Canterlot General Hospital was relatively new, and was built of the old prison, which was itself a relic of an ancient civil war in Equestria. Scholars had protested the destruction of the centuries-old building, but Princess Celestia had felt that the benefits of the construction of a new hospital outweighed the historical value of the site. Besides, it had been a prison, and was generally considered an eyesore by ponies who lived in the area. So Canterlot General had been built, a magnificent house of healing where the very architecture and decorations brought comfort and the incredible staff swift wellness to anypony who came in through the door.

Twilight walked up to the receptionist, who looked up boredly, “Yes, how can I-...” The receptionist, a rather pretty golden mare with an orange mane stared at Twilight in sudden, terrified recognition. “T-T-T...”

“Twilight Sparkle,” Twilight finished for her, sighing and looking around before reaching into her saddlebags for her identification. The whole waiting room was suddenly rigid with attention. All eyes were on her, especially those that were trying to look like they weren't. Several ponies became deeply engrossed in their magazines once they realized she was looking back, except for the fillies and colts, who just stared. Twilight showed the royal letter giving her permission to visit Karat Ring, tucked it away and turned back to the receptionist, “I'm here to see Missus Ring? Princess Celestia sent me to check on her.” The receptionist nodded and sent for an orderly to escort her there, as Karat Ring's room was under royal protection.

The orderly, a plain red earth pony in the blue garb of one of the security personnel, came to collect her, and soon Twilight found herself walking through the sterile white corridors, being carefully not-stared-at by nurses and patients alike. “So, Twilight,” The orderly said quietly, “How do you like being back in the world?”

Twilight turned sharply at the sound of the voice, and found Blackboard grinning back at her, “You!” Twilight hissed, still walking and attempting to maintain a semblance of normalcy, though ponies were staring anyway, “How did you...?”

“Been working here since we got back, actually. Knew we'd run into each other eventually.” Blackboard's confident smirk gave Twilight brief fantasies of bucking it off his face. Then other parts of her treacherously chimed in that being smiled at by a handsome stallion was rather pleasant, even if that stallion that was occasionally a fox, and usually a bit annoying. Blackboard chuckled softly, “But yes, how do you find the real world, now that you're back?”

Twilight walked in silence with Blackboard for a moment, then said softly, “Difficult. I don't really leave the library, except to visit my friends, and even then it's usually at night. Other ponies... They don't really understand, to them I'm...”

“The Twilight Nightmare?”

Twilight glared at Blackboard, “That was rather uncalled-for. But essentially, yes, that's what they say. I'm taller, my mane is longer and... Well I don't know how much of my true self they can see but-”

“Almost none, to them you're simply tall, intimidating, with a mane that flows with power. No flames, no whispering shadows, no ghostly words sketching through the air, none of it, but what they can see... Reminds them of what you put away years ago.” Twilight walked in silence then, until she and Blackboard reached the door to Karat Ring's room. He leaned in and whispered to Twilight softly, “However, you're not alone. You have your friends, your family, but if that's not enough...” He pulled a card out from his uniform pocket and tucked it into Twilight's mane. She turned to pull it out, and when she turned back, Blackboard was gone.

Twilight sighed and opened the door, putting the card into her saddlebags. Inside, Karat Ring watched her with a calm hopelessness as Twilight closed the door and took stock of the room. It was relatively empty, with an intravenous setup providing fluids to the recovering mare, who was covered in bandages. Devices measured her heart-rate and magical level, which were both strong and steady, and two light-globes floated in the corners of the room, waiting for nightfall. Currently the room was brightly lit by the noon-day sun, and it showed a complete lack of get-well-soon cards, balloons or other things family and friends would have sent. Twilight cleared her throat a little uneasily and bowed, “Missus Ring, my name is-”

“Twilight Sparkle,” The silver mare finished for her in a voice devoid of emotion, tiredly flicking a lock of her golden mane out of her brilliant green eyes, “Yes, I know.”

Twilight blinked, then slowly drew out her notepad and quill, “Well Missus Ring, I'd like to ask you about the attack.” Karat sighed and leaned back, closing her eyes wearily, and Twilight added hastily, “If you're too tired, I can come back anoth-”

“No.” The word was not forceful, but something about the resonance in it silenced Twilight immediately, “I will tell you, but only, only if you promise to catch him. The stallion that did this to me and who killed my husband.”

Twilight nodded and said softly, “I promise, Missus Ring.”

Karat opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling while she related the events that led up to her and her husband's capture. “When he had us inside, he tied us up, and we went along willingly, even when he gagged the both of us. It just... Seemed natural. Then whatever spell he'd used to convince us to come inside broke, and we could see him for the first time.” She shivered, “He... He was wrong, somehow, his body didn't look right, you know? He was about my height, muscular, and thinner than anypony I'd ever seen. His eyes were like steel, and so was his coat, there wasn't a drop of color on him anywhere,” Karat closed her eyes, swallowing, her heartbeat racing according to the machine beside her, “His teeth, he filed them or something, made them sharp like a cat's... But his eyes... They were mad, just... Insane.” Twilight wrote this down carefully and waited for Karat to get a grip on herself, already impressed by the mare's composure, given the circumstances.

Karat took a deep breath and continued, “Once he had us restrained, he set to... To torturing Diamond. He... Well you saw what he did, but while he was working on my husband I was dissolving the bindings on my mouth and hooves with very small bursts of magic. I couldn't help him myself, I... I'm not... I wouldn't know how to fight, with or without magic, but I knew I needed someone to get help before he killed my husband entirely.” Karat was crying now, though she kept it from her voice, which was still clear, “I felt so helpless and useless, and I took so long that by the time I was free, Diamond was already dead, so I screamed. He... Stabbed me with the magical blade he'd used on Diamond several times, then dove out the door. Diamond was dead, but I clung to him anyway, and then the guards came and they pulled me off of him, but he... We were going to have a family!” The silver mare was sobbing now, her voice torn with sorrow, “We were going to raise our foals together, have a family and raise grandfoals until time and wrinkles claimed us both but... But now...” Karat started sobbing brokenly. Twilight walked over and hovered awkwardly, not sure how to offer comfort at a time like this, but her presence seemed to reassure Karat somewhat, strangely.

“Karat...” Twilight said softly, “Did he mention anything, anything at all? Any names, places anything that could tell me where he's hiding?”

Karat looked up at Twilight with her beautiful green eyes, “He mentioned you. He said that this was the only way he could protect you, save you from the evil queen.”

“What?” Twilight asked, dumbfounded, “What evil queen?”

Karat shrugged, “No idea, but he said that he had to do this, to help save Twilight Sparkle, that he had to purge this land of all the filthy ponies that would stand in her way.”

“Did... Did he say why?”

Karat lay back in the bed, her heart-rate slowing, “Yes, he said he had to pay you back, for giving him his freedom.” Karat was obviously exhausted from the exchange, and Twilight's mind was a maelstrom of questions, but she simply wrote them down and backed quietly out of the hospital room. When the door was closed, Twilight sighed and remembered the card Blackboard had given her. She pulled it out, and found it to be a business card.

It was pouring rain in Manehattan when Twilight arrived, so she decided to pay a visit to Rarity's place before continuing on to the unknown address. The outside of the Diamond Flare Boutique was elegant, if a bit overdone, with much in the way of gold and white marble, and actual gems sparkling in the walls in beautiful patterns. Twilight pulled her cloak tighter about her with magic and walked up to the door. Through the window in the door Twilight saw beautiful dresses, elegant suits and only two customers inside, looking around seriously.

Twilight opened the door, over which a bell tinkled gently, and stepped inside. One of the other patrons, a rather prim looking blue mare, looked around to see who had entered and froze, then bowed. Twilight sighed and nodded to her, then took her cloak off and hung it up next to the others. The mare walked deeper into the shop, out of sight, and Twilight was about to call out for Rarity when a familiar white unicorn came bouncing into view, her pastel pink and purple mane bobbing merrily, “Welcome to Diamond Flare Boutique, where everything is chic, unique and... Uh...” Sweetie Bell faltered, frowning as she tried to remember.

“Magnifique?” Twilight offered, her voice making the unicorn filly look up and squeal.

“Twilight!” And before she knew it, Twilight was wrapped in a hug and being dragged deeper into the store. The other patrons quietly slipped out, avoiding eye contact, but Sweetie Bell made up for their absence with a constant stream of dialogue. Her cutie mark had come in finally, a musical note imposed over a heart, and she was definitely taller and more filled-out, though with Twilight's increase in height there was no real relative change. “Oh my gosh, Rarity's going to be so happy to see you, I bet she'll want tea and cakes soon, if she's not still working. We have a lot of orders going on right now with the Gala approaching, but we're staying on top of it. Well, Rarity's staying on top of it, I'm not allowed to help, but I've got concerts now!” Sweetie kept talking as she led Twilight deeper into the shop, past rows and rows of suits and dresses, all brilliantly designed and sparkling with more gems than Twilight could count, “They're so awesome, sometimes I even sing for Scootaloo's shows, she's a dancer now you know, does all kinds of ballet and modern dance and stuff, it's really cool, but...” And she faltered, just outside the door to what seemed to be Rarity's workshop, judging by the sounds of a sewing machine inside and a soft mumbling. Sweetie Bell turned to Twilight, looking troubled, “Scoot and I are worried about Applebloom, Twilight. She's... Well something's not right, you should stop by and talk to her sometime, see if she'll talk to you about it,”

Twilight nodded, mentally groaning at yet another thing to investigate, “I'll look into it, Sweetie Bell, but I don't think she'll talk to me about it if she won't talk to her closest friends.” Sweetie just gave Twilight a slightly worried look and walked away into the shop, leaving Twilight in front of the door to Rarity's workshop. She gently knocked on the door, received no answer, then pushed open the door gently to a scene of utter chaos.

Buttons were everywhere, with mountains of fabric and piles and piles of thread strewn about with needles and various other sewing paraphernalia littering the floor. In the middle of the mess sat Rarity, sewing away at some dress or another. She sighed irritably, “Sweetie Bell, I said I didn't want to be disturbed unless it's... Twilight!” Rarity squealed, much like her sister, and pushed off from her work-station to hug Twilight, “Oh Twilight it's been too long! Well, I mean besides your little dream-visits of course, but honestly you should've come by sooner! Now, did you just come by to visit or was there something you needed, because I have some work to finish, and it's just the tiniest bit behind schedule.”

Twilight smiled, Rarity always made time for her, “It's a little of both really. I wanted to see you, say hi, but I also wanted to ask you a few things. Still, it can wait for a bit, do you mind if I wait in your room? This should stay private.”

Rarity nodded, “Of course Twilight, go right when you leave the workshop, up the stairs and through the door, that's my room, alright? I'll be along in an hour or two, but if you need anything, don't hesitate to ask, alright?” Twilight nodded and left Rarity to her sewing. She found her way to Rarity's bedroom, which was absolutely and rigidly organized, completely at odds with her workshop's clutter. The dichotomy between the two spaces had gotten worse recently, but Rarity seemed happy enough, if a bit overstressed from work. That was the thing about walking through your friends' dreams: you get to know them on a much deeper level. Sometimes a little too deep, in the case of Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, and sometimes Pinkie Pie. She tried not to look, but occasionally curiosity killed the cat and... Well she knows more about Fluttershy's flexibility now than she ever would have been comfortable knowing.

Twilight shook her head and looked around Rarity's room, remembering the dream-poison she'd spotted earlier. She'd been able to make her own variant of the dream-poison, but with healing or restful effects instead of the vile twisting of the Faeries. Dream-poisons or her own crafted dreamscapes both required a physical object that would be in contact with the sleeper all night, so Twilight bought teddy bears and filled them with positive dreams to heal, console, or provide restful sleep. Well, in theory anyway. She'd never had a chance to test them really, so they were lined up on her shelf at the moment, making her look like some kind of weird teddy bear collector.

Twilight poked around the room respectfully, looking for signs of tampering when one of the pillows caught her eye. Rarity's bed was the most luxurious Twilight had ever seen. It was huge, for starters, and the frame was elegantly carved. The blankets were a light purple, contrasting nicely with the shimmering blue sheets. The pillows were lacy and soft-looking deep purple velvet, and all neatly arranged, except for the pillow on the end, which was slightly off-kilter. Twilight gently moved the pillow aside, and stepped back as a small stuffed unicorn fell out from under it. It was plain, purple, with a purple mane and tail and little purple buttons for eyes, and had a strange feeling about it. Several minutes later, Twilight was sure: this stuffed toy was the source of the dreams, though the idea of Rarity cuddling up to a stuffed version of Twilight made the purple unicorn... Less disturbed than she thought she would be.

Twilight was still pondering that, levitating the doll in front of her, when Rarity walked back in, “I'm so sorry darling, but you know how it is when customers... Ah!” Twilight turned to see Rarity blushing, “Oh dear, I was hoping you wouldn't see that... I mean, it's not as though... Um...” Rarity blushing was a sight not often seen, and Twilight found herself blushing in response, a deep warmth flowing through her.

“Ah, well it just kind of... You see I was looking for...” Twilight shook her head to clear it, “Somepony enchanted this,” she finally blurted out.

Rarity looked startled, but nodded, “To do what, exactly? Not a desire charm I hope.”

Twilight shook her head, “No, it's... It's like a doorway into your dreams for someone who can already... Someone like me, basically. But, uh, not me. I mean, I don't need a doorway, so anypony else who, uh...” Why was she blushing like this, she wondered, it wasn't as though she needed to explain herself really, “Where did it come from?”

“Well... Uh... Applebloom made it, then gave it to Sweetie Bell, who gave it eyes, then Sweetie Bell gave it to me and... Well...” Rarity blushed a little deeper, “Oh dear, I was hoping... Twilight, are you... Doing anything tonight?”

Twilight was entirely dumbstruck as everything clicked together suddenly in her head, she just stared at Rarity for about a minute, then shook her head, “I... Well I had a place I wanted to go to, but... That... If you want to go somewhere instead I...”

“Oh, ah... Where were you going?”

Twilight pulled out the card, “The Briar Patch,”

Rarity oooohed, “Oh my, there? You got an invitation? Really? It's the newest club in town, only opened a year ago or so and almost nopony's been able to go. It's an invitation only club but you've got an invitation!” The white unicorn squealed happily, sounding very much like her little sister for a moment, “We should go together, Twilight! It'd be so roma-... I mean, I'd very much like to go, but if you... Um...” Rarity was blushing again, as was Twilight, to her private surprise. The awkward silence lengthened, until Twilight was able to muster up the nerve to break the silence.

“Um... Rarity, would you... Like to go to the club with me?”