The giant black horse was waiting for me as I reached the edge of a sewer pipe that drained out to the outside world. Stallion stood above the large ditch and, as I crawled my way out of the pipe, I swore I could see a smile in his new, sparkly black eyes. But maybe it was just me.

"Man, you stink."

Nope, not just me.

"You had me crawl through shit just so you could say that, didn't you?"

The horse let out it's dry whiney that I was really starting to think was Stallion laughing. "Maybe. I'll admit that was part of the reason. But it also really was our best bet of having a few minutes to ourselves."

"Just a few?" I wasn't embarrassed by how disappointed those words sounded in my head. I didn't want to think about spending who knows how long before I saw one of my friends in person again.

"Yeah, sorry, man. And even a few minutes might be stretching it." The dark horse's long neck stretched out so Stallion could peer at me from over the incline of the ditch. "You alright? Besides the smell, I mean."

"Yeah, I think so," I thought back at him. Nothing felt broken or even bruised, despite the nasty kick Nathan had— "Oh, right, so I ran into a few of Son's goons back there."

"Oh, yeah, Christopher and Nathan? Big idiot and smart idiot? My Master left them behind in case you or the owl guy tried to escape through the sewers. Sorry for forgetting to warn you about them, but I take it they weren't able to give you much trouble."

"No, actually, they were getting into trouble of their own. Of course you didn't hear this from me, but they—"

"They're stealing from my Master?" Stallion interrupted. "Sorry, not much time, remember? And my Master is handling it."

That made me pause for a minute. And here I was almost proud of my chance encounter. "I don't know if allowing them to steal merchandise can be considered 'handling it'."

"Sorry, man, don't have the time to explain it to ya. But you can trust me on this. My Master has been the boss for so long for a reason."

"Right..." I couldn't shake the feeling that both Stallion and his Master were missing something crucial about all of this, but Stallion was right about one thing,we didn't have a lot of time together. Had to focus on the most crucial bits. "Well, I should probably show you what I stole from those guys sooner rather than later."

The dark horse stepped a little closer to the edge of the ditch. As I walked over to meet him, I saw it was a little stepper than I first anticipated.

"Right, I see you managed to nab something on your way out. Here." The horse brought it's head down and opened it's mouth. I was taken aback by how large and dangerous his teeth appeared. "I'll pull you out of there."

"Thanks, but I like my skin attached to my body." I took a few more steps forward. "Besides, it's not that steep. I think I can ma—"

I nearly bit my tongue off when my front feet slipped on the slick mud. Before I completely face planted and made myself dirtier than I already was, I felt the pincer-like teeth clamp down on the skin at my neck.

"Damn, man. You somehow taste worse than you smell!"

As I was lifted into the air, I made a mental note not to ever intentionally piss this new Stallion off. He had always been a good few sizes bigger than me, but the difference now was just ridiculous.

After the dark horse placed me on the ground, I turned around and got a better look at him. He easily towered over me. I had to take several steps back just to get all of the animal in my field of view. I could faintly remember seeing a horse or two from my past, but couldn't imagine most of them capable of reaching the power and size that Stallion was.

"What does it even feel like to have that body?"

There were so many things I wanted to ask him. So many things I wanted to say to him. But, for whatever reason, that was the first thing out of my mouth.

In response, the great, big horse stamped its hooves a few times and shook out it's long, dark mane. "It was weird, at first. I know Fawn tried to train us to make our first time changing easier but, man, I don't think anything could really prepare us for this." The horse moved it's head to one side—it's dark eyes staring off into the woods that surrounded us. I had the urge to follow them, but I knew from experience they weren't really looking at anything. "It still doesn't feel like I have complete control—like I'm invading some foreign body. Doesn't really help that Son expected me to be a master at this from the get go."

The horse turned it's dark eyes on me. "I can sort of relate to you—being thrown into a new body when you least expect it."

"Yeah..."

I could vividly remember the scene. Like watching it in slow motion. My Master screaming that word. Her mother's horrified expression. The shock on my friend's faces. Madame Terrebonne's laughter.

But, worst of all, I could still feel it. The moment when I changed. When I lost the body I had finally started to grow used to, and was thrusted into a new one.

A weak body. Vulnerable. Just like the one I had when Mallard—

"Foxy?"

Stallion's voice in my head snapped me back to reality. I looked all around, expecting something to have changed, but we were still in the woods and it was still daytime.

The dark horse took a few steps towards me. "You alright, man?"

I backed away from him instinctually. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"You sure? You were tensed up and just started growling out of nowhere like two seconds ago." Stallion lowered his head to be as level with mine as he was capable, trapping me in his liquid black pools for eyes. "Look, I know I've been apologizing a lot, but there's something else that I didn't have time to explain about those sewers. They're somehow inscribed, or whatever you want to call it, with Knowledge dampening runes. My Master doesn't know much about them, but she kept me out of the underground because of it."

Before I could fully process what Stallion said, he pressed on. "So, like, you know, sorry for not being able to warn you ahead of time. But looks like there wasn't much to worry about if you came out the other side just fine."

I didn't want to think about how easily I could have not been 'just fine'. Though it did explain why I was able to understand those two criminals, now that I thought about it, but what else could have happened to me? If those 'runes' had been strong enough, could I have gotten my old body back? My old memories?

Would I even want them?

When I tensed my jaw, I bit down on the pill bottle and remembered that it was there in the first place. Now wasn't the time to be thinking about all this. Whatever the potential consequences, Stallion had helped me out of a really dangerous spot. I owed him my trust, at the very least.  

"Yead, I'm good, really. I was just spacing out for a second. Look, like you said, we don't have much time before the calvary shows, and I need to show you—"

"That the Sand?"

"Uh...yeah." I wasn't sure how I felt about how easily Stallion was piecing things together. Had his Master and him become this close in just a few short weeks?

When I didn't say anything, the horse kicked at some of the loose stones that surrounded us. "Yeah, so, I'll make this short. I know about the Sand because the witch who makes it is under the care of Son—or, was, anyways. In some ways still is."

"What—"

Whatever I had planned to say next was ripped away. In it's place came an image of my Master. The girl who wore dark clothing. Her face was pinched, like she had eaten something sour, and she was repeating the same words over and over.

"Come back, stupid. Come back, stupid"

And with her sudden image, I felt this...force almost physically tugging at my brain. It pushed at my legs to move— to go in a specific direction. I had to actively stop my own body from moving against my will.

It was by far the strangest thing I had ever experienced.

"You feeling the pull?" Stallion asked, his voice a thankful distraction from my Master's, as he noticed my jerky movements.

"Shit—Yeah. Dammit. Is this really going to keep happening until I go?"

The black horse shook its mane out again. "Well, either that or until your Master gets bored with calling for you. Word of warning though, it gets worse the longer you ignore it. I feel like my body is going to find a way to kick my own ass if I wait too much longer."

I tried to shake around my own head, as if it would dislodge the pinched face of my Master and her irritating voice.

Of course, it did little to nothing.

My eyes fell to the pill bottle that must have fallen out of my mouth at some point during the Master-suddenly-invading-my-head thing.

"Okay, okay, we can hash out the details later. But, Stallion, I need you to take a leap of faith for me and take one of these pills before I leave. If you do, we'll have a crap ton more time to talk in the future. Can you do that for me?"

Stallion the horse walked over to the pill bottle that lay in the moist dirt between us. I watched as he gently tapped the side of it with a hoof nearly the size of my entire body.

"I would do it, despite my reservations, because it's you, man, but..." The horse looked down at me and met my eyes. "How are we supposed to open it?"

I looked from Stallion to the pill bottle. The pill bottle to Stallion's hooves. Stallion's hooves to my tiny, tiny paws. Those damn useless paws to the horse's inky black eyes.

"I fucking hate being a familiar."

"It definitely has its downsides."

I wanted to picture a Stallion smiling somewhere beneath the stoic expression of the black horse that only continued to stare down at me. Even if it wasn't true, the thought made me feel a bit better.

My head began to hurt as a slight ringing started up in my ears. The image of my Master was only becoming more distracting—her voice growing only louder.

The bubbling fire I hadn't felt in so long rose inside my gut as I reached down to grab the pill bottle with my mouth. "How can I find you again?"

The horse galloped a few paces away before Stallion seemed to reign his body back with a dramatic twist of his giant head. He didn't turn around and come back though, I assumed staying in one spot was all he could manage now.

"You won't—"

"Don't give me that crap, Stallion. Not right now. Even if it's a lie, just give me something."

I threatened to snap through the bottle and shatter the damn thing myself if Stallion remained quiet. While a possible way for him to get to a pill, there was no way I'd be able to salvage any of the others, and I didn't know when or if I would ever get such a lucky break like I had in the sewer.

No, if the trend were to continue, this lucky break only meant the coming days would be hell. No two ways about it. I had to be extremely careful with the little bottle of miracles.

"Sorry, man, you know I can't do that. Not after so long lying to you and making you think everything was cool when it wasn't. It just isn't in me anymore."

I couldn't help but stare at the dirt as Stallion couldn't help but take a few steps in the direction of his Master. "We might not see each other again, but I can tell you that things aren't so bad on my end."

Almost in reflex, I closed my eyes and shook my head. "Stallion..."

"I know how it sounds, but I still have my own thoughts—that's the only reason you're here and not in Son's hands, right? She really isn't as bad as she seems, just a little...rough around the edges."

"Only if she makes it that way."

I heard something then that I had thought I would never hear again. A laugh. A sound both deep and throaty that echoed around in my head as if Stallion and I were both standing in an expansive cave.

When the laugh died away, the dark horse turned it's head and I knew—I knew there was the smiling face of my friend behind those black eyes.

"Yeah, you're right about that."

Whether by his choice or not, the black as midnight horse took off into the thicket of sapling trees and thorny underbrush, knocking aside many with his powerful body.

I watched after him knowing I had no hope of catching up to him, even if I wanted to.

And I desperately wanted to.

"Before Son takes me completely out of your range, I can tell you one more thing you might be interested in."

Somehow, I could tell in the tone of the voice that filled my head that this 'thing' was something Stallion decided at the last minute to tell me. It was something he had been planning to keep from me until the very end.

Going with that assumption, I said nothing to encourage him to continue. I let him decide for himself.

"I know where you can find Kat and her Master."

...

It did not take long for Hornroot and his owls to track me down as I followed the path my Master led me down.

            There were three of them. A small and fluffy one with eyes almost more yellow than Hornroot's, a large white and light brown one with a round head and black eyes that seriously unnerved me, and Hornroot himself. They each landed in a tree so they formed a sort of triangle with me trapped in the center.

            "Did you enjoy your little rendezvous?"

            It wasn't exactly the first thing I wanted to hear when Hornroot's grating voice re-invaded my mind. But I sat down, straightened my body the best I could, and met those burning yellow eyes without flinching.

            "I did. Learned quite a bit. How'd getting smacked around by Son's goons go?"  

            One of the other owls—the one with the freaky face, unfortunately—shifted in it's branch. A very subtle move, but one I caught in my heightened state of panic. I was walking a tightrope right now, and every creature present knew it.

"Your glib does you no credit, Flametail. You will explain how you escaped Son's familiar unscathed, and you will tell me what the two of you discussed."

            We shared glares until I deemed it wiser to instead glare at the ground.

            "And you can assume by my presence here what sort of outcome came about from my encounter with Son."

            Horny is freakin' scary. I gave him a lot of crap because I knew there was little he could do while I was in his Lady's good graces, but I had no fantasies that I could take him in an actual fight—even if I had my better body and he was stuck in his bird body. I mean, he led Kat on a wild owl chase for nearly four months with not a scratch on him. There was just something about him—similar to the feeling I had when confronted by Maple's mother—that I was dealing with something far beyond me.

            Not like I had any intention of going against him. Well, not completely.

            "Son's familiar is not yet completely under her control. He wishes to serve the Community while he still has the mind to do so. So, he told me all about Son's little deal with Madame Terrebonne."

            Hornroot visibly bristled, and I swear the two owls looked over at him—like the bully's lackeys who were unsure about what to do without constant orders from their boss. I risked a step backwards. Neither of them noticed.

            Something to remember.

            "So, it's true then? Son has allied herself with the Madame?"

            "Seems that way."

            Of course, I didn't know for sure. Stallion and I had little time to say a few words, let alone get into detail about what the hell was going on with the witches. I could only go by what I heard and saw in the last few hours of running around food courts and sewers.

            "What are their intentions? What do they mean to accomplish with this alliance?"

            I turned my nose away. "Don't know. I wasn't able to get too far into the details before someone deemed it necessary to pull me back."

            "My Lady was concerned for your safety, Flametail, so I would watch your tone. You should not be so easily convinced of the familiar's cooperation. One word from his Master and you would not be standing here right now."

            Part of me wanted to immediately dismiss the idea and just pretend to go along with what Horny was saying. But another part couldn't help but seriously consider the possibility. If Son ever doubted Stallion's loyalty, could she really force him to do anything she wanted with just a word?

Like how Mallard had...

"Shut-up, Horny."

"I beg your pardon?"

I moved my eyes up from the ground. Hornroot and his owls were back on the alert. Ready to dive down and end me should I make one wrong move.

I gritted my teeth and dug my front paws into the earth.

If that was the case, I just wouldn't move.

"I risked my neck out there. I played along with the leash and acting submissive in front of Son crap and I ran through literal shit to put some distance between Son and her familiar so I could question him without interference." I wanted to glare at Hornroot hard enough to make him feel like he was the one on fire. "And what do I get in return? A little girl yelling in my head and distracting me from the mission and a cranky owl giving me crap after I obediently walked several miles alone and in the cold to come back home. You and your Lady asked for my help, and I gave it. If all I'm getting for it is threats and condescending bullshit then I'm better off going back to wasting away in that dog bed."

Hornroot did not say anything for what felt like a long time in those cold and quiet woods. His two owl buddies were nothing more than statues. Not moving—not blinking until Horny gave them the word.

Finally, before I was about to say screw it all and make a run for it, Horny spoke. "I apologize."

For a second, I thought someone else's voice had invaded our conversation. The words were too soft, too patient, and too understanding to be old Horny's. "Um...What?"

"You are right. I have been far too harsh on you up until now." Hornroot blinked and the two owls took off—flying away into the air and disappearing without a sound. "Your commitment to the success of the mission—and thus the success of my Lady—was made apparent to me today. I intentionally meant to congratulate you on your efforts, despite your disadvantageous position...Though, even old familiars still suffer from stress, I'm afraid."

"...You aren't messing with me here? You're being serious?"

The owl in the tree cocked it's head at me. "This isn't a joking matter, Flametail. And even if it was, I am not one for jokes. Just accept the praise and move on. An inflated ego will only lead down a path of disappointment."

I shot up to my feet. "Wait, wait, wait, you aren't getting away with it that easy!"

"I beg your—"

            "You aren't going to make me immediately forget that you, Hornroot, the constant thorn in my side, just gave me a compliment. Nice try, but you can spout off dreary life lessons for the next month and it'll do little to repair the damage you just did."

            Hornroot fell into silence once again, though this one was much more short lived. "You are impossible. Wrong genders aside, you are nothing like my Lady requested. Rude, selfish, vulgar. There is no redeemable quality that you possess. Whatsoever."

            Horny's sudden words gave me pause. Never did I wish I could take back my words as much as I did then. Was this really the moment when I would be found out and all the planning would fall apart? Right when things were going so well?

            I knew that since the moment I found those pill bottles and buried one in the woods. The rest of forever would be me walking on glass.

            Screw it, might as well roll with the punches.

            "Oh, yeah? Well, I still fail to see what the hell Lady Loretta wanted when she asked for someone like you! A stuffy old bird who 'isn't one for jokes'? What in the world was wrong in her life that she needed someone like you? Did she have problems falling asleep at night or something?"

            "That is none of your concern, Flametail. I have been with my Lady for years and not once has my legitimacy been questioned. Back in my day, familiars weren't given the cushy treatment your generation received."

            "Cushy!? Where the hell—"

            I nearly bit my own tongue. Whoa there, Alex. Calm down. As far as Horny knows, you know nothing about Mallard's teaching methods. Hell, at this point, you should barely be remembering the years under Fawn's tutelage.

            The thought gave me an idea—a way to shift gears before I dug a hole too deep. "Hold up, you remember your familiar training?"

            When Hornroot didn't respond right away, I was afraid he wouldn't take the bait. That we would go back to my illegitimacy as a familiar. We could only go so far down that path before there was no turning back.

            "...Do you remember more then that? Like, before you were a familiar?" I pressed, still not expecting an answer, but pushing the subject more nevertheless.

            In response, Hornroot flew down from his tree and landed a mere few feet away from me. I still wasn't sure whether this was meant to reassure me or make me more on edge. I chose to go with the latter, just in case.

            "Mr. York became part of the Community during the creation of the third generation, well after mine. Even then, his Knowledge was less refined during those years and thus was not incorporated as heavily as it is nowadays. So, yes, I remember a few things, though the natural progression of years, as well as the unnatural transition to becoming a familiar, has made many of those memories hazy at best."

            "Ah...You don't say..."

            Damnit, Alex. What was the point of changing the subject when you have nothing to add to it. Now old Horny is more than likely—

            "So, even while I retain my memories, I remain a perfect representation of the sort of familiar my Lady requested. And what of you? You are nothing more than the product of a Community that has lost it's touch.

            Shit, shit. What now? What could I say that would convince this old coot not to convince his Lady to get rid of me?

            My brain was going into overdrive as I tried to search for an answer. For the first time since meeting my Master and her mother, I wondered why it was they were looking for a familiar in the first place.

            Lady Loretta already had Hornroot, and he seemed more than capable of taking care of the both of them. And, while Fawn was never allowed to give us any details on the matter, my training was more focused on survival then it was on combat like Stallion's or Mary's. So, what, exactly, were they looking for?

            The only hints I had to go on were when Kat told me I was chosen for my appearance, and when my Master flew into a rage when it was revealed that I was not, in fact, a girl.

            Hornroot took a threatening step towards me. I was out of time.

            "Okay, fine, you want to blame me for all this? Ever since I met my Master, I haven't been allowed to say one word and she has gone out of her way not to even be in the same room as me. How am I supposed to prove I'm legitimate when she won't even give me a chance?"

            The owl stopped moving to take in what I had said. I used this opportunity to try and quickly build momentum. "She locks herself in her room all day. I can't even get close to her without her giving me this sort of glare that makes me wish I was anywhere else in the world. If you want proof that I'm the real deal, you got to let her give me a chance."

            Hornroot stared at me for a moment longer before his yellow eyes flashed to something behind me. Before I had the chance to turn around, he flew from the ground and dug his claws into my back. The yelp of pain was lost to the rush of wind as he carried me off into the night sky.

            "What the hell?! Put me—!"

            "Apologies again, Flametail. Madame's Terrors were upon us. We were out of time."

              My question of what exactly a Terror was was answered when I looked back down to the spot Hornroot and I had been arguing in. Six massive dogs were standing in the small space, silently watching the two of us make our escape. I had been so focused on saving my own skin I had not even noticed the beasts who had been seconds away from tearing it off.

            From the distance Hornroot was rapidly building between us, I could not tell if any of them were Hero...or Mutt.

            I was just barely aware of how I was being precariously carried several hundred feet in the air. Hornroot's talons were pinching my skin something fierce, but I knew how easily he could have broken the skin—if he wanted.

            "Thanks."

            "What are you thanking me for?"

            I couldn't tell by the tone of the voice inside my head whether the old bird was joking with me or not. Then I remembered what he said about himself just a second ago.

            "Oh, nothing. I guess saving lives is just par the course for you."

            "I am merely acting under my Lady's orders. If you really want to show your appreciation, then learn to serve my Lady and her daughter in a better fashion."

            "Oooh. So does this mean you trust me to be a proper familiar now?"

            When Hornroot didn't readily answer, I pressed on. "Come on, Horny, you can't say I haven't grown on you just a little after all the bonding experiences we've had today."

            "You cannot be serious."

            "The Adventures of Foxy and Horny has a certain ring to it, don't you think?"

            "You are aware of how high up I am carrying you right now, yes?" The claws in my back loosened slightly and I looked down and was reminded on how even advanced healing wouldn't save me from a fall that far. "If so, I would remain silent for the rest of the journey home."

            Even though I still firmly believed Hornroot wouldn't do anything as long as his Master didn't order it, the way he said those words compelled me to obey just as much—if not more so—than if my own Master had said them.

            Second generation familiars really were terrifying.

...

*Author's Note*

While our Alex Foxy may be making little progress in regards to his friends, it seems his dynamic with Hornroot has changed just a little bit. Does this bode well for his future with his new 'family'? Can he even hope to penetrate the mysterious veil surrounding Lady Louise, or the hardened shell that surrounds her daughter, Rosetta?

One thing is for sure, Foxy has a lot of work ahead of him.