UGH! I am so sorry for the long wait. I've got pretty much the rest of the story planned out, but... *makes rainbow with hands* PROCRAAAAAAAAASTINAAAAAAATIOOOOOON. (If you get the reference, I'll give a virtual waffle!)

Anyways, on with the story!

---

The shadows were growing as Octavia trotted alone through the strange, foreign land. Rainbow had abandoned her, unable to keep the telepathic conversation going with her magic.

Octavia was getting tired. Her legs and hooves ached from all of the walking. She luckily had not been attacked by any of Discord's other "creations" since the licorice snakes and was thankful for it. With a quick decision-making thought, the mare dug through her saddlebags and pulled out a pop-up tent. She quickly set it up in less than a few seconds, thankful for the quick set-up.

Octavia crawled into the tent, setting her saddlebags in the corner of the tent. She grabbed a blanket from her bag and pulled it over her, protecting her from the cold night air. Her cello bow was tucked under her arm, signaling she was prepared for anything Discord had to throw at her during the night.

Truth be told, Octavia was scared. Without anyone by her side, she felt as though she was fighting for a lost cause. Even if she had Rainbow Dash, who technically wasn't "by her side", she still felt lonely. Octavia remembered something she had read in one of the many books... Something about Discord going after ponies who were alone, or were depressed and scared in order to manipulate them easier.

Well, I'm none of those, Octavia thought, clearly in denial, He won't get to me. I'm one of the mentally strongest ponies I know. Besides, what's the worst he could do?

Octavia remembered Dinky and Celestia. Dinky had an excuse, because she was young and naïve with very little experience in who to trust and who not to trust. Celestia however... She was the wisest and most discerning ponies in the land. If she could be tricked easily by Discord, then what could he do to Octavia?

She shook the thought away, determined to get some sleep before heading out again.

---

"You're crazy." Thorn said blankly to the cream mare who stood before him.

Bonbon rolled her eyes, "We need to get Vinyl to see that her friendship with Octavia is more than just a friendship. You're the only one who can help us prove that."

"But I can't change my form!" Thorn cried, "I never could, and I never will be able to!"

Bonbon paced within Lyra's chambers, her blue eyes periodically looking up to glare at the changeling, "This is our only chance. If the Guardians aren't going to do anything, then Octavia and Vinyl might be our only hope. They defeated Nightmare Moon on their own, they can defeat Discord if they work together."

"But Luna said-"

"I don't care what Luna said! Equestria's in major danger. The only way we're gonna save it is if we get 'tavia and Scratch back together. We can do it, but we need you Thorn."

Thorn looked down. His holey legs trembled with nervousness, "Alright. I'll try. But what are we going to do if I can't do it?"

"Let's not worry about that," Bonbon dismissed, "It's up to you, Thorn. You've gotta do this if Equestria is to be saved."

For a moment, Thorn stood there with his head down. He looked up, his pure blue eyes shining with determination. His horn started glowing a gentle green, but began sparking out almost immediately.

"You can do it, Thorn!" Bonbon encouraged, "You wanna prove that your not an undesirable, right?"

Thorn's horn glowed slightly brighter. He was straining though, as his eyes were shut tightly and his teeth were grinding together.

"Come on!" Bonbon yelled, now acting similar to a drill sergeant, "You can do it! Come on! You're a changeling, so, change!"

Thorn's body began sparking with green, his body struggling against its inability to change.

"You are a changeling, Thorn!" Bonbon yelled, "You are a changeling! So, CHANGE!"

With a loud roar, Thorn forced his body to light up in a flurry of green, changing his form. Bonbon was blinded by the light, forcing her to shield her eyes. When the light faded, the cream mare's eyes lit up as a smile spread across her face.

"You did it, Thorn," Bonbon said, "Now, time to take action."

---

Vinyl trotted alone through Ponyville. Everyone had heard about the "Discord's Doomsday" as it was called by the locals. All of the citizens were preparing, bringing in their outdoor objects, boarding up their windows, or going out to stock up on food. It was as if they were preparing for a huge snowstorm.

Vinyl was as calm as she could be. The coming "doomsday" was at the back of her mind. However, she couldn't help but wonder how Octavia was doing... She might have been fighting the cause of the coming doomsday right now for all she knew. Vinyl felt bad for how she had yelled at Octavia.

But she yelled at me too! Vinyl argued with herself, She was a big jerk about it anyway! Why should I forgive her? It's not like I'll be seeing her anytime soon...

At that very moment, a scream came from behind Vinyl, accompanied by a chorus of loud howls. The unicorn turned, discovering Derpy running towards her at top speed with a panic-stricken look on her face. Only mere feet behind her was an entire pack of angry and vicious timberwolves.

"Vinyl!" The gray pegasus screamed, "Help!"

Vinyl's instincts kicked in, causing her to expand her bass cannon, "Duck in cover, Derpy!"

Derpy obeyed, lunging foward and ducking down. Vinyl fired a beam of heavy electronic over the pegasus' head, taking out three of the wolves. There had to be at least two dozen left though, all of them coming after both her and Derpy.

"Get behind me!" Vinyl commanded. Derpy did as she was told and took cover behind the white unicorn. Vinyl's bass cannon still had to charge up, so she fended off the timberwolves with blasts of blue magic. There still way too many. Most of the citizens had run off or taken shelter in their homes, hoping to get away from the pack of wooden wolves.

"There's too many!" Vinyl cried as she blasted another wolf away. They started to surround both her and Derpy, slowly circling closer to come in for the kill.

"Do something!" Screamed Derpy, now hiding her face with her hooves.

The timberwolves approached closer and closer, snapping their wooden teeth. Their stench cause Vinyl's eyes to water and her stomach to do flip-flops. Her bass cannon still had not charged up and still had thirty seconds left to do so. The wolves would already be on them by that time.

Just then, a blur of gray jumped in front of the two. With a powerful kick, the newcomer took out four of the wolves, all of which ran away. The pony intimidated the wolves, so much so that they backed off for a moment. Vinyl managed to get a good look at the newcomer, causing her eyes to widen in surprise.

"Octavia?!" She screamed in disbelief, "Wha... How?!"

"No time to explain!" Octavia yelled back, "Just fight!"

Vinyl obeyed. Her bass cannon had charged up, allowing the weapon to let loose on a half a dozen timberwolves. They all broke into pieces or ran away from the sight of the oversized stereo. Octavia handled the rest with powerful kicks that smashed the wolves into piles of timber. Vinyl was a little confused as to why her friend wasn't using her trusty cello bow, but she brushed it off.

"First question," Vinyl began after all the wolves had run away, "Did you chicken out?"

Octavia shook her head, "Nope."

Right then and there, the gray mare's body flashed green, changing into the familiar, half insect, half pony that was the guild's newest member. He was smiling sheepishly, probably embarressed about being disguised as the female gender.

"Thorn?!" Vinyl asked in outrage, "Wha-?! What's going on?! You can change your form! Why Octavia?! Oh Celestia, you've gone evil again!"

"Correction." A voice said from behind. Vinyl turned, discovering Bonbon approaching her.

"I want an answer as to what the heck is going on here!" Vinyl demanded.

Bonbon was surprisingly serious, "A lesson."

Vinyl raised an eyebrow, "What?"

"A lesson, Vinyl Scratch," Bonbon repeated, "You see how you couldn't fight those timberwolves by yourself? You needed Octavia by your side to do so."

"Yeah, but it was Thorn," Vinyl stated, "Not Octavia."

"That's not the point," Bonbon growled, "You see what I'm trying to do? I'm trying to get you to see that you are weaker by yourself. Don't you think the same would apply for Octavia, who is now risking her life in Discord's Domain just because of a little quarrel you had?"

Vinyl played with a pebble on the ground, "I... Guess so."

Bonbon took Vinyl by the shoulders, blue eyes staring into slightly startled red, "Vinyl, this is serious. You and Octavia have something that hasn't been seen since the Guardians themselves. That friendship was strong enough to stop Nightmare Moon, and without that said friendship, Equestria would be in ruins. And if you don't go and save Octavia from Discord, Equestria may just be ruined forever!"

"I told you," Vinyl growled, pushing the cream mare away, "Octavia's not my friend anymore. It's her responsibility if she survives in Discord's Domain or not. Thanks for trying to get me to think otherwise, but-"

Vinyl was interrupted when Bonbon promptly smacked her across the face, leaving a red hoofprint on her cheek.

"Get yourself together, Scratch!" The cream mare commanded, "You and Octavia have been friends for ages now! You're just gonna throw that away because of some stupid disagreement?! This isn't you! You know you and Octavia's friendship is something greater, but you keep denying it! Don't you see what's happening? You've been... Been... Brainwashed!"

"Calm down, Bonbon," Vinyl said, rubbing her cheek where Bonbon had smacked it, "I haven't been brainwashed. I just... No longer trust Octavia. I have no reason to go and save her."

Bonbon looked as though she was about to blow a gasket. She pounded the ground with a hoof before letting out a frustrated sigh. At that very moment, Lyra came down the street, approaching them with a slightly amused look on her face.

"I see your plan failed," Lyra said to her companion, "Good thing that Lyra Heartstrings always has a backup plan."

"You can't convince me to just go to some dangerous place and save somepony who doesn't even appreciate me." Vinyl argued.

Lyra shrugged, "You're right about that. But... I can make you remember just how important your friendship is with Octavia..."

"Look, Lyra... Bonbon..." Vinyl started, "I appreciate the help, but I'm not going out somewhere where I could possibly die trying to save somepony else. It's common sens-"

She was interrupted when Lyra gently touched her glowing horn to the unicorn's forehead. The mint green mare back off, as Vinyl began staring into space. A couple seconds passed and Vinyl violently shook her head, taking in a deep gasp. She then suddenly took off, pushing Bonbon and Lyra out of her way.

"Whoa," Thorn gasped, "What did you do?"

Lyra shrugged again, "Memory spell. I aimed it at all of the memories of her and Octavia. It seemed to jog her memory, so I guess it worked!"

"Then where's she going?" Thorn asked.

"I heard Sugarcube Corner was having a super-mega muffin sale!" Derpy answered, "Maybe that's where she's going!"

"No..." Bonbon breathed, "She's going where her friend's going."

They all hesitated, afraid to speak the truth.

"Discord's Domain." They all said in unison.

---

"Oh man!" Vinyl panted, running down the path that lead to the beach, "Stupid Vinyl! Stupid stupid stupid Vinyl! Why did I let her go? Oh I'm so stupid!"

"Vinyl! Wait!" A voice called desperately from behind. Lyra, Bonbon, Derpy, and Thorn were all hot on the unicorn's tail. Vinyl slowed to a halt when she arrived at the beach, allowing for her pursuers to catch up.

"Vinyl, you have to prepare yourself," Lyra advised, "You can't go to Discord's Domain empty hoofed. You need supplies to get you through the journey. It wouldn't hurt to take a few friends too!"

"No one's going to go with me," Vinyl argued, "Besides, it's my fault Octavia's in danger. It's my job to save her and Equestria."

"Octavia might have already failed," Bonbon said, "We haven't heard anything from her all day. You have to take extra precaution and go with a friend."

"Yeah, but who would ever want to go to Discord's Domain with me?" Vinyl asked.

For a moment, no one spoke. However, after a few seconds, Thorn took a brave step foward, "I'll go with you." He said.

Vinyl stared at him, "Are you sure?"

Thorn nodded, "Octavia means a lot to me. She was the first pony to ever show me kindness, even though I am a changeling. I can't let her just... Die."

"Well said, Thorn." Lyra agreed. She turned back to Vinyl, "You got yourself a friend. What you need to do now is pack up lots of supplies, then summon Philomena, and you'll be on your way."

Vinyl smiled, "Thanks."

Bonbon returned the smile encouragingly, "Good luck, you two."

With that, the unicorn and the changeling took off up the beach, more determined than ever to get their friend back.