“Wait a second…” Pushing through the crowd, Yearling squinted at this next fan’s face. She’d seen it before… once…

“Figuring it out? Let me give you a hint: poster pose.” He struck said pose, one hoof rising in the air, wings splayed.

Recognition hit Yearling in the face. “Wind Rider!?”

“It’s been a while, Yearling.”

“But… you were thrown out of the Wonderbolts!”

“All history now.” Wind Rider waved her words aside irritably. Casual as ever, he continued, “I’m not exactly Mr Popular at the moment, but I’d appreciate it if you’d share a drink with me.”

“With you?”

“I can recommend a pretty sweet wine. Or maybe you’re a cocktail mare. You’ve got the look of someone who likes the exotic.”

“With [i]you!?[/i] You framed that new recruit!”

Wind Rider sighed. “That’s all I’m remembered for. Look, I paid my price. I just want an old schoolfriend to talk to. That’s not a crime, is it?”

She glared at his tired eyes, red and raw.

“Why?” she said suspiciously.

“Ah.” Wind Rider nodded. “You a friend of Rainbow’s?”

“She’s a fan, yes.”

“She was one of mine too.” Wind Rider gestured towards the bar. “Seen her recently? How’s she getting on? A credit to the Wonderbolts, I hear, but there’s more to life than Wonderbolts.”

Suspicious, she nonetheless felt the stirrings of pity. Wind Rider still wore his trademark bomber jacket.

“A quick drink,” she said coldly. “Then I’m returning to the convention. Understood?”

“I’d be honoured.”

They chose seats right on the edge, Yearling near the door and ready to bolt, Wind Rider turning his back on the glares from the patrons. Yearling ordered their drinks; when Wind Rider tried it, the bartender ignored him.

“I used to love reading Daring Do,” said Wind Rider. “Bold. Fearless. Willing to do what she had to do. Had to play dirty once or twice, but a noble soul.”

As soon as it appeared, Yearling snatched up the drink and sucked for all it was worth. She released it very reluctantly.

Wind Rider stared. “You sure can pack it away.”

“On the road, you learn to take what you can get.”

“Don’t I know it. Wow, you look good for your age.” Wind Rider chuckled. “You got a Fountain of Youth stashed away somewhere?”

“Something like that.”

“Sounds quite a cosy life for you, hiding away in some cottage somewhere…” Wind Rider shook himself down. “Gets a bit tedious after a while, doesn’t it?”

“You?”

“I’m not going to mince words; I miss being with the Wonderbolts. I hate being cooped up. But I guess I’ll learn to like it. I only came out today for nostalgic interest.”

“You big on nostalgia?”

“I remember we were both young once.”

Yearling growled. “Look, do you regret what you did, or not? Trying to get someone kicked out of the Wonderbolts to protect your record? Doesn’t it bother you?”

“No,” said Wind Rider frankly. “I’m sorry. It just doesn’t. I did what I had to.”

Occasionally, Wind Rider sipped his drink.

“Well…” said Yearling. She shouldn’t lose her temper. “Daring Do” might, but Yearling was supposed to be a kindly old mare. She shouldn’t trash that image.

“You’re honest, at least,” she said.

“I’ll take that as a compliment, Miss Yearling. Or is it Mrs?”

“Just Miss.” Yearling squirmed where she sat. “You hitting on me?”

“Ha! We’d be matched in outspokenness.” Another infuriating sip.

Yearling softened her face. Kindly old mare, after all.

“I doubt it.” She sighed.

“I don’t blame you.” Wind Rider hung his head. “But I am what I am.”

“No, I meant…” Quickly, she shut her mouth. What was she thinking? “Daring Do” had to stay secret!

Besides, Wind Rider might be a cad, but at least everyone knew he was a cad. They knew where they stood with him, even if they stood as far away as possible. Her? Her entire life was put on display in a series of stupid books, and virtually no one even knew Thing One about A. K. Yearling. She’d worked hard to keep it that way.

Because treasure-hunting wasn’t all puzzle-solving and villain-stomping. It was cutthroat. The temples she’d desecrated, the backs stabbed, the lies spun, and the lives ended, not all of them bad guys.

Kill or be killed.

Smiling, Wind Rider raised his glass. “To your prosperity, Miss Yearling?”

Yearling raised her empty glass. “Yeah.”

She left. It wasn’t just Wind Rider’s presence that made her skin crawl now.