The journey was long, but it gave Sol, Titan, and Morgan all the time they needed to get to know their allies. Sol tried to be accepting of all who had come to join them, and to treat them the same, but she found herself soon feeling aloof from all but her siblings. Yet she promised to try and keep the welfare of her soldiers in mind first, and not to think of them merely as pawns.
Titan was friendly with each and every one: every single pony that traveled with them, he came to know and call by name, and he would remember things that would endear most of the company to him, like the names of their loved ones and kin, or why they had joined them in this fight, or a thousand other tiny little things that made all the difference.
Morgan, however, could not find peace with the fact they had a Blood Seer traveling with them. She found herself not just avoiding him, but being hostile and rude to him. It was ironic, she knew, as her own powers were that of darkness, and ponies both loved and feared her for her skills as an assassin and shadow-killer. And yet all the same, no matter how friendly this Blood Seer was, she found herself feeling displeased with his presence, and she couldn't come to trust him.
On the other hoof, she also found herself being drawn towards a young, strong pony of the Holy Order: he was handsome and bold, although he yet had to be tested in the fires of combat. But many of his elders said he was promising, and that he already had a great grasp of magic: he merely needed experience and training, and for some reason, Morgan soon found herself offering to take him on as apprentice, to teach him both magic skills and the art of combat.
The young stallion was strong and eager to learn: some would almost say greedy. He bowed to her every order, and Morgan enjoyed molding him, teaching him, and the way he would listen so readily to her. How he locked every lesson away in his mind like some treasure, committing her every word to memory. He made her smile, and he made her feel strange and warm, in a way that her siblings did not.
Sol disliked this, but Titan encouraged her growing affection for the young stallion of the order. But even had her siblings both been against her decision, Morgan all the same felt as if she may have pursued these strange new feelings: they were welcome, and she was coming to understand that she was not like Sol, who was wise and disciplined and decided in her every move, nor like Titan, who had his own special brand of wisdom, and was always kind and compassionate in what he did. She was more passionate, more brazen, more brash, and more given to following her desires.
And what she desired was this young stallion, as student, as friend... as more, too, but she knew better for now than to rush into her pleasures with him. Instead, she only teased him and trained him and tested him, wanting to better judge him, to know more of his character. And she found that spending time with him and his brothers from the Holy Order also gave her a place where she could go and be away from everyone else, where she could feel connected to a community she had never believed she would be a part of.
But there would one day come a time when she would regret her decision to avoid her other allies, and spend her time and affections with this young stallion. For our eyes and hearts can deceive us at first glance, and make shadows out of sunlight, and see bravery where there is nothing but childishness and cowardice.
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