Feed me.

“Any update?” Lyra asked curiously as a weary Twilight descended the library stairs, William close behind.

“Safely under another sleeping spell,” she replied curtly, doing her best to pretend that the princess herself wasn't still in her kitchen giving Discord the tongue lashing of a lifetime. “For now, anyway; at least until he's up again in a bit, I've been blanketing the spells in progressively thinner layers,” Twilight explained.

“My turn to keep an eye on 'it' again?” Eris yawned from her spot on the sofa, stretching lazily as she tilted her head just enough to keep them all in view with one open eye.

“I'm very curious,” Lyra said eagerly, almost prancing from hoof to hoof, though Twilight seemed not to notice. “Anything interesting? Did he say anything Princess Celestia thought he would? It is a he, right? Does-”

Not yet. Too early.

“No, no, and yes,” William swiftly interrupted. “In order. And mostly it's just...”

“... Just what?” Eris blearily cracked another eye open.

“Well... screaming, mostly,” Twilight admitted. “Just screaming, really. I'm not really sure what's wrong with him.”

“Aside from the obvious,” Eris sat up and rolled her shoulders, never dropping her deadpan stare. “You try being tortured a little bit, see how you like it. God, I can't even stand breaking a nail...”

She trailed off when Twilight failed to conceal her cringing, the uncomfortably loud sound of Celestia's beratement stabbing at her ears.

“... Does this mean we still have to go to school?” Eris quipped as she trudged up the stairs. She grumbled under her breath when they all ignored her, stomping a little harder as she ascended.

“Bonnie's not going to believe this...” Lyra dropped onto the seat Eris had previously occupied, running a hoof straight through her mane. “Stars and stones, today has been crazy,” she grinned down at William, “Are things always this interesting? Have I just been missing out?”

The colt, however, seemed not to notice, still staring blankly ahead.

“... William?”

“What?” he snapped his head toward her jerkily, eyes wide. “Sorry. Thinking. What did you say?”

Twilight snorted.

“Spike does the same thing sometimes,” she nodded to Lyra. “Especially when he really doesn't want to pay attention, just zones out for a little. He's... uh... where is Spike?”

Lyra only raised an eyebrow before subtly nodding toward the kitchen, where all of the unpleasant 'conversation' happened to be coming from.

Twilight did not find this comforting.

Spike, on the other hand, was having the time of his life.

He kicked his legs cheerfully from the countertop, sitting silently with a mug in his claws as he watched the 'debate' between the princess and previous god of chaos. The unsurprisingly still stunned Yolk White only managed to sit oddly beside him, legs dangling off the counter as she stared a hole in the floor. Yolk didn't move. She didn't speak. Spike doubted that she was even breathing. A small part of him wished that he'd brought popcorn.

“No, I don't,” Celestia hissed venomously from across the table. “You burned that bridge, Discord, I am ashamed that I trusted you! I needed you, and you lied to me!”

“And I said that I'm sorry!”

“Sorry doesn't cut it, Discord!”

“Well, what else do you want me to do?”

“What do you think?!”

Celestia huffed and seethed through tightly clenched teeth, her wings clamped tightly to her side. Discord even seemed to inch back a little bit at her barely contained rage.

“Hello, Twilight, old pal!” Discord blurted in a faux cheerful manner as he watched the librarian desperately struggle to silently haul the unwilling drake from the kitchen. “Say, I was just thinking-”

“Discord please stop trying to drag my student into this and use her as a distraction from the trouble you're in,” Celesta stated emotionlessly, clearly unamused, all in one breath. Twilight, though, seemed to be more unnerved than anything; Princess Celestia was not one to speak so brashly, and even when in dire circumstances she had never seen the ruler quite so irate, and watching it all melt away so quickly into such a blank expression merely from her entry to the room was disturbing on a personal level.

“Is-is there anything I can do, Princess?” Twilight offered weakly, but Celestia only shook her head.

“Not immediately, Twilight, there are some matters that-”

“She's going to seal me in stone,” Discord butted in. Twilight's sharp intake of breath was clearly heard as she tried to shepard Spike out.

“I'm not going to petrify you,” Celestia insisted, frowning. “Not yet, anyway.”

“Not like he doesn't deserve it...” Yolk muttered from the side. However, that seemed enough to draw the princess's attention, which greatly relieved Discord.

“And you,” she said calmly to the suddenly sweating mare. “You should not have done that.”

“I-I, well, you see...” Yolk's position on the counter top seemed horridly crude before royalty, and she flushed. “I-I-I, uh, I was... authorized, b-by the Orga-”

“You expressly summoned a Council Member,” Celestia stated calmly. “A being not of this world, to be called only as a last resort should the Organization fail in every aspect, all for a matter of personal dispute,” she became a little quieter with each word, drawing closer and closer, seeming to Yolk so large that she was taking up the entire room all at once. “As a servant of such Organization, you took a sacred oath, and you abused your privileges in order to torture information out of one of my subjects.”

By this point Twilight only watched in confusion in the doorway, unsure of whether or not she should leave. Oddly, Discord refused to look at anyone, his features empty. Yolk, on the other hand, looked close to positively fainting.

“I-I-I, well, you-you see, the, er-uh-um, I-I-” the mare struggled violently, unable to do much more than sputter and fidget, the color long since drained from her face. “The-th-the regulations-”

“I know exactly what the rules say,” Celestia spoke in little more than a whisper, her eyes narrowed to dangerous violet slants. “I wrote them.”

“I-I... I...” Yolk shuddered forcefully, her head in her hooves as she cried. “... I'm sorry. Y-your majesty, I-I'm so sorry.”

Celestia took a pause for a moment, withdrawing.

“... I know.”

Yolk said nothing.

“You'll receive your notice of termination in the post,” the princess breathed heavily, standing up a little straighter and turning away and smiling. “There's been quite enough unhappiness for one day, I think we can sort this all out later.”

Twilight blinked, her head feeling a little fuzzy after witnessing the incident; it was as if a shadow had been lifted. She could have sworn that an actual, physical weight had been sitting on her back, and the sudden lack of it felt incredibly surreal. She caught a glimpse of Lyra and William talking quietly by themselves, as if they hadn't heard a thing.

“Er... P-Princess Celestia?”

“Yes?” the alabaster alicorn turned serenely to her student, seemingly ignoring the sullen draconequus glaring at her.

“I'm... still quite confused, if, er... I mean, all this talk of organizations and councils and-and... torture? I-I mean...”

The peacefulness that had momentarily settled on Celestia's face sort of... drooped. The expression itself seemed to fall a little, and for a brief second, just a very, very tiny little moment, Twilight glimpsed clearly at Celestia's age. It looked for all the world that time itself was tugging at her face, the sad, unmistakably weary look of age resting heavily on her. And just like that, it was gone – a trick of the light, and the room certainly was looking a bit brighter than before.

“I do hope you'll forgive me, my student,” Celestia grinned playfully. “Royal business and all that, have to keep up appearances.”

“O-oh, yes!” she nodded swiftly. “Of course, Princess, I didn't mean to intrude-”

“But for now,” the princess tilted her head to Discord. “You are needed elsewhere.”

“I wish it could have been under better circumstances,” Discord replied with no discernible expression.

“As do I.”

“Do we have to?”

Not for the first time today, Twilight was left very much befuddled.

“It has to be done,” Celestia answered quietly.

“We could just not,” he shrugged, an empty mirror before Celestia.

“That wouldn't be freedom or solace, and you know it.”

“Maybe it would. You wouldn't know.”

The bizarre exchange did not go unnoticed, but Twilight was unable to glean much more due to her attempts to nudge off the ever curious Spike. By the time she tried to catch the rest of it all seemed to have returned to normal, and she bit her tongue.

“... We'd best be off!” Celestia said chipperly, the draconequus close in tow. William was quick on the draw to follow, worried. “I'll ensure that Discord behaves himself, there's urgent business in Canterlot.”

“Wait, who's going where?” William interjected, pushing rudely past Twilight. “Why? What's going on?”

“Time to pay the piper,” Discord knelt down before him. “I've gotta go take care of something real quick, but-”

“You can't leave!” William tried to grab hold of him, an intense panic beginning to form in his chest when he couldn't seem to clench his fingers around him properly. “What about the Council? What about Neil? What about you? What about us?! What's going on? Why-”

Discord snapped his talons in front of the colt, making him jump a little.

“We'll talk later,” he said tiredly. “I promise. We'll take care of everything, all of it. We'll all sit down and talk later.”

“... You promise?” William frowned. He felt a warm touch on his shoulder, but couldn't identify who it belonged to.

“... Yeah. I promise.”

“How do I know you'll keep it?”

Discord visibly cringed, looking away. William ashamedly did the same.

“You two...” Discord said just so that he could hear. “You and Eris, you two are my everything. Always changing, my two little constants. I promise, I swear, I'll come back. Alright?”

“... Pinkie promise?”

“Pinkie promise,” he gave a half-chuckle, sticking out his clawed pinkie and touching the tip of William's hoof.

“Okay,” William let out a low breath. “But-but you'll be back soon, right?”

“I'll be back before you know it,” the draconequus grinned widely. “Faster than two shakes of a lamb's tail.”

“What?” he blinked. “Lamb? I don't understand, what lamb?”

Discord snorted again, not bothering to hide his smile as he ruffled William's hair once before following Celestia out the door.

“I don't get it,” he turned an upset glance at whoever was behind him. Lyra's hoof remained tightly on his shoulder the entire time, a firm grip and a steely frown on her lips. “I don't know what he meant, shake a lamb's tail? I've never spoken to any lambs, is it some sort of riddle?”

“William,” Lyra shook her head with a little smirk as Twilight wordlessly watched the royal carriage depart out the window. “I thought you were supposed to be the smart one, what happened to that?”

“Are you insinuating that I'm uneducated?” he scoffed, offended.

Dreams of fire.

“Right,” Spike clapped his talons together directly behind Twilight, startling her. “Somepony, please explain to me what just happened, and more importantly, please don't tell me I'm gonna have to clean that up,” he jabbed a thumb at the enormous scorch mark in the center of the library.

Twilight hissed as if in pain, the destruction finally setting in.

“... You're not doing anything today, right?” she chuckled weakly at Lyra.

“Hey!”

William jolted out of his reverie, Eris's shout from upstairs echoing a little. He guiltily cringed; for a little while, he'd forgotten that she was even there.

Feed me. Release me.

“Anybody wanna tell me,” she bellowed down the stairwell, “what the hell I'm supposed to do now that he's awake?”

“Does this mean that we still have to go to school?” Eris called back down the stairs. However, once again nobody answered her, and she grumbled viciously to herself as she trudged upward.

The stairwell itself was elaborately littered with all numbers of pictures and photographs, all perfectly spaced from one another in neat little frames.

Eris mischievously tilted a few here and there, even turning one completely upside down before hanging it back up. She put a thumb on her chin, seriously examining her alterations before giving a satisfied nod, continuing upward.

The room where the boy was kept had no locked door, which Eris had been the first to complain about whenever it was her turn to keep watch; then again, nobody else had any problems when William's body awoke (aside from the shrieking). Hopefully Twilight would be a little bit faster in putting him back under a sleeping spell this time, he made an awful racket.

Eris grunted loudly as she collapsed into the wooden chair beside the bed, arms crossed over her chest as she stared down at the familiar face.

“... I've seen a whole lot, dude, but this is probably the freakiest in a week.”

Of course, 'William' didn't answer.

Covers pulled up to his neck, messy brown hair astray and falling over his pale face, he looked just the same as he always did – albeit his hair had grown a little longer than usual, unruly as a wild animal. The familiar lines of concentration and furrowed brows that Eris had grown so used to seeing on his face were absent, giving him a peculiar, peaceful expression that she didn't often see on him. He was so regularly frowning deep in thought, or just plain irritated, seeing him in such a state was odd to say the least.

“Except you're not him, huh,” she said quietly, chin in hand as she stared down at the motionless body. “For all I know your brain's completely fried by now. Just a hollowed out shell,” Eris chortled. “Nothin' but a meat sack, you're just-”

She fell short, frowning.

“God, this is why we need TV,” Eris groaned into her mismatched hands. “I'll even watch soap operas at this point, it's so freaking boring. There's never anything to do, and when I can do anything it's either just as boring or I'm not supposed to do it – I mean, how is it my fault that some pranks just so happen to be 'illegal and morally bankrupt'? I mean, jeez,” she rambled, screwing a knuckle into the side of her head. “These people here are all completely insane, we've gotta go on vay-cay or something, somewhere nice and warm, with a beach maybe, get away from all these nutters for a while. I think I'd look good in a swimsuit, what'cha think, Will-?”

Eris stopped midsentence, mouth turning sharply to the side and curving gradually downward.

“... I'm gonna go nuts,” she pinched the bridge of her nose eventually, looking away from the sleeping boy. “God, you look just like him, and you can't even hear me. I might as well be talking to a wall.”

Unsurprisingly, the boy said nothing.

“... You know, heh... you're actually kinda cute when you're asleep.”

Eris jerked in surprise when the faux William's eyes shot open violently, bloodshot and rolling in terror.

“Haa, o-okay,” she forced herself to sit back down, bracing her ears for the unavoidable. “Go ahead and get it out of your system little guy, so Twibright Sparkle-ass can put you back to sleep.”

'William's mouth hung agape in a silent scream, clenching whatever he could so tightly that he was shaking the entire bed. However, whatever she said seemed to have finally managed to catch, and his silent scream remained just that.

“... No banshee imitations this time,” she clapped once. “Impressive. Next time let's see if you can do Groucho Marx.”

“... Eris?”

“Okay!” she found herself lurching back in alarm, stumbling to stand. “You aren't supposed to be doing that, stay right there-”

“Don't tell them!”

Eris paused at the door handle, eyes locked firmly on the boy with William's face. He spoke with fear in his pleading voice, but more than that – it was panic, plain and simple.

“... Please,” he wrung his hands weakly, unable to even sit up properly. “I-I'm begging you, just-just hear me out, don't send me back...!”

“You... said my name,” Eris said suspiciously, staring down the shell shocked survivor. “How'd you know it?”

“Eris,” he said again fearfully. “Eris, please! It's me – it's me!”

“Me, who?”

The boy opened his mouth, but no words came out. He eventually closed it again, acquainted furrowed brows pillowing together in thought.

“... I'm not sure.”

“I see.”

The boy-that-wasn't-quite-William frowned in confusion, staring down at his own hands. He traced a single finger over his palm, running it up his arm and staring at the faint mark the nail left. He started to speak again, only for a dim recognition to fall over his features, followed by a miserable, sullen stare.

“... Touch me.”

“Uh...” Eris still hinged on the handle, unsure of what to do. Twilight's plan hadn't entailed him acting so strangely, and the urge to let someone else deal with the oddity was powerful.

“Touch me,” he said again, turning a pained, haunted look to the draconequus. “Eris. I need you to touch me.”

“How about I just-” she started, the click of the doorknob sounding like a gunshot for as quiet as it had grown.

“Please,” he insisted, holding out a single hand. “Just do this one thing for me.”

“Why?” Eris scowled, not moving an inch.

The boy's hurt look grew, and he stretched as far as his arm would allow.

“Please. I need to know it's real this time.”

She didn't move, but neither did she open the door.

“Eris. Please; it's me, I-I just... I need you, just this one time. Just... just touch me. Please.”

Eris shifted uneasily, staring the boy down. His hand remained outstretched, palm up, his pleading, wide eyed puppy dog look a little more effectual than she had expected. She let out a long, awkward breath through her nostrils, at long last approaching him. Her heart was pounding unnaturally loudly in her ears, drumming and thrumming irregularly. An eerie sense of dread began to itch at the base of Eris's spine, tingling like a long legged spider all the way up to her neck. Eris kept a bit of distance at first, a single finger outstretched in his direction, walking ever so slowly closer to the pale boy.

“... What are you so afraid of?” he asked in a soft tone, but his face portrayed anguish. “It's me, please, Eris, just... just reach out, just... touch me...”

“Why do you need to?” she stopped again, and the pain on his face deepened to one of anguish so intense she thought he might start crying.

“I-I need to,” he choked. “Please, just-just, please, I need to know it's real – just for a little, Eris, please, just... just a bit, just touch me.”

She extended her arm at long last, the palm of one paw ever so gently brushing the bottom of his outstretched hand. He shivered at her touch, trembling with equally bated breath, goosebumps standing up like he'd been doused in ice. He almost didn't breathe at all, frozen stiff with either fear or trepidation.

The familiar boy stared at her hand for a few seconds, slowly, carefully putting his hand completely inside hers, gradually allowing his other to gently fold atop it. His breath grew heavy and ragged, and his eyes were so wide with disbelief that she thought they might fall out.

“... That's-that's good,” he breathed at long last, excitement beginning to grow in his tone. “That's good. More.”

“Huh?”

“More,” he slowly pulled her hand to his cheek before releasing her. “Just a little more. Okay?”

Eris uncomfortably brushed against his high cheekbones, watching as he began quivering at her touch, a wild, almost feral grin pulling at his lips. For a moment he met her eyes, staring deeply into them before pulling her a little closer, so that she was almost leaning over him.

“I remember you.”

“That's good... I guess,” Eris started, a heat beginning to blossom.

“Don't leave, Eris. You're here. You're real.”

“Yeah...” she nodded once. “I'm real.”

“You're real, you are so very, very real, I remember, I can touch you, I can feel you, that's good, I missed you so much Eris...”

“... Will?” Eris said quietly, tilting his head a little in her paw. “Are-are you... really in there...?”

“More, that's very good,” he panted. “There's a good girl, touch me more...!”

“Okay no this getting weird,” Eris pulled back sharply, her cheeks feverish. “I'm getting the others.”

“I don't care,” the boy giggled freely, falling back onto the pillows. “I don't even care. I'm out. It's over. I'm free. I'm free.”

“Hey!” Eris yanked open the door, careful to keep one eye on the madly tittering boy. “Anybody wanna tell me,” she bellowed down the stairwell, “what the hell I'm supposed to do now that he's awake?”

“Sleeping charm!” she heard Twilight shout back.

“I can't do those!” Eris was swift to respond. “And 'sides, he's not screaming this time, he's actually talking!”

“... Wanna go check it out?” Lyra nodded toward Twilight, who was clambering up the stairs as quickly as she could.

“Why wouldn't I?” William blinked, close in tow.

William had difficulty slipping past the librarian, who actually stopped dead ahead of him and blocking off the stairwell so that she could rearrange a number of askew picture frames. He wasted no time in surprisingly nimbly slipping past, a little pleased at himself for having not tripped that time at all and making for the room where his body was stored.

The door was already wide open when he stopped in front of it, and for a split second his almond eyes met a perfect mirror of his own, but not only that; from the way the boy's head had been turning just as he approached, unblinkingly, hands clasped neatly in his lap, something seemed amiss. The boy gave a small sniffle, but a small whisper in the back of William's mind madly entertained the idea that he had smelled him coming, and was watching him through the wall the entire time.

He shuddered, without really knowing why.

“... Finally stopped doing the banshee impression, then?” William coughed into one hoof, masking his discomfort and silently noting just how unsettled Eris seemed to be, arms crossed tightly with her tail to her chest. “I was hoping for Grou-”

“Already made that joke,” Eris gave a weak chuckle, giving Twilight an odd look as she entered. Lyra remained on the doorway momentarily before following, curiously eyeing the bizarre child.

“Hello,” the boy said in an unexpectedly calm tone. “Good to see everyone together, it's so nice. Is it my birthday?”

Twilight smiled a little, but William only stared. There was no humor in his double's tone, but it was clear he wasn't serious. On top of that, the smile attached to his face seemed just that – plastic, false, cold and empty. And when he looked at him, his familiar reflection had something just a little out of the ordinary that he couldn't quite put his finger on, something just... off.

There was something wrong with the eyes.

A strange burst of anger clawed at his chest the longer he looked at the boy's eyes, furious and hateful with all the rage of a frenzied dragon; and just like that it was gone as soon as he turned away, leaving him feeling oddly hollow.

He can steal your soul with his eyes.

“No, it's not your birthday...” Twilight shifted, her smile fading the longer that the boy stared at her. However, her inspection remained unscrupulous and rapid, and she magically drew the chair to herself to sit beside him. “How are you feeling, hmm?”

“Terrible,” he answered promptly. “I can feel rusty nails behind my eyeballs!”

She flinched at his description.

“Is it an acute pain?” Twilight inquired. “I was informed you might still be feeling some discomfort-”

“Don't get too close,” Eris said loudly, causing her to pause.

“I'll have to agree,” William nodded, simultaneously completely disregarding Eris's warning and investigating his body from the opposite side of the bed. “It would be wise to keep in mind precisely who this is, mind you.”

Release me.

The boy-that-wasn't-quite-William turned to look at him, same fake smile stuck to his lips.

“I don't recognize you. Tell me who you are.”

He spoke with an authority, a practiced, commanding tone, and William thought pensively before turning to the librarian.

“Miss Twilight,” William nodded patiently. “If you don't mind.”

“Of course.”

“Do you remember your last name?” William leaned in interestedly, tilting his head up a bit and examining the boy more closely. “How about your first name, hmm? What's the last thing you remember? Do you know how you got here? What's your name?”

“I'll show you mine if you show me yours,” the boy smiled up at him with a blankness about him.

“Yes, and how about your name?” William pushed. “What do you remember? Why are you playing like this?”

“The play's the thing,” he winked.

“No, but now you're just quoting Shakespeare!” William bounced, beginning to pace eagerly in a tight line beside the bed. “You're reacting, not responding; come on, tell me, what's in there?”

“Do you at least remember your name?” Twilight pried, noting William's sudden over-zealousness.

“... I don't know,” the boy answered tonelessly. “He made me hollow.”

“F-Discord?” William halted.

“Scooped out what was left,” he continued quietly, staring at a blank patch of wall ahead of him and just to the side of Eris. The draconequus found herself slowly edging out of his view regardless. “Ripped out the insides and put something else in. Now I'm here.”

“... Funny little thing,” William mused aloud, hoof on his chin as he leaned closer, eyes narrowed. “How do you get around in that thing?”

William watched his body change position jerkily, almost like a marionette, and for a short second William thought that the boy was going to attack him; his double settled down though, eyes darting nervously about.

“My memory's all fuzzy,” the boy insisted. “So there's no need to do anything rash. You don't have to hurt me.”

“He remembered me alright,” Eris grumbled, but again nobody seemed to hear.

“What?” Twilight blinked. “Nopony's going to hurt you – you're safe here.”

“Promise?”

Twilight looked to Eris for help, but she was only watching someone she used to know as William with a concentrated stare.

“I promise,” she nodded at last. “Nopony is going to hurt you. You're safe here.”

“Good,” he replied a little too quickly. “Good. That's... that's good.”

“Just how much of my memory do you actually have, though?” William frowned.

“Your-?” the boy started, his mouth soon forming a sudden 'o' with understanding. “Wow. That is something else.”

“So obviously your memory's not too fuzzy,” William met his eyes again, a determined fire in his belly that wouldn't be quelled. “Discord told us everything, Neil.”

Neil's empty smile faded briefly, his almond eyes locking onto him.

“You trust him?” he said in a voice barely above a whisper, although he was easily heard.

“I do,” William agreed.

“You wouldn't if you knew what he's done. What he did to me.”

Twilight's look of concern grew as the situation became more and more uncomfortable, neither of the two before her moving an inch.

“So...” Lyra spoke after an eternity. “This is the Neil guy, right, Will?”

“Am I?” Neil asked her, an unexpected pain showing on his face. “Am... am I really Neil? Or am I William?”

“I... Er-hem,” William reasserted himself, his confidence having momentarily vanished. “I have some questions for you that I've been waiting a very long time to-to ask, and-”

“Who am I?”

I am your salvation.

“Who am I?” he asked again, turning to Eris, then Lyra, then Twilight. “I-I have... all of these memories, it feels like there's just-just too much, and-and I can't...”

Without warning, streams of tears began rolling down the boys face, his head dropping to hide as his shoulders feverishly shook.

“We-we're going to get all this sorted out,” Twilight reassured the boy, hoof on his shoulder gently. “Whatever Discord did, you can rest easy knowing that Princess Celestia is taking care of it, we can fix your head-”

“I'm going to be wiped, aren't I?” he jerked again suddenly, as if it had only just now occurred to him just how badly he wanted to avoid it.

“That's... probably the long short of it,” William affirmed at last. He saw Eris slumping down the corner of his eye against the wall, letting out a long breath. “Hopefully not too quickly, I still-”

“So what'll happen to me?” Neil pulled at his hair, breath coming in short gasps. “What'll happen to me?”

“It's not too much to worry about,” Twilight internally cringed at just how uneasy everyone was. “It-it's a pretty simple procedure, soon you won't have to worry-”

“It's a lobotomy!” Neil's tears dried up mysteriously quickly. “It's not fair, it's murder! Why won't anyone just help me?!”

The boy looked around the room at each and every one of them in turn, not a single one of which managed to meet his gaze this time.

“I-I don't... want to die...” he petered off eventually, miserably staring down at his hands.

My hands.

“... It is technically my body...” William said at long last, pulling away.

“It looks a lot weirder than what you described,” Lyra added.

“Ergo,” he continued. “Performing any form of procedures, magical or otherwise, on said body without my personal given consent in absence of life-threatening injuries would therefore be adamantly against the Hipponycratic oath.”

“You-you mean Hippocratic,” Eris stuck up a finger to correct him.

“I do not,” he answered in a deadpan.

“So... so what's going to happen to me?” Neil sniffed unhappily.

“Proper hospitalization, firstly,” Twilight smiled, though there was little heart in it. “We'll get you decent help.”

“So just drop it- sorry, drop him off at a hospital?” Lyra's brows furrowed deeply.

“Well, no,” she answered thoughtfully. “Princess Celestia has specialists, she left specific instructions. Oh!”

A flash of violet lit atop Twilight's horn, summoning a small navy blue envelope. She gave it a couple of flicks before cheerfully passing it to a very confused William.

“... What's this for?” he frowned. “I don't care about mail right now, I need to ask-”

“That would be from the Princess,” Twilight informed him quickly.

“Hold on, what?” Eris interjected angrily. “She was just here, why didn't she do it herself?”

“Actually, this is from Luna...” William's look of irritation went through a myriad of other expressions as he read the letter, from befuddlement to aggravation to confusion and anger again, leaving him with a sour, sad grimace.

“... Well?” Eris rolled a hand through the air.

“You said a lot of unpleasant things to her guards, apparently,” William gave a small laugh. “And it's a dinner invitation, actually – the second half is anyway, the first is an apology.”

“Apology for what?” Lyra and Twilight said simultaneously.

“Send it back then,” Eris stuck up her nose. “Use it as toilet paper first, for her f-”

“Where's Spike, anyway?” Twilight coughed loudly, a tinge of red to her cheeks.

“Who where what now?” Lyra blinked, having been caught dead staring at the body that used to be William's.

“He's got a habit of eavesdropping and he's not doing it now,” Twilight started off. “That makes me nervous. Keep an eye on, er... him for me? Please?”

“I don't mind!” Lyra called after her, oblivious of the rude signs that Eris was making with her hands. “We don't mind. Right, guys?”

“I have so many questions,” William let out a breath that he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He couldn't quite get a buzzing invisible bug out of his ear, only a side note, a distraction that seemed to further irritate the burning in his chest. The longer that he looked down at his body, his own body, the louder that the dragon in his belly bellowed, belching flame and clawing its way out – he could feel the heat, feel the trembling of the earth beneath his feet as it drew near, so powerful that he thought he might explode.

“Neil. It is Neil, isn't it?”

“... You can call me that if you want to,” he shrugged eventually, looking away at the spot that Twilight used to inhabit.

“Oh, good. So you are Neil.”

“Yeah.”

William's ears were flooded with a plethora of noises, all of which blended into rushing water as he pummeled the boy's face. He slammed his hoof into him again and again and again, hitting him with the hardest part of his hoof that he could, Neil's bloodcurdling screams of pain mingling with all the others. All that occupied his mind was the desire to cause as much suffering, as much pain to every single square inch of the brat's body that he could, he hardly even noticed the peculiar tunnel vision he seemed to have been developing that prevented him from seeing who exactly was dragging him off the bleeding child.

“-t the fuck, what the fuck, Will?!”

“Calm down, calm down!” Lyra had difficulty hauling him away, her voice ripe with panic. “Twilight! Miss Twilight, help – we need help!”

William had long since stopped struggling, his entire body shaking like a leaf in the wind as his knees buckled from shock. It felt as if he'd just stepped off of a ladder and the entire world had been missing while he was climbing, and the reappearance of gravity took away his balance.

“Will, what the hell, man?” Eris shouted, picking up the softly weeping and battered boy off the ground.

“I-I-I don't know,” he sputtered as Twilight tripped over herself to find out what was going on, Spike riding the back of a wary Yolk White right behind. “I-I don't know what came over me...!”

“No remorse,” Neil began giggling viciously through the sobs and hiccups, blood streaming freely down his face. “Monsters have no remorse... you're just like me. It's in the blood,” he resumed crying enthusiastically, clearly having noticed the outright shock on Twilight's face. “Oh god, so much blood...”

Oceans. Rivers and seas of it.

I am your salvation.

Journal of William Zachariah Klaskovsky

New World, Day Three

He's awake.

I keep writing it and writing it but it still doesn't seem to sink in.

Today has been... strange, to say the least. Neil seems to be alive, thanks to Father Discord... at least, some form of him, he seems to be a little bit mad.

Speaking of which, I am permanently grounded for attempting to murder him.

I am in all honesty disturbed. I've never just... snapped like that on someone before. Considering that Neil seems to be stuck inside my human body, it made the situation a little bit surreal.

Also, Eris refuses to speak to me now, but I'll consider that a blessing.

Miss Lyra apparently has the gift of the silver tongue, because although she didn't quite lie to Miss Bon Bon she didn't exactly tell her the truth either. Then again, telling anyone about witnessing an interdimensional council of Discords stripping Father of his rank and power, a revenge seeking facade therapist whose brother I technically also am responsible for the death of, and what everyone else sees as an alien but is actually the father of what appears to be a colt trapped inside said colt's original body is a BIT of a story to tell.

According to Miss Lyra, we spent all day at the library.

Didn't do much to explain the blood though, so it's a good thing I'm 'clumsy'. I don't think Miss Bon Bon bought that part though.

Miss Twilight also seems to think that I've gone completely off the deep end. Granted, I did sort of try to bludgeon my own father to death, so maybe I have. I don't think so though. I'm normal. I'm sane.

Why does murder come so easily to me? I'm not
I'm normal
Monster
I can fix this
He hurt Mother. He had to be hurt back. It's not my fault
I'm not a monster
What kind of sick bastard can just commit genocide so freely? Of all the things that's not what's kept me up, it never
sick freak sick freak sick freak
I've prayed so many times for salvation in the past. Maybe I don't deserve it.
My father is not who he says he is.
I'm not a monster. I'm ahead of the curve.
He's not my father.
I can fix this, I can fix all of this, I just need more time. I can do it and then everything will be back to normal now that I have this, I'll save you Mother, I love you.
Everything is justified. I just lost control, I NEVER lose control, I don't know why, it's not the first time
I always feel like someone's watching me
I'm not my father. I'm not my father. I'm not my father. I'm not my father.

The wicked must be punished for their sins.
I don't care about right and wrong. I just want my family back.

Please forgive me for what I'm going to do.

Author's Notes:

Today's chapter is brought to you by the letter 'S'.
'S' as in 'sleep', 'sleep' as in 'Aku is completely sleep deprived'.
Again.