typical smart-aleck behaviour of eight year old fillies.

Bronze smiled at her while ruffling her mane. “Don’t you worry; your father paid already for it yesterday, as well as for the next few days you’ll be staying.” Immediately, the foal was happy again and beamed in anticipation. “So what would you like?”

“Ice cream!” she demanded without even thinking. She was a foal, so of course she loved ice cream, and there was nothing she would rather have for breakfast... or lunch… or generally at any time of the day. Except maybe lollipops; she loved lollipops. Especially the ones with a strawberry flavour. Her hope for a breakfast that would resemble a sugary feast was high.

“Ice cream ain’t no breakfast, young lady.” And with a single sentence, that hope was crushed.

“Aww,” she whined louder than necessary to tell the world of her disappointment. Or at least to the barkeeper. In that moment, she could relate to how Thiemo felt when she didn’t fulfil his wishes or didn’t participate in his jokes. Only that she didn’t care. She wanted ice cream!

“I don’t think your father would like it if I gave you ice cream.” He patted her head again. “How about something hearty, but still sweet instead?” It was no ice cream, but it was a new beginning. She looked at the barkeeper again, her eyes glowing with high hopes once again, although not as bright as before. “I thought hay-pancakes with raspberry jam sounded good.” In an instant, she was herself again, happy and not caring for anything. In the end, her biggest sorrow was about ice cream and not her missing dad.

“Oh yes, that sounds good. Not as good as ice cream, though, but still good.” She licked her lips, and her tail waved around in joy.

“Then pick a table. Food's coming.” With that, he left her in the saloon and disappeared through a door behind the counter. With the most important question at that moment cleared, the curiosity about that strange smell grew stronger. Her nose led her to the bucket, and she risked a cautious glance at the inside. The liquid was a strange mixture of white froth from the cleanser and a dark red. She sniffed one more time and hastily pulled her head back. Yes it was, without doubt, the source of the smell. She chose the table near the entrance in order to be as far away as possible from the bucket.

Sometime later, after licking off the remaining jam from her plate, her stomach was filled. It was time to take care of more important things. The stallion had been watching her eat and realized that she was finished. “Did you enjoy it?”

To really ensure that she had gotten everything, she licked the clean plate once again. “Mmmm.” And to be really, really sure, one more time. “This was the best breakfast I've had in a long time.” In the desert, she had lived off dried fruits and stale water that was also rationed. That she got more than Thiemo escaped her notice.

Bronze smiled contentedly that his cooking skills were praised by the small filly. “Glad that it tasted good.” He changed his clean glass for a dirty one and started cleaning it.

“Do you know where my father went?” The barkeeper nearly dropped his glass. Lucky Luke had asked him to not tell her that he’d probably spend the whole day in his cell until the sheriff finished the paperwork for the argument yesterday. Since the sheriff’s sleep was stolen, he wanted to make up for it. That meant he would take his time doing the papers.

“Listen kid, your daddy is very busy today and...” He tried to make up an excuse.

“He’s behind bars again, right?” The stallion only nodded while Aura sighed. “Has it got something to do with the three gryphons here yesterday?” Again a nod. “I think I’ll pay him a visit. Where is the jail?” He placed his glass down.

“We don’t have a jail here in Round Rock. He is in the only cell we have, in the bureau of the sheriff. That’s right next to the bank.” Aura went to the door.

“Thanks, I’ll come back later,” she yelled and waved at Bronze before she stepped out on the street. It was still early morning, about eight o`clock, and most villagers were still in their houses. Across the street, she saw an old mare cleaning the window of the village store and waving at her. She returned the greeting politely and followed the dusty road through the town, which wasn't very large. It consisted of two roads which crossed and a couple of houses on the sides of them. Certain that she couldn’t get lost, she trotted a little faster, passing stores for hats, groceries, stone, wood, and other materials for handcrafts, and even a store for furniture. Most were still closed though.

When she reached the crossroads, she got a free view out of the city and noticed that the storm had ceased. But she also noticed something else: rails. And where rails were, trains were nearby, and when there were trains nearby, she wouldn’t have to walk. She jumped in joy and rushed to find the bank. Her father surely would be just as happy about the news. She ignored the greetings from some peasants as she quickly trotted by. Finally, she stood in front of the large building that had to be the bank. The sign made it more than obvious, even for foals.

Suddenly, a bang sounded from inside, and she could hear someone screaming. She quickly went behind one of the thick beams supporting the roofing of the building. Something she had learnt from her father. If you didn’t know what was going on, get into cover, wait until you know, and act accordingly. She looked around and checked the situation, but nobody except her seemed to notice anything. The other inhabitants were too far away or in their houses. She waited a couple of seconds, but there was no further sound. What if someone was hurt or even worse? She had to look into it if only for the sake of her curiosity.

Aura came out of her cover before she crept to the massive wooden door. A small sign over the knob said to press, and so she did, yet nothing happened. “Huh?” She pushed a little harder, but the door didn’t move an inch. “Stupid door.” She checked whether she could look through one of the windows, but they, sadly, were too high for her. Another lesson from Thiemo came to mind. It was better to apologize than to ask for permission, which, in her opinion, fitted the situation pretty well. Either she would rescue someone and get thanked or would have to explain that she thought that someone was in danger because of the bang and scream. Either way, someone surely would compliment her for her good behaviour. Yes, she was a good little filly.

She turned her hind legs to the thick door, flexed them, turned her head around for better aim, and kicked. She hit the door just beneath the knob, and the lock bulged, but nothing else happened for at least for a couple of seconds before the door slowly swung open. She looked inside cautiously. On the left side behind the door, there was a long counter, like the one in the saloon, which reached through the whole room. On the other side, there were pillows for waiting customers. Then she realized what was going on here. In the center of the room stood a stallion with beige fur, red mane, and a full beard. His horn glowed in the same green as his eyes. He levitated a sack in the air while coin by coin slowly flew in. To his feet lay another stallion and a mare, both seemingly unconscious.

She stood eye in eye with the unicorn. ”Umm… hello. I hope I`m not interrupting anything?” she asked uncertainly, taking a step back. The unicorn kept staring at her a bit longer before laughing hysterically.

“Oh Celestia! And I thought today wouldn’t be my day.” He stomped like crazy on the floor while laughing like a maniac. Aura, on the other hoof, didn’t feel like laughing. The guy was scary to her, and with her belief that he had attacked the two other ponies, her subconscious was telling her to run away. But at the same time, she also wanted to know what was so funny. “When the guy triggered the safety spell, I thought it would be over.” She still didn’t understand what was going on. “I don’t know how you did it, but thanks, kid.” He turned to her, but she only jumped back further. “Don’t be scared. I may be a bandit, but I would never harm a foal.”

Without thinking, she asked, “Really?” The bandit only nodded and looked to his bag which was now filled up with bits, although some were still being levitated in the air. His eyes widened suddenly, and he pulled another bag out of his saddlebag. The remaining coins flew into the new bag until all of them disappeared. Then he levitated the bag to her. “Take this as thanks.” She hesitated, and due the lack of her doing something, he pushed the bag again in her face. “Take it already. I give it to you. Buy yourself an ice cream or something.”

Cautiously, she took it with her mouth, causing the unicorn to grin, satisfied. “Well-behaved kid, but excuse me now. I am kind of in a hurry.” Before she could react, the door swung open completely. The unicorn took a hat off the ground, put it on and went past her outside. “A beautiful day, little miss,” he said, tipped his bowler hat, and vanished down the road.

“Ahhh, there! It’s Billy the Colt!” a mare near the end of the street shouted hysterically. Aura turned around to the bank where the two employees had just regained consciousness.

“What— Where is the robber?” The stallion noticed Aura in the door and the bag she held. “You! Are you his accomplice?” Her eyes widened in shock, and she shook her head. “Was it you who opened the door?” he further pressed and pointed at her. Aura dropped the bag to speak.

“No! I heard a bang and wanted to see what it was,” she explained hysterically. “The windows were too high for me, and I didn’t have a choice. What if... if somebody was hurt?” She started to cry. “So— So I kicked in the door and—and... I'm sorry.”

“Aha!” yelled the employee and narrowed his view on her. “So you helped Billy the Colt get away. You are his accomplice!” At that moment, she was totally unable to cope with the situation. She had done what she thought was right, and suddenly she was the evil one? She simply couldn’t understand it. She slowly started to creep backwards. “You stay here until the sheriff comes!” the stallion shouted while helping his co-worker get back on her hooves. But his words only caused her to run, but not far - one house to be precise. This wasn’t right. She shouldn’t be the one getting into trouble; her father would able to deal with them. Thus, he was the first one to come to her mind and the reason she burst into the sheriff's office.

“Dad!” she cried. “Dad, where are you?”

Thiemo sat comfortably on the bench, his back leaned on the wall. He had been able to get some sleep after Dusk Star had asked him why the local doctor's beds were taken by three wounded gryphons. He had told him his version of the story and used the stones in his cell as evidence. Together with the statement of Bronze Mug in the saloon, the positive deeds should overshadow the bad ones, meaning he would get away with a warning. However, be it personal hate or not, the sheriff was just as pissed as Thiemo himself that he didn’t get any or little sleep. Thiemo’s assumption, though, was that Dusk Star had been called when he was in bed with his aforementioned wife. Thiemo was also grumpy because of the lost sleep, but the sheriff was near bloodthirsty towards him.

Continuing his string of bad luck, the cell was even more unbearable during the day than in the cold night. The heat gathered in the room, and although the magical door was destroyed, it was unbearable. The door was spread in little pieces over the floor. After his genius idea to kick it in, his leg had gotten stuck in it, shocking him every couple of seconds. Small miracles be praised, the sheriff had adjusted the spell so that the shocks would get weaker. In the end, he wanted to keep people from fleeing and not accidentally kill them in case someone had an idea as mindless as his. The hardest part of his punishment was, amongst other things that he had to replace said door. And so once again, they were ten bits poorer.

He heard the sound of the door being opened, and for a couple of seconds, he thought the sheriff wouldn’t keep him waiting the entire day.

“Dad!” he heard the voice of his daughter. She didn’t sounds happy at all. Rather, it was as though she was crying. “Dad, where are you?”

“I am back here, dear.” Regarding Aura, he had a soft spot. The small filly had really grown on him. In a way, she really became his daughter, and who could resent him for it? She was simply a sweetheart. At least when she was in a good mood.

A moment later, she came through the open door, ignoring the bars and jumping onto his lap. “Dad! They said I did something evil!” she cried. She was drenched in tears, meaning something was definitely wrong. He wiped her off and stroked her mane. Normally she was tough and tried to be strong. He liked that, so her acting like this was very unusual.

“There she is, sheriff! That was his helper!” Surprised, he looked over his daughter’s head and back to the entrance. There stood an earth pony stallion, glasses on his nose and with messy hair. Next to him was the sheriff in question, who had his pissed face on again. “She helped Billy the Colt to get away.” Thiemo lifted an eyebrow.

“Hey now, wait a second. Let’s start from scratch. What is she accused of?” While he spoke, he didn’t stop comforting his daughter. The sheriff stepped ahead.

“She is accused of opening the safety door of the bank for the criminal, Billy the Colt. He was locked in the bank, and we would have gotten him if it hadn’t been for her.” His voice sounded poisoned, and Thiemo realized that the sheriff was about to explode. He put his hand beneath Aura’s chin and made eye contact.

“Now I would like to hear your version.” She sobbed, snivelled shortly, and took a breath. Then she spoke with quivering voice.

“There was a bang.” She paused and sniffed. “And I wanted to look after it, but I was too small for the window, and the door was closed.” She raised her voice in despair. “I thought someone was hurt, and I wanted to check, but the door wouldn’t open. Then I.... I thought someone was in danger.”

“Shhhh...” he stroked over her head and laid her on the bench before extending to his full length. “The way I see it, my daughter did nothing wrong. She thought somebody was in danger and wanted to see if she could help. It was a misunderstanding.”

The earth pony pointed at Aura. “That doesn’t change the fact that she helped him escape. She even got a part of the loot in her mouth.” Thiemo said nothing, just kept standing upright, arms crossed behind the cell door. The sheriff pushed the raging banker back a bit.

“And you think a foal, who has been in the town only since yesterday, already hooked up with a local criminal and only waited to help him out?” Judging by their looks, they really did.

“I have my own theory,” the sheriff interjected, pointing at Thiemo. “I say you belong to his gang and are here only for distraction. I mean, first you start a fight with three gryphons and take my attention, then you break out of jail and deprive my sleep just to beat up the same three gryphons again.” His horn started glowing. “So I was too tired this morning and not on position in time, and the foal just waited to open the door from the outside.”

He had to admit that sounded like a good plan if there ever would have been one. They never met Billy the Colt or made a deal with him. Thiemo had only seen his picture yesterday for the first time.

“Nice theory, but wrong.” He gave the idea a thumb down. “We are only travellers wanting to take the train to Appleloosa.” At least now that they knew of it. “So it’s just a stupid accident and misunderstanding. Adding the fact that she's a foal, I bet there are laws against punishing her.” Not that he ever saw the need to inform himself about local laws in any country. The inhabitants of the world did when he broke one.

“That may be the case in Equestria or somewhere else, but we are not in Equestria or somewhere else. Here, we bring everyone to justice.” The sheriff stepped towards the cell. “So I have to demand you to hand the foal over so we can question her.” Thiemo sighed. He had hoped for a couple of peaceful days. With his right hand, he grabbed the staff and his left moved into his pocket and grabbed its contents.

“Sorry, I won’t. My daughter stays with me. You heard her testimony and that’s all.” It looked like the sheriff had lost his nerves after all and tried to magick the staff. He attempted to disarm the human and failed miserably. The staff held its position without a single of Thiemo’s muscles being used, confusing the sheriff.

“What the. . .?” he mumbled and tried again with the same result. Thiemo went to the bench, picked up the still sobbing Aura, and laid her over his shoulder.

“I think we have overstayed our welcome,” he said to the sheriff and placed the end of the staff on the lock. The lock flashed and melted like butter. With ease, the door opened as he pushed the staff against it. Both ponies jumped back.

“Not a step further or I'll be forced to disable you.” Normally, he wouldn’t care what kind of spells a unicorn would throw at him; he could fend them off. However, on his shoulder was Aura, and she was in no condition to evade or run by herself. That the sheriff was willing to use harmful magic in a room with a foal enraged him. His eyes darkened and his blood boiled in anger.

“I’ll say it only once.” The earth pony twitched as he heard his angered voice. Even the more courageous sheriff was afraid. “If you hurt my daughter, I’ll show you how much truth is in the horror stories about my kind.” They gulped and he used their immobility to walk out the room. It wouldn’t take them long to recover and to follow him. Until then, he wanted to have his things out of the saloon. “Damn it,” he said to himself. With fast paced steps, he went down the road and pulled the talisman out of his pocket. The grey stone, which was wrapped in the chain, crumbled in his hand. No sign that it had once been a fire ruby. His use of his things in the past two days was just too much, and he hadn’t many left. If the sheriff had decided to fire at him, he would have had a problem. Fending off magic was the one thing but coming close enough to the enemy to hit them with his staff without magic was difficult.

He had the attention of everyone as he threw the rest of the ruby into the dust. It seemed the city had experienced the tumult over Billy the Colt and had assumed that he or his foal had something to do with it. Thus, some barricaded their houses as they saw them coming. At least it didn’t take him so long to get to the saloon.

The first thing he noticed was the oodles of chests in front of the counter and the many bottles on it. Suddenly, the head of the barkeeper appeared and saw him. “Hey, there you are again, kiddo. I think I have good news for you. The train arrived sooner than planned. About ten minutes ago, they started offloading.” He only nodded and ran up the stairs under the curious looks of Bronze. At least something was going right.

Author's Notes:

And thats it for now. Again thanks to faktopus for proofreading. I don't take that as a matter of course, so its much appreciated.

Till next time folks!

A second time edited by JBL. Thanks buddy!