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"No! You will NOT take our Princess off to a private room! There is an additional magic condition to consider that requires these two patients be kept in close proximity, just like I put on their charts while we were on the way here! Have I made myself clear enough this time?!" Nurse Tough Love challenged the doctor with a withering stare, whom was quick to back up and back down. The doctor cast a glance at Twilight and myself before just nodding to the bullish nurse, proceeding to go deal with a patient elsewhere in a hurried walk.

It hadn't been more than a few minutes to reach the hospital, once the ambulance got airborne with patients on board, though as much as I'd have liked things to be different, it was difficult keeping my head together through constant pain in most of my chest from even shallow breaths and taxing to endure. Still, it did no good to dwell and decided to tempt fate a little more.

"Are you head nurse by chance, Nurse Feisty?" I asked, seeing her roll her eyes a little.

She gave me a brief glare that didn't quite hide the amusement in her eyes, "Yes, I am. Emergency ward, anyway. Nurse Redheart is head nurse for the rest and technically my superior. I wasn't tending you during your recent visit due to security and safety protocols that required the hospital to only permit specifically designated personnel. They were required to remain separated behind the quarantine for the duration of Princess Twilight's and your treatment as a precaution against the risk of contagion in magic flux cases. I have a response team to lead and had to pick some of them for the duty. I went with the ambulance this time because we got word that Princess Twilight had taken a hard fall and I'm the best trauma nurse on staff here."

"Well, you clearly have things under control for Twilight and myself. You seem a bit rough, but I'm glad you're here to help heal us up this time...Nurse Feisty," I couldn't help the lopsided smirk, hearing Nurse Tough grumbling something about cheeky patients receiving iodine and having a reputation to maintain, though her tone remained amused. Twilight gave a quiet snicker.

Once we'd arrived, Twilight and I were settled into a room in short order. Head Nurse Tough Love left to get the cart she needed to clean up my open wounds and stitch them back together. The same unicorn doctor that had been in charge of Twilight and I just the day before walked in a minute later, giving both of us a look of exasperation.

"I suppose there is a story as to why the two of you are back the very next day after your last visit. If you don't mind lad, I'll tend to Princess Twilight Sparkle first. I can clearly see from here that you're going to take quite a bit more time," he said in a matter-of-fact tone and I just gave him a nod in reply.

He moved to the side of Twilight's bed, "How are you feeling, Princess? I understand you were being shielded from the fall by your friend there. Anything in particular bothering you?"

She shook her head, "While I am feeling some aches, I feel pretty good considering what could have happened if Vojin hadn't been able to break my fall."

Nodding, the doctor gave her a polite smile, "That's good to hear, Princess. Please allow me to do a basic checkup, just in case, alright?"

"Go right ahead doctor," Twilight replied, adjusting her position a little for what I assumed was making it easier for him to examine her.

He checked her vitals again, seemed to use some sort of scanning spell on her ribcage and had her do a slow flex of her wings a couple times. The process only took a couple minutes since nothing seemed to catch his attention. I noticed Nurse Tough come back in with the suture cart, finding myself a little nervous that she might make good on her iodine threats.

The doctor checking on Twilight stepped back a little once he was done, a relaxed smile on his features, "Well Princess Twilight, everything seems to check out quite well. Aside from some mild bruising and a strained wing, I think you'll be just fine in a couple of days. Make sure you get a good few nights of sleep, Princess."

Twilight nodded, "It shouldn't be a problem, doctor. Thanks for the check up, but please take care of my friend. I'm really worried about him."

"Of course, Princess. I will give him the best of my ability," he replied before coming over to my bed and began to evaluate my condition, "Well my mysterious human patient, or would you prefer that I call you Vojin? I am sorry I didn't reintroduce myself in the brief visit yesterday. My name is Doctor Hoofmeister and I typically handle the more unusual cases that find their way to this hospital. I believe you qualify."

He glanced at Nurse Tough, "Go right ahead with the smaller lacerations whilst I inspect the gash and embedded wood, Nurse Tough."

Nurse Tough Love just nodded, making a bit of a show about what looked to be an iodine bottle before flashing me a smirk and leaving it alone as she prepared the supplies she needed. I couldn't help but wonder how often her patients appreciated her bedside manner as I returned her smirk. As she began with uncovering, cleaning, local anesthesia and careful stitching, Doctor Hoofmeister returned his attention to me.

He started inspecting the wood lodged in my arm, mumbling medical terms before pointing his horn at it and made the wood shift a little before nodding to himself, turning to look at me, "Nurse Tough was right as usual. This is going to require a small surgery to remove safely due to the shape having somehow managed to hook itself in around a major blood vessel. I am a little amazed it didn't tear it open just going in there. After we get your arm numbed properly, it should only take me a few minutes. I will let Nurse Tough finish the smaller lacerations while I evaluate your left shoulder."

After moving to the other side of the bed, he removed the binding on my shoulder, shaking his head a little, "Do you generally heal well, Mister Vojin?"

Nice and reassuring way to start discussing an injury with a patient, I thought as I nodded, "Yes I do. I take it that gash was nasty then?"

"Unfortunately, I can see you've been injured sufficiently to cause some potential loss of mobility. I will have to do a little reconstruction before closing this gash to ensure that will not be the case as you heal," he said with a firm expression, "In all, you are extremely lucky, Mister Vojin. The force of catching the Princess, and then hitting the ground as you did has caused remarkably little damage. Even more surprising is Princess Twilight's near total lack of injury. You should be sure to thank the unicorn that helped. You could have been killed from the impact, not to mention should be far more seriously injured than you are."

Frowning, I turned to look at Twilight only to find her face showing surprise, "Twilight, do you know who could have helped us like that?"

She shook her head, "Vojin, it's not really possible. Unicorn magic generally has only minimal effect on alicorns without warning like that. There has to be a lot of preparation. In addition, nopony in Ponyville is a mage even close to the level I was when I first arrived here as a unicorn, let alone trained enough to cast a shield spell strong enough to protect us like that. And definitely not so suddenly as it all happened. And beyond that, most unicorns don't even know more than a few spells beyond basic levitation and light unless it's something specific to their special talent."

"Well someone had to do it. Any ideas how it happened?" I replied with further confusion.

That could explain some of why I knew Rarity couldn't save Twilight at the time, though not where the knowledge came from. And that magic had to come from somewhere, but was at a loss for now.

"I really don't know. As sudden and unfocused to save us from worse injury as it was, it could have even been from you, Vojin," Twilight said as she worked it through her mind.

"Well, I already said I don't know how to use magic like unicorns at all, let alone have enough magic for something like that. Maybe your friends saw something. They're probably on the way anyway, if they're not already waiting to see you," I said as I moved my right arm out of Nurse Tough's way while she tended some cuts on my ribs.

Twilight looked at Doctor Hoofmeister, "Doctor, has anypony arrived trying to visit us yet?"

The doctor nodded as he waited for Nurse Tough Love to finish the last cuts that only needed stitches, "yes, Miss Rainbow Dash. That reminds me, she asked me to tell you the rest of your friends are on the way. I will let them in once we're done treating Mister Vojin's injuries."

"Thank you, doctor," Twilight said.

Once Nurse Tough was finished, she was quick to clean up extraneous suturing supplies before going straight to prepping my right arm for the doctor to remove the wood shard jammed in it. Doctor Hoofmeister got himself ready, though it seemed that only meant a mask and a small tray of tools. Nurse Tough Love gave a couple injections around the area to numb it all up.

"Unfortunately, there may be some discomfort as I get the wood out. We don't know how humans would react to stronger anesthesia and don't want to take that great a risk. Additionally, due to both your recent magic flux experience and what I understand initiated it, we also cannot risk something like a numbing or sleep spell. Please let me know if you need me to stop and we can reconsider," he stated as he settled himself in place.

"Honestly doc, I walked myself to the ambulance and climbed onto the gurney without help. My ribs didn't make it easy but I have been trained to manage pain rather well. I just want to get this over with," I stated in a dry tone, prepared to just deal with more than a little discomfort.

"I understand. Please remember that I may have very sharp instruments in very delicate places at any time should you need to move, so warn me to back up to avoid any possible bad timing. Now let's get this taken care of for you," he said.

Doctor Hoofmeister went right to work with delicate incisions a few times as needed to remove the wood shard. Thanks to the anesthetic, I found it was more of an aching pain than sharp and well within my tolerance so long as I kept aware of it.

I turned my eyes to Nurse Tough, herself standing beside the doctor in case he needed something.

"How many stitches did I need, Nurse Tough?" I asked, seeing a bit of amusement in her eyes and some gratitude that I wasn't teasing her in front of the doctor.

She gave a steady reply while remaining attentive to the doctor, "It took about eighty sutures total for your other injuries. Possibly another fifteen to twenty for these last two."

"Huh, still doesn't break my record then," I said off hand.

Twilight spoke up in surprise, "You mean you've had more than that? What in Equestria happened?"

I gave her a lopsided smirk as I ignored the turn of phrase, giving only an occasional wince and decided it would help pass the time, "Might as well share the story. I was on a camping trip five years ago and we were in a fairly remote area during a hike on the third day. We don't know what started it, but most of us were caught in a rockslide. Obviously, I survived but I was hurt pretty bad. Of the eight of us in our group, seven were caught in the slide and five didn't even survive the slide in the first place. I couldn't tell you how I lived, but to say I felt much worse than today is an understatement."

"The saddest part...," a heavy sigh escaped me as the memories played, "I was close enough to grab the twelve year old son of one of our group. I tried to run him clear of the slide's path but couldn't get down the trail fast enough and we got carried along. The rocks were mostly small in size, which I figure is part of the reason I was able to survive, but for all the strength we put into hanging onto each other, I was forced away from the kid. He didn't make it.

"I somehow managed to mostly stay on top of the slide, but once the mass of rubble stopped, I had several broken bones and was bleeding bad. The only member of our group that wasn't caught in the slide also happened to have a satellite phone and...uh, that's a long range communication device...and he was able to call for rescue. We were airlifted in a few minutes because we got lucky that an airborne rescue team was training just a few miles away, so they were able to respond in record time. I should also add that I was unconscious for all this and heard the story from the guy that escaped the slide.

"I heard that the only other person to survive the initial injuries from the slide ended up with too much internal bleeding and didn't make it to the hospital. I was lucky in a sense because I was bleeding externally and they managed to control it enough that I survived the flight.

"Once I got to the hospital, they found most of the bones in most of my limbs were broken, not to mention a number of others in my torso. Thankfully, my skull and spine managed to avoid anything serious. Took a lot of stitches to close all the gashes. Around a hundred thirty before the stitches from the surgeries I underwent to get me fixed back up. Was even in a body cast for a while. Took me four months in the hospital and another six in physical therapy to recover completely.

"And now you know how I could say I have felt worse, Twilight," I said with a sigh, watching her speechless state.

The doctor was closing the hole where the wood shard used to be by the time my story finished. I hadn't realized how much pressure my arm had been feeling before he got the thing out. Once he finished stitching it geother and Nurse Tough Love disposed of the tools, he walked around the other side of the bed and grabbed a different set as he got ready to repair my shoulder.

"I must say, Mister Vojin, I can certainly understand your ability to tolerate injury as you do having heard that story. Having such an experience and your aforementioned training, this second surgery to reconstruct part of the muscle in your shoulder won't be quite as difficult for you. Regrettably, I cannot give you as much anesthesia like your arm received due to the proximity to your heart. This is going to hurt, even by your standards I'm afraid, Doctor Hoofmeister said in his calm voice, seeming to pause at a thought, "Hmm...under normal circumstances, I would never suggest this but your unique situation is not exactly standard. If you wish, I can see that you are brought some hard liquor to dull some of the experience. You need only say the word."

It took a moment for me to register his suggestion. I arched a brow, looking at him and knowing that wasn't quite a typical thing from a doctor anywhere. After a moment of consideration, I just shook my head with a strained smile.

"No thanks, doc. For very personal reasons, I don't drink alcohol at all beyond some very specific circumstances. Important enough to me even to endure this experience. This is a one time thing, so I'll make do. If you think it's going to be that intense, just give me a bite stick and a place to lock my hand onto."

The doctor gave me a long, steady look before he nodded, "If that is how you wish to approach this, I won't stop you. However, unlike removing the wood from your arm, this is going to be highly delicate the whole procedure and there are several stages I need to have things held in place as I use another tool. If you move too much at all, and at some points even tense the muscle too much, you could tear even more tissue and make things much worse. Ordinarily, this is never a problem but your additional considerations with anesthesia and magic are difficult to work around."

"I know, doc. Let's just get this over with so I can get to healing," I said with finality, adjusting my position a little as he needed for the procedure, nodding to Nurse Tough Love when she placed a suitable bite stick in my right hand that I was quick to place in my mouth so I wouldn't get caught unprepared. She then gave the few anesthetic injections she could.

I looked away from the doctor when something touched my right hand. When I turned my eyes to see, I found Twilight standing beside my bed with her hoof resting on my hand and a very worried look on her face. I closed my fingers over her hoof in a gentle fashion and gave her a tight smile in hope of expressing my appreciation even as I began to prepare my mind for what a stellar experience this was going to be. Drawing on my training and practice, I started slipping my mind into a trance state as my left hand gripped a bar attached to the bed. My eyes found themselves drawn to Twilight's and we stared at each other even as Doctor Hoofmeister asked for and received my permission to begin.

While the good doctor did work in the swiftest, most efficient manner he could, the procedure took just under an hour and time passed with an agonizing slowness. The first few minutes just hurt, but after that it went past feeling on fire until he was done and just working on closing the gash.

The entire time, Twilight and I stared into each other's eyes. I grimaced, shed tears, ground down on the bite stick, squeezed the bar and her hoof, and aside from shallow, often shaky breaths, managed to endure in silence until the doctor was done and Nurse Tough wrapped large bandages all around my shoulder and across my chest.

As I worked to calm myself down and take normal breaths again for several minutes, I realized how drenched in sweat I had gotten. Twilight brushed some damp hair from my forehead with her free hoof, no words felt necessary between us just then. I was exhausted from the strain and trembling. The doctor hadn't been exaggerating about the surgery hurting even by my level of tolerance. At least it was over now and I could just focus on recovering.

Without really thinking about it, my shaking hand brought Twilight's hoof to my lips and I planted a soft kiss upon it in gratitude of her being there the whole time. She gave me a warm smile even as a blush lit her face before she looked up in surprise when the door burst open with a light bang and Princess Celestia rushed in.

"Twilight! Vojin! Are you alright?! After not receiving a reply for an hour, I asked Spike to report what was going on and why I had received no response only to learn both of you were back in the hospital after a hard fall! By the Sun, what happened to you two?!" Celestia said in a rush, hurrying to Twilight's side and hugging her tight before she looked down at the sorry state I was in on the bed, drained and exhausted.

"Celestia, I'm so sorry! I was going to reply after a short experiment with flying but we were suddenly hit with a massive shift in the link without warning. Maybe I flew too high without realizing it, I don't know! It just happened too fast to react. I'm a little bruised, but I am otherwise fine," Twilight explained, hugging her mentor back just as strong.

Celestia didn't let go of Twilight for longer than seemed usual. It wasn't hard to see how afraid she had been for Twilight written across her features, watching it drain out of her before she released her long-time protege and now fellow princess, "We can discuss the details later, Twilight. I am just thankful you're alright. I must ask though, how is it you are only bruised when Vojin has been injured so substantially?"

Twilight looked at me with a warm smile, staring into my eyes before turning back to her mentor, "Vojin jumped off my balcony to catch me in the air and broke my fall when I was too disoriented to fly or focus. He took most of the impact himself and I might not be here if he hadn't."

Princess Celestia looked shocked, glancing to me and back to Twilight a few times before turning a grateful look on me, "Vojin, you truly have my deepest thanks for protecting Twilight."

Giving her a tired nod and a half-hearted smile as I replied, "I only did what was necessary, your highness. Still don't know what happened or how I managed to come out with just the injuries I did receive, but I'd do it again if I had to."

Celestia gave me a graceful nod, having recovered her usual composure, "I will certainly want to hear the circumstances of this, though I believe it can wait for the time being. Might I ask why you seem so particularly drained, Vojin?"

Before I could reply, Twilight answered instead as she looked to me with a small smile, "He just endured almost no anesthesia for a surgery to repair his shoulder. I can't imagine how, but he never made a sound the whole time. I can't stop thinking about how much of a risk he took to save me..."

I returned her smile with another one of my own as her hoof touched my hand again, meeting her gaze as she did. Princess Celestia seemed shocked by the news for a moment before she gave a warm smile at seeing the closeness Twilight and I had gained.

"It seems you will be fine now, Vojin. I am most grateful you were able to aid Twilight in a moment of great need. Once you have recovered for a few days, I would like both of you to come up to Canterlot. The research my sister and I have been doing is providing a number of valuable insights already. We still have much more to do of course, but it may be quite helpful to hear some of what we have already learned," Celestia said before looking to the doctor, whom had been waiting in silence so as not to interrupt, giving him a deep frown, "I would like to know why you did not administer anesthetic to Vojin. I am aware of your skill and reputation, Doctor Hoofmeister, so please do not think I am angry with you in my query."

He straightened up and bowed a moment, responding in the same calm tone he always had, "Your highness, due to human physiology being such an unknown, coupled with his recent case of magic flux, I felt it would be of great risk to administer very much of even our most universal drug options. No magical means were attempted. I even went so far as to offer him some hard liquor to help manage the pain, but he refused. As much pain as he must have felt, he endured it remarkably well and I was able to finish the manual surgery as efficiently as I could have managed even if he was under proper anesthesia."

With a graceful nod, Princess Celestia thanked him and asked to have some time in private with Twilight and myself, then to send Twilight's friends in after a few minutes and she would send for them when finished. Both he and Nurse Tough Love bowed and closed the door to the room behind them as they departed. Princess Celestia turned back to Twilight and I with a deeper frown.

"I fear I did not give you sufficient explanation relating to your link and do apologize. It was not so necessary with how it appeared at the time. I believe what you have experienced was related to being too far apart for too long. As you already knew, your link will not allow you to be separated very far. However, I neglected to mention it will also not allow even that much distance for very long just yet. From what has been uncovered so far, you may consider it not unlike a middle basin on a tiered fountain, always being filled and emptied in equal measure when placed at the correct height but could conceivably lack enough incoming water to match the draining flow if too far from the source. In your case, you are the magic source for each other, as well as the place you are draining into. I can thankfully tell you right now that Luna and I both believe the link is essentially bringing itself into balance over time and will eventually stop causing such issues. At that point, you may both travel separately as desired. We have not yet been able to ascertain how long this process will take, only that it will happen over time," Celestia stated, her eyes then took on an odd unreadable expression, but she made no indication what was on her mind.

Twilight looked back at me with another smile, seeming relieved at the news. I gave her hoof another gentle squeeze with a small smile of my own. Celestia seemed rather intrigued to find the two of us acting so warmly with each other.

There was a minute or two of comfortable quiet before the door opened and Twilight's friends came in. They bowed to Celestia before swarming Twilight for a group hug, whom was still standing beside me. They all gave me worried looks as they took in my stitches, large bandages and exhaustion. It was not all that improved over the cut up and bloodied state I left in.

"We were all dreadfully worried about the two of you. I simply must ask you Twilight. How on Equestria are you looking so unharmed and our new friend lies in such a dreadful state?" Rarity asked, looking back and forth between Twilight and myself.

"We were mighty worried until we got here ta the hospital and heard ya both would be alright. Sure was a big relief ta hear, Ah tell ya. And what in tarnation was all that glowin' about when ya jumped off the balcony, Vojin? Ah thought ya said ya ain't got much magic?" Applejack said with concern.

At the mention of glowing however, Princess Celestia, Twilight, and myself froze as we looked at Applejack in surprise while Celestia drew closer.

"Applejack, what do you mean by 'glowing' when Vojin leapt from the balcony?" Celestia asked in a guarded tone.

Before Applejack even had a chance, Pinkie started in as she began hopping in place and chattered away, "Oh! It was super duper neat! Vojin was on his knees one moment, then yelled for us to move and he ran right off the balcony into the air like he could fly away with this really pretty white glow all over his hands and eyes, then almost all over him when he caught Twilight right outta the air like a super duper stunt-pony action hero! It even covered Twilight so much I couldn't see her anymore until they hit the ground! We were so busy worrying about them that we didn't mention it until just now! Vojin, since you said you don't have much magic, can you teach me how to turn all glowy like that? It'd be so wonderrific and I could be my own night light!"

The looks on Celestia and Twilight were of utter shock. Twilight kept opening and closing her mouth while Celestia just stared at me with a somewhat unreadable blank expression. I just kept looking back and forth between the two of them in confusion before I had to say something.

"Uh...don't know about any glowing I did but are you two alright? You look like something impossible just happened...," I said, feeling clueless.

Celestia at last let out a slow breath, "Vojin...if what I just heard is true, you are not simply capable of more magic than you thought or previously appeared, but among a very short list of unicorns that have accomplished such an expression of raw power without training or preparation. In my entire life, long as it has been, there have been less than ten. To use names I believe you are familiar with, two of them are Starswirl the Bearded and Twilight Sparkle."

Now it was my turn to be shocked as I stared at Princess Celestia. There should be no possible way for me to be capable of such a thing. What I knew of magic and energy work had nothing of that magnitude by even the broadest measure. There was just no way I could have generated such levels of power. Someone must have misinterpreted something and I had a serious lucky break when I caught Twilight. I had no words to respond.

"From what you have told me and the things I learned about you while you recovered from the magic flux, I suspect the lower levels of magic on your own world combined with your magical practice resulted in a very unusual circumstance when you arrived here in Equestria. I will consider it further and we can discuss it when you and Twilight can come up to Canterlot after you recover from your current injuries," Celestia said with interest in her voice.

I just gave an absent nod, feeling more than a little overwhelmed at how my second conscious day in Equestria had gone. Twilight gave my hand a squeeze in her fetlock, a look of delighted, gleeful excitement on her face as she giggled and grinned.

"Oh my gosh! If you have that much ability, I can't wait to start showing you all kinds of spells! Of course, I'll have to help you learn some basic control first but I just know you'll do great as you start learning magic with me! It'll be so much fun to compare our different styles of casting when you're ready! I wonder how well you'll handle teleportation the first time! We'll even be able to research spells together! Oh, and mmmff!" Twilight was dragged out of her tangent rambling by a pink hoof over her mouth as Pinkie, of all ponies, gave a sly smirk. Realizing what she'd just done, Twilight blushed.

For my part, I couldn't help but give a small chuckle even as I winced from the irritation to my injured ribs. The other girls and even Spike looked on with awkward, polite smiles.

Princess Celestia gave a soft, bell-like laugh before speaking, "Well Twilight, it would seem there is another aspect of this situation to take into consideration. I am glad you are so eager to help Vojin learn magic. At the very least, having some training to better control it will avoid any accidental bursts should certain situations arise. Knowing this new development also opens some avenues Luna and I had previously discounted."

Twilight still had a faint blush, though her smile was undaunted. It was good to see her so excited even if I had little idea what to expect. At least it would be a great subject to explore while I recovered yet again.

Beaming in her excitement, Twilight was perhaps on the edge of running off on another tangent as ideas almost visibly flew across her mind, "Well Vojin, it's going to be a lot of fun to each you about Equestrian magic. I still haven't even had a chance to hear much about your own! I'm not sure I'll be able to sleep tonight with all the books I want to look through and see what mental exercises will work best for you!"

"Twilight, as intrigued as I am, I fear I'm in no condition to keep up for a couple days. Go right ahead getting ready to your heart's content though. It will be absolutely fascinating to learn magic like unicorns use. I've dreamed of that kind of ability," I said with a tired smile.

She rubbed my hand with her hoof and still wearing a wide smile, she never once moved away from my side since the surgery. I was grateful she stayed there with me, my mind drifting as I found myself caught by her eyes again. It occurred to me I was doing that more with every passing look.

"Alright, everypony. I need all of you to listen now. I had you join us in this room for a reason," Celestia intoned, her voice gentle but undeniable with an air of gravity that made everyone turn to her, "Now, because you are all uniquely connected in various ways, not the least of which that the you girls are the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony before they were returned to the Tree of Harmony, I need to share some things with you. And to be clear, this does include you as well, Spike."

The girls and Spike looked at each other in confusion, having no idea what the Princess was about to say. I just looked on as I watched Princess Celestia, wondering what she had to say.

"As you know, Vojin appeared in Equestria quite suddenly and without warning. My sister and I, in the course of studying the unique circumstances surrounding his arrival, have come to realize not only are Vojin and Twilight involved in events to come, but the rest of you are also bound in what we have foreseen. Perhaps it was to be expected, considering all you have done together already. As I expressed to Twilight and Vojin yesterday after we left the hospital, what I am about to discuss must not be repeated to anypony under any circumstances. To do so could risk very grave consequences. Now just a moment..."

Princess Celestia turned her gaze to each of them before her horn began to glow in her billowing golden aura. I felt a wave of energy surrounding the room and realized she was casting some kind of spell over the room before she began to speak again with a far more serious expression, "I am afraid I cannot tell you everything, my most beloved little ponies. There are aspects that must yet remain secret, even though it will affect you directly. I can tell you it relates to events to come.

"A great trial approaches that will test us all as never before. As I explained to Twilight and Vojin yesterday, and why I had my guards ask that you wait until today to visit, Luna and I have been working on a safeguard for Equestria for well over a thousand years. While it was on hold during Luna's banishment and it required us working together in order to create, we had been working on it again for several months. For reasons we have not been able to yet discern, Vojin somehow found it on his own world and was subsequently pulled here to Equestria, seemingly soon after Luna and I performed a final test and the artifact we were crafting disappeared.

"It was meant to summon somepony to the palace in a time of great need. Luna and I have been doing research into the matter and still have much to study but we have found strong indications that Vojin is going to be needed by Equestria for some key reason, though we have yet to answer why. We do know the Tree of Harmony itself will be involved and under threat, despite the fact it should be far beyond any mortal to cause it harm. Should the Tree ever fall, it would mean the end of our world.

"I hope to be able to share more soon, if our research continues to prove fruitful and we gain a clearer picture of what is taking place. I know you all have far more questions than answers now, but aside from the few things I have already shared with Twilight and Vojin that they may now share freely with you, I cannot say anything more.

"Again, do not discuss this with anypony under any circumstances other than between yourselves. Even then, please ensure you restrict such discussions to the library after Twilight can put up an active soundproofing spell like I am currently keeping over this room. Grave consequences could result if even this little bit of information somehow found the wrong ears."

Celestia watched as everyone persent gave her either a salute or other confirmation of the importance. She gave a graceful nod with a faint smile as she lowered the soundproofing spell, speaking in a tone full of certainty, "I know you will all be able to see things through as you have done so many times in the past. All of you have more strength than I would have thought possible. For now though, having attended what I needed after checking upon Twilight's and Vojin's well-being, I must return to Canterlot once more as things are quite busy after spending last week away to protect them from the flux. I know you will triumph so long as you all remain true to yourselves and each other, as you always have."

Twilight gave her mentor a hug before she departed while I gave her a tired nod. The rest gave a brief bow. No words were spoken for a few minutes after Celestia left. There were a few hugs or hooves touching shoulders in mutual support and comfort. Even Spike stood silent beside Twilight with one hand on her leg as he looked at the floor.

After a point, something pushed me to say something, "Hey girls...listen."

Feeling a little better now that I'd had a while to rest, I spoke in a soft tone, "No matter what happens with what Princess Celestia said, you have each other to stand beside you...and now you have me to stand with you. Whatever my role is, I'll be there to help protect you. If I'm truly stuck in Equestria and must make a life for myself here, I can think of no greater goal than protecting the ladies that embody the Elements of Harmony and those they hold dear."

All but one of them was now looking at me with varying degrees of wonder, surprise, confusion, and appreciation. Twilight was the only one that wasn't, staring at me with shock and sadness as her eyes filled with tears. Somehow, I had the impression it was connected to her reaction to my tattoo from before, but she could share the story with me later. Time seemed to vanish again as we stared into each other's eyes.

We were snapped out of it when Fluttershy touched Twilight on the shoulder, her yellow wing brushing Twilight's cheek in a tender fashion as she spoke in a concerned voice, "Twilight? What's wrong? Why do you look like you're about to cry?"

Twilight only brought a hoof up to cover her mouth as she looked like she was about to break down in tears, giving a soft shake of her head before she brought her head down to my chest to weep in silence. The others present kept asking her what was wrong, but she just stayed there half laying against me with her eyes closed as she wept for a while longer. I didn't know what bothered her so much about saying I'd be there to protect them, but I let her stay there. With a rather careful motion of my left hand, not doing more than bend my arm at the elbow so as not to aggravate my shoulder, I began to brush my fingers against her mane. After a while longer, she seemed to calm, giving a soft sniffle before lifting herself back up.

"I'm sorry everypony, I...I guess everything that's happened recently just kinda overwhelmed me all of a sudden. I'll be ok," she said as she wiped a fetlock over her eyes. I had the strange feeling she was being truthful but still dodging the full reason she was crying.

"That's quite alright, darling. I'm sure any of us might feel very much the same had we endured all you have been through in just this past week," Rarity said as she rubbed Twilight's back.

"Yeah, Twi. Don't worry about it. We all get overloaded at some point. Unless you're me, of course! I can handle anything!" Rainbow Dash boasted, giving Twilight a gentle tap on the shoulder.

Twilight gave a faint smile to her friends, "Thanks, girls. I'll be fine now."

As the girls started some conversation amongst themselves, I gave Twilight's hoof a soft squeeze to get her attention, "Come closer for a second, Twilight. I need to tell you something."

When she had leaned down, I whispered, "I know it was my saying I'd protect you and your friends that got you upset. I won't ask right now, but I hope you'll be willing to tell me back at the library later, alright?"

Once she pulled back, her eyes threatened to fill with tears again before she got control of herself. There was a long pause before she gave a slight nod, drawing a soft smile from me in return. I gave her hoof another squeeze in thanks.

It was about then that I at last felt myself grow very tired as the day caught up with me. To my chagrin though, it took a while for me to even fall asleep, only to shift my body in my near-sleeping state and irritate something in a painful way which kicked me right back to being wide awake.

At some point after half an hour or so by my guess, the others headed off to let us both rest. Doctor Hoofmeister had been back to make sure everything checked out and nothing unexpected had happened with my injuries. He told us after some observation for a few more hours, we'd be free to leave the hospital since there was nothing left he could do for me without healing spells, leaving me with just a need for plenty of rest.

My now favorite nurse came back in to check how I was doing every thirty minutes, tending to threaten me with iodine whenever I called her 'Nurse Feisty' again. She also helped me clean up with a thorough sponge bath, during which Twilight was gracious enough to wait on the other side of the curtain for. I did get Twilight to laugh at one point though when I cracked a joke about getting a sponge bath by a hot nurse, though it earned me a magical swat upside the head from said nurse.

When Nurse Tough Love came to get us ready to leave and I mentioned appreciating her rougher approach, she grumbled about me spoiling her and making her want to be nice to me, despite smirking the whole time. Then she threatened to hide all other antiseptics and leave me with only iodine if I 'got my flank hurt again' enough to come back in under a month. That one somehow seemed more serious when she said it.

Twilight and I got a cart ride from Applejack when we left the hospital, since I wasn't very ready for much walking. I was surprised to find a rather impressive arrangement of cushions and pillows had been prepared for us in the cart and sensed Rarity's touch amongst the fancy pillows, for which I was thankful as it would prevent every little bump in the road from causing me substantial discomfort.

While we were making our way back to the library in the evening, Twilight and I sat in silence together as we rode along. I noticed she kept close to me or would rest her hoof on my right hand frequently.

It got to a point where I just had to ask, "Twilight, I keep noticing you've been staying a lot closer to me since we were in the hospital. Mind if I ask if there's a reason why?"

Twilight seemed to blush a little, making me suspect I should already know the answer for some reason. She cleared her throat a bit, a rather self-conscious scooting away happened as she did, "I just...uh, well...I guess I'm just really grateful you caught me this morning. It made me feel kind of treasured somehow and I guess I've just kind of...liked staying near you. Makes me feel a little safer, if that makes sense?"

Out of the corner of my eye, I could swear I saw Applejack glance over her shoulder with a whimsical smirk. It left me starting to feel clueless again and decided not to think too hard on it.

"I did mean it, Twilight, what I said earlier about doing the same thing again. I still couldn't tell you how I knew I could catch you at all or how the heck I knew rarity couldn't just catch you with levitation. I just reacted. I suppose it's a very good thing that I managed to cast that shield around us, too. I hardly scratched most of my back and didn't hurt my head at all. With how much of a mess the rest of me is, it probably wouldn't have been pretty."

Twilight nodded with a small smile, "Well, now that I know you have the ability, I can help make sure you can cast a shield that actually covers you properly rather than one that leaves your arms exposed and lets you take most of the impact like that."

"Maybe this is asking for trouble on my part, but how do you think I did with the shield, anyway? I didn't even know I was doing it, just acting on instinct," I said, curious about her response.

To my surprise, Twilight giggled a bit and gave me an amused look, "Vojin, it's amazing that you protected anything at all. You were using so much magic that I'm surprised you weren't simply floating to begin with! It was kind of silly that your instinctive reaction left part of you exposed and...wait..."

Her expression turned to amazement as her eyes widened, realizing something about whatever it was I had done as she spoke with excitement, "Vojin, I don't think you were shielding yourself at all! The entire shield was around ME! You had me so heavily shielded that you just happened to be in part of the shield when we landed!"

I looked at her, not really getting what the difference was even as she continued, "Without proper training to direct it, there is no way you should have been able to put a shield around somepony else! How in Equestria did you even do that?! I have to write Princess Celestia as soon as we get back to the library so I can tell her! That's amazing!"

As she kept going on in her excitement, spouting various bits of magical formulae well beyond my capacity to understand, I just cocked my head to one side with an eyebrow raised. I wasn't really sure how to respond. It had been instinctive, not done on purpose. I knew about some techniques for aura shielding back on Earth, but this was...

Then it hit me, seeming so clear.

"Twilight, I think I have an idea what happened and how I was able to shield you," I said, watching as it took her several seconds to realize what I'd just said.

She looked at me in surprise, "What? Without training, it shouldn't even be possible. Have you had training?"

I gave her a grin, "Well, like I've already said, I did practice magic on Earth. It's just a working hypothesis, but I think I was using a seriously amplified version of aura shielding on you. I have trained how to project a shield in that sense. It explains how it was so thickly layered around you, how I could direct it onto you, and how I was partly covered."

"Auric shielding? I know about a few tricks with auras, but I've never heard of shielding one or using one as a shield. Is it more of an expression to describe the spell, or is it more literal?" she asked, rubbing her chin with a hoof.

"I think it's more literal. Something that has crossed my mind is the low levels of magic available on Earth also caused some very energy efficient and creative approaches to the weaker forces available. Of course, on Earth we can really only use aura shielding for spiritual defenses for the most part. Most of the magic is in that arena, actually. There's just not enough energy to manifest much, if any, physical effects anymore most of the time," I went on as I followed my thoughts.

Twilight continued her pondering a moment longer, looking as fascinated as ever, "Well, do you think you could do it again on purpose, now that you have a possible explanation?"

"You know, I'm not really sure. I think I can try something else for now though. Let me see if I can make a light above my hand..." I offered as my right hand came up, palm towards the sky.

She watched with intense curiosity as I began to focus. I had done this little exercise many times for a different reason, but guessed a lot of my previous understanding and practices would find the energy involved to be amplified in a big way. I stared at my palm, trying to direct my internal energy flows towards my intended point, picturing a tiny marble of gathering magic hovering just above the middle of my hand.

To my surprise and Twilight's, a tiny pinprick of light began to form as my hand was covered in a dim, billowing white mass. I fed more energy into it and it grew quite fast. After another second however, it began growing faster and brighter at a rapid rate. Before I had time to react, it had grown as large as a grapefruit before it pretty much exploded in a blinding flash of light that left spots in my eyes. Twilight's yelp of surprise told me she experienced much the same.

"Would y'all mind tellin' me what the hay yer up ta back there? That wa one mighty bright flash...," Applejack said, sounding a little nervous.

"Sorry, Applejack. Just a little magic experiment. I wasn't expecting it to go like that," I replied, still trying to figure out what had just happened.

Twilight shook her head a bit to clear her head, looking at me with a bemused expression, her voice dry, "Vojin, I think the first lesson you're getting is about power control."

The two of us shared a quiet laugh, though Twilight laughed more than I did since my ribs hated my guts right now. Applejack just sighed and rolled her eyes, focused on pulling the cart.

"Really, Vojin, you put way too much power into that spell. It's possibly a result of how little magic there was back in the world you came from. I think it's a great sign that you did that so easily, though. The methods and techniques you already know might be a lot closer to what we use in Equestria than I'd hoped," Twilight continued, giving me a bright smile as gears turned in her head in an almost visible way.

I just smirked as something came to mind, "I guess it's a good thing I wasn't trying to cast anything with fire, right?"

Twilight winced, "No kidding. If you did that with a similar fire spell, the three of us would probably be all singed right now. Actually, on that note, you're banned from using fire magic in our house until further notice."

We both shared another laugh at that until I registered what she just said and looked at her with a brow raised as I made a somewhat careful query, "Twilight...did you just say our house?"

Her eyes widened as a bright blush lit her face. While she stammered, I heard Applejack let out a snorting chuckle. Deciding to tease her a little, I leaned a bit closer.

"Why Twilight, if I had to guess, I would swear you like me," I teased her with a sideways look. The cart wobbled a little as Applejack had trouble keeping herself from falling over with laughter even as Twilight seemed to outright change colors with how much she was blushing, beginning to play with her hooves as she looked down.

"I, uh, r-really Vojin, it's...well, you see...I j-just...," Twilight struggled to form a sentence while flustered to a remarkable degree. It made her look very cute and adorable.

Once I felt like she had endured enough, I made a cautious lean closer to her so I could whisper and not have Applejack overhear, my own face heating a bit as I committed myself to what I was going to say, even as a wide grin broke out on my face, "And you know something, Twilight...I always found smart girls like you to be the cutest."

As I leaned back to a more comfortable position, I was a little boggled at the expression on Twilight's face. Her eyes were wide as saucers and her face frozen in surprise with her mouth hanging open, seeming to almost glow from how much she was blushing. I could almost swear she even had steam coming out of her ears.

After a full minute passed without a change, I found myself getting a little worried about her and called out to Applejack to see if she was familiar with this state Twilight was in, "Uh, Applejack, I think I broke Twilight somehow. Is she ok?"

Applejack stopped pulling and looked over her shoulder at Twilight with a raised brow. I saw her frown, squinting a little as she scrutinized Twilight's face before she smiled and went back to pulling the cart.

"She'll be alright in a few. Ya told her y'all like her back, didn't ya?" she said in a matter-of-fact tone, giving me a smirk. It soon grew into a cat-that-ate-the-canary grin when she saw me blush bright in response. She just snickered and carried on.

Sitting there watching Twilight for another minute, her rigid posture and expression remained unchanged. Since we were almost to the library by this point, I gave a soft poke to her shoulder and she looked at me from the corner of her eyes as her mouth closed, still blushing as she gave me a sheepish grin. Lacking any idea what I could say after that, I could only return it in kind.

By the time we pulled up in front of the library a couple minutes later, both Twilight and I had managed to calm ourselves for the most part. We flashed each other silly grins, but didn't say anything about what had just happened.

Twilight hopped off the cart with ease. Stuck moving slow and careful, I had moved to the edge of the cart, that had no gate or dropping side, and steeled myself for the light jarring that would come from hopping the small distance to the ground.

When I found myself floating for a second and set on my feet with a gentle touch, I blinked in momentary confusion until shooting a look at Twilight, confirming she'd just used levitation on me as her horn ceased glowing with the end of the spell. When our eyes met, we both froze as the realization of what just happened caught up to us. I saw her eyes widen in worry and fear as she remembered what happened last time she'd tried levitation on me.

There was a long pause before Applejack spoke up in a cautious tone, ""Uh...y'all ok there? Ya both just up and froze before starin' at each other with some mighty worried looks on yer faces."

Applejack's question seemed to do the trick for us as we realized nothing unexpected had happened this time around. It was with that realization that we could breathe again.

Twilight looked at her farmer friend and gave her a sheepish smile, "Sorry, AJ. I just realized I used the same levitation spell to help Vojin off the cart as the one I'd used to catch him falling out of the sky when he first appeared. That's how the magic flux started and I think we were both worried for a second that something would go wrong again."

Applejack looked surprised for a brief moment, then just nodded, "Well, Ah reckon that's a good enough reason ta worry. Can't say Ah know much about magic, but that bit makes sense. Ah'll let ya be now. Vojin is sure ta be mighty tuckered out after a day like this. Me an' the girls'll be droppin' by in close ta lunch tomorrow, Twi. We'll see ya then, alright?"

"I'll be looking forward to it, AJ. See you and the girls tomorrow," Twilight waved as Applejack began to head back for her farm.

"Oh, an' before Ah forget, remember. Vojin's got a lot o' healin' ta do, Twi. Now that ya both know ya like each other, try not ta stay up all night," Applejack teased with an amused laugh as she headed off.

Twilight and I looked back at each other, both of us seeing the blush on the other. Twilight gave a short laugh of embarrassment before she looked away, opening the door and heading inside after me.

Once the door shut, we stared at each other again for another awkward moment before Twilight found her voice again, "Well...uh...I guess I'll see if there's anything quick to eat since it's after dinner and Spike should already be asleep. Can I get you anything, Vojin?"

"No thank you, Twilight. I really just want to rest and I hope I'll be able to sleep without too much pain tonight. Back on Earth, they'd have given me some nice and strong pain relieving medication, though I understand why they were afraid to here. Never expected I'd be missing something like that as much as I am right now. I'll have to rely on my survival medkit for however long it lasts," I told her, starting to move for the stairs to go get the thing when Twilight spoke up again.

"Um, Vojin, you don't remember, do you?" Twilight said.

Turning to look at her with a confused look, "Remember what?"

"Celestia mentioned it to me yesterday in case you didn't remember. She said while we were recovering, during one of the periods you were awake, she asked if they could take your medical supplies because they weren't familiar with them. You agreed since you were already in a hospital," she replied, looking apologetic.

Groaning in annoyed defeat, I just turned and started over to the couch instead, "Geh... Well, it's done. I'll live."

"Well, I can at least get you a glass of water. I know the healing process can sometimes dehydrate somepony when they have as much to recover from as you do. Same with a greater need for eating right," Twilight said, giving me a sympathetic look before heading into the kitchen.

As I waited for her to return, I tried to shift myself around on the couch in hopes of finding a somewhat comfortable position. I was on my back with my legs hanging over one end when Twilight came back with a glass of water and a straw for me. I gave her a small smile of appreciation when she came up to the couch.

"not having much luck finding a comfortable place, are you?" Twilight asked as I took the glass in my right hand. I was thankful my right arm was still quite functional or this would have been so much worse to deal with.

With a shake of my head, I frowned, "Unfortunately not. It isn't even the furniture really. Seems like I keep missing something to get properly comfy. Every position is irritating something. Might lay down in bed soon and just hope to get at least a little sleep tonight."

Twilight rubbed her chin with a hoof with a thoughtful expression before she looked at me again, her voice cautious but hopeful, "Do you mind if I try another spell on you, Vojin? I have an idea."

I raised a brow at her, a bit wary but she was the magic expert here, "I guess. What did you have in mind?"

"Just let me try this first and I'll explain."

She stepped back a couple paces and aimed her horn in my direction before it began to glow with her natural aura. I felt energy washing over me, but I couldn't tell what was happening beyond that and nothing seemed to indicate what kind of spell she was casting. After she'd done this for several seconds, she looked up again with a smile and appearing much more relaxed.

"Well, from what I can tall, I can use my magic on you without any problems now. I just tried a mixture of different spell components on you. By themselves they're inert, so you don't have to worry about any weird effects. Nothing appeared to cause any change in your magic or mine, so I'd like to try something more specific, if you don't mind," Twilight said with a hopeful tone.

"I guess that's good news then. Don't see any reason not to, so go ahead, Twilight."

She gave me a smile before taking on a more focused look. Aiming her horn at me again, the glow was a lot brighter this time.

As the spell's magic washed over me, I began noticing a strange feeling in several places as I tried to figure out what she was doing. Within a few seconds, I noticed some of my pain was receding and it dawned on me that Twilight was either casting a healing or pain relieving spell of some kind. Either way, I was happy with getting to feel a little better.

While she focused on the spell, I noticed Twilight sweating and straining more and more. By the time almost a full minute had passed, she looked exhausted even as she kept going and a little bit more of my pain faded. Witnessing how hard she was struggling though, it began to worry me as she looked every more drained. The instant I noticed her starting to pale, I couldn't stand it anymore.

"Twilight! Enough!" I almost shouted, startling her out of her focus as she looked up at me with fear and worry.

"What happened, Vojin? Did you notice some sign of our magic getting distorted again?" Twilight said as she started to panic.

I just shook my head as I gave her a level stare, "No, but I did see you straining yourself way too hard. I'm not going to let you cast whatever that was on me again without good reason. It looked like you were making yourself sick and might pass out."

She frowned, stepping back up to the couch before moving onto the cushion beside my head, looking down at me with a sad expression as she sighed, "I just wanted to try and heal you a little. At least enough so you could get a decent night's rest."

"I'm not trading my health for yours. I appreciate the effort, but to borrow a little from you earlier, you're banned from using healing spells on me until further notice."

Twilight looked both sad and a little annoyed, tears starting to form in the corner of her eyes. Reaching up, I brushed my fingers across her cheek as I looked up at her with a small tender smile.

Speaking in a soft voice, "Come now, Twilight. What's on your mind? Is it related to why you were shedding those tears at the hospital?"

She trembled a little as the tears began to slide down her cheeks, giving me a weak nod in response. Twilight seemed unable to speak while she worked on holding herself together against a coming breakdown, prompting me to start sitting up.

"Twilight, talk to me. You already said you'd tell me tell me what was wrong earlier," I said as I got myself upright and scooted over next to her, pleased to find I wasn't hurting quite as much after she cast the spell.

When Twilight didn't say anything, I paused before reaching my arm around her back, hugging her against my side. I was a little surprised when she was quick to snuggle in against me this time. Deciding she'd talk when she was ready, I just sat in silence with her. It was comforting to sit with her like this, holding her close with her head leaning against my chest below my chin.

The comfortable silence went on for a few minutes before she gave a resigned sigh and spoke in a quiet voice, "When you said you'd be a protector for us Bearers of the Elements, you confirmed something related to the mark on your chest."

That was something of a surprise, but why would there be a connection? Deciding to remain quiet and let her continue, I had little to say until I heard more of the story.

Twilight continued after another minute, her voice stronger, "I found a scroll by accident in a restricted Canterlot archive. It was a brief overview of the Guardian of the Bearers. I didn't know what was meant by any of it until after I came to Ponyville and my friends and I obtained the Elements of Harmony. I talked about it with Celestia once after that happened and she again told me I wasn't supposed to see the scroll, but that time she said if I found the being with the mark and then they offered to protect the Bearers, then I had to do everything I could to support the Guardian. More than the other Bearers, the Bearer of Magic would in turn help to protect the Guardian. From what, I don't know. Celestia even said she couldn't tell me because she didn't know either. All she could tell me was the bond I forged with the Guardian could save them from something along the way, while the Guardian was to support us Bearers of the Elements through a great trial we wouldn't be able to manage on our own. Princess Celestia has never lied to me or misguided me, even if I didn't always understand right away. Now that I've met you and we've become friends and saw your mark and you offering to protect us and this link and..."

Touching a finger to her lips to quiet her, I leaned us apart so I could look in her eyes. We just looked at each other for a minute. She was still teary-eyed, seeming in a strange state of delicate presence and openly vulnerable. I felt like I wasn't following with the scale of what she was talking about, lacking the context she had, but it didn't matter so much to me in that moment.

I cupped her cheek with a soft touch as I brought my arm back around between us, thumb brushing against her soft purple fur through her trail of tears, just looking at her in silence for long moments before voicing my thoughts, "I may not know what this is all really about, Twilight, but I meant what I said about protecting you and your friends. I wouldn't hesitate to jump off the balcony to catch you again, go through the same mess because of it again. I might not understand what brought me here, or why, but I have a deeper sense inside that is telling me I'm supposed to be here. That I'm supposed to be here beside you."

Twilight stared at me for a long moment as worry and wonder traveled across her face before she started to blush for an unknown reason. I had just started to think of speaking when she darted forward and gave me a deep kiss. Her eyes fell closed as she made a soft sound in her throat, wrapping her forelegs around my neck, causing me a little discomfort but she was gentle in her embrace. It all caught me by surprise of course, but soon my right arm slipped around her to pull her closer as I returned the kiss. My heart fluttered as a storm of emotions rushed around within.

It could have been a minute, it could have been twenty before we pulled back a little and looked at each other again. We were both blushing again as we breathed in quiet pants, stunned little smiles on our faces as we looked in each other's eyes.

"I.... Vojin, how can we be like this when we've only really had time to know each other for just two days? Part of me feels like this is so sudden and another part says nothing else matters beyond being here with you," she said in a soft, wondering voice before moving to nuzzle into my neck as she adjusted her forelegs, leaving one stretched across my torso as she rested her head against my right shoulder.

When a soft chuckle escaped at that, I found it only a little uncomfortable now in contrast to what it had felt like before. The healing spell that Twilight had used might well have sped up my recovery by a week or two, at least. I turned my mind away from that side of things again though, making slow strokes of my hand against her mane as I kept most of my arm against her back.

"I don't really know, but if I had to make my best guess, I'd say it's the link most likely. If it's really based partly in emotion, maybe we can understand each other better and more deeply. Have you felt like you can sometimes almost anticipate an action or mood or word from me before I go and do it?"

Twilight nodded against my neck, giving a faint sigh as her warm breath tickled across my skin, "I had thought I was just imagining it before. Now that you said that, maybe it wasn't as much imagined as I thought. Do you mind just holding me for a while? The idea we're all going to face some kind of dangerous trial is unsettling enough, but I'm even more worried about why I'm supposed to save you from something. I wish I knew from what."

Giving a gentle nod in response, I pulled her a little closer and ignored the protest my aching ribs made, it felt closer to serious bruising at this point, and nuzzled her head before I spoke, "If you are supposed to be the one to save me from something, then it also means you can save me from whatever it is. We just have to face it when we get to it, ok?"

She sniffled and tried to nuzzle a little closer, otherwise just staying where she was. The warmth of her and the softness of her fur was an amazing feeling, soothing. My hand was still making slow gentle strokes against her mane as I thought about the situation we were in and what I was going to do with my life if I really was stuck in Equestria for life, this sudden romantic turn with Twilight, making friends with the other girls, the surprise discovery I had a lot of magic potential. There was so much to think about and sort through, stacking up before I'd even come to grips with stuff that already happened.

It all left me that much more grateful to be cuddled up with Twilight in this moment.

"I don't know exactly what this change means between us, Twilight, but I know it feels really comforting right now. It also brings a question to mind. I hope you're not embarrassed by it and it's pretty forward of me and maybe something of a human thing, but I also can't shake the feeling it's right to ask," I offered in a hesitant tone, feeling both tense and at ease about it.

Twilight nuzzled my neck again in response before speaking, "I think I can handle most any question from you at this point, Vojin. I get the sense it's a yes or no sort of thing?"

"I see you're paying closer attention to what our link is sharing. Well, uh...," I cleared my throat, feeling embarrassed for asking, even if it still felt right, "I was just...um, wondering if you'd....well, like to sleep beside each other tonight is all. Nothing more than that. No, uh...extra stuff. I hardly think I'm healthy enough for such a thing right now anyway. I just thought it might be nice to cuddle up and fall asleep together."

I felt Twilight shiver at my words, for a moment I thought she might have been offended, but soon relaxed as she hummed and nuzzled my neck again before surprising me with a brief yet obvious lick tracing against a small spot on my neck, earning her a shiver from me in turn.

She gave a soft giggle at my response, her voice almost a purr, "Now that you mention it, that does sound really, really nice. The thought of extra stuff at some later time also sounds intriguing, but I have to agree about your present health. I'd also like to explore having a relationship for a while before really considering that step. By Celestia though, the thought of it is more than a little enticing. It's going to be in the back of my mind a lot now, I think. I also find it a little weird to find out your skin tastes kind of...exciting to me for some reason," Twilight opened her mouth against my neck and made a slow drag of her tongue across my throat, being deliberate in her movements before nuzzling under my chin with a hum.

Blinking a few times with a blank expression, I shivered again and gave her a small squeeze before I could respond in a somewhat shaky voice, "Heh...er, yes....uh, I...I agree, Twilight. Just, uh...don't do that much more. It's a little, uh, too exciting..."

Twilight gave another soft giggle and just snuggled in a little more. I let out a tense sigh and let myself try to relax again. It seemed we were both rather tempted to throw caution aside and hold nothing back, but more than that, there was a greater amount of rightness just being close and taking our time. It felt like we had all the time in the world.

When I found myself yawning a short while later, I kissed the top of her head and realized we should head up to bed so we could sleep next to each other for the first time. I knew her bed was a little larger than the one in the spare room, so it might even be more comfortable for me as a bonus. After the exhausting experience that was this day, then Twilight using that healing spell that reduced the pain to a more manageable level, I found myself drowsing rather fast. To have her snuggled up against me, all soft and warm as she was, only served to enhance my need for sleep.

"Alright, I better get in a bed before I'm too tired to make it. While you're not allowed to do it again, that healing spell really did help a lot. I think I can sleep at least halfway decent now. Thank you," I told her, fighting back another yawn.

"You're welcome. I promise not to use it again, but I really wasn't able to heal nearly as much as I intended to. You were in rougher shape than it looked like. I'm glad I was able to do as much as I did for you," she was quiet as she pulled back and slipped off the couch.

We climbed the stairs, finding my eyes drawn to her flanks swaying in front of me as she gave a faint giggle before swaying even more.

While she went about her bedtime routine, I paused in what was now going to be my old room. I took care of what I could with my own routine, now wearing my last clean pair of kung fu pants and having a moment to wonder if my clothing was going to last more than a day each, considering the rate of attrition.

Then we stood at the edge of the bed together as Twilight looked up at me, mirroring my own nervousness as we eyed each other for a time. She swallowed and climbed into bed, scooting over with her magic raising the covers for me to join her as she watched. Once I'd slipped in beside her, she drew the covers up over the two of us.

After we laid there together for a bit longer, I raised my right arm for her and she snuggled up against me. Her head raised to look at me before she leaned close and gave me another deep kiss. My hand found the back of her head and fingers sank into her mane as she made a soft sound in her throat, almost melting against me. The warmth of her fur against so much of my skin during the kiss made me shiver, even as the idea of what we might feel later from having no barriers played across my mind in tantalizing ways. An answering shudder from Twilight said she was feeling the same.

Once we felt satisfied by the kiss, she went back to snuggling against me and her head came to rest against my chest with my arm against her back. After she was settled, Twilight moved a wing over me as well and nuzzled me again with a happy sigh. We laid awake for a few minutes longer, occasional brushes, squeezes or nuzzles betraying the lingering desire to explore more than sleep before we settled.

We drifted off together at some point. Her steady breathing made me relax a little more with each breath she took, while she was lulled to sleep by the sound my my heartbeat.