Dark of Winter

A Dark gray pegasus stallion with a Shook of white mane quietly fluttered down into the town square It was nearly dawn, and the small town of Ponyville had yet to wake. He was a skinny thing. But from his scars he was a fighter. His cutie mark was a butterfly knife but it had a scar running threw it. He had a mean look in his eyes.

He advanced on the message board and tacked up a large poster, scanning the sky first and the ground second he took off. It was as if he was looking for someone.

As he took flight four other hard looking pegisi took off from nearby roof tops and flew with him in formation.

The poster held a rendering of a cutie mark. Two crossed rapiers with ribbons trailing from the guards.

Below was a short paragraph written in short jagged marks. It was readable, but the whole writing looked angry.

Looking for a large pony with cutie mark shown above, they could be hiding as a mare or stallion. They also may have dyed there mane, but on last siting they had a dark purple coat and electric green mane. Those directing us to this pony will be rewarded greatly. Those hiding them from us will regret it. This pony is the property of Boss Black Fall and they will be returned to his services. The town has three days to produce this pony.

Free Fall Gang

Below was a picture of a young pony, maybe just coming into adulthood. Though their mane was cut differently, it was fairly obvious for any who knew her that this was Night Flare, though much younger than she was now.

Spoiler:

Night Flare woke as the sun rose. Stretching she smiled at the sunset, until she saw a pendant she had not left on her pillow the night before. It was three feathers. A dark gray one, a white one and a purple one tied together at the ends. She knew it was not hers, for she had burned it the night she left Cloudsdale.

As she left her house that day she was dressed much lighter for movement, rather then against the cold. and to her sides, almost hidden under her wings she had strapped two rapiers. It would not be safe to go about unarmed if Night Fall had caught up to her.

Icarus came over, seeing the large Poster. His eyes widened as he recognized the pony in the Picture. "N-Night...?" He mumbled, reading the rest of the Note.

Indigo came walking by on the way to the newspaper office. He had a bundle of edited articles stashed in a saddlebag draped over his coat. He spied Icarus and silently crept over to him and merely stood as close behind him as he possible could without touching.

Night Trotted threw the town square, she wanted to leave one of her rapiers at work, the other she would keep on her person. Her eyes landed on Indigo and Icarus reading something on the notice board.

A sense of dread overwhelmed her as she trotted up behind them, she stopped somewhere behind Indigo and peered around his fro.

as she read the poster her mood sank and a dull anger started to burn. this was the kind of dirty thing Snow Shine would think up.

Icarus Just Stared at the Poster. He wasn't quite sure what was happening. Only that Somepony, and, by the looks of it, Not Somepony Very Nice, Was looking for Night. "..."

Indigo kept staring ahead at the back of the inventor's head. He'd see soon enough what was being read. It was only a matter of time before he would back up or move some kind of way so he could scare him. Only now... He felt eyes on him. He turned his head to see Night and quickly shot his hoof up to make a 'keep quiet' gesture before turning back to face Icarus.

Night Kept Quite but not Because Indigo told her to. She was afraid of what she might say at the sight of her childhood picture, she didn't know if she wanted to cry or scream. It was a low blow. Threatening the whole town.

Night Sat down in the snow and shifted her Rapiers, it comforted her. felling there weight against her sides.

Icarus turned around, Nearly jumping at other ponies who were there. "A-Ah!"

Indigo grinned widely at him, pleased that he was able to stand undetected for so long while being right behind him.

"Hey Icarus, whatcha readin'?"

Night Pushed forward to get a better look at the poster. It caused her to growl "This is Falls hoofmanship..." She muttered as if to herself. After a moment she remembered she wasn't standing there by herself. Pulling down the poster she turned and looked at the other two ponies.

She didn't know how they would react to her now. with her charade falling down around her. Night Flare was glade she had the notice board at her back. It gave her something solid to hold her up.

Icarus shuffled his hooves, looking down, then back up. "N-Night... W-Who are t-the Free F-Fall G-Gang?" He asked, stepping close to Night.

Indigo stepped to the side to stand beside Icarus.

"Hey, I was gonna read that."

Sighing Night passed the poster to Indigo, there was no telling how many ponies had already read it, or even how long its been her.

She turned to Icarus to keeping her eyes on the sky rather then look at him directly. "The Free Fall gang, are some old friends of mine. I've been trying to distance myself from them for a long time..." It was hard to say, Night didn't know how much she wanted to say, or even how much she could say.

Icarus nodded. "I-It may n-not be my b-business, B-But..." He said, pausing for a moment, before sighing. "F-Friends d-don't S-Say they o-own other f-friends."

Indigo levitated it in front of him, reading through it with his face scrunched in slight distaste. The implications were numerous.

"You sometimes masquerade as a stallion? And this gang claims it owns you...? I don't think I want to know."

Night Flare rolled her eyes, and gestured to her body. "Its not very hard, for somepony of my stature to play ether gender." She relaxed a little, when It became clear that at least these two weren't going to run her out of town.

Her face became a little saddened. But she kept her eyes to the sky. "As for owning me, Fall thinks he owns everypony. That the world is there for him to take from." She sighed. He used to be such a quite and considerate pony.

"Everypony has things from there childhood they regret. A clumsy first kiss, cussing out your parents for the first time. Well, I have quite a few things in my past. Things that tend to follow me sometimes."

Icarus nodded. "W-Well, H-He W-Won't t-take you. Y-You're m-my Friend. I-I'll d-do anything in m-my p-power t-to k-keep you s-safe." He said, Standing to attention. "I-I'm p-pretty sure w-we all will."

"I don't know who the hell they are, but they don't have any right threatening the town. They're just two bit crooks, aren't they?"

He said with a smirk.

Two bit crooks? She was a little hurt. But out of Cloudsdale there antics were kept pretty hush hush.

"I guess you wouldn't know, I know the princesses keep it pretty hush hush outside of Cloudsdale." To her the pendent she had shoved in her bag that morning felt like a whole pony sitting in her bag. Pulling it out she looked at it, stroking the feather that was the same color as hers.

"Have you heard, of the political murders that have been happening in Cloudsdale?" Her voice was hushed, only Indigo and Icarus were close enough to hear. "Started about two years ago, well it was really three, but nobody cared about the death of a few contractors. But all of the high profile killings. leading up to the fall of the pegisai mafia and beyond. was done by a group of 8 ponies."

She glared at the pendent. It was a mar on her past she wished would go away. It had hurt so many she cared about. Now it threatened to hurt these new ponies she was just getting to know.

Icarus nodded, looking down. "... I-I'm s-sorry... S-Still. Y-You put t-that behind you." He replied back, just as quiet. "Y-You're not a m-mean p-pony, I k-know so."

Indigo's smirk was wiped right off his face. He lowered his head and slowly dug at the ground with his left hoof, feeling like an asshole.

She smiled sadly and patted Icarus on the shoulder. "You don't have to be mean to have dark stains on your past..."

"I Trai-- Know them, I know how to deal with them." She sighed looking at the pendent that she held in her hooves. "Fall probably only brought half of them. I can deal with them." Or at least she hoped she could, unless they have learned some new tricks.

Icarus sighed softly. "T-That's s-still a-against o-odds. I-I want t-to help." He said, looking right at Night.

Indigo raised his head back up.

"Well I certainly can't let anything happen to you."

Night shook her head. "I know what these ponies can do, They won't come after me, they will come after the ponies that are close to me."

"I don't want to see my new friends hurt." She shoved the pendent back into her pack. She couldn't bare to look at it any longer.