Out of the Sky (Private)

[Zealot]

Stiletto nods and glances to the back of the living room. She moves around the seating area to a cupboard under the stairs. It takes a few moments but the pegasus manages to open the door and retrieve a smallish stretcher. The two would have to carry it between them on the way back. She folded it up and hefted it onto her back, securing it onto her saddle. 

 

With that done she turned back to Avery. "Alright, that's the stretcher. We'll lug the tablet back together when we get there. It'll be difficult, but hey. I hope you're good at precision flying." Indeed, the stretcher was designed to be used in flight. Though it required some decent synchronised flight to be used properly, let alone effectively. She hoped that Avery had been a good flier a thousand years ago. Of course, she'd seen him in flight the first time they'd gone to the castle, but Stiletto had no idea just how good he was. Still, it shouldn't be too hard. They could always walk out of the forest, though that would be dangerous and it would take a while. Stiletto didn't particularly want to carry the tablet for a long time, it was bound to be heavy. In fact, she wondered if the stretcher could hold the tablet, but if it could hold a pony then she supposed it could hold the tablet.

 

"Ok, let's go." Stiletto announced, eager to get off. This wasn't going to be a pleasant experience, the spirit of Nightmare Moon had chilled her to the bone. Still, she was willing to do it for Avery. He was nice, and fun, and it was going to be an adventure. Maybe after this time she'd have something good to write about in her travel guide. There was one thing nagging on her mind as she headed out the door though.

 

"So this tablet, what's so special about it? Did you see anything special about it last time we were there? Or is it just curiosity." After all, it would be nice to know this was more than just random curiosity, Not that it was a bad thing of course, but hey. Stiletto felt she should ask.

[Avery]

Avery watched as Stiletto got the folded stretcher, securing it onto her saddle. He quickly nodded, saying "I think I can do that, haven't really had that much practice with precision flying... though I think I can manage. Not to worry, it won't fall on my watch!" and with that said, he followed Stiletto out the door. Closing the door behind him, he spread his wings and stretched them for a moment, before lightly jumping from the ground to fly into the air. He slowed down when Stiletto asked about the tablet, and why he wanted to see it. He blinks and puts a hoof to his chin, he hadn't really thought about that. It was just an impulse to see something like that, it seemed familiar, though nothing was coming to mind about it.

 

"I dunno, it just seems like something is odd about it. You know? Like how you have that feeling that you've been somewhere before, even though you've never even stepped hoof in the place all your life? It's kinda like that. Déjà vu. Plus it kinda looks like one of those relics that you'd find out about legends and stuff on, it did have writing on it, so I'm sure it must have something important." he says while making sure he was on track to the castle. It felt strange to him, that he would recognize something as simple as a stone tablet. Though, if he did recognize it, it might just have a connection with his past, maybe even helping him with remembering some of it.

 

While the time getting there was shorter than last time, it still felt eerie flying over a forest like the Everfree. No one really knew what was really in the Everfree.Timberwolves, manticore, hydras, and a number of other creatures that lay in the depths of the leaves. Who knows what flying creatures might come out of its depths, but at least flying over it high enough would be a safe bet to see the castle again while not getting ambushed. Avery was glad to have Stiletto be with him on this journey back to the castle within the Everfree, he thought of the many different possibilities that would've happened while he went on his own, but most of them he didn't have the think about now. It was different being with someone that didn't exactly like the views of royalty, but she was nice enough to give him a chance. He wasn't expecting any of this to happen, in fact, he thought nothing of it until it was brought up. Nothing about royalty, nothing about duties or castles or anything about this town. But, he was glad to be here anyway, it seemed like a nice town. But that's to be seen. At least he was going on this small little journey to the Castle with Stiletto.

 

The small smoke stack from yesterday was still there, it must've been Zecora cooking up something again. Maybe when he gets the chance he'll visit her again, she did say something about a gift yesterday, but that darkness was a bit too much for the two of them to handle. They needed the rest. Right now, they were heading back to the Everfree Castle to retrieve something of great importance.

[Zealot]

With that, the pegasus followed Avery outside and into the air. Stiletto was lucky and she caught a gust of wind, riding the updraught to give her a real push into the sky. She wasn't expecting it and had to swerve to keep her balance, flying could be treacherous at times. Once she had her flight path under control, she rejoined the alicorn like nothing had happened. "Well, it definitely sounds like something worth getting then. Be better than that random rock I snagged last time we were there at any rate." If this was something that could help Avery then it was definitely worth the risk. After all, it would be good for him to have a little help with his memory problem. Stiletto wasn't exactly much use where that was concerned. 

 

Indeed, the Everfree forest did look daunting from up in the sky. It was ok though, they were flying and it wasn't like anything was just going to jump out at them. Right? That thought set Stiletto on edge and she decided to fly higher, hoping Avery was following. Just below cloud level should do it. There they could soar in peace. Stiletto loved to fly high of course, and from this height the Everfree looked peaceful rather than dangerous. The smoke stack in the distance was obviously Zecora's hut. The pegasus wouldn't mind going to see her again, she seemed nice. Unfortunately they had little time left. They needed to get to the castle, but for now Stiletto simply took in the sights.

 

"I love flying high," the pegasus called over. "Here I feel free," she laughed happily and did a little loop the loop. Stiletto giggled, "No responsibilities. Nopony telling you what to do. No gloomy auras, just the air and those you're flying with." Though that brought a question to the front of her mind. "Hey, how high have you flown Avery?" It was an honest question, since Stiletto's talent was flying high. "I really like to go high. It's hard since the air is so thin, but it's worth it."

[Avery]

The sky was a wondrous place to be in, that's for certain. The amount of freedom you have in the air is compared to that of imagination. Avery always enjoyed flying, it felt extremely good to just relax in the sky without a care in the world, it felt nice to see the world from this high. He listened to Stiletto's thought about being up this high, and he agreed. Being up this high was great, with nothing to put you down or take you away. ...Well, besides high winds and tornadoes, but those don't show up often. He then heard Stiletto's question about how high he's flown, he was about to answer instantly, but stopped to think about how high he's even flown. Sure, he's gone high, probably higher than most, but then hearing that Stiletto's gone where the air is more thin, he dashed that thought out completely.

 

"Umm... well I've flown pretty high before. I think just above normal cloud levels, though I think I can go higher. I just don't want to." he simply said, gliding forward. He spun around and started gliding upside down on his back, but he turned again seeing that it wasn't all that comfortable doing that. He took in the surrounding area, it was nice and peaceful above this forbidden forest, almost as if someone could make a cloud home here. Though, with the forest as it was, it was almost certain that something would come out and disturb the poor person that would make a home here. Though, Zecora seems to be holding her own just fine, so it might be possible.

 

But even with a forbidden forest on the looms, it was nice to just have some time to fly around and enjoy the time that was given to them. "You know, there's just something about flying that's so enjoyable, so... relaxing. Being this free to do whatever you want" he said as he did a small twirl "it's nice. Hey, we're almost there! See, the castle's just below!" he says, pointing to the broken down castle in the distance. "I remember seeing that tablet in the back, where... I think the throne would be? I'm not sure, it looked like where it would be. Or something else, it seemed like an important area."

[Zealot]

So he'd never been far above the clouds before? Wow, Stiletto couldn't imagine a world where she'd never go as high as she could. It was cold up there and the air was thin sure, but it was such a thrill. Being on the very edge definitely had a unique feeling that she could never quite explain. Fear, mixed with awe and excitement. Reaching up to touch nothing at all, there was a thrill to it definitely. Maybe she could tempt him up there some day.

 

Still, she agreed with every word he said about flying. It was just so freeing and so right to her. It felt good to be with somepony who shared her feelings. Not every pegasus could truely appreciate what the ability of flight did, most just saw it as a thrill or a cool ability to do. For Stiletto it was much more than that. It was freedom, pure and simple. "Yes," she called over. "Flying is amazing. I just wish everypony could appreciate it. I feel bad for the unicorns and the earth ponies. They'll never know the joys of being up in the air and being as free as we can be, as free as we can choose to be." Of course, there were those pegasi who didn't think much of flying. Stiletto didn't really think much of them.

 

The two arrived at the castle and it looked as abandoned as ever. Stiletto wasn't fooled though, she knew there was something lurking in the ruins. "Ok, same as before. I'll do a flyover and check if the coast is clear. Then we'll go in, grab the tablet and get out. If you're ok with that of course." Though the pegasus didn't wait for a response. She flew over the castle in a lazy flyover, looking it over through her spyglass. 

 

Just as before, Stiletto didn't see anything in the ruins. She saw the odd rustling in the bushes and that same dreadful aura could be felt, though to a lesser extent. The scout flew back to Avery to give the all clear. "Same as last time. Nightmare Moon is still around, I can feel her, but it's faint. I think it's safe. Just let's not stay here too long yeah?"

[Avery]

It was true, Unicorns and Earth Ponies didn't have as much freedom as pegasi did. It was also true that some pegasi didn't take flying as much as Stiletto does. Avery just enjoys flying from time to time, it was nice, relaxing, and it helps him unwind if he was too stressed out. It was here if he needed it, and he's glad to be able to fly with someone that has such a passion for flying like this. At least this is a relaxing time before they had to head dive into the Everfree castle again.

 

And when they did arrive at the castle, it was still the same. Stiletto had a plan for doing another roundabout to make sure the coast is clear, then they'll go in and back out. That sounded like a good plan, it helped before. He nodded as he watched Stiletto do a rather lazy flyover. He looked at the castle below, it was the same old castle, but now with the sun shining down on it, it was much more clear to see its details. It's broken down, no roof to be seen, old and grey with overgrowth covering most of the area. It was as abandoned as it could ever be, but something still lived inside.

 

Stiletto came back, telling him of the situation. He nodded "Yeah, not gonna stay there for too long this time. Just get in there, get that thing and get out. Simple, as, that." he soon says. Then he heads on down to the ruined castle, through the open roof and into the main hall. It was the same as before, as soon as he enter, he felt something creeping up, though this time it felt sluggish. Which was good on their part, because they needed the time to get this tablet and get out safely. It wasn't too long before he found the same spot with the tablet, and yep, there was his mark he left yesterday, this had to be it.

 

"Hey! It's over here!" he said as he barely lifts it up with his magic "Okay, yeah, this thing is a lot heavier than it seems. What is this thing made of, obsidian? ...It actually might, because it's getting hard to hold with my magic. Come on! Lets get that stretcher ready and get going!" he calls to Stiletto, as he struggles to hold the tablet which had strange writings on it. What was with this slab? Was it magical? What secret did it old? Why was it rejecting Avery's magic to let him hold it?

[Zealot]

The pegasus nodded enthusiastically once Avery said they wouldn't stay long. Yes, get in and get out. That's all she wanted to hear. After he flew down to the castle she took a deep breath and cocked her crossbow. Taking a final second to steady her nerves she flew after the alicorn and into the ruined castle. That presence was there and she nearly jumped at the contact when she felt it. Nightmare Moon's oppressive aura shrouding the place in darkness. Though it was the middle of the day and the aura was faint, Stiletto still felt uneasy about it. Still, now she knew what it was she could focus. The pegasus kept her cool, even if she was on edge, the creeping darkness was kept at bay.

 

This time they didn't linger and went straight to the room with the tablet, all the way Stiletto kept glancing around at the shadows. Even in broad daylight, the place was scary, dark and uninviting. Still, it wasn't long until they reached the room with the tablet and Stiletto nodded nervously at Avery's request. She fumbled with the aerial stretcher, clearly on edge, and laid it on the floor. The pegasus took one end of the stretcher, the rear and clipped herself into the stretcher. It was designed to fit like a saddle, that way it would be secure to use in flight. The sides were sloped and rigid, but Stiletto still had her doubts. Hopefully it would hold.

 

"Ok, it's up," she said at last. Stiletto took another nervous breath, "Put the tablet in and take the front, then let's get out of here." She didn't much care what the tablet was made up of at the moment. The empath was focused on keeping her aura steady and strong, though in truth at the moment it was radiating nervousness and fear. Stiletto had to resort to an old technique she'd learnt a while ago to keep her focused so that Nightmare Moon's aura didn't effect her all that much. What was it? Oh, just thinking of one thought over and over again. Something simple and easy to repeat. That was 'pineapples'. Stiletto repeated it over and over again in her head, trying to maintain focus. 

[Avery]

The essence of Nightmare Moon, even while in a sluggish state, it was sill powerful. Still trying to corrupt the area in darkness, to make it night forever. The bushes outside swirled and swayed, as a dark force would try and enter the domain. But it was still slow, and they still had enough time to get this tablet and get out. Even with this known, it was very hard to keep a grip on even with magic. It felt as if the tablet was pushing away the magical force to keep it up, but Avery wasn't about to give up on that, he kept the tablet up long enough for Stiletto to get the stretcher ready and going. With it up, Avery puts the other end on himself and the tablet on the stretcher.

 

"Alright! Let's get going!" he said as he took the lead as he took off to the sky with Stiletto. The tablet itself wasn't all that heavy, in fact it was physically lighter than what it looked like. He looked back at the ruined castle, the darkness that was creeping along had now subsided, giving up on the attempt. Avery sighs in relief as he took more of his focus to his flying, making sure he wasn't doing anything bad to disturb Stiletto's flying either. It was a close call for the both of them, it seemed that whatever is using that darkness had waited for their return, but they were smart in coming at noon making the darkness unable to move in the daylight.

 

Avery looked back as well as he could to see how Stiletto was holding, she was a bit tense while there. He had to ask "Hey, Stiletto? Are you doing alright? You seemed a bit on edge." He wanted to be sure that she was alright, anyone with her ability would know how she felt, but he doesn't. He had to be careful about what he says, feels, or even how to act when around her. Heck, his mother seemed to break around her, so he thought that he was the same in a sense, even though he's MUCH weaker in both magic and emotions than his mother is. But he still wanted to be safe, so that he knows what to and what not to bring up or accidentally do.

[Zealot]

Stiletto looked cautiously around as she felt the presense of Nightmare Moon encroach. It was slow and sluggish but that didn't mean it felt any less malevolent. The empath kept up her focus and repeated the word 'pineapple' in her head over and over to keep is from affecting her too much. What took Avery so long? The tablet was heavy sure, but they had more important things to worry about didn't they? Like escaping some sort of weird being of nightmare. 

 

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the alicorn gave the all clear and Stiletto flew into the sky with quite a bit of enthusiasm. There might have even been a slight 'whoosh' from the ground as she chased after Avery. That upset the stretcher and caused it to rock precariously, though thankfully the surprisingly light load did not overturn. "Sorry," she apologised, with a nervous tone to her voice and evened out. 

 

There, they were up in the sky once more and the empath felt the cold shrill of the darkness recede. It might have been her imagination, but Stiletto felt the slight tinge of frustration from it. Almost like it was annoyed that it hadn't caught them, that just made her more frightened of the thing guarding the ruins. Still, the pegasus focused on maintaining her flight with Avery and that helped push Nightmare Moon to the back of her mind. In fact, she was so intent on that, she almost missed Avery's question. "Pineapples," she said, involuntarily. "What?" Stiletto asked. "I... I'm not ok Avery. That thing, Nightmare Moon. I think it was waiting for us, it was angry we escaped." She gritted her teeth in an attempt to recover her resolve. "That was not a nice aura, I hope this tablet was worth it. I'm not going back there again. Come on, I need to get home and..." she trailed off. What could she do? The poor empath had been shaken by the malicious aura and needed some comfort. "Oh, let's just get out of here," she finished.

[Avery]

Avery listened to Stiletto as they flew back to Ponyville. He felt bad to have brought her back to the castle, he didn't expect her to react like that, it was almost violent. But she was right, it felt as if that thing back there was waiting for them to return, angry that they escaped before. Even he felt the torturous vibes coming from that dark mist, it wasn't friendly at all. He stayed silent for a moment, hoping that this tablet was worth the trouble too, slightly blaming himself for pushing this to her. When Stiletto trailed off, Avery muttered "I... l-look I'm s-" but then she finished her statement, which shut him up. He tried to say it once more, but it was hard to bring up the moment again, he didn't know what to say fearing that she might snap at him because she's so shaken.

 

But, after getting passed the forest at last, he sputtered out "Hey... uh, I-I'm sorry about... dragging you along in this. I... I didn't expect that thing to be expecting us. I just..." he then started to mutter his words, making what the rest of the sentence unclear. But he did seem uneasy about saying that, like he wasn't sure about saying it at all. But he soon shook that off, having finished what he needed to say and focused about getting to Stiletto's house, thinking it would be better for the both of them if they just relaxed. He hasn't felt that tense since yesterday, and it was really getting to him. As if the mist was targeting him, trying to tire him. But that didn't matter now, right now they needed to get back to rest.

 

And so they went back to the home Stiletto was staying at, it still as plain as can be, but its home. Avery lands just outside the door, trying to keep the stretcher stable, and opens it, walking inside with Stiletto. The cold air rushed by him once entering the house, he shivered slightly before moving forward. He trots over to the couch "I think here will be good, lets just set it down and sit for bit. ...I'm sorry, really..." he said weakly.

[Zealot]

Flying back to Ponyville proved not to be too difficult. The alicorn and the pegasus managed to keep in sync for the most part, and the lightness of their cargo sure helped. It seemed the stretcher was a good idea after all, even though they had to co-ordinate a fair amount when changing altitude. All the way Stiletto could feel that something was bothering Avery, which certainly didn't help after she'd just had to contend with the presence of Nightmare Moon. It was there, like a live grenade about to go off. All that seemed to keep it at bay was Avery's nerves. She'd not realised that he was nervous as well. The empath wondered if she was the cause for that. After all she did tend to effect the ponies around her, even if it was subtly. 

 

Once they were out of the forest Stiletto was surprised to hear Avery apologise. She didn't reply, instead simply conveying her acceptance through her empathy. Hopefully he would feel a bit better, as if it wasn't too bad. "Let's just get home," she intoned afterwards. "I feel like some ice cream." And with that, she sailed over the rooftops of Ponyville with her friend and landed daintily outside her house. 

 

Once there she followed Avery inside, placing the tablet and stretcher down on the living room floor. She shuddered at the chill air as well, and promptly closed the door after releasing herself from the harness. Then came a heavy sigh from the pegasus as she concluded that now they were back, they were safe. 

 

Now they were home, she concluded with the alicorn. Sitting for a bit would definitely be good. Maybe then she could calm down. Stiletto trotted over to join Avery on the sofa and relaxed into it's comforting embrace. "It's ok," she replied, trying to calm them both with her empathy. "You couldn't have known Avery, it's fine. Don't beat yourself up about it. It's just, I'm a lot more sensitive than most ponies, so I feel things a lot more strongly than they do. It's a double edged sword that I just have to live with." She smiled weakly and looked across at him, "If you're worried about it. Well, you have a nice aura Avery. So you should just be yourself," she suggested. 

 

Then a thought occurred to her and she chuckled to herself. "You know, whenever I'm shaken like this it usually takes me a bit to get back to normal. I need comfort, and good auras," she began. Stiletto looked away from Avery briefly and smiled to herself before looking back. "I've found a hug is usually the most effective cure," she said with a chuckle. "You know, if you wanted to help." After all, Stiletto was quite a liberal pony. She had no qualms about giving or accepting hugs, even when she'd just met some ponies, though she didn't know Avery's thoughts on the matter. A hug right then would really help her steady herself, but she didn't want to make Avery uncomfortable. Then that would probably have a negative effect. Still, hugs always made her feel safe and secure while at the moment she felt vulnerable and unsteady. Stiletto was right, it was the most effective cure.

[Avery]

Back here in the more or less temporary house of Stiletto, it had a vibe of peace that was desperately needed after the venomous vibe of Nightmare Moon. Thinking back about what he said before, he just felt the need to have said that, that it was his fault that he was pushing something so... small on her. He shook the thought off once he got the stretcher off of him, he needed to sit down before his thoughts get too far out of line. It wasn't healthy anyway, having a mind set about being sorry all the time, but it just felt as if he needed to say it. He sat onto the sofa that was there, feeling the soft cushions, he let out a sigh of relief.

 

It was here that Stiletto told him about what he already knew, but it was still true. Stiletto was much more sensitive than most ponies, it almost feels abnormal in a way. But he shook his head before saying "I know.... I knew that you were more sensitive than others, I shouldn't have pushed you to come with me to get that tablet. I mean... I didn't even say much, but that just proves how much more sensitive you are... I guess. But heck, I should've left it out of the question before." he shrugs before trying to find a good spot to get comfortable in. Once finding it, he sighed again, more happily this time, closing his eyes. His ear twitched as he listened to Stiletto saying something about letting her get back to 'normal'. He was confused at the statement and opened one of his eyes to see Stiletto looking away. He raised his eyebrow before she turned back.

 

That was then she said that a hug is what usually is an effective cure, at first he drew a total blank, blinking at the subject. But then she added if he wanted to help, and he became flustered about the subject and almost instinctively turned his head away as his ears folded down. "W-Well I... I don't really know about that really, I mean, it would be cool and all, but I just, I um... that... I uh... It's just that... well.. I um... I would but it's just that I kinda have a code that... well, I don't exactly hug anypony that isn't rather close to me you know? But, I want to help, but just that doing that I... Idunno, I'd probably get the wrong idea or something. Or it might just be the fact that... well... it'd be awkward and stuff, but I don't know that, do you know that? I wouldn't know that, because I haven't really even hugged anypony before, I don't exactly know what it feels like, but then again it might be good. But I just... I don't really know, you know? It's just that... Ugh, I don't know, I'm sorry!"

 

He spoke rather fast, almost as if he wasn't sure when to exactly end the sentence at. But all the while he was flustered about the subject, keeping his eyesight away and even sharp movements from his hooves. Though, you could tell he's never been asked about this before, just from the sheer baffled speak of it all. After it all, he stayed quiet while covering his eyes with his hooves. He was like a little kid unsure about what the true answer to a really tough question was, unable to come up with a simple answer and just complexes it even further. He gave off a silly vibe, thinking he just made a fool of himself by saying such things.

[Zealot]

Stiletto broke out into a fit of chuckling at Avery's reaction. Wow, his aura was all over the place at the mention of a simple hug. Still, she just watched him in amusement as he fell over himself trying to explain why he didn't want a hug. Though her eyebrow did raise at the idea that he'd never had a hug before. That was curious, Stiletto would have figured that he would have. Or perhaps it was just that his memories hadn't returned yet. He seemed confused and uncertain, and the way he hid his face said it all. Maybe the alicorn had never been asked for a hug, and the thought of that amused the pegasus even more. She'd been asked for hugs on plenty of occasions by both her friends and her occasional coltfriend, not to mention she'd offered plenty of times as well. Perhaps growing up in the palace had isolated him to the simple things in life. Or was it the fact he was a prince? No, that didn't seem likely. Avery wasn't like that after all, but the thought did cross her mind.

 

"Well," Stiletto began after her fit of chuckling had subsided. "I was just asking for a friendly hug. No big deal," she said, sounding a little confused. After all, she was still trying to process his reaction. "Gees, I don't have to be an empath to tell I hit a bit of a nerve there. You don't have to, it's fine. I was just asking since it usually calms me down and all. The nice warm feeling of safety and security." The pegasus made sure to describe the hug, after all, he said he's never had one so she figured telling him what it was like was probably a good thing. Right?

 

"Just to settle nerves and all. But hey, if it's going to make you uncomfortable then... whatever," she said with a dismissive shrug. Now she was looking over at the kitchen, away from Avery. Stiletto was trying to settle herself as well as trying to figure out what to do next. In fact, that probably made her look a little downcast.

 

Still, she managed to crack a smile. "Mind you, you probably want to get used to being hugged. You're living in Ponyville and Pinkie Pie knows who you are. I've been randomly hugged by her a few times," the pegasus says, trying to keep the mood light. 

[Avery]

Avery lowered his head at the sound of Stiletto chuckling at him, knowing fully well that he basically embarrassed himself by doing that. Though, he just didn't exactly have the feeling of giving hugs, its a different concept to him. Though when she explains the description of a hug, he sighed and tilted his head slightly. He's never really felt truly safe, even with Stiletto, it didn't exactly feel safe. Though that might be his mind just trying to defend against any onslaughts of negative emotion. He tried to imagine what that feeling would actually be like, though looking at his hooves, he simply laughed gently.

 

"It's not that... I'm uncomfortable with it, it's just, well. How do I put this? I see hugging as a sort of embrace, something that ponies would do if they're together in a relationship. At least... that's what I've been taught anyway, told to not hug anypony until I'm sure that they'll be with me." he said softly, trying to at least keep the mood up "I mean... that wouldn't divide you from hugging me, but... just don't expect a hug back. Not that it's going to mean anything bad on my end, its just... you're a friend to me, I don't exactly want to keep friends down though heheh." he says, rubbing the back of his head.

 

Then hearing the news about Pinkie Pie having the random occurrence to hug ponies, he sighed slightly before laughing "Well, I appreciate the warning. Probably going to have to keep an eye out on things that... well, scratch that. Keep an eye on everything since she seems to come out of very strange places." he silently laughs to himself, knowing that it'll take a very long time for him to figure out how she does things like that. But, he seemed content at the moment, not being flustered over anything, or even hosting any true intent to melt the mood to something else. He just seemed... relaxed now. Laid back again, almost without a care in the world, like how he usually is. That little fluster made him forget that he even went to the forest.

 

Though a thought entered his head,  more or less a question. "Say, aren't we actually supposed to see Pinkie later? From what I could tell from that house she was in, she makes a lot of sweets. I'm not that big of a sweets fan, though I won't say no to one if I'm hungry. Have you tasted different kinds of foods on your journeys? I want to know if there are places where there's really good food, so I know I won't starve when I go there hahaha."

[Zealot]

Stiletto rolled her eyes at his insinuation. To her a hug was simple, a sign of friendship as opposed to something more like Avery suggested. Well, in truth Stiletto had her own hug scale. Everything from a pat on the back to all out romantic snuggling, though the latter was only reserved for the very best of coltfriends. Not that she'd ever got that far of course, none of them had particularly struck her eye. A few teenage crushes and the odd casual relationship meant the pegasus had never really had a proper stable relationship. Still, that didn't matter. She only wanted a friendly hug.

 

"Look, Avery," she began with a sigh. "I don't know how it was done a thousand years ago or whatever, but here we have friendly hugs. They don't mean anything, if anything they're a sign of friendship more than anything else." She chuckled and glanced back at him with that 'I told you so' look. "I'm not asking to snuggle or anything, like we were in a relationship or something, just a quick friendly hug." Stiletto chuckled again. 

 

Still, Avery seemed a little more relaxed now and so was Stiletto herself as a matter of fact. Nightmare Moon was still on her mind, and she couldn't quite shake the feeling of a malevolent spirit creeping in on her. But still, she was starting to feel a little better. Just talking helped. "Ahh, forget it," she waved it off. After all, going to Sugar Cube Corner sounded like a good idea after their ordeal. Some sweets would help, "Come on. Sugar Cube Corner sounds like a pretty good idea right now. Besides, if I'm still in the mood I can just ask Pinkie Pie for a hug."

 

With another short bout of laughter the pegasus gets up from the couch. This matter certainly bothered her, and she was disappointed that he didn't feel up to giving her a friendly hug. They were friends right? In one way that was good, it took her mind off of Nightmare Moon. Still, this surprised Stiletto. She had figured he was a laid back kind of colt who wouldn't have objected to something as simple as a friendly hug. Of course the thought did enter her head that it was his royal upbringing. Had living in a palace made him less prone to physical contact? Had they taught him it was bad? Or was it that he was a Prince, and Princes shouldn't be hugging ordinary ponies? No, that couldn't be it, right? Well, Stiletto resolved to question him about it later. Even if he'd made his point, there were still questions to be answered. 

 

She turned back to look at him. "You coming, or what?"

[Avery]

Although his looks on hugs are supremely different than Stiletto's, he did feel a bit rude about denying something like that. He couldn't help it though, it was almost instinct to try and look for a way to ignore the event all together. When Stiletto talked about the offer more in detail, it slightly confused him. He doesn't remember much about his past, other than his teachings, and that defied what he was taught. He was about to protest about it, though he stopped himself and thought again. If anything was true, he remembered things that was about the past more so than anything else. He wasn't sure about how today's standards would hold up against his old beliefs, just this conversation was enough to point that out.

 

But the Stiletto spoke up again, saying to forget the matter. He was about to say something, but then he just shut his mouth. Anything else said might just lead him further down a road he doesn't really wish to cross. Though he felt bad about denying the hug if that's how things were here. He rubbed his head, having the feeling that it'd be a rough time trying to get used to everything here. It was certainly different, though he couldn't make the resemblance of what was different. Then Stiletto called back to him, which made him pop out of his thought bubble and look to her.

 

"Oh! Oh yeah, sure, that would be good." he got up from the couch and rolled his neck around, soon following Stiletto out the door and to the outside again. The fresh breeze blew by his long hair, causing him to look in the direction of the rather soft wind. Though not seeing anything, it felt good on his face. He blinks before walking with Stiletto again to head on over the Sugar Cube Corner. It wasn't that far so he stayed quiet for the most part, his mind trying to work around the new information that he just heard from Stiletto about the meaning of hugs now. Though as his thoughts processed this information, he realized that they had reached Sugar Cube Corner already.

 

"Oh! We're here? That was... rather quick." he briefly says before hearing several strange noises coming from Sugar Cube Corner itself. Some of them not even sounding like they belong, like a car horn... what even is that sound in this world? Though that would be answered as they entered Sugar Cube Corner, as they see a familiar bubbly pink pony playing a trumpet that had a special attachment that didn't look like it should even be on a trumpet. Once seeing them, Pinkie threw the trumpet in the air and halted the strange noises. The trumpet in question flew backwards and landed in a safety case that closed upon impact.

 

"HI! Welcome to Sugar Cube Corner you two! I bet that castle trip was scary! WAIT! I know why you're here! You're here because you wanted some treats! And! And! Mister princely wanted to try out new foods cause he was stuck in the past for who knows how long and still doesn't remember anything! An-" suddenly she stopped as her tail started twitching uncontrollably "TWITCHY TWITCH!" she calls out as she took shelter under one of the nearby tables.

 

Avery blinks dumbfounded, looking at Pinkie like she was crazy. "Uh... sho-" was all that he could say before a cake from above slammed down onto his head. Icing and cake bits flew from his head as the tray that held the cake stayed on his head, leaving the alicorn completely covered in cake. He blinks, removing some of the frosting from his eyes, able to see again. He looked back and forth, then looking up, causing the tray to fall to the ground with a clank. He then looked at Pinkie, who was laughing uncontrollably at the poor clueless pony who was now covered in cake, you could even see question marks hovering above his head before they popped out of existence. "Uhhh... wha... What happened? Why am I covered in whipped cream?" he had to ask, slightly licking some of the cake off his face.

 

Pinkie giggles as she answered "You didn't pay attention, silly! I had the twitchy twitch! Something was about to fall! And it so happened to be that cake! Yum!" she then wiped Avery completely clean with one swipe of her hoof as the remains were on her hoof. Then in one gulp, she ate it all. The alicorn just stood there baffled, unsure of what to even say at that. Pinkie giggled again "So! What can ol' Pinkie Pie do for you?!" she beamed brightly.

[Zealot]

No more to think on the matter, Stiletto led the way to Sugar Cube Corner. It was only a short walk of course, Stiletto had chosen the location of her rented accommodation well. Still, she remained twitchy and kept looking into the shadows. Half expecting something to jump out at her. Still, the afternoon air was chilly and that brought her back to reality. Ponies were smiling and having a good time and that rubbed off on the pegasus. She cracked a smile as the sweet shop came in sight and entered the establishment.

 

Yes, ok, a trombone was being played. Some might find that odd, but not Stiletto. After all, that was about average for Sugar Cube Corner. Likely as a result of Pinkie Pie's antics. Still, on entry she saw that she was misinformed. It was a trumpet, with some sort of attachment being played by the familiar pink pony. Stiletto smiled as she felt around Pinkie Pie's joyous aura of laughter. It's said that laughter is infectious, but to an empath it is even more so. Being around Pinkie Pie would definitely cheer her up. Stiletto was about to tell the pink pony about their adventure when Pinkie Pie said those fateful words. Twitchy twitch. Her eyes widened and her brain quickly recalled what she knew about Pinkie Pie's pinkie sense. A thought bubble appeared over her head with an image of Pinkie Pie stating in the manner of an instructional video, "And remember. If Pinkie's tail is atwitching, something's about to fall." 

 

The thought bubble vanished with a puff and Stiletto did just that. The pegasus sheltered under a nearby chair as the inevitable happened. A cake splattered right on Avery's head. 

 

The idea that this had just happened was so absurd, Stiletto couldn't help but fall over in raucous laughter along with the pink pony. She spent a few seconds revelling in the happy feeling, and the pegasus felt a lot better for a laugh. She'd needed something to cheer her up and that had hit the spot. She recovered soon after Pinkie had explained about her twitchy twitch and chuckled as she rejoined them. "Well, me and Avery have just come from the castle. Yeah, it was quite scary and it sent my empathy into a bit of a tis. I was going to ask for a hug to cheer me up but," she giggled involuntarily at the memory of the alicorn dripping with pieces of cake. "I think I'm good after that. Still, we came to buy sweets. You got any lemon sherbets?"

[Avery]

Pinkie Pie nodded her head as Stiletto talked. Hearing that she was going to ask for a hug, she immediately jumped to action! "No matter! Free hugs are given everyday!" she called out as she pops between Stiletto and Avery, wrapping them both with one hoof and squeezing them hard. Avery gasps at the sudden motion of this happening, and was actually loosing breath as this happened. She hugs really tight! After a brief second Pinkie then jumps behind the counter where all of the treats could be seen through a glass case. Some rapid sounds of clinks were heard behind the counter as Pinkie puts up a tied glitter bag with lemon sherbets on the counter with a bright smile. "Here they are! And because this is prince man's first time here, I'll give you this for free! My treat!"

Avery raised an eyebrow at the statement, though he quickly brushed it off, not being one to put down such an offer. Though her constant saying that he was a prince was getting to him slightly, he never was too fond of people just calling him a prince. It seemed a bit too forced, like he was always meant to be that when he feels like no special pony at all. "You know, you don't have to say that. I mean, I barely even know how that's going to be planned. I don't exactly like being called a 'prince' either. I mean... it just doesn't feel right."

 

"Ooh! That's exactly what Twilight said when she was getting used to being a princess! You know, it was actually lucky that Twilight was here! Usually she's back at Canterlot! But I think she came back to do something! But how should I know? I'm only one pony! OH! Gummy! There you are!" Pinkie states, hopping back over to Avery and suddenly taking a toothless alligator off his hair. The alligator still holding onto his hair until it slipped from its gums, making the hair swish back into place. Avery backs his head and looks to his hair, back to the alligator, back to his hair, then back to the alligator who was now sitting on Pinkie's head. Avery lets out a flabbergasted "Huh" as he looks to the purple eyed alligator that had a wall eyed stare.

[Zealot]

Stiletto had just enough time to blink in surprise as Pinkie offered a hug. It wasn't like Stiletto was going to refuse, but still, she gives off a little harrumph of discomfort as the pink pony squeezed both her and Avery really hard. Still, it was nice to be wrapped in the joyous aura of Pinkie Pie for a few seconds. The effect was a lot like jump starting a car. The pegasus felt a lot better about herself. Thoughts of Nightmare Moon, and indeed all of her other problems were pushed to the back of her mind and she felt happy and carefree once more. Once Pinkie had returned to the counter Stiletto involuntarily chuckled. "Thanks Pinkie," she said, "I feel loads better now." Even if it had strangled the pegasus half to death, the hug had been nice.

 

She smiled up at Avery as he mentioned that Pinkie Pie didn't have to keep referring to him as a prince all the time, though she was surprised to hear that Twilight had said the same thing. That was odd. The pegasus had always figured the Princess would want to constantly be referred to by her rank. She was that stuck up after all, right? Though in truth, at their tea party earlier the Princess hadn't seemed to be very stuck up. Likely she was just trying to be nice in front of a more senior Princess. But still, it begged the question. 

 

Stiletto turned back to Avery then frowned as he appeared to have an alligator devouring his head. The pegasus gave off a startled squeak and a giggle. Pinkie Pie seemed quite at ease when dealing with the alligator so she assumed it was no danger. In fact, of course it wasn't, it didn't appear to have any teeth. 

 

"Umm, yeah," Stiletto continued. "Thanks Pinkie, I guess I should run into lost Princes more often. I've had a fun adventure, met more royalty and now I'm getting free sweets." She looked over to Avery again. "Or rather... we are getting free sweets. Umm, yeah." Again she turned back to the bubbly pink pony. 

[Avery]

Pinkie beams brightly as she trots in place, seeing the reaction of both Stiletto and Avery at Gummy suddenly chewing on the alicorn's hair. Pinkie nods at Stiletto's remark "Oh you should! Its tons of fun! But don't go with the ponies that have a grovely voice! Those always end up having some bad past they always mope about or are even mean! You got lucky with Avery! He doesn't act all mopey dopey like or even has a grovely voice! Though he does have a silly voice when he sleeps! I heard it on the way back from Rainbow's last night! Just a HUUUUUGE 'MEEP' from your place! It was so funny!"

 

Avery first off looked back to Stiletto when she first said that she was getting free sweets with a raised eyebrow, more along the lines of sarcastically saying "Really now?" with his look. But then looking back at Pinkie as she was talking about other princes and the topic of him having a silly voice. That part confused him as he stood there unsure of what to think of. "Uh..." he muttered before looking back at Stiletto "D-Do I do that? I honestly don't know if I do that..." he chuckled lightly, rubbing the back of his head.

 

"Oh! I don't know a lot of things when I sleep! But there was this one time I had a dream of eating allllll of the cotton candy clouds there ever was, and then when I woke up, my pillow was gone!" Pinkie said without any hesitation or even any context of why she would talk about her dream. Which made Avery look at her, slightly disturbed by the fact. "But then I found it again! Gummy took it away to play a prank cause he saw me nomming on my pillow, didn't ya Gummy??" The alligator slowly blinks as he turns to look the other way in response.

 

By this point, you could tell that Avery was having a tough time trying to keep up with Pinkie. His many facial expressions told that he was confused, laughing, concerned, and slightly trying to ignore there was the fact that Pinkie had an ALLIGATOR as a pet. Though looking back to the counter, he saw that the bagged sweets were gone. "Hey, Pinkie? Where'd the sweets go?"

 

"Heehee! Silly billy! They're right here!" she boops Avery's nose which caused him to blink and sure enough the bag of candy was on his nose. This made him back his head up in surprise, shake his head, and stare at the bag, which if looked at the right angle it looked like he was going cross eyed. He shook off the look he had, levitating the bag off his nose and asking "What are you? Some sort of trickster that can make things disappear?"

 

"NOPE! I'm just a pony, silly!" Pinkie responses with the same bright smile she always wears.

 

"...Riiiight, hey Stiletto, think we can get back? I think I'm starting to head a slight headache... I think its because of Gummy." Avery says, looking at the purple eyed lizard.

 

"Might be! He has a strong grip sometimes! But you shouldn't get headaches! That's bad! Like the one time I had a headache and I had to stand on my head to make it better for nearly three hours!!!" she then shockingly gasped "Hopefully you don't have to do it for five hours! That'd be the WORST!!"

 

 

[Zealot]

Stiletto herself was a little baffled at that. The pink pony had just said it like that was a regular thing. The pegasus giggled happily at the thought of tripping over Avery lookalikes everywhere she went. Some with gravelly voices, others without. Still, her advice resonated a little with her and she took it on board. After all, this was Pinkie Pie. It might yet prove useful. Or it might prove as useless as Stiletto expected it would. 

 

The conversation about the 'meep' interested her though. Stiletto hadn't heard anything from Avery last night. She'd been asleep, and the alicorn had quickly awoken once she'd got downstairs. Maybe he'd had some sort of nightmare. Understandable for waking up in a strange place surrounded by strange ponies, or even the fact that they'd recently been in contact with Nightmare Moon. After all, she must be called that for a reason, right? "I didn't hear anything," Stiletto admits. "Though I was upstairs having a nightmare, so you know." She shrugs it off, not particularly caring too much about last night. She had more important things to worry about. Like lemon sherbets.

 

Yes, the lemon sherbets had appeared on Avery's nose and yet again Stiletto found herself giggling like a schoolfilly. She ought to go to Pinkie Pie's place more often. Still, Avery had asked to leave, which was probably for the best. They'd got what they'd came for and they had other things to do while the shops were still open. "Well, we can't go back to my place just yet." Stiletto informs the alicorn. "We need to get you an air mattress if you're going to be staying at mine for a while. Be more comfortable than the couch." 

 

She turns back to Pinkie Pie and chuckles at her comment. "Thanks Pinkie Pie. I expect you'll be seeing both of us soon. After Avery tries the sherbets I expect we'll be back here a lot," she says with a chuckle. "Thanks again," the pegasus calls and starts to head out. After all, if Avery didn't like the idea of a hug then it would be doubtful that he'd want to share Stiletto's double bed. No matter how much space there is and no matter how much the pegasus didn't care. She trusted him and she didn't see any reason to waste the space.

[Avery]

Upon hearing what Stiletto had to say about them leaving, Avery became confused at the words 'air mattress'. He tilted head before asking "Air... A-Air mattress? Is that like... a cloud bed or something?" he was visibly curious as to what it actually was. He's never even heard of an 'air mattress' besides the term of a 'bed of clouds' which in turn could be an air mattress to him, but hearing it, he couldn't help but to ask.

 

Pinkie giggles and responds "Yeah silly! An air mattress. It's like a blow up bed you can sleep on! Just huff and puff and blooooow all the air into the bed and poof! You have an air mattress! Cloud beds are only for the cloud houses! But I think I saw some ponies with cloud beds in their houses before! The next day they were complaining about not having a bed and the floor was wet!" she happily chimed with a laugh.

 

Avery slightly nods "Yeeeah... that's a cloud for ya. Thank you for this." he bows his head before following Stiletto outside. Pinkie waves at them from the door of the shop excitedly "Can't wait to see you again!!" she calls out before heading back inside. A few seconds later the sounds of that strange trumpet rang from the shop again. With that, Avery followed Stiletto to wherever they could find an air mattress in the small town of Ponyville. He was still amazed at how calm the town was, with idle chitchat from the other ponies that walked by, the calming wind that passed by, he at least expected some sort of rupture to start while he was here, but so far everything has been fine.

 

The shopping area of Ponyville was more or less in the center of the town, with the town hall just towering in the main paths to the shop stands. It seemed that the ponies here do more of a traditional method of shopping and having it be outside. Though the bigger items were in the buildings marked with many different products, there was even a shop that sold... quills and sofas? How odd. However, Avery was uncertain about which way to get this 'air mattress', so he looked at Stiletto for guidance.

[Zealot]

Oh, he was confused again. What had she said? Air mattress, they hadn't had those either a thousand years ago. Well, that was probably to be expected. They were a fairly new invention as far as Stiletto was aware. No surprise that he didn't know what one was. Still, happily Pinkie Pie informed him and also told him the difference between that and using a cloud as a bed. In fact, that was something Stiletto had done once to see if she could save a bit of money. Suffice to say it had ended less than successfully, much as Pinkie had described. As a 'cloud horse' Stiletto could attest to the cosiness of clouds, though they were always best left in the sky. 

 

Still after that she thanked Pinkie Pie yet again for the sweets and headed out the door, to whatever noise that trumpet was making. "Alright, air mattress," she declared and headed towards Ponyville market. Indeed, it was the centre of town and there were plenty of ponies still around buying things from the stalls and shops. Stiletto had been here quite a few times and knew exactly where to go. "An air mattress is usually something used for guests. Oddly enough though it was made for camping first, so you can usually find one at a camping store. Or even just a general supplies store," she commented. 

 

The pegasus gestured over to what was essentially the camping supplies stall and meandered over to it saying, "I figured you wouldn't want to sleep on the couch if you're going to be staying with me for a while. I wouldn't mind you sharing my bed, it's large enough for two and it would save the money. But hey, if you're gonna be all touchy about a friendly hug then I figured you'd want one of these."

 

Stiletto asked the clerk for an air mattress and hoofed over the bits for the small plastic package. "Besides, your mother can always reimburse me right?" she continued, turning back around and smiling up at him. 

[Avery]

Avery trots along side Stiletto, still carrying the bag of sweets with his magic. He took this moment to really look around at the market area, and from his first impression, it was rather well made. Stalls are kept very nicely, some even have the insides worked to match the theme of their items. It was interesting to see so many different types of stalls with different types of items being sold. Though his attention came back to Stiletto when she was explaining what the air mattress was in its first use. Camping huh? That would be reasonable, using the information he got from before, it'd be a lot better than sleeping on the ground.

 

Then they went to the stall that sold more or less camping supplies, as the pony behind the counter was rather ragged in appearance and selling various outdoor equipment. Then he listened to Stiletto explain why they were getting an air mattress in the first place, he shrugged about the thought of him sleeping on the couch. It was a fine couch, he had a rather comfortable rest when he first laid on it. Then her saying that she wouldn't have minded to share her bed, which upon hearing that Avery stopped all forward motion and remained still, burning a fire on his face. Almost completely passing her other statement.

 

"Y-Y-You really considered that?? B-But that's... I... wha? Isn't that reserved for special someponies???" he bumbled out a his response before stumbling back into his forward motion, stopping near the stall. His face (as well as his aura) expressed that mix of emotions again: confusion, embarrassment, and being flustered. It was obviously clear that he's had absolutely no experience with the subject, being in such a different time span. He sighs before rubbing his face "...This is going to get some getting used to, I can tell."

 

Meanwhile, the clerk pony nodded at Stiletto's request. Quickly turning around and picking up a rather small plastic like material that was folded up. Putting it on the counter she smiled as she takes the bits, before asking if there was anything else Stiletto needed from the little stall.

[Zealot]

The pegasus thought for a moment, choosing to focus on the stall owner instead of Avery's outburst first. Did she need anything else? "Nah, I'm good," she replied. "Funnily enough I think I have a bellows, thanks anyway." Stiletto puts the change in her saddle bag and grabs the air mattress, sliding that in as well. 

 

Indeed, the empath felt a wave of embarasment wash over her and she couldn't help but blush at it and chuckle nervously. Stiletto turned around and shook her head, trying to figure out her own emotions. "Wow, that was a nerve. Sorry," she apologised. "Umm." The pegasus shook her head again to get over Avery's embarrassment and started the walk back through the market. 

 

"Well," she began with a smile, finally sorting herself out. The empath would definitely need to sort this one out. Of course, she'd hoped to figure it out back at her place. Unfortunately she'd just had to go and open her mouth about it. "Yes I did. It's not uncommon for friends to share a bed. Sure, couples do it more but hey. Space is tight, and I trust you. Ok, I've not known you very long but you seem ok. I hope we're friends at least and I'd rather you sleep in a bed than on the couch. It's not that comfy, and my bed can quite comfortably fit two."

 

Stiletto sighed, figuring she owed Avery some kind of explanation about her opinions and views. "Look, all of that may be true but I'm a special case ok. I'm much more liberal than most ponies. Heck Avery, I believe in do what you want and harm none. There's no harm in sharing a bed. It's practical since there's little space and we're friends. No problems there, just making the best use of space is all." She shrugged and sounded a little irritated. "I hate the idea that there are certain expectations, ways we need to behave. Friends do that, special some ponies do this. What difference does that make Avery? Friends should love each other as well, so why should expressing that be awkward? Why should we have these imaginary boundaries between us, just because somepony has a relationship more than friendship? Huh?"

 

It was a subject the pegasus felt quite strongly on, and while she had no desire to change Avery's views on the matter. Well, it probably sounded like she wanted to. Right after her little irritated outburst she sighed again and calmed herself. "I'm sorry, that wasn't cool. Let me try again," she apologised in a much calmer tone. "Emotions run a bit deep with me, and I just don't see why ponies don't share them. I feel them all the time from everypony I meet, doesn't matter who they are. Truth be told I'm just glad you haven't freaked or anything about it. Not everypony likes me knowing what they're feeling all the time."