Author's Notes:

Yay! New chapter time! I tried to get this out quicker for everyone. Don't know if the next one will be as quick though.
I'd be willing to bet my paycheck no one can guess what the words are that are spoken at the end. Have fun guessing.

With barely anytime to take in the surroundings of the room, Rainbow pulled him through the door and shoved him down onto her bed. While she rapidly began undressing herself, Daybreak had a moment to take in the sights of her many childhood posters. Picture frames lined the walls, all of them with a tiny Rainbow Dash standing in them or to the side holding some kind of trophy. The girl must have been a natural since she was just a little pain in the ass. Among the many frames, there was also a plethora of posters. Just as many Wonderbolt pictures lined the walls as in her current home, but he also saw several old movie posters. Apparently little Dashie had also been a fan of poetry once, since she had several poems by famous writers stapled across her wall. That was something he would have to bare in mind for later, whether to tease her with or use in some romantic way, he did not yet know.

Her room itself, was very identical to the one in her current home. Though this one had a heavy training bag hanging right in the center of it and a small desk with an chair off in its corner that was covered in old sweat rags. He could only imagine how many days and nights Rainbow had spent in this room, training her body to get to the point she was at now. Many items were cloud based or colored, just like the other house. But at least now that he was here he could understand where she'd got it from. Her bed was rather plain compared to the one in her current house, but i was covered in a ginormous cyan blanket, so that was something.

When he finally finished his visual tour of the room, he returned his eyes back to Rainbow Dash. She was half naked, standing there in just her underwear next to the bed, practically modeling herself for his eyes to enjoy.

"I thought it would be more fun if you got to take off the rest yourself." She winked at him, crawling slowly onto his chest.

He felt the heat flood his face as she began undressing him while moving her way up his chest. "Good thinking" He quietly breathed, but she didn't seem to hear him.

She started at his shirt, practically slithering inside it and running her fingers along his chest. Watching him twitch under her fingers, even if it was just because she was tickling him, brought a smile to her face. It encouraged her to pick up the pace, she could feel the heat rising up within her belly at thought of doing this here, in her old room, where she'd spent most of her childhood. Something about that sent shivers running through her body and down into her neithers. She could tell he felt the same way, he was radiating as much heat as she was. Maybe it was what this place was for the both of them. A common ground on which they related as children, even before they met one another.

She went for his shorts next, gripping each side of the fabric with extra vigor and ripping them off his legs, underwear and all. Her hands crawled all over his legs the moment he was free of clothing. Luckily his body didn't need much coxing, just the sight of her half naked form had already gotten him more than hard enough. But she still wanted to touch him. Just because she could. Fingers danced and snaked around his crotch, gripping his erect flesh with extra force. It was enough to elicit a small moan from him, which sent her hormones into overdrive. Sadly, before she could enjoy herself, she felt a pair of cold hands on her hips.

The next moment she was on her belly, and he was practically laying on top of her back. She could feel his dick pressing against her panties, the small bit of fabric that separated her from endless bliss. There was no struggle to resume her spot on top, not yet, she wanted him to have fun first. Sensing her desire, he leaned his lips down next to her ear and planted a small kiss on her cheek. "I thought you wanted me to undress you, sexy girl. Or do you just want to get right to the main event?"

Cold fingers slithered their way underneath her underwear and onto her ass. The icy feeling of him touching her sent her senses into a mad frenzy, even more so when he refused to stop to play with her rear and just moved his fingers down towards her neithers. She felt him just barely graze over her clit with a single digit, and already she was nearly drooling at the mouth with desire. A single finger pushed its way inside of her, while his thumb rubbed around her clit. Lightning blasted into her brain at the sensation and she couldn't hold herself back. A long, girly moan dribbled out from her lips and into his awaiting ears. She heard him chuckle from behind, and felt a sudden, building sense of embarrassment.

"Wow Dashie. One touch and your already moaning. It's only been a day."

Her face flushed. "Sh-shut up! I can't help it, ok! J-just hurry up and get me outta these clothes! I don't wanna wait!"

Another chuckle from behind, and a second finger joined the first inside of her. They started a small rhythm of light thrusts, sending her head spinning.

"Say please." His voice was barely above a whisper.

"Wh-what?" It was hard for her to think.

"Say please Dashie. Say what you want, and ask nicely."

"You're...so mean..." She whimpered under his gentle assault.

"You're the one dating me, so you must like it. Now come on, I'm waiting. You never had issues with this before, why so shy all the sudden? Maybe because you're scared your dad might hear you?"

"D-Don't say weird stuff like that!" Yet she couldn't fully deny that something about this place was making her much more embarrassed then she would normally feel, and much more sensitive.

"Well then, say it. Or I'll just have to keep teasing you."

Light grumbling could be heard beneath him, but there was no way to make out exactly what she was saying. Until she groaned "F-Fine...Asshole...P-please undress me..."

"And? That's all you want?"

Her patience was nearly gone by now. There was an extreme heat, a volcano of desire building between her legs, and she wanted him to fix it right fucking now!

"FOR THE LOVE OF FUCK! WOULD YOU TEAR MY CLOTHES OFF AND FUCK ME ALREADY! GEEZ!"

Her yell was so loud, Daybreak had to worry that Rainbolt might have actually heard. Rainbow seemed to realize this all too late, her hands sprang to her mouth and her face flushed even more. The extreme shyness was way too cute for Daybreak to resist.

"See. That wasn't so hard was it?"

"I WANT something hard already! Stop toying with me and fuck me man!"

The need in her voice was so obvious, Daybreak would have felt bad denying her any longer. "Aw, I just adore hearing you talk like that Dashie."

Her underwear disappeared down her legs with no delay. In one quick motion, he pulled them off and tossed them into the corner of the room somewhere. Sharp pain coursed through her hips as she felt his fingernails dig into her rear and give her a firm smack on the butt. A sharp, raspy moan came out from her that was animalistic in nature and full of desire. She pushed herself up onto her hands and knees, and practically trying to shove herself onto him. But he gripped her ass tight and held her in place. He pushed his dick right up to her soaking entrance, just barely pressing the tip against her flesh, before he leaned up and whispered.

"There's something else I want to hear."

A long moan of impatience and disappointment answered him. She was at her wits end at this point and almost didn't care what it was. "Anything. Just, please!" She breathed.

The sudden burst of relief, of pleasure she felt as he roughly rammed himself into her, was almost too much! She found her limbs struggling, wobbling, to hold up her shaking body!

"Aaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhh...yes..." She drew out her moan. Satisfaction flooding her brain. But she still wanted more.

A pair of warm lips graced the side of her ear, his breath was hot against her skin. "Say those words Dashie...I want to hear it..."

Somehow, she knew. She just knew what he wanted to hear. The knowledge sent warm fuzzies squirming through her neithers. A stupidly happy grin plastered onto her face as she moaned for him.

"I love you. I lo-AH!"

His pace increased before she could say it again! Rapidly his hips began ploughing into hers! His fingers rubbed their way up under her and onto her belly, slowly working their way to her top. The wet sounds of their bodies smacking into one another was an aphrodisiac to her, only increasing her exctasy even more! One sharp squeak escaped her when his hand grasped her breasts through her top! He gripped her hard, pinching at her through the fabric. She arched her back out, making it easier for him to push deeper into her, which he took full advantage of!

It took less than a moment for him to slam himself balls deep into her, grip her bra, and give it a firm yank. He ripped it off her, surely breaking the small bits of plastic holding the back together! But right then, she didn't care! All she cared about was his firm hands now pinching at her nipples and squeezing her breasts!

Her moans became louder, raspier, as she began to lose herself to the pleasure! She forced her head down so she could scream into the pillow! The thought of her dad possibly hearing them was just too embarrassing to think about, she had to hide her face. Daybreak seemed to sense this, and did everything in his power to increase the pitch of her yells, to both her pleasure and dismay.

She felt him lean forward, now laying across her back as he pounded against her hips. She was supporting them both with her wobbling limbs now, while he had more room to move his body. Hot breath on her neck made her hair stand up, she knew what was coming before he did it and tried to brace herself, but failed miserable. His teeth sunk into her flesh, not hard enough to break skin, but with more than enough force to leave a mark and send her head into the clouds! Now she was screaming! Screaming in glee and exctasy and she couldn't control herself! She was practically swallowing the pillow and still she was almost certain her dad would hear them. The thought just brought her closer to the edge!

Daybreaks tongue circled her neck as he gently nibbled on the skin where he'd just bitten. She could feel each little flick of his tongue, every inch that he pushed into her. The feelings were building up, bubbling inside her! She felt ready to burst! She was so close, all she needed was a final push to send her over the edge. She got just what she wanted.

It was as if he could sense how close she was, and knew just what to do to bring her that last inch. Gripping her breast tight in his hands, he roughly pulled back, leaning them both backwards. He sat back on the bed and she practically landed on his dick, riding him! His length went straight up, all the way inside her as he thrust his hips upwards into her! She screamed aloud, no pillow to protect her as he gave her the ride of her life!

For just a moment, his lips broke contact with her skin, and she once again felt his warm breath against her neck. "You did say you wanted to ride me Skittles, but I didn't know you'd scream loud enough for the whole city to hear you do it!"

"Ah! S-Shut up! Ahhhh!" She threw her arms up into the air, stretching them high towards the sky as warm liquid flooded onto Daybreaks hips "C-Cumming! Ahh gods! I'm Cumming!" She didn't quite scream this time, but even still, Daybreak was certain that unless her father had cast some kind of silence spell over his room, one floor was not enough to separate him from that squeal.

Rainbow twitched, arms still stretched high as she rode out her orgasm. Her whole body seemed to shudder and spasm as she came, continuing to wetten his pelvis with her climax. Her arms dropped like lead weights when her high finally ended, and she collapsed back against his chest. A warm kiss found its way to the side of her neck without delay, once she stopped moving and her eyes fluttered. She felt so satisfied, until she realized that Daybreak was still very hard inside her.

"Y-you didn't finish?" Her breath was ragged and tired. He merely shook his head. She gave a half chuckle "I can fix that..."

Almost to his disappointment, she lifted her hips off his, leaving a small trail of liquid that glistening as the last light of day streaked across her room. Though his disappointment was very short lived, as she quickly dropped down to her knees, and took up his dick in her hands. She didn't even waste time stroking him, she went straight for it with her lips.

Her body seemed to find a second wind within itself, as her previous tiredness faded from existence and she went to town on his dick! She looped and rolled her tongue around his shaft, flicking the underside with little whips of her tongue. The light touches barraged his senses. He'd already felt close when Rainbow had finished, but even still, she was bringing him to the edge very quickly. The light licks and flicks ended all at once, when she very suddenly took his entire length into her awaiting lips and aggressively deep throated him! Hips bucking on their own into her throat, he could feel his end was mere seconds away already!

Reaching up, his hands seemed to move on their own as he gripped the back of Rainbows head and roughly pulled her head down! The feeling of her tongue lapping at the underside of his dick and the wide eyed look of surprise she gave him was just the thing he needed to tip him over the edge. Loosing a firm grunt of lust, he gave two more firm thrusts into her lips and held her head down as he unloaded his fluids into her throat! He could hear her grunting as she struggled to swallow it all, but something within him kept her head held down on him until he was completely spent.

A firm pat on the side of his hip told him she needed air, and he finally released her. Despite the sharp gasps for breath that came as soon as she was free, there was no denying the satisfied look she was wearing. She licked at the sides of her lips, and once she finished refilling her lungs with air, chuckled softly.

"I guess, I'm not the only one who got even more into it here. That was a real rough blow job...hehe I think you almost choked me a few times there."

Daybreak had already comfortably collapsed back on the bed, arms and legs sprawled out in every which direction. "Y-Yeah...Sorry Dash. I don't know what came over me..."

Rainbow stood, wobbling to her feet and made for the door. "Well I know what came over me hehe. I sooooo needed that. Maybe you should be that rough all the time from now on...um...I'll be right back. No offense to you man, but I'm gonna go gargle some mouth wash. Doubt you want some tongue after that intense load I just swallowed."

"Mhmm" Daybreak mumbled, clearly not paying attention. Rainbow looked back just before walking out the door, Daybreak was already half-asleep, crawling towards the center of the bed and slowly curling into a ball within covers. Rainbow smiled to herself and flicked out the lights as she quickly pulled on a pajama shirt and pants, then shut the door behind her.

As she made her way down stairs towards the bathroom, Rainbow noticed a slight commotion coming from the kitchen. Peeking around the corner towards the dinner table, she noticed the small table lamp was lit. Sitting hunched over, with a mug of steaming something in his hand, was her father. Rainbow watched him for a moment, wondering what he could be doing back down here, in the dark. He did not stir, or move from his hunched position, so Rainbow slowly approached him from behind. Reaching out, she touched her fingers to her fathers shoulder.

"Dad? You ok-?"

He sat up, fast as lightning "AH! What!?"

Rainbow shrieked and jumped back! Rainbolt quickly looked around "Oh...OH! Rainbow, sorry I must have dosed off."

Annoyed by the minor heart attack he'd just caused, her voice failed to mask her lingering aggression. "What are you doing down here dad? I thought you went to bed."

After a long sip from his mug, he slowly turned to face her. "Yeah I did...but there was a little too much commotion going on for me to actually fall asleep. So I came in here for some coffee."

"Er...um..." Rainbow wasn't sure how to respond to that revelation. She could feel the color heating up her face, but it was too dark for her dad to possibly notice. Nevertheless, it had been a long time since she felt like she'd been caught by him doing something wrong. The feeling of embarrassment welling up in her belly wouldn't go away either.

After a long pause between them, Rainbow heard her father sigh and say "I can hardly scold you anymore can I? But seriously, a silence charm was too much to ask?"

"Sorry..." She really wasn't sure what else to say.

After another moment of silence, Rainbolt drew in breath "So...What's he like? I mean really like?"

For some reason Rainbows face flushed more than before "I-I'm not sure what you mean dad."

"I mean Daybreak. What's he like. It's not like I know him very well. But I could tell from what I was (unfortunately) forced to hear, that you care a lot about him. To be honest honey, before this I might have...thought you swung the other way."

"Dad!" She smacked her palm to her face. "Ugh! Don't go saying weird stuff like that! Geez..." She came and sat down in the chair opposite her father. "Anyways...I guess if I had to describe him as a whole...He's kind of an ass, but I can tell that he's a good person....He hates just about everybody besides me and like, a few others, but I can hardly blame him after everything that's happened. I don't think he wants revenge for what happened when he was a kid though."

She heard her dad sigh "That's a relief. I always wondered how he turned out, if he was still alive. It's almost a comfort to know that Celestia turned out to be wrong."

Rainbow sat up a little straighter all of the sudden. That gave her an idea. "Hey dad?...What happened back then? Why was Daybreak exiled?"

Even in the dim light of the table lamp, it was obvious that this question caused her dad to shift in some discomfort. "Why do you want to know that?"

Rainbow hesitated. "Because...whenever Daybreak talks about it to anyone, he always talks like he was exiled at birth, and he did nothing to deserve it. Dad, me and my friends have known Princess Celestia for years. I've always thought she was a strong, just, and fair ruler. It goes against everything I've known to think that she might be capable of doing that to an innocent baby. Even if he was half Discord, she wouldn't do that would she?...But the other day, when Daybreak saw Celestia while we were visiting Twilight in the hospital...the anger I saw going between them was real. I can't quite describe it. Not just because of the magic flying around, but because they both clearly hated each other. I don't wanna believe it, but lately I'm more and more convinced that it's true." Rainbolt could feel his daughter looking right at him. "You were around back then. You know what happened right, or at least some of it? Please tell me. I have to know!"

Rainbow was clearly struggling to keep her voice low enough so as not to let it carry to her room. Rainbolt didn't quite know what to say to her. "We were all told never to talk about it to the younger ones. Just to advise them to stay away from him. Use Discords name to keep people away."

Rainbows grip was putting a small dent in the table as she tightened around its edge. Bits of energy were beginning to leak from her skin and fizzle along her arm, giving her a radiant blue glow in the light of the candle. "That doesn't matter anymore dad! Everyone in Ponyville knows who he is! Everyone at school knows! He was attacked because of it!" She took a deep breath. "Dad. I have to know."

The candlelight shown on Rainbolt as she slowly shook his head. "I wish I wasn't the one to have to tell you this Dash."

"Tell me" She breathed.

Her dad looked up, she felt him look at her eyes. "Ok then...It's true. Yes. Princess Celestia ordered him exiled. Not immediately at birth though. I think he was one or two when it happened, since it wasn't until about two years after the war ended that he was exiled. The nurses in the castle had probably tended to him until that point. I don't think Celestia involved herself, she seemed very...repulsed when she spoke to the crowds outside. One day she just called everyone in the city to the square and made the announcement. Until then I doubt anyone even knew he existed..."

She hadn't wanted to believe it. She had wanted Daybreak to be wrong in some way. But now, hearing it from her own father, she wasn't sure how she could ever look at Celestia the same way again. The table edge cracked as her hand gripped down into it. Red spots began to appear in her gaze as she wobbled in her chair, struggling to control the bubbling pool of anger that had suddenly made itself known within her gut. But then her father spoke again, and his voice was suddenly deeper, and more serious

"That's not the full story though."

The red haze in her head seemed to fade a bit "What?"

Another sigh escaped him, this one long and drawn out. "Rainbow. I don't want you to start doubting Princess Celestia because of this. I did. It's how we ended up moving. After encountering Daybreak at his young age back then, I knew something was wrong. Somehow Celestia had made a mistake, but there was nothing I could do. So I moved us. Whatever reason I gave you back then was probably just an excuse I made up to keep you from asking questions."

Rainbow had stood from her chair, and was now over by the sink, leaning her head just above the faucet. "You couldn't try telling her what you thought? Doesn't she hold open court once a week? Twilight told me that's for issues just like this? For the people to speak up."

Rainbolt just shook his head "Daybreak was a strictly banned subject. Any questions about Discords son to either Princess were overlooked and suppressed. Since we had to write down our questions and hand them to her guards before asking, it was pretty easy to regulate. Besides, like I said, I'm sure there was something else going on."

"I still don't understand. What do you mean? What else could there be? You just told me everything Daybreak said was true." With her head over the faucet, Rainbow turned on the sink and began soaking her hands in cold water to cool down...they were shaking.

"It is true that she banished him. But I don't think there was no reason behind it." His voice grew more somber by the moment. As if certain things were only now beginning to make sense to him. Rainbow did not seem to share his insight though. She practically scoffed at him

"What thing could a two year old possibly have done that was so bad he deserved to be banished and treated like garbage!" Her voice was shaking.

"I don't know Dashie. That's the truth. But there was something she didn't tell us. The only reason I know, is because of the way the guards treated him on the streets. Did Daybreak ever tell you what they were ordered to do?"

Rainbow nodded "Uh huh. If I remember right, they were only supposed to keep people from killing him right? Nothing else?"

"Yeah. Doesn't that seemed odd to you? Think about it honey. If she just wanted him banished, why would she force the guards to protect him at all? Why not just banish him and be done with it? Celestia isn't some evil sadist Dash. She wouldn't have a child constantly suffering just for some sick amusement or to spite Discord. There has to be a reason the guards were supposed to keep him alive."

Rainbow finally stopped running her hands through the water and turned off the sink. Turning back around, she faced her father in the moonlight. "Do you know?"

His head shook, slowly "No. But the realization and hope of this is what has kept my flicker of faith in her all these years as a ruler."

Rainbow balled her fists again, but this time, not in anger. "Well, I think know someone who might have the answer. If there is some kind of...I don't know, hidden conspiracy or something about Daybreak, all the Princesses probably know about it right?"

Guessing at his daughters plan, Rainbolt chuckled sadly. "If your thinking of Princess Twilight, remember, according to what you've told me about her she hadn't even met Celestia yet when this all occurred. Honestly I doubt she told her anything even after she became a Princess."

But Rainbow was already one step ahead "Actually dad, I didn't mean Twilight. If Daybreak couldn't figure it out after all these years, then I doubt Twilight knows anything. I've seen how he can play Twilight like a harp, if she knew something, he'd already know for sure. I'm willing to bet only the original princesses know. Princess Celestia and Luna won't say anything, but there is another princess from back then isn't there? Looks like I'm taking a trip to the north...and she just might talk if I take Twilight with me too. In her current state, Twilight will definitely score some sympathy points with her loving sister-in-law."

In the dark, Rainbow heard her dad laughing quietly. "You've become pretty conniving honey. I'm guessing I can attribute that to him?"

Rainbow happily nodded "Though, I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not." Her head slowly inched towards the stairs, filled with a sudden sense of longing.

Rainbolt followed her gaze, luckily for him the lamp light was on her eyes, so he could see where she was looking with ease.

"Go ahead honey. We've talked enough tonight. If you two are 'finished' for the night, I'll go back to bed."

"Ehehe...yeah..." She rubbed the back of her head "Sorry about that again. Um, do me a favor and don't mention to him you heard us, ok?"

Rainbolt laughed, but agreed nonetheless.

"Thanks dad. Love you. Night."

She left a smoke cloud in her wake as she bolted back towards the stairs. She made it about halfway up, before stopping. Spinning around and cranking out her neck, she spied the bathroom light shining into the hallway below.

"Hey dad!" She called out. "You in the bathroom?"

"Nope, still in the kitchen honey."

"Oh. Ok." Back down the stairs she went.

Down on his knees, bent over with his face in the the toilet, Daybreak felt his whole world spinning in his head. Another surge of sick crawled up his throat, his insides heaved, and he spilled more of his stomach into the bowl before him. His hand fluttered weakly up to the seat handle, flushing his stomach acid away. He felt his breath stalling, his body was refusing to take in air. Over and over the image replayed in his brain, as if trying to find some excuse for it to be just a coincidence.

"H-How...how could it be her...it's not possible..."

A sharp knock at the door broke through his thoughts. "Daybreak...Are you ok in there? I heard...well, I know what that sounds like...Do you want some water?"

His eyes drifted to the faucet less than a foot away.

"Why would she ask that? She has to know there's a faucet in here."

His head was to hay to think properly. "She knows..Somehow she knows. She saw the book and saw the page it was turned to. Somehow she knows what I did!"

Of course he knew that was impossible, but somehow that wasn't a comfort to him. He struggled up to the sink, propelling himself up by his elbows as he turned on the faucet. He repeatedly splashed water into his face, while croaking back a response.

"N-no thanks! I'm fine. I think I just...ate something weird earlier...I'll be out soon Rainbow."

There was a brief pause, then. "Ok...I'll wait for you in my room. If you take too long I'll be back you know!"

"Yeah. Thanks." Her footsteps slowly faded away as he heard her ascend the stairs.

Slowly he drooped his head back down into the rising water. It was warm, a welcome feeling to contrast the blood freezing chill creeping through his body. He plugged the drain and just stayed that way for a moment. Letting the warm water run over his face and ears helped calm him. He had half a mind to take a shower, but he knew if he did something like that, Rainbow would definitely appear in here shortly after. That wasn't what he needed right now. He couldn't be around her. He needed to think first. Think about what he'd seen.

When she'd left the room and gone down stairs, she'd been gone for some time. At first he'd thought about simply falling asleep and awaiting her return. But he'd ended up being more curious about some of her other family photos. So the book had made its way back into his hands, and he'd begun flipping through it. Most of it was what to be expected in a photo album; a bunch of happy photos, a bunch of cute photos, photos with her teachers, at school, with her friends. He'd found her whole childhood in that book. But not one of the pictures had her mother in it. That was, until he turned back to the very front. He'd not thought to start there, since the page Rainbolt had turned to seemed to be Rainbows youngest years, which was what interested him. He'd just assumed her mother would appear and he'd be able to pick her out.

Well he was right, unfortunately. When he turned to the beginning, he found what he was looking for, in just one picture. A full family portrait, with all of them together. It seemed Rainbolt had taken all the photos that had Rainbows mother in them and stored them in one area of the album. It had only taken the first image for him to realize who the woman was. The memory was still fresh in his mind from the Mirror after all. He just couldn't see how it could be true. Yet as he looked down at the page, and the woman's frozen eyes stared back at him, he knew there could be no doubt. They were the same as Rainbows. That beautiful, fiery magenta he'd fallen for.

"I killed her mother..." He had to whisper it aloud, making it real.

The truth sang across his brain. A terrible symphony of realization. It struck across his face like an open palm. All at once he found himself chuckling, laughing! He was struggling to hold it in! His body shivered, begging for release. It built in his throat, and he just couldn't hold it back! With no other option he plunged his head back into the sink and drowned the laughter away. Yet the bubbles that escaped to the surface might have well carrier the sound with them. For there was nothing he could do once he removed his face from the water, but keep repeating it to himself.

"I killed her mom...I did it...I killed her...I took her away from them..."

Shivers returned and he collapsed to the floor, curling in on himself. His hands desperately clutched at his shoulders, to stop him from thrashing on the floor, but it was no use. His body refused to obey him. Again, he felt a strong lurch in his gut. This time he barely made it to the toilet before stomach bile burst from his lips. It burned his throat and mouth, but he didn't care. The pain in his esophagus was nothing compared to the shattering inside his chest.

How could he face Rainbow with this knowledge? How could he face her father? These two people had shaped his life for the better...and he'd torn their family in half. More bile spilled from his lips. How did he even still have the ability to vomit anything else?

"I have to leave. I have to get away from this place."

But he couldn't just walk out in the middle of the night. He'd learned his lesson from before. Plus Rainbow would only go after him the moment she knew he was gone. More unnecessary stress on her. But still he had to get away. He wasn't even sure he could look at Rainbow right now without being sick again.

"I have to though"

He knew he had to stay. As much as he also knew he had to get away, he had to stay. He had to go back up to that room. Had to go to sleep, and had to wake up. He had to try and be normal until they left tomorrow...then he could get away and figure out how he wanted to handle this.

"But first..."

He wafted his hand over his head. Little bits of green, sparkling dust fluttered down from his palm and onto his open skin. A briefly warm sensation washed over his body. In an instant his upset insides felt almost normal again. He knew that spell would not last forever though, it was little more than magical stomach calming medicine. So he also cast a sleeping spell on himself. Something that would take effect, strengthening and weakening throughout the night so he could sleep normally. He didn't wanna disturb Rainbow during the night to the sound of him waking from a nightmare. For he knew he was sure to have them now.

"Now...I just gotta go to her without breaking down again."

That was likely to be the hardest part. The image of her mother, of Firefly, refused to leave his brain. So happy and healthy in the family portrait, yet charcoal and ash in his memories. He smacked his palms to the sides of his cheeks, splashed water on his face, and psyched himself up, before slowly opening the door and proceeding back upstairs.

The whole house was dark now. No hallways lights, no kitchen light, not even the moon seemed to want to grace him with some guidance right now. It was ok though, the atmosphere of the home fit his mood. He slowly trudged his way up the stairs, back towards Rainbows room. there was no light coming from underneath the door, so he assumed she must have fallen asleep waiting for him to come back. Which was why, he was not prepared for the greeting he received when he opened the door.

Two arms shot out from the darkness and embraced him with vigor, roughly pulling him inside. He heard Rainbows breath in his ear and she swiftly pulled him back towards the bed.

"It's about time. I was beginning to think you'd fallen asleep in there. Are you feeling better?"

Her question escaped her just as she practically pushed him back into the bed. He forced himself not to hesitate in responding "Uh, yeah. Much better. Like I said, I'm pretty sure I just ate something weird at Discord's. You know all that wacky stuff he had out. Bound to be something in there that wasn't made to be ingested."

It was only then that he realized something very important. Rainbow wasn't wearing any clothes again. He realized as he felt her press herself against him, and whisper against his ear. "Are you feeling well enough to have a round two? Talking with my dad about you put me right back in the mood, and this time I actually put up a silencing spell. So ya know, I can scream your name as loud as you want now." She whispered her last words so lustfully into his ear, it managed to send shivers down his spine.

"Rainbow..." He managed to croak, but she silenced him with a finger on his lips. In the darkness, he felt her other hand work its way down to his underwear. There was nothing in her way, since the only thing he managed to throw on before sprinting down to the bathroom was his boxers. She'd pulled them down to his ankles before he managed to force out anymore words, and was back on top of him before he could protest.

Fingers wrapped around his dick with ferocity, and he felt her nipples pressing into his chest as she laid down over him. Luckily, despite the overwhelming sex appeal now groping him, his entire body seemed in agreement for once. Rainbow seemed to sense this when she touched him and he did not react, at all. So she stopped, though not without an obvious sound of disappointment, and rolled over next to him. Warm arms wrapped around his body and pulled him to her, forcing him practically nose to nose with her.

"Still not feeling well?"

All he could do was nod his head and breathe out "Y-yeah...sorry..."

"No prob dude. I get it. Judging by the sounds I heard from the bathroom earlier, I doubt you've got the energy anyways."

She nuzzled her nose to his and planted a quick kiss on his lips, before adding "Eh, I can taste it, yuck! Yeah, you definitely ate something bad." She playfully poked his chest, he tried to respond, but only managed a croak. Understanding, at least a little, Rainbow pulled the covers up to them and wrapped herself around his chest. "Ok dude, I get it. Bed time."

One more kiss for his cheek and Rainbow laid her head on his chest. "Goodnight"

Daybreak stared at the ceiling as he watched Rainbow drift off to sleep. He ran his fingers through her hair, scratching at her head to hasten her decent into dreams. Meanwhile his eyes remained frozen open, refusing to allow him rest. All he could do was think. Think on his choices, think on his situation, on what he could do now, what he could do tomorrow. About how could he continue to be the person Rainbow loved while feeling the way he did now, knowing the things he did now. And...about how much he hoped his sleeping spell would kick in soon...

The next morning was hardly any better for him. Although he managed to sleep the entire night without waking up, when he awoke in the morning, he found the sheets were soaked with sweat. He wasn't that surprised, he could feel the lingering nightmares of the night just beyond his grasp. He repeatedly apologized to Rainbow, but she just laughed it off and said she thought he'd wet the bed at first and was looking forward to teasing him about it. She simply tossed her sheets in the wash and told him to forget about it. She herself, seemed unusually slower than usual, her movements as she got dressed and moved about the room were sluggish, and there was a tint of bloodshot to her eyes. She must have had a rough dream or two that night as well.

Luckily she was still convinced he wasn't feeling well and was some kind of ill. This made it easier to fend her off when she was acting frisky. Like when he went for a morning shower. He knew it was coming, but still managed to be caught off guard when he closed his eyes to soap his face, reopened them and found her standing there in front of him. He gave a slight jump at her appearance.

"I may need to put a bell on you if this keeps up." He spoke shakily.

Rainbow merely gave him a light smile back, before pressing herself against him. At her touch he felt the pain in his heart return, and his stomach began to twist inwards. Yet the sensation of her cool skin, against him with the warm water, was undeniably pleasant. Enough so that he managed out a smile. She could still tell though, and only wrapped him in a hug.

"You're trembling Daybreak...Still not feeling very well huh?"

He nodded while she took up the soap bar, pressing it lightly to his chest. "That's all it is right? You're feeling ill? Right?" She slowly moved the bar around his skin, lightly frothing up and rubbing the suds into his chest.

The uncertainty in her voice was not well hidden, there was no doubt she suspected something was wrong.

"Of course Dash. Why would there be anything else?"

She looked up at him, their eyes locked. It was hard for him to hold her gaze. When she was close to him like this, with the water running down her skin the way it was, she looked so beautiful. She almost looked innocent, and helpless. His hands shook, knowing he should reach out and embrace her, pull her against him and assure her there was nothing on his mind. But the mere thought just brought him the image of her mothers ashen corpse, and he found himself struggling not to push her away. Rainbows eyes held his gaze, kept him frozen in place as he attempted to look away.

"You were crying out in your sleep Daybreak. You groaned, tossed and turned, and woke me up several times."

The warm water was suddenly doing nothing to fend off the chill of guilt creeping up his spine. "Sorry..." He barely whispered above the sound of falling water, but Rainbow wasn't finished yet.

"I tried to wake up you a bunch of times, but you didn't react at all...Even when I literally pulled your eyelids open and yelled in your face you didn't move...I may not be as smart as Twilight or Sunset, but I'm not stupid Daybreak. I know what a sleeping spell looks like. Why did you do that?"

Her hands, and the soap within them, had reached his back, and were now lightly coursing over his scars. Something about her touching him there, sent a small jerk of electricity through him. It wasn't pain, not exactly, but it set his whole form on edge, half expecting pain to follow.

"I'm sorry Rainbow..."

"Hmm..."

She looked away from him now, still rubbing the soap over his back with one hand, and caressing his skin with the other. Her gentleness was suspect, he could feel an added tenderness that felt unnatural from her. Almost forced.

"What?" He had to know what she was thinking. But when she looked back up at him, he wished he'd just stayed silent.

"That's what you said in your sleep...You cried it so many times. You just kept saying it. 'I'm sorry Rainbow, I'm sorry Rainbow'...What are you sorry about?"

It was like his heart was breaking inside him. He wished they weren't in the shower, wished she had clothing on and they were anywhere else but this house. He couldn't stand how she looked right now, this close to him. So vulnerable and beautiful. He forced his eyes away from hers.

"I really...I just can't right now Dash...ok...I'm sorry."

"Stop saying that!" Her voice probably came a lot sharper than she meant it to. Daybreak winced, and tried to back up, but the showers back prevented him from moving away from her. Rainbow looked down at her feet. "I'm not mad...I just...you whimpered that all night. It took forever for me to make you stop and I barely got any sleep because of it. If you don't wanna tell me that's fine, but don't say that anymore ok? Not until you tell me what's bothering you."

"Ok..." He wanted to hug her, but just couldn't muster the will.

"Does it..." She placed both her hands on his chest, the soap discarded in the rising water beneath them. "...have something to do with the photo album last night?"

His whole body tensed, and he realized before he could stop himself that Rainbow felt it through her fingertips. That was clever.

"Why...?"

She shook her head. "When I went back to the room I saw the way you dropped the book. You're way to neat with your things for that be normal. Even if you were about to vomit, you'd have put it back nicely."

He almost managed to chuckle, almost. "Twilight would be proud...that's very observant...but please...I don't wanna talk about it right now."

"Ok." She breathed

He was shocked. "Ok? You're not gonna force me to tell you like before?"

Again, he felt her arms wrapped around him, pulling him close and tight against her chest. "No. Things are different than back then. I know now, there are things you shouldn't tell me unless you want to. I was wrong then to force you. I did because I couldn't stand to see you crying in your sleep. But it was still wrong of me. This time, I'll wait until you feel up to it."

"Thank you." He didn't really know what else to say.

A simple nod was all he got in reply. Then she reached back and turned off the water, he knew this was her way of saying shower time was over. He waited, allowing her to step out first. Once she was free of the tub, she bent down under the sink and reached for a towel. As she flashed him a perfect view of her rear, he found a familiar feeling sweep through his face, and his skin flushed.

"Well, that's a relief."

He tore his eyes away to find Rainbow looking over her own shoulder, watching him stare at her. She had a satisfied smirk plastered on her cheeks. "I was worried for a minute there, that maybe you were losing interest in me. At least I know that isn't what's wrong." She gave her rump a shake, before covering herself up with the towel.

"It'll be waiting for when you're feeling better."

He swallowed the lump in his throat, nodding as she threw him the other towel. Satisfied, and clearly devoid of worry now, Rainbow exited and headed back towards her room.

Daybreak shut the door behind her and sat down on the edge of the tub for a moment. Leaning over, he placed his head in his hands. "What am I gonna do?"

"She's too clever for her own good...somehow she'll figure it out eventually if I don't tell her...then it will be worse. If it can even be any worse. What should I do? I can't bring myself to tell her. But I need to tell someone. I need someone to tell me what to do. Maybe Sunset? I could tell her. She wouldn't judge me, she's done horrible things in her past. Maybe she can tell me how I can deal with this. Actually...that sounds like a good idea...I'll just tell Rainbow I need to retrieve something from her and we'll split up on the way back home. Yeah."

He stood, sure of his plan. Quickly wrapping the towel around himself, he opened the door and forced his voice to sound normal.

"Hey Rainbow!" He called up the stairs as he began his ascent to her room.

"Yeah?" The door to her room opened, and she poked her head out.

"I wanna go see Twilight after we leave!"

"Wait! What?! Why did I say that!?"

Before he could correct himself, Rainbow called back to him. "Ok! I was thinking about stopping by the hospital anyways. For that stupid check-up Discord told me to get!"

"Great...Too late now..."

"Y-Yeah...Ok, we'll go together!"

"What the fuck..."

"How did this happen?"

That question preoccupied his mind for the entirety of the morning. From breakfast, to the farewell with Rainbolt, to the trip to the hospital, Daybreak could still not understand how those words had breached his lips. He'd known what he wanted to say, and what he should do. What would have made sense to do. Yet somehow, instead of going to see Sunset Shimmer and figuring out what to do with himself, he was now walking through the front doors of the Ponyville Hospital to go and see Twilight.

It wasn't that seeing Twilight was a bad thing. He'd promised to come back here and read to her anyways, but now just didn't feel like the time. Though at this point, he'd do anything to get away from Rainbow until he was sure about what he could do. Perhaps than, it was fortunate that she actually wanted to receive the check-up that his father had recommended. He would be free to speak to Twilight openly, and perhaps he could benefit from her advice.

"I must have fallen truly far from my old self to be seeking advice from Twilight."

The uncertainty of whether the change from his old self to current only ever seemed to reveal itself when he was confronted with Twilight. Sadly the reason behind that made too much sense to him.

As both he and Rainbow approached the front desk, he allowed Rainbow to set up her appointment first, before revealing tothe nurse that he was here to see Twilight. The nurse did manage to catch him off guard though. Informing him that was already on the list for that day and there was no need to check-in. As he inquired why that was, the young woman informed him that Princess Twilight had filled a spot for him everyday since she checked-in until the time she would check out. He was sure he saw Rainbows eye twitch at this information, and gave her a calming pat on her head before heading towards the stairs. They agreed to meet back up in the lobby after her check up, which wasn't likely to take much longer than his visit with Twilight. After confirming the start time of her check-up, Daybreak bid her farewell and made for the twelfth floor.

It only took two flights of stairs before he became fed up and simply teleported the rest of the way. A sincere aggravation gripped at his mind as he reached the entrance to her room, he had to stop and take a breath, so as not to enter the room in an even more sour mood. He reached for the handle as a familiar voice crept up from underneath the door, turning the nob just as the sound reached his ears.

"Please get well soon Princess Twilight."

"THAT VOICE!" He saw red.

His thoughts of calm thrown to the wind, Daybreak stepped back and pulled on the handle with vigor, ripping the door open quite loudly! There, standing next to Twilight, was one of the last people on the earth he could have wanted to see right then.

The boy turned to face him as Daybreak made his loud entrance, and upon laying eyes on his face, there could be no doubt. It was him! The spiky tar black hair, the yellow lightning streak down the center, his pale white skin. Stormchaser looked exactly the same as before, and if he was not mistaken, he was wearing the same dark clothing and pants that he'd had on the last time they'd met. Daybreak had clearly interrupted him in the middle of a farewell, since he was still halfway through setting a bouquet of flowers in vase next to Twilight's bed.

Daybreaks hands ignited before Stormchaser had even fully turned around. Opening his palm in a choking motion, Daybreak narrowed his vision on Stormchasers throat. Energy appeared from nowhere around the young mans jugular, and in an instant, he found himself yanked from Twilight's bedside and flung into Daybreaks awaiting grip. His fingers closed around the boys throat with a renewed feeling of satisfaction. The look of shock and surprise on his face brought a shiver worthy feeling of pleasure coursing through his veins.

"Hello Stormy. Long time, no see."

His fingers tightened, choking the air and any possible response, from his throat. His knees buckled less than a moment later, and he suddenly found himself only held up by his enraged adversaries grip. Daybreak felt his vision grow hazy with the imagined thoughts of what he could to this boy right now. His legs, no, his whole body was shaking with barely restrained glee.

"Not so fun is it? Being on the receiving end of that feeling of helplessness. You DO feel that right? That's the air swiftly fleeing from your shaking body. Do you have any idea how easy it would be for me right now, to crush your throat like a walnut? I doubt even that would satisfy the craving I have inside me right now. You deserve so much worse..."

"Daybreak."

A blade of realization sliced through him. For a moment he had forgotten Twilight was even in the room. Nothing else had mattered. But he remembered now. She sounded so calm, unnaturally so. Especially for addressing him like this.

She didn't needed to say anything else. Daybreaks grip loosened, he dropped Stormchaser. The boys feet touched the ground and buckled under his weight. Daybreak watched with a lingering satisfaction as he struggled back to his feet and slowly backed out the door wordlessly. He narrowed his gaze after the boy. "Pray to the gods I never see you again."

Without a word in response, Stormchaser hurried from the room, swiftly shutting the door behind him. Daybreak gave a cheerful grunt as he approached Twilight's bedside. Both for the amusing reaction he'd just received, and the decor he'd failed to notice beforehand. On the desk next to Twilight's bed, where Stormchaser had previously been setting the bouquet, was about a hundred other sets. The entire desk was overflowing with flowers of varying assortments and colors. So much so that they had begun to pile up next to the desk as well. It seemed reasonable to guess that everyone in the town might have bought her flowers. He was suddenly glad his last minute gift was a little more original, though not by much.

"I suppose you're going to scold me now. Right Princess?" He chuckled as he approached her bed.

"No. I knew you wouldn't permanently damage him." Again, she was so calm. Totally different from the last time they'd seen each other.

He laughed openly. "Then why did you stop me?"

He watched her lips curl into a smile, which was somehow more unnerving with the bandages covering her eyes. "You wanted to scare him right? If you'd simply let him go, the fear he felt would have only been temporary. He would have gone home, and reasoned out that you were only trying to scare him. But by me telling you to release him, he never got to see what you would do. That leaves doubt. There's nothing more terrifying than the unknown. Right?"

Even as he sat himself on her bedside, he still had trouble believing those words had actually come from her mouth.

"Is this the same good girl Twilight I spoke to the other day? Or did you get replaced by a much more awesome Changeling while I was gone?"

Her smile remained, lingering without so much as a twitch of doubt. "Who ever said I'm a good girl in private?"

"Woah!...Is this Twilight?"

That statement had caught him so off guard, he actually didn't know what to say back. Twilight detected this and brought her hand to her lips with a giggle.

"I've been waiting to make you do that...speechless is such a rare thing for you." She leaned back in the bed against her pillows, the sheets just barely lowering down her body. It was enough for Daybreak to tell she was at least wearing a bra this time. That made it much easier to sit close to her without worrying about unforeseen complications. She patted her hand further up the bed, practically commanding him to sit next to her. She followed up by scooting over a significant amount to make room for him.

"Come over here, no sight means I get to poke you to know you're there."

Her playful manner in which she brought that up completely disarmed him. Enough that he complied without argument. The moment he scooted next to her, she jabbed him in the sides, right in his rib cage. He jumped, she giggled. "There you are...Hah..."

She reached over and pressed a button on the side of the arm rests, a moment later the railing on either side of the bed slid down and out of the way. This allowed him to sit up and swing one leg over the side, making it more like he was sitting with her rather than laying down.

"Though this would be better for you. Wouldn't want someone getting the wrong idea now, would we?...Thanks for coming Daybreak."

There was the smallest hint of sadness in her voice this time. "Sorry I didn't come back sooner Sparky. I've been...busy..."

Twilight's ears twitched, and her mouth drooped. "What's bothering you?"

"What?" Again she caught him unawares.

She pointed to her ears. "Without my sight, I thought I'd become next to helpless. So Sunset brought me a spell book full of secrets to enhance my other senses extremely to make up for my missing eyes."

"Huh...Why didn't I think of that?" It was actually a pretty good idea. He wanted to kick himself for not thinking of it himself, but Twilight just laughed.

"I know why. Cause you've always been extreme with your ways of fixing problems. Like trying to give me your eyes with forbidden magic. I can't believe I was so surprised by that at the time. It's just like you...Remember when we were kids and Celestia took us the the castle greenhouse garden?"

He did. And he remembered the outcome very well too.

"Yeah...It was some kind of training session right? The place was overrun with magically enhanced, super sized, Venus Fly traps and Strangler Figs right?"

Twilight nodded. "Princess Celestia wanted to see how we would solve the problem. But in the midst of me showing her all my calculations for the reduction spell on my hand held blackboard...you burned the whole place down."

To his surprise, she actually giggled after speaking.

"Princess Celestia got so mad. I'd never seen her face so red. Then you tried to scold her for bringing me to such a dangerous assignment...what was it you said?" Twilight held up her index finger, mimicking the way he'd spoken to Celestia back then "This kind of assignment is too dangerous for someone at her level Celestia. I'd think you would treat you're prized pupil with more care".

Daybreak was in awe. She'd even sounded sarcastic like he did back then. Yet again she giggled at his wordless response.

"Back then...I got so frustrated with you after Celestia left us alone. I think I called you a stuck up show off. I thought you were just trying to make me look back in front of Princess Celestia...But that wasn't it was it? You were just trying to protect me."

For some reason he was embarrassed. He felt guilty for thinking it, but he was glad Twilight couldn't see his face flush right then. He remained silent, unsure of what he should say to her. Again she continued when he stayed quite.

"I suppose I really shouldn't be surprised should I? That's all you've ever done. Try and protect me. All those times when we were kids that I thought you were just trying to one up me, all those times you insisted on going on Princess Celestia's little assignments on your own. All those times you were so harsh on me during magic duels...You were just keeping me from getting hurt...And you did something similar when you left me all alone and never came back..."

There it was. She'd struck just the right cord in him, at just the right time. It was like she knew he was vulnerable right now, like she sensed it somehow. Tears welled up in his eyes and refused to stay put. He tried to reach up and remove them stealthily, but Twilight's hand beat him to his cheeks. He froze in dread and fear as her face came way too close to his. Close enough he could feel her breath, he thought she was going to try and kiss him again, and was ready to literally teleport across the planet if she did. But she didn't. She simply wiped the two streams of water away with her fingers, and placed her forehead against his.

"I'm sorry Daybreak. Even when I had my eyes, I was blind. I was blinded by my feelings for you. I felt betrayed and cheated when you left the way you did. Cheated out of something I really wanted." Her finger tightened around her bed sheets "Even when I cornered you at school and you threw the reason at me. It didn't sink in. You knew things I just...didn't. About the world, and people, and about your magic necklace. I was so blind...some Princess of Friendship...I guess this is my karma huh?"

He couldn't just sit silently anymore. Much rougher than he intended, he grabbed her hand and held it tight in both of his.

"If this is karma for what you, then where's mine? I've done things you couldn't even dream of. Not because you're not smart enough to think of them, you're just not a bad person."

Her other hand overlapped on top if his two. "There it is again. I can hear it in your voice same as earlier. You're, sad...What's bothering you?"

There was a brief pause. Then an inhale of breath.

"That spell might prove annoying if I can't hide things from you anymore Sparky...Do you really want to know?"

She nodded. "Only if you want to tell me. I'll help you however I can."

He chuckled "Now that sounds like a Princess of Friendship...You have to promise me something first though. What I say stays between us. Only us. You, and me. Understand?"

The blush she'd gathered from his brief compliment faded at the realization of what he meant, but she nodded nonetheless. "I promise...just us. Please tell me."

"Well..." He wasn't exactly sure where to begin. "I took Rainbow to meet Discord earlier, not as Discord, but as my father."

Even with the bandages on, it was obvious her brow was trying to scrunch. "Oh. I could see how anything coming from this might bother you...How did it go?"

"About as well as you might think...probably a little better than that actually. Point is, afterwards, we decided that since I introduced her to my dad..."

"That you should go meet hers." She finished for him.

"Yeah..."

"Well that doesn't seem so bad, certainly not compared to Discord." She sounded confused, but also like she was prompting him to say more. He obliged.

"At first it wasn't, in fact, it was going better than I could have hoped for. It turned out he was someone I knew from my childhood, someone who was kind to me when I was still living on the streets...It's what happened afterwards that ruined things. At least for me."

He went on to explain everything to her. Originally he'd planned on being vague about a few things, since he wasn't sure how much she might judge him, unlike Sunset. But once he started, he found himself spilling his fears and thoughts to her. All his worries flooded out of him and onto her like a broken dam begging to be repaired. Twilight was silent throughout almost the entire story, with only minor interjections here and there asking for more detail where he didn't want to add any. He only had to stop once, when she prompted him to go into a more thorough account of what exactly had occurred the day of Rainbows mother. Bile formed in his throat and he thought he'd be sick, but he kept it down and forced himself to relive the gory details once more. The only thing he didn't tell her was that he had actually intended to go visit Sunset Shimmer, not her. She didn't really need to know that part.

When he finished telling her everything he could, he fell silent. He was waiting for her to cast judgement on him, or to tell him he'd done something wrong. It was something he needed her to say, that he had caused this outcome and he had to fix it somehow because it was his fault. But after three straight minutes of dead silence, that was not what she said.

"Well..." She started soft, her right hand gripping at the underside of her chin. It was her thinking pose. "I can certainly see why you're bothered by this. Anyone would be."

"Gee thanks." He spoke dryly.

"Let me finish." She snapped, taking another breath. "As well as I can see it, I think its actually a good thing you didn't tell Rainbow this right after you discovered it. With how you told me you were feeling, it would have only gone badly. Plus the home of her father was just the wrong environment for something like that to come out. You two should definitely be alone when you talk about this...And you DO have to talk about it with her."

Daybreak winced slightly. It was like she was reading his mind. It was damn annoying.

"As far as how you feel about it. Honestly Daybreak, I can't say I wouldn't feel the same...but..." She took up his hand and gripped it in both of hers. "You can move past this. You and Rainbow. Together."

"Really?" He sounded so pathetically hopeful, but he just couldn't hold it in.

Twilight used his arm to pull him into a tight hug. One arm wrapped around his waist while the other rested against his chest, just over his heart. "I can feel how much pain you're in. It's radiating off you like your own personal sun. I bet Rainbow knows you're hurting too, at least in some way. It won't be easy, and you might even make her cry. But you can tell her. You should tell her."

"How can I?"

He tried to pull back from her embrace, but she held him tight, refusing to budge. He knew he could easily overpower her and pull away if he tried, but that wasn't necessary.

"Honestly Twilight. How can I? Could you?" He pulled himself back enough to look her in the face. She understood the gesture, even if it was pointless. "If you were in my position, could you honestly say to me you could bring yourself to tell her?"

"Yes."

Buckling his arms in defeat, he let her pull him back into another hug.

"Yes, I could. Because after all these years, all the things I've learned about friendship, I know that no matter what happens, if someone loves you and is a true friend...eventually they will understand. It might take time, I'm not saying she will forgive you right away. She'll probably get mad or say something rude, she might even throw a few punches. But just try to let her vent, and it will be ok."

Hands seeming to raise on their own, Daybreak found himself embracing Twilight as well. She was so warm, almost just like Rainbow was when he held her close. "You really are a good princess, Twilight. Heh Princess of Friendship. How utterly perfect for you after all."

Twilight giggled, then hiccuped "Oh...N-not really...I just ya know...take what I've seen happen to me and my friends, and try to apply it where it causes the most help for others...It's not that impressive really..."

"Twilight-" He gently poked her nose with his finger tip "-That's called being a good princess."

The heat rushing to her face was by no means subtle, he could feel it against him. Like a kindling fire. When she spoke again, her voice was as soft as her feathery pillow "Yeah well...At least one of us should get to keep the one they love."

His grip loosened, Twilight quickly took notice and held him in place. He opened his mouth to speak but she quickly cut him off! "Don't say anything! I know what I said!....Just, let me have this. Ok...Helping you with this...It's the closest I'll ever get to having you myself."

"Twilight..." He tried to speak, but she placed her finger over his lips.

"Shh." She cooed. "Relax. I'm not gonna do anything drastic. I more than understand how you feel for Rainbow. Deny the word if you want, but you love her. I'm not going to stand between that. Even if we both marry someone else, I want you to know something. I'm always gonna love you. You can think of me as a loving sister if that helps. But it's not going away this time...now that...I know...You've always cared about me. You can't deny it anymore."

He should have stopped himself. Should've had more self control. Should've known how vulnerable they both were, and should've understood what it would do to her. Despite all of his precautionary instincts telling him to stop! Despite knowing at the very depths of his being he shouldn't!

He felt the water building in his eyes, as he leaned down to Twilight's ear, and whispered the sentence that spelled the end for everything.