Twilight was quietly losing her mind. It had been three days since the arrival of the letter, and absolutely nothing out of the ordinary had happened. There was still two days left before the second letter was due to arrive - she'd have to send Spike out of the house on some pretext before the post arrived just in case, though she was fairly confident past Twilight would have found a way to disguise what it was again - and she'd run herself ragged trying to think of what to do next.

She couldn't trust her own thoughts. At first she'd wondered why the other had been so generous as to just wipe her memory of finding the charm and send her home. Eventually it had occurred to her that there could be any number of other changes made to her that she was forbidden to perceive. That had seriously damaged her tentative hypothesis that the other wasn't necessarily malign.

What if the next package was late? What if the next package had been intercepted? What if it simply never came? She couldn't imagine trying to live the rest of her life with this uncertainty hanging over her.

Fortunately, that probably wasn't going to happen. Sooner or later, the other would notice that she had realised what was happening. Then that knowledge would be removed, along with who-knew-what else.

Assuming the other even existed.

She'd come up with a new hypothesis yesterday, and it wasn't comforting. Hypothesis c), where the 'c' stood for crazy. It was inevitable that it'd occur to her sooner or later. It was simple enough; she'd had some sort of mental break, posted herself a letter of paranoid rantings in a delirium, then forgotten it had ever happened. It was a far more straightforward explanation than taking her letter to herself at face value.

She didn't believe it. Altered as her mind might be, her ability to think straight was still intact, just skewed. Definitely. It was just a coincidence that the letter had demanded she hide everything, suspect everyone and not tell anypony about it. It made sense, according to the letter's own logic. It also made sense as the self-protecting mechanism surrounding a partial breakdown of her capacity to reason.

There was nothing else for it. She had to test it. She knew it was a risk. She knew it was contravening the letter's instructions. But she needed some external confirmation, something, anything, to corroborate the story of the charm.

That was why she was at the entrance to Sweet Apple Acres.

An unfamiliar lump weighed in her throat as she surveyed the crimson farm buildings, so familiar, yet feeling so far away. With an effort of will, she galvanised herself into movement, and headed for the large barn.

She could do this. She could. A small part of her kept waiting for hidden memories to surface, and was disappointed over and over as she walked down the dirt path. Nothing. Nothing unusual at all.

The sounds of movement came from within the main barn as she approached. That was a good sign. Maybe the pony she'd come to see was in there, and not ranging out on the far reaches of the orchards. It was hard enough to have made the decision to have this conversation. The quicker it was over with, the better.

Tentatively, she knocked on the open door, and called into the gloom, "Hello?"

A clattering answered her call, then the sound of booted footsteps.

"Why howdy there, Twilight! Ah didn't know you were calling by!" Applejack emerged from the barn's shadowy recesses, a bale of hay resting on her shoulder as though it weighed nothing. The sunlight struck her hair as she stepped outside, turning both mane and tail into gold. Her scent was that of growing things, and her denim shorts showed off her tanned thighs.

Twilight felt nothing. Applejack was her friend, and that was all.

She, Twilight, had been in love with this pony. Passionately. She tried to imagine stepping forward and kissing her, now that Applejack was standing right before her. Still nothing. There was no reason for her to do that. They were just friends.

Applejack's expression had turned a shade quizzical. "Y'all right there, sugarcube? Seems like you've got things on your mind."

"Oh! Sorry, yes," Twilight replied quickly. "How... how is the farm today?"

"Good as ever. Everything's ripening up nicely. Reckon we're going to have a real fine crop of cider this year!" Applejack grinned wryly, and added, "For the love of apples, don't repeat that to Rainbow. She gets a mite enthusiastic, and we haven't even started bucking down the harvest yet. Heck, wouldn't have surprised me if she'd dropped right out of the sky on us the minute I said - well, y'know. That word."

"So where are you taking the hay, Applejack?" Twilight found herself relaxing a little as she talked to the other pony. There was something about her straight-forward solidity that she'd always found reassuring.

"What, this little thing?" Applejack asked, shrugging her shoulders. "Figured I'd take it over Fluttershy's way. She was talking about some of her rabbit friends getting turfed out of their warren when a stream overflowed. Reckon they could use some nice warm straw to line the new tunnels they've started digging."

"That's very admirable," Twilight replied with a smile. "I'm sure they'll be very grateful for your help."

"So what can I do for you, Twi? Stopped by for something in particular?"

For a moment, Twilight found herself tempted to ask Applejack if she'd had dreams about her. If she'd woken up with fragmentary flashes of bare skin before her eyes, the lingering sound of moans in her ears, before the sunlight chased it all away.

She couldn't. Even if she was defying past Twilight's instructions, that was a risk too far.

"Um. Actually, I was hoping to talk to Big Mac... is he around the farm?"

Applejack's lips twisted slightly, and she nodded towards the western fields. "He's in the long orchard, digging out some rocks that're in the way of some new saplings we're putting in. Looking to smooth things over?"

Twilight glanced down briefly, nodding. "I hope so."

"Not like him t'hold a grudge like this. It'd be good to see you two make up. Heck, I even told him my own self that all the loose talk about town wasn't your fault, and there was nothing going on between us."

"What did he say?"

Applejack shrugged again. "He's Big Mac. What do you think? He jest nodded. Don't reckon he was convinced, though."

"I'd better go and find him, then." Find him and hope as hard as she could that he could tell her something to back up the story in the letter. Something, no matter how small, that could help her believe that the other was real.

"Seems like the thing t'do. I'll see you later." Applejack hitched the bale higher on her shoulder, and strolled off towards the gate.

Twilight took a deep breath, squared her shoulders, and set off into the unending rows of apple trees. The leaves whispered overhead in the faint breeze, branches laden with red and green apples, full and ripe. Twilight took it in absently as she walked, her mind on the pony she'd left behind, and the pony she was about to meet.

There was a warmth about Applejack that made her feel better somehow. Twilight grimaced as she felt the thought slide away, ending almost before it begun. Celestia, that was annoying. It would be so easy to stop trying to think that way about her.

Focus on Big Mac for now. This could be a total waste of time, of course. It could also completely ruin everything. He might know nothing. He might be conditioned to betray her suspicions and fears to the other the instant her back was turned. But she was staking everything on the fact that he was just so cross with her. That didn't seem like it fit the other's desired dismissal of the entire affair.

She was, quite literally and in more ways than one, betting her sanity that she'd read the situation correctly and picked out the one pony that could help her.

Low grunts of effort were just audible up ahead. An obscure, amused thought struck her - if she happened across him while he was occupied with himself, that would make things much harder- much more difficult, she corrected herself.

She emerged from the trees into a small clearing, the ground rough and uneven. A pile of loose rocks fringed with clinging earth were stacked off to one side, and as she watched, Big Mac's broad shovel flashed in the sunlight, tossing another handful of rubble onto the heap.

His shirt was off, draped over a nearby low branch, and he glistened with sweat. His bare chest was streaked with dirt, and his powerful muscles flexed visibly as he drove the shovel into the rocky ground once more.

Twilight realised her cheeks had turned pink, and she shook herself. He had to have noticed her approach, but he continued digging as though he hadn't. Tentatively, she stepped nearer.

"Big McIntosh?" she said diffidently. "Are you... busy?"

"Eeyup." he replied without looking around.

"Can I... talk to you?"

"Nnope." he said flatly, grunting as he prised a rough edged stone out of the ground.

Twilight opened her mouth to protest, but found herself lost for words. "Please?" she eventually managed. "It's about Applejack."

The irregular chunk of stone flew into the rock pile with a definitive crash, and Big Mac turned slowly around. Thrusting the spade into the ground, he crossed his arms and leant on the handle, giving Twilight a flat look.

Faced with his unflinching stare, Twilight felt herself buckling. She couldn't just come out and say it! "So... it's about the rumours. Of us dating," she began, trying not to back away in the face of Big Mac's silent displeasure. "Do - do you know if there was any truth to it? To the rumours?"

Okay, that was definitely the wrong thing to say. Big Mac's green eyes hardened, and he slowly turned his back on her once more without bothering to reply.

The shovel bit into the soil once more, working its way around a few smaller, broken stones to probe for a larger rock beneath. He worked in silence, broken only by his grunts of effort and the clatter of stones on metal. It was quite clear that the conversation was over.

Twilight stood at a loss, not sure what to do. After a few moments, she found herself sniffling, her eyes itching with unshed tears, and rubbed them angrily. "Big Mac! I need to talk to you, this is serious!"

Stones clattered onto the pile as he worked steadily.

"Haystacks!" she burst out, her voice forceful. "Look at me while I'm talking to you!"

Big Mac straightened his back, but didn't turn. He gripped the shovel firmly with one massive hand, his muscles tense.

"I'm asking you because I don't know! I mean it, I really don't know! I think someone has, has done something to me, I don't know if it ever happened, I don't know what's real and what's made up-" She cut herself off as she felt a sniffle trying to escape, rubbing her eyes again with the palms of her hands as she simmered with furious indignation at herself.

A warm hand settled on her shoulder. Pulling away her hands from her eyes, she looked up through a watery haze at Big Mac's face, which seemed less hard now than it had a moment ago. "You better explain," he rumbled.

"Did we date?" she demanded. "Please, Big Mac, did Applejack and I date?"

Big Mac's sandy brows drew together and he gazed down at her with a frown, before nodding slowly. "Eeyup."

"Do you know that for sure?" Twilight begged. She felt like a tiny chink of light was opening up in the clouds of paranoid uncertainty that had covered her for days.

"Ah know when my sister's in love. You both were," he said finally.

Twilight sagged. She wasn't crazy. Applejack had confirmed it to her, she didn't think that they'd been together either. But they had. Which meant the letter was telling the truth. Which meant it was real. All of it was real.

"Thank goodness," she whispered.

Big Mac's hand squeezed her shoulder gently, and she looked up into his eyes. It was clear there was a lot he wanted to ask. Taking a deep breath, she straightened up again and nodded once.

"This is going to sound crazy, but it's the truth. I don't remember dating Applejack, at all. I don't think she remembers either. I... I received a warning a few days ago, from myself. I don't remember leaving it for myself either, but I know it came from me. It said that two and a half months ago, I was going to fight someone, or something, that could change minds, alter memories. It said..."

Her voice threatened to choke up as anger rose in her, a lump clogging her throat, but she forced herself to continue. "It said that if I lost, the other was probably going to wipe my memory of everything that had happened. It said that she - that I - thought that the other was going to take my love for Applejack away. They did. I can't imagine loving her. I mean, I really can't, there's a spell in my head that won't let me. I can feel it."

A deep growl shuddered in the air, and to her surprise, she realised it came from Big Mac. His green eyes smouldered with anger, and he drew her into his arms, against his chest. "Ah'm sorry, Twilight. What can I do?"

Twilight clung to him for a long moment. She could feel anger vibrating deep in his powerful frame, and felt her own rise to match it. That helped. Her mind was clearing, shaking off her fog of self doubt. Her violet eyes turned up to his, sharp and clear now.

"Don't tell anyone. Don't trust your instincts. Anyone in town could be ready to report any strange behaviour to the other and not even know it. That includes you. That definitely includes Applejack, she's been altered by the other. I took a huge risk in even revealing this to you, but I had to be sure that I hadn't gone insane. That the warning was real," she said levelly.

Big Mac's teeth ground together, and his hand knotted into a massive fist. It occurred to Twilight that if he ever caught up with the one who'd done this, they had better be really fast with their powers, because she didn't expect they'd get a second chance.

She put her hand on his forearm and squeezed. "There's nothing you can do right now. Keep an eye open for ponies acting strangely. Ponies that seem to have forgotten things. Just knowing that you're on my side helps more than you can possibly know.

"I don't know who the other is yet, but I will. Trust me, I'm going to find them, and I'm going to make them undo everything they've done. Then," she said grimly, "I'm going to make them pay."

Right. She'd spent quite long enough fretting herself into uselessness, wondering if she was going out of her mind. It was time that she took things seriously, and started seeing what she could do to fix it.

Twilight stood in her bedroom, a frown of concentration on her face. It helped more than she could have imagined to have spoken to Big Mac, to put some certainty back into her life. There was a chance that he was under the command of the other, of course, but she ran that risk with everypony. She couldn't allow herself to become so paralysed with fear that she continued doing nothing.

First priority. Find a better place to lock away her incriminating documents, and lock it with a proper spell that would take serious power to break. The jewellery box could be broken open with a butter knife, and the lock mostly worked on the honour system. That wasn't remotely good enough.

Fortunately, it didn't have to be. She might not have a suitable container on hand, but she could create one. A wooden box that contained a small telescope would serve to hold the documents nicely, once it had been fortified. A simple spell to enhance its toughness would give it the hardness and durability of bronze. Settling for one, however, wasn't nearly enough for her; the half dozen she could recall off the top of her head gave the wood enough toughness to withstand a small meteor. The three different locking spells of separate derivations and mechanisms that she applied could have kept out a small army of intensely frustrated ponies.

Delicately arranging loose sheets of parchment among the objects stacked atop the unremarkable box, she memorised their position to detect any untoward investigation. That would do, for now.

Second priority. Begin research into memory restoration, without alerting Spike. She couldn't afford to wait until the next letter arrived, though when it did it had better contain all of her notes on the previous charm. She knew it could rewrite memories, and implant instructions that the victim wasn't aware of, but would carry out. She knew that she'd investigated it, researched it. She knew she'd found out somehow that another was using it as well. That was a start, but it wasn't nearly enough. Where could she have found out about such a powerful and dangerous charm?

The more she knew about the charm, the more she knew how to defend herself from it. Why hadn't past Twilight included everything in the letter? Had she been afraid of it being intercepted? Surely she could have hidden a detailed explanation somewhere in the house, unless she'd expected to be compelled to turn over all her research when she lost...

Which brought her neatly onto the third priority. Search the house, from top to bottom. No more surprises like the one inside her bed frame; if past Twilight expected her to meekly wait for another letter before she did anything, she had been mistaken.

An exhaustive search of her bedroom turned up nothing. She'd sent Spike out to the market to pick up a selection of different types of candle wax, and that had given her enough time to go through the main room of the tree house in a more cursory fashion. Nothing was out of place that she could spot, though she didn't have time to go through every single book looking for parchment tucked between the pages.

She tried the guest bedroom. Nothing under the bed. Nothing tucked into the bed frame. There wasn't a lot of furniture in the room to check, beyond the bed, the chest of drawers, and the wardrobe. Her collection of spare clothes wasn't remarkable in any way.

Her probing fingers drummed against the base of the wardrobe thoughtfully, and she jerked a little straighter at the sound.

It sounded hollow.

Twilight crouched. The interior floor of the wardrobe was several inches above the actual base of the wardrobe where it sat against the deep carpet. That was more than enough room to have hidden something in the frame.

It took her several minutes of gentle probing, but eventually she found a small depression that let her hook her fingertips into it, and tug. The floor of the wardrobe slid an inch towards her and wobbled loosely in its groove, revealed as a thin panel. Something glistened beneath. Twilight eased the panel free, and caught her breath in shock.

"Starswirl's beard..." she whispered. "What is this?"

Her fingers smoothed carefully over the glistening black material, tentatively exploring it as she drew it out into the light. It was a body-hugging outfit of slick blackness, one that rose up to the throat and ended in a collar. Two deep cut-outs in the upper slopes of the outfit were plainly designed to bare the wearer's breasts, and - she could barely even look at it - the lower reaches of the outfit separated into twin straps that seemed designed to part around the pony's sex and rejoin to settle into the valley of her ass. It was made to present and show off the pony within, while binding her tightly into the shape of a sex doll. It was obscene.

Twilight trembled as she gently brought it to rest against her. This could never have been hers. It was a little too long in the body, and too wide. The cut-outs were not sized for her modest breasts, either. Laying it out on the bed, she moved back to the wardrobe and drew out a pair of matching boots, one after the other, each with a tall heel, each tall enough to reach to mid thigh. They were too big for her, too.

They weren't too big for some other ponies she knew. Like, for example, Applejack. Her muscled thighs would fit them nicely. Twilight had seen her with her shirt tied under her breasts on a hot day, and she certainly would have met the outfit's... requirements.

But no. This was impossible. Why would Applejack have dressed like this? Why would anyone? It just - it couldn't be true. This was a joke, or a trick, or some weird, perverted leaving of the other. She couldn't really cope with the idea that she had been dating Applejack, even if she'd had as much confirmation as she could have hoped for from Big Mac. But this? This was plain madness.

Okay. This didn't have to be for Applejack. It could belong to some other pony. Some other pony that liked to dress in unbelievably disgraceful fetish wear, that had just happened to have left it hidden in her wardrobe. No, that was ridiculous. That only made things worse.

All at once, Twilight realised she was still holding one of the boots in her arms, absently nuzzling her cheek up and down against the slick substance. Her arms sprang open and the boot fell to the floor with a thud, leaving her standing in disbelief, her cheeks crimson. Dear Equestria, was she turned on?

She backed away from the bed and its burden of inexplicable clothing, trying to reconcile her thoughts and feelings. There was definitely a frisson of heat tingling in her body.

This wasn't happening. Maybe she really shouldn't have started looking. Clearly she wasn't ready to see this, this... whatever it was.

Stop it. She shook herself, clearing away the irrelevant clutter of her initial confusion. This was information. This was useful. She just had to think about what it was telling her.

First, this was definitely something that she wasn't meant to know about. The other had gone to some lengths to make her think everything was normal, but no commands had stopped her finding it, and as far as she could tell, no instructions had triggered when she'd discovered it. Either the other hadn't expected her to look there, and it was some remnant of, or preparation for, some sick game the other was playing with both herself and Applejack, or else past Twilight had hidden it there herself.

What in all of Equestria was going on? What was she missing? Applejack would never have worn this thing, not voluntarily... what had the other done to them?

A sound came from outside. Twilight jerked around, listening tensely until she could be sure that it was a mere passing wagon, and not Spike returning. Still, he was going to be back soon, and she had better take care of this mystifying evidence as well. Very carefully, she packed away the depraved outfit in the gap it had come from, then hesitated. She'd been about to magically lock the compartment, but that could give her away if the other came to visit and looked for the costume. As it was, she had to hope she'd replaced the costume in a similar pose to the way she'd found it; she'd been so stunned, she hadn't thought to memorise its orientation.

The presence of the costume hinted that the other was still involved in tampering with her and Applejack. She didn't dare wait for two days for the arrival of the second letter. She needed to know more, and there was one pony that was the most obvious source for it.

She had to ask Zecora what was going on. And if she suspected that Zecora had orders to betray her to the other, she'd just have to make sure she couldn't. Clear-headed and resolute, Twilight closed the wardrobe neatly and went off to look up stunning and restraint charms.

Zecora had been telling the truth about the forest, Twilight had to admit. A rainstorm the previous night had left the Everfree Forest fresh and gleaming in the afternoon sunlight. The grass was still a little damp underfoot as Twilight walked briskly in the direction of the zebra's isolated hut and mentally rehearsed the magic she might have to use to capture her.

When she'd lived in Canterlot, Twilight's library had been almost entirely bare of any text relating to such spells, her not having considered them particularly interesting. Since she'd moved to Ponyville, though, there had been more than enough lessons to drum into her the importance of self defence. Thus, a small but flourishing corner of her collection was devoted to practical capture spells that could turn away or restrain an attacker without hurting them.

Zecora did have her own magic, of course, some of it manifested through potions and the like, and other spells that she seemed able to cast without a horn. It was quite fascinating, and she'd long desired to spend some time studying the zebra's sorcery when it seemed like the time was right to broach the topic. She wished she'd done it before now, but it was too late to fret over that. She'd just have to be quick, and to cast multiple layers of spells to ensure that if one were shattered, another would compensate for it.

Preoccupied with her thoughts, Twilight almost walked past the last twist of the faint, not-really-a-path without noticing. Catching herself, she made her way among a small thicket of widely spaced trees, the ground getting softer and wetter, and at last caught sight of Zecora's charm-draped tree. The mask bound over the doorway grinned balefully at her.

Picking her way along the thin edge of dry ground to the doorway, Twilight drew herself up. Clear thoughts. Prepared for anything. Absolutely anything.

She knocked.

Zecora's face briefly appeared at a window, and a distinct flash of powerful emotion danced over her face before she vanished again. There was a crash from inside, then the door was yanked open from within. She stood framed in the doorway in her gray sleeveless tunic, a loose wrap around her waist, breathing a little too fast.

"Twilight Sparkle, I had not expected you, I fear. Come and be welcome, you will find shelter here."

"Hello, Zecora," Twilight replied, stepping into the hut. The walls were arrayed as ever with masks and odd feathery charms, though there was currently no sign of the zebra's vast cauldron. She moved to a window seat shaped from the tree itself, settling down. Zecora hovered, not quite seeming to know what to do.

"I am pleased that you chose to visit me," Zecora broke out after a few seconds of silence. "Perhaps you'd enjoy some freshly brewed tea?"

Twilight nodded. "Yes, I'd like that." She watched Zecora as she mixed leaves together in a small bowl, adding water which began to steam without any apparent further effort. The zebra's nervous tension couldn't have been written more plainly on her face. Once again, it came down to a simple weighing of risk; was Zecora a trap for her, or did she know something?

On the one hand, Zecora's strange behaviour was a significant clue that something was wrong, and didn't fit with what seemed to be the other's goal of leaving Twilight with no idea anything strange had happened. On the other, she was assuming much about the other's goals, and even if Zecora had been acting oddly, she would never have leapt to the conclusion that the letter had stated on that basis alone. Confronting her was definitely a bigger risk than with Big Mac.

Besides, what could Zecora possibly know that was making her act like this?

She watched the striped woman pour the contents of the bowl into two earthenware cups, and felt herself make up her mind. Trap or not, there was no way she was going to walk away from finding out what Zecora knew.

"You've been acting very strangely," Twilight said conversationally, her eyes on the back of Zecora's head.

Zecora jumped, the herbal tea slopping slightly onto the counter. "I do not know what you may have seen. Perhaps if you told me what you mean?" She didn't turn around, her back stiff.

"You've been coming to my home a lot more often, but you always seem preoccupied. Unhappy. It makes me think something is the matter."

"If my visits would cause you to complain, I will heed your words and not come again." Zecora's tail flicked restlessly.

Twilight frowned. This wasn't going in the direction she needed things to go. Either she backed off, assured Zecora that wasn't what she'd meant at all, and ended her questioning here, or she would have to be absolutely clear.

"It's something I'd forgotten," she said flatly.

Zecora flinched visibly. "It is so. You know?" she asked with a tinge of quiet desperation.

There. She'd struck something solid. Time for the last card she had to play. Remember, Zecora could have orders to attack the moment she spoke of it. She had to be prepared for anything.

"Yes, I know now. It's the charm," she said quietly.

One of the cups overturned as Zecora's arm jerked, spilling tea over the dark wooden cabinet, and she twisted around with tears of relief in her eyes, a look of transcendent joy on her face. She threw herself at Twilight, and before the unicorn had the chance to do more than jerk in shock, let alone cast any defensive spells, Zecora was on her knees in front of her, arms wrapped around her legs.

"At last, as I have prayed and yearned! My owner is here, you have returned!" she cried out ecstatically.

Twilight stared, speechless, in absolute shock.

"I beg you, my owner, give me the orders I crave! I cast myself at your feet, your loyal slave," Zecora breathed with complete, worshipful sincerity.

Twilight's lips moved soundlessly. She simply couldn't get a grip on what was happening; it was too far outside her experiences, her expectations. She couldn't remember ever being so totally at a loss for words.

Zecora gazed up at her, her eyes pleading for reassurance.

"I..." Twilight began weakly, then stopped. Okay. Clearly this wasn't impossible, because it was happening. Either the other was playing some truly bizarre game with her, or...

Or she had done something, past Twilight had done something, that she couldn't imagine.

She took a deep breath to steady herself. What she needed was more information. "Zecora, I need you to listen carefully and quietly while I explain what I need from you."

Zecora nodded quickly, her lips pressing together as if to demonstrate her newfound muteness.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm sorry." Twilight winced as Zecora's expression crumpled, though the zebra made not a sound. It was too late to be cautious; she needed to make Zecora understand. Then, maybe, Zecora could help her understand.

"As far as I know, everything was normal between us until a couple of months ago, when you began to visit every few days. About the time the town began to gossip that I was dating Applejack. I don't remember dating Applejack, but I've received a warning that I sent months ago, that I thought someone was going to wipe my memory. It looks like they did. I've confirmed that I did date Applejack, and neither of us remember. I went looking for ponies that were acting in a way that I couldn't explain. I came to you. Now, Zecora," she said steadily, "I need you to tell me all you can about what has happened. I need to know what I've forgotten."

Zecora seemed to pause to gather her thoughts, and Twilight looked down at her, feeling something that was half fear, half wonder. Slave. She just didn't know how she could possibly react to that. The only thing she could do was put it to one side and refuse to think it through until she had heard Zecora out.

The zebra inhaled deeply, then looked up at Twilight again. "Pinkie Pie suspected you had taken the minds of your friends, that you might reshape each of them to your own ends. She came to me believing that I would be discreet, but in truth, her words brought me into heat. From that moment, I desired to be at your command, to worship at your feet and bow my head to your hand. I dreamed, I lusted, I wished only for you, that you would enthral me and make my desires come true."

Zecora lowered her eyes as she spoke, a darker flush on her striped cheeks. "More than I knew, you had already achieved, conquered those with more power than I might have believed. You gave to me wonder and utter delight, when you revealed you had dominated the Princess of Night."

"What?" Twilight squeaked. "Princess L-Luna? I... my friends? You can't... who had I used this spell on?" Her mind whirled like a merry-go-round, a blur of colours and flashing lights. Impossible wasn't remotely a strong enough word for what Zecora was describing.

"As Pinkie Pie had suspected, all four of your friends were affected. You had taken the Princess to be your own, and soon to me also, your power was shown. Pinkie too, was to be yours, though it happened after I left your doors."

"But - but - but that's terrible!" Twilight protested feebly. "How could I have done such a thing?"

Zecora sat up straight, shaking her head. Her voice grew firmer. "I begged for you to take my mind into your care, to own me and love me and keep me forever there. To be given your blessing was a joy, one no passage of time could destroy. I pledge myself to you, no matter what you shall say, you have but to speak your command and I shall eagerly obey."

Her hand settled on Twilight's arm and she gazed imploringly into the dazed pony's eyes. "Each of your thralls had chosen to serve, each adored you. I slept in your bed with the Princess of Night, and I know this to be true. They would not wish to be taken away, nor I wish to be parted from you even one more day."

"I... stop, stop," Twilight managed. "I need to think. I'm going to step outside."

Zecora trembled, but unwound her arms and carefully rose, with a small bow. "As you desire, but if you should leave, I wish you to know I would surely grieve," she said softly.

"I'll just - be outside!" Twilight blurted, and dashed out of Zecora's hut. She nearly plunged into the shallow water pooling outside, her arms pinwheeling before she regained her balance and staggered up to the nearest tree. Clinging to it like a lifeline, she rested her head against the rough bark.

Luna?

Twilight closed her eyes and listened. The soft whirring of insects sounded in the hush, something disturbing the shallow swampy water with a quiet splash. Wind whispered softly in the tops of the trees, stray eddies brushing at her body and stirring her mane. The air was cool, scented with earth and damp greenery.

The whirling confusion beneath and around her thoughts slowly settled to a stop, leaving her mind silent. Methodically, with quiet determination, Twilight replayed Zecora's words. She, Twilight, had been using the charm on her friends. They had willingly submitted to it. She couldn't dwell on the impossibility of it, she just had to accept it as a hypothesis. Each had chosen to serve her. That was a possible explanation for the fetish outfit she had discovered hidden in her wardrobe.

But she would never-

Twilight wrestled the thought to the ground. There was no more point in declaring things impossible, or to protest she wouldn't have done them. Either she discarded everything she'd found and embraced total denial, or she forced herself to accept that past Twilight had acted in a way that she found contrary to her beliefs. The charm, then. Had it influenced her past self?

She had no way of telling. Not without examining the charm itself. All the same, had forgetting what she'd done cleared away any corrosive influence? She didn't feel like she would do any of those things again. But perhaps if she recovered her memory, she would feel differently. Perhaps this was some bizarre trap, set by her corrupted past self. Past Twilight was hiding things from her.

Zecora. Luna. Zecora had asked, begged, to be taken. Could Luna have done the same? Surely she wouldn't have, but she would have thought the same about Applejack, or Zecora, or any of the others... How could Luna have even known to approach her, to make her desires known?

Her dreams. Yes. Who better than Luna to notice something had changed in her? Or to notice something different in the dreams of her friends, or Zecora...

Twilight's breath caught. If Luna was watching her, she might notice that Twilight was thinking about the charm again. If Luna had been charmed before, then the other must have got to her too. Though plainly no one had noticed that Zecora remained under Twilight's control, which Luna should have seen... unless she wasn't paying attention to the zebra. Unless the forest interfered with her power. Unless Luna hadn't been instructed to report to the other about Twilight, or any other pony that had suspicious dreams.

Too many unknowns. Luna was now part of the game board, but she didn't know on whose side she ranked, or what danger she posed. Right now, she had to focus on Zecora.

The zebra had given herself over to her, begged to serve her? What was she meant to do about that? It wasn't like she could accept Zecora as a slave. That was just insane.

But you do have a responsibility. Some small part of her whispered the words in her ear. She had done this to her. Then, apparently, she'd forgotten everything and left Zecora stranded, in love with her, desperate to serve her, and unable to even tell her. The loneliness, the heartbreak that she must have felt...

Twilight's eyes opened, and she glanced back towards the hut. Zecora, even now, must be wondering if she had fled into the forest, and would never want to see her again. Twilight sighed softly.

She was being so incredibly selfish.

Pushing herself away from the tree, Twilight turned back towards Zecora's hut. The zebra woman was sat on one of the low wooden seats, arms wrapped around her knees, a picture of misery. At the sound of Twilight's step on the threshold, she looked up immediately, eyes wide.

"I'm sorry that I don't remember, Zecora, but I'm - honoured, by what you wanted from me. I promise, I won't send you away," Twilight said softly.

Jerking to her feet, Zecora made to hurl herself at Twilight again, then visibly checked herself and bowed her head. "Forgive the question I ask, but I must inquire: is to own me once more your true desire?" she asked in a low tone.

Twilight's chest constricted. For a long moment, she couldn't speak.

"I enchanted you," she said finally. "I believe I did. I don't know what happened, but I can see that it's hurt you. I want to help you. I want to make you feel better, and I don't know how to undo what I did to you."

"I beg of you, Twilight, this I plea: do not take away what you have given to me," Zecora whispered.

"I won't. We'll figure this out, Zecora. I promise." Gathering herself, Twilight approached Zecora slowly, and wound her arms around her. Zecora embraced her, clinging in return, and Twilight's hand slid up to gently rub back and forth through her short, striped mane. The other mare was so warm, so soft and so firm. Twilight's hand moved down to her back and stroked there, gently.

It felt good. It felt so good to be held, and to hold. "Why didn't you tell me?" Twilight whispered.

"It was plain that you had been taken, remade by the charm. My silence protected you, kept you safe from harm."

Twilight inhaled deeply, feeling her chest press gently against Zecora's. "I still don't know if you're primed to tell the other about this, as soon as I leave. It wouldn't be your fault, but there's a chance. I haven't figured out what to do about that yet."

Zecora pulled back a little, gazing into Twilight's face, and to Twilight's surprise there was a little smile on the striped mare's lips. "There is a simple solution, to ensure I have nothing to hide. Take me to your bed, do not let me leave your side."

Twilight felt her cheeks flame with heat, struck speechless.

"I have served you at your whim, you have known my body nude, and as I gave myself to you, your body I have viewed. Surely it does not fill you with such dread that I might share your small bed?"

"I... but I don't remember any of that!" stammered Twilight.

She found that she couldn't meet Zecora's eyes. Wasn't this a solution? Wasn't this better than stunning Zecora and tying her to a chair for a week? Didn't Zecora deserve this, at least this much?

"....okay," she managed finally. "We can lie together, and I'll wear my pyjamas, and you can bring some night clothes, and..." And when the charm letter arrives, I can find out the truth. Then maybe I can do something about this mess.

Two days with Zecora. She could make it work.

Besides, there was a small part of her that was curious. Flattered. When Zecora gazed at her with her soft, adoring gaze, it was hard not to feel a little fluttering in her chest in return.

"My humblest thanks. The sun falls towards eve, I shall gather my clothes, and will gladly leave."

Twilight rubbed her cheek with one hand as Zecora hurried to pack a few things into a small bag. "Alright, Zecora. As we walk, we'll go over what happened again. I want all the detail you can give me. I need to know everything."

Darkness lay thick across Twilight's room, sculpting itself around the dimly seen outlines of familiar things. The breeze had died down, and a hush filled with air with a soft presence of its own. In the quiet, Twilight could hear breathing. She could feel each breath, as Zecora's flank rose and fell against her. She could feel her warmth.

They were only separated by two layers of cloth, Twilight's thickest and most concealing pyjamas and the scanty nightie that Zecora had donned before she joined Twilight in her bed with delighted faux resignation. There wasn't any choice, she had pointed out. If she wasn't in Twilight's bed, at her side, she could wake up and walk away in the night without Twilight being any the wiser. That was no way for Twilight to prevent Zecora acting on hidden instructions from the other.

Reluctantly, Twilight had considered Zecora's point, added it to her guilt over what past Twilight had done to the other mare, and found herself persuaded. There was some tiny spark of curiosity, too. Unfortunately for her, the thick pyjamas, the warmth of another body against hers and the blanket conspired to keep her too warm to sleep. Even if they hadn't, the presence of the slumbering zebra curled up at her side might well have kept her awake anyway.

It gave her time to think about what Zecora had told her.

A charm that could possess the minds of others through their dreams. That was terrifying. No one was safe. From where she lay, she had had the power to reach across the world and enthral anyone, bend them to her will. Then someone had taken it all away.

All the ponies she'd enthralled - all mares, she'd noticed - had been taken away from her and whatever had happened, they'd all been forced to forget. It made her uneasy. It was harder to be angry when she didn't know if the other had been wrong to do it. Was that why she had been blocked from those thoughts, about all her friends? Could she really, could she seriously have been controlling all of her friends that way? Had the other been trying to fix things, to undo the damage that past Twilight had done?

Somehow, the other had missed Zecora. Either they had been sloppy, or past Twilight had been very prepared. Like the letter. Now she, the current Twilight, was left with a whole mess of loose ends, and some dangerous decisions to make. If only Zecora had known who the other was, but apparently, past Twilight hadn't even warned her the other existed.

Zecora sighed in her sleep, and Twilight found herself studying her face. Even half concealed by the blue-black shadows, it was strangely intimate just to be able to gaze at her like this, studying every curl and line of her darker-grey-on-grey stripes. Tentatively, very carefully, Twilight's fingers gently stroked the ends of Zecora's mane.

She'd considered trying to hide Zecora from Spike, but down that path lay ridiculously contrived lies. Her home simply wasn't big enough to hide another mare without him noticing, and if she tried, it might trip instructions in his head about her acting suspiciously. Instead, she'd brought Zecora home, and when Spike had protested at her presence, she'd said that she was sleeping over for the night. A strong hint that Zecora had been the one who'd written the letter had been enough to distract him entirely.

Zecora's eyes had lit up when Twilight had more-or-less told him that Zecora was her mare-friend now. She couldn't help feel a little guilty about that. But also...

...also, her heart had stirred a little. Was the idea so absurd? Zecora was beautiful, and exotic. True, Twilight had never really thought about dating another mare, but she hadn't really thought seriously about any colts either. It wasn't so strange.

Her hand glided over Zecora's mane, and slid off to brush gently against the curve of her bare shoulder. The other woman's skin was soft, and warm.

Zecora breathed slowly and steadily.

It was so quiet. She could hear each faint sigh of air, in and out. Twilight's hand brushed over the strap of Zecora's nightie, and traced down her arm where it lay atop the covers. The ridges of her gold bracelets, which she hadn't removed even to sleep, were cool under Twilight's fingers.

She'd looked away when Zecora had put on the thin nightie that she'd brought, kept her eyes averted until the other was safely under the covers. Even so, she'd caught... glimpses. The shadows of firm breasts beneath the translucent cloth, and the way it barely covered her ass. Now here she was, lying with her back to Twilight, pressed against her by the confines of the tiny bed.

It would be wilfully blind to pretend that Zecora didn't want Twilight to see her. She'd made that clear. She considered herself Twilight's property, wanted to be commanded. It was impossible not to notice the little flicker of happiness each time Twilight told her to do something, and admittedly, Twilight had found herself phrasing things a little more like instructions than requests after she'd noticed.

Her hand stroked Zecora's arm lightly once again, tremblingly delicate, fearing to wake her but wanting to touch her. Her ears were pricked for the slightest change in the other pony's breathing, any sign that she was stirring. She could feel her own heart beating fast, fluttering like a bird in her ribcage. She could scent the other woman's skin, and an impulse overcame her.

She lowered her head a little, and with soft care, her lips stroked Zecora's shoulder. Her tongue brushed the dark grey skin.

She was scared, a different kind of fear than the one she'd come to know over the past few days. This was a nameless, intimate fear that she couldn't pick apart from the flush of arousal that tingled in her body.

Zecora stirred.

Twilight instantly froze, rigidly pretending that she was asleep. Her eyes snapped shut and her head eased down, fraction by fraction, to the pillow.

She felt Zecora shift onto her back, and grow still again.

For minutes she waited, listening to Zecora's quiet breathing, before she dared open her eyes again. Zecora was right beside her, almost close enough for her lips to brush the other pony's cheek. Twilight's heart accelerated, and she lifted her head just a little.

Zecora had pushed the blanket down a little, leaving her body partially exposed to the pale moonlight. Twilight's eyes widened as she took in the soft curves of her chest through the thin white cloth. The silhouette of the rings capping each breast was unmistakable, even if she'd only ever heard of them through books.

Twilight caught her lower lip between her teeth as a strange shiver ran through her. Bathed in the dim light of the deep night, in the silence, she felt disconnected from all of her day-time thoughts. Trembling, hardly believing her own daring, she reached out and felt the smooth curve of the ring through the delicate fabric.

She couldn't help herself. Her other hand slid into her pyjamas, between her thighs, and began rocking against her sex. Each movement was torture, pleasure and need balanced by fear of awakening the woman beside her.

Her fingertips stroked over the shape of the other ring, then back to pinch her own nipple through the thick cloth of her pyjamas. All of her thoughts had slid away, one by one, while she wasn't paying attention. All that was left was this shivering arousal, this secret, forbidden pleasure deep in the silence.

She turned her head, fearful that her quickened breathing against Zecora's cheek might awaken her. Her thighs slid together, her palm grinding more eagerly against her pussy. She was already frighteningly close to the edge, and she pressed the back of her hand against her lips to keep herself quiet as she shuddered towards orgasm.

It struck her like a flash of lightning, one that trailed off into a long, low rumble of thunder, the ebbing of her pleasure a slow, unhurried affair.

Finally, her head cleared.

Guiltily removing her hand from her pyjamas, Twilight looked over at Zecora and listened to her breathing, reassuring herself that her shameful moment of arousal had gone unwitnessed. Turning her back to Zecora, she settled herself down once more and let sleep reach up and take her.

Zecora listened to Twilight as she turned away, and after a moment, opened one eye. She took in Twilight's mussed mane, the little flower patterns stitched into her pyjamas just visible in the dim light.

It was a start.

A contented, satisfied smile curved Zecora's lips. Her eye closed again.

Author's Notes:

Bit by bit, Twilight is finding the right questions. It might be too much to ask that she likes the answers.