"Sniff Sniff Sniff."

Making its way through the trees of everfree was a figure masked in complete shadow. She moved with precision; carefully and cautiously between the hardwood with unmatched speed. Her golden eyes shifted every now and then, as if ensuring that she was alone in her attempts to make it through the forest unharmed & unscathed. She was a survivor, a master in the art of stealth, and she required use of her own talents now more than ever. As she continued her trek; her auburn fur bristled with the steady wind as her paws padded through the mud beneath her. She couldn't stop, not now, she was so close; so close to finding the rumored legendary equine.

Her foxlike tail swayed as she ran the thoughts through her head as if for self-motivation. She couldn't give up; she'd come too far to give up. And as she took a few more steps out into a more open area of the commonly shaded forest; the sun's rays managed to pierce through the leaves, revealing the shadowed figure's appearance. She was a diamond dog, and a female one at that. Her auburn fur gleaming in the vibrant light; beneath the dirt and grime covering majority of her body, one wouldn't be surprised to find a beautiful creature hiding beneath. Her eyes were golden; and she possessed a long parted foxlike tail with a gold tip, as if it were a paintbrush that'd been recently dipped in yellow dew. Beneath her eyes and at other parts of her body one would be able to notice she also seemed to possess triangular patches of white fur in different areas. She was swift, fit, resilient, masterful in the ways of survival, she was prideful.

She was a diamond dog. A lean, mean, gem-hunting machine. Or she was supposed to be.

Day and Night I have trekked across the vast lands of Equestria. Day and Night I have searched; following the rumors of my pack, rumors of the legendary equine whose gem hunting prowess is unmatched, even by any diamond dog. The equine who single-hoofedly brought the infamous diamond dog brother's to their knees, begging for mercy. I must find her, I must learn her ways, she is my only hope. But I must be ready, I must be prepared to impress; I am walking into a minefield, and I am unsure if I'll even make it out alive.

And as the mysterious diamond dog made her way through the forest of Everfree; eventually reaching the forest's edge, she'd finally found it. She finally arrived at her destination.

The small town of Ponyville.

"Spikey-Wikey! Hurry along now darling!"

As Rarity trotted along the beaten dirt path running through the center of town; she had her head raised, basking in her own elegance. Today had obviously been absolutely fabulous! No bad things happened whatsoever, just how she liked it. What better way to spend your day other than shopping? That's just it, there was no better way! And as she continued to trot, she couldn't help but notice the fact Spike was falling awfully far behind, causing the mare to glance back with worry.

"G-Give me a second!" Spike was currently attempting to carry a multitude of bags in his tiny frail arms, these bags consisted of an assortment of multiple different goods; food, clothing material, entertainment items, you name it; they had practically everything. As the baby dragon struggled to keep all of them aloft, eventually he cringed as he realized he wasn't taking one step further with all this weight. "Oh no, oh no no no; A-AH!" And as expected; the bags caved in all over him, causing him to be buried beneath the various items. "Oooooh...."

Rarity whimpered as she rolled her eyes at the sight, then turning to go assist him with the task.

But as she did so; she was being watched. Unaware that her every move was being observed from a distance.

And from the forest's edge, that lone figure never took her eyes off the mare.

Peeking her head out from behind a tree was the dirt covered diamond dog from earlier.

She'd finally made it to her destination and not only that; upon looking, there was an instant recognition for the diamond dog that that mare was in fact the legendary equine from the stories. It couldn't have been more obvious! A coat as white as freshly fallen snow. A mane as purple as the violet's in the spring. And as she continued to watch from afar, she could only be amazed by the mare's obvious superiority over the lesser creatures of the small town.

"Spike there's no need for you to carry all those bags by yourself, allow me to help." Rarity insisted.

Spike raised a claw, giving a sly smirk towards his love interest while shaking his head and then attempting to gather the bags up in a neat, tidy order once again. "No no no Rarity; it's alright, heh, I got this."

And as this linear scene took place; the diamond dog only continued to observe. At one point gritting her teeth; her eyes widening at the sight of the baby dragon in shock. A-Amazing! She's even subdued a baby dragon. Look as he succumbs to her might, not even willing to fight back. She's reduced him to husk of his former self, his dragon pride practically non-existent, he's nothing more than a mere slave now! The diamond dog then lowered her frame closer to the bushes as she snarled, nervously grinding her teeth in frustration.

The only explanation is that she single-hoofedly took out his parents, leaving him orphaned; she probably decided to take him in as her trophy. What a cruel twist of fate....rrrrg. I-I've definitely gotta watch myself around her, I have no doubt if I enter her perimeter she'll be able to sense my presence and vanquish me immediately. Perhaps this is a test, maybe if I can get close enough to her without being detected I'll have proven my worth. B-But.... A nervous sweatdrop ran down the side of her head. Is such a feat even possible?

As Spike gathered up all the bags once again; he exhaled heavily then smiled. "A-Alright! I think I'm all set."

Rarity chuckled a bit as she looked towards the baby dragon, amused by his behavior. "If you say so darling." She winked at him playfully. "I'll ensure my big brave dragon is rewarded for his help once we get back to the house!" Then patting his head and turning back towards the path that led to Carousel Boutique.

This caused Spike to blush as he snickered beneath his breath. "Aw shucks heh heh...w-whoa!" And after nearly dropping all the bags once again, he caught balance on his footing, sighing with relief. "Whoo..."

"Rarity Rarity Rarity!"

And as Spike held up the bags, he felt the unexpected shove of three uncaring individuals as they just bulldozed their way through him and straight towards the snow-white mare; causing him to drop all the the bags once again. "Aw man..You've gotta be kidding me!"

These three individuals were none other than The Cutie Mark Crusaders, going about their day crusading as usual, but something caused them to take a pause in their ventures. A particular little filly; Applebloom, beamed her wide eyes up towards the mare with a playful chuckle, bouncing on her hooves as she smiled. "Rarity Rarity Rarity! Applejack wanted me to tell ya that she'd be stoppin by your place later on this evenin!"

As the diamond dog continued to watch from the forest; squinting her eyes at the three smaller ponies, her nose twitched. Her subordinates reporting for duty no doubt, they're so young; she must've had them trained since birth. What a rigorous training regime. That little one bounces constantly, she must be dedicated to her task of getting stronger to protect the legendary equine. This Applejack must be a high ranking officer to be able to call a private meeting, I've gotta be careful.

Rarity raised a brow at the little red-headed filly. "Hm? Applejack? Of course darling; but why if I may ask?"

Applebloom shook her head as she continued to bounce. "I don't know! She said she needed you ta make something for her, but she wouldn't tell me what!"

Rarity was still a bit curious; but didn't mind waiting until the evening to find out what exactly Applejack needed, so she just smiled. "Alright, thank you for the info darling, tell her I'll be there for when she comes."

Applebloom nodded. "Okay!"

Scootaloo cut in. "Applebloom! Careful; we've only got around 4000 more hops until we get our cutie marks!"

And before the Cutie Mark Crusaders could high-tail it out of there, Rarity called out to SweetieBelle.

"And Sweetie Belle, make sure you make it home before dinner darling!" The mare exclaimed.

Sweetie Belle nodded as she raised a hoof,

waving to her sister before departing with her fellow crusaders; bouncing. "Okay!"

And with that both Spike and Rarity continued on their way to the Carousel Boutique.

The diamond dog only continued to watch from a distance as Rarity and Spike departed further into town.

She moved swiftly and silently; making her way stealthily towards then in-between the nooks of houses.

As the day drew on, everything seemed normal for the fashionista, which was absolutely perfect. Spike had helped her with her shopping tasks and even decided to carry the bags back to her home himself. Of course all he ever wanted in return was some affection, so she'd given him a kiss on the cheek as a reward; which he loved whole-heartedly. It was just another good day in the perfect little town of Ponyville, and the mare couldn't have been more happy. All that was left was for her to take herself a nice warm bubble bath upstairs; the night was closing in and what could be better than ending your day with a relaxing bubble bath and then retreating to bed? Not much, that was for sure. "Ah you've done it again Rarity."

But; as she made her way upstairs, her stalker still hadn't given up in her cause.

Even as the blanket of stars climbed over the night sky, the diamond dog still persisted in her mission to approach the mare without being detected, and better yet; she was attempting not to be detected by anypony in general. As she peeked through the lower level window, she noticed a little filly sitting at the kitchen table munching on some sliced apples. That little filly was none other than Sweetie Belle of course; but the diamond dog didn't know any better. As she peeked through the window; she only winced at the little filly.

"Mmmmmm....wow Applebloom wasn't wrong about these apples being just perfect!" And the little filly happily munched on her sliced apples, picking up one; throwing it in her mouth, then picking up another. "Nooooom-MPH!"

And suddenly her mouth had been covered, preventing her from screaming as she was held in place.

Sweetie Belle's eyes widened in fear as she glanced back at her mysterious captor; and she saw only a dirt covered, stinky, female diamond dog looking at her with a blood curdling stare. A tremble ran down the filly's spine as she shook her head, attempting to squirm free as tears swelled within her eyes.

But the diamond dog lowered her head towards the little filly's ear; whispering. "Ease yourself little warrior. We are not enemies, but;....you really need to work on your guarding skills. I will succeed in my mission, no matter what." And with that the diamond dog picked up the little filly, dragging her to the living room, her intentions still uncertain as Sweetie Belle whimpered in her arms.

Not soon after; the diamond dog then made way for the stairs leading to the upper level of the boutique, with no sign of Sweetie Belle in sight. The diamond dog was careful with her movements, ensuring every step was as silent as possible; her golden eyes shifting every now and then to different pieces of furniture and hung pictures as she hugged the wall. As she made it to the top of the stairs, she exhaled heavily, squinting her eyes some before she turned the corner. It's quiet...too quiet....this must be a trap.... And she turned the corner with a serious expression, entering a fighting stance.

"Meow?" Opalescence looked up at the strange figure standing before her with wide eyes.

The diamond dog gasped. AN ENEMY! And picked up Opalescence, tossing her down the stairs on impulse as Opalescence slammed against the wall, then slumped to the ground with twirly eyes.

"Mrrrooow....." Opalescence groaned.

That was a close one, can't underestimate them; even if they're small. She nearly got the jump on me..... The diamond dog then continued on her way; entering into Rarity's room slowly.

As Rarity sat in her soothing bubble bath, it seemed as if all her troubles melted away; not that there were many to begin with. She felt like she was in the definition of paradise, nothing could possibly go wrong; not during such a seemingly perfect day. Sweetie Belle was downstairs munching on apples she'd brought back from Sweet Apple Acres. She now had many different fabrics and materials to work with for new orders; and Spike only made the day go so much smoother. She slowly slumped down further into the warm water, closing her eyes. Ah yes; absolutely nothing could possibly ruin this perfect-

"I've found you."

Rarity's eyes snapped wide as she immediately looked towards the origins of that voice,

which was.....above her?

And hanging onto the ceiling with unsheathed claws was a female diamond dog. "So; did I pass?"

Rarity blinked a bit.

There was a brief moment of silence as they just looked at one another. ".................."

The diamond dog cocked a brow. She must be analyzing my skills and usefullne-

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!"

As Applejack made her way up the steps leading to the Carousel Boutique, she seemed a bit hesitant as she raised her hoof, preparing to knock on the door. "Shucks;...perhaps I should wait till tomorrow, I mean-" Applejack paused as she sighed heavily, shaking her head. "No AJ, ya can do this! It's just a little friendly advice and a dress right? N-No biggie....She won't suspect nothin' nothin suspicious about it anyhow." Applejack gave herself a re-affirming smile as she closed her eyes, raising her head. She remained in that position for a moment longer before lowering her head with a groan. "Ah who're you kidding Applejack...."

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!"

Applejack's eyes snapped wide as she gasped. "R-Rarity!?" She then turned on impulse, bucking the door open forcefully and making her way inside the house. "Rarity!? Are ya alright!? What's wrong! Hold on now I'm co-" But as she was just about to head upstairs; she noticed out of the corner of her eye, tied up in the living room with a hefty amount of sewing materials was the sniffling Sweetie Belle; gagged. "SweetieBelle?!" Then made her way over to the bound filly.

As Applejack untied the poor filly; Sweetie Belle gasped, looking up towards the mare.

"A-Applejack! Rarity she's-"

Applejack raised a hoof to Sweetie Belle's mouth. "I know Sugarcube, don't ya worry, I'll stop whatever's here!" And with that the mare turned and bolted for the stairs; and up as quickly as she could.

As the diamond dog looked at Rarity in shock; she backed away towards the door. S-Shoot! I must've failed! But how? I was flawless in my- The diamond dog turned as she ducked; almost instinctively realizing that something behind her had attacked, and as she regarded that assaulting figure; she found herself awestruck.

Rarity cried out. "A-Applejack!?"

Applejack snarled. "Shoot! Why I'll-.......Eh?"

The diamond dog swiftly knelt down before the mare, submissive as she looked up towards her. Never before had she seen such beauty! That golden mane, that strong defined shape, that beautiful shade of orange, everything was simply perfect. And such a well executed attack and flawless approach! If this was only the commanding officer? How could she have ever believed she stood a chance against the legendary gem huntress herself? "Forgive me!"

Rarity and Applejack looked on in bewilderment.

"I wish to learn the ways of the legendary equines!"