Sleeping last night was unbearable. Moon had me held close to her so tightly that it became very uncomfortable, and I couldn't move much due to her strong hold on me. When I woke up, I found myself in the same constricted position I was in last night. Moon's arms, legs, and wings were wrapped around me as though she had latched onto me like a leech.

How fitting...

Hoping to get out of the bed and at least have a little time to myself, I tried to wiggle out of her grip, only to find that the combined strength of her four limbs and two wings kept me from moving even an inch.

The black alicorn then let out a yawn as she woke up, and she looked down at me with those loving, yet possessive eyes of hers. "Good morning, Pookie," she cooed as she kissed me on the forehead. "Did you sleep well?"

"Not really," I sighed as I pried myself from her and got off the bed.

"Aww? Why not?" she asked.

"Because I could barely move last night," I retorted bluntly.

"Sorry, honey. I just couldn't help myself, y'know? I just can't keep off of you!"

"I know. That’s the problem," I thought with an annoyed expression.

"You don't mind if I make breakfast today, do you?" Moon asked.

"Go ahead," I answered tiredly as I left the bedroom and headed straight to the bathroom. Once inside, I ran some cold water in the sink and splashed my face with it in order to wake myself up a little, and when I looked up into the mirror, I still had some slight bags under my eyes. I wiped the water off of my face with a towel and looked at my reflection again. I still looked tired, but not just because of my uncomfortable sleep.

I was tired of everything. I was tired of Moon treating me like her possession. I was tired of her obsessive need to be around me at all times. I was tired of how needy she'd get when I was away from her for too long. I was tired of how combative she was with other girls and mares.

I was fucking tired.

Looking into the mirror at my reflection, I let out a long, exhausted sigh. "Okay, Noah," I said to myself, "This has to end. Moon is starting to get out of control. You need to sit her down and tell her that you don't like the way things are going with her and that she needs to stop being so possessive, and if she can't handle it, then it's over between you and her, and it has to be today. Whether it's this morning or later in the day, it has to be done today. You can't take much more of this, and you have to draw the line."

After my little speech, I noticed something on my neck. After closer examination, I found that it was a red bruise that ran from midway down my neck to the trap of my shoulder, and it was a little blue in some spots.

"What the fuck," I said to myself as I put my hand to the bruise. "How did this-"

Then it hit me. Moon had been kissing my neck furiously the past night while we were in bed... I groaned when I realized what the bruise really was.

"I don't get it," I thought. "Even with all those kisses, she couldn't have given me this bad of a hickey. Man it's a good thing that I didn't plan on going anywhere today. I hope to God this clears up by tomorrow... at least to the point where I can say that it was a mosquito bite or something."

After staying in the bathroom for a little while longer to relish in the little solitude I had, I walked out the door and into the living room, where Moon had just finished making some buttered toast and hashbrowns.

"You were in there for quite a while, Noah," she giggled as she brought my plate over to me. When she got close, she immediately noticed my hickey, and she let out a sultry chuckle. "Oh my, I guess I went a little overboard last night."

I raised an eyebrow at her.

"I wanted to get a few extra kisses after you fell asleep, but I guess I gave you one kiss too many."

"So that's why..." I growled in annoyance as I took my plate.

"Oh well! Live and learn, I guess," the alicorn smiled as she walked over to the couch with her plate in hand. “At least it’ll be a nice signal.”

“Excuse me? A signal?” I questioned as I sat beside her. That comment of hers really rubbed me the wrong way.

“Of course. It’s a signal to all the other girls that you’re spoken for,” Moon declared smugly.

That expression of hers… I didn’t like it… I almost hated it.

“Oh, well I didn’t realize that I needed a ‘signal’ in order for others to know that I was taken. I thought I would’ve just, you know, tell them myself.”

“It’s not worth wasting your breath, sweetheart.”

“Y’know, most people normally try to conceal hickeys.”

“Well, that’s just silly. It’s the perfect symbol of a partnership, like a territorial mark.”

“I’m a little offended by that,” I told her with a perturbed expression, turning my face abruptly to face her.

Moon turned and looked at me with a tilted head. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that you’re referring to me like I’m your property.”

“You know I didn’t mean it like that, Sugar Bear. Just put it this way: I’m all yours...” she then snaked her arms around me, bringing her face uncomfortably close to my own, “and you’re all mine,” she finished as she licked her lips predatorily.

“That doesn’t make me feel any less uncomfortable,” I thought. “It’s too early in the morning for this shit. I need to take a nap.”

When I finished eating I put my plate in the sink, but before I left the room, Moon spoke up.

“Noah, the fridge is getting empty. We need to go shopping soon.”

I looked into the fridge to confirm that fact, and sure enough, she was right. We needed to restock, and it was Sunday; I hated doing grocery shopping during the week, and with the way I was feeling at the moment, I REALLY wasn’t up for it.

“Goddamn it,” I thought. "I’ll go shopping later. Right now I need to take a nap,” I said. Before I even made it to the hallway, I heard hoofsteps behind me. “By myself,” I added sternly, and the hoofsteps came to a stop.

“Please?” the alicorn asked. “I promise I won’t hold you so tightly this time.”

I shut my eyes tightly and clenched my fists. “Moon, I really just want to take a nap by myself, and I’m too tired to argue with you about it, okay?”

There was a moment of silence before she replied with a hushed voice. “Okay…”

I let out a sigh of relief and went into my room, collapsing onto my bed as sleep overtook me. I had no idea how long I was out for, but it felt like a damn long time. By the time I woke up, I looked out the window and saw that the sun was low in the sky. Looking at the clock, I saw that it was six-thirty in the evening.

“Damn. I need to get to the store before it closes,” I thought as I rushed into the bathroom to take a shower and brush my teeth. Taking a quick glance at the weather report on my phone, I was relieved that it was going to be chilly (well, as chilly as it would get in Florida), so I put on a turtleneck to hide my hickey and headed to the door.

Well, I tried to get to the door, but then...

“Noah! You’re up!” Moon cheered. “Wait, are you heading to the store?”

“Yeah,” I answered. I’ll be back in about a half hour.

“You don’t have to tell me that. I’m going with you!”

“Of course you are,” I mumbled angrily.

“What was that?”

“Nothing. Just hurry up.”

“No problem! I’ve already showered, so I just need to change. I won’t be long!”

I groaned silently as Moon got up, transformed into Nightshade, and went into my room to change, and I sank into my chair as I waited for her to get ready. I had just taken a nap and yet I wasn’t feeling any better. In fact, I was feeling even more drained than before.

Half an hour later, Nightshade and I were in the grocery store, getting all the stuff we needed and crossing the items off our list. While she seemed to be enjoying the trip, I was dreading every second of it. I was so fed up with her being around me that going out with her became a life-draining ordeal.

As dramatic as that sounds, it's really the most accurate description I can give.

"Okay, what's next on the list?" the disguised alicorn asked me.

I looked down at my phone and checked my notes. "Soda, then chips, and then eggs," I grumbled.

Nightshade gave me a concerned look. "Are you okay, Noah? You haven't been acting like yourself lately."

"And by that you mean?"

"Well, you've had this detached attitude about you, and you've been rather bitter this morning, too."

I sighed. "I dunno, maybe I just didn't get enough rest," I replied dismissively. While I put the issue aside with her, I kept thinking about what she said. As much as I hated to admit it, she was right: I was bitter, I wasn’t feeling myself and I was getting more and more frustrated by the day. Her clinginess was getting to me worse than ever, and it needed to end.

“Noah?” Nightshade said, snapping me out of my thoughts. “Are you there?”

I stopped walking for a second and looked at the purple unicorn. “Look, Nightshade. There’s something that we need to talk about.”

Suddenly, the mare’s eyes widened, and she gave me a nervous smile. “Can it wait a minute, hon? I need to hit the little fillies’ room.”

“You didn’t go before we left?”

“I should’ve. I’ll be back, okay?”

“Sure.” I shrugged as she trotted off to the ladies’ room.

“Well, at least I have more time to figure out what I’m gonna say,” I thought. “Whatever I decide to tell her, it’s probably not a good idea to tell her at the grocery store… or any other public place for that matter. Yeah, it’s best that I tell her when we get home.”

“What are you doing just standing around?” someone asked me out of nowhere. The sudden question was followed by a giggle. “You were always pretty vacant, Noah.”

I turned around, curious to find out who was talking to me and how they knew my name, and then I saw her.

She was a tall pegasus mare with a bright yellow coat and a long, purple and blue mane that was tied back in a braid. She had bright purple eyes and a skinny frame, and she was wearing a blue crop top and short shorts.

“Jade?” I asked.

“Took ya long enough to recognize me,” she laughed.

“Aren’t you supposed to be in Texas?”

“Yeah, but Topaz and I are visiting our grandma for a while. I think she mentioned that she saw you the other day.”

“Oh yeah, we did run into each other.”

Jade then gave me a smirk and leaned in towards me. “My little sis also mentioned that you have a marefriend. I asked her to spill everything she knew, but you know Topaz. She’s really tight-lipped.”

“So I assume you’re gonna barrage me with questions now?”

“I wasn’t planning on it, but that’s a great idea!” Jade said coyly. “So, how long have you been seeing each other?”

I decided to humor the mare and answer her questions. It wouldn’t hurt, right?

“It’s been going on three weeks now,” I told her.

“So it’s recent, then?”

“Yeah, but we’ve known each other for several months, though.”

“Is she prettier than me?”

I blinked. “What kind of question is that?”

“What do you mean?” she asked. “I just want to know if your current marefriend is prettier than me.”

“Well, I mean, you both are about the same. You know that looks aren’t the only determining factor for me.”

“That’s true,” she chuckled. “Well, it’s nice to know that you still have the old charm, Noah. Whoever your new belle is, she must be madly in love with you.”

“You have no idea,” I thought.

“You definitely have gotten a lot cuter since we broke up. It makes me wonder why we decided to end our relationship in the first place.”

“We thought that we couldn’t handle the distance, remember?” I asked.

“Regardless, I want you to know that I really missed you, Noah,” Jade said as she gave me a hug that lingered a little too long for my tastes. I slipped out of the hug quickly, lest Nightshade see me and overreact.

“So… uh, it was nice seeing you again, Jade,” I chuckled nervously. “I guess I’ll catch you la-”

“AHEM!”

I almost choked on air when I heard that, and I gulped heavily before turning around to see Nightshade glaring daggers at me.

“Hi, Nightshade,” I said nervously.

“Hello, sweetheart,” she greeted back icily, taking a glance at the mare behind me.

“Um, you remember when we ran into my old friend Topaz the other day, right?”

“Yes.”

“Well, this is her older sister, Golden Jade.”

“Oh, your ex-marefriend?” she said, putting an emphasis on the “ex.”

“So, Noah’s mentioned me?” Jade asked. “Well, it’s nice to meet you, Nightshade.” The pegasus mare offered her hand to the unicorn, who tentatively accepted the gesture.

I looked at the two mares as they shook hands; Nightshade was giving Jade a somewhat threatening look, as if she was warning the other mare that she’d better watch her step. Meanwhile, Jade wasn’t giving Nightshade the expression I was expecting. While her younger sister was rather intimidated by Nightshade, Jade didn’t seem to be fazed by her in the slightest. If anything, she looked a little smug, like she was accepting a dare that she knew she could win.

Was she unaware of what Nightshade was silently telling her, or did she pick up on it and consider it to be a challenge?

Either way, I feared for her. One wrong move and it may very well be the end of her.

“Noah didn’t tell me you were so pretty, Nightshade,” Jade said. “Looks like he hasn’t lost his taste in a good mare.”

“Thanks...” the unicorn accepted warily.

“I’m sure you two will be together for quite some time, perhaps even longer than how long we’ve been together. I forget, Noah. How long had we been dating?”

“Three years,” I answered unassumingly, not realizing until after saying it that I had added fuel to the fire.

“Ah, that’s right. Three years,” the pegasus bragged.

Nightshade scoffed. “You’re right. I’m sure we’ll be able to beat that. In fact, if it’s any indication, Noah and I were living together before we even started dating.”

I realized what was happening and tried to prevent it from getting worse. “Yeah, well, it was nice seeing you, Jade, but Nightshade and I need to get all the stuff on our list before the place closes, so if you don’t mind-”

“Well then I guess he’s already taken you out on some amazing dates,” Jade continued, neither she nor Nightshade hearing a word I said. They didn’t even move; they just stared each other down. “Noah and I have had the best times together. There was this one night where he took me to see fireworks by the lake. It was really romantic.”

The unicorn furrowed her brow. “While we haven’t been on many dates yet, I don’t need to be taken out to know that Noah’s devoted to me. We spend every waking moment together. We even sleep together in each other’s arms every night. I have no doubt in my mind that Noah and I will be together for a very long time.”

It was at this point where the two mares started to be less subtle with their declarations, and I made a second attempt to get them to stop.

“Okay, I think we need to get going,” I said, but my cry once again fell on deaf ears.

Jade gave Nightshade a smug smirk and walked closer to me. “So you spend every moment with him, do you?” she asked. “Even so, I doubt you know his weak spots. Every guy has those few spots that make them tremble on contact. Even after all these years, I know all of them by heart.” She then looked at me with the same expression she gave Nightshade. “For example, one of my favorite weak points of Noah’s is riiiiight here,” she said as she slowly traced her finger up my chest.

“Jade… I’d prefer if you didn’t do that…” I told her.

“Oh relax, sweetheart,” she replied, putting emphasis on “sweetheart” and making Nightshade twitch with jealousy. The pegasus then looked back at the unicorn. “I’m just giving your sweet little mare a demonstration. Perhaps I should show her another one of your weak points?”

In that moment, Nightshade’s nose flared, and her eyes twitched in fury, showing the slitted pupils of Nightmare Moon for a split second. Jade blinked in surprise as Nightshade lit up her horn, looked around to see if anyone else was around…

and fired a massively powerful beam of magic at her.

The crash was incredibly loud, and when the dust settled, Jade was lying on the ground unconscious, surrounded by a busted wall. Pieces of the destroyed structure were falling from the top of the hole in the wall, and I couldn't tell if Jade was breathing or not.

Naturally, the loud noise attracted the other shoppers in the store, until there was a crowd slowly forming. I quickly took my phone out of my pocket, but then I felt something grasp my free hand and pull me back.

"Noah, what are you doing?" Nightshade asked me.

I glared at her and yanked my hand away from hers. "What does it look like I'm doing!? I'm calling an ambulance!"

"What are you doing that for? She deserved it!"

"She didn't deserve anything!" I yelled, but then I looked around at the crowd, who was still focused on the unconscious pegasus. I then lowered my voice and continued. "You had no right to do that to her!"

"I had EVERY right!" she argued with a hushed yell. "She tried to make a move on you when she knew you were mine!"

“Again with this!? Look what you just did!”

“It’s not that big a deal, Noah, and it isn’t your responsibility to call an ambulance for her. Let’s go home.”

It may not have been my responsibility, but I still felt the need to make sure that she was okay. “I’m not going anywhere,” I told her.

“Come now, love, you’re being ridicu-”

“Shut up, Nightshade!” I interrupted. “You can do what you want, but I’m staying here, and that’s final! We’ll talk about this when we get home!”

The unicorn gave me a stunned face, shocked that I had the gall to speak to her like that, but I continued to glare at her, determined to stand my ground.

“I… But…” she struggled to say, but then she let out a breath of defeat. “Fine,” she sighed as she turned around and walked away.

With Nightshade out of the way, I dialed 911 and called for an ambulance to pick up Jade, and I made my way to the front of the crowd and stayed by her side while I waited for it to arrive.

Several hours later, I sat in the waiting room of the hospital, waiting for the nurse to tell me that I could see Jade. Just then, Topaz rushed in frantically and ran up to me.

“Noah! I got your voicemail! Is my sister okay? What happened!?”

“I… don’t know.” I lied. “I just happened to be in the area when it happened. I heard a loud crash and when I went to see what it was, I saw Jade on the ground inside a busted wall.”

I felt bad for lying, but what else could I do? I couldn’t tell Topaz that her older sister was almost killed by my bat-shit crazy marefriend.

“Well, how is she?” the worried pegasus asked.

“The doctor said that her back and left wing were broken in several places. They just finished mending her broken bones and patching her up. She’ll be in a wheelchair for the next six months, but she should make a full recovery. She’s resting right now, so she can’t have any visitors at the moment.”

Topaz let out a sigh of relief. “Thank Celestia. Thanks for staying here, Noah. You didn’t have to do that.”

“I know, but someone had to,” I told her.

"Well, you should get home. You must be really tired; I'll stay here while you go and get some rest."

"Thanks, T," I said as I got up from my seat. "Keep me posted, okay?"

The pegasus nodded her head as I left the hospital and caught a cab home.

By the time I got back to my apartment, it was minutes to eleven, and I was really tired, but there was one thing I needed to do before I went to bed.

I needed to give Moon a piece of my mind.

The second I walked into my living room, I heard an excited gasp and rushing hoofsteps. I then saw Moon's head peek out of the hallway. "Noah! You're home! I was so worried!" She began to rush over to me, but I sidestepped out of her way before she could reach me, and I walked away from her and into my bedroom.

The alicorn looked back at me with a confused expression as she followed me. "What's the matter Pookie?"

"You know good and goddamn well what the matter is!" I snapped.

"Noah, why are you talking to me like that?" Moon asked.

"What the hell was that all about back there!?" I yelled.

"You mean with Jade? I was just protecting you."

"From WHAT!?"

"You mean you didn't see how forward Jade was being? And she was so passive aggressive towards me!" the alicorn argued, raising her voice.

"And you were any better!? Quit being such a hypocrite! I may not have liked how Jade acted either, but regardless of her behavior, blasting her into a wall was TOTALLY uncalled for!"

"You don't understand, Noah! I HAD to do it!"

"Why!?"

"Because you belong to ME, that's why!" Moon shouted, but then her eyes widened at the realization of what she said. "Wait, Noah! I-"

"So you finally said it..." I said under my breath.

"No, Noah! I didn't mean it like that! You mean more to me than that!"

"Save it, Nightmare."

The alicorn looked down at me in shock, not believing what I had just said. "Why did you call me that? You always call me Moon."

"Because that's what my life's turned into since we got together! I should've never let this happen! At first I went along with it because I thought that maybe a romantic relationship with you would work out, but since then, you've been treating me like I was your property! You're so clingy and possessive, and now you sent a mare to the hospital! She's lucky to be alive right now!"

"I didn't know you'd be so mad with me, Noah. I only did it because I loved you."

"That's your excuse for EVERYTHING! It's like you have no self-control! I don't think you've changed at all!"

"What do you mean? I have changed!"

"No you haven't! You're the same Nightmare Moon that I saw three years ago."

Nightmare shut her eyes tightly and began to grit her teeth. "No... I'm... NOT!!!"

Suddenly, she opened her eyes, which became pure white, and her mane and tail flared up violently, enveloping the ceiling in a dark blue mist. Despite the severity of her outburst, I stood my ground against Nightmare as she glared right back at me, only for her to suddenly widen her eyes in sheer horror at something behind me. I turned around and saw that we were standing in front of my wall mirror,

and that Nightmare was looking at herself.

As suddenly as she flared up, she simmered down and looked at me with teary eyes. "Noah, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"Just stop," I interrupted. "I can't do this anymore. I'm done."

Nightmare started to breathe heavily in panic. "What do you mean? You're breaking up with me?"

I didn't answer.

"Noah, please! I promise I won't do it again! If you'd just give me one more chance-"

"No more chances, Nightmare."

The alicorn began to hyperventilate, and as tears began to stream from her eyes, she disappeared into a cloud of mist.

With me left alone in my bedroom, I felt a wave of relief wash over me, like an enormous weight was lifted off my shoulders, and I changed into my sleeping clothes and went to bed. As I wrapped myself under the covers, I sprawled out on the bed and relished in my newfound freedom. I felt incredibly comfortable without Nightmare constricting me.

I sighed as I buried my head into my pillow. "Good riddance."

Author's Notes:

Oh, no. This isn't good. I guess Noah and Moon are officially done. I wonder where things will go from here.

I hope you guys liked this chapter. It was my favorite one to write so far, and put a lot of thought into this one. I even asked Zamairiac for a little help with this since he was really good with obsessive marefriend stories.

So, let me know your thoughts on this chapter, as usual, and I'll catch you guys later.

I'm gone!