Piglet let out a groan. Everything was still fuzzy around him. His head throbbed from his fall. He slowly got up from his spot, rubbing his head. "Ow! What happened?"

"You fainted."

Piglet froze. He looked before him was the Nightmare that he saw yesterday. He screamed in pure fright. He frantically tried to run in the other direction only to hit a solid wall. A grunt reached his ears. His eyes saw a glint of red. He backed away but bumped into the Nightmare again. He was about to scream again when Wisp immediately covered his mouth.

"Shhh!" Wisp hissed. "This is the only hiding place I can find. If you scream, we'll both be dead."

"If you don't stop making so much noise, you'll both be goners."

The duo looked up at the third resident that resided in what looked like a small cave. The red eyes glowed to reveal goat horns and reptile parts. A pair of fangs glittered in the light. As he raised his head, he bumped into a small hanging lantern lit by a blue flame. It was none other than Hurricane. He looked at them with great disdain. "How humiliating," He grumbled. "To be at the mercy of a Nightmare filly and a small pink meal."

Wisp swallowed hard. "I-I would have left you, you know."

Hurricane stared at her hard. "Then why didn't you?"

Wisp was silent for a moment. "Because I don't believe that we should live like this. No matter what we've been taught. I'm sure there's more to life if we talked to the residents of Star Kingdom more."

Hurricane just curled up silently. His nostrils let out one more puff of air before falling back asleep. His breathing set into a steady rhythm. Along his flank was a strange goo that was covering a small portion of his chest. A smell of herbs hung in the air.

Piglet gulped. His heart kept thumping and thumping until his legs gave way. He felt his sweater pulled up. His eyes found Wisp holding him up by her teeth before setting him down. He rubbed his hands together nervously. "U-um…" He gulped. Finding his voice for the first time in a while. "How did you bring us here? Also, why does it smell like medicine here? I thought the Hollow Realm doesn't grow plants."

Wisp looked at him. "No. Most of us grab seeds that fall from the Star Kingdom. Sometimes….We steal them." Her ears flattened at Piglet's crossed arms. "It's the only way we live!" She looked at Hurricane to make sure that he was fully asleep. She lowered her voice. "These herbs that I used for those wounds are actually given to me by a friend."

Piglet raised a brow. Someone from the Hollow Realm being friendly toward another? That was the most bizarre thing to hear. Aside from the fact that he was talking to a baby fire horse that could kill him. "A friend?" He suddenly remembered Pooh and the others. "My friends! I have to go find them!" He was about to run out the entrance only to be stopped by Wisp.

"If you go out there alone, my herd will kill you!" Wisp said. Her soft blue eyes glowed. "I know how to get by them. It'll be easy to find your friends that way."

Piglet looked back at Hurricane. "What about him?"

"He'll be fine. If we don't find them, we'll come back here. It gets very dangerous after dark." Wisp lowered herself.

Piglet was hesitant. He rubbed his hands nervously. He knew that he shouldn't trust this Nightmare. They were part of the sneaky Hollow Realm. "Well...Y-you did save my life. I-I can't be sure if you'll eat me." His heart sank as he saw those eyes began to well with tears. "Oh...ok…" He walked over to the Nightmare and set himself on her back. To his surprise, the blazing mane wasn't hurting him. Instead, it felt warm. His legs brushed against her ribs. He braced himself as she lurched forward. In a matter of moments, the two were off.

With each stride, Piglet felt a steady rhythm. Almost as if Wisp has been practicing a dance. The warped trees looked like sticks as she began to move. She hopped down the rocky slopes. Her hooves squelched in the mud. The stench hitting them. The duo made a face. Piglet pinched his nose. Each glance along the rock was steps longer and louder due to the thick wet earth. As the day progressed they weren't getting anywhere.

Wisp flattened her ears. She turned to him with an embarrassed look. "Um...By any chance can you tell me what your friends look like?"

Piglet sighed. He rested his hand on his forehead. "Pooh is sort of like a yellow bear. A Pooh bear if you will. He wears a red sweater. Rabbit is tall with long ears. Tigger...Well...You'll know him once you see him. Kanga is also tall but is brown and a long tail. Roo is her son, so he'll look like her. Eeyore is a donkey. Lumpy is purple with a long trunk. Then, Owl and Kessy are birds. Gopher is about my height, but a little taller than me."

"Well...That just sounds like a yummy buffet if you ask me."

Piglet froze. He soon saw the fear in Wisp's eyes. He turned to see that it was the herd that he tried to outrun. His hands instinctively grabbed her loose skin. Standing right before him was a large Nightmare. Followed by four other Nightmares. "Oh d-d-d-d-d-d-dear! Wisp do something!"

Wisp tried to move but she could only take a few steps when she was stopped by another male Nightmare. The fire blazed bright red before her. She backed up until she hit a wall. She adjusted herself so she wouldn't squish Piglet against the rock. Her ears were flat against her head. Her teeth bared slightly. A hiss erupted from her mouth.

"Why are they coming after us?" Piglet asked. "What did you do?"

"Nothing." Wisp answered. She tried her best to hide the fear in her voice but failed. "They just hate my fire."

"Yeah!" A burly Nightmare said. "Blue fire for a Nightmare? That's so stupid!" He pranced around in a mimic fashion. "'Oh look at me. I'm a Nightmare filly with a sad color. My life is sad. My mama vanished because of me. I'm bad luck.'" He stuck his tongue.

Something about this made Piglet angry. His trembling stopped almost immediately. Why would anyone bully like that? Especially with a color flame like Wisp's. His face scrunched up in fury. Before he could stop himself, he talked. "At least she's smart enough not to pick on somebody who's different!" His heart sank to his stomach as the manes of the Nightmares burned brighter with rage. "Uh...Oh…"

"You're food now, Piggy!" The lead Nightmare hissed. He reared up. Ready to deliver the final blow. Suddenly, a flash of movement knocked the small herd back. A wave of mud raised upon collision. They all shuffled out as much as they could. Shaking of the mud off the pelt.

Piglet and Wisp stared in shock. Hurricane stood before the herd. Horns lowered. His teeth bared. Piglet carefully leaned forward. Surprisingly, the blue fire didn't hurt him. His paw cupped against her ear."Now is our chance to run!" He quickly leaned back onto his original seating as she lurched forward. His paws clung onto her fiercely. His head swayed with the rhythm until they finally reached solid rock. Wind whipped around his pink ears.

Wisp kept running. Her hooves thundering against the rock. Her ears flat on her head. Head pointed forward. She weaved through the trees. Her fire was bright against the dark sky. At one gap, she jumped high. She turned effortlessly. No matter how sharp the path twisted. Once they reached a spot in a rocky outcrop, Wisp laid down. Allowing Piglet to slip off her back.

Piglet sighed. "I'm...sorry about that. I guess I only made things worse for you by saying those things."

Wisp looked at him. Her blue eyes wide. "No! It was my fault you've got involved! It's just…" She sat upright. "No one's ever stood up for me before…"

"Well...How come they pick on you? What's wrong with blue fire? A little scary if you ask me."

Wisp was silent for a moment. She sighed. Blue sparks flickered out of her mouth. "For a long time, Nightmares believed that red, orange and yellow fires mean that you are respected and have power. Blues just mean you don't have power. The fire is just dull. Also, the bringer of bad luck." She stared at the ground. "When my mama gave birth to me, all the Nightmares struggled to get anything from the Star Kingdom. Then, she disappeared after she promised me to come back with some berries. Everyone thinks it's my fault. Since then…" She began to break down. Her hooves covering her face.

Piglet walked over to her. Summoning all the courage he has in his very small body, he hugged her. "Oh. I'm sure it wasn't your fault. Whatever your mother was doing maybe she had a good reason." He saw a glint of blue above her leg.

"You mean it?"

Piglet nodded. His face soon rubbed against hers. "Thank you for trying to help me find my friends. I just wish I knew where they are."

"I'm afraid you won't find them here."

Piglet and Wisp looked up to see a tired Hurricane looming over them. They both scrambled to get away, but they were immediately pinned by claws. They tried to struggle. The earth rubbing hard on their skin. Wisp tired to bite but her neck was too far away to reach.

"What do you want with us?!" Piglet screamed.

Hurricane growled. He bared his fangs which made them quiet immediately. His red eyes glared hard on Piglet. "Thanks to your friend, the stripey one, I was nearly killed in that portal. With the concentration broken, the portals have tossed your friends into the seven most dangerous places in the Hollow Realm." He sighed. "Considering I'm injured, in no way of knowing where Whirlwind is and unable to locate the dragon hatchling, I have no choice but rely on you two to stay alive." He looked at Wisp. "You're good with herbs. Help me find a plant to heal me faster."

Wisp gulped. "But I'm out of herbs and it's too far for me to go back into the Star Kingdom."

"There's actually one place that is rumored to have plants growing secretly. So? Will you help me?"

Piglet and Wisp looked at each other for a moment. Considering the fact that they are pinned down by a very angry Chimera… "We'll do it," They both said in unison.

So, that wraps up this chapter. Don't worry, the next chapter will have some of the gang reunite. Review, please!