Waking Nightmares

by Jonathan "KnightMysterio" Spires

Chapter 8: Tick Tock Goes The Clock Part 1

The disclaimer about copyrights from the last chapter will apply to this and all future chapters. This story starts one week after the events of the previous chapter.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Carousel Boutique...

Closing time...

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Rarity hummed to herself as she finished off the last stitching on the hat she was working on. Spy watched in fascination, having little skill at craftsmanship himself, his balaclava in a suitcoat pocket. She held it up, letting Spy look it over.

"What do you think?" she asked. "Now, be brutally honest. An artist cannot improve without constructive criticism."

"Ah, Mademoiselle, I have no criticism to give," Spy said, smiling his handsome smile. "It is a fine hat, one we will all enjoy wearing."

"Once it is complete, of course," Rarity said, smiling. "I still want to give it that 'Rarity touch,' and add a few gemstones. As well as make a simple enchantment to give it an 'unusual' effect. Maybe my Cutie Mark floating around it..."

Spy brightened. "Unusual hat?" he chirped happily, immediately cursing himself for how perky he sounded.

Rarity giggled. "Oh, don't worry. I'm sure it will be simply fabulous."

"If her hat makin's anything like her dress makin,'" said a voice from the doorway, "Then it'll be mighty fine indeed."

Rarity and Spy turned, seeing Engineer and Pyro in the doorway. Engineer smiled and tipped his hardhat to her, his everpresent goggles covering his eyes.

Pyro giggled and waved. "Morning Miss Rarity!" she said, "Stylish as ever, I see?"

"Always, darling," Rarity said, preening a little. "What brings you two here today?"

"Just lettin' you know that Barricade wants to meet up with all of us, Trixie, Zecora, and Derpy included, after lunch. She wants to talk about the merging. Plus Twilight wants Demoman and Applejack to try and merge again. She's got some theories about why AppleDemo was able to do as well as she did against Nightmare Grave."

Rarity and Spy both shivered reflexively at the mention of the undead alicorn. "How is Twilight, anyway?" Spy asked. "I've been helping both Zecora and Miss Rarity with zeir work so much lately, zat I have not had time to check since I helped her start zat busywork project five days ago."

Engineer and Pyro traded looks. "Better," Engineer said. "She can actually sleep through the night again. Havin' her folks stay over the first few days after helped, and so did her brother comin' over to check on her."

"The Cakes have been helping Pinkie recover as well, apparently. They keep trying to get her to write her folks, but she's weirdly reluctant..." Pyro added.

Rarity sighed. "There's a bit of a story behind that, but I'll wait until Pinkie's ready to have it be told. It's rather personal, you understand..."

Engineer nodded. "Of course. Wouldn't dream of imposin,'" he said.

Rarity smiled gratefully. "Anyway, what of yourselves?"

Engineer smiled. "Construction on our new base is goin' faster than I expected. There's some real talent in those workers. Pyro dropped by while runnin' errands for Miss Fluttershy and I was gonna treat her to lunch. Either of y'all want to come with?"

Spy shook his head. "Alas, I do not. I am treating Zecora to lunch at Haute Cuisine's," he said.

"And I promised I'd take Sweetie Belle to Old Ronald's for lunch. She's interested in the new toys they have in their Foal's Meals, and it's one of the few fast food places in town I'm willing to eat at," Rarity said.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Across town...

Ponyville Hospital...

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"I was hoping that you could help me," Doctor Whooves said as Medic examined him, Doctor Stable helping. Occasionally, when Doctor Whooves wasn't looking, Medic would confer with Doctor Stable to be sure that he was reading the x-rays correctly. Doctor Stable was uncertain about Medic at first, and his claims to be from another world where a species called 'humans' were dominant. But after being saved from Nightmare Grave and the Nightmare Dogs by Medic and his friends, he was willing to give the strange and sometimes frightening unicorn the benefit of the doubt.

Medic, meanwhile, was silently grateful for the help. He was only mildly familiar with equine anatomy, having used pieces in experiments before (he had to replace Scout's heart with a horse's heart, since the old one exploded when he tested the UberCharge device on it). Still, he felt he was getting the hang of things. It was... surprisingly relaxing to work in a hospital setting.

Medic looked over the medical reports and the x-rays, and frowned. "I'm sorry, Doctor, but I really don't see anything wrong."

Doctor Whooves frowned. "...Are you sure? No brain damage or anything? A lot's happened in the past few days..."

Medic looked at the charts again. "From vhat I can see, zere is nothing."

"Oh dear..." Doctor Whooves said, grinning weakly. "That's not good..."

Doctor Stable hesitated, and said, "Have you considered seeing a psychologist?"

Doctor Whooves cringed. "Frequently. I don't know if it would help, though... An... 'associate' of mine had the same condition most of his life, the same drumming I'm hearing now," he said, tapping his hoof idly, the same four beats over and over again.

bum-bum-bum-bum

bum-bum-bum-bum

"Und vhat happened to him?" Medic asked, worry crossing his face.

Doctor Whooves hestiated for several moments. "He tried to kill Princess Celestia and open the gate to Tartarus. I was... forced to take drastic measures," he said, clearly reluctant to talk about this.

Medic blinked, an almost comical stunned expression coming to his face. ...A GATE TO TARTARUS? he screamed mentally. Maybe this world wasn't as fluffy and innocent as he thought...

Doctor Stable stared at him. "...Maybe you should go see a psychologist."

Doctor Whooves grinned weakly. "If I'm hearing the drumming, then I definitely should," he said. Doctor Stable gave him a number for a psychiatrist he knew, Doctor Whooves thanking them both, putting his saddlebags on, and leaving.

And all the while, the drumming in his head went on.

bum-bum-bum-bum

bum-bum-bum-bum

As he returned to his lab, he met up with a friend he had made recently, a gray Earth pony with a white mane and a cookie Cutie Mark named Sweet Treat.

"Howdy Doc," he said, smiling warmly. "You okay? I saw you coming out of the hospital just now."

Doctor Whooves smiled wearily. "Oh, I've... been better," he admitted.

Sweet Tweet frowned. "Anything I can do to help?"

Doctor Whooves shook his head. "Not really... This is one I'm going to have to sort out on my own," he said.

Sweet Treat shook his head. "That's too bad... I think I know one thing that will brighten your day, though!" he said, digging into his saddlebags and producing a clear plastic bag filled with sandwich cookies.

"Jammy Dodgers!" Doctor Whooves cheered, grinning widely. "Oh, Sweet Treat you beautiful stallion you!"

Sweet Treat chuckled. "You're pretty much my only market for these in Ponyville. I know they're big in Trottingham, though. Hugh doesn't work with plum jam that much since he's allergic to it." He paused, and added, "Considering what I know about him, I try not to think about HOW he discovered this allergy."

Doctor Whooves chuckled, taking the cookies from him. He had only met the stallion a couple weeks ago, but immediately liked him, especially when the cookie-maker said he'd be willing to make Jammy Dodgers, his favorite treat, for him. "Some things are best left unthought about," the Doctor said, giving Sweet Treat some money.

"Thanks a million, Doc," Sweet Treat said as Doctor Whooves cheerfully trotted off with his snack. As the Doctor went out of earshot, Sweet Treat's smirk turned cruel.

nOt BaD, said a voice in Sweet Treat's head. sO tHaT's WhAt YoU'vE bEeN uP tO.

Sweet Treat snickered, walking into an alley. "It's amazing how easily you can disguise the taste of Smooze with a little sugar and some plum flavoring. And it's oh so satisfying when they pay you to pOiSoN tHeM..." he said as he changed back to his real form of Masky Earth Pony...

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Canterlot...

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Canterlot was a primarily unicorn town, although there were also pegasi and Earth ponies there as well. The richest of the rich could afford to send their foals to Canterlot Ivy Elementary, a prestigious academy meant to prepare foals for being the elite in society, and learning the value of others. The last was something Princess Celestia had mandated in the past three hundred years, one of her many attempts to end the snobbery of the upper classes, and one that had been more successful than most, as Fancypants had attended this school when he was younger.

Now, several young foals, all with a bright future ahead of them, were enjoying recess, the teacher of that class grading papers. A pair of royal guards stood there, spears held in their shoulder-mounts, the two of them alternatively watching over the children with bemused looks of amusement and sternly scanning the grounds.

One of the children, an orange Earth pony filly with an elegantly styled pink mane, suddenly felt a chill run down her spine. She turned, looking around nervously. One by one, the foals stopped what they were doing turned in the direction they felt the unusual feeling. The guards, disturbed by the sudden silence, readied their spears and turned in the same direction as the foals.

From the shadows of the nearby garden emerged a tall, slender white pony with no face, a disturbing Cutie Mark, and a black suit-jacket. It calmly walked towards the foals, staring at them through the blank void where its face should have been.

The two guards may just have been city guards, but they knew something was wrong when it appeared out of nowhere. The two stallions put themselves between the slender pony and the foals, aiming their spears at its neck.

"I'd advise you to turn back, sir," said the first guard.

"This is a private school and you aren't welcome here," the second guard said.

Slendermane just stared at them.

Ten minutes later, the teacher finished grading papers and turned to the clock, blinking in confusion. His students should have been in five minutes ago. He shrugged, deciding the guards must have given them extra time to play. Unlike the other, stricter teachers, he didn't mind letting foals be foals. He casually strode out to the playground, passing through the hall that led outside... noticing two things immediately.

One, all of the foals were missing.

Two, the two guards were literally planted in the ground, slender trees growing through their impaled bodies, trees that looked to still be growing even as he watched.

The teacher screamed...

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Later...

Ponyville...

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

The gathered members of BLU as well as Elements of Harmony current and future met up at Twilight's library at around one o'clock in the afternoon. It took a minute for everyone to find a place to sit down, especially with the titanic Heavy and Barricade there, but everyone was able to find a place to be comfortable and still hear Twilight.

Twilight, once everyone was seated, came up to Spy. "I actually got the final results on that blood sample of yours," she said.

Scout blinked. "Wait, blood sample?"

Spy nodded. "After... what happened last week, I felt zat Twilight would be best served to try and find busywork to do. Zo I gave her a blood sample and asked her to study it to find out why I have shape-shifting powers in addition to my pegasus abilities."

Twilight frowned. "And I'm glad I did. The results show that you're part Changeling, Spy," she said.

The Equestrian natives all flinched. "You mean those freaky things that attacked during your brother's wedding?" Rainbow Dash asked incredulously.

Spy blinked. "...Interesting to note. Ze Changelings, zey are an antagonistic race?" he said, casting a worried glance to Zecora.

Twilight nodded. "Pureblooded Changelings feed off of love, and disguise themselves as the loved ones of others. The Queen Changeling, Chrysalis, disguised herself as Princess Cadance, my old babysitter and Shining Armor's fiance. If I hadn't seen through her and my brother and the real Cadance didn't stop her, she would have been powerful enough to take over Equestria, if not the world. Your biology is mostly pegasus, so you don't feed off of love, however you have enough Changeling biology to account for your shape-shifting, possibly even your invisibility powers as well."

Scout smirked. "So Spy's not love-drainin' Zecora, he's just naturally charming his way into letting her 'give him a ride.'"

The zebra blushed brightly as several ponies in the room chuckled good-naturedly, an annoyed Spy smacking the chuckling Scout in the back of the head.

"That hurts more with hooves, y'know," Scout muttered, rubbing his head.

"GOOD," Spy snarled.

Barricade scowled. "I was out of Canterlot at the time with Princess Luna, taking care of another matter. Neither of us found out about the attack until after the wedding. Oh, I wish I could have been there. I would have pounded those freaks into the dust..."

"At any rate," Twilight said, "Spy, I'm going to have to talk to you after the meeting. Queen Chrysalis is a hive queen, so you may be at risk."

"Marvelous," Spy muttered. "As if I did not have enough problems..."

"If Scout's done being a comedian," Zecora said, still blushing a little. "Perhaps the meeting can truly begin?"

Twilight nodded. "Yes. Okay," she said. "Spike? Would you bring me my notes, please?"

The little dragon nodded, bringing over a large sheaf of scrolls. Twilight sorted through them, and pulled a page out from the middle. "All right," she said. "Going over what all of you have told me about the battle with Nightmare Grave, I've come to the following conclusion: AppleDemo should have been dead in seconds."

Applejack and Demoman cringed. "Way te boost our confidence, lassie," Demoman groused.

"Twi, sugarcube, we've talked about this little ol' 'sensitivity' problem of yours before..." Applejack said, grinning weakly.

"I'm not saying this to be insensitive. Nightmare Grave may have been unstable due to the fact that he was an undead, but he was still a Nightmare, and one on the active attack. When Cadance visited with my brother I convinced her to help me with an experiment. I magically replicated the effects of an explosion on her," she said. "She didn't even flinch, although she did make me buy her lots of ice cream afterwards." She blushed a little, clearly feeling bad about doing the experiment at all.

"Well, she IS an alicorn," Rarity said, looking somewhat disturbed by the idea.

Derpy grimaced. "Why were you testing explosions on your old babysitter?"

"There are two types of alicorns," Barricade said, deciding to keep the conversation on-topic, her expression somber. "Normal alicorns, like Cadance, are mortal and live out normal lifespans, but are extremely powerful despite their mortality. They're born rarely, from especially powerful Earth ponies, pegasi, or unicorns. It's highly likely that Twilight's first child will be an alicorn, for example. The other type is immortals, like the Princesses. They usually have connection to a fundamental force of nature, in their case, the movement of the sun and moon. The difference between immortals and mortals is shown by whether or not their manes and tails move on their own."

Medic frowned. "It still seems illogical zat the movement of the sun und moon could be controlled by a single entity," he said. "In our universe, it is the vurld zat revolves around ze sun."

Trixie frowned, and said, "Twilight, if I could explain the history? The tale as told in the Histories is a simple one, but I think a bit of theatrics is in order to help emphasize their importance."

"Nice to see I'm not the only one who's interested in history," Twilight said, smiling.

"I sometimes like to work a bit of storytelling into my act," Trixie said. "I embellish a little, but tell the tale accurately. May I?"

"Very well," Twilight nodded.

Trixie nodded and, before anyone could ask what she was doing, swept her cape around, filling the room with an illusion. Phantom versions of Discord and several alicorns appeared in a shadowy background, doing battle, the Discord illusion cackling madly. The BLUs stared in awe, enraptured by the sight.

An image of Trixie, wrapped in her cloak, all but her glowing eyes hidden by her hat, appeared above them all.

"Long ago," Trixie intoned, "Discord reigned supreme. With his powers of chaos, he made the universe dance to his whim."

The sun and moon danced around the sky at Discord's whim, planets and stars aligning themselves out to spell his name.

"But it was worse for our world, whom he favored tormenting the most," Trixie intoned. The illusion shifted, showing fields of flowers turning into fields of pony-eating plants, animals being twisted and warped into demons that tormented anypony they found, ponies bursting into flame for no apparent reason, as well as other scenes of pure chaos.

"It was all a game to him," Trixie intoned. "And no one could stop him. Save the alicorns..."

The image shifted, several dozen alicorns fighting Discord, dying in droves as Discord fought back, warping reality, twisting them into shapes that he found amusing, or driving them insane and making them fight each other, or simply turning them into flowers and making their loved ones ravenous. Even still, with each scene of battle, Discord became visibly more damaged.

"It was only when two immortal alicorns, sisters the both of them, rediscovered the legendary Elements of Harmony... Or at least the six that had survived to that time," Trixie intoned.

Six elements floated around the two Princesses, both of their manes becoming astral as the power of the Elements flowed through them. Friendship, Laughter, and Kindness went to Celestia, while Loyalty, Honesty, and Generosity went to Luna. Discord laughed at them mockingly, and was enveloped in a magical blast, trapped in stone.

"So that's how it happened," Applejack said softly.

The image shifted one last time, of the immortal alicorns looking out sadly over the remains of the universe. They all flew out, doing their best to repair the damage, leaving Celestia and Luna to rule over the world. Trixie finished off her history lesson. "While Discord was sealed away, the damage he did had been done. The very laws of nature had been broken, and save for areas like the Everfree, very little would move on its own. Celestia and Luna had to teach ponies how to help guide the world, how to change the weather and the seasons. The universe was broken by Discord. And the alicorns, both those that stayed and those that left, have done all they could to fix it..."

The image faded, Trixie withdrawing her cloak. "How was that?" she said smugly, the room remaining silent for a very long moment.

"Pretty good if Pinkie isn't saying anything," Rainbow Dash said, nudging who she thought was Pinkie.

"She's over there," Fluttershy said, smiling kindly, gesturing to Pinkie, who was near the kitchen. The aforementioned Earth pony snapped out of her awe-induced trance and shook her head, giggling nervously.

Rainbow Dash groused for a moment at her mistake. "Anyway, if it knocked Pinkie silent for that long, then I'm gonna wanna see it when I can see again."

Trixie smirked. "The Great and Powerful Trixie would be pleased to give you a show. And because she is so kind, and generous, and..."

"Because she always loves having people stroke her ego," Rarity muttered.

"That too," Trixie agreed, Rarity rolling her eyes in response. "Because I'm almost everything I think I am, I shall give the show for free. I've always had a fondness for history, and am always looking for ways to combine it with my raw magical prowess. This seemed like a good chance to test my newest act."

Twilight Sparkle shook her head, sighing. "It was... historically accurate, but unnecessarily melodramatic. And it made us go off topic. Now, Demoman..." she said, turning to the BLUs. She trailed off, seeing the stunned looks on their faces. "What's wrong?"

Demoman shook his head. "...Please tell me ye have somethin' alcoholic here, lassie. I need a bloody drink after seeing that."

Scout was shivering. "I can't stop shaking... It wasn't even the real thing and I can't stop shaking..."

"No amount of flames I could produce could hurt that..." Pyro said softly, her eyes wide and frightened.

Heavy stared at the spot where the Discord illusion was. "Bohze moi..." he said softly, a new respect for the Princesses filling him. "To fight a god..."

Spy flickflicked his wings nervously, fighting off the urge to reflexively turn invisible. He DESPERATELY needed a cigarette.

Barricade suddenly understood. "It's Discord, isn't it? You've never faced anything like him, have you?" she said.

Engineer grinned weakly. "Yeah... The biggest threats we've faced is a decapitation-happy ghost, a floating eyeball that shot missiles, and a muscle-head who could shrug off minigun fire with his bare chest. And both times we had the Respawn to fall back on... This is... a little out of our league."

"Truckie," Sniper said, shivering, "That bloody thing's so far out of league it's in another game entirely."

"I have heard tales of Discord," Medic said softly, "but to actually see him in action... Mein gott..."

Soldier was uncharacteristically silent, a thoughtful look on his face.

The Equestrian natives traded concerned looks. They were all used to the thought of Discord being defeatable, they hadn't even considered what an outsider would think of upon seeing him.

Pinkie, ever the one to try and cheer ponies up, smiled and hugged Scout playfully. "Don't you worry," she said. "That big ol' meaniepants Discord is all sealed away in stone. We beat him with the Elements of Harmony before, and soon we'll have nine! And even eighteen!" she added, gesturing to Demoman's necklace.

That seemed to mollify the BLUs, light smiles coming to their faces. Pinkie nodded, satisfied, and hugged Scout again, the blue colt blushing a little at the affection.

"Anyway," Twilight said, "We've gotten way off topic. What I was saying earlier is that AppleDemo's explosions shouldn't have been able to hurt even an unstable Nightmare like Nightmare Grave. I have a theory on why she was able to do so well, though. Applejack and Demoman, I need you to merge again."

Applejack and Demoman stared at each other for a moment.

"How?" they asked in perfect harmony.

Twilight blinked, and began looking through her notes. Barricade snickered.

"You didn't think that part through, did you?" Rainbow Dash asked bluntly.

"The Great and Powerful Twilight Sparkle," Trixie teased, shaking her head.

"Oh my..." Fluttershy said softly. "Maybe the notes on how they can merge are in another drawer? I can help look..."

An evil grin came to Scout's face. "Actually... Can you guys help me test a theory on how to do it?"

Spy frowned at him. "What are you up to?"

Scout ignored him. Applejack and Demoman gave Scout suspicious looks. "How, exactly?" Applejack asked.

"Close physical contact," Scout said.

Applejack and Demoman stared at him, confused. Scout, fighting the urge to grin evilly, just nodded. "Stand real close to each other, Applejack in front of Demoman."

"...What are you up to?" Demoman said, glaring at him.

Scout smiled. "Would you relax? I'm tryin' ta help here," he said. Applejack and Demoman stared at him for a long moment, trying to see if he was lying. And strangely, they both got a felling that he was legitimately trying to help. Reluctantly, they moved close to each other, Applejack sitting in front of Demoman.

"Closer," Scout said, nodding and gesturing.

Demoman and Applejack traded nervous looks, and moved closer together, so that Applejack was starting to slide underneath the Scottish Earth pony.

Barricade glared at Scout suspiciously. Scout ignored her, focusing on Applejack and Demoman.

"Are you sure this is gonna work?" Applejack asked, blushing.

Scout nodded. "Just trust me. Now, scootch in a little closer. Try wrigglin' in," he said.

Applejack frowned, but nodded, blushing and scooting back further, rubbing up against Demoman in the process. Demoman, for his part, was blushing profusely. He tried to convince his body that he was human, that the pony underneath him wasn't the same species. His body, however, was only aware of a pretty mare rubbing up against it.

"Um, lassie..." Demoman stammered.

Applejack felt something poke her in the rump. She blushed, and shot across the room so fast that it almost look like she teleported. Demoman slammed his hooves down in front of him, blushing and muttering, "Me kingdom fer a kilt..."

Scout collapsed with laughter.

It took only a moment for everypony in the room to figure out what had happened. Fluttershy blushed and squeaked, hiding behind Rarity, who gave Scout an irritated glare. Rainbow Dash, who couldn't see but could hear everything, quickly whispered to Pinkie, who told her what happened, causing both mares to giggle. Medic was laughing as much as Scout. Spy couldn't resist chuckling as well, despite himself. Everypony else just glared at Scout distastefully.

"Y'all just stay over there!" Applejack said, blushing and hiding behind Barricade.

"Well, if ye didn't rub yuir pretty tush all over me underside," Demoman snapped, both he and Applejack grinning despite themselves.

Scout laughed wildly. "Oh man, that was hilarious!"

"Out of line, kiddo," Barricade said, affixing her deadly Stare on him, causing Scout to flinch. "Don't try it again." Her tone implied that his fate would be somewhat dire if he did, especially if her daughter was involved.

Scout shook his head. "Geez, lighten up," he said, flinching under Barricade's withering Stare. "It was just a joke."

"It WAS NOT FUNNY!" Applejack and Demoman chorused, their minds completely united in their anger with Scout. Before everyone's eyes, the two of them began to glow, becoming blinding...

...and in a flash, AppleDemo stood before them.

Scout smirked. "And it worked," he said.

Twilight blinked. "What worked?"

"Elements o' Harmony, right? I figured that that they gotta think in exact harmony to trigger the merge. I decided to have some fun with it, by gettin' 'em mad at me."

Engineer looked thoughtful. "It's... it's a sound theory," he admitted.

Scout looked smug. Spy smacked him again.

"OW!" Scout said, rubbing the back of his head. "Quit it!"

"Non," Spy snapped. "Just because you were right doesn't mean you weren't a jerk."

"Better watch y'self, laddie," AppleDemo said, shoving her grenade launcher in Scout's face, the pegasus yelping, "I dinnae take too kindly te bein' humiliated."

"No explosions in the library, please," Twilight almost pleased. After a moment, AppleDemo took the launcher away, resting it on her shoulder.

"So what now, lassie?" she said. "Ye got me here, now what will ye have me do?"

"Some quick questions, first," Twilight said, pulling out a scroll and a quill. "Would you say that you are a fusion of Applejack and Demoman in terms of who you are? Or something else entirely?"

AppleDemo blinked and stroked her chin thoughtfully. "...It's hard te say, really. If I had te put it down in words, I'd say that I am a new being that has both Applejack and Demoman's memories and skills. I dinnae remember existing 'afore the first time they merged."

Everyone traded surprised looks at that. Twilight hmmed thoughtfully, and said, "...Does it bother you at all, that you an only exist through a fusion?"

AppleDemo chuckled, making a dismissive gesture. "Ach, no," she said. "Everyone has their purpose in life. If I can serve mine by only popping into existence a few times, then I'm content. I'd bet me remainin' eye that FlutterHeavy would feel th'same."

The others traded concerned looks, especially Fluttershy and Heavy.

Twilight Sparkle frowned, and then sighed. "Something to consider, I suppose. Now, onto the next experiment. AppleDemo, may I have one piece of ammunition from both of your projectile weapons?"

AppleDemo frowned, and nodded. "Be careful, lassie," she said, handing her a pipe bomb and a sticky bomb. "A mare ken lose her eye playin' with bombs."

Twilight nodded. "I know, I know. Now, if everyone would come down to the lab, please?" she said, both Engineer and Medic brightening at the mention of the word 'lab.' She gestured to a small door, Heavy and Barricade frowning.

"I don't think me and the big guy can fit through there, hon," Barricade said, the towering pony grinning weakly.

"I'll share the results when we come back up," Twilight said. "Spike?" The dragon hopped up on Twilight's back, the unicorn leading everypony else down into her lab. AppleDemo had to duck down, but was able to pass through.

Upon entering the surprisingly high tech facility, Medic and Engineer's grins got even wider.

"Fraulein," Medic almost purred. "You should have told me about zis place sooner."

"Mighty fine setup, little darlin,'" Engineer said, grinning. "Mind if ah use it t'work on Gem Sentry sometime?"

Twilight blinked and facehoofed. "Of course you can," she said, cursing herself for not thinking of showing the two scientists her laboratory to begin with.

"You sure that's a good idea?" Spike said. "I saw Medic laughing at a book about old crimes..." He got off her back, frowning.

Twilight sighed. "I think we'll be fine so long as Medic doesn't bring any patients down here. Also, Engineer is nice enough."

"That's true..." he said. "He didn't even get mad at me when I stole a gem from that gizmo of his..."

"You really need to not eat every gem you find," Twilight admonished him, smirking.

Spike grinned weakly. "I couldn't help it! I love emeralds!"

Twilight shook her head, setting the two projectiles on small, raised platform surrounded by what looked like high-powered energy weapons. AppleDemo tugged her collar nervously, steadily moving behind a thick piece of machinery. The other ponies couldn't help but notice this.

"...Rainbow Dash?" Sniper asked. "Out of curiosity... How many times a week does an explosion come from Twilight's lab?"

Rainbow Dash chuckled nervously. "Well... Let me put it this way... The few times I've been down here, I always make sure that there is a window nearby."

Sniper nodded, and began making note of every fast exit in the room. "Good to know, luv," he said.

Rarity discreetly went over to Engineer, watching nervously as Twilight began turning the intimidating-looking machines on, electricity dancing about. "...You seem to be the most technologically inclined," she asked hesitantly. "Does this setup look safe to you?"

Engineer, who was the only one aside from Medic who remained calm while watching Twilight work, stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Well, the pylons look well built enough. She's the protege of Princess Celestia, so I'd assume she'd have access to high class materials," he said. "Ah'm about... 75% certain that the machine won't detonate the grenades."

Rarity's ears drooped. "Not exactly comforting," she said.

Pyro giggled nervously. "Welcome to my world whenever he's working on something new. I like burning and random infernos as much as the next pyromaniac but I like to be alive to watch things turn to ashes..."

"MUST you use analogies about burning ponies to make a point?" Rarity asked.

"No," Pyro said, smirking.

"Then why..." Rarity started.

"Rarity, ma'am," Engineer said, "Do you honestly want to know?"

Rarity sighed and made a zipping motion across her lips, dismissing the question. Pyro giggled.

The device revved up, glowing ominously as magical energies radiated from it. The various BLUs and Equestrians hid behind thick-looking devices as it glowed brighter and brighter, until finally, with a blinding flash...

...the two grenades began to glow harmlessly, an aura of three apples surrounding them. AppleDemo looked down at her Element of Harmony necklace, and saw that it was glowing. Twilight nodded, removing her goggles, satisfied.

"I thought so," she said, satisfied. "AppleDemo's grenades are charged with the very magic of her Element of Harmony."

Zecora blinked in surprise. "So what you have explained for all of us to see, is that AppleDemo was blasting pure Honesty?"

"A simplified explanation, but yes," Twilight Sparkle said.

Medic looked thoughtful. "Zat makes sense, actually. Ze merged form not only gives us our arsenal back, but also gives it a charge from our merge partner's Element of Harmony. It vould give zem offensive power zey vould not normally have."

Engineer nodded, grinning. "Ah'm guessin' that FlutterHeavy's Sasha was shootin' bullets charged with the Element of Kindess."

"Well, Sasha always killed quickly enough, so I guess mercy-killin's a kindness," Scout quipped.

"Do not tease Sasha," Fluttershy said reflexively. She then blushed and tried to hide behind her mane.

Everyone stared at her, making her blush even more. "Well... I don't really remember much, because I was under that nasty curse... But I remember that firing Heavy's minigun felt REALLY GOOD..." she explained.

Scout started to make a lewd comment about Sasha's 'vibrations.'

"I'll tell Barricade," Spy said.

Scout closed his mouth.

Spy grinned wickedly.

"You do realize," Scout said, "That you basically said 'I'll tell Mom on you' just now?"

"You do realize," Spy retorted, "That I've done your Mom?"

Scout grumbled as Spy snickered. Zecora had to giggle at that, much to her surprise.

Trixie chuckled. "Whatever the case, this is a good thing," she said. "It means that we actually have a chance against any other Nightmares that may show up."

Rarity gagged. "You honestly think that there will be more?"

Pyro nodded. "Nightmares are demigods, from what I've seen, and fearful creatures at that. If Mitta hadn't taken Applejack and Demoman out of town, Ponyville would be Zombieville. We beat Nightmare Grave through dumb luck and a zombie ex machina. If I were the bad guys, I'd definitely batter the town with Nightmares."

Engineer hmmed thoughtfully, nodding in agreement with Pyro. "We can't expect that the Maskies will back off after Nightmare Grave's failure. We have t'be ready for the next attack, and assume it'll be from someone more clever than Gray Hoof."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Meanwhile...

Doctor Whooves's home...

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

bum-bum-bum-bum

bum-bum-bum-bum

Doctor Whooves rubbed his temples as the the drumming in his head went on. He munched his Jammy Dodgers, trying to focus on his work. He looked sadly over at the wreckage of a blue police box, damaged beyond repair, and sighed. He ate another one of the tainted Jammy Dodgers.

And the drumming got even louder.

BUM-BUM-BUM-BUM

BUM-BUM-BUM-BUM

"AGH!" Doctor Whooves cried, clutching his head and writing on the ground in agony. "What... What's happening to me?"

Agony was shooting through him like lighting as the Smooze poison worked its way through his system. His entire body felt like it had been immersed in hydrochloric acid.

Tick-tock goes the clock, he cradled her and rocked her, sang a voice in Doctor Whooves's head.

"Aaand now I'm hearing things," Doctor Whooves said, chuckling weakly as he tried to pull himself upright, ever movement like pushing his way through a wall of knives. "That can't be good..."

Tick-tock goes the clock, even for the Doctor, sang a voice in Doctor Whooves's head.

"And its this bloody song again," he said. "Bad enough I got sent back a form and turned equine when I got stuck here..."

Doctor Whooves groaned, staggering upright. His mind was racing, the drumming drowning out his attempts to think clearly. It was frustrating beyond all measure. And the pain, especially in his back and on his forehead, were staggering. "This is... Oogh..." he moaned. "I have to... have to get help..."

Tick-tock goes the clock, a horrid gift he'll now share, sang the voice.

"Shut up," Doctor Whooves pleaded. "I need to think..."

Tick-tock goes the clock, thus now rises a Nightmare, sang the voice.

Doctor Whooves blood froze. Pain on his back... precisely where wings would be on a pegasus... Pain on his forehead... in exactly the usual placement for a unicorn horn. He flashed back to the battle with Nightmare Grave. His memories, altered by Luna's spell, showed a different transformation than the true one, but even with that it gave Doctor Whooves a full idea of what was happening to him.

The drumming became louder. Doctor Whooves screamed in agony, collapsing on the floor in a fetal position, shivering in pain. "Not like this... Not after everything I've done... Please... Someone... anyone... HELP ME!" he pleaded.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

In town...

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Twilight's experiment completed, the others went their separate ways. Sniper needed to help the local weather team set up a rain storm, and Rainbow Dash came along to supervise. AppleDemo, claiming she wished to 'go back to sleep,' turned back into Demoman and Applejack, the former going off to visit Berry Punch. Derpy left to continue her mail route, Scout went off to find someone to pester, while Soldier went to stop Scout. Zecora and Spy went to Everfree to gather herbs. Barricade took Heavy and Fluttershy to lunch. Twilight herself kept the two Honesty necklaces, as well as Fluttershy's Kindness necklace, in a sealed chest in a sealed compartment that only she knew about. In a letter shortly after Nightmare Grave's attack, Celestia had told her that it would be better for any Elements drawn to them by mergings would be better served to be kept there in Ponyville, in case of further Nightmare attacks.

"How're you doing, Applejack?" Pinkie Pie said, bouncing up to the rancher as she went towards her farm.

Applejack blinked. "I'm doin' fine, Pinkie. What's up?" she said.

"Well, your accent isn't as strong, and when your accent isn't as strong it means you're relaxed. Plus I had an itchy right eye, and that means somepony's thinking some strong thoughtful thoughts about somepony. Is it about Demoman?" She grinned even wider, continuing on without taking a breath. "Are you starting to get a crush on him? Because that would be SOOO CUTE! I mean, you're already partners in your Element and if you started dating because of that, that would be so cool and I could throw you two a party and..."

Applejack clamped Pinkie's mouth shut. "Y'all need to stop reading those romance novels of Rarity's," she said.

Pinkie Pie blushed. "Heheh. Sorry. My brain's been wired that way ever since she got me interested in them."

"No harm done, sugarcube," Applejack said, chuckling. "As for Demoman... Ah like him and all, sure. He's a handsome stallion."

Pinkie Pie grinned.

"He's also short-tempered, a heavy drinker, the fact he knows so much about demolitions is kinda creepy, more interested in Berry, and he smells funny," Applejack said. Pinkie Pie laughed. Applejack grinned and continued, sighing. "And another thing... Well, they want to go home. Demoman... I could see his thoughts when we were AppleDemo. He misses his mother so badly... Ah don't want to get too attached in case they find a way to get back to their world."

Pinkie Pie frowned. "I guess that makes sense..."

Applejack gave her a worried look. "Gettin' fond o'them?" she said.

Pinkie Pie grinned. "A little... I mean, Scout's a jerk at times, but he always knows how to have fun."

Applejack smirked a little. "Talkin' about crushes... I think that y'all may have a crush of your own on BLU's resident loudmouth."

Pinkie Pie blushed.

Trixie, meanwhile, was working in her cart, preparing various tricks. She had managed to convince the Mayor to let her put on another show, under the condition that she refrain from the insults and not suggest anything that might convince fanboys like Snips and Snails to do something like bringing an Ursa Minor to town again. The lead pipe the Mayor kept in her office, the slightly bent from being used on the heads of criminal ponies, provided a clear picture to Trixie of what would happen if there was another incident.

(Trixie, for her part, was mildly impressed. She had an impression that Twilight had usurped a lot of the Mayor's authority when she came, but the Mayor proved that she still had the political prowess to make her the town's leader. Plus, she could swear she knew that lead pipe from somewhere...)

She was working with some fireworks when Pyro popped up behind her and chirped "Hi!" Trixie yelped, almost dropping and lighting the fireworks she had been manipulating. She turned, and smiled weakly at the blue pyromaniac.

"H-Hello, Pyro," she said. "Can I help you with anything?"

Pyro shook her head. "Nah, I'm just bored. Now that the experiment's over and I'm not needed for anything, I've got nothing to do. I always did like magic acts, so I decided to see what you were doing."

Trixie quirked an eyebrow. "REALLY now..." she said. She smirked. "Well... What are magic acts like in your world?"

Pyro smiled. "Mainly stage magic, tricks and such," she said.

Trixie grinned. "Want to see how a magic act with real magic works?"

Pyro grinned happily. "Sure!"

Rarity, meanwhile, found herself in an uncertain state of mind. She was caught up enough on her orders that she could afford to take a break, so she decided to go for a stroll around town. She didn't have any particular destination in mind, she just wanted to try and clear her head. All of the past events had left her worried. Unpleasant thoughts that made it difficult for her to sleep.

She eventually found herself near the construction site, where the workers were taking a rest, Engineer tinkering with his Gem Sentry. The design had become much less haphazard, the gems now smoothly integrated with the framework. The design was sleek, almost pony-like.

"Seems to be coming along well," Rarity said.

Engineer looked up, startled. He smiled, and said, "Yeah, ah suppose she is. Ah know it's weird, but ah don't feel comfortable without a Sentry nowadays. Especially going into a battle situation... Once ah get the design perfected, give her a little AI so she can aim and load on her own, ah'm gonna work on making a Dispenser next."

Rarity sighed, shivering. "All these battles... First the Nightmare Dogs, then Nightmare Grave..."

Engineer smiled sympathetically. "Not exactly what you expected when you went into the fashion industry, was it?"

Rarity grinned weakly. "It's a little much," she admitted.

Engineer shook his head, chuckling. "Well, don't you worry none. Builders League United is here. We specialize in practical solutions. High caliber ones."

"...You'll forgive me if I am not sure how to take that," Rarity said, grinning weakly.

Engineer smiled. "Sometimes, ma'am, even I'm not sure," he said.

Rarity smiled. "...If nothing else, knowing we have such capable warriors here is something of a comfort. Oh, we have a police force, but Ponyville is so peaceful usually that we rarely need them."

Engineer quirked his eyebrow. Rarity chuckled. "The monster attacks aside, of course," she amended. Engineer chuckled.

"It's a nice change to be welcome," he said. "Back in Teufort, everyone kept commissioning to have both RED and BLU kicked out. Can't really blame them, though. Especially after Soldier decided that a Mall Santa training facility was a communist training ground and blew it up."

Rarity blinked. "...What are Mall Santas?"

Engineer blinked, and facehoofed. "Sorry, cultural thing... Mall Santas are people who impersonate a mythological figure named Santa Claus. Santa Claus is a benevolent, elvish type o' fellow who has a good sense of what kids all over the world was mostly nice and which was mostly naughty, and at Christmas time brings all the nice ones presents. The bad ones just get lumps o' coal. At least, that's how the legend goes. Mall Santas are mainly somethin' nice shopping malls do for kids so they can think they delivered their wishlists to Santa."

Rarity's eyes widened, making a mental note to ask about that 'Christmas' holiday he mentioned later. "Interesting," she said. A playful smirk came to her face. "If nothing else, this 'Santa Claus' may be a good way to trick Sweetie Belle into behaving herself when she comes over," she said, making Engineer chuckle. After a moment, Rarity said, "You say mythological, but I get the strangest feeling you believe differently."

Engineer shook his head. "Ma'am, ever since ah joined Builders League United, I've had all my theories about myths and legends torn t'shreds. Ah didn't believe in ghosts, until one started hauntin' the battlefield on mah first Halloween. Soldier, Pyro, and ah got space guns that was sent from another dimension. That mall incident? A supposedly fictional figure out of Australian Christmas legend came around shortly after to kidnap a bunch of young'ns to be forced labor in his weapons and hat factory. If it wasn't for Scout, Soldier, and Spy, he'd have kidnapped fifty kids. And then there's the fact that the Administrator tried to have both RED and BLU kill Santa Claus himself. After we got confirmation he was real, we had ourselves a little Christmas truce and then had a 'friendly little chat' with the vicious old bitch."

Rarity winced. "Seems you have issues with this 'Administrator.'"

Engineer shook his head. "Ah swear, if she wasn't signin' our paychecks... About the only person ah hate even more would be my ex-wife Irene..."

Rarity nodded. "I do hope I'm not being too impertinent with these questions..."

Engineer shook his head. "Not at all," he said. "If y'all were gettin' too personal, ah'd let you know right quick."

Rarity smiled. "It's just that... I find you oddly fascinating..." she said, blushing.

Engineer just grinned at that. "Somethin' about someone who's as rustic as yer pal Applejack bein' as intellectual as Twilight Sparkle?"

Rarity nodded. "Something like that, yes."

Engineer sighed. "...Ah appreciate it, Rarity, but I'm hoping of course y'all realize I'd like to keep our friendship at just that..."

Rarity nodded again, smiling warmly. "Of course. I wouldn't dream of imposing."

Engineer smiled. "Thank you, Miss Rarity." He took a sip of the coffee he was drinking, and said, "While we're on the subject o' questions, ah was wondering something... How are the seasons managed? Ah know that pegasi control the weather'n all, but it never occurred to me until Trixie's little display that season changes might be managed as well."

Rarity chuckled. "This may take a while," she said.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Doctor Whooves' home...

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Minuette liked to think of herself as being able to handle anything. Being brainwashed by a parasitic Changeling and thrown into a dungeon cavern with the other two bridesmaids? Fine. Things happen. (She certainly couldn't complain about having an uninteresting life since becoming Ponyville's resident dentist.)

Rarity getting the damn bouquet before her? Irritating, but she couldn't honestly say that she wouldn't have done the same thing in her place.

And that was just her life here, before she took up residence in Ponyville with Doctor Whooves. She felt mildly amused that the only things she felt were of note after living here for so long was the mess with the wedding.

Humming quietly to herself, she trotted up to the door, intent on having dinner with her old friend and former lover. Their relationship had fallen apart, but they remained friends, and she still valued his company.

A scream of agony came from the workshop. Minuette felt a cold shiver of fear go through her. She ran over to the workshop next to his house, and banged on the door. "Doctor? Doctor, is anything wrong?"

No answer, save for a low moan of pain. "Doctor?" she tried again. "Doctor, it's Minuette. Let me in..."

No answer again. Minuette's eyes narrowed. Something was very wrong. She tried the door, the knob a push-down handle, only to find it locked. She scowled, her horn's magic flaring as she tore the lock apart, kicking the door open. What she saw when she got inside worried her even more.

The lab was in shambles, but that wasn't what worried her. The lights were flickering, and her horn could sense a strong magic in the air, stronger even than the natural magic that connected Earth ponies to the land around them.

"Doctor?" she called out, growing more and more worried. "Doctor? It's me, Minuette."

A low moan came from the back of the lab, where the remains of the police box were. Minuette ran to the back, gasping in horror at what she saw.

Doctor Whooves lay there, groaning in agony. His body had grown physically larger, the bowtie he wore snapped off of his neck. His body was bulging in places, as if something underneath his skin was trying to force its way out.

"Oh my God," Minuette said, going to Doctor Whooves's side. She gently picked him up. "Doctor... Doctor, it's River," she said, using her real name. "Please, what's happening to you?"

Doctor Whooves, his body wracked with agony, slowly looked up at Minuette. "R-River?" he said softly. "P-Please... get out of here..."

"I'm not leaving you, Doctor!" Minuette said. Never again, she asserted.

Doctor Whooves shook his head, cringing as his neck suddenly bulged out. "N-No, you don't understand... The drumming... So loud..."

Minuette's blood froze, the fear in her heart growing. "No... No no no!" she said, shaking her head.

Doctor Whooves groaned. "P-Please... G-get help... Go to Derpy... Tell her to take kids and run... Get BLUs to kill me..."

"NO!" Minuette said. "I'll... I'll get the Elements... I'll save you, Doctor!"

"T-Too late for me..." Doctor Whooves said, smiling weakly. "T-Transformation almost complete..."

Tears started to flow down Minuette's face. "Doctor..."

"G-Go..." he said, dark lightning starting to play over his body. "Q-Quickly..."

Minuette shook her head again. She was confused and frightened, none of her training useful in this situation. "I'm not..." she started.

"JUST GO!" Doctor Whooves roared in an almost demonic voice. Minuette gasped, jumping back. She took one last look at Doctor Whooves and ran. Doctor Whooves moaned softly. "For whatever happens from this point on," he said softly, "I hope you can forgive me."

He threw out his forelegs, a golden glow erupting from inside him as he screamed.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

The construction site...

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

As Engineer and Rarity talked, Medic came up to them, the doctor having come into town to get something to eat.

"Building relations with the locals?" he asked, smirking.

Engineer nodded to him in greeting. "Miss Rarity and ah was just having a little chat, is all. She's been tellin' me about how the season changes work. Mighty fascinatin!'" he said.

Medic nodded. "Indeed, I have been vundering about zat myself," he said, sitting down with the two of them.

As he did, though, Minuette ran up to them. "Oh... Thank God you're here!" she said, Engineer and Medic immediately noticing the turn of phrase. Equestrians, normally, would invoke Celestia. And Rarity's lack of reaction to the phrase meant that this wasn't an unusual thing for the sky blue unicorn to say.

"Doctor Whooves... Something's terribly wrong with him!" Minuette stammered.

"Oh dear," Rarity said, worried for the town's resident inventor, "is he hurt badly? Did one of his experiments go wrong?"

Minuette shook her head, the normally calm and collected unicorn visibly shaken. "I... I don't know! He's grown larger, and his body keeps bulging like there's something trying to get out of him..."

Medic and Engineer traded looks. "Take me to him," Medic said.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Doctor Whooves's workshop...

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Doctor Whooves collapsed as his transformation completed. He coughed, shaking himself out as he slowly pulled himself to his hooves. The drumming in his head wasn't as loud now, the sound soft, almost comforting.

"Well..." he said, stretching. "All things considered, that wasn't as bad as I thought it was." He felt an unusual set of muscles, and turned, seeing that he now sported a pair of large, feathery wings. He grinned. "Oh that's quite lovely," he said, flapping them experimentally. "Quite lovely indeed. Bloody brilliant! I'll have to try flying later."

He looked around. "Mirror... Mirror mirror mirror," he said, looking around for a reflective surface to look into. A piece of reflective metal from the police box wreckage was levitated over to him. Doctor Whooves blinked, and felt his forehead, a wide grin coming to his face.

"A horn! Flight AND magic! Oh, this is a fine day!" he said, chuckling in almost childish delight. "Now let's see what I look like now." He pulled the reflective metal over to him, examining how he looked.

"Not a ginger, or a girl, always a plus, and still the same overall form," he said, nodding, admiring his long, pointed horn. He frowned soon after, though, realizing his coat had gone charcoal gray, his brown mane now a dark black. "Gray... Oh, I so hope I haven't become one of those cowardly Discorded versions of myself..."

He looked into himself, feeling no fear at all, just a wicked mirthfulness. "Well, that's good. And this is a fine coloring anyway," he said. He examined himself some more. His Cutie Mark was still the same, but he was now physically larger, at least double his original size. His eyes were now bright gold, the pupils catlike.

He grinned, a cruel joy coming over him. "Haha, look at me now!" he said, excitement over his new form overtaking him. He leaped into the air, flapping his wings experimentally. When he began to float, his powerful wings keeping him aloft, albeit somewhat clumsily, he laughed.

"This is what being a Nightmare means?" he said, chuckling. "Oh, bollocks on how I felt earlier! This is WONDERFUL!"

He landed, and looked over to a giant hourglass in the corner. He focused on it, his magic flaring and crushing the hourglass into wreckage. He cackled, delighted both at the feel of his power and how it felt to destroy.

"Brilliant!" he said, laughing. "Bloody brilliant!"

He looked over at the wreckage of his police box, smirking wickedly. "And of course, a Nightmare has to have armor..." He brought his magic to bear again, forming a vicious-looking harness and helmet out of the remains, the ensemble resembling a more masculine version of Nightmare Moon's armor, which was Doctor Whooves's only point of reference.

He looked himself over in the reflective metal again, grinning in approval. Although for some odd reason he felt incomplete...

He looked down at the bowtie on the floor. After a few moments of staring at it, he picked it up, repairing and widening the collar it was attached to, and put it on once more. "I'll keep the bowtie," he said. "Bowties are cool."

Feeling better about his appearance, Doctor Whooves looked into the mirror again, grinning. "Perfect," he said. "Time for the Nightmare Doctor to have a little fun."

"Doctor?" came Minuette's voice.

Nightmare Doctor grinned viciously. "Ah, how delightful. She didn't listen to me. That makes things SO much EASIER," he said.

TO BE CONTINUED