They make their way back to Tempest’s house. Arc knocks. A few moments later Tempest answers. She steps aside to let them in.
They make their way back to Tempest’s house. Arc knocks. A few moments later Tempest answers. She steps aside to let them in.
“Find anything?”
Arc shakes his head as he removes his armor. “No.”
Tempest rolls her eyes. “As I told you.”
Rose frowns. “Well, we had to try!”
Tempest closes the door and turns toward the kitchen. “I suppose you’ll be wanting to eat supper now.”
Arc shakes his head. “We were actually going to head back to the Winsome Falls before it got dark.”
Tempest stops in her tracks but does not turn around.
“Stay.”
Spike looks nervous. “…what?”
“I need to speak to Arc. All of you stay for supper.”
Rose looks to him. “What should we do?”
Arc shrugs. “See if we can help in the kitchen?”
Spike frowns. “You can’t be serious.”
“I am. Follow me.”
Arc leads them into the Kitchen where Tempest is chopping vegetables.
“Need some help?”
Tempest sighs. “Still think I’m trying to poison you?”
“Just thought we could do our part to make the meal easier to prepare.”
“...fine.”
Arc watches the stove as Rose chops vegetables in Tempest’s stead. Spike’s knees shake nervously. She looks at the dragon before her.
“Something wrong?”
“N-n-no! What makes you think that?!”
Tempest points a hoof. “For starters, I asked you to fetch glasses. They’re not in that broom closet.”
“Huh?”
Spike looks around the open door before him to a mop and broom. He closes the door nervously.
“I guess you’re right.”
Tempest rolls her eyes as she points a hoof.
“They’re over there in the cupboard.”
Spike hurries over. “R-right!”
A short time later the meal is prepared. They eat a hearty soup and adjourn to the Living Room as the stars come out. Arc sighs.
“It’s really peaceful out here.”
Tempest nods. “That it is. Even before the… incident it was like this.”
Rose looks over. “No other towns in the area?”
“Not really. Vanhoover is to the south and Yakyakistan is far to the north. However neither of them would be considered a quick walk from here.”
Spike looks around the room nervously. “So what do you do out here?”
“Live.”
They are silent for a time. Rose pipes up.
“What about during the summer months?”
“Huh?”
“Are there a lot of animals around here?”
Tempest shakes her head. “No. Most creatures avoid this place for some reason.”
Spike frowns. “What about that squirrel?”
“A very uncommon sight. But in any case, you three should spend the night.”
Spike smiles nervously. “We… uh… wouldn’t want to impose or anything!”
Tempest points a hoof out a nearby window. “It’s pitch black outside. Do you really want to navigate the forest at night?”
“I… suppose not.”
Tempest looks to Arc. “They can use that bedroom from last time.”
Rose stands. “Thank you. Come along, Spike.”
Spike jumps to his feet. “S-sure!”
Arc nods soberly. “You two get some rest. I’ll be along in a bit.”
Rose nods. “Okay. Don’t stay up too late.”
“I won’t.”
Rose and Spike head for the room and close the door behind them. She looks at the two beds.
“One for you and one for Arc.”
Spike hops up on a bed and getting under the covers. “What about you?”
“I don’t actually need a bed, or sleep for that matter. A chair or even the floor will suffice for me.”
Rose sits down at the end of Spike’s bed as he sighs and rolls over. A few minutes later she turns to look at him.
“Spike, are you alright?”
“Other than being cold, you mean?”
“Your heart is beating quite fast for someone trying to sleep.”
Spike sighs. “I’m just… nervous.”
“Are you now?”
“Tempest gives me the creeps! She’s so cold and calculating!”
“Like me?”
“Not at all! You’re really nice, Rose!”
“I’ve formulated over one hundred methods by which the three of us could escape this town if need be.”
“…what?”
“I too am calculating, you know.”
Spike sits up. “Maybe. But you’re looking for ways to protect us. Not hurt anypony.”
Rose nods. “This whole thing has me nervous as well.”
“You’re afraid?”
“Of what Tempest might do to you and Arc, yes.”
“I’m pretty sure he’ll be okay. After all he’s been through, Tempest doesn’t have anything on him!”
Rose smiles at him. “That is true. But if you believe that, why are you so afraid?”
“Well… part of it is Tempest.”
“And the other part?”
Spike sighs. “Being away from what I consider home. It took me quite some time to get used to sleeping in the castle.”
“Anything I can do to help?”
“I… could use some company.”
“Alright.”
Rose lies down next to Spike. He covers her up with the blankets and snuggles up next to her.
“Better?”
Spike nods happily. “Much! I used to sleep next to Twilight when I had a bad dream or whatnot.”
“I hope I’m an acceptable substitute.”
“Yeah! You’re such a kind human, Rose!”
“I’m not a human, remember?”
“In my mind you are.”
“What do you mean?”
Spike thinks for a moment.
“Well, Twilight created you. So you call her ‘mother’, right?”
“Yes.”
“She hatched me from an egg and raised me as her own.”
“So you see her as a motherly figure then?”
“I suppose I do now that I think about it.”
“In that case, what am I to you?”
“Um… I don’t know.”
“Well, we have the same mother. Does that make you my older brother?”
Spike smiles. “Yeah! I guess it does! You’re my little sister!”
“Little?”
“Well, younger anyways.”
Rose thinks a moment. “While your description of me is correct, I can’t help but feel older than you.”
Spike sighs. “Yeah. Me too.”
Meanwhile, Tempest beckons Arc over to the couch with a hoof.
“I’d like to have that talk now.”
Arc stands up warily. “Uh… you aren’t going to do anything like you did last time, are you?”
Tempest rolls her eyes. “Don’t flatter yourself. Just sit!”
Arc does so. Tempest leans in close to him as Arc leans away.
“Tempest, what are you doing?”
She frowns up at him. ”I don’t want the others you brought to hear our conversation.”
“Oh… right.”
Tempest lowers her voice as she continues.
“I, uh… just wanted to ask you about… my behavior back then.”
“What about it?”
“Who else knows?”
“About… that?”
Tempest nods angrily. “Yes, you idiot! Who did I make a fool of myself in front of?!”
Arc thinks for a moment.
“The Dragon Lord.”
“Don’t care what he thinks.”
“My lieutenant.”
“He’s nopony important.”
“Then I suppose there was Sereb.”
“Nopony would listen to a walking fleabag.”
“There was everyone at the hospital too.”
Tempest’s pupils shrink.
“I… would they… talk?”
“About what?”
“About what they saw!”
Arc sighs. “Tempest, all you did back there was act nice! What are you so worried about?!”
“I have a reputation to uphold, you fool! Do you have ANY idea how long it takes to create an image like mine?!”
“Kinda.”
Tempest sneers at him. “I have spent most of my adult LIFE training and striving toward my goal! You’ve been doing this for, at most, a YEAR!”
“You’re not wrong about that.”
“Of course I am.”
“I’ve heard many things about you from conversations I’ve overheard in the castle and even in my own base.”
“Such as?”
Arc sighs. “Your many displays of heroism and bravery mostly.”
Tempest nods with evident pride. “As I said, a reputation like mine is not easily earned.”
“They also spoke your name in fearful tones.”
“As well they should.”
“So your goal is be feared?”
“I prefer the term ‘respected’.”
“Well, what are you planning on doing with said reputation?”
“I’ve used it in the past to intimidate my opponents.”
“Same here.”
Tempest raises an eyebrow. “Really?”
“I’ve gotten out of a few fights through my… martial clout.”
She grins wickedly. “I’m proud of you!”
“Yes, well… anything I can do to prevent meaningless bloodshed.”
Tempest rolls her eyes. “I take back what I said.”
“Let me ask you something, Tempest. What was your endgame originally?”
“I don’t…”
Arc interrupts her. “I mean, before you teamed up with the Dark One. Why were you fighting? For Equestria? For Cerulean Skies? For yourself?”
“All of the above. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep everypony safe.”
“And your rep too I suppose.”
“What?!”
“You were so worried about what others thought about you acting… politely when we sat down. Your name is important to you, huh?”
“More so than you know!”
“Okay. What if you had the opportunity to do the right thing. But it would forever destroy your image?”
Tempest frowns. “I’m not sure. And you?”
“I’d throw my good name down the toilet if it meant protecting those I cared for.”
Tempest stares at him. A bewildered look on her face.
“You didn’t hesitate.”
“Right. Because I don’t care what others think about me. I’ll keep doing my very best no matter what.”
Tempest pats his knee with her hoof. “I wish we had met years ago, Arc. The three of us would’ve made quite a team!”
“Three?”
“You, me, and Decimus.”
“I’ll pass.”
Tempest smiles. “I know the two of you got off on the wrong hoof. But there’s always such a thing as a second chance, is there not?”
“True. But he burned that bridge more than once with that stunt against the princesses.”
“He had his reasons.”
“Which were…?”
Tempest turns back to Arc. A cold look on her face.
“I’m not giving him up, okay?!”
“Fine. He stays away, he stays alive.”
Arc looks toward the door.
“Does he visit often?”
Tempest sighs and shakes her head. “Never. He’s really busy with some big project.”
“And you don’t know what that is, do you?”
“No. I asked him not to mention anything about it to me.”
Arc raises an eyebrow. “You told him to keep that from you?!”
“It was the Dark One’s idea. After what I tried to do with you, I can’t be trusted! It’s for the good of the organization!”
“Let not the right hand know what the left is doing, huh?”
“Right. I’ll be told if there’s something I need to know.”
“That might just come back to bite you later.”
“Maybe. But if it helps save the land, I’m all for it.”
They are silent for a time. Arc sighs.
“It’s getting late. We should probably turn in for the night.”
Tempest nods and stands. “Yes. You should join your friends now.”
“I will. Good night, Tempest.”
They each head to their respective rooms. Arc sees Spike snuggled up to Rose. He smiles and lies down on the other bed.
“Good night you two.”
Arc falls asleep quickly. Several hours later he awakens and bolts upright in bed.
“What the…?”
Standing up he looks to the others.
“Rose?”
She opens her eyes and looks over to him.
“Arc? Is something wrong?”
“I’m not sure. Do you hear anything?”
Rose shakes her head. “No. My auditory sensors aren’t picking up anything out of the ordinary.”
Spike sits up groggily and rubs his eyes.
“Keep it down, you two. I’m trying to sleep here.”
“Sorry, Spike. I thought I heard something.”
Rose shrugs. “Maybe you were dreaming?”
Spike sits up and listens. “I… what’s that sound?”
Arc turns to him. “You hear it too?!”
Spike looks confused. “Uh, yeah. Why?”
“I still don’t detect anything.”
“That’s odd. Twilight designed you to have super sensitive… senses.”
Arc puts a hand to his chin thoughtfully. “Hmmm… this is really weird. I’m going to wake up Tempest. Maybe it’s something indigenous to this village.”
Rose stands up. “I’ll come with you.”
“No, Rose. Tempest will probably be none too happy to have anyone wake her.”
Spike shudders at the thought. “In that case, you should probably put your armor on, Arc.”
“Spike is right. Tempest is… unpredictable at best.”
“Alright. You two stay here though.”
Arc opens the door to the Living Room and quietly steps out. He proceeds to the corner and dons his armor. Looking at his spear leaning against the wall, he momentarily considers his options.
“Probably not a good idea to bring this.”
He walks to Tempest’s room. Knocking lightly he enters and whispering loudly.
“Tempest? Are you…”
Arc stops dead in his tracks. Before him on the bed lies Tempest curled up happily and sucking on her hoof. He clears his throat loudly. She bolts upright.
“What the…?!”
Seeing Arc, she frowns.
“Don’t you knock before entering a room?! And what are you doing in here anyways?!”
Looking down at her hoof momentarily, Tempest nonchalantly puts in under the blanket as she continues to glower at him.
“Sorry, but… Spike and I heard something outside.”
Tempest shakes her head. “And you call yourself a warrior?! Go back to sleep!”
She rolls over and lies back down. Arc turns around.
“Well, there’s SOMETHING out there! I’m going to find out what it is.”
Tempest closes her eyes again huffily. “Do whatever you want. Just let me sleep!”
“Fine. But you’re going to have a hard time killing me if something else does first.”
Arc closes the door behind him. A few moments later it flies open and Tempest rushes out.
“Just a minute!”
Arc chuckles as Spike and Rose leave their room. “I knew that would get you out of bed.”
“I still think you’re just going nuts, you know.”
Spike frowns. “Oh?! Then why are you out here?”
“To prove Arc wrong, of course.”
Rose shakes her head. “That and if Arc is right…”
Tempest heads for her armor rack in the corner. “When the fate of everything hangs in the balance, I don’t take chances.”
She turns to Arc and scowls.
“Unlike somepony I could mention.”
Spike looks out the window nervously. “This could be important, Tempest!”
“It’s not. Believe me.”
Rose frowns. “Then why…?”
Tempest interrupts her as she finishes putting on her armor and taking up Light’s Bane. “Let’s get this over with. I still need my sleep.”
Arc looks to the other two. “Tempest and I should probably go alone.”
Rose shakes her head. “My sensors might come in handy out there.”
Tempest scoffs. “Whatever.”
Spike turns back to look at the others. “I’m not staying here alone am I?!”
Arc shrugs. “Well, it IS safer. Probably.”
Spike runs over to Rose. “Take me too!”
Tempest chuckles. “Stay here, runt. There’s plenty of blankets here for you to hide under.”
Rose kneels down to give Spike a hug. “I can look after him, Arc.”
Spike nods. “I feel safe with you, Rose!”
“Fine with me. Tempest?”
Tempest opens the front door and walks outside. “Do what you want. Let’s just get this over with.”