"Twilight, watch out!" Rainbow Dash yelled, pushing her friend out of the way of the acid spray coming out of the giant snake's mouth.

"Th-Thanks, Rainbow." she said while getting up.

"We really need to work together here so, please, don't do that again!"

Twilight nodded. Rainbow Dash began to fly in circles around the snake, catching its attention and keeping it in place. Meanwhile, Twilight created stairs with her magic, which Applejack climbed while holding a spear between her teeth. When she got on top of the stairs, she grabbed the spear with her forelegs and jumped down, succesfully piercing the giant snake's midsection and pinning her down.

It lost interest on Rainbow Dash and focused on freeing itself, giving Rainbow Dash an opportunity to locate its weak point: a small orb located on its head, which was easily spotted since it was reflecting the light of the moon. She grabbed her trusty knives and started throwing them at the glowing point. She missed the first few, since the poisonous behemoth wouldn't stop thrashing about, but her next few throws were bullseye. Once the sphere shattered, the snake fell limp on the ground, slowly shrinking. A few moments later, the snake was no longer giant, back to its former size, still pinned down by Applejack's spear.

"That was... A close one..." Rainbow Dash said while panting. After a deep breath, she turned to look at the unicorn of the team. "What the hay was that, Twilight?! You can't just space out in the middle of a fight. Specially against one thing that big and deadly!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." she said. "It's just that--"

"Let me guess! It's him again, ain't it?" Applejack asked with a raised eyebrow.

Twilight blushed and nodded. Rainbow Dash groaned and Applejack facehoofed.

"He's just a colt, Twilight!" Rainbow nearly yelled. "You can't let one measly colt distract you like that, specially in a critical situation like that! I mean, sure, even I got a teensy little amazed back in Canterlot, but that was days ago! Can't you just let it go?"

"I'm sorry." she repeated. "I try not to think about him but, every time I try to focus on something else, he just pops right back up!"

"This ain't healthy, Twi." Applejack said. "Not for you and not for us! If that colt left ya so infatuated, why don'tcha talk to him instead of just keepin' it all bottled up inside yerself?"

"I-I don't know, I just--"

"We don't have time for mushy stuff, Applejack." Rainbow Dash said. "Ever since that Radscorpion incident, monsters have been appearing all over Equestria like distant relatives in a birthday party!" she looked at Twilight again. "Remember how you all chewed me out when I stopped paying attention halfway through somepony's speech, telling me that I needed to focus?"

Twilight whimpered and looked down. Rainbow Dash sighed.

"Look, I'm sorry for that outburst." she said. "I'm just worried about you, Twilight. It's not like you to space out like that because of something so trivial!"

"Let's go back to the HQ." Applejack suggested. "We can deal with that on our way back."

Twilight gasped as soon as they opened the door to the Chief's office; Chief Harshwhinny was there, but she wasn't alone: the Royal Guard from the other night was also there, and they seemed to be talking about something serious. They stopped and looked at the door the moment they heard Twilight gasp. Flash Sentry, who had a serious expression on his face, immediately smiled.

"Hey there, miss Twilight!" he said. "Fancy meeting you here."

"H-H-Hi, F-Fl-Flash." she said while waving a hoof at him.

"Well, it's getting kind of late, my shift starts in about an hour. Thanks for your time, Ms. Harshwhinny!"

"Anytime, Mr. Sentry." she said.

Flash Sentry winked at Twilight as he passed by her. She blushed and looked down.

"Well, now that--" Hashwhinny started, but Twilight ran off before she could finish.

"Flash, wait up!" Twilight said as she left the room.

"Wait, Twilight, we have to--" Rainbow Dash was interrupted by the door slamming shut in front of her face. "...report the results... What is wrong with that filly?!"

"Hay if Ah know!" Applejack said with a shrug.

"Care to explain what just happened?" Harshwhinny assked with her usual serious tone.

"We can't really explain either." Rainbow Dash said.

"Well, Twi wasn't very sociable when she was younger, so Ah guess it's just that 'first crush' thingy finally happenin'!"

The Chief raised an eyebrow. "So, you're telling me that Twilight Sparkle is... Enamored by Flash Sentry?"

"Ah guess ya could say that."

Harshwhinny sighed and rubbed her temples. "Can you do me a favor? Next time you see either of them, can you ask them to come to my office?"

"Why? Is falling in love against the rules, or something?"Rainbow Dash asked quizzically.

"No, it's just that... Nevermind, just do that for me, ok?" both mares nodded. "Good. Now, about your report..."

Applejack and Rainbow Dash heard giggles as soon as they left the office. Just as expected, the ones making that sound were the three sirens, who were whispering among themselves in the corner of the hallway.

"I can't believe they are so oblivious!" Adagio said. "Almost a week and they don't suspect a thing."

"I mean, I know ponies are dense, but that dense?" Aria said with a smile, something rare to see her doing. "Come on, that's just super dumb!"

"An' what exactly are y'all badmouthin' our species for?" Applejack asked while approaching the trio.

"Are you planning something behind our backs?" Rainbow Dash asked while touching muzzles with Sonata. "Spill the beans, now!"

"Sorry, no beans here." Sonata said with a smile. "I'm more into tacos than burritos!"

"And I don't think it's worth telling you, anyway." Aria said, once again acting as cold as usual. "If you didn't noticed on your own, then explaining would just be a waste of our time!"

"Why, you--"

"As much as we'd love to stay and chat a little longer, we have duties to fulfill." Adagio said. "Until next time! Let's go, Aria, Sonata."

"With pleasure." Aria said.

"I hope we're around to see their faces when they realize Twilight is--"

"SONATA!" Aria and Adagio shouted at the same time.

"What did I do?" she asked.

"You tiped them off, you dork." Aria said with a sigh and facehoof. "You. Are. The. Worst!"

"They were supposed to figure everything out on their own." Adagio said. "And now you killed all the fun!"

"Who killed what?" they all turned around to see Trixie approaching them from the other end of the corridor.

"Nothing at all, it's just small talk." Adagio said with a crooked smile.

"They know something, Trixie!" Rainbow Dash said, pointing her hoof at them. "Something about Twilight!"

"An' they're not tellin' us!" Applejack added.

"Is this true?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Nothing important, really. We just--" Adagio stopped talking when Trixie's magic pushed the three of them against a wall.

"Don't play stupid, I heard you!" she said. "Every day and night, you keep whispering about Sparkle. If you know something, just say it!"

"Bu-But we're not--" the magic focused itself around their necks, pushing them up the wall until their tails were no longer touching the ground.

"Sparkle's been acting strangely lately. She barely eats, doesn't talk as much, has lost a considerable amount of focus, I hardly ever see her in the library and Applejack told me she has trouble sleeping at night. I don't know if this is just symptoms of overwork or if something else is going on, so you better cough everything up or our surprise meal this friday will be fish sticks!"

"O-O-Okay..." Adagio whispered. Trixie released the three of them, who fell on the floor, coughing.

"That was... Unnecessarily brutal!" Rainbow Dash said.

"You don't have to deal with those three headaches as often as I do." Trixie explained. "Sometimes, somepony needs to remind them they're not in charge around here. So, are you ready to talk now?"

"Twilight... Twilight's been... Influenced!" Aria said between heavy breaths.

"Influenced?" Applejack tilted her head. "The hay is that supposed to mean?"

"Influenced, you say?" Trixie rubbed her chin. "And how exactly do you know that?"

"Seriously, what's that?" Applejack insisted.

"We're sirens!" Adagio said. "We can smell a good hypnotic spell from miles away."

"It's a little stinky, but you get used to it." Sonata added, making her companions roll their eyes.

"Ohh, so that's what it is." Applejack said.

"Wait, are you saying that Twilight's been hypnotized?" Rainbow Dash asked. "When? How? By who?"

"Not hypnotized. Influenced!" Trixie explained. "The effects of this kind of spell are slower, but much more powerful! Mainly because the target isn't affected immediately; instead, they're influenced a little bit everyday. This way, no one suspects they're being manipulated. Not even the target itself!"

"Sounds like the same thing to me." she said with a roll of her eyes.

"We can break the spell." Aria said with a grin. "But it will cost you. And it will cost--" Trixie used her magic to envelop Aria's neck, but didn't tightened the grip. "Okay, okay, I get it, stop that!"

"You two, go find Twilight!" Trixie ordered. "If she's alone right now, it's most likely that whoever influenced her will take the chance to do whatever they're planning!"

Applejack and Rainbow Dash saluted her before running off.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash were walking side by side on the streets of Canterlot, illuminated mainly by the light of the stars and the occasional street lamp, looking around.

"So, since you and egghead are now so much closer than anypony else, do you have any idea where she could be?"

"Nope!" Applejack said. "She's been growin' distant, even from me. Like Trixie said, she hasn't gone to the library in days for our study sessions, neither to the racin' track or the trainin' grounds for our workin' out sessions. Ah'm worried sick 'bout her!"

"You're not the only one..." Rainbow Dash sighed. Applejack nudged her. "What?"

The earth pony pointed her hoof at the stairway leading to Canterlot Castle, which was being climbed by a lavender unicorn and an orange pegasus.

"It's them!" Rainbow Dash said. "Let's go!"

The due ran up the stairs as fast as they could, but not before Twilight and Flash arrived at their destination. The two guards standing on both sides of the entrance saluted them and allowed them in. When Rainbow Dash and Applejack tried to follow them, though, they were stopped by the guards, who crossed their spears in front of the door.

"Hey, what's the big idea?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"No one is allowed to enter the castle." the white pegasus guard said.

"But two ponies just went past you!" Applejack pointed out.

"Those two have special permission." the grey unicorn guard said.

"Well, then. Lucky for you, so do we!" Rainbow Dash flashed her necklace with the blue and yellow badge hanging from it while Applejack flashed the same badge pinned to her hat. "We're members of the L.R.E. Organization. We're investigating a--"

"I thought we were very clear when we said 'no one allowed'!" the pegasus said.

"Those orders come from Princess Celestia herself, which means that we couldn't care less who you are or what you do, you can't go in!" the unicorn said. "You could be Princess Luna herself and we still wouldn't let you in."

"Now beat it!" the pegasus then shoved them aside with his wings.

The mares glared at them, but then gave up and turned around.

"So, what do we do now?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Yer faster than me, go back to the HQ an' request backup!" Applejack ordered. "Somethin' fishy is goin' on here. Ah'll try to find another way in!"

"Wait, you're going to sneak into the castle?" Rainbow Dash asked with a raised eyebrow. "Do you know how illegal that is? What they'll do to you if you get caught?"

"Twilight is mah friend, Ah'm willin' to take the risk!"

She smiled and shook her head. "You're crazy, Applejack. Like, good crazy! But I guess I'd do the same. But don't worry, I'll be at the HQ in ten seconds flat and backup will be here in no time!"

"Ah'm countin' on ya, RD!"

She saluted her friend. "Gotcha!"

Rainbow Dash took off while Applejack circled the castle from behind some trees, going unnoticed by the guards.

"They can't even see a bright orange pony in front of a blue and green background sneaking past them." she thought. "Maybe the Princess should hire some new guards. Maybe ponies from the newly formed L.R.E. S³, the Secret Security Service! Huh, who am I even advertising this to?" it wasn't long until she spotted an open window on the second floor. With a grin, she prepared her trusty rope, which she kept wraped around her waist at all times. "Way too easy."

She threw the rope, successfully tying it to one of the hooks used to hang plant containers. Once she was sure that it was secure enough, she began to climb. Already used to this maneuver, she climbed the wall in no time and jumped inside the window.

"Alright, phase one is--" she then noticed the five guards surrounding her and pointing their spears at her. "...a disaster."

"Seriously, I never thought somepony would fall for the old 'window open and unprotected at night' trick." one of the guards said.

"You better come with us to the Throne Room and not try anything funny, or else we'll poke you full of holes before you can even blink!"

Applejack sighed and let the quintet escort her. She got suspicious, though, when they walked past the closed door that led to the Throne Room.

"Where are y'all takin' me?" she asked.

"The Throne Room, of course! Princess Celestia will decide what to do with you."

"Uhhh, didn't we just passed by the Throne Room?"

"Look here, you little burglar, we are the Royal Guard! I think we know our way. Now silence! If you speak again, you shall be punished."

One of the guards poked her rump with his spear. It wasn't enough to draw blood, but enough for her to understand what they meant. They then halted in front of a small door, which one of the guards knocked at.

"Yes, what is it?" a clearly male voice asked.

"Princess Celestia, we have caught somepony trying to sneak her way into the castle."

"Hm, intriguing. Bring them to me!"

The guard opened the door and the five ponies walked in. The room, despite its small door, was surpisingly roomy and well lit by candles. Inside the room where two ponies; the first was a bright orange pegasus stallion sitting on a chair and the second was a purple unicorn mare sitting beside him on the floor, her eyes foggy and unfocused.

"Twilight!" Applejack called, but received no answer. Flash Sentry chuckled.

"I never thought somepony would be onto me so soon!" he said. "And you, of all ponies? I must say, I'm impressed." Applejack didn't said anything, she just glared at him. "Unfortunately, you're too late. Twilight Sparkle has already fallen under my spell. You know what happens next!" Flash Sentry grinned, baring his long and sharp fangs. "And once I am done with her, I'll go after her brother and finally get my revenge."

Applejack gasped. "Yer a vampire! Well, Ah guess that explains why ya were so good in that fight 'gainst the Radscorpian."

He tilted his head in confusion. "You... Didn't knew that?"

Applejack then smiled and chuckled. "Nope! Ah was just asked by Chief Harshwhinny to call the two of ya to her office, but the guards wouldn't let me through. Ah thought this was a lil' shady, so Ah decided to sneak mah way in. That's when ya sang everythin' to me like a pretty lil' canary! Thanks for that, Mr. Sentry!"

Flash Sentry facehoofed. "Ok, I'll admit it, that was pretty stupid of me..." but he grinned evilly. "It doesn't matter, though. If you didn't knew, it means the Organization doesn't know that either, so I'll just have to get rid of you and everything will be back on track."

"Don'tcha think everypony else will notice Ah'm missin'?"

He chuckled again. "As far as I know, there are only three ponies in that Organization who actually care about you. This little tart..." he patted Twilight's head. "And those two blue ponies. And though I failed to plant my charm on you, I can assure you, the others are all under my influence."

"That's somethin' Ah wanted to ask ya, too. When an' how did ya placed a spell on Twi?"

He sighed. "Don't you think your execution is overdue already?"

"Ah'm just curious. If Ah leave this world without all mah questions answered, Ah'll just come back as a ghost and haunt ya 'til the day they slay ya!"

"No, Dracula knows I do not need another one of those. Okay, okay, I'll tell you! Remember when we first met? Back when I cut that Giant Radscorpion in tiny pieces? Remember what I did afterwards?"

"Ya tried to kiss mah-- No way!"

He nodded. "Yup! They didn't even felt my fangs pierce their skin and inject some very special vampire poison in their veins. Too bad their immune system is stronger than Twilight's, so it takes longer to affect them, but it's only a matter of time. Soon the entire L.R.E. Organization will be just a bunch of mindless puppets under my command! And there's nothing you can do to stop it."

"I beg to differ!" Trixie, who was standing in front of the open door, said. "Oh, and if you're going to partake in exposition horsepoop, then you should at least close the door, I could hear you from the other side of the hallway!"

"Also, seriously?" Rainbow Dash, who stood beside Trixie, asked. "You fell into every single villain cliché AJ threw at you! A. K. Yearling would be ashamed!"

"Oh, it's you two." he said with a smile. "Just get out of here, will you? I'm busy!" but neither of them moved an inch from where they were standing. His smile turned into a frown. "I said. Get out. Of here!" his frown turned into terror. "Wh-Wh-Why aren't you obeying me?!"

"Sorry, Flash Sentry." Trixie said with a smug grin and a shrug. "I'll admit, was a little afraid when you said you had placed your influence spell on both of us, but then I remembered that you're a vampire!" she charged a spell and shot magic beams at two of the guards, throwing them against the walls.

The other three guards tried to attack Trixie, but Rainbow Dash quickly subdued the three of them. Enraged, Flash Sentry tackled the pegasus, but she was quick to retaliate. After a quick struggle, both crashed through the window, continuing their fight outside.

Trixie quickle examined Twilight's whole body, then sighed in relief. "No bite marks. She's still one of us! Adagio. Sonata. Aria."

The three sirens, who were waiting outside the room, walked it. Adagio was the first to inspect Twilight; she lifted the unicorn's head with her hoof and stared deep into her eyes. "It's been a while since last time I saw vampire poison in action. I must say, it always impresses me!"

"You said you can save her. Now do it!" Trixie ordered.

"Well, there is one little problem, you see." Aria started. "Unfortunately, our gems were shattered by Miss Trigger Happy over there, so we have no energy left."

"In other words, you lied!" Trixie gritted her teeth. "Why did I even trusted you three in the first place?"

"It wasn't a lie. It was just a half-truth!" Adagio said. "We can free her, but we need your help. Sonata, if you please?"

Sonata grabbed Adagio's mane and proceeded to shake it violently - Adagio was clearly not pleased with the strenght her partner had applied. Small red shards then fell out of her poofy, orange mane.

"I have shards of our gems stashed all over Adagio's mane." she said with a bright smile while still shaking her friend's mane. "I case of gem emergency!"

"Alright, that's enough, Sonata!" Aria then grabbed Sonata's hooves, forcing her to let go of their leader's mane. Sonata just kept smiling.

"I found it weird that the shards we collected were so few. You do realize we'll have to confiscate those afterwards, right?"

"It's not like we'll have a chance to use them as long as Chief has us on a short leash." Adagio said with a shrug. "Now, I need you to charge those with as much magic as possible!"

Trixie sighed. "Don't make me regret this decision." she levitated all the shards on the floor and proceeded to fill them with magic. It wasn't long until they were glowing once again. Each Dazzling grabbed one single shard while Trixie placed all the others inside her saddlebag.

The sirens looked at each other and nodded, then pressed he shard to their chests and proceeded to sing the same song the ponies heard when they first met the Dazzlings, but with one slight difference: it was being sung backwards. After a few more moments of singing, Twilight blinked and shook her head.

"Ow, my head..." she whined.

"Boy, oh, boy, it feels good to sing again!" Sonata said while bouncing up and down.

"So, did it work?" Trixie asked the Dazzlings.

"Only one way to know!" Applejack grabbed Twilight's shoulders. "Flash Sentry."

"Huh? Hi, Applejack. What about Flash Sentry?"

Applejack smiled and hugged her friend. "She usually got all flustered when any of us mentioned his name. Welcome back, pardner!"

"Back? What do you mean?"

"Long story short, Flash Sentry is a vampire and he placed a charm on you!" Trixie explained. "But our associates over there already fixed this!"

"A vampire? Charm? What, you mean he...?"

"No, he didn't bit you! You're safe."

Twilight sighed in relief, then looked around. "Where is he, anyway? And what about Rainbow Dash?"

As if on cue, they both flew back in through the shattered window. Flash Sentry had the upper hand, though, for he landed on top of Rainbow Dash, who had several bruises, while the only hint that he had been in a fight for the past few moments was the lack of his helmet and his dishevelled mane. He opened his mouth, baring his fangs once again, ready to consume the blood of his victim, but was blasted away by Twilight's magic beam.

"I can't believe I let myself fall for such a petty trick." she said. "You crossed the line, Mr. Sentry!"

"So, you're just gonna slay me, too, right?" he said while getting up. "Slay me just like you and your brother slayed my sire? I don't think so!"

His body suddenly morphed into a thick red mist, which enveloped itself around Twilight. He then morphed back into his pony form, legs wrapped around her body, ready to bite her neck.

"THANKS FOR THE MEAL!" he yelled before biting her. Trixie and Applejack tried to stop him but they were too late.

"Wh-What the...?" Flash said. He expected to feel her blood flowing into his mouth, but none came. That's when he noticed that her shoulder was glowing pink.

"Good one, Twi!" Applejack cheered.

"I-I didn't do anything..." her eyes widened when she looked at the door. So did Flash Sentry's. Standing right outside the dark room was her brother, Captain Shining Armor of the Royal Guard, his horn glowing pink from the protective spell he was casting around his sister's shoulder.

"C-C-Captain..." Flash Sentry stammered.

"Another one, Twi?" the stallion said. "Neck-Suckers are attracted to you like bees to honey!"

"Shining Armor!" Twilight said with a smile on her face.

Flash Sentry let go of Twilight and tried to fly out of the window, but three figures were blocking his path.

"Going somewhere?" Adagio asked with a grin on her face, which was mimicked by her associates.

"If I'm going down..." he said before flying toward Shining Armor. "...I'M GOING DOWN FI--" Shining Armor quickly turned around and kicked him in the face before Flash could either reach him or finish his sentence. Flash fell on the floor, clutching his muzzle.

"No Neck-Sucker messes with my little sister." he said. "Any last words before I send you back to the hole in Tartarus where you came from?"

Flash Sentry chuckled. His chuckle grew louder until it turned into a booming laughter.

"Care to tell what's so funny?" the alabaster unicorn asked.

"I'm laughing because I can't cry." he said. "I had so many things planned for the Big Day, but I guess I won't be around to see it. What a shame!"

"What Big Day? Tell me everything you know!" Shining said, stomping his left forehoof on the ground.

"Sorry, boss, but I was instructed no to tell a thing. Instructed by somepony with a higher rank than yours!"

"And who is that?"

"Rule #1 of the Royal Guards: always obey your superior's orders!"

"Tsk..." Shining Armor created purple a rapier with his magic. "At least you're one less foul being tarnishing the great name of the Royal Guards!"

With one swift move, Shining Armor beheaded the vampire with his rapier.

"Ew..." Aria said. "Gross."

"Woohoo!" Sonata cheered, pumping her hoof in the air. "Brother ex machina saves the day!"

Twilight jumped on her brother and wrapped her forelegs around his neck.

"Thank you so much, BBBFF!" she said while nuzzling her brother's chest.

"Hey, no need to thank me." he wrapped a foreleg around her. "It's the duty of every big brother to protect their little sister!"

"What about the others, though?" Aria asked, pointing at the five unconscious guards around them. "I mean, they were this guy's subordinates, weren't they? Doesn't that mean they're all vampires as well?"

"Nah, Ah don't think so. They thought he was Princess Celestia, Ah think they're just as hypnotized as Twi was!"

"Our counter spell works even if they're unconscious." Adagio explained. "They're all out of trouble already!"

Trixie couldn't help but giggle a little.

"Ah don't recall tellin' a joke!" Applejack raised an eyebrow.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, it's just that it looks that the rumors about the Royal Guards were true, after all."

"What rumors?" this time it was Shining Armor who asked.

"Well, let's just say that the influence spell of a vampire only works if you're attracted by the gender of said vampire."

"So, ya tellin' me all these guards are...?"

"Yup!"

"Huh..." a moment of silence, then it finally hit Applejack. "Wait wait wait! RD and ya weren't under Flash's spell! Does that mean yer both...?"

Trixie nodded. "And very proud of it! I had no idea Rainbow Dash was, too, but I had my suspicions."

"Ya learn somethin' new everyday." Applejack then placed Rainbow Dash on her back. "Anyway, our job here is done. We got some stuff to report to Chief! let's go, Twi!"

Twilight was still sitting on the floor, staring at Flash Sentry's corpse while rubbing her chin.

"Twi?" Applejack called. "Don't tell me yer still under his spell!"

"Huh? N-No, I'm not! I'm sorry, Applejack, I was just thinking."

"Thinkin' 'bout what?"

"Flash Sentry said he was instructed no to tell anything by somepony with a higher rank than my big brother's, and Shining Armor is a Captain. He also mentioned something about a 'Big Day'. I have a feeling that this is far from over!"

"Ah reckon yer right." Applejack said with a nod. "But RD here needs some bandages. We can worry 'bout that later!"

"Don't worry, Twi." Shining Armor said, placing a hoof on her shoulder. "I'll do whatever I can to find out everything there is to know about what he said, and then some!"

Twilight nodded. "Thanks, Shining Armor."

She joined Trixie, Applejack and the Dazzlings, who were already leaving the room. Sonata and Aria tried to hide their gem shards in Adagio's mane, but Trixie quickly levitated them out of their hooves and placed them in her saddlebag, making the sirens pout.

"So, how come ya never told us ya have a brother, Twi?" Applejack asked.

Shining Armor was still inside the room, inspecting Flash Sentry's belongings, but didn't found anything incriminating.

"Nothing, dammit!" he said, throwing all the stuff he had gathered on the ground. "What is this Big Day you spoke of?"

Author's Notes:

I can see that OP Flash Sentry really bugged the hell out of my readers. Good, that's exactly what I had planned! And now I can kill him with a clear consciousness, thank you all so much.

And boy, that chapter was lengthy! Can't believe I wrote all that in a single day.