I LOVE THIS!!! I've gushed enough already in our correspondences, so all I will say is that you did a wonderful job. But a picture like this deserves a story of some kind. So here you go! Thank you once again, and I look forward to more from you in the future, be it commissions or comics.



************************



Deep within the ancient forests of the Undiscovered West, Twilight and Spike wandered the lone path. The air was moist and dank, heavy with the scent of ripening leaves and rich soil. Great owls watched them, red eyes gleaming in the dark. And yet, the two did not fear. While the inexperienced sapling traveler would have shuddered and shook with dread of unknown dangers in these woods, Twilight and Spike conversed and jested, not a care troubling them.





“Oooh!” Twilight gushed. “We’re finally going to see the Unreachable Roosts with our very own eyes! This is gonna be so much fun!”





“I’m sure it is, Twilight,” Spike said with a forbearing smile and a small shake of the head. Here, Spike was the accommodating parent to Twilight’s inner child. “So, what kind of rock are you looking for?”





“What kind of rock?” Twilight queried, a curious expression crossing her face.





“Yeah. Starswirl said in his letter there were rocks at the Roosts. I only assume they’re really rare or magical or something. Otherwise, you’d have gone to Maud’s house.”





Twilight laughed cheerily. “Oh Spike. I’m looking for a roc, not rocks.”





“You’re looking for just one rock?”





“Roc, Spike. R-O-C, roc. Remember? From the One-Thousand-and-One Tales?”





“Oh yeah. But, I thought they came from Saddle Arabia.”





“The Saddle Arabians first mentioned them in the early manuscripts of the Tales,” Twilight explained. “But they said the rocs nested in the Northwest. The clues all point to the Precipice Coast. And with the map in Starswirl’s letter, all the pieces fall into place! Ah, I’m so happy!"



“I can see that,” Spike said with a chuckle.



“And I’m even happier that you're with me to share in my discovery.”





“Aww,” Spike said bashfully. “You really mean that?”





“Of course I do,” Twilight replied, giving the little dragon a friendly squeeze. “It wouldn't have been the same without you. I couldn’t leave you to miss out on all the fun.”





“Well, I couldn’t just leave you to get yourself into trouble,” Spike added with a smug smile. Twilight responded with an equally smug grin. “By the way, what are we gonna do when we get there?”





“Well,” Twilight thought, taking a look at the old parchment Starswirl the Bearded sent her. “First I’m gonna put on lots of aloe sunscreen to keep the roc away.”



“Because they're allergic to aloe, right?”



“Exactly! Then I’m gonna fly up to the nests, find one of their feathers and bring it to Zecora.”





“Aren’t their feathers, like, twenty feet long?”





“Twenty-four to be precise,” the alicorn corrected, rolling up the map and putting it back into her brown travel bag.





“Oh boy,” Spike muttered. A brief moment of dread overcame him at the thought of carrying a twenty-foot feather down a vertical cliff and dragging it all the way back to Ponyville. How would they get it on the train? Did Twilight think of that before they left? Knowing her intense enthusiasm, probably not.





“Anyway," Twilight continued, "Zecora told me the feathers have healing properties. You can cure almost any illness with it, possibly even swamp fever! It’s also supposed to be really good with spaghetti.”





“That’s good," Spike said, forgetting about the issue at hand. Then he flashed a mischievous grin. "Maybe you’ll stand a chance at our next cook-off.”





“Hey!” Twilight protested with a huff. “I made a perfectly good spaghetti dinner, thank you very much.”





“Yeah, on your third try.”





“Fourth, actually,” Twilight said with an embarrassed blush. “Hey look, the end of the forest!” Without further ado, she rushed ahead.





“Uh huh,” Spike said with a sly smirk. He knew Twilight was loth to talk about the disaster in the kitchen last week. Pasta was always a weakness of hers.





But Twilight spoke the truth. About a hundred yards ahead, golden sunbeams pierced the rich, verdant gloom. The forest was nearing its end. Soon they would greet the wide open sky once more.





“Come on Spike!” Twilight laughed. “I’ll race you there!” And she ran ahead, with Spike close behind.





“Wait up!” Spike called, and he ran after her.





At the edge of the forest, Twilight stopped and looked upon the land. A great hilly plain stretched and rolled before her, massive stones jutting out in spots. Five miles away, the South Luna Ocean glistened, sunlight dancing on the endless waters. In the distance, nine miles West-by-Southwest, the mountains plummeted to the sea in great vertical cliffs thousands of feet high, their broad summits towering among the clouds. The lonely path meandered on before her across the plain and toward the coast until it disappeared behind a hillock.





Twilight stood in the warm sunlight, breathing in the rich fragrance of the distant ocean, mingled with the green scent of grass. Then she turned to her little dragon. “Come on Spike,” she encouraged.





Spike smiled and walked toward Twilight. He couldn’t help but admire the adventurous young alicorn standing where the dark of the forest met the vibrant, sunny sky. There she stood, a eager and loving guide encouraging him to press onward. As much as her over-enthusiasm got her into trouble, he still stood by her side, for she did the same. Deep down, he knew everything would be okay, for Twilight would risk everything to keep her little dragon safe. And Spike would do the same. Goodness knows she’d need his help before the task was done!





Whatever lay around the bend, they had their love for one another, and they would complete this adventure...together.