“Seriously, Selene. What is going on? I don’t have time for this.” Aldus said to the black alicorn.

“You don’t have time for us?!” Frost yelled, “Black Star saved us from those bad ponies in the park and brought us here!”

“Black Star...?” Aldus mused.

Selene smiled and nodded at the black pegasus colt sitting next to Pyrite.

“I see...” Aldus said, not impressed.

“I’m curious,” Rigel admitted, “Just what is a gryphon doing with all these foals?”

Iris came forward and shyly bowed her head, being of nobility meant she could tell who was a high born, regardless of if they were a gryphon or not. Upon observing them, she believed the grey unicorn held some sort of high title by the way he was carrying himself and speaking, but was not high born. However, the red pegasus was definitely nobility of some sort.

“Its... somewhat of a long story... umm?”

“Call me Rigel, child. What is your name?”

“Iris, its a pleasure to meet you.” Iris said as she bowed

“Look at this Aldus, such manners.” Rigel said to his friend with a smirk.

“I see that,” Aldus remarked, “Selene honestly, of all the times, you know what’s at stake here.”

Selene was about to make her case when she was cut off by Frost Wind storming up to Aldus, “You know, its not like my friends asked to be lead here by Black Star. Just who do you think you are?! If we’re so much trouble, we’ll leave! We’ll leave... right... now... we’ll... I...”

The blue unicorn collapsed to the ground as a viscous blue liquid poured out of the now plainly visible crack in his horn.

“Frost!” Antares screamed as she and Blue Bell ran to him.

“Oh no! No! No!” Ruby screamed as she lit up her horn to help her friend.

Selene released Pyrite and got to her hooves but stopped as Aldus held up a hoof. He trotted over to Frost and pushed Ruby and Blue Bell out of the way. “Oh wow... this is not good. We won’t make it to a hospital in time. How long has he been like this?” Aldus asked Ruby.

Ruby stared at Frost, tears flowing down her face, “I- I-”

“How long?!”

“Ever since I’ve known him! Years! But its been really bad recently!”

Aldus took off his cloak and draped it over Frost, who was now shivering. “I’ve never been any good at healing magic... Selene, get the children out of here. Rigel, I need you.”

“Of course, Aldus.” Rigel said.

Selene stood up and walked toward the door, “Alright little one, come children lets go.”

Black Star picked up Pyrite and flew him out into the hallway. Before leaving, Iris looked to the pegasus who gave her a reassuring wink. Blue Bell, Ruby, and Antares refused to go. Selene frowned and extended three coils of her mane to collect the foals. “Come now, children. Frost will be alright. We need to give Aldus some space.”

After the hearing the door shut behind them, Rigel knelt down next to Aldus, “Will you be able to help him? What is that stuff coming out of his horn?”

“That ‘stuff’ is unicorn magical essence. All ponies have some form of it. Unicorns store it in their horns, pegasi through their wings, and earth ponies throughout their entire body.”

“I see,” Rigel said, “How did this happen to the poor foal?”

“Its a common birth defect among unicorns, but it can be corrected early with proper medical attention, something I’m guessing this child did not have. If it isn’t corrected... the end result is... well, this.”

“What do you need me to do?” Rigel asked.

“Tear apart my cloak and make several bandages from it, and go find the first aid kit. It should be somewhere on this floor.”

“Alright, I’ll get the kit first.” Rigel said as he flew out of the room.

Aldus looked down at Frost, “Poor child, you remind me of myself when I was your age, but even I didn’t have this problem. I’m going to fix this, and with luck, you’ll be able to use the full extent of your magic when I’m done.”

--------------

Ruby paced back in forth in one of the lounge areas further down the hallway while Blue Bell and Antares sat together trying to make sense of the events taking place tonight. Iris leaned against a wall trying to place exactly what this place was. She heard a loud yawn and looked over to see Pyrite leaning against the chest of the black alicorn. Selene had sat down and coiled two tendrils of her mane around the little earth colt.

“I’m sorry about all that has been going on tonight,” she whispered to the colt, “But I couldn’t just leave you all out there at the mercy of those criminals.”

Pyrite yawned in response and snuggled up to the tendrils of mane around him. Down the hall a door opened revealing Rigel. Ruby immediately latched onto his hooves and sobbed buckets into his fur.

“Is- Is he going to be alright? Is Frost going to be alright? It was all my fault!”

Rigel lifted the filly up and looked her in the eyes, “Don’t say that, it wasn’t your fault. Frost is going to be fine. Aldus has repaired the damage to Frost’s horn and he’s sleeping now. Aldus will  stay with him until he wakes up.”

Ruby wiped away the tears in her eyes and wrapped her hooves around Rigel’s neck, “Oh, thank you so much. How can we ever repay you?”

Selene grinned at the display of affection, knowing Rigel loved it.

“Well, child. How about we start with introductions. My name is Rigel”

Ruby smiled, “I’m Ruby Glint, the colt over there is my brother, Pyrite Glint.”

The yellow pegasus filly flew up to Rigel and hugged both him and Ruby, “Your name is Rigel? My name is Antares! We’re both named after stars!”

Rigel laughed and set the two fillies down, “You know what that means, right?” he asked with a smirk.

“That we’re awesome?” asked the pegasus filly.

“Exactly!” Rigel said, hoof bumping the filly.

“I’m Blue Bell,” the blue earth filly said. “Rigel, why did your friend seem so upset about us being here?”

Rigel hesitated for a moment, noticing Iris looking on intently, “He’s... got a lot on his mind right now. But don’t worry, we aren’t going to kick you foals back onto the street. Frost will be asleep for a while. Aldus and I think you should go clean up while he is resting. While you are all washing up I’ll prepare a proper meal for you if you are still hungry.”

Pyrite’s stomach rumbled as he rubbed his eyes. Selene giggled and lifted the colt onto her back, “Well there’s your answer, Rigel. Follow me children, the baths are this way. I think you are going to like them, they are pretty big.” Selene said with a mischievous grin.

Iris and the ponies followed Selene downstairs while Rigel departed to the kitchens. Black Star however, lingered behind the group and returned to the room with Aldus and Frost. The black pegasus colt opened a portal through the wall and stepped into the room to find Frost asleep on a sofa, and Aldus lounging in a chair next to him.

“So... he’s going to be alright?” Black Star asked.

“He’ll be fine,” Aldus replied in a soft tone, “He just needs rest. I’m just surprised it worked out as well as it did.”

“I knew you could do it, Aldus.” Black Star said while hovering over to sit on an arm of the chair.

“‘Aldus’ is it? You aren’t going to call me ‘little one’?” Aldus asked with a laugh. “I admit, Nightmare Moon... ‘Black Star’... its not a bad name.”

The black pegasus colt’s eyes flashed a vibrant green, “I sent ‘Black Star’ and one other to investigate the city and came upon this group of foals. But it wasn’t until I discovered that Frost had stolen gold from a group of criminals that I was forced to act.”

“I see...” Aldus said while eyeing the sleeping unicorn colt.

Black Star hovered in front of Aldus, “We can’t leave them here in the city Aldus, they’ll be in danger.”

“You’re right, Black Star.” Aldus said with a smirk. “Sweet Celestia, you really forced me into a corner here. Alright, I’ll talk it over with Rigel and see what he thinks.”

Black Star did a flip in the air and grinned at Aldus, “You really are the best, little one!”

“A black pegasus colt... a conjuration of the Nightmare... calls me ‘little one’... weird. Go rejoin the others. I’m going to catch some sleep before I meet with the ambassador. Wake me when he gets here... oh and make sure he isn’t having any bad dreams” Aldus said while pointing a hoof at Frost.

Black Star put on a serious face and saluted Aldus, “You can count on me!” he said before flying through a portal in the floor. Aldus shook his head and shut his eyes, thinking of the meeting that was to come.

---------------

“Cannonball!” Blue Bell shouted as she jumped off the ledge into the large pool.

The baths were situated next to a large circular pool complete with a lagoon and waterfall. It was the definition of luxury. Antares and Ruby looked over to Selene who nodded, giving them permission to join their friend.

Ruby turned to Pyrite, “Are you okay with Selene, Pyrite?”

The little colt nodded, “I like Selene, shes really nice.”

Selene smiled at Ruby, “I’ll watch him, don’t worry. You just go have fun with your friends.”

Along the edge of the pool, Iris stepped toward the water and stared at her reflection.

“Something wrong Iris?” Selene asked while setting Pyrite on the ground.

“I just have a lot of questions,” Iris said, “I’m sorry. I should be happier.”

Selene laughed, “You can’t force happiness Iris. I understand you must have many questions. I can answer some now if you’d like.”

Iris smiled, “Well I mainly want to know why we are here in this particular building. What is this place?”

Selene watched Pyrite trot alongside the deep end of the pool, “Pyrite sweetheart, be careful.” She turned to Iris and waved a hoof around the expanse of the pool area. “This is one of Equestria’s embassy resorts.”

“Embassy resorts?” Iris was confused.

“Yes, Equestria is a peaceful kingdom and doesn’t maintain full embassies from the other kingdoms anymore since they have been at peace with each other for so long. So, instead of having representatives maintain permanent residences in the kingdoms, they simply travel to these resorts and stay for a certain amount of time, then they are free to return to their homeland and families.”

“I see,” Iris said. Ponies certainly had different customs than gryphons.

Selene heard a scream as Pyrite fell into the deep end. She teleported to the side of the pool and scooped him out of the pool with a tendril of her mane.

“What did I tell you, Pyrite?” Selene chided.

“I’m sorry, Selene.” Pyrite said with a frown.

“Its okay,” Selene said in a soft tone, “Just be more careful next time.” the black alicorn said as two coils of her mane tickled the earth colt’s nose.

Selene heard laughing coming from the pool as she noticed Iris had joined the other three fillies. “You girls can play as long as you want, just make sure you wash afterwards.”

“Okay, Selene!” came the response.

“Alright sweetie, time for your bath.” Selene said while entering one of the smaller coves that were elegantly decorated to look like a hidden lagoon. Selene spread her wings and sat on her haunches while floating the colt in front of her. She let most of her mane fall forward since she decided to bathe as well. Her mane continued to slither about and harass Pyrite who was annoyed at first, but quickly began to giggle as it tickled him.

“Hold still, sweetheart.” Selene said while pouring soap into their bath. She used her hooves to wash Pyrite’s mane and tail and held him under the small waterfall at the end to rinse off.

“This feels great, Selene.” Pyrite said with a big grin, “Its been a long time since I had a bath. It reminds of my mommy.”

Remembering his mother, Pyrite frowned and began to climb out.

A coil of mane, now thick and solid due to being wet, wrapped around Pyrite’s middle, “You are just going to leave? You know Pyrite, I could use some help washing all this,” Selene said while running a hoof through her locks.

Pyrite watched it slither around independently, “Why is it moving like that?” he asked.

Selene smiled and swished her mane toward Pyrite, “Oh, some days I think it just has a mind of its own,” Selene said with a giggle. “It would take a brave pony to tame this mess.”

Pyrite smiled and jumped into the water with a large splash. Selene kept a coil around him to keep him from going under as she sat down on all four hooves. Pyrite climbed onto her back, being just above the water. A tendril gave him the bottle of soap which pyrite squirted into Selene’s wet locks. The black alicorn bent her head down allowing most of her hair tentacles to float atop the water. Pyrite began rubbing his hooves through the shifting mane and felt Selene move a bit.

“Like this?” Pyrite asked while spreading the soap around.

“Perfect,” Selene said while shifting her shoulders  and enjoying the soothing motions.

Pyrite climbed atop Selene’s head and washed between her ears. While reaching for a lock of mane he slipped and grabbed onto Selene’s horn. She laughed as he tried to hold his grip but eventually fell into the water in front of her.

The earth colt broke the surface and wrapped his hooves around the tendril keeping him afloat, “Why is your mane so long, Selene? I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Selene nuzzled the earth colt and put a hoof to her chin, “Well... I’m not like other ponies, Pyrite.” She leaned toward him and whispered conspiratorially, “I’m actually pretty old, that’s why my mane and tail are so long.”

Pyrite considered what the black alicorn said, “You don’t look old, you are one of the prettiest ponies I’ve seen.”

Selene’s heart melted at such adorableness, “Aww thank you sweetie! You really know what to say to make a mare happy.”

A few more tendrils snaked their way through the water and coiled affectionately around the earth colt. Selene smiled and nodded to Pyrite, “I wasn’t kidding about my mane sometimes having a mind if its own, but it seems to like you.”

Pyrite swam to Selene’s side to recover the bottle of soap and proceeded to empty it onto the remainder of her mane floating in the water. However as Pyrite approached them, the tentacles of black hair began to flail about in protest. The young earth colt attempted to grab them but was quickly immobilized.

“Hey! How am I supposed to deal with this?” Pyrite asked while several black tendrils coiled around him. The colt could only laugh as he was tickled and twisted about in the air.

While being twisted around above the water, Pyrite noticed a black hole open up in the wall. A small black pegasus bolted through and spun in the air toward Selene. “Have at thee monster!”

“Black Star!” Pyrite shouted in excitement.

Black Star careened into the mass of tendrils holding Pyrite, causing them to drop the earth colt into the water. The earth colt grabbed the empty bottle of shampoo and used it to bat away the tendrils that came at him.

“Get out of here!” Black Star yelled, “Go for help if we’re going to defeat this monster!”

“Monster?” Selene said with a gasp.

Pyrite knocked away more tentacles but lost his balance and fall backwards off Selene’s back. He held his breath preparing to meet water, but instead he landed on something soft and feathery. Selene had extended her right wing to catch Pyrite. She winked at him as he continued to fight his way to the wall between the bath and the pool. He saw Iris and the three fillies trotting over to the bath.

“Help- mphh!” a tendril of mane coiled around his muzzle preventing him from yelling. Two more coiled around his middle and brought him back to the black alicorn. Pyrite was pulled into the water while all the coils holding him fell away except for the one keeping him afloat.

Pyrite looked down at it as he bobbed up and down in the water. He rather liked these locks of mane that Selene had. There always seemed to be at least of one of them around, and several followed him when he was helping wash the rest of Selene’s mane. She seemed to control them like appendages. Pyrite patted it gently with a hoof, in response the tendril tightened and coiled around him further. The earth colt grabbed the tendril with both hooves and tugged it twice. Pyrite was gently lifted up and deposited on Selene’s back, just like he wanted. He looked over the side to see Black Star pinned to the ground by other locks of mane.

“Thats what happens when you call somepony mean names, Pyrite.” Selene said with a hint of mischief in her voice.

Pyrite shuddered, “I’ll be sure never to do that then.”

The three fillies and Iris trotted up to the bath and entered the water.

“Ahh...” Blue Bell sighed, “Nice and warm...”

Ruby stood in front of Selene with Iris at her side, “Thank you again for all of this, Selene.”

“Its no trouble at all, dear.” the black alicorn said with a gentle smile.

“Is Pyrite here? Did he enjoy his bath?” Ruby asked.

Selene giggled and lowered her head as Pyrite climbed on top of it, “I’m here, Ruby! Do I look clean?”

“You have a silver coat?!” Iris asked in surprise, “I didn’t notice before since you were so dirty!” she said with a wink.

“We’re done, Ruby. You girls can come to the dining room to find us when you’re finished. Are you hungry, Pyrite?” Selene asked.

“Yeah, a little bit.” the colt replied.

“Okay, lets go find Rigel and see what he’s prepared for us. Come along Black Star...” Selene said while stepping out of the bath.

Black Star grunted in resignation, “Coming mom...”

Selene levitated a few towels over to Pyrite and Black Star. The two colts dried themselves off while Selene exited the room. Pyrite turned around and slid down onto Selene’s back across from Black Star. The pegasus sat on his haunches swaying to and fro near the alicorn’s hips.

“I’m surprised you let yourself get caught so easily,” Pyrite said with a small grin.

“It’s not so easy getting away when she is determined.” Black Star stated plainly.

“You know me, Black Star.” Selene said, “Once I have something I love I don’t ever want to let it go. That goes for you too, sweetie.” Several locks of mane coiled affectionately around Pyrite, who hugged them all as best he could.

Selene entered the dining room to find an assortment of breakfast foods distributed across a small table. Rigel appeared from one of the kitchens carrying a pitcher of orange juice. “Hey there Pyrite, feel free to dig in.”

--------------

Frost Wind stirred and slowly opened his eyes. The room was dark except for the light showing through the window nearby. The young unicorn turned his head to see big green eyes staring at him. He almost screamed in surprise but the pony before him put a hoof to her lips indicating silence. Frost recognized her as the black alicorn Pyrite was with earlier in the night.

“What happened?” Frost whispered. “I remember blacking out...”

“You did blackout, sweetheart.” the alicorn said. “That unicorn saved you and repaired the damage to your horn.”

Frost began to remember. In a chair next to the couch was a grey unicorn with a silver mohawk. Frost remembered arguing with him about his friends.

“Wait...” Repaired the damage to my horn?

Frost ran a hoof across where the fissure in his horn should have been, but it was gone. “It’s- its gone!” Frost exclaimed, “It’s not there anymore! He fixed it, Selene!”

Selene motioned for the colt to lower his voice again, but giggled at his enthusiasm. Frost quickly got up and jumped for joy, but soon regretted it. The unicorn colt witnessed the world spin and colors begin to shift. He stumbled toward the alicorn and fell off the couch to be enveloped in a magical field. Something was different, as he floated in front of Selene he could feel her magic reverberate off his horn. He could sense her magic in ways he could not before. Selene sat the unicorn on her back and got up to leave the room.

Frost was too excited to simply stay still. He grabbed parts of the black alicorn’s mane and climbed onto her head. “Where are we going?”

Selene looked up at the anxious colt, “We’re going to the atrium, Frost. I want to see what you can do now that your horn is fixed.”

“Fixed?” Frost asked, “As in, I can do magic now without hurting myself?”

“Thats what we’re about to find out!” Selene said in excitement.  

The black alicorn entered the atrium and set Frost down. “Okay, we don’t want to overdo it since you are still healing. What simple spells do you know?”

Frost frowned, “I don’t know much, just the utility spells that Ruby taught me. Simple levitation, teleportation, and an invisibility spell.”

“Those will be fine, sweetie.” Selene said. “Do you like games, Frost?”

Frost smiled and nodded.

“Good, why don’t we make a game out of it? First, show me your levitation.”

Selene picked up a few rocks with her hair tendrils and tossed them at Frost, which he caught each time.

“Excellent,” Selene said, “Now teleportation, follow me if you can.” Selene teleported to many different places throughout the atrium while Frost followed as best he could.

“Alright, how about a game of hide and seek?”

“Oh, okay so I use my invisibility spell to hide?”

“Yup!” Selene said with a grin.

“Wait... how do I know you won’t just sense my magic and find me that way?” Frost asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Cheat?” Selene asked with a gasp, “I would never! Alicorn’s honor!” she put a hoof to her chest and made a crossing motion. Five thick tendrils of her mane slithered forward and did the same.

 Frost nodded and looked around to find a good hiding spot.

“Frost...” Selene said, “Lets make this interesting... if you can hide for ten minutes without me finding you... I’ll give you a cool reward. But, if I find you before then, you have to answer any question I ask and you can’t lie.”

Frost grinned, “Ten minutes for a cool reward? Deal!”

“Alright,” Selene said. The black alicorn sat on her haunches and draped her mane over her face, then began to count.

Frost looked around and quickly cast the spell on himself. He saw a tree near the edge of the atrium that was a perfect hiding spot. However, upon arriving there he watched several of Selene’s hair tentacles probing the air. There was obviously something magical about her mane. He had seen Princess Celestia once, and only for a few seconds, but he remembered her ethereal mane and how it flowed even when there was no wind. Something about the way they moved made him feel uneasy. Frost needed a backup plan.

Selene eventually stopped counting and surveyed the area, “Ready or not... here I come...”

The black alicorn moved about the area slowly, being careful to not overlook anything. She knew Frost was clever having observed his behavior via Black Star and Red Sun, he was much like Aldus in that respect. Selene passed by the most obvious hiding places, then checked some of the more subtle areas. Nothing under the small bridge, nothing near the picnic tables, nothing in the flowers or bushes. Selene closed her eyes and attempted to think like a crafty unicorn colt. Suddenly, a realization. She saw at least three tall trees in the atrium. However, upon checking them she found nothing. The time passed ten minutes, and the black alicorn could not believe she had been bested.

“Sweetheart,” she called, “It’s been ten minutes, you’ve won, you can come out now.”

Selene hovered in air at the center of the atrium and heard nothing but silence. Then, out of nowhere a cheer came from above her. Seconds later something fell onto her back and latched onto her mane. Selene looked up in shock at the glass ceiling of the atrium then at the colt on her back. He grinned and laughed as her mane coiled around him.

“You were on the roof the whole time?!” Selene asked in shock.

“Yup! Pretty cool idea huh?”

Selene didn’t want to admit it, but it really was. “How did you do it?”

“Just a little spell I came up with a while ago, but could never use because... well, you know...” Frost said.

“You created a spell yourself? At your age? How?”

“Well, I read about it in a book. It was an entry level textbook for unicorns who went to school for magic. I just... um... borrowed it from a library.”

“Borrowed it?” Selene asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Okay... I stole it, but they were going to throw it away! Honest! It was wrinkled and torn up. I just figured I shouldn’t let it go to waste. Besides, fooled you didn’t I?” The colt asked with a smirk, “I’d say it payed off.”

Selene tickled the colt with her mane as she descended to the ground, “That’s true, you beat me.” Selene admitted as they exited the atrium heading toward the dining room.

Once Frost felt Selene’s mane loosen its hold on him, he climbed onto her head, “Selene, even though I won, I’ll still answer the question you were going to ask me.”

Selene looked up at the blue colt, “Aww sweetie, you don’t need to worry about that.”

Frost leaned forward and wrapped his forehooves around Selene’s horn, “Please? I owe it you for being so nice and taking care of my friends and I.”

“Don’t you care about your reward...?” Selene asked, “Don’t you want to know about that?”

“Well, yeah I do. But I figured you’d tell me about it or give it to me when you were ready.”

Selene admired the caring attitude of the young unicorn, and the way he was acting gave her a good idea of what his answer to the question would be.  

“Alright Frost, the question I was going to ask was why did you steal gold from those ponies at the docks?”

“Oh... that...” Frost said. He relinquished his hold on Selene’s horn and slid off her head back into the awaiting coils of her mane. “I shouldn’t have done it, I knew then it was wrong.”

“So why did you do it?” Selene asked.

“I did  it for my friends,” Frost said, pulling a tendril to himself and wrapping his hooves around it. “I wanted us to finally have something, anything. Some new clothes for the cold nights, a new teddy bear for Pyrite, some fresh food for once, a place to stay for a few days, or even a way out of this stupid, unforgiving city.”

Selene smiled, “Well... I can think of way worse reasons to steal than those.”

Frost looked up, “You aren’t mad, then?”

Selene laughed, “Oh sweetheart, I’m not mad. I’ve never been mad at any of you foals. And I wouldn’t worry about leaving this city, I think Aldus might just have something in mind.”

Frost couldn’t believe it, “What?! Are you serious?!”

“I am quite serious,” Selene said.

“Aldus,” Frost murmured, “Yes that was his name, is he a powerful unicorn?”

“One of the most powerful I’ve ever known,” Selene answered.

“I need to thank him for helping me, and... I- there is something I need to ask him.”

“Oh?” Selene asked, “Well he’s going to be busy for most of the day, but I suspect you’ll have all the time you need to talk with him at dinner tonight. But for now, I know your friends have been worried about you.” Selene said as they entered the dining room and were greeted by cheers and the embrace of friends.

-----------------

Black Star arrived to find Aldus already awake and staring out one of the far windows in the room. “He’s here, Aldus.”

“Excellent,” Aldus replied and trotted out the door. He crossed the lobby and made his way to the topmost floor where a large set of double doors were cracked open. Upon entering the room an older, slightly greying unicorn in a silver robe rose from a table to meet him. He had two large unicorns at his side wearing silver armor and helmets that completely hid their faces. The armor was adorned by many gleaming silver gemstones, while their helmets sported decorative purple and blue plumes. Seeing the hulking armor, Aldus was reminded of his dear friend Polaris. He often wore a variant of such armor.

“I can scarcely believe its true, Aldus... you are alive.” the aging unicorn said with a gentle smile.

“Ambassador Silverthorne?” Aldus asked with a gasp. Once the old unicorn was close enough, Aldus immediately recognized the family resemblance.

With a smile Aldus knelt in front of Silverthorne, “I am struck with distant memories, sir. Forgive me. It was your distant grandfather who welcomed me into your kingdom when I was just a foal, and it was he who I worked with when I assumed my political position. I swear you look just like him.”

Silverthorne pulled Aldus off the floor, with tears in his eyes he pulled Aldus into an embrace. “Stories are told even today about the unicorn who our Princess Seabreeze fell in love with. Many young colts and mares romanticize your relationship, and you remain ever a friend to the Silver Isles.”

Aldus frowned and stepped away from Silverthorne toward a window. The Silver Isles ambassador immediately regretted bringing up the princess. However, Aldus simply held up a hoof and silenced any attempts at apology. “Well, I suppose its good they remember the good rather than the bad. I try to do the same, but not with much success.”

Silverthorne moved to stand beside Aldus, he was slightly shorter than the magister but still commanded a mighty presence, just like his ancestor. “You should know that Princess Desalia still believes that the love you two shared was a vital part of Princess Seabreeze’s alicorn transformation.”  

“Then I am truly to blame for what happened to her. I- I don’t want to talk about that now, Silverthorne. Princess Desalia... how is she?” Aldus asked with a smirk.

Silverthorne met Aldus glib’ expression with one of his own, “Oh she’s been fine, all things considering. The Silver Library remains the same, its secrets kept safely under the guard of our princess’s watch. But she has been troubled lately... she claims there is something... different about the kingdom as of late...”

Aldus nodded and motioned for Silverthorne to sit down, “Then she has not lost her perceptive wit, that is good. Indeed there is something different about your kingdom. It’s changelings.”

For the next few hours Aldus recounted the events of his capture by Silth’s changelings and her plans for the Silver Isles. He also revealed his plan, which Silverthorne considered for a long time, and had many questions. However, eventually he agreed and shook hooves with Aldus.

“Are you certain this plan will work, Aldus? The entire thing hinges on one key moment.” Silverthorne said with concern.

“It is our best chance, Silverthorne. According to Ciaran, Silth doesn’t know her servants already attempted to capture me. She only gave them orders to attempt my capture when they felt I was most vulnerable. I could arrive to her at any time in the near future and she shouldn’t suspect a thing. If its me she wants, its me she’ll get.” Aldus said with confidence, whether genuine or not, Silverthorne couldn’t tell.

“Our armada can be in position in two to three days, the ocean permitting. But, Aldus... you realize this could all be a trap? Trusting changelings...”

“I understand Silverthorne, but I believe Ciaran was being honest. Also, part of our agreement was that she reveal the location of her own colony. Our scouts confirmed its location and it is being watched as we speak. If we are betrayed, her colony will be obliterated.” Aldus said with a sinister smile.

Silverthorne put a hoof to Aldus’ shoulder, “If this information came from any other pony...” he said with a hearty laugh, “But since it comes from you, I believe Princess Desalia will listen. Once this is over, I hope we can welcome you and your friends to stay with us a while.”

Aldus’ grin nearly split his face, “Oh you know we’ll be there. Pythia has been calling my name, as well as Rigel’s. We’ll visit the Silver City as well I’m sure.”

Silverthorne clasped his hooves together in excitement, “Excellent! Excellent! Oh yes, excellent! Well, I’d better take my leave. It was wonderful meeting you, Aldus. It’s been a tremendous honor, truly.”

Aldus walked the ambassador to the door and bowed in respect, “Assuming we all live through this, it will continue to be an honor. Goodbye Silverthorne, safe journey home.” As both unicorns went their separate ways, neither noticed that one of the guards had been listening intently the entire time.

-------------

Aldus found Rigel and the foals outside in the yard. Iris was playing tag with Antares while Blue Bell and Ruby and Rigel were sitting on the grass watching the clouds pass by. Selene sat in a patch of grass watching Pyrite and Black Star kick a ball back and forth. Before long Aldus saw the last foal, Frost. The blue unicorn seemed to be better now, and was using his magic already. He emerged from some bushes with a red and purple flower and presented it to Selene, who was overjoyed at the display of kindness. Frost climbed onto the black alicorn and levitated the flower into her mane.

Aldus approached the group and cleared his throat to announce his presence. “I see you have recovered, Frost. That is good.”

Frost wrinkled his nose in concentration and teleported in front of Aldus, “Thank you, Aldus. I’d like to know how I could show my appreciation. I’d also like to apologize for the way I acted earlier. Could I ask you a question?”

“Can it wait, Frost? I’ve got something important to announce to your friends.” Aldus said.

“Oh, um... sure. Okay.” Frost said.

Selene enveloped Frost in a magical field and sat him between her forehooves. “Now is not the time to ask him that, Frost.” Selene whispered.

Frost looked up, “How do you know what I’m going to ask?”

Selene winked at the colt and nuzzled him. “Oh, just a hunch.”

Rigel flew over to Aldus, “Well, how did it go?”

“The ambassador was Silverthorne, you remember his ancestor?” Aldus asked.

“I do!” Rigel said, “He was the one who suggested we stay on Pythia during our vacations. Oh I’m happy his family is still around.”

“Me too,” Aldus agreed, “They agreed to our plan, and are ready to mobilize in two to three days. Which means we have to leave tonight.”

“Right, what do we do about the children?” Rigel asked.

“Rigel, I’ve thought about it a lot the last few hours and I think they should return to Canterlot with us. Would you object to them staying at our manor?”

Rigel smiled, “It was going to be big for the two of us and Marigold, wasn’t it? I think that is a fantastic idea.”

“Children, I need you all to listen to me.” Aldus said. The children trotted over to sit in front of Aldus and Rigel. Selene slowly got up and moved to stand behind them with Pyrite and Black Star atop her head.

 “Rigel, Selene, and I are leaving Manehatten to return to Canterlot, and we’d like to take you with us. What do you think about that?”

All the children cheered. Ruby and Iris spoke up first, “Will we be living in Canterlot then?”

“No,” Rigel said, “Not exactly. Recently, Aldus and I decided to purchase a manor along with its accompanying land in the countryside behind Canterlot. Many nobles maintain summer homes there and we decided it was a good idea to have a second place of residence. Princess Luna needs her space, we can’t be cluttering up her towers all the time.” Rigel said with a smirk toward Aldus.

“Princess Woona?!” Pyrite practically screamed.

“Shh... Yes Pyrite, you’ll probably get a chance to meet her once we get back.” Selene said softly.

“The home itself is quite big, but we intended it to be used for a few different purposes anyway, I don’t think having a few foals stay with us will hurt anything.” Aldus said.

“This is a dream come true,” Blue Bell said with tears in her eyes, “When do we leave?”

“Right now,” Aldus said, “Our airship is waiting.”

“Airship?!” Frost and Pyrite gasped.

“Oh thats right kids,” Rigel said while picking up Blue Bell. He flicked away her tears and flew up over the embassy and pointed toward a massive airship docked nearby. On its side, the large crest of the royal pony sisters could be seen glittering in the sun.

“Wow...” Blue Bell said in awe.

“Thats right, Blue Bell. When Luna’s courtiers come to a city, we do it style!”

--------------

Several hours later, Pyrite tossed and turned in his bunk while the airship rumbled through some turbulence. They were sailing through storm clouds now and every so often lightning would arc across the sky illuminating the rolling hills and many lakes around Manehatten. He and Frost had eaten a delicious dinner with the rest of their friends while Aldus and Rigel snuck away to have some sort of meeting. There were several ponies with golden armor all over the place, Ruby had told him they were the royal guard, but he was still afraid of the storm on this strange airship.

Pyrite looked up at the bed above him and saw flashes of light against the wall. They appeared even when there was no lightning.

“Frost,” Pyrite whispered, “Frost are you awake?”

“Yeah...” Frost said, “Can’t sleep, what about you?”

“I can’t either... I’ve never been in the sky like this before. I’ve been flying with Antares, but this is different. The lightning seems so close. I’m scared.” Pyrite said, “I don’t even have my teddy bear anymore.”

Frost stopped practicing his candlelight spell and jumped down from his bunk. He tucked Pyrite in and leaned on his bed, “I’m scared too, but for different reasons. Don’t worry, I know Selene and Aldus will keep us safe.”

“Selene!” Pyrite said, scrambling out his bunk. “We should find her and ask if we can sleep with her tonight!”

Frost put a hoof on Pyrite’s shoulder, “I’m not sure we should be wandering around the ship this late. Besides, we don’t even know where Selene is.”

“I think she is with Aldus in his cabin,” Pyrite said while trotting to the door. “Coming, Frost?”

Frost sighed and followed behind Pyrite, “Yeah I’m coming, if only because I know Ruby would kill me if she knew I let you wander the ship alone.”

Pyrite and Frost entered the hallway and crept down the stairs, passing by Antares and Blue Bell’s cabin as well as Ruby’s and Iris’. At the bottom there were two doors, Pyrite approached the one on the right and knocked.

“How do you know its that one?” Frost whispered.

Pyrite shrugged, “Just a feeling.”

Aldus rolled over and muttered something while the knocking became louder. The darkness and shadow from the moon shifted on top of Aldus as it peeled away to form a large black alicorn. Selene sat on the bed and looked at Aldus, who lay sprawled out atop the covers snoring. The bed was large, as the cabin belonged to Celestia and the one next door to Luna.

“Somepony is at the door, Aldus,” Selene whispered.

Aldus yawned and rolled over again, “Jus.. jus tell em to go away...”

Selene rolled her eyes and used her magic to open the door, revealing a small silver earth colt, “Pyrite? Sweetie what are you doing out of bed?”

Pyrite trotted over to Selene and flinched as a clap of thunder shook the ship, “I can’t sleep, I’m scared of the storm. Could Frost and I sleep with you tonight?”

“Frost?” Selene asked, finally seeing the blue unicorn appear in the doorway.

“Yeah...” Frost said rubbing his eyes, “Neither of us can sleep.”

Selene smiled at Pyrite and levitated him onto the bed, “Aldus... you don’t mind Frost and Pyrite staying with us for the night, do you?”

Aldus squinted over his shoulder at Pyrite, “No... the bed is big enough. Just try and go to sleep as soon as you can, okay?”

Pyrite climbed onto Selene’s back and disappeared under her mane. She looked at Frost and smiled, “Coming? I don’t bite.”

Frost felt his eyelids becoming heavy as he stared at Selene’s glowing green eyes. The cabin was starting to get cold and the bed looked warm. Frost jumped up and laid down between Aldus and Selene. The black alicorn laid on her side and wrapped her forehooves around Frost. Selene looked down and chuckled at his attempts to remain awake.

Frost found it hard to look away from Selene’s eyes, “Do you think he’ll do it, Selene?” Frost asked while letting out a big yawn, “Do you think Aldus will teach me? Make me his apprentice?”

“Shh...” Selene cooed, “Aren’t you too tired to be thinking about that now?”

Frost yawned again and nodded, “I am tired... why are your eyes... so... pretty?” he finally relented and laid down his head.

 Selene smiled as the colt finally passed out. She pulled him to her chest and looked over at Aldus.

“Well... will you teach him?”

“I've never taken on an apprentice, but... if I survive this business with Silth and Ciaran... perhaps its time I did.”