They Traveled for days, through towns and villages, but they never stopped for more than a day or two.
"What are you looking for any way?" Speck asked, trotting along.
"Some place to call home." Pinkie said. Speck sighed. Any time he asked anything about pinkie, she gave short, clipped answers.
"Why not just go home?" he flew over her head and twirled in the air. the bags thumped against his sides, but they may as well not have even been there.
"I already told you." Pinkie hated when he asked questions like this. She didn't want him to know what she had done. She stared up at him as he flew. She didn't want him to leave.
"Where is your home any way?" he landed and walked in time with her.
"I'll know when i find it." She said. Pinkie imagined a large town, with friendly ponies and maybe some place for her to find work. She was going to be a land pony for a while, so Pinkie decided she needed to start living like one. Pinkie smiled and walked forward with purpose. She would find home, and even though she couldn't go back with the princesses, she would be happy here.
"I like it when you smile like that." Pinkie looked at Speck, who had a goofy half-smile on his face. "You look happy."
"I was thinking about what my new home would be like."
"Good." He smiled brightly. "It's good to think of happy things." He turned somewhat serious then.
"Always try to find a reason to smile. No matter what happens. Every pony deserves to be happy. and the first step is to smile. No matter how sad, or lonely you get always smile OK?" He looked at pinkie so intensely that she jumped when he suddenly took off and started flying again. he flew high up and shielded his eyes from the sun.
"There's a fork in the road up ahead!" he called down. "Which way should we go?"
"Which way is there a town?"
"I don't see one, just a big forest. Both paths lead to it."
He swooped down and fluttered beside Pinkie as she walked.
"It doesn't matter then." she smiled at him and he smiled back.
they stopped at the fork however and contemplated on which road to take. they both looked the same, and led in to a large dark forest.
"Which way do you think?" Pinkie asked.
"Left?" Speck didn't seem sure either.
"Then let's go left." pinkie began to walk when speck shouted,
"Wait, no, right!" Pinkie sighed and turned to the right.
"No, no, I-I mean... umm..." speck just couldn't make up his mind.
"Let's go with your first choice and go left" Pinkie offered after a few moments. Speck Nodded and seemed grateful for Pinkie stepping up to decide.
They trekked on in to the woods, and soon, all around them became nothing but wild animal calls and strange rustling in the bushes that lined the road.
"What if there's another ursus?" Pinkie said, walking slowly.
Speck seemed more confident as he trotted along. "There wouldn't be an ursis out during the day time." he bounced along, not waiting for his companion.
"Hey slow down!" she whisper yelled.
he hopped on, not paying attention, and soon, to Pinkie's horror, was out of sight.
The sun was still high in the sky, but pinkie didn't want to end up in the woods alone when it got dark.
"Speck!" she called out but there was no answer. She called again and still the pegasus didn't reply. "This isn't funny!" she yelled. Was he playing a prank? or had he gotten so far ahead of her that he just couldn't hear?
Suddenly, an odd sensation traveled down Pinkie's spine to her tail. It twitched as the sensation continued.
"WHOA!" speck suddenly fell down next to her, causing her to jump back and fall in to the bushes. her back hurt but the sensation stopped.
"Spectrum! Where were you!" She demanded, standing up, and brushing herself off.
"I was trying to see beyond the woods, but they go on for a really long time!" he seemed slightly winded from his adventure.
"Why'd you crash-land?" she asked, helping him tuck the stuff back in to the bag he was carrying.
"I'm not sure, it's like my wings just got really tired suddenly, and i just didn't catch myself in time." he flexed his wings and took a few steps forward. In no time, he lagged behind the pink pony and was practically gasping for air.
"What's wrong with you?" she asked, taking the bags from him. it seemed to help, but only a little.
"I'm just really tired suddenly. can we stop for today?" Pinkie set up the tent since they didn't know what kind of creatures were out there, and helped Speck inside. he was practically asleep before his head hit the pillow, and pinkie stared as he began to snore almost immediately.
{how odd} she thought. he had been so full of energy just a moment before. why did his energy go away all the sudden? She didn't think about it too hard and soon found herself drifting off.
"Pinkie, keep your eyes closed this time. I must be quick." Luna's voice rang out through her dream in an echo-y sort of way.
"Luna, oh, I miss you." Pinkie kept her eyes squeezed shut as Luna appeared before her.
"Pinkie, please, i need to know how your crimes went unnoticed."
pinkie winced, but kept her eyes closed.
"I was able to get completely rid of the bodies. i didn't leave any traces."
"But Celestia, she covered the murder. Right?" Luna looked desperately at her friend.
"Celestia... She-" Pinkie was cut off as the dreamscape swirled violently around them. her eyes came open and she laid there in a haze. Again, she could hardly remember the dream, but there was a question she needed to answer. she fell back asleep in hopes of the question returning, but her dreams were completely blank.

"Hey speck?" pinkie nudged her friend trying to rouse him.
"Ugh... what?" Speck yawned and stretched out.
"Hey the sun has been up for a while. we should go." Pinkie looked at him with worry. he was pale an swayed slightly as he walked. He didn't seem to be as energetic either. "Are you feeling OK?" she asked.
"Yeah," he gave her a half-smile. "Just a little tired. I'm fine."
Pinkie carried the bags as they walked along, but she had to stop often to wait for speck to catch up. She suddenly smelled something odd in the woods.
"Do you smell that?" she asked as Speck caught up.
"It doesn't smell very good, what ever it is." he replied, covering his nose.
"Maybe there is a town out here?" Pinkie trotted towards the smell. "You stay here and rest OK? I'm going to see what that smell is."Speck nodded and sat against a tree. He really did look tired. Pinkie worried about him and almost didn't want to leave his side. But the smell seemed to beckon her.
"You there, little pony, come now and follow me." a voice startled Pinkie as she walked through the trees. Spinning to see who had spoken, Pinkie saw a dark figure running away from her.
"Speck?" she chased the shadow through the forest and didn't catch up with it until they came to a hut. It seemed out-of-place in the middle of the woods, but it was built in to a tree as if it had grown there.
"Who are you? Pinkie looked in to the door way of the hut and saw an oddly striped pont sitting there.
"Your friend is ill, is he not? I have just the thing that will hit the spot." She turned and rummaged through the mess of bottles Pinkie reluctantly walked into the mare's house and studied her.
"My colors are odd to you are the not? I am a zebra, so worry not." she said. Pinkie blushed at being caught staring. The zebra turned and smiled and handed Pinkie a small bottle full of a bright red liquid.
"What is it?" she swirled it around, watching it shimmer slightly.
"His head and hooves ache him so, give him this and he'll be ready to go. A simple solution is to not roam. Your dear friend must head home. With you i do not think it's best for him to travel. He must rest." she smiled sadly at Pinkie and began to send her off.
"What do you mean travel with me? Why is it bad?" she walked out of the tree house and put the medicine in her pouch.
"These questions you ask will be reveled in time, but if you do not obey, your friend will die."
"What?!" pinkie turned back to the zebra but there was no trace of her or the hut anymore. only trees and shrubs stood in its place.
"No! Please!" Pinkie looked around desperately. {speck will die? what must i obey?}tears filled pinkie's eyes as she ran back to her friend.
"Pinkie?" Speck's voice called out as she neared. "Oh, pinkie i was so worried! you were gone for so long!" speck trotted towards her and she tackle hugged him.
"What's wrong?" he asked. Speck coughed a few times and pinkie let him go. Reaching in to her Saddle bag, she produced the only proof that there had actually been a magic zebra.
"Drink this. You'll feel better." Pinkie smiled with relief as speck shrugged and downed the whole bottle.
almost instantly, his eyes became brighter and his coat looked healthy again.
"Wow, where'd you get that?" He smiled and flapped his wings.
"There was a zebra in the forest, she gave it to me. She knew you were sick." Tears spilled down Pinkie's face as Speck flew up high, then dived and landed perfectly.
"Is that what took you so long?" he asked. the spirit was back in his voice and he stood proudly as pinkie walked past him.
"I was only gone for a few minutes" she said as he trotted next t her.
"uhh try a few hours!" He looked at Pinkie skeptically.
"There is..." Pinkie stopped and thought. If a whole house could disappear in the blink of an eye, then time could have warped around her. She sighed and apologized. "I didn't mean to be gone for so long."
"It's OK, just from now on stay by my side. Then i wont have to worry." he smiled as she blushed.
"I'll stay by your side for as long as i can Speck." she smiled as his face turned red.
"Promise?" he asked shyly.
Pinkie's blush deepened and she nodded.

"I Promise."