Trudging through the Everfree forest was not what you'd call...pleasant. Daybreaks detour through the woods was to make sure no one saw where he lived, but had turned a two hour walk into five. By the time he managed to get home, night was already in it's early stages and the moon was working it's way into the starry sky. Daybreak stopped just outside his simple home and stared up at the moon.

"Hiya Auntie...I haven't been this close in years...I wonder if you two can sense me...I wonder if you two even remember me..."

"Not that I even care anyways."

Opening the door, he welcomed himself home and dragged his aching body inside. All manner of forest life clung to his clothes and bag-pack, further encouraging him to escape from his itchy clothing quickly. The main thing he wanted to do right then was shower, eat dinner, and sleep. He could practically hear his bed calling him...although that could also have been side effects of the Poison Joke that clung desperately to his shoes and arms.

Quickly striping himself free of any garments (save for a new pair of black, athletic undergarments), he gathered all the Poison Joke leaves in a pile and stored them in his cupboard. Then, with a wave of his hand, all the juice the leaves had seeped onto him was picked up in a field of green energy. He reached inside the cupboard, next to where he had just placed the leaves, and took out a small bottle, allowing the poison from the Joke to seep into it. He then corked the bottle and returned it to the cupboard.

Then, tending to his poisoned clothing and back-pack, he removed items from both that weren't water proof, gathered up his emergency remedy for the Joke (kept in a small cupboard near the fridge), then tossed them in his bath tub followed by the remedy.

Two hours later, while he lay sprawled on the couch, snug in his blanket, he heard the familiar loud pop of the final bubble in the tub. This told him his items were clean, and with haste he deposited them in the dryer and left them there until morning. Going to bed immediately after turning on the machine.

The next morning awoke him with the sound of knocking at his front door. His head shot up from within his blankets, very unused to anybody ever coming around his home. It was on the outskirts of Ponyville for a reason! To discourage visitors!

"I swear to my mother! If that's anybody but the postmare, somebodies getting lit on fire this morning"

For good measure and self assurance, he ignited his right hand in an eerie green flame and headed for the front door, not even bothering to add clothing to his under armor. His thoughts still blurred from sleep, he forgot to check the peep hole first and simply threw open the door. It was unclear who was more surprised by whom. Daybreak that Sunset Shimmer was standing at his front door, or Sunset Shimmer that he had answered the door in nothing but tight fitting athletic underwear. He quickly shot his fiery hand out of sight behind the door handle and dissolved the flames, more focused on her sensing his magic then having her stare at his abs. Which she did.

After a brief, but very awkward silence, Sunset held out a large scroll and gestured for him to take it as she attempted to look away from him and cover her eyes. He swiped up the scroll and almost let slip a "thank you" but managed to restrain himself. Realizing he should probably put on some clothes, he told her to wait a moment and quickly left for his room. She was half tempted to sneak a peek inside his home, but resisted the urge and instead waited for him patiently. He returned moments later wearing semi-decent clothing for his first "official" day at college. A solid black t-shirt and black sweat pants with a white stripe down either side, over top of his t-shirt he wore a brown leather jacket to protect from the cold Autumn air. Sunset eyed his clothes, lack of fashion sense aside, he didn't look bad.

She on the other hand, wore much the same clothing from yesterday, having multiple pairs came in handy, but this time Daybreak was able to smell her perfume, which smelled strongly of strawberries and her shirt was plain white this time. Even with the sun blazed across the center, Daybreak could easily make out her bra this time around and could tell she was at least C sized in her chest.

"I wonder if she did that on purpose?"

Other than that, her clothes were basically the same. Same skirt, same jacket, same shoes, but she made it work. After he looked over the scroll she had given him, he was actually thankful she had brought this to him outside of school. It was the roster for available dorm rooms and who was still alone in their room versus, people who already had two or three roommates.

"I'd sooner make that five hour walk every day than room with anybody...but judging by this roster every room has at least one other person in it...wait a second!"

"Sunset...Why do I see male and female names listed together on here?"

She looked a little confused by his question

"Well...because they're roommates? I'm not sure what you mean."

"Was that an odd question or something? Oh goddess...I get it now..."

"They intermix boys and girls dorms in this place?...Isn't that kind of asking for trouble?"

Sunset actually giggled this time...had he said something funny?

"It would be trouble...but our Headmistress is a clever old girl...She's got ways to make sure students don't fool around in the dorms, and if they do...they get an unpleasant little surprise."

For a moment he was tempted to ask what those methods might be, but in all honesty he didn't really care. What he did care about was reading this roster until he found a room with no one in it.

"If I stare long enough...maybe it will appear"

"There aren't any."

He looked up, had she read his mind?

"Not likely"

"What do you mean?"

She narrowed her eyes, giving him the distinct impression of being x-rayed

"Don't play innocent, I know what you're searching for, and there aren't any. Every room has at least one other person in it. You can room with someone and request no additional roommates, but at least two people are almost always required. So you're stuck with at least one other person."

He groaned aloud, not even bothering to mask his disappointment. Sunset giggled again, but this time turned to leave.

"You know...I'm still alone in my room, feel free to put down your name next to mine, that is, unless you like walking through Poison Joke every night you go home."

Without another word, she shot him a smirk and walked away.

"So she did follow me...You clever little fox...Well played Sunset...well played."

He was half tempted to take her up on her offer, after all, he didn't know anyone else, and between having to get to know someone completely new or tolerate someone he had at least some experience with, his options looked pretty limited. He shoved the roster sheet in his pocket and returned inside to retrieve his bag. Once he had eaten breakfast and double checked every magical lock on his house, he stepped outside and made for the school.

Sunset had been right about one thing, he had to pass through Ponyville every time he went to or from school, unless he felt like using the forest again.

"Might as well get acquainted with this place later then..."

As he had predicted, it took him roughly a two hour walk to get from his home, through Ponyville, out into the Everfree fields, and onto campus. He considered using long range teleportation, or opting for a personal portal from his house to the school, but both presented problems. Teleporting, especially any great distance, was exhausting and having to do it constantly would be a handicap he didn't want. As for the portal...well other than the expenses it would cost and the fact that he would need to present a valid reason for having it, there really wasn't anything stopping him. If no other solution presented itself in the near future, he might go for the portal.

Once he had worked his way through the giant gate that surrounded the enormous campus of Ponyville University, he began to work his way towards the entrance hall, as he had the day before. Upon reaching the doors, he was greeted with a familiar sound

"Sounds like they're at it again..."

He wondered if the cheering would become a daily routine, or maybe already was one for this school. Regardless of either, he was once again unable to restrain his curiosity and headed in the direction of the yells. This time it took him past the soccer field and through another large gate, which led to a gigantic, circular track surrounding a football field. He noted the hand crafted wooden benches on the outside of the field and decided to save himself the hassle this time around. He walked over and hooked his bag to the nearest bench, then removed his jacket as well and placed it over his bag for protection.

"I dare somebody to try and take this" He smirked to himself

Just as before, he hurdled the fence, which felt even smaller than the one surrounding the soccer field, and made for the commotion. The sight he found, didn't particularly shock him as much as it amused him. Instead of beating up three big idiots, it seemed Rainbow Dash, in all of her ego, had decided to host a run-a-thon thirty minutes before class started. Most students there didn't even want to participate, wanting to keep their clean appearance for the beginning of classes. As for the few who did take up her challenge, not a single one could even make it half a lap before she dwarfed them with her speed.

"This is just sad to watch..."

A brilliant idea suddenly snaked through his brain. He looked down at his own appearance

"Well...I'm already dressed for it...and I do need to bring her down a notch...or a few. This is the perfect chance to do so and put her in her place."

He slowly worked his way up through the crowd and towards the field, keeping an eye on every race as it progressed. He only really paid attention to Rainbow Dash, her stance, her arm and leg movements as she ran, her breathe rate. He took in every detail, and while doing so, noticed that she too, like Sunset, wore much the same clothing as yesterday. Except for one major difference, her shirt. Instead of a rainbow lightning bolt like yesterday, today, it was plain black with nothing more than two words written on it in bright white lettering, "Simply Awesome". On top of that, it was a sleeveless shirt, but not naturally so. It was obvious that the sleeves had been ripped or cut off, and therefore made much more of her skin visible beneath the loose cloth. Her sports bra all but flashed through her shirt as she ran.

"And it's blue just like her other one" he chuckled to himself

Finally forcing his way to the actual track field through the crowd, he was able to get a perfect view of the next two races. But that wasn't all, here, amongst all these people, he could stretch out with his magic and there was no chance of him being detected among the rush of adrenaline and emotion that fueled places like this. Igniting his inner power, he felt the magic rush to his brain...and he saw everyone. He could feel the light traces of magic within each person as he reached out, searching for Rainbow Dash.

He remembered his father once telling him that every single being used magic in one way or another. It was merely how it adapted and manifested itself within that person that determined their talents. He knew Rainbow Dash had to have some kind of power within her, he had watched her do five, 400 meter dashes and show no signs of tiring. That kind of stamina was literally, magical. And unsurprising, this was a college for the magically gifted after all.

As Rainbow Dash zoomed by for the final stretch to the finish line, Daybreak caught the whiff of her inner strength, and pounced on it like a panther in the hunt. He followed the current directly to it's source and met zero resistance along the way, which was a relief for him. Feeling around her soul, he found her magical stores without even trying...and nearly withdrew himself in shock...they were massive! If this girl was a sorceress, she had to be the first place winner he had heard about! If she wasn't...then there was alot of potential for this girl if all that power was devoted to sports.

"She's in a whole other league...these chumps don't stand a ghost of a chance against her...but I do."

Smirking to himself, he wondered how she might react to meeting someone as talented as herself. Well, he would shortly find out, because her race had just ended...and she had won by another landslide.

"Time to make the dive down to second place Rainbow Dash."

He stepped forward from the crowd and strolled out onto the track field. Rainbow Dash was doing a victory stretch near the finish line and didn't even notice him at first, that is until he shouted over to her loud enough for everyone watching to hear!

"Hey Skittles! Ready to take that special place on the ground we discussed yesterday?!"

If her head had whipped around any faster he'd have called her the Exorcist, but the fire in her eyes as she looked at him told him skittles had been more than enough. Her eyes looked like they might fire lasers at him with the boiling rage they now held, but even through her anger she managed to keep her confident and chiding grin plastered across her face. Her response was returned with even more volume than he had.

"Oh I'm sorry, is that what we discussed yesterday? I can't seem to recall if that was before, or after I saved your ass and carried you like a little girl up to the infirmary. Or maybe it was after I had you speechless and pinned against your mattress in fear?"

"This girl has a fire in her that needs dousing...no fuck that...it needs drowning!"

He sneered at her and wafted his hand towards himself, goading her over to him. She took the bait, of course, and positioned herself next to him on the track. Her eyes burned with fiery passion and she leaned over to his ear. Unlike before he didn't try and pull away, he knew she wanted only him to hear her next words. They came out like a serpents hiss, sharp and soft

"Nobody calls me skittles and gets away with it! Nobody!"

"Is that so? Well, I just did"

"How about we make this a bit more interesting then?"

"Such malice behind her voice, it's like a snake bite every time she speaks...so full of venom"

"Sure why not? What do you have in mind?"

She grinned evilly, her face still just as close as it had been moments before

"A bet"

"Figures..."

"Fine. What are the stakes?"

If her grin could hold any more evil intent, it now did. Daybreak almost found a subtle attraction at the sight

"If I win, I own you for a whole day. You're my slave, you'll do whatever I want, whenever I want it, and you can't deny any request, no matter how embarrassing or horrid"

He felt slight intimidation at her terms, that was a high price to pay if she won, but then...what would he gain...what did he want if he won? A sneer crossed over his lips

"Fine, but if I win, you have to..."

He paused for a moment...

"What can I do...What would make this girl cringe to her very core. She's as prideful as I am, so humiliation is the obvious choice...Oh I've got the perfect idea"

"If I win.." His grin grew as evil as her own "You have to stand up in front of everyone, and strip butt naked, twirl around a few times so they all get a good view, and maybe even bend over once or twice"

The look of utter disbelief on her face was worth more to him than anything at that moment. Her jaw literally fell out of place

"Absolutely not! You fucking pervert!"

He grinned

"This is too easy."

"Oh well, guess I win then...we'd better tell them the mighty Rainbow Dash is backing down cause she's scared of a little cold air on her skin."

He raised his head from hers to yell, but quickly felt several fingers wrap around his collar and pull him back down

"Ok...Fine...It's a bet!"

Her voice held such unbelievable aggression, he was surprised she managed to keep her tone so low. He didn't even have to use magic to feel her building up all of her latent power, and storing in her core. Her magical scent was overwhelming and intoxicating to be near, he almost felt light headed just being next to her when she was like this.

"Such...power...I can't even begin to remember the last time I felt someone this strong that was my own age...It's like a drug..."

Not wanting to let her think she could intimidate him with just her aura, he let loose his own as well. The air current actually changed direction when he brought his magic to the surface. Although he had planned to remain anonymous for the most part, the need to beat this girl was so much greater than that. He poured his power off him like a waterfall, engulfing her in it. But instead of being at a loss for breathe...her breathing rate remained the same.

"What the...?"

He could feel it, his power was definitely as strong as hers, and having just as much influence on the surrounding area...but it didn't seem to physically affect her at all. She turned and grinned

"So...are you ready to taste the rainbow newbie? Or are you just gonna taste the dirt after I leave you in it?"

He lowered his hands to the track and planted his feet against the rubber field, she mimicked him but extended her legs fully in a push-up position, rather than bend them for a slight push off the ground in the first moment of the race. She raised a single finger from her hand and pointed at the track, indicating they would do a single lap only.

"How odd...It's like she doesn't even feel the magic I'm releasing...and why is she getting like she's gonna do push-ups?...Does she not even consider me a threat? Well either way, better off for me then"

Raising her head slightly, Rainbow motioned at a girl hiding in the crowd, doing her best to remain unseen. Moments later they were joined on the track by the cream and yellow skinned girl he had seen her with at lunch the previous day. The girl brushed a lock of her pink hair to the side of her face and slowly shuffled her way to the grassy side of the track, where she took out a white and black striped flag from her pants pocket. Daybreak found the fact that she wanted an official flag wave to start the race, humorous.

He turned and locked eyes with Rainbow Dash. The fire in her eyes...it burned bright, unyielding against the smug expression he greeted her stare with. He felt her power flare up again, and he made his follow suite. He watched as the girl on the outside raised the flag, in his mind he counted down

Five

Four

Three

Two

Daybreak saw it, and realized he had slipped up, at two, Rainbow Dash's whole body shifted and dropped into the same stance as his own, legs firmly bent and prepared. She stopped releasing power and drew it back inside her all at once. Almost caught unaware, Daybreak quickly did the same.

"Clever asshole..."

One

The flag came down, and they both rocketed from the ground, fueled by nothing but pure adrenaline at first, then magic!

Daybreak kept his mind solely on Rainbow Dash's location as he ran. Fueling his every step with magic, and fueling his senses as well, he was able to determine exactly where she was without seeing her. She had chosen the lane directly next to him on the outside, and so would therefore try to cut into his at some point. He would need to prevent that, or keep her behind him if she managed to do so. Each step felt like an eternity in his mind, as he felt every moment flow and echo around him.

He felt Rainbow Dash beside him, but just barely. Her power was being condensed substantially and focused only in her legs. He hadn't even sensed it transit from her core to her legs until she was running beside him, appearing as though she was barely even trying. He knew better of course, they were both holding back their burst of power until the last 100 meters, that is when the real race would start. Until that point it was just an ego battle, but a battle nonetheless. One that he was intent on winning.

For a moment, he felt Rainbow Dash appear beside him, he took a chance glance in her direction and found her staring at him. Not just a glance, she was full on staring at him as though she had been waiting for him to look towards her. The moments their eyes met, she winked, and zoomed past him. Infuriated, Daybreak kicked up his pace as well and felt the magic within him begin pushing his body, and pulsing out of it! He could practically feel it trailing off him as he caught up the few steeps she had gained, but he didn't care, he had to beat this girl!

"I don't care if I set this whole fucking track on fire while I run, as long as I beat her!"

They neared 200 meters, the halfway point, and they were neck-and-neck again, both still trying to hold back their full strength until the end. But it was becoming increasingly more difficult for them both, as one would gain ground, the other would release more power and do the same. It was a constant back and forth all the way to the last hundred meters. Daybreak felt small singes begin appearing across his shirt and arms, he was releasing too much magic for his body to take at once and was beginning to vent it through his pores, but he forced himself to ignore the pain!

The last hundred meters were in sight, both he and Rainbow Dash met gazes just before crossing the mark and at the same moment, grinned at one another. The grin spoke the unsaid words between them

"Let's see what you've got!"

Then they truly raced!

Power wasn't even word in comparison to what they released from their bodies! Both they're magical dispersion broke the sound barrier as they ran, flying down to the last fifty meters like it was their life's effort! The sheer force of their aura ripped apart the track that trailed behind them and left trails of green and rainbow colored fire in their wake!

Still neck and neck and striking the last 50 meters, they both tried with all their heart to squeeze out some last ounces of power, just enough to push one ahead of the others! But their bodies couldn't release anymore at the rate which they desired, and so their (already blinding speed) did not increase. But Rainbow Dash refused to let up and began to swerve in towards his lane, hoping to give herself the last edge she needed to push ahead. Seconds felt like hours for them, as the final feet of the race came into sight.

"This is it! If I can keep her out there I'll end up ahead at the finish!'

As she swerved in, his shoulder smashed against hers, forcing them both to battle for dominance as they neared the line. In a desperate act to give herself a last boost, Rainbow Dash shoved her foot forward, just slightly ahead of his. In that same moment, he did the same. Both of their feet crossed, and disaster unfolded right before their eyes! At over (what must have been at least Mach 10) speed, they tripped over each others feet, and began to topple through the air! Unable to maintain their magic as they fell, the power they were still forcing out of their bodies mixed together and caused a massive explosion that shook the whole stadium!

The explosion itself propelled both Rainbow Dash and Daybreak into the football field and dug them deep into the rubber dirt and plastic grass of the turf! When the dust cleared, there was a massive crater in the center of the field, but no one even dared to approach it. Little trickles of lightning still sparked over where the pair had crashed, daring anybody to try and assist them.

Speaking of Rainbow and Daybreak, they were slammed so utterly and with such force into the rubber dirt, that had they both not shielded themselves with their magic, in the last moments before becoming intimate with the ground, they might have literally exploded from power expulsion!

Daybreaks eyes fluttered open, his brain must have been raddled inside his head, because everything was blurry in both eyes.

"Ow...everything hurts...every...ow...fucking...ow...thing! I think my limbs, back, flank and face are broken...and I think I might have melted away a good amount of my weight in that run..."

His head felt like a lead weight, making it extremely difficult to look around and attempt to see what had happened through his blurred vision. He blinked, trying to clear the stars from his vision as he looked around. He tried to raise a hand to feel if he was bleeding from his face, but the moment he moved either one, he fell forward and his face connected with something very soft and smooth.

Blinking again, he placed one hand to the side and tried lifting his face. He felt the burned rubber field coarse beneath his fingers.

"What could I be laying on?"

Somewhere close to him, Rainbow Dash moaned in pain

"Did...anyone...Did anyone get the number of that bus?"

He heard a painful chuckle escape her lips...then a raspy cough, followed by a sound he knew all too well. Coughing up blood...She was coughing blood! His brain kicked into a whole new gear

He frantically tried to turn his, slightly raised, head with new found strength

"Rainbow Dash! Are you ok?!"

Another moan came from extremely close by...very close in fact. He blinked one last time, hoping to finally free himself of the bright lights blinding him. His vision began to focus at last! He lifted his head again and reached out with his left hand, hoping to lend leverage to his right, which was shoved in the rubber dirt attempting to support his full weight on it's own. He felt through the air as the white lights started to clear, and pressed down at the ground hard to steady himself. His hand met something soft and squishy...and warm. His fingers tensed and his whole body froze.

"What are the chances that's just a random water balloon?"

He desperately hoped he wasn't doing what he thought he was, he closed his fingers slowly and felt the softness squish slightly beneath his fingers. A brief moan came from above his head and he froze in terror. His vision finally clear enough to see, he looked down and was met with the one sight he didn't want to see. He was lying on top of Rainbow Dash...with his left hand pressed firmly against her bra. Her shirt was ripped and burned in several spots, it was barely even a shirt now.

"Well that explains the softness my face felt when I hit the 'ground'...it was her stomach...wow...she's surprisingly soft skinned...and smooth for an athletic girl..."

He rapidly shook his head, that was hardly the point at the time. He looked down and realized Rainbow Dash was starting to come to the same realization he had. Her eyes flew open and swam in her head, aiming for the direction of her chest. When she saw his hand against her bra, and her shirt in pieces, her eyes grew wide. Then she looked up, their eyes met, and a large blush formed across both of their faces.

"Oh no...no no no this can't be happening to me..."

He tried to explain, or at least sit up and remove his hand, but couldn't even make it a whole sentence, and his body only took him halfway before it refused to go farther.

"L-listen Rainbow...it's not what it...I didn't mean to..."

"You fucking pervert!"

"Say what now?...OH SHIT!"

He felt it coming, but his body could not respond to save him. Her fist connected with his jaw seconds later, he was sure that if she had been at full strength, she'd have broken his mouth and teeth easily. This force of the blow actually carried enough of her magic behind it to knock him off her body, to the ground, and stun him.

"Ow! Son of a bitch! That hurt...What the fuck?! Can't she even let me explain?"

He saw her roll over on her chest, and start pushing herself up to a kneeling position. A faint groan escaped her as she rose to her knees

"You're f-fucking dead...you hear me man? Dead!"

"How can this girl still move!? What the actual fuck!?"

She made it to both her knees and punched her right first into the rubber turf with all the force she could muster, while her left just seemed to dangle by her side! She lifted up her scratched and bruised face to glare into his eyes, as though she somehow knew he was looking in her direction...and he was....sort of. She started to slowly inch her way through the rubber dirt towards him. Two feet felt like two hundred with her body in so much pain...but she moved anyways.

"Oh this is not good for me..."

He turned his head to the side, still dazed by her blow, and met her eyes fully. This only seemed to reignite that fire in her eyes! Daybreak felt her magic start to stur again

"Also not good for me!...Fuck...this girl's beyond words and reason...and most importantly, defying the laws of nature! Those injuries should have dropped her by now...I can tell even from here she's badly cut, bruised, and scratched. Not to mention her other arm is either dislocated or broken...I'm not even sure which! How?! In all of Tartarus, how is she moving?! This makes no sense!"

His fathers old words to him rang through his ears

"Make sense? Oh my dear boy, what's the fun in making sense? We're chaos sorcerers. We don't have to make sense, ever."

"Yeah...well congradu-fucking-lations dad...I found a girl who is making no sense at all, and defying the physical laws of nature...not to mention I seem to have pissed her off beyond all comprehension!"

Rainbow Dash finally made the long, two foot journey, on her knees, over to where he lay sprawled out in the rubber turf. He had no energy to fight back, and the blow to his jaw still left him with ringing ears and blurry vision, again. He saw her on her knees, above his face and looking down at him. He met her gaze defiantly

"If she's gonna beat me to death, I'm not gonna look like a coward before she does!"

She glared down into his face, then...it vanished. The raging fire he saw in her dimmed and he felt her magic output instantly cease. Her heart rate dropped so suddenly, Daybreak was worried she had gone into cardiac arrest. She continued to stare down at him...then...her eyes glazed over

"Oh no...oh fuck no...Don't...!"

But she did. She fell forward, and collapsed over him, her face landed neatly against his chest.

"Dammit woman! Did you have to faint on top of me?! Maybe like...two feet to the right would have been fine. Then I could at least breathe properly."

He began to hear voices gathering above their crater. Judging by the distance above him, their hole was a good ten feet deep and twenty feet wide, but he knew no one would be coming in after them. The small electrical sparks were still present overhead and looked very threatening to anyone who didn't know they were actually harmless. It was just output from the raw power him and Rainbow had released in their crash, coupled with the fact they had probably destroyed any self-repairing spell this field had on it for football games.

Unable to move, and barely able to breathe, he considered just staying like that until somebody had the balls to go through the sparks and see if they were alive. He looked down at his chest

"This little rainbow haired vixen had the audacity to faint on top of me...typical woman...ok I take that back...she is anything but typical...but still...get the fuck off me!"

A slight twitch from her chest drew his attention. He inclined his head as much as his body would allow and saw her good arm, clutching at her bra. It was as though she were trying to tear it off...but that made no sense...that is until she rolled over and vomited blood next to him. His eyes went wide as he felt her magical output do another nose dive.

"Oh fuck!"

He quickly pushed her off him with the little strength he had and watched as she spit up another glob of blood then begin to start twitching violently!

"Dear Celestia! She really is going into cardiac arrest!"

He rolled over onto his chest, and felt a severe spike of pain in his ribs...they were mostly likely bruised pretty badly, if not broken. Despite the pain, he managed to work himself to a kneeling position, and flip Rainbow Dash onto her back. She coughed up more blood and Daybreak had to quickly turn her head to keep her from drowning in it.

"Damn...no choice..."

He regretted having to do this, but if Rainbow Dash was going into cardiac arrest, then her body couldn't handle the current magical imbalance within her. He had no choice. She would likely die before help arrived, and even if she didn't, she wouldn't ever fully recover if he didn't act now!

"Stupid girl..." He thought to himself, as he extended his right palm towards the sky, and placed his left upon her chest, directly above her heart. "I can't believe I'm about to do this for you...I don't even know you...and yet I'm gonna..."

He shook his head

"Now's not the time for regrets, this is partially my fault anyways...focus."

He called forth the inner stores of magic from within his core, and forced them into his outstretched hand. By his will, he began to force the raw energy to seep through his skin and onto the surface of his palm. He could feel the primal power attempting to melt through his hand as he held it. Ignoring the agonizing pain now forming within his palm, he took the next step as carefully as he could without slowing down. He began to shape the polymer-like energy in his palm to a familiar design. Slowly, but surely, it began to resemble the shape he wished. He removed his hand from Rainbow's chest, as she turned and spit up more blood, then he took hold of the energy in his palm with two fingers, and began to pull. Slowly, a long chain began to appear from within it's center as he pulled on the energy. With a final tug and a small pop the last piece squeezed itself out of the magic and dangled in his palm. There, in his hand, was a necklace identical to his own, but instead of a sun dangling from the chain, hers held a cloud at the base with a lightning bolt jutting forth from its bottom.

The necklace shimmered brightly in the early morning dew, Daybreak carefully placed it around Rainbows neck, and literally watched the magic happen.

Slowly, small tendrils of multicolored magic began to seep forth from within the necklace and plunge themselves into Rainbows chest, directly above her heart. Within seconds her breathing became steadied and normal once more, but he knew his job was not finished yet. Taking care not to touch her with his burned hand, he gently vaporized a small section of her shirt over her tummy. Most of the shirt there had already been burned away from their run anyways, so it's not like she would miss it.

Before he continued, he took a moment to take in what he had just done, and was about to do for this girl. This random, egotistical girl who happened to rub him the right way. From yesterday to today, the few encounters with this girl had been...enjoyable at the very least. She kept him on his toes and wasn't afraid of fighting with him it seemed.

"I suppose I respect her..."

Respect? That still didn't feel like the right word for the feeling.

Once again, he glanced down at her, but this time felt a small shred of embarrassment flood through him. If anymore of her shirt or shorts was removed or burned, she'd have been half naked in front of him. Her bra was easily visible and there was no way any one wouldn't notice it, her pants had survived most of the run, fortunately for her, but there were still burn marks, nothing that revealed anything though...still, he felt awkward looking at her while she was unconscious. Like he shouldn't be or something.

A small cough from her brought him back from his thoughts

"At least there's no blood this time...it still sounds a bit hoarse though"

The blood inside her must have been reacting to the magic of the necklace balancing her out. It allowed her body to sort itself and realized her heart needed attention from its cells. Though he could still sense traces of blood in her throat and lungs, he would take care of that momentarily.

He placed his nonburned hand upon her belly, and ignited it in his green fire! To a bystander, it would look like he was burning her, but to him, who could see the world from another plane of perspective, he could see what he was really doing to her. The magical heat from his hand was forcing it's way through her body and rekindling the shocked red and white blood vessels into action. He gently repaired the few cuts, bruise and scratches that were most severe, he also sent several bursts up into her arm. Within moments, a loud snap told him her arm had realigned itself in its proper socket.

As the last of Dash's major injuries healed themselves through his magic, Daybreak began to feel lightheaded. He chuckled to himself

"What am I even doing?...Me...Daybreak...I'm saving this girl....Why should such a pointless act of kindness matter to me...It shouldn't...It doesn't...I don't care..." He attempted to convince himself.

He looked down at her face while she slept, warmed by his flame and his power healing her from within. She smiled in her slumber.

"She doesn't even realize she almost died a minute ago...stupid girl"

The light headedness began to flow through his body, he realized what was happening then. Numbness.

"Guess I'm pretty banged up then...and feeding you the magic that should be healing me can't be helping me much either...guess I should get you to the infirmary before I pass out again..."

"Great. Two days in a row I didn't get to start normally."

He stood up, the numb feeling of his limbs being jelly flooded through him like a water trough. He fueled his movements completely by magic, finally removing his hand from Rainbows belly only when he was fully standing up.

"Now...How to carry you?" He spoke more to himself than to her unconscious form.

Every fiber of his being begged him not to use his already aching muscles...but he doubted he could support her through magic any easier at this point. Groaning from the bottom of his heart, he leaned over and scooped his arms under Rainbow Dash's knees and head, then lifted slowly. He wobbled severely at first, not used to carrying others like this, or carrying other at all, but eventually he steadied himself slightly with a minor balance spell.

Not even bothering to give a damn this time, Daybreak blasted a stairwell into the side of the crater they had made that circled its way to the top. He moved with haste, his limbs were already screaming for relief and he longed to just collapse and sleep off his current predicament.

Once he reached the top of the hole, the gasps and deep inhales from the crowd could not be helped. At this point, all he cared about was moving by them and getting to the infirmary as quickly as possible.

"So I can be rid of her" He assured himself.

He almost forgot his backpack and jacket as he walked by, towards the gate. He turned back to the benches and saw several boys attempting to remove his jacket from his bag. They looked to be putting in quite the effort, but the jacket would not budge

"I wonder how long they've been at that futile effort"

He almost pitied them as he winked an activation spell at his items. He turned his back to the scene and continued on his way towards the gate. Once he reached the field exit he began to hear the loud screams of the boys, and even louder snarling coming from behind him. He turned just in time to see three boys (different looking from the ones he'd fought before) sprint by him screaming, all with the back of their pants missing. Moments after, a loud bark alerted him to the return of his items. He turned and was greeted by his backpack with the jacket inside of it. The bag barked happily at him and showed him it's zippered teeth. Within it were shreds of clothing, clearly belonging to the three boys.

"Good boy."

Daybreak smiled and did his best to pat it on the head without tipping over Rainbow in his arms, then he motioned to his shoulder. The bag spit out the cloth from its zipper and climbed the length of Daybreaks back, before settling nicely over his shoulder, its tail-like strap gripped firmly by the hand holding Rainbow's legs.

He smirked, satisfied with his work, at least on the part of making an impression.

"Well...laying low is no longer a possibility around here once word of this gets out...might as well go big or go home, as they say." He smiled mischievously

"I can't wait until class now. Can't be anonymous, might as well be infamous "

Rainbow gave a twitch in his arms, he suddenly felt her hands on his chest, her cool touch gave him a small shiver.

"Right...my shirt kind of got burned to shit out there...I wonder how much of it is actually left?"

"Ahhhhhh! It's gone! How is it completely gone?! Rainbow Dash still has her bra and parts of her shirt...why does only mine burn down to nothing more than two sleeves?! So not fair!". He cried out, flinging the two burnt up sleeves away like trash and retrieving a fresh shirt from his bag, thinner in design and made for work outs...but still tolerable to wear for one day.

He stood, twirling in front of the infirmary's mirror, testing out the shirts ability to stretch with his arms, while Rainbow Dash slept soundly on the bed, off to the side. Most of her wounds had already been taken care of by his magic, but there were a few left for the nurse to mess with, much to her displeasure. Apparently Rainbow Dash made frequent visits to the medical wings almost weekly for a variety of athletic injuries. So frequently in fact, that she had her own bed always waiting for her in case she happened to drop by, or was just skipping out on class. Apparently "Nurse Redheart", as she had insisted he address her, had only caught her doing so once, but suspected there had been other occasions.

Daybreak had expected more from the nurse to be honest, at least on the part of questions. He had told her the basics of what happened but had expected to be questioned more. Instead, the nurse had simply stated that "they were just lucky the headmistress wanted the track redone and now had a good excuse to do so". He still expected to suffer some sort of punishment for setting the track on fire...and blowing a baseball field-sized hole in the football field...and breaking the spell that would have fixed the field for them...aaaaaaaand there was also the windows they had probably shattered from breaking the sound barrier...

"I'm so screwed..."

He looked down at Rainbow Dash, sleeping like a baby, curled up inside the warm blanket the nurse had provided. Staring at her had become his pass time whilst he waited for her to wake, or for one of her friends to come check in on her. Other than the cream colored girl with pink hair from the race, who had already had the nurse on stand-by for them when he arrived in the med wing, no one else had come by. She had only stayed a brief moment once she noticed he was there as well, she had scurried in, checked to make sure Dash wasn't badly injured (luckily this girl probably couldn't sense Dash's insides) and scurried out without a word. He had briefly wondered if that was just her nature or she was scared of him for some reason, he hoped it was the latter since there was only one reason to be frightened of him and he prayed she didn't know who he was. So with nothing to do except wonder and stare, he was left alone with Rainbow for the better part of forty minutes now. He desperately wanted her to wake up at this point

"So I can check for side effects of the magic necklace and...oh who I am fooling...I wanna fucking talk to this crazy girl!"

There! He admitted it, he wanted to talk to her, big deal! She was an interesting person, probably the most interesting one he had met in a long, long time. Plus if she defied any more laws of physics, he might be tempted to actually get to know her...maybe...

He sat down on the edge of the bed, and watched her chest slowly rise and fall with her breathing. He noticed her hair had become tangled and dirty in all the excitement, several chunks of the fake rubber dirt clung to her hair, and now it was down in her face preventing her from taking deep breathes. Gently, he moved the small locks of her hair out of her face. She smiled in her sleep, and stretched out her arms in a yawn, he gave small chuckle

"How cute...She's actually...kinda...pret-waahahahohoha!"

Suddenly her arms were around his waist and her head was on his lap! With the rest of her pressed against his back as though she was trying to wrap around him.

"I'm being snuggled....why am I being snuggled? let go of me...this causes me varying levels of discomfort!"

The blanket was all but forgotten as she held herself against him, attempting to nuzzle her face in his chest. Without the blanket, Daybreak was granted an odd view of her at this angle. With, what was left of her shirt removed for comfort, only her bra remained, and her athletic shorts had been burned even shorter than before, they practically revealed her underwear at this point. From this view, were he a less honorable guy, Daybreak could have easily looked down her bra and had a perfect view of her chest.

But these sort of things had never once appealed to him in life. It wasn't that he didn't find females attractive in their own respect...but they all were the same. Liars, cheaters, manipulators, whores. Everyone of them was as disgusting as their aura in some way or another.

Oddly enough, he didn't think this of the girl currently attempting to use him as a squeaky toy. Her aura, much like his own, was different from anything he had ever felt.

Other than blooming with confidence, it felt absolute and unwavering...like a pond of pure water unpolluted by any evil but overflowing with pride and confidence. Her very presence had an effect on him when he opened himself to her magic. Her power radiated and flowed into him, filling him and pulsing through him like a drug. Drug was a good word for it, cause it was certainly addictive. Even if she hadn't been attractive, her power alone was enough to keep him around at this point, add to that, she was just like him in a lot of ways and radiated confidence...

"Goddess...I'm screwed..." He put his face in his hands and resisted the growing urge to turn and look at her, easily viewable chest.

Somewhere, far away, outside the boundaries of Ponyville, the Everfree, and the hidden castle within the forest, there stood a mansion. Within this mansions many floors, sat a man, an old man by definition. He had lived for over a thousand years, yet his face wouldn't have looked a day over forty were it not for the grey beard that jutted down from his chin, exactly two inches in length and neatly trimmed. His white hair trailed down his neck and to his shoulders, stopping just short of passing them. He wore a tan, robe-like shirt that hung loosely around his upper torso and jutted out behind him, providing him a hood if needed. His pants were baggy and also a dark tannish in color. He sat on a chair crafted to resemble a throne, in the center of a dimly lit room, and behind him, stood a strange and eerie looking full length mirror. The room was held alight only by a few candles scattered about the floor, some also floated through the air, occasionally circling the old mans head head.

His meditation had gone uninterrupted for days, having no reason to move lately and no need for food when he could survive off pure magic for substance. As his spirit traveled Equestria causing mischief where ever a disembodied spirit could, he smiled to himself. But today was different, a shiver traveled down the mans spine, the first in many years. His eyes slowly opened, their yellow glow casting an eerie color about the room. A smile tugged at the side of his lips

"So...He's made another necklace...I wonder who moved his stone heart this time...how very...interesting..."

He chuckled aloud, he knew where he'd be sending his spirit to observe next

"Have a good day at school...son..."

Author's Notes:

Dun Dun Duuuuuuuun! Presenting Diiiiiiiiiiiscord!!! (In case you didn't figure that out already)
In all seriousness though, this chapter was originally fourteen thousand-and-something words long, but due to me not wanting to edit so much in one day, I split it in (sort of) half. The next chapter will be out soon.