Author's Notes:

Bonus Chapter Inbound. This is based on ViolinsCry's "Exposed". AND A LOT OF MAX PAYNE REFERENCES.

Bonus Chapter: That Old Familiar Feeling

"What's the party for Pinkie?" I asked her. Pinkie, was happily and oddly excited about something while preparing decorations for a party yet she haven't yet told any of us what it is all about; we just saw her bouncing all around and buying party materials. Strange, but she's just being Pinkie Pie.

"Uhhh, Pinkie, hello? Are you listening to me?" I called out to her the second time,

"Hm? Oh! Ryan! The party's a secret! You'll just have to wait for it!"

I grunted while she still bounced around everywhere and prepared the party. Heh, it had always been the same party every time she threw one, but a strong gut feeling was telling me that this party… will be the last party that I will ever be into.

Now that's just ridiculous. I mean, Pinkie throws parties every time! How could it be the last one?

Maybe living a normal and healthy life was something I had grown pretty used to…

Pinkie was so happily excited for this party, and I know that this will be good since she looks even more happier than before, I guarantee it. Look at her, the pink earth pony was in an even better state than me. God only knows what went on to her a while ago, let alone inside her head. Luckily, thanks to my highly disciplined conscience, I got my own problems sort out and under control.

Pinkie was finished decorating and went to the kitchen to get the cake. "Ryan! Can you help me get Twilight and Fluttershy later?"

"Sure thing!" I replied.

I went outside just to get some fresh air.

Funny, that skyline reminded me of so much… Of Twilight and the Mane 6.

Of my best friend, Ray.

And my family…

While people like me lived, I left so few…

My train of thoughts was washed away when Pinkie tugged my polo shirt.

"C'mon! Let's go!"

I then followed her to the direction of Twilight's Treehouse a.k.a The Pony Ville Library.

Twilight and Fluttershy was afraid of what their friends would tell them if they told them that the two were in love.

"You freaks!"

"Stay away from them, children!"

"You disgust us!"

They both laid low for a while, hiding inside Twilight's Treehouse, hiding from the consequences. But it is inevitable, they can't escape this now.

A familiar voice called out to them, "Twi', 'Shy! Open up, it's me Ryan! There's a party outside, everypony is celebrating so… Come out!"

"We know you're there, come on! IT'S PARTY TIME!" Pinkie followed,

Pinkie established a party for the two lovers, who knows? Maybe everypony will accept them and everything will be alright. Twilight shot a "We'll-just-have-to-deal-with-it" look while Fluttershy nodded yes to her.

"We should probably g-go… Pinkie throws really good p-parties all the time." She said to her lover nervously. They knew Pinkie was one of those super-duper party ponies since they met her, which made her one of the good guys. They don't have a choice, so they'll have to deal with it.

Twilight opened the door and suddenly, Pinkie dragged them outside. "Let's go! We're going to miss it! Everypony is waiting!"

They followed her, to the hall where the party was taking place.

Life was good. The sun was shining on a sweet summer day. The smell of freshly mowed lawns. The sounds of children playing. Two mares in love with each other, an Equestrian dream come true. But dreams have a nasty habit of going bad when you're not looking.

What surprised them is that it seemed that all of Pony Ville has joined the party! Even in Canterlot! But wait… A familiar alicorn sat in front of the stage.

Pinkie dragged the two in front of the stage and grabbed a microphone. I was surprised to see that this party was all about them! I mean, who would've known that they are like the guest of honor of this party? So much for being subtle…

I didn't like the way the show started, but they had given me the best seat in the house, front row center next to Celestia.

Pinkie shouted in the microphone, "Hello everypony! Welcome to my super-duper awesome party of all time for my two bestest friends in the whole wooooorld!" The feedback caused everypony to close their ears because of the high pitched noise.

"Oops! Sorry!" She giggled.

"Please welcome… TWILIGHT AND FLUTTERSHY!" She moved aside from the mic, giving way for the two mares to speak. "Speech! Speech!" Pinkie shouted.

A moment of silence was heard across the room. By the looks of them, I think that they weren't really that prepared, for a speech, that is.

"Well…" She broke the silence.

"Thank you everypony. I'm really happy that you are here to support our love for each other…" She was cut off,

Wait… Did she say that she and 'Shy are in love with each other?

WHAT?! WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS BULLSHIT?!

MOTHERFUCKER! ARE YOU SHITTING ME RIGHT NOW?!

Right now, my head is going to explode…

Holy Mother of Jesus Christ Almighty…

Are you seriously kidding me? With all this shit I've been through, this is the one that I could not ruminate.

She was cut off by a voice in the crowd, "You two are disgusting!"

"You perverted freaks!" And another one called out, "Your love isn't real at all!"

"You two should leave!"

It was then that the crowd of ponies soon broke out into boos and hisses. Words filled with hate and loathing. It was horrible for them, especially for Fluttershy. Shouts of disgust shot them like bullets, fast into their heart followed by a storm of food thrown to them.

I looked at Celestia, "Princess, we need to stop this."

"Okay, you protect the two and I'll calm everypony." I nodded to her. I saw that the two lovers are dodging and wincing as best as they could while a storm of food came upon them.

I didn't deserve to walk away; there are no happy endings…

I grabbed a table with strength and shielded the two mares from the food that was being thrown into them,

"Are you okay?" I asked. Fluttershy let out a cry of despair and nodded yes.

"You have to leave now, take the back door; nopony will see you coming right out of there." They thanked me and went out. The truth was a burning green crack through my brain. Their actions was so clear and obvious, they were in love…

Funny as hell, it was the most horrible thing I could think of.

The ponies soon calmed down after Celestia suppressed the riot. Soon, they all left the party and took care of their own business. It was calm, but what happened to Twilight and Fluttershy?

Well, I don't know much about angels, but it is fear that gives men wings.

As soon as the two mares got out of the party, the inevitable soon came. Hurtful words washed them through like a tsunami of swords and sharp weapons, stabbing them repeatedly until they can't take any more of it. They ran away, tears streaming down their cheeks as they went to the dangerous Everfree Forest. In there, they sought peace and quiet and it seemed to be the best place to hide for now.

"Oh, Twilight! *sob* W-why would t-t-they do that t-t-to us?" Fluttershy whimpered and sobbed uncontrollably.

Loving someone is a binary choice, either you love someone or not.

"It was so awful of them!" Twilight wiped the dirt and the food that had hit them a while ago off her coat.

They felt the rise of that old familiar feeling. They hated it… They welcomed it.

The two lovers wept for minutes, hoping against hope that redemption would walk right in and sit next to them. But soon, their weeping stopped, their hearts filled with anger and rage. Sorrow has turned to a vile, worst form of anger and vengeance.

"It's Pinkie's fault…" Fluttershy accused, "She was the first one to find out…"

"She set us up! That mare set us up! Then I'll teach her a lesson that she'll never forget!" She stomped her hoof on the ground. It was the start of something bad, something more awful...

I ran trying to find the location of Twilight and Fluttershy.

There was a blind spot on my head, a bullet-shaped hole where the answers should be. Call it denial. I want to dig inside my skull and scrape out the pain. And I lied to myself that it was over; the two mares are still missing. It wasn't over.

I heard something way far back that somepony is telling another pony to get out. It must be them. So I ran as fast as I can to find them.

Your past has a way of sneaking up on you. You'll hear broken echoes of it everywhere, like a bad replay. You'll get mad at everyone for reminding you about it, even if it's all in your head.

As what I have thought they're there, standing in the middle of an angry crowd, hissing and shouting words at the two lovers. This is love, when someone drags you from the wreckage when you have given in, ready to just lie there and die. This is love, when someone, no matter what the cost, shows you there is hope, a choice, that you can put down your gun. This is love. Love hurts.

A red earth stallion spat on them, "Parading your filthy perversion in front of Equestria?"

That, my friends, is a start of something bad.

Fluttershy grabbed the red stallion by the neck, she was angry, vengeful at what the stallion said. She showed no signs of normal and she looked like she was about to kill the poor bastard. She then flew up high to the sky and then stopped; she eerily glared at the stallion. "Say that again… I dare you…"

The stallion was afraid; fear was rusty needles poking at his brain. Cold and scaly, it slithered down his chest.

"Agh! Let me go! Let me down you freak!" He whinnied in terror, a strong feeling of fear in his eyes.

Fluttershy gave him a really calm smile, he tried to run from it, edit it out. And with a single word…

"Okay…"

She dropped him.

Gotta think of something fast, I need something to save him with. Suddenly, I had a bright idea. Using my ring's light construct, I created a baseball glove and before he could even touch the ground, I caught him just in the nick of time.

"Fluttershy! What in the name of Samson are you doing?!" I shouted at her. It was then that a high-pitched scream was heard at my right where Twilight was about to ram a green earth pony in the chest. There was one thing left to do, I was compelled to stop Twilight and Fluttershy from creating a massacre.

"Twilight! God damn it!" I cursed. It was a losing game for everypony, but I didn't have the strength to play that game now.

I saved the green earth pony in no time flat. There was no glory in this. I hadn't asked for this crap. Trouble had come to me in big, dark swarms. The good and the just, they were like gold dust in this place. I had no illusions. I was not one of them. I was no hero. Just me, and my fist and the crooks, my options had decreased to a singular course

Fluttershy is filled with anger, she shouted at me "WHY DO YOU ALWAYS GET IN OUR WAY, RYAN?!"

"Stop doing this Fluttershy! What happened to the kindest pony in Pony Ville?! WHAT HAPPENED TO THE WIELDER OF THE ELEMENT OF KINDNESS?!"

I had a bullet with Fluttershy and Twilight's name on it. I had ten thousand bullets with the mares' name on them.

"Everypony RUN! Rarity and the others, lead the others away from here now before—Ugh!"

Before I could say anything, Fluttershy already grabbed my high up in the air. What incredible strength she got, must've gotten from Twilight.

Luckily, the citizens of Pony Ville evacuated the area before it even got worse. No such luck, No luck at all.

What's even more worse is that they found Pinkie. They were after her all along, thinking that she set them up.

"Pinkie Pie!" Twilight shouted, calling out to the poor mare hiding for cover. Why didn't she join the others? Pinkie Pie, that is.

"H-hi Twilight! " She tried to be cool, calm. Twilight was burning to get her. If I was Pinkie, then the feeling would be mutual. She was trying to put out my flames with gasoline.

"You… You did this to us… You humiliated us in front of everyone! YOU SET US UP!" Fluttershy followed.

"Wha… What? Set you up?" Pinkie shook, "No no no no no! I didn't mean to humiliate you!"

She was trying to buy sand for her hourglass, but they weren't selling any.

"Shit!" I cursed. I didn't have any choice, I ran as fast as I can to Pinkie before Twilight will do anything brutal to her. Everything went slow motion; Twilight's magic was almost touching her... There was a bomb ticking in my head, no amount of painkillers could disable it.

Tick…

Tock…

Tick…

Tock…

Tick…

Tock…

"GRRRRRAAAAAAHHHHH!"

Einstein was right, time is relative to the observer. When you're about to save someone, time slows down. Your whole life flashes by, heartbreak and scars. Stay with it, and you can live a lifetime in that split second.

I shielded the pink earth pony before she could get hit by the magic beam. Still, none of us was a saint.

"GO PINKIE! GO!" I shouted at her. She kissed me on the cheek and ran to the direction where the other citizens went.

My shield was getting weaker every second; I couldn't hold it anymore longer. My energy is depleting fast and I need to do something quick.

This is what I see when I look back. These moments, blinding as snow, they kill you, change you; you die and live again, remade.

"In fearful day, In dreadful night…"

I keep telling myself that this was all a dream.

"The light of life shall be our might…"

But when you're waking up, the world is a blur.

"For those who joined in Blackest Night…"

What was clear in a dream suddenly makes no sense. No surreal rescues, no easy, magic way out.

"Beware our power…"

But you are awake.

"WHITE LANTERN'S LIGHT!"

I am the Light…

I felt power and energy surging through my body, coursing through my veins. I feel good, powerful… More than myself.

Fraternizing with the enemy. I had stepped over the edge. The cartoon moment when the gravity waits for the coyote to realize his mistake before the plunge.

"Stop this now Twilight. You two are making a massacre!"

"NO…This is good. The world will soon know what pain is."

I am afraid, but I start again from the beginning. Trace my own steps to the scene of the crime…

"I know it is hard for you, for the world to accept you, but give them time. Maybe soon they will realize that sexuality isn't important in friendship."

It was clear that she wasn't listening. I had one card left to play, I was compelled to stop the two of them, One bullet at a time.

It was that moment that I realized, that we were already in a death match between me and two colorful ponies. A rough start…

I was dodging hooves and magic beams like heavy raindrops. Oh, how time goes by so fast. Death was just watching me, by-standing like an idiot who's watching two cats fight to the death only for getting what the other one has. Life knows two miseries: getting what you don't want and not getting what you want.

They needed time to breathe, they wanted to find a breathing room to expel their exhaustion. It was the perfect time that I returned the favor. Hit after hit, I clenched my fist even more harder and punching them more powerful than ever. Death is inevitable. Our fear of it makes us play safe, blocks out emotions. It's a losing game. Without the balls to play it, you are already dead.

I can't take it anymore, the urge of taking them down unconscious was strong. There are things in life you cannot choose: How you feel.

"ENOUGH!" I shouted. Shockwave… They were weakened.

To make sure they were down, pinned them down with my web, encasing them in a silk, strong and tensile string of web. And then, I punched them to sleep.

"Like I said…*pant* *pant* You play, you pay, you bastards."

I heard flapping of wings at a short distance. I looked up in the air and found the Princess hovering down and trotting towards me.

"Are there any casualties, Ryan?"

"Close, but none."

"Good."

"Hey, can I ask you a question?"

"Yes?"

"Where were you five minutes ago? Where have you been?"

"I rounded up everyone of the citizens to a safe place. But when I came back here, I already saw you took care of them."

"So, what are going to do with them?"

"I have a memory erasing spell that can erase their memories and even their feeling so for each other."

"Perfect, I'll call everypony in the square and will prepare them."

"Yes. Thank you, Ryan."

"You're welcome, highness…" I mocked. I might've laughed, If I remembered how.

Soon enough, all of Pony Ville was called into the square. Crowds and crowds of ponies scattered around in the square, hard to get their attention. I shouted loud enough, getting the attention of all ponies present. I calmed myself down. And then spoke,

"Good afternoon everypony. I'm terribly sorry about what happened a while ago. We apologize for that. Princess Celestia will give you something that'll help you."

The 4 of the Mane 6 raised their eyebrows,

"You might want to close your eyes."

And with that, a flash of light 'flashed' through the eyes of those ponies. Forgetting all of those things that had happened today. What used to be yesterday was long gone from existence, never to be remembered. The past is like pieces of broken mirror. You try to pick them up, but you only end up hurting yourself.

"We'll only keep this between ourselves. No matter what the cost, you will never ever mention what happened today to everyone. Understood?" I whispered to the Mane 6, they nodded. Thank God

Our work was done here, the ponies didn't remember anything after that. We went next to Twilight and Fluttershy, then they forget everything else. Life continued on normally. And what happened today, never will be remembered in the future ever again.

It was all over.

I had solved the case. All of it. Who I am. Is it worth it? Saying that it never is would be a lie. Sometimes you get lucky. Sometimes, something good comes out of it. Something you know you wouldn't deserve in a million years. Something that gives you a reason to go on.

This is love… Love hurts.