Shinobu's time at Fluttershy's house was the best she'd had in years. She never got to know any girls back home on a personal level, since she was always trying to hide her identity as an assassin, and the ones who got close to finding out ended up dead. It was such a relief to get to simply hang out and talk about whatever while spending time with a bunch of girls her own age. The activities they did mostly revolved around waiting on the injured Rainbow Dash.

There were also discussions about designs for casual wear and how Rarity could overcome her inability to make such clothing, but it was Dash who shed light on the situation. She reminded Rarity that she had made a very un-Rarity-like outfit a few weeks ago.

Rarity said that she had no recollection of the event, but Dash figured that it was because she was half asleep when she made it.

"That's it," Rarity declared, "Fluttershy, do you have any tea or coffee here?" She was already formulating a plan to overcome her handicap, and she knew exactly what she needed for it: she was going to stay awake all night, just like she did with Dash's clothes.

"I only have decaf," Fluttershy replied. She never did like caffeinated drinks. The way they made her heart pump faster, her hooves sweat and get all shaky, it was never a pleasant experience.

"Then I'll have to make some when I get home," Rarity answered, "Which should be about now, as I can feel myself growing drowsy."

Everypony then became aware of the hour. It was nighttime outside, and a quick look at the clock showed that it was just past eleven o' clock.

They all decided that it was time to turn in for the night, and said their goodbyes to each other as they exited Fluttershy's house.

"And Shinobu: I'll expect to see you at the boutique tomorrow for help on our line of clothing," Rarity said as they stepped outside.

"Count on it," was all that Shinobu said before she took to the air. She was brimming with glee at the idea of helping a friend with a collaborative project tomorrow. She'd never done anything like that since she was a little girl, which brought back a flood of feelings from those days.

The flight to Travis's house was over before she knew it, and she landed in front of the kitchen area and stepped in, hoping to find something to snack on before bed. The first thing she saw in the room was Travis and Pinkie at the table, dipping strawberries into a bowl of something.

"Hey, how'd it go today," Travis asked his live-in guest.

"Fan-tastic. I'm going to Rarity's tomorrow to help with her new clothing line."

"And Dash?"

"She's actually pretty cool when she's not pissed off at me. What about you two?"

"We made chocolate syrup today," Pinkie announced as she showed Shinobu the contents of the bowl they had out. Inside was a pool of thick, dark brown liquid, no doubt made to perfection, knowing Pinkie's skills. "We were going to dip strawberries in it. Here, try some."

Shinobu lightly dipped her hoof in it and licked it off. She was right: it was perfect.

"We made it in public, in Donut Joe's pantry," Pinkie proudly proclaimed.

That was a detail Shinobu didn't need to know. It made it sound like they were getting away with something dirty.

"We had sex when we finished."

Shinobu really didn't need to know that. She spat out the lick of syrup and started wiping her tongue off with her clean hoof, not wanting to think about what extra ingredients could have been added.

"I don't think she likes our love syrup," Pinkie said with a smile.

"I don't think I can get enough of this love syrup," Travis answered as he ate the first chocolate-covered strawberry. "We should do it somewhere more crowded next time. Like," Travis briefly thought about where to go next, "When's the next formal event at the castle?"

"Ugh! Freaks," Shinobu said disgusted. Was this what it would have been like if she had dated Travis? If so: Pinkie could keep him.

The late night festivities finished, and the three headed off to bed.

Shinobu went to her cabin, undressed and laid down on the bed, as she thought of the best ways to help Rarity tomorrow. Maybe this fashion thing was her calling, instead of the assassin gig she pursued after he dad was murdered. Or maybe nursing, like what she did with Rainbow Dash. She felt that to be pretty rewarding.

Whatever she chose to do to start a new life here, it was no doubt going to be great with friends like her's.

She soon began to grow more aware of the soft pillow and the warm sheets. The mattress had a few stray springs in it, but they were avoided by sleeping in the right position.

Soon Shinobu was asleep, peacefully dreaming of her future happy days.

At least, that's what she would have liked.

Shinobu awoke to find herself in a strange room, strangely vacant of any furnishings, though there were several other people in it. Not people actually, but there were three ponies, a griffin and a butterfly with her in there.

How did this happen? The last thing she remembered was sparring with Razor Edge, and then nothing up to that point. She then saw that the strangers were all waking up just as she was.

"Awe we having a nightmawe," asked the butterfly to nobody in particular. He looked to griffin and fluttered over to her, landing on her beak. "Pwease wake up," he pleaded, almost sounding like he'd start crying, "I don't wanna wose my big biwdie!"

"I'm alright, little buddy," the griffin answered. She gently nudged the older stallion to her side, "How about you, old timer? Still alive?"

"I feel like I got a swarm o' drunk parasprites buzzin' in my head," he said as he held his head in his hooves. "Who else ain't dead here," he quietly called to the remaining occupants of the room.

In response came a series of groans from everyone but Shinobu, who watched them all cautiously.

The two remaining ponies in the room, one almost looked like a pinup model, and the other looked more like she was in a band, both stood up and looked around the room.

"If I had to guess, I'd say we've been abducted," said the beauty queen. The one with her rolled her eyes at the obvious statement.

"No shit," she deadpanned, "You don't go walking to the market one second and end up in a strange room the next without foalnapping being a factor." She then noticed Shinobu in the room with them, "Who the fuck are you?"

Shinobu sprang to her hooves and readied to draw her sword in case they attacked.

The butterfly fluttered over to her. She didn't sense a threat from this insect, so she allowed him to approach her. He started fluttering back and forth in front of her face. "Awe you the one who bwought us hewe," he asked her, "If you awe, I'w go on a wampage and destwoy you!"

Shinobu stifled a laugh when she heard that. That little guy just seemed too gentle and cute to be suited for destroying others. And come on: he was a butterfly!

"Careful. That little fucker's crazy," the griffin cautioned, seeming to know what she was thinking. She approached Shinobu, taking note of the fact that the young pegasus was tensed up, ready to attack. She spoke again as the butterfly landed on top of her head, "I see: you think we're the enemy here."

Shinobu said nothing, but drew her sword slightly out of its sheathe, anticipating the large griffin to make a move. She'd never seen any of these people before, but her years of combat training allowed her to recognize at least a few of them as able combatants. For all she knew, they were waiting to attack her as soon as her guard was down.

"Please, dear, put your sword away before you get hurt," the beauty queen requested.

Shinobu hated that condescending tone of hers', but decided to listen to her. Still, she kept a careful eye on them.

"Much better. Now I suppose all we can do in the meantime is wait for whoever brought us here to show themselves."

"Present and accounted for," a deep voice boomed through the room.

"Who said that," the rock n' roll mare asked as she and everyone else drew their weapons and looked around the room for the owner of the voice, but found no one.

"I am the one who has summoned you all here."

"We were foalnapped by a speaker system," the older stallion asked, "Shit! We must be losin' our touch."

"Your skills are not diminished. This is the reason I have brought you all here: you are all the most powerful fighters in Equestria, and I have need of you," the disembodied voice answered.

"Lemme guess: ya found out the repairman's been cheatin' on ya with that saucy little record player next door," the older stallion said back. He began to cackle at his lame joke.

His laughter was cut off when something materialized in the room and slammed him against a wall. It disappeared too fast for anyone to see what it was, but whatever hit him knocked the wind out of him.

The butterfly flew over to him to see the damages.

"Awe you awight, gwandpa," he asked.

The older stallion coughed lightly as he gave his answer.

"We don't do special investigations."

"I've brought you all here because I need you for an assassination," the voice answered, "And don't try to deny your vocation. I know for a fact that you are all the most powerful fighters in Equestria, capable of matching even the Royal Sisters."

The seven in the room didn't know how he could have known that. The six unknowns had all been so careful to cover their identities as assassins, staying hidden, or eliminating witnesses.

Shinobu herself hadn't killed anyone since she arrived in Equestria, so how did this guy know?

"How long have you been watching us," the beauty queen asked, catching on to how he could have known.

"Long enough. As for how: I will only say that it's within my power to do what I wish. I am nearly a god, if you will," their captor responded.

"Somepony thinks highly of himself," the griffin thought as she rolled her eyes at the megalomaniac statement.

"I will now impart my request to you."

A hologram appeared in the middle of the room.

The hologram was of a two-legged creature, with a face like some kind of simian. It was clothed from head to toe in a jacket, shirt, a ratty pair of pants and shoes, with a pair of sunglasses to top it all off.

Six of the captives stared in wonder at what this creature before them was, but not Shinobu. She was surprised that Travis would appear in Equestria in any form.

"This is your target. He is Travis Touchdown, also known as the No More Hero. More importantly, he is the one who has taken away my shot at being number one in the UAA. It's your job to find him, and eliminate him."

"I think he's coo-coo," the butterfly said, "I've nevew seen a monkey wike that anywhewe. Not even at the Cantewot zoo, and they have evewything!"

"It's because that he is not from your world. He's from a world where there is no harmony, and friendships are used as leverage for personal gain."

Shinobu knew this to not be true. Her friendship with Strawberry Surprise had always been real, and was glad that she was such a flake that she never learned of her dark vocation.

"And how the fuck are we supposed to get him if he's in a different world," the rock n' roller asked skeptically. "Do you think we can just take a train?"

The disembodied voice let out a rumbling laugh, "He will come to you. And I know the way to lure him out."

The hologram of Travis was joined by more images of six mares that Shinobu didn't recognize.

"These are the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony. They are the ones who help maintain the balance of order in the world. If they are threatened, then so is the foundation of the world. If their peril is grave enough, they may go under the protection of the Royal Sisters."

None of the seven captives liked the sound of that. He was right about them being able to take on the Royal Sisters, but even the idea of doing so was insane.

"I realize that this is an unappealing proposal," the voice reassured, "But once they see that they are no match for you, they will summon outside help. The only one who can match you: Travis Touchdown."

"So that's it," the griffin said, catching on to his plan, "You're using us as live bait to bring your quarry out of hiding. That's pretty twisted, buddy. And I can't say that I approve of you bringing in strange fillies and butterflies that just stopped being a pupa. Besides, if you're nearly a god like you said, what do you need us for?"

"YOU WILL WATCH YOUR TONGUE, GRIFFIN," the voice rumbled as everyone in the room felt themselves hit with a sudden force which bounced them back and forth across the room. Through it all, none of them saw what was hitting them. "I AM THE POWER IN THIS ROOM!! YOU SHALL BE THE ONES WHO EXPOSE THIS LAND'S FOLLIES AND ABSURDITIES!!! AS LONG AS YOU SERVE ME, YOU WILL NOT QUESTION MY WILL!!"

The maelstrom stopped, leaving everyone confused, and in serious pain.

Shinobu cleared her head and looked around the room, trying to find what was hitting them all. A scan around the room showed nothing that could have possibly done the damage to them. She thought that maybe whoever the owner of the voice was, they must be some user of powerful magic.

They all heard the voice once more, "Maybe you would prefer the alternative solution?"

This sudden change in disposition made the captives uneasy. Any of them would have liked an alternative to what they were offered, but the way he suggested it so suddenly, and in such a calm tone put them on edge.

"There is a reason I've allowed you to keep your weapons: unless you accept my offer, you will be forced to fight to the death."

"You can't be serious," the beauty queen gasped as she looked to the rock n' roller.

Shinobu could see by the way she was looking that the two were very close, probably even sisters, and that the idea of one killing the other would destroy her.

"I am always serious," the voice answered, "And this is the way it will be if you do not accept. And even then, that will not be the end of your suffering. You will be trapped in an eternal loop of combat to the death until you do as I say."

Shinobu mulled over what she had just heard. She didn't like the idea of being manipulated by anyone, even the UAA. But as she looked at that image of Travis, her desire to be the one who defeated him began to overwhelm her. She had already made serious progress in her training, and with just a little more, she would finally be able to better him.

"We'll take the job," Shinobu said, surprising everyone else in the room.

"I'll be damned: she talks," the rock n' roller said.

"Very good," the voice responded, clearly pleased, "You will all fight your respective targets at the appropriate times. In the meantime, you will all be sent back to your daily lives."

"Well, hot damn. We can write our wills before we get killed," the older stallion said.

"Except for you, Marion Glastits," the voice commanded.

Shinobu tried not to laugh when she heard his name.

"You will be the first to eliminate your target: the Bearer of Laughter, Pinkie Pie."

As the voice divulged the objective, all of the holograms disappeared, except for Pinkie to indicate the target.

The stallion called Marion looked over his target, and wondered why he had to be the one to kill her. She looked so spirited and friendly, almost like the kind of pony who'd be genuinely delighted to meet you even if she never saw you before a day in her life.

"She can be found in Ponyville, working in Sugarcube Corner," came the rest of the details. "I will now take my leave of you. And don't you dare try to escape my employ, or there will be no measure to the suffering that will befall you."

With that, they all found themselves levitating off the ground, though there was no magic present in the room that could have been doing that.

With a whoosh Shinobu's world went black.

Less than a second later, Shinobu found that they were all now on a clifftop, overlooking a forest with a town in the distance. The sun was high, and a breeze blew past them all, making her feel relieved to be out of that cramped room.

"So, newbie," the griffin greeted her, "I guess if we're working together, you should get to know everyone."

The offer was made with the best intentions in mind, but Shinobu declined it.

"Forget it. Now listen up: I don't care who kills which Bearer, but Travis is mine. You all stay the hell away from him, or I'll have your head instead of his," she threatened the others.

Most of the others scoffed at her threat, but agreed half-heartedly.

The butterfly glared at her murderously, angry that she'd turn down such a kind offer.

But Marion smiled widely at her words.

"A lone wolf cutthroat. That Bearer of Loyalty'd love you. Here's hopin' ya get ta meet her." He then turned to face the town in the distance, "Guess I'd better get ta work."

He then jumped down the rocky outcroppings on the face of the cliff to the ground below and made his way to Sugarcube Corner. Meanwhile, the others all made their exits as well.

"Come on, little buddy. We should get you back to your garden," the griffin said to the butterfly who was resting on her talon this whole time. The two flew away from the scene, but not before the butterfly shot Shinobu one last glare.

"Come along, sister," the beauty queen said, confirming what Shinobu suspected earlier, "We have work to prepare for."

The two left in the direction down the side of the cliff to a dirt path at the bottom. As they left, Shinobu couldn't help but notice that the rock n' roll sister looked disdainful at being told what to do and then led around.

Shinobu was left alone at the top of the cliff.

"Travis," she reminisced to herself, "I now realize that I can never have you as my own, as a master, or anything more. I can no longer live in a past that didn't exist in the first place. I'm sorry, but from now on: you're my enemy. The one thing that is keeping me from becoming the greatest assassin who ever lived."

"But I don't want that anymore," she heard her own disembodied voice say.

Shinobu looked around for the source of that voice, and found herself face to face with Pinkie.

"Congraaaaaaatulations, Shinny," she cheered.

Shinobu groaned when she remembered being told that at some point, Pinkie was going to give her a nickname. But why did she have to pick something that sounded so stupid?

"You've just made the next step towards putting your past behind you and mending your ways to become a better pony in the end!"

In that moment, Shinobu was perfectly aware that she was dreaming, but she didn't care about it. She was delighted that now she'd be able to keep Travis, even if they were only friends. Having friends like him, or Pinkie, or Rarity and all the others: that was what mattered to her now.

Shinobu woke up in her bed, light as a feather and merry as a schoolgirl. She got out of bed, and put on her clothes, ready to face the day.

As soon as she put her shirt on, she saw out her window Travis and Pinkie making their plans for the day as they walked down the path through the cabins towards town.

Pinkie said that she was going to do a spa day with Rarity. Meanwhile Travis was going to go help Octavia give music lessons, and then go to the bar with his guy friends afterwards.

Shinobu watched them until they went out of sight, and lingered by her window, thinking about what else they might be up to with their friends. But she decided that she couldn't dwell on the happiness of others. She had to go meet up with Rarity to get started on that new clothing line. And after that, she didn't know. There was just so much to do.

Author's Notes:

Yes, the title of this chapter was taken from an episode of Batman: TAS. It happens to be one of my favorite episodes in the series. The show as a whole is fucking awesome (with the exception of a few episodes here and there, and I think season four). That's just my opinion though.

Also as far as opinions go: I don't know about you guy's, but I picture that disembodied voice in Shinobu's dream to be Orson Welles. Watch a few clips of Unicron from the Transformers movie that came out back in the 80's to see what I mean.

I hope that you all enjoyed this chapter. It was nothing special. It's only purpose was to convey a bit of backstory as to how Shinobu fell into assassinating Dash. Rock on. \m/