Slowly, Justin woke up from the bed he grew attached to over the week. He tried to sit himself up, but soon found that Twilight was still asleep, and on his bed. This time, however, she was rolled on top of his left arm, and was still asleep... much to his displeasure. "Crap..." He thought to himself, while slowly trying to slide his arm out from under the sleeping Unicorn. Little did he know, however, that there was a familiar Rainbow-Maned mare outside the window who was just flying by, only to spot the two of them in the same bed.

The next thing he knew, Rainbow Dash was inside the bedroom, with her expression unable to hide the laughter for very long. Before she could burst into laughter, though, Spike walked inside the room, only to catch the sight before him. Silently, he stared at the two on the bed and the one on the ground holding her laughter, before slowly backing out of the door frame, and walking downstairs, his eyes unable to close, due to how widely they were opened.

Then, after noticing Rainbow Dash holding her breath from built-up laughter, Justin deadpanned, and asked, "So... you mind helping me get her off?"

"I don't know..." Rainbow began, finally able to control her laughter from bursting out. "The two of you look... a little 'occupied' right now. Anyways, I need you to let Twilight know that AJ needs her help over at the farm... oh, and you're free to join, too, Justin! It does seem right, after all! Y'know... Twilight and her Coltfriend?"

Justin merely nodded off, ignoring most of what she was saying, only focusing on the important parts, like Twilight being needed at Applejack's farm. It was at the last sentence when his eyes shot open. "W-wait, WHAT?!" He loudly whispered, only to realize that Rainbow Dash had already left; the window being open was proof enough. With a sigh, Justin turned towards Twilight, and groaned. "And just how am I gonna get her awake, exactly?"" At first, he tried gently shaking her left shoulder, which was pointed up, while her right one rested on his arm. Then, he saw that her facial expression was starting to look worried, while his eyes glowed pure white again. "Oh, no..." He began, before shaking her frantically. Slowly rising from her entire body, he could sense a dark presence inside her that was keeping her from waking up. "Someone's attacking her in her dreams!"

While struck by worry for her safety, he began to tap his forehead rapidly, trying to figure out what to do. Then, as soon as he was about to run to Spike to get him to write a letter, a thought quickly popped into his mind. Lowering his head downward, Twilight's horn pressed onto Justin's forehead, and at once, his glowing vision blackened, as he traveled through the Dreamscape, and into Twilight's dream.

Looking around, he saw Twilight wandering around an image of Ponyville, with a worried look on her face. "This isn't right... why am I not awake, yet?!" She asked, only to hear a dark, low-pitched voice speak.

"Isn't it obvious, Twilight? After we drive your human away, we will hunt you, and your friends after!" The shadowy figure rose from the walls of a nearby house, shape-shifting into a form that resembled Tirek.

"W-who are you?!" Twilight asked, now backing away nervously.

Tirek smirked, and was about to answer her, until Justin ran in-between the two, and yelled, "BEGONE! AND NEVER RETURN AGAIN!"

"J-Justin?!" Twilight weakly stated, but he seemed unfazed by her words.

Tirek began to chuckle, until his wrists were bound by a golden thread that pulled him to the ground. "Grr... you will pay for that, human!" He yelled, before disappearing into the imaginary grass. Then, Justin turned around, and smiled at Twilight.

"Hey, Twilight! Talk about good timing, huh?" Justin said, to which Twilight weakly smiled, before the world around them was engulfed in a white light.

Twilight's eyes were the first to open. When they did, the first thing she saw was Justin opening his eyes, but their faces were literally about six inches away. Justin, of course, reacted the same way, as both of their eyes shot open, and their faces turned red. Then, in the matter of seconds, the two of them were out of the bed, while the sound of laughter could be heard from behind the door to the room.

"Well..." Justin began. "Not the worst way to wake up, right?"

Twilight, while her face was still red, only stared off into space as Justin walked towards the door, and explain what was going on, and what wasn't. All while Twilight just stood there silently, unable to control her face's redness, and the heat that built up in her cheeks.

"W-what was th-that all about?" She thought to herself, while completely unaware of Rainbow Dash and Applejack standing next to her, trying to get her attention.

"Uh, hello? Earth-to-Egghead! You there?" Rainbow asked, waving her hoof in front of Twilight's eyes.

"She's under a lot of stress right now, Rainbow Dash. Please leave her alone... she was attacked by Dark Spirits, after all."

"Yeah, like, two weeks ago!" Rainbow scoffed.

Justin crossed his arms, and glared at the playful mare. "Enough is enough!" He thought to himself.

"No, she was attacked this morning!" At that statement, the two "visitors" gasped, and looked at Twilight, who regained her composure.

"W-wait, really?!" Rainbow Dash asked, to which Twilight sighed, and nodded. "Oh-my-gosh! I'm so sorry! I didn't know!"

Justin could tell that Rainbow Dash was referring to her laughing at the two of them earlier, but the look Twilight was giving her was out of confusion, because she wasn't awake at the time. At this point, Rainbow was speaking in a speed comparable to Pinkie Pie, only some of it was actually able to be understood.

"It's alright, Rainbow. If the situation were different, I'd say we would've just told you to keep it quiet..." Then, he looked around, and moved closer to her. "Though I'd appreciate it if you didn't speak of it regardless. After all, the process of 'Soul Banishment' is Blood Magic... and we both know how well the locals take that. Right?"

Rainbow nodded, before looking worriedly at Twilight. "Listen, Twilight... I wanted to say thanks for putting up with my brash nature. It's good to know that Celestia sent ya up here to live with us!" Then, she turned to Justin. "And thanks, Justin, for... pretty much the same thing!" Then, she spread her wings, and readied herself to charge out the window. "Anyways, AJ, I'll just leave you with these two lovebirds! Later!" Before Justin could even object to that statement, she was already flying out the window.

From the windowsill, Justin's voice could be heard yelling, "WE'RE NOT LOVEBIRDS!"

In the meantime, while Justin was yelling that statement, Rainbow Dash chuckled heartily, until she flew towards Sweet Apple Acres. Looking both ways, she decided to land on an apple tree, and take a nap on a branch. "Whew! Hate to admit it, but... for some reason, these branches seem more comfortable than clouds!" She told herself, before her eyelids grew heavy.

Back in The Golden Oak Library, Justin and Twilight were speaking with Applejack about what she had planned for work. While Justin wasn't necessarily needed, he still volunteered, after the situation they were in last time. Applejack, while hesitant at first, decided to allow him to tag along, as well. The reason for her hesitation: her Element was telling her that he was hiding something from them when she asked him why he was wanting to go with them. While he has proven to be their friend, she still had a couple doubts here-and-there, despite him rescuing them. Then again, with the ability to cast Blood Magic, she was even more concerned about Twilight's safety, should he lose control.

With that aside, and their goals set, the three of them headed out the door, and towards the living room to grab a bite to eat first, as Twilight's treat.

"So tell me, Sugarcube... why exactly are ya hidin' from all o' us? We're practically friends now, so ya know we've got yer back when somepony steps outta line!" Applejack asked Justin. The three of them were in the dining area, with Applejack, Twilight, and Spike sitting on three small stools, while Justin sat directly on the floor, due to his height. On their breakfast plates, both Applejack and Twilight had daisy sandwiches, Spike had a bowl of gems of different kinds, and Justin had nothing more than an empty spot on the table. When they asked, he said that he was Undead, and didn't need to eat.

Looking up at her, after staring into space, he replied, "I'm sorry for the lack of communication, AJ. Things have been quite crazy when I showed up in public last week. Y'know, with Blood Magic, and all that." Applejack nodded, and motioned for him to continue. "It's not like I'm trying to shut y'all out, or anything! Trust me when I say this... I wish that I could tell you, no, everyone why I've been so secretive lately, but it's for y'alls safety that I don't. Heck, Twilight doesn't even know much more than you or the other ladies, at the moment."

Applejack sighed, and nodded, frowning at the fact that she sensed pure honesty in his words. "Alright, Sugarcube... I guess I'll just have ta take yer word for it." Then, she turned to Twilight, who was gently taking a bite form her daisy sandwich. "So, Twilight, ain'cha excited about the Grand Galloping Gala comin' up?"

Both, Twilight's and Justin's eyes widened up, as they asked in unison, "Wait, how'd you know about it?" Then, they looked at each other, and asked the same question, before the four burst into laughter.

After the laughter died down, Applejack replied, "Well, you'd be surprised what I hear when I'm sellin' apples at the Market!"

Twilight nodded, and said, "Oh, okay. Yes, I'm very excited! Perhaps when I'm there again, I can visit Princess Celestia, and we can talk to each other about the lessons that I've learned, of the magic that I still have yet to master, and ooh! She can even lead me to the Canterlot Archives, where I can read the many Spell Books of Starswirl the Bearded, himself!" She continued "geeking out", as Justin would've put it, for about five minutes, before Applejack broke in.

"Wait, wait, wait... you've actually been to the Gala before?!" She was unable to hide her amazement.

Twilight's constant talking was broken by a slightly ashamed expression. "Actually... no, I haven't. I was just given a permanent pass, due to being the Princess's personal student, and merely used it as an easy way to the Canterlot Archives. It's something we all can do, upon reaching the AUC." Both Justin and Applejack stared at her confusedly. "Arcane University of Canterlot."

They understood that statement, and gave her a responsive "Oh!"

"Why haven't you been there though, Twilight?" Justin asked, hiding the details he knew about the tickets for safety reasons. "Surely the thought must've crossed your mind at some point, right?"

Suddenly, Twilight's face began to turn red. "Well, I would be lying if I said that it hasn't. It's just that... well..." After taking a deep breath, she sighed. "I'd... rather not talk about it."

Justin nodded his head. "It's alright, Twilight. You don't have to answer it, if you don't want to."

With a nod, Twilight headed outside the door, while Applejack and Justin followed. Silently, though, Applejack whispered to Justin. "Sorry Sugarcube, but I need ta speak ta Twilight alone fer a few hours... mare talk, y'know?"

Justin scratched the bottom of his chin, and asked, "Hm... alright, then. Perhaps I could use this time to practice my magic out there in the fields... would that be allowed?" Applejack nodded, and smiled sheepishly.

"Sorry, Justin... I know yer lookin' fer a way ta be recognized as the friend ya truly are, but I think ya won't make much progress convincin' the town yer safe, when ya can't be too sure, yerself."

Justin smiled, and nodded. "It's alright, AJ. I agree with you on that... but if something happens out there, do I have permission to-"

Before he could finish his question, Applejack replied, "Of course ya do! Hay, we might actually need ya to keep yer ears open fer us, while ya practice, if'n that's alright with ya... but I know that that... Figment thing ya told us about ain't gonna be a problem fer us up at Sweet Apple Acres, no more! An' besides... we kinda want ya to... y'know... remain a safe distance from us fer a while. I know bein' cooped up in that library can get bothersome fer ya, by the look o' yer face... no offense."

Justin shrugged, and replied, "None taken." Then, he turned towards Twilight and spoke in a normal tone. "Actually, Twilight, I think I'll step out in the fields for a bit, if that's okay with y'all. It's been a while since I had a breath of fresh air, after all."

Twilight turned her head, unaware of the conversation Justin and Applejack had, and smiled heartily. "Oh, okay! Have fun, Justin! But be careful, though!" With that, the human parted from the group, as the two mares walked towards Sweet Apple Acres, with the baby dragon rested atop the back of the Unicorn.

After Justin was no longer in sight, Twilight turned to Applejack, and smiled. "Thanks, AJ. I'm sorry for putting you through the trouble of telling him off like that. It's for his own good that he try to find out how to control his magic so he can experience the full joys of Ponyville, instead of the feeling of being imprisoned against his will."

"Nonsense, Sugarcube! He seems ta be the understandin' sort, so I reckon he ain't gonna take it ta heart! Besides, as you said, Ponyville needs ta see him for who he really is, an' not what he is!" Twilight nodded, as the two crossed the entrance to Sweet Apple Acres.

Then, Twilight looked up at the sky, and sighed. "I don't know, though... a few days ago, I heard a few individuals talking about him... something about 'Humans being murderers', and what-not... but I don't believe that, since he seems much more nicer than that... right?" Suddenly, her eyes widened. "Applejack! What if he happened to kill his own kind long ago?! Do you think he'd bring that kind of situation up again, if he did?!"

Applejack smirked, then replied, "Twilight... I reckon I gotta tell ya this. I don't really know the fella as much as you do, but if you think that he's too kind ta even hurt a fly, what would make ya think that he would go an' kill ponies like that?"

Twilight nodded. "You're probably right, Applejack... I shouldn't worry myself about such things, anyways. And besides! Even if he did kill things before, I'm sure he'd be willing to change that kind of behavior for us... right?"

Applejack nodded, as the two of them picked up a pair of buckets on their backs, and while conversing about many different things, they started filling the buckets with apples.

"Okay, then... good day to you, too!" Justin said with a sigh. To get to the outskirts of town, and into the wide open fields of the "Hillsweep Meadow", as it turned out to be called, he had to cross the Marketplace, which cleared out the moment he stepped out of the shadows, and into the side. Quietly, he continued onward, noticing a few windows slamming shut, and doors to appearing to be barricaded from inside.

Once he was in an open path, he slowly crossed his legs in an Indian-Style position, closed his eyes, and began to relax, while feeling the power in his veins begin to flow freely inside, through a meditative trance.