MLP: Friendship is Tragic

by Jabbie

First published 21st of November, 2011

Join the mane six as they remember the most tragic day they've ever experienced.

Join the mane six as they remember the most tragic day they've ever experienced, and how it impacted not only their lives, but the world they knew and loved. Discover how Ponyville fell apart, and how each of them played a key role in their own lives falling into shambles. Follow along with each pony as they unveil their past, their mistakes, and their moments of happiness. However fleeting those moments may be.

Ch. 1 Applejack, an Introduction

It was still early, the sun was just beginning to rise above the horizon, Applejack let a big yawn escape her, she was still tired since she hadn’t slept much the night before. She threw her saddle pack over her shoulder and quietly shut the applebarn doors, making sure not to wake the other sleeping ponies. She let out a long sigh and saw her breath get carried away in the cold breeze.

“I sure could use a smile today, I miss you so much.” Applejack thought to herself. She knew she had a hard day ahead of her. Today marked the third year since Pinkie Pie’s tragic death. She began walking down an old dirt trail facing the rising sun, and disappeared into the orchard.

It was approaching noon when Applejack finally arrived at the old Ponyville Cemetary. She walked up to Pinkie’s headstone and brushed the old leaves off with her tail.

Applejack dropped her saddle pack on the ground next to Pinkie’s headstone and pulled a small blanket out. She spread it out and laid down on it.

“A lots changed since you’ve been gone Pinkie, no pony’s been the same.”

Applejack laid her head down on the blanket and began to remember all the smiles and laughter she shared with Pinkie. Even though she was alone she tried her best to keep her tears held back, she knew Pinkie wouldn’t want her to feel this way, so she did her best to hide it.

“Looky here Pink, I brought ya somethin’”

Applejack reached into her bag with her teeth and pulled out an old photograph of them as young fillies laughing and playing in Sweet Apple Acres.

“I found it in the old apple cellar just the other day when I was cleanin’ ‘er out. It sure brought back some good memories, and a few bad ones.”

Applejack stood up and looked around for a minute, then up at the sun. She noticed she had been there for a few hours now and was still alone.

“What, was everypony else just too busy to bother showin’ up to see an old friend?!”

Applejack was outraged at the lack of ponies who showed up to pay their respects to Pinkie Pie, but then again Ponyville is a dying city.

“I guess I can’t really blame ‘em, things have really changed around here Pinkie. I’m almost glad you didn’t have to watch your home fall apart the way the rest of us did, it really changed us a lot. I’d give just about anything to go back to the good ol’ days, the days when we still had somepony to make us smile.”

Applejack laid on her back, staring up at the gray cloudy sky. She began to think about that day, the day that changed Ponyville forever. She closed her eyes and fell even deeper in thought.

“Come on Big Mac, last one to fill up their apple barrel is a sour apple!” Applejack called out playfully. Big Macintosh and Applejack were busy harvesting apples as quickly as possible. The pegasi were also hard at work preparing a storm, not just any storm, this storm was the final storm of the year before winter. The final storm is always the biggest most fearsome storm of the year.

“I feel the wind starting to pick up, lets hurry and take what we got back to the apple cellar!”

Applejack looked up to the sky and saw black swirling clouds and lighting.

“This looks worse than last years storm don’t cha think Big Mac?”

“Eyup, it sure does.” Big Macintosh replied.

They quickly rushed the apples into the safety of the apple cellar. There they met Granny Smith and a very nervous Applebloom.

“Its about time you got back here, I was gettin’ worried about you two!” Applebloom yelled at them, relieved they made it back before the storm arrived.

“You know we need to save as many apples as we can before this storm blows them all over the ground, dirtyin’ em all up! These apples are our lively hood ya know.” Applejack explained.

They heard large amounts of rain and wind begin to hit the cellar door. Crackling thunder shook some of the apples off the pile and on to the ground. Applejack could sense that something was wrong, but she didn’t say anything to keep Applebloom from worrying more than she already was. She noticed how the cellar door was shaking due to the powerful gusts of wind so she lead the other ponies to the back of the cellar and warned them to keep their heads down if the cellar door happened to swing open. There lying on the floor was an old scrap book she and Pinkie Pie had thrown together when they were still just a couple of young fillies. Applebloom picked out a picture and giggled at the thought of her big sis ever having been so young.

Large hail began to fall, violently crashing into the door. Applebloom dropped the book and began to tightly hug Applejack back leg.

“Now don’t you fret sugar cube, this little old storm’ll be over before you know it.”

“Somethin just doesn’t feel right about this storm, its been goin’ on for far too long now hasn’t it.” Big Macintosh said quietly to Applejack.

She knew he was right but didn’t know what to say. Suddenly the cellar door broke free from its hinges and flew into the air. Applebloom let out a terrified shriek and buried her face into Applejack’s tail.

“Everypony just keep your heads down!”

Applejack quickly stood and crouched over Applebloom, Big Macintosh stood strongly in front of Granny Smith. Applejack felt the rain and wind pelting her flank, it stung but she was still thankful that it had stopped hailing. Debris and dirt filled the cellar as the fierce winds slammed into the ponies. The only thing keeping Applejack from collapsing was her will to protect her little sis.

“I’m scared big sis.”

Applebloom was soaking wet and shivering. She curled herself into a little ball in an attempt to get warm.

“There’s no need to be scared little one, there’s no way no how I’ll ever let anythin’ bad happen to ya, I promise you that little sis.”

Through the pain she mustered up an encouraging smile for Applebloom.

The wind finally began to die down. The rain slowed, then stopped. The ponies all walked outside to see a devastated Sweet Apple Acres. Applebloom looked up into the sky and saw a huge rainbow in between the breaking storm clouds. It almost seemed as if it was pushing them further apart.

“Wow, that sure is some kind of rainbow.” Applejack thought.

She felt a sting on her flank, looked back and saw a few small scrapes and cuts from the twigs and pebbles blown into her by the wind. She took another look at the growing rainbow, and felt an unexplainable sadness fill her chest. With a lump in her throat she told Applebloom to get inside so she can dry off and warm up. Before going inside Applejack looked back, the rainbow was gone, but the sadness was still there.

About an hour later there was a knock on the door. Applejack stood up and gave Big Macintosh a questioning look. He simply shrugged. She walked over to the door and opened it to see Twilight Sparkle standing there with tears in her eyes. Applejack still had a painful lump in her throat which was now keeping her from talking at all.

“Some... something terrible has happened.” Twilight said with a breaking voice. Applejack looked at her with a heart broken expression on her face.

“Its Pinkie Pie. There was an... an accident. She’s no longer with us.” Twilight spoke with tears pouring down her face. Applejack took a few steps back and stood there in disbelief. Dozens of questions filled her mind, what happened, how did it happen, why did this happen. But what came out was,

"Where is she, tell me where she is!"

Twilight looked down and shook her head. Without an answer Applejack pushed past Twilight Sparkle and ran towards Ponyville. She arrived at the outskirts of the city where she met a small crowd of mourning ponies. Among them was Rarity, who immediately ran out and embraced her. Applejack looked past her to see an area taped off and a few officer ponies taking notes.

"Don't go over there Applejack, I'm certain you'll regret it. No pony should endure witnessing such a tragedy."

Rarity's words didn't stop Applejack from running to the scene. She saw the small pink pony laying there covered in dirt and debris. She tried to cross the crime scene tape but was immediately stopped by an officer pony.

"Please ma'am, remain on this side of the crime scene, we don't need any evidence contaminated or our investigation delayed."

"Crime scene" "evidence" "investigation". These words were racing through Applejack's mind.

"Crime scene investigation?! Are you saying somepony did this to Pinkie Pie?! Nopony could hurt her, why would they... Who could do this?"

Rarity walked up behind her, nuzzled her, and urged her to head back to town.

"Come sit with me and we'll talk Applejack, I'll tell you everything I can."

Applejack opened her eyes just in time to see a falling leaf land on her nose. She looked at it cross eyed for a minute then shook it off.

"Well would you look at that, it'll be gettin' dark out soon. It's been a wonderful and beautiful day today Pinkie, I'm glad I could share it with a friend, with you. Ya know, you're just about the only friend I got left... Thanks for always being here for me when I need you. I wish I was there for you, I wish I could have helped."

Applejack packed up her bag and began her journey home, finding herself lost in her own memories.

Ch. 2 Rare Events

“Oh that’s perfect Pinkie, and you look simply stunning I might add.”

Rarity was having Pinkie Pie model a new dress for her, she wanted to make sure everything looked perfect even while the model was walking around.

“Thanks Rarity, this is fun, I’m having fun, are you having fun?” Pinkie playfully hopped around the room delighted she was able to help her dear friend.

“Do be careful Pinkie, this dress is still a work in progress I don’t want you carelessly ripping it with your ridiculous hopping. Its far too valuable to be treated so poorly.”

Pinkie immediately stopped and stared at Rarity, shocked by her sudden change in personality. She took the dress off and gently laid it down on the table next to her. Rarity just glared at her for a moment, then turned her nose up in disapproval.

“You couldn’t even be bothered to properly fold it up I see. I thought you’d be grateful that I allowed you to wear something so stunning, its not as if you could ever afford such a master piece.” Rarity laughed quietly to herself at the thought.

“I’m sorry Rarity, here I’ll fold it up, and I AM grateful. Grateful that I could spend time with you, and I thought you needed my help but I guess you just wanted to make fun of me because I’m not a big shot fashion designer like you!” Pinkie shouted with tears in her eyes.

“Hmph, I don’t need anypony’s help, I think its time for you to leave.”

“Fine... if that’s what you want, I’ll leave! And you’ll never have to see me again, ever!”

Pinkie trotted past Rarity looking away in an attempt to hide her tears. Rarity felt guilt and regret wash over her as she turned around and watched a heartbroken Pinkie Pie trot away, leaving a trail of tears behind her. Overwhelming sorrow filled her mind, the room seemed to stretch on and on as if Pinkie would never reach the door at the other end. Rarity wanted to call out to her and tell her she was sorry, to tell her how much she loved her, that she didn’t mean the things she said and she didn’t know what compelled her to say them. She opened her mouth but couldn’t speak, she tried to walk forward but couldn’t move. It was as if she was trapped in her own mind, forced to watch her best friend walk out of her life.

The room continued to stretch on and on, Pinkie kept trotting towards the door never reaching her goal. The lights began to dim, the roof began to sink, the walls began to close in. A beautiful and elegant chandelier came crashing down in front of Rarity, glass and gems exploded into thousands of tiny pieces. Rarity closed her eyes and looked away to protect her face, when she looked back she saw Pinkie begin to disappear into a black abyss with the door to her house floating away in the void. She finally was able to speak,

“Pinkie! Please don’t go, please stay, I’m begging you please stay!”

“Pinkie I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!” She pleaded desperately.

Rarity’s cries seemed to fall on deaf ears, until Pinkie stopped for a moment and stood still. She continued to stare straight forward into the black abyss as the room continued to break apart and drift into space.

“Pinkie... can you hear me? Come back, please don’t leave me, I need you more than you know. I need you more than I need all these things, I don’t care if my dresses or gems are gone, as long as you stay.”

Rarity looked around to notice she was standing on only a small segment of floor. A huge gap separated her from Pinkie. All her belongings and valuables were gone, all that remained was the distance between her and her best friend. The panel of wood Pinkie was standing on broke apart and drifted into the air, as did Pinkie. Pitch black darkness seemed to reach out and envelope her while Rarity watched in absolute horror.

Suddenly Rarity was blinded by light, she shielded her eyes with her leg. Opalescence had pulled a curtain open allowing the brilliant sunlight to fill the dark room. Rarity opened her teary eyes.

“Oh my Opal, I just had the most awful dream.”

She wiped the tears from her face and looked at the clock. Realizing she was late for an important meeting, she began to rush and get ready in a panic. She quickly grabbed a document folder containing her new dress designs for Celestia and Luna in this year’s Royal Eclipse Festival.

Rarity arrived as quickly as possible to the royal conference room. There she met Celestia and Luna’s royal advisers along with Hoity Toity and a few other ponies important to either the fashion industry or related to the kingdom’s bureaucracy.

“Ahem, first off let me apologize to everypony for being late.” Rarity looked around at the cold blank faces of all the high-horse ponies.

“Well with that out of the way I’ll start with my presentation.”

Rarity looked down at her folders, then realized she had grabbed the wrong one while rushing out. She gulped and felt a sense of self loathing and humiliation began to sink in. She looked back up the the impatient ponies waiting for her to impress them with her presentation, knowing without her elaborately drawn designs, they’d never be impressed. This was her one chance to finally be able to design a dress for princess Celestia, it could have been a dream come true.

“I don’t suppose we can reschedule this for a bit later could we?” Rarity asked with an awkward smile on her face. She already knew the answer but waited for a response before leaving the room.

“If you don’t have a presentation then please leave the room, our time is much too valuable to be wasted by such an incompetent and unprepared pony such as yourself.”

Rarity quietly gathered up her papers and exited the room. Another pony then entered and started setting up their presentation. Rarity kept her head up and walked out of the building with confidence and dignity. She then walked around back, sat on some steps and let all her emotions out. She began to cry and stamp her hooves, she threw herself on the ground and allowed herself to drown in her own self pity.

“I’m so pathetic, this was it Rarity, this was your chance. This is what you’ve spent every second of every hour of every day all year planning for, and you blew it like it was some kind of joke.”

This was the first Royal Eclipse Festival ever so Luna and Celestia wanted new gorgeous dresses designed for them. They’ll become the traditional dresses meant to be worn every year for this celebration. It could take another thousand years before a new Royal Holiday would be decreed.

Rarity looked down at her folders. She opened up the folder she grabbed by mistake and began going through her old dress designs. These were the dresses she made a few years ago for her friends to attend the Grand Galloping Gala. She finally let out a smile when she thought about the hideous atrocities her friends had designed. In particular she smiled at the thought of Pinkie Pie’s streamer covered mess of fabric she thought looked good.

“Even now you’re the only one who can make me smile like this Pinkie.”

This time more tears began to run down Rarities cheeks, but it was a different emotion causing them. Rather than self pity, it was regret.

“Once again, I’m sorry Pinkie, I should have gone to see you today of all days. I blew you off and for what? So I could humiliate myself in front of a bunch of uptight judgemental jerks?!”

Rarity gathered her things up and headed back home. She had a new home, a luxurious condo located in a wealthy area of Canterlot. Upon entering she dropped the folders on her mess of a work table. She then let herself fall onto her unmade bed and began stroking Opalescence’s soft fur. She stared up at the ceiling and began thinking about the day she lost one of her closest friends, the day that changed who she was.

“I really don’t understand why these storms are necessary at all. All they’re doing is blowing dirt and mud all over my house.” Rarity said to Opal as she tightly shut all her windows.

She then went back to picking up scraps of fabric off the floor and neatly placing them into a basket. The wind was picking up and thunder was roaring. Large drops of rain pelted the windows, then wind stated blowing dirt and leaves into the side of Rarity’s home. She shuddered at the thought, then went back to her chores. A loud crackle of thunder shook the window’s and Opalescence shrieked and jumped into air before running for cover under Rarity’s bed.

“Come out from under there Opal, don’t be scared, mama’s got you.” She reached under the bed and pulled the terrified cat out. She then started cuddling and babying her shaking pet.

About half an hour later the storm began to break. Rarity was relieved that it was over, she then headed out to see what kind of damage may have been done to her home. Nothing too severe, just a lot of dirt. In the distance there was a huge rainbow, the biggest she had ever seen. It was growing rapidly and forced the black storm clouds apart until they disappeared into the evening sky. She then noticed two galloping officer ponies were quickly heading towards the outskirts of town. Out of curiosity Rarity followed. There she saw a circle of ponies standing around something. She eased her way into the crowed to see the lifeless body of Pinkie Pie. She looked at her face, her eyes were closed and there was a small puddle of blood around her mouth.

“Pinkie?” She called out, refusing to accept what she was seeing.

“Pinkie, get up!” She yelled in a useless attempt to wake her.

She pushed passed the ponies in front of her and started walking towards Pinkie. She was quickly stopped by an officer.

“Do you know who this pony is?” Questioned the officer pony.

“Of course I do, this is Pinkie Pie, she’s a good friend of mine now please let me go talk to her I think she may be hurt. We need to get her some help as soon as possible.”

“I’m sorry ma'am, but you’re friend here didn’t make it. We’ll make sure a proper investigation is done and we’ll keep you updated. Please wait behind the tape and another officer will have some questions for you.”

“That’s impossible, Pinkie Pie can’t die, she’s just pranking us all.” Rarity said, still in denial.

“Heh heh you got us Pinkie, that was a good one. You can get up now... please get up Pinkie... please.”

There was no response from the lifeless Pinkie Pie. She began to sob uncontrollably. Another officer calmly lead Rarity away from the scene of the accident.

“I know this is hard, but I need to ask you a few questions.”

Rarity hesitantly nodded her head in agreement. She saw Twilight Sparkle talking to another officer, then Twilight looked over to Rarity covering her mouth with one hoof, tears pouring down her face. Seeing Twilight like that only intensified the pain Rarity was already feeling. The officer then went through a routine of standard questions, of course Rarity didn’t know any of the details leading up to Pinkie Pie’s death other than the fact that she had planned on spending the day with Rainbow Dash. Rarity went on to explain how her and Pinkie had gotten into a fight the day before and she hadn’t seen her since. The officer thanked her for her time and told her everything they had learned about the incident so far, then went back to share the new information with the other officer ponies.

Applejack came running towards the scene, Rarity saw her coming and Twilight standing behind her in the distance. She figured Twilight must have decided to go tell Applejack what had happened. She ran out to greet Applejack with a hug, Rarity knew they could both use one after all that’s happened. Applejack insisted on seeing Pinkie, after talking to the officers she could tell Applejack was getting too angry. So Rarity decided to go get Applejack to sit with her so they could talk before things got out of control, she knew Applejack would be full of questions.

After arriving at Rarity’s home, Applejack was eager to hear everything Rarity had to say.

“So are you gonna tell me what happened or not?” Applejack was growing impatient with Rarity’s silence.

Rarity was having trouble working up the strength to speak.

“They said nopony knows for sure exactly what happened yet, but Rainbow Dash was supposed be spending the day with her and now she’s nowhere to be found.”

“Now hold up there! It’s startin’ to sound like Rainbow is bein’ accused of somethin’.” Applejack was angered at the thought that Rarity might actually believe Rainbow Dash could ever harm a friend.

“No one is accusing any pony of anything yet, but you know what Rainbow Dash is like, she has such a quick temper, and she’s always pulling those dangerous stunts.” Rarity didn’t want to believe that either, but she felt like she needed someone to blame.

“I’ve heard enough Rarity! I never thought you’d be one to give up on your friends so easily! But I shouldn’t be surprised after what you did to Pinkie Pie! And now she’s gone and you’ll never have a chance to make it up to her!” Applejack stormed out of the house and slammed the door shut behind her. Applejack’s words reached deep inside of Rarity’s heart and filled her with pain.

Just then Rarity heard a loud crash, causing her to stop thinking about the past for a moment. Opal had pulled some fabric off the table along with a sewing machine.

“Opalescense! What exactly do you think you’re doing!” A quiet meow was Opal’s reply.

“Oh you’re hopeless aren’t you.” Rarity laid back down and began thinking about all her choices in life, and all her regrets.

“How could I have been such a horrible pony to my friends like that, I’m still that pony now, aren’t I...”

Rarity found herself sinking deeper and deeper into her guilt and regrets.

“I wish I could make things right Pinkie. I wish I could make up for the choices I made, I wish I could be a good friend again.” But Rarity knew, it was far too late for that.

Ch. 3 Rainbow's Regret

Rainbow Dash was laying on a seemingly endless blanket of drifting gray clouds, staring at the countless stars in the sky. Her once lustrous blue coat was now faded and gray, her mane was a tangled mess of various colors. Although her appearance was the last thing on her mind as she laid there in a deep state of depression. She felt as if she had to hide herself from the world, that she was no longer welcome in any pony’s life. She peeked through a small hole she made in the clouds to see that she would soon be drifting over Sweet Apple Acres. She quickly patched the hole up and laid back down looking up at the now slightly brighter sky. The sun was beginning to rise.

She watched the stars vanish one by one behind the veil of sunlight. She stood up on the clouds, stretched her wings out, let out a long yawn, and kicked off into the air. She hovered there for a while examining her surroundings, in the distance just above the horizon she saw Cloudsdale, below her was Sweet Apple Acres, and on the western outskirts of Ponyville was the Ponyville Cemetery. The blanket of clouds she was on would pass above Cloudsdale so she wasn’t worried about any pony spotting her. So she let her self fall back on the the soft pile of clouds, then she let out a deep sigh.

Seeing the cemetery reminded her that today marked the third year since Pinkie Pie passed away. A familiar pain filled her stomach, she covered her eyes with her hooves. Little did her friends know, Rainbow Dash had been secretly watching them all this time, even though they had assumed she had ran far far away. Rainbow Dash watched them all fight, move away, and grow apart, she even watched Ponyville deteriorate, and she blamed her self for it all happening entirely. She thought about all the good times she used to share with her friends, she thought about her dreams of joining the Wonderbolts and how trivial and childish it all seemed now. She then started to think about the day it all began, the day that changed the world as she knew it. The day that changed her life.

“Come on Twilight, don’t be such a stick in the mud.” Rainbow Dash was hard at work trying to convince Twilight Sparkle to let Pinkie Pie ride in the air balloon so they could watch the construction the the final storm together.

“Fine, but I still think its too dangerous. Just promise me you’ll come back down if it gets too windy.” Twilight reluctantly agreed to allow her to go.

“Don’t worry, I mean come on, look who you’re talking to, there’s no way I’d let my best friend get hurt.”

Twilight knew Pinkie would be safe in Rainbow Dash’s care so she decided not to let her self worry too much. Plus Pinkie wasn’t being herself lately due the a fight she had with Rarity the day before, so she thought a day out having fun with Rainbow would do her some good.

“Alight lets go Pink, this is gonna be awesome! I heard the Wonderbolts are going to supervise the construction!”

Pinkie leaped happily straight into the balloon and fired it up. They took off towards the outskirts of Ponyville. There they saw the beginning construction of the storm.

“Isn’t it awesome, look at them go!” Rainbow couldn’t help but admire the speed and precision of the elite storm building crew. This storm was somewhat of a celebration in Cloudsdale, all the pegasi gathered to watch the most talented storm builders show off their skills. Even Rainbow Dash aspires to be on this crew eventually.

“Wow they sure are, something.” Pinkie said, trying to be as enthusiastic as possible. She was rather bored and was looking forward to spending time with Rainbow Dash more so than watching the construction of some boring old storm.

“Oh oh I know, want to play a game?”

“Not now Pinkie, look the best part is starting.”

Suddenly over a dozen pegasi pushed a circle of huge black storm clouds into the center of the mass. The entire mass of clouds began to rotate and blacken as more and more clouds were shoved into the center. It suddenly tripled in size and lightning reached out to the ground along with the fierce winds that exploded from the mass. Pinkie and Rainbow dash watched in awe as the huge storm continued to grow.

“Ha, looks like its right above Sweet Apple Acres, I sure hope Applejack doesn’t get wet!” Rainbow Dash jokingly said to Pinky, nudging her with her elbow.

“Well this was fun and all Rainbow, do you want to go do something else now?” Pinkie asked, hoping to salvage the day she had such high hopes for.

“Not yet Pinkie, look I think I see somepony coming.”

It was Spitfire of the Wonderbolts.

“I thought I recognized you Rainbow Dash, we could really use someone with skills like yours over there. Things are starting to get out of control if you haven’t noticed.”

Rainbow had noticed that the storm was growing at an unusually high rate. Delighted by the request from her idol, she agreed to help out.

“I’ve got to go help them Pink, its too dangerous for you though so you should hurry and go back now.”

“You’re leaving me?!” Thought Pinkie.

“We were supposed to have a fun day together, you’re always blowing me off to hang out with your cool friends.” Pinkie said, upset that her day didn’t go the way she had planned.

“I’m not ditching you to hang out, I need to help out with the storm.” Rainbow dash said, trying to convince herself it was true. She knew she didn’t really need to go help, but she didn’t want to pass up a chance to show off to the Wonderbolts. Without waiting for Pinkie to argue, she took off with Spitfire extremely quickly, heading straight towards the growing storm. Pinkie, feeling neglected and angry decided to follow.

“We’re supposed to be spending the day TOGETHER!” Pinkie shouted as she chased after Rainbow Dash in the slow balloon.

Rainbow soon arrived at the storm building site, there she met the crew of ponies responsible for making sure everything was going smoothly. They began to explain that there were new apprentices working at the Cloudsdale Weather Factory. Apparently they accidentally packed the storm clouds too densely and no one noticed before the construction. Now the storm was growing about three times larger than expected.

Out of the corner of Rainbow’s eye she caught a glimpse of something pink. It was the balloon, only it was blowing sideways in the strong wind. Horror struck Rainbow as she looked down and saw Pinkie falling near the ground. She instantly darted towards her leaving a thick rainbow in trail. She felt her pulse rising rapidly, knowing there was no way she’d make it in time. She closed her eyes and tears began fall off her cheeks and mix with the heavy rain that was now falling. The storm crew gave up on controlling the storm and flew away for shelter. Suddenly there was a sonic rainboom filling the sky with a brilliant rainbow that soon disappeared into the storm. She didn’t seem to notice as she flew towards Pinkie who was now only a few meters from the ground.

Rainbow Dash felt a piercing pain fill her chest as she watched Pinkie Pie hit the ground. Her wings began to feel limp and heavy, her arms, which were recently stretched out in front of her, were now dangling in the air as she began to slow down. Although she had slowed down quite a bit, she came crashing down, creating a large cloud of dirt as she rolled across the ground. She laid there for a minute until her blurred vision focused. She then stood up, dirty, and cover in a mess of cuts and scrapes. She felt a sharp pain in her left leg as she tried to walk, it was broken. She began to limp towards the dirt covered pink pony. She leaned over Pinkie’s still body.

“Pinkie, are you okay? Can you get up?” Rainbow talked loudly due to the noise of the storm.

Pinkie was silent for a few seconds, then she opened one eye and looked up at Rainbow Dash.

“Oh hey there Dashy, are you ready to spend more time together?” Pinkie said with a weak voice.

“Can.. can you help me get up? I can’t move.” Pinkie coughed up dirt mixed with blood.

Rainbow Dash stood there, speechless.

“I... I, I don’t know what to do.” Rainbow Dash said with tears running down her face. She knew she wouldn’t be able to lift or carry Pinkie back in her current state.

“What do you mean Dashy? I know, want to help me bake some delicious treats for everypony?” Pinkie asked, not realizing where she was or what was happening. Her eyes began to drift off and she started to fall asleep.

“No! Pinkie you can’t go, please don’t go!” Rainbow yelled at her in a state of panic. Her voice began to break. “I’m so sorry Pinkie, I shouldn’t have left you. Please don’t leave me.” Rainbow pushed her face into Pinkie’s wet and dirty mane as she cried and tried to catch her breath.

Pinkie began to speak with her eyes closed, “You didn’t leave me, you’re right here.” Pinkie seemed as if she was trying to smile.

“I’m glad you’re here, I like when we’re together.” Pinkie said with a hint of glee in her quiet broken voice.

Rainbow Dash hugged onto Pinkie even tighter.

“I like it too Pinkie, and I promise I’ll never leave you alone again.” Rainbow cried, desperately holding onto Pinkie Pie.

“Thanks Dashy, I promise too.” Pinkie said slowly, as she drifted off into sleep.

A few minutes passed with Rainbow Dash holding Pinkie Pie tightly in her arms. The strong wind and cold rain was causing Rainbow to shiver uncontrollably. However, Pinkie was completely still.

“Some pony will find us after the storm, just hold on until then okay?” Rainbow was holding on to Pinkie’s body in an attempt to keep her warm. She waited for a response, but Pinkie didn’t say anything.

“Are you okay? Say something please. I need to hear that you’re okay Pinkie.” No response came from Pinkie’s lifeless body.

Rainbow stood up and looked at Pinkie’s face, it was peaceful despite the ferocious storm raging on around them. Rainbow Dash began to breathe heavily again as she started to realize what had happened. The weight of it all came crashing down and she felt that she alone was to blame for this tragedy.

“Pinkie you can’t leave me! You promised!” Rainbow yelled at her hoping to wake her up, but she knew inside that it wasn’t possible.

She heard a yell coming from the direction of Ponyville, Rainbow Dash couldn't make out who they were or what they were saying. She looked back down at Pinkie Pie, breathing rapidly. She nuzzled Pinkie’s soft face with her nose for a few minutes while she cried. Then she took a few steps back and leaped into the air with her back hooves. She flew straight into the black storm clouds not looking back. Lightning flashed all around her but she didn’t feel any emotion other than mourning for the loss of her best friend. She closed her eyes and pushed forward as fast as she could, she knew she couldn’t face the rest of her friends or anyone else after what had happened. So she kept on flying towards the center of the storm as fast as she could, leaving her tattered life behind her. A sonic rainboom exploded behind her, she kept pressing forward, now nearing the center of the massive storm. Just as she reached it, a second rainboom erupted around her in a massive explosion, this one exponentially larger. It sounded like a thousand lightning strikes at once and shook all of Equestria. Rainbow Dash stopped for a moment and looked back to see the enormous rainbow rapidly growing and tearing the clouds apart, effectively stopping the storm. She looked at Ponyville, once her home and a place of comfort, now somewhere she could never return. Rainbow Dash brushed the hair out of her face, breathing heavily, tears pouring, and her heart broken. She felt completely helpless and alone for the first time in her life.

Laying on her back she snapped out of her daydreaming and wiped the tears from her face. She peeked through the clouds again and saw Applejack packing up and preparing to head back home after a long day visiting Pinkie. She wanted so badly to go talk to her, but couldn’t work up the courage. She didn’t even know where to begin if she did go down to see her. She thought Applejack would be furious with her and blame her for everything, for the death of their beloved friend, for the rest of their friendships ending up in shambles, even for Ponyville slowly turning into the ghost town that it was becoming. It was easier to just stay hidden behind the clouds, alone for the rest of her life.

Ch. 4 Twilit Tragedy

Dear Princess Celestia, today I learned one of the hardest lessons anypony will ever have to learn. I learned that in every pony's life, there's a chance you might lose a very close friend. But even though they've left us physically, the impact they've left on our lives will stay with us forever.

"Excuse me Ms. Sparkle, are you okay? You look like you're about to cry."

Twilight quickly scrambled some papers around the top of her desk, effectively hiding the old letter she had written to Celestia a few years ago.

"Of course I'm okay, just lost in thought I suppose, now please return to your seat." Twilight replied, wiping a tear from her eye.

"Well class is almost over, maybe we can be dismissed early today and leave you to your thoughts."

"Haha, nice try. Now listen up class, I want you to all write me an essay on the practical and impractical uses of magic in today's unicorn society."

Twilight then dismissed her class and watched all the dreary ponies mumble on their way out over their recent assignment. She was now a well respected professor at the Canterlot University of Magic and Research. Appointed to the position by Celestia herself. Once the students were cleared out of the classroom, Twilight shut and locked the door with her magic. She then quickly uncovered the old letter to Celestia she had nearly completely forgotten about.

And more importantly, the loss of one friend, will strengthen the bonds between you and your other friends. Making everyday you spend with them more precious and valuable then ever before, because you can never be sure which day you spend together will be your last.

Twilight grabbed the letter and placed it tightly against her chest, this was the last letter she had written to Celestia before she had decreed that her time studying the magic of friendship was over and it was time for her to begin her career in Canterlot. Twilight then opened a drawer, put the letter inside, and pulled out the official notarized letter from Celestia, appointing her to her prestigious position, professor of magical literature and head of the research team. She was currently doing studies and research on linking the magical fields of unicorns to cast spells that require more magic than any one unicorn could ever produce. Tedious work, but essential to fully understanding the potential capabilities of magic.

A few minutes later she prepared to head out to the White Mare Cafe and Diner, she was meant to meet Rarity there to see how her presentation for the Royal Eclipse Festival dresses went. Twilight decided to walk, it was a gray cloudy day out much unlike the morning, but Twilight found the gray sky and dim lighting relaxing. It wasn't long before she reached her destination, she was in fact a few minutes early. She walked in and grabbed a seat in the back corner next to a window.

"What can I start you off with miss?"

"Just a coffee for now, I'm meeting somepony here and don't know how long they'll be."

"Sure thing." The waitress smiled and walked away.

The waitress soon returned with a freshly poured cup. Twilight gazed into it, watching the thin layer of white bubbles swirl around and around. She took a deep breath, inhaling its rich aroma. She then looked outside, there were quite a few busy ponies walking back and forth in a seemingly endless stream. Twilight lost focus and began to refocus on her own reflection in the window. She looked into her own eyes, they were tired, faded, and uninspired. She began to realize she had been there for quite some time now, and was still alone.

"Stupid mare." She muttered under her breath.

"Probably just going to go on about how she ran into another career opportunity when I ask her what happened."

Twilight decided she may as well get something to eat while she was there, it'd be her first meal of the day so she was rather hungry to say the least.

"Excuse me, waiter."

"Need another coffee?"

"Yes and I'll also have a spinach oat salad, thank you."

Twilight looked back outside, the traffic was beginning to slow, and the sky was getting darker.

"When did we all grow so far apart?"

A chilly wind blew the leaves across the sidewalk outside the diner into a swirling whirlwind that soon dissipated into a pile of small brown leaves and garbage. A couple raindrops tapped on the window, somewhat startling Twilight as she stared out onto the city streets.

"Here's your coffee, your salad will be out in a moment."

Twilight gave her a quick smile and nod. Then her attention was again brought to the city streets. A bag blowing in the breeze, ponies carrying briefcases and wearing trench coats. A long sigh fogged up the window as Twilight was thinking about how dull her life really was now that she lived in Canterlot, allowing her to shift her attention to her coffee. Once again she felt captivated by the swirling aromatic beverage. She noticed how easily she was focusing on such minor and insignificant details today.

"Was I always so dull?" She pondered, as she sipped the hot drink.

"No, I definitely was not, not til somewhat recently."

She began to think of all the fun times she had, the adventures, the new experiences she had in Ponyville, the fillyfooling, she used to be quite the exciting mare. But she felt those times were behind her, despite the fact that she was still so young and full of energy. She didn't want to do anything that would cause her to stray from her career, not again. Still, she remembered how everything used to seem so fun and new, never repetitive, unlike her life today. She remembered everything perfectly, especially the day that set everything until now into motion.

The storm had just ended, Pinkie Pie's body still under investigation. She had run to tell Applejack what had happened, then followed her back to Rarity's house. As Twilight walked up to the house, Applejack came storming out violently kicking the door shut behind her.

"Don't bother Twilight, this one ain't a true friend to nopony, I wouldn't trust a thing she says about anything!"

"Slow down Applejack, what do you mean?"

"She's saying Rainbow Dash might have done this to Pinkie!" Applejack yelled, clearly holding back her tears in an attempt to appear strong for her friends.

"I'll go talk to her, just go find Fluttershy for me okay? Someone should let her know what happened."

Applejack stormed off in an outrage, while Twilight went to investigate Rarity's apparent accusations. Upon entering she discovered Rarity, on the floor, flailing her legs around crying out in an almost comically over dramatic manner. However due to the recent circumstances, this yielded no humor for Twilight Sparkle. Rarity spotted Twilight and began to pour her heart out to her.

"Oh Twilight, I'm such an awful pony, and a worse friend!" She cut herself off with her own sobbing and heavy breathing.

"Twilight, I can't believe the horrible things I've said and done recently. What's happening to me?" Her voice went into an unreasonable high pitch.

"Rarity! Pull yourself together, we have more important things to worry about than your self pity." Twilight harshly pointed out.

"I'm... I'm sorry, its just, what Applejack said to me really hurt me, I never thought she would say something like that." Rarity talked with intermittent sniffling.

"Its fine Rarity, now come with me, we have a lot of planning to do within the next few days." Twilight's voice was harsh and serious, much unlike the way she was seen by Rarity only a few minutes ago. Twilight decided to make all the funeral preparations along with everything else that went with Pinkie's death.

Days came and went. The search for Rainbow Dash continued. The distance between Rarity and Applejack became increasingly apparent. Fluttershy didn't take part in the searches, she allowed herself to become completely estranged from the rest of the group. She couldn't stand to see her friends constantly arguing and fighting, she only ever saw each of them one at a time, and very rarely.

Days came and went, residents of Ponyville began to move towards Appaloosa, due to its ever growing economy. Twilight stopped writing her letters to Celestia after the day Pinkie died. Applejack spent most of her time in the orchard, trying her best to make the trees produce as much crop as possible. Twilight and Rarity began spending more and more time together, then one day to Twilight's surprise, she received a very important letter from Celestia. This one was trimmed in gold, signed by not only Celestia, but Luna, along with an array of official seals and other signatures. This letter was in all legality appointing Twilight to her new found position in Canterlot. Twilight was at first sorrowful about having to leave Ponyville behind, but then convinced herself that any reason to stay had died along with Pinkie Pie. Although she had grown quite close to Rarity.

Twilight was scheduled to begin teaching her first class at the end of the summer the following year. The winter was just beginning and Twilight was determined to spend it in a more well maintained city than the left to rot Ponyville. A couple weeks had gone by and Twilight had finally finished clearing her things out of the town library. She looked out her window and felt a pang of remorse as she saw the plank covered doors, the for sale signs, along with an assortment of garbage blowing through the empty streets. She took a special note of Sugar Cube Corner, a wave of depression washed over her as she thought of all the times Pinkie used their facilities to make treats for her various parties throughout the years. Twilight looked down at her hooves and closed her eyes in a moment of silence for her friend.

"Were you really the only thing holding us together?" Twilight thought to herself.

Just then, Rarity came bursting in through the front door.

"Twilight! Look!" She shoved a piece of paper in Twilight's face."

It was a letter from CanterVogue, the hottest fashion magazine in Equestria.

Dear Ms. Rarity Belle,

Your Fashion lineup in The Best of the Best Boutique in Canterlot was a best seller and a boom to the fashion industry. We now cordially invite you to join our designer roster here in Canterlot as lead coordinator. If you so choose to accept the position, you will have a full paid apartment located in a prestigious area of this beautiful city. You will also be paid in advance for your work. We do hope you choose us as your home for design.

~ Sincerly, Emerald Star

"Well Rarity, congratulations."

"That's it? Congratulations?!" Rarity proceeded to jump onto Twilight, knocking her over and landing on top of her.

"Do you know what this means?"

Twilight just stared at her with a confused look on her face.

"It means we get to be roommates!" Rarity announced with unnecessary enthusiasm.

"Oh, well yeah, I guess it does, heh heh." Twilight was a bit unsure about living with Rarity, due to their exceptionally different personalities.

"Well, we better get to packing your stuff up too then." Twilight spoke with a reassuring smile.

A few more days went by. It was snowing out now. It was a calm snow, one that captured Twilight's imagination as she watched flake by flake fall while she and Rarity waited for their carriage to arrive. Down the road Applejack came running towards them. Her mane slightly snow-covered.

"Were you really gonna leave without saying goodbye?" Applejack asked, pained by the thought.

"I didn't know where to find you, but I'm glad you're here now." Twilight stood up to give Applejack a goodbye hug.

Over Twilight's shoulder Applejack and Rarity glared at one another as if they were sworn enemies. Twilight began to quiver as she felt a deep sadness fill her mind. Tears began to drip on to Applejack's soft coat. Applejack's harsh glare quickly turned to a sympathetic teary eyed expression of sorrow.

"Don't you cry now Twilight, it'll be okay, you'll visit soon right?"

"Of course I will... why wouldn't I?" An obvious lie if there ever was one. Twilight knew she had no intention of ever returning to the Celestia forsaken dirt hole that had become of Ponyville.

"Don't waste your sympathy on that old farm mule Twilight, she's hardly worth it." Rarity stuck her nose up feeling somewhat jealous of the attention Twilight was paying to Applejack rather than to her.

"What did you just say?" Applejack snarled at the insult.

"Oh well maybe I shouldn't use such big words when talking to such a simple animal." Rarity showed off an evil grin. Twilight gave Rarity a glance of disapproval.

"Come on you two, this is the last time you'll see each other for a long time, please try to make up before we leave."

Rarity had no intention of making friends with Applejack, who in her moment distress only shoved a knife deep into her heart and twisted it around with her words of hatred. Nor did Applejack plan to forgive Rarity, who was so quick to turn her back on a friend who was clearly in desperate need of someone to let her know she would be forgiven.

"Look I see the carriage coming now." Twilight pointed into the sky at a very large and luxurious carriage pulled by four valiant steeds. Once landed, Applejack helped load Twilight's things into the cargo area.

"I'm really gonna miss you Twi." Applejack shared one last embrace with Twilight Sparkle, they touched hooves as Twilight boarded the carriage, Rarity rolled her eyes at the gesture. Applejack stood there as the carriage took flight into the sky, tears escaping the strong emotional wall she had built in front of Rarity. Twilight waved one last time as they began to fly into the clouds, watching her as the snow fell, covering Applejack's mane and hat.

The sound of a plate landing on the table snapped Twilight back into reality. The waitress smiled in amusement knowing she had startled the daydreaming pony. Twilight picked up a fork and began poking around at the salad. A sense of sadness lingering in her stomach suppressed her appetite. Instead she found a longing to visit Rarity, she requested a carry-out box and took a couple bites of food as she waited. She packed her food up, paid the bill, and left a very generous tip on the table. She began to trot down the busy streets towards Rarity's new apartment. Along the way she was stopped by the sight of a young couple walking down the street in the opposite direction. They were walking close together occasionally bumping noses or touching face to face, all gestures of young love. Twilight felt a vaguely familiar pain in her chest, only this time it wasn't caused by depression or regrets. It was remembering what if felt like to have ever loved another pony. She sat on a bench and continued to watch them walk away, now hoof in hoof. Twilight began to remember the first and only time she had ever experienced something that she imagined those young loverponies must be feeling.

They were now approaching their destination, Twilight had nearly suppressed all signs of remorse for leaving her old home behind. Rarity and Twilight exited the carriage and someone from the luxurious apartment complex came out and grabbed their bags for them. He signaled them to follow, Rarity followed first, Twilight then hit her with a surprise snowball from behind.

"Hey stop that, you'll mess up my mane, hmph."

"Oh the horror, we sure wouldn't want anything like that to happen would we." Twilight's blatant sarcasm taunted Rarity into succumbing to Twilight's game.

Suddenly Rarity lifted a large clump of snow with her magic and hurled it at Twilight, who was quick to duck out of the way. She then retaliated with her own snow ball barrage, Rarity dived out of the way, accidentally allowing a snowball to hit the stallion carrying their bags square in the back of the head.

"Do be careful." He stated, suppressing his anger.

Twilight and Rarity each quietly laughed together and followed him into the building.

"And you're absolutely certain you won't be needing separate apartments then?" He looked at them over his shoulder with one eye cocked, as if he were trying to imply something.

Rarity was quick to answer, "No no, one is fine. Thank you very much." She spoke with uncharacteristic glee.

The stallion then unloaded their things into the already fully furnished apartment. Rarity immediately ran into the slightly larger of the two bedrooms and claimed it as her own. However Twilight didn't plan on surrendering the larger room so easily. First she opened a pet carrier allowing Opalescense to roam around and make herself at home. She then leaped over Rarity directly on the Equine King size bed and spread out as much as she could.

"This ones mine!" Taunted Twilight. Sticking her tongue out at Rarity.

"I don't think so sister!" Rarity countered, and leaped on top of Twilight, pinning her arms down to the bed.

Twilight wrestled her way out of Rarity's grasp and found herself sitting on her back with two hooves forcing her face into the extra fluffy pillows.

"I can'fft breeffff!" Rarity's muffled cries escaped the pillows she found her face buried in.

"What was that? You said this is MY room, and you surrender to my will?"

"Yesssss" Rarity cried out in discontent.

Finally Twilight let the poor white mare up, who gasped for breath immediately after being released. She then gave Twilight a menacing look.

"You could have killed me!"

She tackled Twilight, her mane in tangles. Twilight returned the playful gesture. After quite some time of playful fighting, the two agreed to share the room. It had been a long day so they both found themselves feeling more than a bit tired, especially after burning so much energy playing their fillyish games. They both covered up on their respective sides of the bed, a good pony's length between them.

A few hours later they awoke, nose to nose. Twilight was the first to wake, seeing Rarity literally touching noses with her came as quite a shock and was followed by a quiet shriek. Rarity didn't wake, but instead reached out and wrapped her arm around Twilight, who was now feeling pretty awkward. Twilight backed up out of Rarity's reach and got up to go explore the rest of her new home. She opened the curtains to discover an amazing view of the night city. Millions of tiny lights illuminated the entire area, making it impossible to see the stars, much unlike Ponyville. Next she walked into the bathroom, a huge Jacuzzi style tub surrounded by stairs decorated the center, along with a sink in front of the largest mirror Twilight had ever seen. She then ventured into the kitchen, where she found a very elaborate setup of cooking utensils along with a six burner stove and two deep ovens. It all seemed like so much, this is much more than the library Twilight had grown so accustom to.

"Twilight?" Rarity woke up.

She wandered into the living quarters where Twilight was comfortably sitting on a sofa watching tv. Rarity soon joined her in her half awake state of mind.

"This place is really something isn't it?" Rarity noticed how nicely set up everything seemed to be. She still felt drowsy and found herself resting her head on Twilight's shoulder. Twilight felt a bit unnerved by it at first, but then decided it was harmless. She began to notice how soft and well kept Rarity's mane really was, as she brushed her face up against it. Twilight closed her eyes and rested her head on Rarity's, she felt taken by the sweet sent of her mane and coat filling her senses. She opened her eyes and became captivated by the many hairs in her mane that flowed elegantly together and seemed to form one beautiful piece. Twilight began to remember the countless days they had spent together, she had become so much closer to her in the past few months. Rarity let out a small yawn and Twilight felt a pang of pure joy fill her entire body. This wasn't a sensation she was used to, she had never felt anything like this towards another pony, especially not another mare.

Rarity got up, stretched, and headed into the shower. Twilight let herself lay down flat on her back, staring up at the ceiling. Her heart bursting with pure happiness as she thought about Rarity. She began to question herself.

"What am I doing, I don't get it, why do I feel like this when I think about her? What's happening?" Twilight searched the deepest regions of her mind for answers, but could only find herself once again thinking about how amazing Rarity was.

"Oh dear, have I become Spike?!" She joking thought to herself. Spike long since went back to live with his original dragon family. Twilight missed him, but he was where he belongs.

Thinking about Spike took her mind off Rarity for a grand total of about five seconds. She once again found herself laying there thinking about the beautiful white mare.

"I need a book, now." Twilight began to search the apartment for a book that might help explain what she was experiencing. Nothing, she decided to flip through tv channels to help focus her mind on something else.

No such luck. Now Rarity was coming out of the shower, Twilight got exceedingly nervous. She slouched on the sofa, trying to hide herself from Rarity's sight. She quickly rushed around Rarity into the shower.

"Well that was odd." Rarity thought to herself. "Well no matter." Rarity went on to dry and style her mane.

Twilight splashed cold water on her face.

"Okay Twilight, you can get over this little random out of the blue infatuation you seem to have quite annoyingly developed in a matter of seconds!"

She shook her head back and forth rapidly, almost hoping to disorient herself into another state of mind. She finished showering, then she slowly cracked open the door, there she saw Rarity, sprawled out on the sofa, her long drying mane draped over the edge, flowing and curling down to the creme white carpet. Twilight gulped, she dried herself as much as possible and walked out towards Rarity. Nervous not to let her new found emotions show.

"Oh done already Twilight?" Rarity looked back at Twilight, meeting her nervous wandering eyes. Twilight was almost immediately entranced by the deep blue eyes now locked with hers, they almost seemed to be glowing as Twilight felt herself being drawn in by her alluring gaze.

"Something on your mind Twilight? You seem, well, off to say the least." Rarity looked back at the tv, stretching herself out even further along the sofa.

"Oh no, nothing on my mind, I'm just thinking about normal things, the same old boring things I'm always thinking about."

Rarity easily detected such an obvious lie, but now was wondering what was actually on Twilight's mind. She looked back up at the clearly nervous pony trying as hard as ponily possible to act nonchalant. Rarity called her name, "Twilight dear, feel free to join me on the sofa for some late night television. We should relax, we'll have a long day ahead of us tomorrow."

"Umm okay." Twilight replied, followed by a deep gulp. She eased herself on to the far end of the sofa, slightly nudging Rarity's back hooves.

"Oh come here you silly filly!" Rarity reached out and wrapped her arms around Twilight's neck, pulling her down on top of her.

"That's better, nice and cuddly."

Twilight's normally purple face was now beet red, as she lay there in Rarity's arms. Rarity decided to roll over in front of Twilight, Twilight's heart was pounding heavily as she decided to put a hoof on Rarity's shoulder, she moved her hoof up to her mane, now gently stroking it and twirling it around. She pressed her face up against her freshly conditioned mane, its soft cool touch sent chills down Twilight's spine. Rarity wiggled herself closer to Twilight, arching her back and pressing herself against her. Twilight shuddered as she felt her heart explode in delight. Twilight pushed her arm up underneath Rarity's, hugging her tightly.

"Lets get some sleep then, shall we?" Rarity whispered as she shut off the tv.

Twilight silently agreed, adjusting herself so that as much of her body was touching Rarity's as possible, her heart throbbing with bliss. The room was dark, dimly illuminated by the city lights shining outside their window. Rarity rolled over to face Twilight. She placed her hoof on Twilight's face, brushing the hair away from her eyes. Twilight noticed the slight hint of blush on Rarity's white cheeks. Then she became more captivated and entranced than she had ever been before, as she found herself gazing into the most beautiful eyes she had ever seen. Rarity's deep blue eyes were illuminated by the millions of reflected lights shining through their window. Of all the amazing magic Twilight had seen, this was truly the most beautiful sight any pony would ever have the privilege of enjoying. Despite the cold air outside, the two mares had never felt warmer. And Twilight, for one, had never been happier.

Twilight reached the bottom of Rarity's new apartment.

"I wonder if she even wants to see me right now." Twilight couldn't help but doubt it.

So she stood outside for a few minutes, admiring the beautiful memories that filled her mind. She wondered if it was worth it to taint them further by risking an unfriendly visit after reliving such a happy part of her life. Twilight stood there for a few minutes, then sat on the stairs leading to the front door of the complex, trying to force herself to make the right decision, whatever that may be.

Ch. 5 Rainbow's Reconciliation

Applejack was about to walk out of Rainbow Dash's sight. She followed, peeking down to occasionally spot Applejack between the trees. Rainbow saw the edge of her veil of clouds approaching fast. As she reached it, she began to breath heavily, she back trotted frantically in an attempt to push the clouds in the opposite direction. No luck, she only succeeded in breaking a small piece off that drifted away from the mass. She clung to it tightly hoping to Celestia that Applejack wouldn't notice. Applejack looked over her shoulder to investigate the seemingly random noises she was hearing. She saw the strange cloud, and began walking home faster. Rainbow let out a deep breath, her legs shaking. She was once again desperately trying to convince herself to go talk to her old friend.

"Worst case scenario, just fly away, no biggy right?" Rainbow thought to herself.

Nervously, she spread her wings and leaped into the air, she leveled herself out and very gently glided down. She forced her wings down as she neared the ground, creating enough of an updraft to make her landing as soft as possible. This was the first time in a while she had set hoof on the ground.

Applejack immediately turned around and began to look over the tattered mare. Not recognizing her at first, due to her faded coat and tangled mane, Applejack took a few steps toward her to get a closer look. Rainbow quickly took a few steps back keeping a safe distance.

"Rainbow, is that really you?" Applejack looked upon the mare with overwhelming joy. Rainbow stood silent, resisting the urge to fly away as fast as she could, freeing herself from the punishments and harsh words her old friends might have in store.

"Well I reckon it is!" Applejack trotted up to her, Rainbow cowered and closed her eyes as if she expected a brutal beating. Applejack wasn't sure how to react to this uncharacteristic behavior being displayed by the once fearless mare. Rainbow Dash looked up at Applejack, her pink eyes open wide as if she wasn't sure what to expect.

"Now come on sugar cube, there's no need to be scared of me, I'm Applejack remember?"

Rainbow stood back up and nodded. She opened her mouth to speak, but all that came out was a brief moment of broken voice. "I..."

Applejack walked up to her and hugged her, stroking her knotted mane.

"I missed you so much." Applejack continued to hug her while letting a few tears escape.

"I didn't think I'd ever see you again." To her own surprise, Applejack now found herself laughing and crying at the same time.

Rainbow Dash felt more relieved than she ever could have imagined, despite her worst fears, her friend didn't hate her, or seem to feel anything other than happy to see her.

"I'm... Sorry." Rainbow said in a rough cracking voice.

Her apology caused Applejack to go into a full on cry, leaving her gasping for breath, soaking Rainbow's mane, as she tightly clung on to her long lost friend. She hardly believed she was really there after so many years.

"Now there's no need to be sorry okay? Rainbow, I just want ya to know, I'm not cryin' cause I'm mad at you. I'm just so happy to see you after all this time. We all missed you so much. We looked for you, we looked everywhere we could. Rainbow, what I really wanna know is, why? Why did you leave?"

Rainbow Dash couldn't begin to explain the emotional trauma she had endured, she had held her best friend in her arms as she passed away. If Rainbow Dash hadn't left Pinkie Pie alone she'd be alive today. She wouldn't have died in the dirt, soaking wet and cold. These thoughts never left Rainbow Dash, even after three long years spent alone in the clouds.

"Lets go Rainbow, I'll get you cleaned up, then we can talk." Rainbow nodded in agreement, she lowered her head and followed Applejack home.

Applebloom Squeaked, "Rainbow Dash?!" She ran over to her and rested her cheek up against Rainbow's. Rainbow Dash was surprised to see how much taller Applebloom had grown, and still, a cutie mark was absent from her flank. Then for the first time in a long time, she smiled.

"I can't believe its really you! Oh my gosh wait until I tell Scootaloo!"

"Whoa there sugar cube, first things first. Lets get this messy filly cleaned up."

Applebloom happily trotted inside and drew a bath for Rainbow Dash, who was excited to experience the comfort of a relaxing hot bath once again. She began to step in, and dipped her hoof into scalding hot water. Rainbow let out a shocked yelp and jumped backwards landing on her front left leg, which had never properly recovered from her injury, this caused her to lose her balance and fall over. She reached out with her other hoof and grabbed the shower curtain, pulling the rings off and falling on top of Applebloom, who had come running back in when she heard her yelp.

"Oops, that was my bad, I guess I forgot to turn the cold on, heh.."

Rainbow Dash helped Applebloom up, laughing under her breath.

"It's alright, no harm..." Rainbow's scratchy sounding voice broke off into coughs. Spending all that time up above the clouds, breathing in the cold dry air left her practically voiceless. Applebloom began patting her on the back.

"Well I'll just leave you to yer bath then." Applebloom trotted out of the room and began whispering to Applejack.

After adjusting the temperature to a more reasonable level, Rainbow climbed in, she felt the warm water soak her rough dry coat. She settled in deeper, her mane floated in the water. It was much longer now, she ran her hooves through it, separating the colors, she smiled when she saw how beautifully it flowed together. She sunk deeper into the water, now at nose level. She looked around the bathroom, noticing how if she had ever imagined this room before, this is exactly how she'd have pictured it. Other than the broken window covered in duct tape, the cob webs dangling out of the missing ceiling vent, and the plastic bag tied around the sink facet. But the homeless Rainbow Dash was in no position to judge anyone.

She finished up her bath, dried herself, and headed into the family room. There she met Applejack with a warm cup of apple cider.

"Here ya go, this should help that scratchy voice of yers."

Rainbow took it and began to sip it. She felt that it was the most delicious drink she had ever tasted. She quickly drank the rest, spilling some down her cheeks.

"Whoa there Rainbow, no pony's gonna try and steal it from ya." Applejack joked, trying to lighten to mood.

"Sorry, but this sure beats the rainwater I've been drinking lately."

"Well there's plenty more where that came from, sit down and I'll be right back."

Rainbow took a seat on a small sofa. She tucked her legs in and looked around the house. Applejack returned with her drink.

"So Rainbow, I want you to tell me everything that happened, I want to know why you left, where you've been and what you did. No secrets, you know I wouldn't lie to you, so show me the same respect."

Rainbow cleared her throat and took another drink. Her voice still breaking as she went on to tell Applejack all about the day Pinkie died in as much detail as she could recall. Applejack felt as if an old wound had been split wide open as she listened to every excruciating detail. Pinkie's last words filled her mind.

"Well I'm glad to know she didn't die alone, its good that she had a friend with her."

Rainbow Dash hadn't thought about that fact before.

"So anyway, then I heard somepony coming so I just flew away as fast as I could, I didn't know where I was going or what I was going to do. All I knew is I wanted to get away fast. So I flew, faster than I ever flew before, right into the middle of the storm. Then BAM, huge rainboom!"

"I should of known it was you. Rainbow, if you're the who made that rainbow what pushed the clouds away, I think you saved my life. I don't know how much longer I would have lasted in that storm."

"Really? Well that's cool then, you're welcome. Hey do you have any food? I'm starving. And please, no apples, I'm soooo sick of apples. Oh by the way I've been stealing apples from your orchard for the past couple of years."

Applejack's eye twitched.

"What you said no secrets remember?"

"Lucky for you I'm a forgiving kind of pony." Applejack laughed and went to grab some food. She looked in her kitchen, there she found an assortment of apple related foods. She opened her fridge, more apples. Apple pies, apple cobbler, apple jelly, apple rolls, apple muffins, apple everything. But among the apples she found a few celery stalks. They belonged to Big Macintosh but he'd still be away helping out at Appaloosa for a few weeks.

"Celery stalks it is then." She tossed three on a plate and carried it back to Rainbow Dash.

"Sweet, thanks." Rainbow Dash began to eat.

Applejack sat down and watched impatiently. She began to whistle, hinting at her impatience. Rainbow didn't seem to notice as she enjoyed every little nibble of the delicious celery. She peeked over to notice Applejack staring at her. Feeling awkward she continued to eat, only more slowly now.

"Will you please hurry up. I'll get you more after you finish telling me what happened."

"Fine fine, sheesh." Rainbow finished the other half of her stalk in a single bite, then the other two in only a few more bites.

"So where was I, oh yeah." Her voice was beginning to sound a little more like normal. She looked up at the ceiling as she tried to recall everything that had happened to her. She went on, continuing her story from where she left off, painting as vivid a picture for Applejack as she could. Applejack just listened, trying to picture everything Rainbow was telling her.

Rainbow Dash hovered there, looking back in the distance at Ponyville. The storm was nearly completely torn apart. She spotted a patrol of police pegasi flying in formation beneath her, they seemed to be searching the ground for anything suspicious. She continued to fly away from Ponyville, now above the Everfree Forest. There she saw a large grey blanket of clouds that seemed to be drifting around on its own. She flew up on top of them and rested, her front left leg was bleeding, and the bone was clearly broken. This was due to the forceful impact when she hit the ground, she had put her front legs up at the last second to try and break her fall, the front left taking most of the initial impact. She used moisture from the cloud to clean it out as much as possible, hoping to avoid infection.

She flew down and saw a few articles of clothing hanging on a clothesline. She snatched a small sock and flew back above the clouds. She tightly wrapped it around her leg, hoping to set the bone and simultaneously stop the bleeding. She winced at the piercing pain as she pulled it tighter. She finally let go and noticed that her leg was swollen to nearly twice the size of her other ones. She rested on her right side, trying not to move, hoping the pain would soon subside.

"What have I done?" Rainbow Dash questioned herself, and the day. She thought about Pinkie Pie, and began to hold on to her stomach and cry. She eventually cried herself to sleep.

She woke up late in the evening. The moon was shining brightly down and the stars illuminated the rest of the night sky. Rainbow hadn't recalled ever having seen the moon so large before. Then again it was mid fall, this was the time of year the moon appeared the largest. She looked through the clouds, there she saw the edge of the forest in the distance just before the horizon. Below her were The Flats of Canterlot, thousands of tiny lights littered the ground. This was the farthest she had ever been from home.

Rainbow Dash found herself in both emotional and physical turmoil. Her leg pulsed with pain, her heart throbbed with every beat, her mind convinced that she single hoofedly caused Pinkie Pies death.

She stayed hidden for days, occasionally leaving her clouds to snatch up food in the middle of the night. Days turned into weeks, weeks into months. Rainbow soon grew accustom to her daily and nightly routines. She watched the ponies of Equestria during the day, looted supplies during the night. Eventually curiosity got the best of her as she returned to Ponyville during the later winter months, still in hiding. She watched businesses put up close out sale signs, and eventually close. Sugar Cube Corner was ravaged, its windows broken and boarded up. The library was locked down, now empty, its books distributed across other Equine libraries. Even the Carousel Boutique was closed for business. She flew up above Fluttershy's house, peeking through the clouds. It was also empty, a faded for sale sign was sticking part way out of a snow drift. Rainbow Dash thought of the possibility that this was also her fault, or that she at least set it in motion with her mistakes.

Rainbow rested on a large blanket of clouds above Sweet Apple Acres. She was shivering, cold and hungry she decided to see what she could find. She looked through the clouds, she saw a vast orchard of bare frost covered trees. There was the dim light of a fire flickering through the windows of Applejack's home. Rainbow flew over to look inside. There she saw a large basket of apples sitting on the floor just on the other side of the window. With the tip of her hoof she began to open the window as quietly as possible, luckily it was unlocked. She stuck her head through, gripping the handle of the basket with her teeth. She backed out and quickly flew back above the clouds, leaving the window opened behind her. She thought about how warm it felt inside Applejack's home compared to the icy wind blowing through the sky. She thought about sneaking in for the night, but eventually decided the risk was too great. She ate a couple apples, then curled up and tried to sleep through the cold night.

"Hey, so it was you?! I remember when you opened that window, I thought I was losin' my mind." Applejack interrupted Rainbow Dash.

"Yeah so? I was hungry."

Applejack felt a pang of sorrow as she thought about all the times Rainbow Dash had been so close to her, if only she had known then, she could have saved her from enduring all that loneliness. She could have saved her from much more pain and suffering than she could have ever imagined.

"Well, that's pretty much it, I guess." Rainbow said, looking down at the floor.

"Pretty much it?"

"Well yeah unless you want me to tell you how I just sat there on some clouds literally licking them to drink water and stealing your apples for two more years."

"Well if that's it then that's it. I'm just glad to have you back Rainbow." Applejack stood up to hug her again.

"And look, you have a rainbow mane again."

"Yeah I noticed, thanks." Rainbow's mane dangled in front of her face as it dried.

Rainbow Dash continued to look at the floor, she couldn't bring herself to make eye contact with Applejack after lying to her. Truthfully Rainbow Dash had done some awful things in between the time she told Applejack about and now. But it was something she'd rather forget, even more so than the death of Pinkie, even more than her own mistakes. This was a much darker part of her life that left her a changed pony, although it wasn't showing now, she had a piece of evil locked inside her heart and mind.

"So Rainbow, would you like to know what I've been up to lately?" Rainbow Dash looked at Applejack's hooves.

"Of course I would AJ..... but first how about those celery stalks."

Applejack laughed and trotted off to the kitchen. Rainbow sat there thinking about what she had done during her time spent in The Flats. Not all parts of Canterlot are the luxurious hot spots the media makes it out to be, like any major city, there's a bad side. In every slum, there are many deeds left unpunished, and many actions unaccounted for. Rainbow Dash made sure she was no exception during her time there.

Ch. 6 Apples and Afflictions

"Mmm, thanks again for these awesome celery stalks AJ."

"No problem Rainbow, so do you need a place to stay? If so you're more than welcome here, Big Mac bounces back and forth from here to Appaloosa to help out in their huge orchard and Applebloom'll be leaving again tomorrow. I'd love the company, it gets kinda lonely in a big empty house ya know?"

"Um yeah sure, I guess I can stay here." Rainbow was relieved she didn't have to ask, even more so that she didn't have to endure another harsh winter.

Just then Applebloom walked back into the room, her eyes wide as could be, tears beginning to well up.

"I'm gonna miss you big sis." The two sisters shared a long embrace.

"I'm gonna miss you too little one." Applejack rubbed her hoof back and forth on her head playfully.

"Um, where exactly is she going?" Rainbow questioned.

"Back to school of course, her Running of the Leaves break is over, not that anyone even celebrates that around here anymore. I'm sure you noticed the school officially closed down for good last year didn't ya?

"Can't say that I did." Rainbow Dash almost seemed not to care.

"So where's she going to school now? Appaloosa?"

"Nope, she's stayin' with Rarity in Canterlot." Applejack said quietly.

"Whoa, she's actually okay with that?" Rainbow was shocked at the thought.

"Well that I'm not sure about, all I know is she cares enough for Applebloom to help her get the best education she can get. I just don't want her to end up like me. Under educated, stuck here with no options. That whole story."

"What did you do to get her to agree, isn't it expensive?"

Applejack began to bite her bottom lip as she recalled the day.

"It's a long story..."

"I'm not going anywhere. Plus, I'm dying to know what's got you acting so weird all of a sudden."

Applejack sent Applebloom off to her room to finish packing her things back up. Then looked at Rainbow Dash with worrisome eyes.

"This ain't a shiny moment in my life and I don't want you repeating what I'm about to tell you to anypony, got it?"

Rainbow Dash nodded in agreement, even more anxious now to here what she had to say. Applejack's voice got quiet.

"I sold Sweet Apple Acres."

"What?! Are you kidding me? Where will you go?"

Rainbow Dash was shocked to say the least.

"Here, let me tell ya all about it, and please be quiet, it'll break Applebloom's little heart when she finds out and I don't want her being distracted at school."

Rainbow leaned in as Applejack began to tell her everything there was to know.

Early in the summer two years ago, the Ponyville Consolidated Schools announced that due to the dwindling number of students, they wouldn't be opening for the next school year. Instead they built another wing onto the Appaloosa Academy for Young Learners. Despite the name, that school has a bad reputation in several aspects, which include bullying, under educated educators, drug trafficking, among many other horrors Applejack couldn't imagine forcing the sweet and innocent Applebloom into. Scootaloo, who was under custody of the county was left with no choice but to relocate and enroll. Sweetie Belle and her parents had already moved into Canterlot the previous year with the help of Rarity.

Applejack paced back and forth racking her brain.

"What am I gonna do? I can't ask Rarity for help, I just can't!"

Applejack wrote a letter and sent it to Twilight via courier. A couple days later she got a reply from Twilight, the letter appeared in purple flames in front of Applejack, landing softly on the coffee table.

To my dearest friend Applejack, I'm sorry to say that in my current situation and busy lifestyle I'll be unable to properly care for Applebloom. Perhaps next year I can rework my schedules to fit in more time at home. Also I'm currently not in a stable enough financial position to support her or help pay for her tuition. You have my deepest apologies Applejack, please don't be angry with me.

Applejack crumbled the letter and tossed it into the fire, there was a blank sheet of paper enclosed behind the letter Twilight sent. As Applejack watched the letter burn she began writing her reply.

I'm not angry Twilight, I'm just worrying about Applebloom's future, I want so much more for her than I ever had. If there's anything I can do in the future, please let me know right away.

There was a magical rune seal on the bottom left corner of the paper. Applejack sat it down on the floor and stamped the runed corner with her hoof. The letter instantly became engulfed in a fiery purple aura, it rolled itself up and burst into flames, its ash flew into the fireplace and out the chimney. Applejack let out a long sigh, feeling depressed and beat, she crawled into bed.

A few days had passed, Applejack was watching Applebloom play out in the orchard with Scootaloo as the summer was coming to an end. The young fillies ran around and laughed while playing their seemingly random games. Applejack watched them smiling as they played and it filled her heart with a certain joy. She knew that moments like these would soon be nothing more than memories, so it'd be best to enjoy them now while she had the chance. Then a familiar purple flame flashed in front of her, a letter landed on the kitchen counter.

Applejack, Rarity and I have decided it would be in Applebloom's best interest if she were to attend Castleview Academy of the Arts and Higher Learning. This is a boarding school in which Applebloom will receive a top notch education opening limitless career paths for her future. She will be attending with Sweetie Belle pending she passes an interview and her tuition is paid before open enrollment closes three days from now. Rarity will be on her way to pick her up after we receive your reply.

Applejack's jaw dropped when she saw the noted cost of tuition for each year. None the less she was determined to see Applebloom succeed. She grabbed the enclosed paper intended for her reply, and began to write.

Twilight, yes, my reply is most definitely yes, and I can't thank you both enough for giving Applebloom this amazing opportunity. It ain't gonna be easy, but I'll come up with that money somehow.

With a quick stomp of her hoof the letter was on its way to Twilight. Applejack then ran outside to Applebloom.

"Great news sugar cube! You're going to a fancy pants school in Canterlot with Sweetie Belle!"

Applebloom squeaked with excitement, but Scootaloo didn't feel the same joy as the other two ponies around her.

"Let's get to packin', you got a long trip ahead of ya." The two ponies headed inside the house.

"Aren't ya comin' in to help me pack Scoot?" Applebloom asked.

"Nah, I have to take care of some things, I'll see ya later though." Scootaloo lied, and hopped on her scooter, she then propelled herself away.

Applejack didn't realize it at first, but she knew that Scootaloo must be feeling depressed knowing she'll be attending a new school without her best friends. They continued packing. Applejack was torn between feelings of happiness, knowing Applebloom was going to get the education she deserved, and feelings of depression, knowing she'd soon be forced to miss her precious little sister. She tried not to let this bother her, she wanted to be as happy for Applebloom as she could.

A few hours later there was very light knock at the door. Rarity had arrived to take Applebloom to Canterlot with her. Applejack let her in, Rarity had a look of disgust on her face as she looked around the quaint house. Applejack then found herself doing something more painful than she could have ever imagined, she found herself saying goodbye to her dear little sister.

"You be good now ya hear?" Applejack began to choke up as she spoke, trying to hold her tears back.

"Don't worry I will, and I'm gonna miss you." Applebloom looked up at Applejack, eyes wide as can be, sorrow echoed in her voice.

"I'll miss you too sugar.." Applejack couldn't hold her tears in any longer, she tightly hugged Applebloom and sent her on her way.

Applebloom then walked up to Rarity, "It's good to see you again dear." Rarity said with a smile as she nuzzled the top of her head with her nose.

"Now go ahead and wait in the carriage while I discuss some things with Applejack, and do leave those bags behind, the carriage attendant will tend to those."

Applebloom dropped her bags and trotted into the back of the carriage. Applejack wasn't sure if she approved of Applebloom doing that, but she didn't want to fight with Rarity right now.

"Now there's the matter of tuition, I know you're a humble working class pony and all, but its simply not in my nor Twilight's budget to cover it all. We've decided we can take care of half this year, and we'll cover all of it for the rest of her years spent in the Academy."

"Look I can't pay it all right now, but I'll get you the money by the end of the week, I promise you that. I can give you the money left in Granny Smith's will, and my profits from this apple season. I know its less than a third of what you need from me, but please trust me, if you can cover it I'll do whatever it takes to pay you back."

Rarity paused for a moment looking off to one side. She stared at the splintered floorboards, the cobweb infested corners, and felt repulsed at the stale smell of apples and firewood in the air.

"Fine but make sure to pay us back as quickly as possible, we'll be suffering without it."

"Rarity, thank you... Thank you so much." Applejack began to walk towards Rarity to give her a hug.

Rarity put her hoof up, "Stop, and Applejack, don't get me wrong, I'm not doing this for you, I'm doing it for Applebloom. Unlike you, Applebloom is a pony full of potential, I'd hate to see it wasted on these... apples."

Rarity then turned and walked out of Applejack's life once again, this time with her sister. Applejack felt a sense of shame wash over her as she went over Rarity's words in her head.

"I really have wasted my life haven't I."

Applejack thought about that fact. Then she thought about how she was going to get the money for Applebloom's tuition. She could only come up with one answer, the answer that had been in the back of her mind the whole time.

The Cloudsdale Weather Factory was ever expanding to meet the needs of more cities throughout Equestria. They were single hoofedly dominating the weather industry. With this outstanding growth, came the need to expand their storm water drainage systems. Sweet Apple Acres found itself in a prime location. It rested in the center of a great and shallow valley. A small creek trickled through the center, once a raging river. Large hills surrounding either side. The engineers at the factory saw great potential in creating a runway for the excess water to drain into the great lakes of the Everfree Forest. However this runway would require the complete leveling of Sweet Apple Acres. Applejack had adamantly refused all their offers to buy the property in the past, each refusal prompting a much larger offer the next week. This was her golden ticket to pay for Applebloom's tuition, and buy herself a new home by the much larger orchard in Appaloosa. The only problem was it came at the cost of the home she had grown up on, the home she had watched her family and friends grow up on. But she didn't see any other options. She contacted their offices, agreed to sell, and demolition was set to be scheduled for two years after the next winter.

Rainbow Dash interrupted. "That Rarity can be such a... Grr!"

"I know Rainbow, but you see, ever since you left me and Rarity haven't really been on good terms. I'm just glad she helped at all."

"Yeah I guess." Rainbow reluctantly agreed.

"Come with me, I wanna show you something. Applebloom come down here!"

The three ponies trotted outside and into the orchard. They soon reached the center of the orchard, where they found a huge apple tree.

"This here is the first tree ever planted in this orchard, it spawned all these trees around it."

Rainbow Dash looked around noticing that the trees here weren't planted in the neat formation that the others were. These, trees felt more natural, and Rainbow felt a sense of humbleness looking upon the great tree.

Applejack led them closer to the tree, there she pointed out a couple of small hoof prints near the base of the trunk. Underneath them were the initials AJ. Next to those were a slightly larger pair, these were Big Macintosh's. Rainbow began to notice dozens of pairs of hoof prints all around the great tree as she walked around the huge trunk.

"I guess, you could call this our family tree." Applejack laughed as Rainbow looked on in awe.

"Go ahead and give er' a buck Rainbow."

"What? Me? I, I couldn't, it's not really my place."

"Rainbow, its just as much your place to mark this tree as it is any of theirs. You're as big a part of my family as it gets."

Rainbow smiled and turned around, giving the tree a swift buck in a blank area she spotted. Her hoof prints were much larger than any of the others around it. This was because it was tradition for the Apple family ponies to mark the tree as soon as they were old enough to.

"Perfect, it looks perfect." Applejack swallowed her sadness as she thought about the impending destruction of this great tree. She then messed up Rainbow's mane with her hoof, and laughed.

"Alright lets head back now, we need to get you ready for tomorrow Applebloom, oh and I'm sure Rarity'll be happy to see you too Rainbow."

Rainbow felt quite uncertain of that, she wasn't even sure she was ready to see Rarity at all yet. She knew she didn't have a choice, so all she could do was hope for the best. After all, Applejack certainly was happy to see her, why wouldn't Rarity meet her with the same feelings?

Ch. 7 Street Strewn Romance

Rarity looked out her window at the orange clouds illuminated by the setting sun. Street lights were flickering on one by one. Rarity walked over to her calendar, two more weeks until the first annual Royal Eclipse Festival. She once again looked over her designs, they were perfect, if she hadn't made such a simple mistake she could have created art that would have been immortalized by the princesses themselves. She could have left her mark on the world in a way that would never be forgotten. Suddenly she heard a buzz, someone was at her door. She walked over to the intercom, switched on the monitor. There on the camera screen stood Twilight Sparkle staring up at the camera, her eyes wide and twinkling.

Rarity pushed the intercom, "Oh Twilight I completely forgot about our plans, I'm so sorry."

"It's alright, um, will you let me in now?"

"Oh of course I will dear, please hurry in." Rarity buzzed her in.

Twilight headed through the lobby, walking past a sleeping receptionist. She stepped into the elevator, almost forgetting which floor Rarity lived on. It had been nearly a year since Rarity moved into this new apartment, and this is only the second time Twilight had been here. As soon as the elevator door opened, Rarity jumped in to greet Twilight with a tight hug.

"Sorry Twilight, things went horribly wrong for me today, and well, I simply forgot about our little date."

"Don't mention it Rarity, its fine."

"So then, what brings you here, did you need to see me about something?" Rarity questioned as she led them back to her apartment.

"No I just thought I'd drop in, I haven't seen you a pretty long time, and well to be honest, I've missed you lately." Twilight watched her hooves as she spoke.

"Oh Twilight, I've missed you too, I've missed all my friends lately. I feel like all I do is work and work all day long." Rarity seemed to be complaining.

"I know what that's like. Believe me."

Twilight stood there looking around her home, making sure to avoid eye contact with Rarity. She wasn't sure why, but she couldn't bring herself to do it.

"I thought maybe we could, talk. You know, catch up on things." Twilight couldn't figure out why she felt so nervous.

"That's an excellent idea Twilight, and look, you even brought me a snack." Rarity looked at Twilight's bag with delight.

"Uh, yeah help yourself." Twilight sat the bag down on Rarity's table.

Twilight looked up slowly at Rarity, she looked at her front hooves rubbing together, her horn engulfed in a white aura as she levitated the fork in front of her face. Twilight looked at her face, her eyes were closed as she enjoyed the the snack. Rarity opened one eye and smiled at Twilight while she chewed, she let out a light giggle.

"Why are you staring at me like that, it's making me feel awkward Twipie."

"I think I should be going now." Twilight got up and headed out the door.

"Wait Twilight I'm sorry, was it something I said? I thought you liked Twipie!" Rarity whined out to Twilight trying to convince her to stay.

Twilight looked back at Rarity, she was standing there, looking absolutely devastated. Her bright blue eyes staring deep into Twilight's heart. She was always a sucker for those eyes, she couldn't help but allow them to bend her to Rarity's will.

"Rarity, I'm not sure why I'm here, I thought I wanted to see you, but I now feel like being alone. Perhaps we can talk later."

"Well I'm sorry you feel that way Twilight, but I'd still like it if you stayed."

Once again Twilight found herself staring into Rarity's beautiful eyes.

"I guess I can stay if you really want me to Rarity."

Twilight walked past her and sat in her front room. Memories of the last time she was in this room filled her mind. Rarity walked in and sat next to her with a big grin on her face. Before Twilight could ask what she was smiling about Rarity quickly took another bite of Twilight's leftovers. Twilight fiddled with her hooves and stared at the floor, thinking of something to say. She looked up at Rarity who simultaneously looked in the other direction. Rarity looked back over to Twilight who then simultaneously looked back at the floor.

"Well I should be getting off to bed soon, I have to pick Applebloom up in the morning." Rarity decided to break the awkward silence.

"I need to be getting up early this morning as well, I have a class to teach earlier than usual this morning." Twilight lied, her schedule was normal as usual.

She stood up and headed toward the door once again, but before leaving the room she saw a photograph hanging on the wall. It was Rarity laying on a piano that was in the the recreational room of the apartment they once shared. She was stretched out, holding her head up with one hoof, resting on her elbow. Her lips were puckered and her eyes were partially closed. Twilight couldn't help but laugh at all the memories that were tied to this hilarious and beautiful image.

Suddenly Twilight found herself feeling a vast assortment of emotions. She put her hoof up to her mouth and took deep breaths in order to control her emotions in front of her old friend. Rarity walked up behind Twilight and put her arm around her.

"This old thing, it, it really makes you miss the good times we shared doesn't it." Rarity pulled Twilight in close.

Twilight blushed and closed her eyes for a moment. Then led Rarity back to the couch where they sat together.

"Remember way back when we first came together?"

Rarity's snow white cheeks turned bright red, her eyebrows raised.

"To Canterlot I meant, you know what I meant!" Twilight was now blushing just as much as Rarity was. She playfully pushed Rarity over on the couch.

"Still a gutter minded mare I see." Twilight joked.

"I'm sorry Twipie, it was funny though. By the way I do remember when we first came here, how could I forget. I remember all of our outings and adventures. Those truly are the highlights of my life."

Twilight smiled at Rarity. She rested her head on her shoulder and began to laugh and joke with her old friend about all the fun times they shared together. The trouble they got in, the loved they experienced, they recalled every bit of the wonderful relationship they once had.

Twilight felt herself wake up, but she wasn't quite ready to open her eyes. She lifted her hoof up slightly, feeling Rarity's soft mane against her arm. Twilight opened her eyes to look at the subject of her recent infatuation. When she did, she met Rarity's gaze, those immaculate sapphire eyes seemed to carry all her worries and regrets away.

"Good morning sunshine." Twilight spoke in near whispers.

Rarity pushed her face into Twilight's chest and wrapped her arms tightly around her.

"Please don't make me get up Twilight, I'm still so sleepy."

Rarity looked back up at Twilight making her eyes as wide and sad as possible, her lips pouting. Twilight knew no matter what this mare asked of her, she could never say no.

"We'll do whatever you want to do Rarity." Twilight spoke in a state of bliss.

"We'll do whatever I want to do you say? Well in that case maybe I don't want to sleep after all." Rarity had a devious grin on her face. Twilight waited eagerly for what Rarity would do or say next.

"I'm starved, lets get breakfast."

Twilight felt disappointed, but agreed. This would be a good chance for them to walk around the neighborhood and get familiar with the area. They took showers and prepared for the day ahead. They headed out, surveyed the surrounding areas, and spotted a reasonable diner. They sat across from each other and ordered their breakfast.

"Oh Twilight, isn't it so sad?"

"What do you mean Rarity?"

Rarity pointed over to their waitress, "Look at her cutie mark." She whispered to Twilight.

It was a serving plate with smaller plates resting on it. A cutie mark signifying that her special talent was waiting tables.

"How awful that must be, I suppose we can't all be so lucky."

Twilight found it difficult to stay focused on anything other than Rarity. "You're right Rarity, not everyone can be so lucky." She smiled and gave Rarity a quick wink.

Rarity smiled at Twilight, suspecting that Twilight was referring to herself as being the lucky one. They ate their breakfasts, occasionally feeding one another, giggling about random things like little school fillies. They left soon after and went back home.

"What should we do with all this spare time, neither of us really have any work in store til after the summer is over." Twilight wondered what to do with their extra time.

"Well we can have fun Twilight, this might be the last chance we get to simply do whatever we want. We'll be so busy once we start our work."

"I agree, what should we do?" Twilight asked excitedly.

"Well, tonight we'll go out, we'll experience the city life, we can do things we never dreamed of doing in Ponyville here." Rarity was feeling as excited as Twilight.

They did research on all the places near them that held any sort of interest. Eventually they headed out into the night. They walked down the elegantly lit streets of Canterlot, it was everything they'd imagined and more. This part of the city was far away from where Twilight once lived. This was a dream come true for them both. Limousines pulled into red velvet carpet clubs, paparazzi lurked around the area hoping to catch a photo or two of a celebrity. Flashing lights and crowds, mesmerized the two young mares. They walked into a huge concert hall, they weren't sure who was playing but it was clear they were important. They walked up to a ticket booth, of course any decent seat was sold out but their curiosity got the better of them. The ticket master held out a glowing glass tablet with a small circle in the center. Twilight touched her horn to it, magically transferring funds from her bank account to cover her purchase.

They settled into their seats surrounded by a higher class. The theater was soon silent as the orchestra began to play, they opened with a soft symphony, a particularly talented grey cello player was emotionally captivating all the ponies in the audience. Rarity smiled at Twilight, she was enjoying their first night out together. She put her hoof on Twilight's, stroking it before interlocking them. A few minutes later a pianist entered the stage. He was an old stallion that obviously had many years experience doing what he did best. He began to play a soft tune, filling the hall with resonating vibrant pitches as he played his fluid scales. Rarity was particularly moved by the number. She leaned over to Twilight and whispered.

"I never knew how much I loved the piano."

Twilight smiled and held her hoof even tighter. The show went on and came to an end. They found it was still early on in the night and there was still much to do. They soon found themselves in club of sorts. Heavy bass filled the room as a blue haired DJ scratched some vinyl.

"Lets go dance Twilight!" Rarity dragged her reluctant partner into the center of the dance floor.

They held one another up as they stood on their back hooves and began rhythmically spinning, swaying, and hopping around. They let themselves get caught up in the night, their sense of time dulled by the fun they were having together. They were both exhausted when they finally got home, but that didn't stop their excitement. Rarity led Twilight into their room, she climbed on the bed, sensually gesturing for Twilight to join her. Twilight blushed at Rarity's forwardness, but worked up the confidence to join her. Rarity pulled Twilight in closely and gave her a passionate kiss. Twilight lost control of herself, she climbed on top of Rarity, making sure not to break their first kiss. Opal gave them a growl and put her head under her pillow, hoping to drown out their noise.

Days and nights like these came and went, Rarity and Twilight couldn't have been happier. As time went on, they only grew closer and more intimate. Soon Rarity began working, she converted the second room of her apartment into a work room for her dresses. Twilight began her training on becoming a professor at the University. Their days became busy, but they still found time for one another every night.

They were headed back from a late night dinner, the streets nearly silent in the early hours of the morning. The only sound was the echoing laughter of the two as they trotted down the sidewalks hoof in hoof. As they reached an unusually dark corner, a young grey stallion with a short creme mane jumped out from behind a trash can in a dark alley. A shoddy knife hovered in front of Rarity, shrouded in a grey aura.

"Just give me your bits and no pony's gonna get hurt." Rarity looked cross eyed at the knife.

Twilight acted almost immediately, suddenly the young grey stallion found himself surrounded by a deep purple aura, his knife whizzed out of his reach as it spiraled, crashing into the building next to them, a streak of purple magic left in it's trail. The knife's blade had completely pierced the wall, all that remained was the handle diagonally protruding from the bricks. Twilight's horn appeared to have burst into flames of the darkest purple, as deep purple embers were falling off of it, hitting the ground. She forced the small stallion up against the brick wall in the dark alley, slowly walking towards him, small cracks were forming in the bricks behind him. Her eyes began to glow an off white color as she looked into his eyes, choking the life out of him. Rarity got a grip on the situation, she ran up behind Twilight putting a hoof on her shoulder.

"Its okay Twilight, you can stop now, I mean look at him he's still just a colt."

Twilight took a couple steps back, then lowered the small stallion to the ground. He was choking and gasping for breath.

"Now what would compel you to do such a thing?" Rarity asked with genuine concern.

"I need bits... my dad lost his job and my mum is sick. If we can't afford to get her medicine she won't get better."

"Ha, likely story. How about you go to The Flats where you belong kid." Twilight shot him a menacing glare.

"Run along now child, you'll find an honest way to raise your bits. Perhaps if you had only asked rather than attacking me, I'd have given them to you. Keep that in mind the next time you attempt to steal." Rarity patronized the already humiliated stallion. He then trotted off in the alley, mumbling under his breath.

"Well that was an ordeal."

"To say the least Twipie." Rarity smiled and hugged her saviour.

"Twipie? Where's this coming from?"

"Oh its so cute and suiting for such a sweet pony as yourself, don't you agree?"

Twilight didn't mind the cheesy pet names, what was really on her mind was rather or not she would have killed that stallion if Rarity hadn't intervened. They continued on their way home, their night came to an end, as they soon found themselves once again locked in an endearing embrace as they slept in each other's arms.

Nearly a year had gone by since they moved to Canterlot. Twilight was resting her head in Rarity's lap while they watched TV. A letter slipped through their mail slot. Twilight grabbed it, it was from Applejack. She read the letter to Rarity and they agreed to deny her request. A few more days came and went.

"Twilight, I've been crunching some numbers and I've decided we can help Applebloom enroll with Sweetie Belle this year after all."

"I'm sure we can, but then we'll be broke for the next three months, won't we?" Twilight was curious about Rarity's sudden interest in helping Applebloom.

"Yes and that's why I'm proposing Applejack pay for only half of the first years tuition, I'll cover the rest myself." Rarity looked nervous as she waited for Twilight to speak.

"Well that's quite generous of you Rarity, I'll write Applejack a letter now."

Rarity smiled and nodded her head.

The next day she headed back to Ponyville to retrieve Applebloom. Upon meeting Applejack there, Rarity couldn't help but allow those old spiteful feelings to return. She looked around at Applejack's tattered house and thought about how awful it must be for poor little Applebloom to be stuck living here. After saying some spiteful things to Applejack, Rarity immediately began to feel some signs of remorse. She turned around to apologize for the sudden hatefulness that had taken over her actions. Applejack had already shut the door, and the carriage driver was impatiently waiting on her. She decided to make up with Applejack later and returned on her way to Canterlot.

"So Applebloom, on our way home I'll be preparing you for your arduous interview with the student administrator."

"Okay Rarity, lets get started then." Applebloom spoke with confidence.

"I can tell this isn't going to be too hard for you, you're a very capable young filly." Rarity felt a sense of pride as she went over the basics with Applebloom.

They soon arrived home, Applebloom aced her interview the next day, and Rarity paid the hefty bill. Sweetie Belle and Applebloom were more than happy to see each other as they explored their new school together. Then a couple weeks later, Rarity received an invoice noting that a large sum of money had been deposited into her account. This was quite a bit more than she expected, but more than anything she was relieved Applejack came through.

A few more months had gone by, everything was going smoothly.

"Rarity, I have something for you in the rec room." Twilight woke Rarity up from a nap, then trotted away.

"Right now Twilight?" Rarity drearily replied, not realizing yet that Twilight had already left the room.

She eventually forced herself up and made her way to the recreational room near the lobby.

"Surprise!" Yelled Twilight, along with a few acquaintances and co workers.

Twilight was sitting at a piano. She then created a few orbs with her magic which she used to play the piano quite elegantly. She played a song that greatly resembled the one they had heard in concert nearly a year ago. Rarity felt her heart sink deep into her stomach as she listened to the beautiful music Twilight was creating for her. Twilight finished flawlessly.

"Oh Twilight I love you so much." Rarity's words echoed in Twilight's mind, this was the first time she used those words.

"I.. I love you too Rarity." Overwhelming glee wrapped around Twilight's heart as she blushed.

"That was just beautiful, I didn't know you could play the piano."

"Well I couldn't, but I've been learning at the academy. I wanted to surprise you, so I came up with this song. It's the first song I've ever written, so I know it wasn't very good." An extreme sense of modesty washed over Twilight.

"Are you kidding Twipie, it was astounding." A few of the guests chuckled at the pet name.

"Well anyway, happy anniversary Rarity. We've been living together for a year now, and I fell in love with you the very first night." Twilight spoke quietly, not sure how to place words to all the emotions she was currently experiencing.

Rarity and Twilight mingled with the guests for an hour or so, Rarity laid on top of the piano and Twilight took her picture. They soon saw the guests out and went back to their room.

"I don't even want to talk about what happened next." Rarity laughed trying to keep herself from blushing. It wasn't working.

Rarity and Twilight once again found themselves sharing the comfort of one another's warm embrace.

"Why did we grow apart Twilight, I really can't come up with an answer no matter how many times I think about it."

"Rarity, our relationship was affecting our careers, and we made a choice that it would be best to separate." Twilight looked back down at the floor again.

"I regret that decision Twilight, tonight is the happiest I've been since you left my side." Rarity spoke to Twilight as she held her hoof with both of hers.

"Same here Rarity." Twilight smiled again, unable to control her blushing.

"Twilight, stay with me tonight please. You can come to Ponyville with me in the morning too."

"I suppose I can call my substitute in for a day." Twilight was more thrilled with the idea than she let on.

"That's wonderful news Twilight." Rarity didn't try to hide any bit of her enthusiasm.

The two ponies continued sharing their favorite memories from their past relationship. Eventually they fell asleep together on the couch. They needed some sleep, they had a long trip ahead of them.

Ch. 8 Reunion

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP

A limp hoof is waving around in the direction of the alarm clock. It's tapping desperately all over the annoying device, until it gives up using a conventional method to deactivate it and yanks the cord out of the wall.

A somewhat flustered Rarity rolls over to face away from the rising sun glaring at her laziness through her window. As she does so, she sees a particularly perplexing purple pony lying next to her, still fast asleep. Suddenly she feels like Twilight never left, like they've always been together and their time apart was nothing but a dark and lonely dream.

"Pssst, Twilight, wake up." Rarity nudges her sides.

"Twipie, get up floofyfufy noofikens."

Twilight was now awake, pretending to still be asleep, using every ounce of her will to not smile. Rarity grabbed her sides again. Rarity immediately sees through this playful ruse.

"Well if you won't get up, I'll just have to... Tickle you out of bed!"

Rarity began tickling her sides with the utmost glee. Twilight, now unable to retain her facade, begins laughing hysterically, partially do to Rarity's relentless tickling, partially do to pent up longing for moments like these which she once shared with her old lover on a near daily basis.

"Well I'm glad to see you're awake now. We need to be heading out soon, so lets get ready." The two unicorns rolled out of bed, and prepared to go see their old friend Applejack, this would be the first time Twilight saw her since she first left for Canterlot. Needless to say, Twilight felt like a new pony, she was eager to see her old friend again, and make some long overdue apologies for not seeing her sooner.

Rainbow Dash nervously paced back and forth, paranoia overtaking her. She lifted her front right hoof, looking at the thin piece of metal nailed into it. The characters "S C" separated by a lightning bolt were professionally engraved into it.

"Somethin' botherin ya?" Applejack peeked into the room after hearing Rainbow's nervous trotting cease.

Rainbow Dash quickly shoved her hoof to the floor with a loud stomp.

"Yeah, no nothing at all." Rainbow put on a blatantly fake smile.

"Come now now Dash, Rarity ain't all bad, she's just, you know she's Rarity. I'm sure she'll be as happy to see you as I was." Applejack wasn't so sure of her own statements, but didn't see a reason not to try and at least be reassuring.

Applejack walked out of the room, allowing Rainbow Dash to recompose herself. Outside she saw a carriage slowly approaching in the distance. She felt a familiar sinking sensation as she prepared to swallow her pride and take a barrage of insults in front of her little sister. The carriage landed, and to Applejack's surprise Twilight Sparkle climbed out, followed by Rarity. Twilight ran up to Applejack and gave her a tight hug.

"I'm sorry for not coming to see you sooner Applejack, I've been so busy, but I know there's no excuse."

"No worries Twilight, I'm just happy as can be that yer here now." Applejack continued to hug her for a few more seconds before backing away.

"Rarity." Applejack gave her a nod of recognition.

"Applejack dear, I've been a horrible pony toward you. I just want you to know I'm truly sorry for that, and that I no longer care about anything that either of us said or did in the past. I just want us to be friends again."

Applejack, had desperately wanted to hear these words from Rarity for such a long time.

"I'd like that Rarity, I'd like that a lot." Applejack looked down at her hooves. She was taken by the forceful impact of Rarity's crushing hug, Rarity seemed to be making up for lost time, giving Applejack a hundred hugs all at once.

"I love you too Rarity." Applejack said under her breath as Rarity squeezed the remaining air out of her lungs.

Twilight watched them and felt a sensation of warmth and happiness fill her heart. The blissful expression on her faced changed into one of shock and disbelief as she saw Rainbow Dash peek out of Applejack's front window. Not completely sure she actually saw her long lost friend, she decided to go investigate.

"Would you mind if we stayed a while Applejack?" Twilight inquired.

"Of course I wouldn't mind, you're always welcome in my home, you know that."

The three ponies trotted inside, Twilight immediately began searching for Rainbow Dash. Unable to find her she asked Applejack about it.

"I thought I saw someone else in here, and I'm sure it wasn't Applebloom."

Applejack looked down for a minute.

"Yeah you probably did Twi, she's not feeling herself lately, but Rainbow Dash is here."

Both Rarity and Twilight were taken back by this fact, Rainbow Dash here is something they never expected. Applejack went into another room, then walked back in slowly with Rainbow under her arm. Rainbow Dash was looking down at her hooves, wondering what to expect from her old friends that she had left behind all these years ago. Rainbow Dash, being the most loyal of ponies, would never be able to forgive herself for leaving her friends and Ponyville behind, no matter what the reasons were.

"Rainbow, I can't believe it's really you." Twilight spoke first, her emotions now beginning to get the better of her.

Rarity spoke next, "How long have you been back?"

Rainbow Dash looked away, her now much longer mane covering half of her face.

"Um... I..." Her personality greatly resembling that of Fluttershy's.

"She showed up here yesterday, she's bunkin' down here with me for the time being." Applejack interrupted, attempting to save the nervous pegasus from her own loss of words.

Twilight walked up to the cowering pony, she rested her nose to her head. "What happened to you... Something's wrong Rainbow, you don't need to feel afraid when you're around us. No matter what happens, we're your friends."

Rarity chimed in, "She's right Rainbow Dash, we love you, nothing will change that. But please tell me, why and where in Equestria did you go?"

Rainbow Dash felt relieved when her friends didn't seem to be angry with her. She looked up and met the gazes of her friends as they closed in for a hug.

"Thanks for that guys, I really needed to hear that you weren't too mad at me for leaving."

Twilight shot her an angry glance "Oh I'm more than mad that you left us without saying a word, do you have any idea what I went through trying to find you? But more than that, I'm happy that you're okay."

Rainbow felt mixed emotions regarding Twilight's response, but everything seemed to be okay between the circle of friends.

"I'm sorry Twilight, I really am, and I know I probably can't make it up to you guys, but I'll try."

"Come here you silly little filly!" Twilight and Rarity took their turns smothering Rainbow Dash in overdue affection.

"Now tell us what happened Rainbow, I want to know your story." Twilight's curiosity was becoming more prevalent as she thought of all the possible things Rainbow could have spent the past three years doing.

They all made themselves comfortable and listened to Rainbow Dash's story. Applebloom came downstairs with her packed bags, she was happy to see Twilight and Rarity again, but sad that she'd be leaving her beloved sister again. She walked over to Rainbow Dash and made herself comfortable by her side. The sun was now directly above Applejack's home as Rainbow finished her story, leaving off at the same point as she did when telling it to Applejack. Even thought this was the second time she heard it, her story still left Applejack holding back tears. The other two mares felt the same stir of emotions as they imagined their own Dashy cold and alone all these years.

Twilight rested her head on Rainbow's mane, "We really did miss you all these years Dash, you were and always will be welcome to stay with any one of us, we felt more than enough pain when we lost Pinkie, losing you too only doubled that pain."

Rainbow let out a few tears as she tried to express how sorry she truly was for causing her friends any unintended pain.

"This is the first time the four of us have all been together like this since Celestia know's when, I think we should do something." Twilight pointed out.

"I want to stay here in Ponyville tonight, tomorrow starts the weekend anyway so I'll not have to worry about work, the research team will be fine without me for another day as well."

Rarity looked at Applebloom with a smile and agreed. "You really don't need two full days to get settled in anyway do you?"

"Well it sounds good to me." Applejack felt she should add something. Rainbow Dash looked at them with a familiar grin and nodded.

"I think that for the first time ever we should all go pay our respects to Pinkie together. All five of us that is." Twilight pointed out that even though this was more of a reunion than she could have hoped for, it was still missing a very important piece, leaving a void in their newly reformed circle.

"Does any pony even know where she is nowadays?" Applejack thought out loud.

"Well lets go looking for her, I'm sure we can turn some clues up somewhere." The five ponies all crammed into the carriage that was waiting patiently outside.

"To Ponyville please." Rarity politely demanded.

They all climbed out and split up, asking the few residents that remained if they knew anything about the whereabouts of their missing friend. No such luck. They all found themselves at the front door of Fluttershy's long since abandoned home. They rammed the locked door open, then all funneled in. It was dank and musty inside, empty animal cages and pet beds were piled up into one corner. It was dark inside, there were several layers of curtains nailed to the walls around her windows, blocking every ray of sunlight. Rainbow Dash pulled one of the curtains off the window, allowing the sun to flood into the room. Twilight heard a noise upstairs but decided to ignore it. The floor and walls around the fireplace were heavily blackened, as if a fire had gotten out of control at some point. Something felt wrong as they looked upon the tattered furniture strewn across the house.

"What could have happened here?" Twilight, asked her peers. They had no answers.

"Maybe some pony did this after she left." Rarity pointed out.

Twilight nodded and continued up the stairs to Fluttershy's old room. Horror struck the four mares as they looked upon the wreckage. Applejack decided not to enter at all and went back outside to meet Applebloom, who do her discontent had been instructed to wait by the carriage. The other three ponies walked in, stepping over ruined debris. They saw many hoof prints stamped into the walls, the oak bed frame had been bucked into several pieces. They window was broken and boarded up with a few overlapping planks. Sunlight filtered through the gaps and dimly lit the room, giving it a strikingly eerie presence. There was a strange hole above the closet doors leading up into the attic, It was pitch black and Twilight felt as if she were being drawn into the void. Then she suddenly spotted a shard of glass reflecting sunlight into her eyes. It was one of many surrounding an old picture on the floor. Twilight picked it up, she instantly recognized it, remembering her own copy sitting on her desk in her classroom. It was the six of them sharing in a group hug. Only in this picture, Pinkie Pie's face was blacked out, various stabs and other forms of punctures and scratches surrounded her face as well. Twilight's heart filled with an emotion she'd never felt before. A combination of sorrow, anger, and fear.

"Let's go guys, there's nothing to be found here." Twilight dropped the picture and led the other ponies out of the house.

"I guess it's just going to have to be the four of us this time. I'm sure we'll find Fluttershy soon enough though."

The four ponies all headed out to the old Ponyville Cemetery. Rarity signaled the carriage driver with a nod, who then lifted the carriage and flew away. They all then headed towards Pinkie, feeling happy to go spend time with her, rather than the sadness that usually follows their thoughts of the once lively, laughter filled pink pony.

The sun began to set, and the five ponies seem to have set up a camp of sorts, they had a small fire burning off in an empty space near Pinkie's grave. They all cuddled around the fire, Twilight and Rarity held each other endearingly as they watched the lit logs crack and pop in the intense heat. Rainbow Dash found herself in the comfort of Applejack's friendly embrace, as they leaned into one another enjoying the tranquilizing warmth of the dancing flames. Applebloom was laying wrapped up in a blanket, snoring quietly.

"So since we're all here, is there anything anyone wants to say? Is there any air to clear? Who know's how long it will be til we can all sit together like this again." Twilight was attempting to rouse up a conversation.

Rarity looked up at her with a smile, "I love you Twipie." Then began to give her a small barrage of smooches.

"Twipie?!" Ha!" Rainbow Dash began to hold her sides and roll around on the ground laughing, finally displaying a hint of her once famous charisma. "Wow that's a bit much don'tcha think Rarity?" Rainbow said, still giggling.

"Not in the least Rainbow Dash." Rarity then smiled and winked at Twilight again. Her affection showing more so than ever before as she met gazes with the purple unicorn. Twilight's eyes were gleaming and flickering in the fire light, as were Rarity's, which Twilight found just as captivating now as the first time she lost herself in them.

"Gag, get a room." Rainbow teased them.

Rainbow Began to fidget in her seat, feeling terrible that she hadn't told her so far more than accepting friends the whole truth about what all she had done during her time away.

"So Twilight... I was thinking... There is something I'd like to tell you guys. I didn't tell you everything I did yet, there's more. I'm not proud of it but I think you all need to know."

Applejack was a bit taken by this confession, but didn't blame Rainbow for feeling like she couldn't open up quite yet.

"Please, you know there's nothing you can tell us that would change the way we feel about you Rainbow. But we'd still like to know everything, just to satisfy our curiosity." Twilight smiled and encouraged Rainbow Dash to be open with her friends.

"Well okay then, but you guys might want to prepare yourselves for some shockers." Rainbow Dash looked back at Applebloom, making sure she was still fast asleep.

She then proceeded to tell her story, a story of a troubled mare, lost in a city of hatred and violence. Lost in despair.

Ch. 9 Loyalty Betrayed

Rainbow Dash was laying on a small patch of clouds in the middle of seemingly nowhere as she drifted off to sleep. Soon after, a prevalent growl of her empty stomach woke her. It was late fall once again, and there were no more apples to be had. Rainbow was getting used to surviving on her own, but hated the thought of enduring another harsh winter alone. She peeked over her cloud hoping to see something to inspire a warm fantasy, maybe a family clearing leaves off their lawn, or a happy couple walking close keeping each other warm. To her disappointment, she was drifting around just above The Flats, the complete opposite of inspiration. That's where the scum of Equestria collect, ponies cast out of normal society due to their affinity for crime and violence find a home there. Ponies that aren't welcome in the lives of others are the only residents.

Rainbow Dash continued thinking about it, and soon decided that maybe it's not such a bad place after all, she may find herself a place to stay throughout the winter. The sun was setting and the temperature was rapidly dropping. Deciding it's worth a look into, she flies down toward the jumbled mess of lights. Upon reaching the city, she surveys her surroundings from the air. Some shoddy apartments, a couple liquor stores. Suddenly a few ponies zip past underneath her, they're flying lightning fast, creating a draft. This instinctively exhilarates Rainbow, prompting her to join the group. She spirals down, speeding to the front of the line.

"You guys having a race?" Rainbow's dry voice is hardly audible.

"Who the hay are you?!" The dark blue stallion was amazed that this mare came out of nowhere and so easily got in front of him.

Rainbow Dash spotted an obvious check point ahead, it indicated a left turn. Rainbow took the turn like a pro, flattening her wings out and turning on her side. This only slowed her down long enough to clear the building on the corner safely, missing it by a few feet. She then leveled herself out with a smooth spiraling motion, pulling dead leaves off the street into her wake, all blending together in a magnificent spiraled rainbow. She soon spotted the finishing line ahead. A familiar sensation washed over her, she closed her eyes for a moment and felt all her troubles disappear as she approached the finish line knowing she had won. When she crossed it, she did a quick celebratory spin in the air followed by a hoof pump. She landed in the crowd, awaiting her congratulations. Instead she was greeted by wave of harsh questions.

"What the hay is this crap Smokey?!" A small stallion questioned Rainbow's sudden appearance, gesturing in her direction.

"How the hay should I know, you dirt buckin sack o' seeds." Smokey replied, he was a huge unicorn, the largest Rainbow had ever seen, even compared to Big Mac. He had a short grey mane that was neatly combed to one side, his coat was flat black, his cutie mark was a lit cigar.

"Well kid, you'd best buck the hay out of here before you get hurt." The huge black stallion stared her down. He spoke with a heavy Manehatten accent.

"But I won..." replied Rainbow, confused by their anger.

"You fly in here, put my best flier to shame, then trot around like you own the place?!" His horn began to glow as he walked towards her. Just then the small stallion thought he saw an opportunity he'd been waiting for, he pulled a knife out from under his leather coat and quickly trotted up behind the huge black stallion. The shiny steel blade caught Rainbow's attention, and as soon as she realized the shady earth pony's intentions she acted.

"Look out!" Rainbow yelled as she darted towards the ill intended pony. She slid around and kicked the knife out of the grasp of the would be assailant with her strong back hooves. The knife twirled through the air resonating a distinct ringing noise, before bouncing across the road.

"Holy buck." The dark blue Pegasus who recently lost to Rainbow Dash broke the silence. His long flowing mane was dangling in his face, deep red fading to light gray at the ends.

Smokey, the massive stallion immediately turned his menacing gaze on his attacker.

"I thought you weren't with thems no more." His horn now becoming engulfed within his infamous black flames.

"I I I, I'm not I swear!" A desperate lie.

Smokey's horn shot a small orb straight through the skull of the small brown stallion. It let out a loud echoing bang. Rainbow looked on in horror, now realizing the danger she had wondered into. Smokey walked up to the small blue pegasus, who was now terrified but retaining her heroic stance as the pony who saved his life.

"Thanks for that kid." Smokey patted her on the head.

"I've been thinkin, street racing is my business and you're the fastest flier I've ever seen. I saw you take that turn back there, you're no street punk, you've been trained, so to me you're good for my business. That been said, plus now that I owe you one, you're in."

Rainbow was confused but figured out what was going on. "So you want me to race for you?"

"That's right kid, you're headin the line."

The deep blue pegasus spoke up, "Whoa what? She's in just like that? It took me years to get in." He had a very unruly high pitched voice, considering his decently large build and toned wings.

"That's cause you ain't never saved my life, now pipe down before you get me mad." The dark blue pony sat down and forced himself to stay quiet.

Smokey lit a cigar and blew a puff of smoke in Rainbow Dash's face, causing her to cough a bit.

"So what's your name kid." Smokey spoke in a much softer, yet deeper voice.

"Call me R D." Rainbow wasn't exactly comfortable giving her name to these types of ponies.

"Artie huh? That's an unusual name, especially for a mare. But in your case it's suiting."

"What do you mean, in my case..?" Rainbow asked in confusion.

"Your colts name suits a mare of your, how should I put this, obvious disposition."

Rainbow tilted her head in confusion.

Smokey let out a sigh along with a long plume of smoke. "You know, since we're on the same side of the fence."

Rainbow's eyebrow raised "What?"

"You know, since you and I are playing on the same team."

Rainbow Dash gave up on trying to understand what the bulky black stallion was implying. "So am I going to race now or what?"

"Sure sure kid, tomorrow's the big day, tonight take it easy, come back to the club and relax." Smokey patted her messy mane again and led her down the street.

Upon arriving, Rainbow found herself greeted by a strange assortment of ponies.

"Listen up you bums, we got a new filly on board, her names Artie, now make sure to treat her real nice like. She saved my life, now she's my new star racer."

Smokey smiled at Rainbow, a rare gesture on his part, and walked off. "Feel free to make this place your new home if you want to, welcome to the Storm Colts kid."

Those words echoed in Rainbow's mind, a home is something she desperately longed for.

Jealousy boiled in the navy blue pegasus, he wanted to lash out and attack Rainbow, but stopped himself from doing so out of both respect and fear of his leader.

"Listen here Artie, I don't like you, and I don't trust you either, but there's nothing I can do about it as long as Smokey's got your back. Since you helped him out, you're on my good side right now, the name's Jet by the way." Before Rainbow could reply, he trotted off.

Rainbow Dash decided she should allow herself to get to know these ponies. She looked around the room, then spotted a small beige unicorn. He was non-threatening enough for Rainbow to feel comfortable introducing herself.

"Hi I'm Rainb... Artie, I'm Artie heh heh." Rainbow Dash was feeling awkward and embarrassed at her near slip up.

The small beige unicorn tilted his hat up to meet her gaze, he then spoke in a very strong Scoltish accent. "Well golly gee whiz, aren't you just a bucket of sunshine."

Feeling even more awkward Rainbow began to trot away.

"Wait wait, hold on a minute deary, I was only jokin, my name's Bag Pipes, but you can just call me Doc. Ya see, I'm the club doctor."

"Is your name really Bag Pipes?" Rainbow asked.

"Well, no, no it isn't. But is your name really Artie?" The clever unicorn shot Rainbow a sly glance.

Rainbow casually sat down, "Yeah of course it is. So do you want to tell me about this place?"

"Well, sure thing dear, lets see, where to start, where to start... Oh yes, first things first, you're a racer right? Yes then, look around us, most of your team mates are here now."

He went on to point them all out, Star Chaser, Blue Berg, and Jet were the three top contenders. Rainbow had replaced Blue Berg as number three, Doc went on to explain the chain of command among the ponies in the club. First and only was the club leader, Smokey. He came from the Manehatten division to head this one after its much less experienced leader was murdered. Most likely in an attempt to eliminate the competition between street racing clubs. Currently the Storm Colts were the number one club, holding the most points this season. A close second were Wing Blades, followed by Back Draft.

"Now that that's cleared up, listen closely Artie, don't betray us, you must remain loyal to this club no matter what the cost, or leave now and never look back."

"Loyalty is my middle name, don't worry about that at all." Rainbow spoke up with new found confidence.

"I'm sure Loyalty is your name just as much as Artie is." Doc laughed and looked at the smiling little blue mare.

"I think we're going to be gettin' along just fine now."

Rainbow got pointed towards her room soon after asking around for a while. She found a decently soft bed inside, when she laid down, she felt more comfortable than she had ever remembered. She was warm, inside, protected from the unknown by four walls and a locked window. She was at home for the first time since she left Ponyville, not much of a home, but a home none the less.

After the nicest sleep she had in well over a year, she forced herself out of bed. Excitement was the only thing driving her to get ready for the day ahead. This was her first organized race since long before Pinkie's death. This was her chance to prove she belonged here, and she wasn't going to disappoint.

Rainbow was nervous all day, she knew she had nothing to worry about but couldn't shake the feeling. After eating, talking to more ponies in the club, and preparing both mentally and physically for this race, Rainbow and her team were off. It was late in the evening, the sun had long since set, leaving a moonlit city in its trail. Rainbow's mind was spinning while she flew in formation with her team, she felt uneasy looking around at all the rundown apartment complexes. She saw a homeless pony sleeping under a blanket of Equestria Daily news papers, an empty bottle of Colt Daniels lay next to him. At the next street corner, a group of shady looking ponies stood around a flaming barrel, staring her down as she flew by. They sent a string of obscenities her way, she did her best to ignore them. Her stomach churned with anticipation as they reached their destination, this was different from the race she had participated in before, this was a straight shot down the cities flood channel. It stretched on for about three miles, going under dozens of bridges.

Moments later another team of pegasi showed up. They each wore blue and grey bandanas, some on their heads, a couple over their mouths. Rainbow looked around at her team, each was wearing a black leather jacket with the characters "S C" separated by a lightning bolt depicted elaborately on the back. She felt awkward being the only undressed pony around, but let the excitement of the approaching race drown out any other emotions.

Smokey walked up behind Rainbow, "Listen up Artie, this is a drag race straight down this strip, nothin you can't handle I'm sure."

"You got that right." Rainbow's confidence spoke for her.

"Well go get em kid, earn your keep." Smokey noticed himself developing somewhat of a soft spot for this ambitious little filly who he can tell has lost her way recently. Something about her reminded him of himself during his younger years.

The eight pegasi lined up, Rainbow glimpsed around at her competition, nothing she can't handle. She stared down the center of the storm way, a small stream trickled down the center.

"Ready!" A small white earth pony began the countdown.

Rainbow lowered herself, her back legs ready to kick off.

"Set!"

Her eyes narrowed and she eagerly awaited the next word.

"GO!"

With that, Rainbow launched herself forward, securing an early lead.

"Good luck kid." Smokey found himself hoping for the best. He then engulfed himself along with the other spectators in a black fiery aura, teleporting them all about half way down the strip. There they looked towards the oncoming racers.

Rainbow spotted a neon yellow pegasus with a black mane approaching quickly behind her. Soon the two were parallel, he looked over at the very angry Rainbow Dash.

"Don't you think a trail of rainbows is kind of gay?" He chuckled at his own insult.

"You should talk sparky, like a trail of sparkles is so manly, ha!" Rainbow had noticed the sparking trail of static electricity being left behind him.

"What?!" The emasculated pony looked behind himself to investigate his trail, effectively distracting himself from the race. Rainbow saw an opportunity and cut in front of him, causing him to lose his stability. He spread his wings out and caught air, sending him straight up and out of the storm way, simultaneously stabilizing himself. He let out a frustrated growl and dove back into the race, now several places behind.

Rainbow smiled down at Smokey as she flew a few feet over their heads, her eyes boasting confidence since she had a considerable lead. Smokey held onto his hat as her and the rest flew by, then teleported to the finish line.

"Don't get too cocky kid, it ain't over yet."

Rainbow saw a black and white flash in the distance where Smokey had teleported, this was her goal. She looked back to see the yellow and black pegasus gaining speed, he was in second place again. Rainbow pressed forward, the cliche checkered banner was flapping in the breeze. Sparky was right behind her now, Rainbow put on a cocky grin and presses forward as fast as she could, leaving him far behind. She spent every last ounce of energy she had saved during the race, the yellow pony behind her slowed down, knowing he was out of his league. Rainbow slowed down and safely landed, coming to a slow trot as she casually crossed the line.

"Well done kid, you did good." Smokey gave her mane a few rough pats. Rainbow had come to enjoy this display of affection.

A few seconds later Sparky and Jet crossed, flying rapidly above their heads, both greatly over shooting the finish line, Jet securing second place.

Apparently this was good since Smokey shouted various Manehatten terms and threw his hoof into the air. Securing both first and second place is key to rising in a seemingly complex ranking system. Smokey began discussing details among other team leaders, she noticed her picture on a glass tablet as they were rearranging statistics. Then Smokey received a large roll of small papers, they were most likely Equestrian Reserve Notes, usually redeemable for around a hundred bits each. Rainbow had never seen so much currency at once.

"Alright kid let's buck out of here, I got somethin for ya back home." Smokey enthusiastically threw his arm around Rainbow, then teleported them both back to the club.

"You got it?" Smokey shouted to another pony who was partially asleep.

"Yeah yeah, I got it boss, just finished it." He trotted up to Rainbow, hoofing her a nicely folded square of leather.

She grabbed the collar with her teeth then stood up on her back hooves, unfolding it in front of herself. The name Artie was neatly embroidered above the front pocket. On the back was the signature club logo. She excitedly put it on, her wings fitting nicely through two subtle cutouts in the back.

"This is awesome!" Rainbow gave Smokey a quick hug and trotted off to show her new cut off to Doc.

"You really are somethin else kid..." Smokey spoke to himself as he retreated to his private quarters.

"Yes that's just nice and lovely all the same deary, but are you sure you're comfy wearing a dead animal's hide on your back?"

"What? I thought making real leather was outlawed!" Rainbow began feeling sick to her stomach.

"Look around dear, this is an outlaw's safe haven, a whole den of em." Doc continued to stare at her, his thick eyebrows lowering.

"Ha, I'm just pullin your chain deary, of course its faux, lighten up Artie."

"Heh, psh, yeah I knew that, you lighten up." Rainbow trotted off to her room, more than tired, she was ready to collapse after her exciting day.

She laid in bed staring at the ceiling, thoughts of Pinkie Pie coursed through her mind. Rainbow closed her eyes and pictured her loving carefree smile, then drifted away into much needed sleep.

Days came and went, race after race Rainbow continued to win. Smokey continued to grow more fond of this amazing little pony who showed up in his life seemingly out of nowhere. The two had developed a ritual of complicated hoof shakes and bro hooves to celebrate each time she won another race. Eventually she was awarded an emblem plate metal seal, which was nailed into her hoof, this signified just how important she was to the club. Not even Jet had one yet. Rainbow came to like the name Artie, and accepted every bit of her new life. The street racing society was among the most loyal and "family" orientated in The Flats. It seemed the world outside the club was miserable, poor, and full of hatred for any pony that was even slightly better off than they were.

Rainbow woke up today with a familiar pit in her stomach. Today was an important day in her racing career, she was to face a team from Fillydelphia, their point total was higher that the Storm Colts, and like Rainbow Dash, their lead racer was undefeated. Rainbow threw her cut on and went through her daily routines of chatting and eating. Jet walked up to her with a look of hatred on his face.

"You shouldn't be here, you don't belong. Just get out of here already! Smokey's bent enough rules for you already, and now this?!" He flew away, in a fit of anger. Normally only ponies who had been signed on to a team for a minimum of four years could attend this event. Jet would be left behind this year despite his skills, however Smokey decided to make an exception out of Rainbow.

"Suit up kid, we're headin out." Smokey climbed into a sleek carriage.

Rainbow soon followed.

"Alright Artie, listen up. This ain't gonna be like the races you've had before, this is the real deal. Unlike them races in the streets before, this is moderated by a lot of serious ponies. The police working under the syndicate close off the course for an hour, there's lots of sharp corners kid be careful. Anyway they watch all yous to judge your flyin skills and what not you know. So look good and professional out there."

Rainbow looked out the window as they approached the huge city. The sun was setting behind it, casting beautiful shadows into the sky.

It was dark when they arrived, at the start she met a couple other racers. A large dark colored griffin, and a toned forest green pegasus.

"Sup." The griffon flicked feathers out of her face. "I'm Strix... Well see ya later." She joined, her team leader along with a small crowd.

"Artie right? I've heard a lot about you, you're some underdog out of nowhere flier that shouldn't even be here right? Well your luck won't help you here." The dark green pony walked away, smugly flicking Rainbow's nose with his dark brown tail.

She brushed it off, not wanting anything to cloud her mind today. She flew above the buildings, trying to learn the course at least a little before the race.

"Come down here kid, I gotta talk to ya for a minute." Smokey waved her down.

"Listen up, see that green pile of hay seeds over there? Don't trust him for a minute, he'll stab you in the back the first chance he gets if he thinks he can take a bit off your dead body. What I really want to say is good luck, I got your back out here kid." Smokey gave her his signature pat on the head, then pushed her towards the start line.

Rainbow found herself in the center of the line next to the forest green pegasus, the griffon and Star Chaser were on each side.

"Three!..... Two!....."

Rainbow readied herself for takeoff.

"One!....."

The green pony next to her whispered toward Rainbow, "Go!"

It took every ounce of her will not to take off.

"Go!" The countdown was over, the three racers took off, Rainbow didn't react quite so quickly. She finally took off at a huge disadvantage. She didn't let it discourage her, however she was now on a personal mission to beat the one who made her look bad.

She saw a short stretch, she pushed on, cutting a sharp turn. She passed the griffon who took the corner much more cautiously. After a few more pressing corners, she spotted Star Chaser, she flew up next to him, he smiled and gave her a reassuring nod. Straight away she cought a glimps of her green rival as he rounded the next turn. Although she was losing, excitement filled her heart, and adrenalin filled her veins. She looked up, the moon was casting its glow on her hooves as she coursed through the city. She was now right behind the green pegasus, but he wasn't giving her the opening she needed to pass. Up ahead she saw a sharp narrow turn, this may be her chance. Her rival angled himself to smoothly take the turn through the center. Rainbow pushed forward as fast as she could, as she approached the corner, she turned completely sideways and arched her back. She bent her wings back as she began to turn. Everything seemed to be moving in slow motion as she flew in between her rival and the building, missing it by a few centimeters. As she zipped passed him, her back hoof clipped his front one. He lost his stability, then slammed into the side of a building and crashed down into a garbage can. He rolled across the street, then laid still. Rainbow wanted to turn back but didn't, instead she hurried to the finish line. After crossing it in her usual first place, Smokey expected the usual celebratory actions. Instead Rainbow immediately turned around and headed back toward the injured pony, Star Chaser and the griffon flew past her. She stopped and trotted up to the green pony. He was covered in scrapes and dirt, but seemed otherwise fine.

"What have you done?!" He shouted as he stumbled to his hooves.

"It was an accident, I'm sorry." Rainbow's appoplogy went unaccepted.

She trotted towards him to help him back to the finish line. He reached into his tattered jacket and pulled a knife out which he stabbed into the side of Rainbow's neck. She looked at him with horror in her eyes, tears began to well up. She covered her wound with a hoof, blood was gushing out. The green stallion dropped the knife and flew away, just now realizing what he had done. Rainbow began to choke as blood filled her mouth, her vision began to blur. She saw Smokey along with a few other ponies quickly trotting towards her just before blacking out.

"Dashy... Daaaaashy... Wake up sleepy head."

"I'm up I'm up, what's going on." Rainbow stood up and looked around, she was in the town square in Ponyville. Vibrant sunshine blurred Rainbow's vision. The buildings around her looked the way they did when Rainbow first came to Ponyville. Beautiful flowers decorated the windows. She felt cold, but was quickly warming up as she felt the soft warm light wash over her.

"Finally, I thought you were going to sleep all day silly."

"Pinkie?.. Am I dead?"

"No, I mean, I don't think so. Unless you're a zombie!"

Pinkie shrieked and ran behind a bush, her tail sticking straight up into the air.

"You are so weird Pink." Rainbow trotted towards her.

"Please don't eat my brains, I promise you won't like them!" Pinkie closed her eyes and cowered.

"Stop Pinkie, I'm not a zombie and you know it. Now get over here and give me a hug, I missed you."

Rainbow shared a long sweet embrace with her best friend. She pressed her face into Pinkie's mane, taking in her sweet soft scent. Rainbow Dash's emotional walls were now non existent, her tears began flowing into her mane.

"Where did you go Dashy? I missed you when you left, you promised you'd never leave me alone again, but now I'm alone every single day, trapped in the dark."

"Pinkie, I'm so sorry, I, I thought you were... Dead."

"Oh yeah I forgot I was dead... I'll be going now..." Pinkie pushed away from Rainbow Dash.

Rainbow felt a sharp pain in her neck, she rubbed it with a hoof, only to realize her hoof was now soaked in blood. She looked back up, Pinkie was gone, a pile of leaves shaped like her were left in her place, they blew away in the breeze from top to bottom. She looked all around, Town Square was now run down, buildings boarded up, windows broken. The warm sunlight was hidden behind a thick wall of grey clouds.

"Pinkie, where did you go?!" Rainbow cried out, the only reply was her own echo. "Pinkie please come back!" Rainbow was alone. She looked around again, it was dark, the buildings were all gone, she was completely alone now. She looked up to the sky, there was a small break in the clouds, light flooded through, blinding her. She shielded them with her hoof, slowly lowering it while trying to adjust to the bright light. Soon a light fixture came into focus. Rainbow was laying in a ragged old hospital bed. Bandages were tightly wrapped around her neck, IV's were in her arm and neck. She pulled them out and stood up, quickly collapsing on the floor.

"Whoa there little filly, you need to stay in your bed for now dear." Doc assisted her back into bed.

"What happened?" Rainbow's memory of the incident was fuzzy at best.

"Just a moment deary, Smokey made me promise to go get him as soon as you woke up." Doc trotted off.

Rainbow pressed her hooves to her eyes, wiping away tears that slipped out during her nightmare. She tried to force herself to forget about that dream, but Pinkie's words echoed in her mind. Smokey Rushed in.

"You're finally awake kid? You had me worried there." To Doc's surprise, Smokey hugged Rainbow Dash.

"I told ya not to trust that mud buckin son of a mule didn't I?"

"You did didn't you." Rainbow laughed a little and apologized for the trouble she caused.

"It's alright Artie, just don't let it happen again or you'll get us both killed. Now you're going to sit a few races out til you're all healed up. Until then, make sure you take it easy kid." Smokey pat her on the head, and trotted out of the room.

"Will do..." Rainbow's reply came out late.

She laid back down and listened to Doc tell her all about what happened, then he began explaining her medical conditions. A combination of the boring speech plus Rainbow's lack of energy caused her to fall back asleep. Doc was interrupted mid sentence by Rainbow's snoring. He let out a warm hearted smile, shut off the light, and trotted back into the club.

As rainbow recovered, things in the club were getting tense. It would seem Jet was secretly planning to get rid of the soft Smokey, and lead the club on his own, with an iron hoof. Luckily he didn't seem to have any followers.

Days turned to weeks once again, Rainbow Dash found herself shroud in the protection of a small group of ponies in the club. They included Doc, Star Chaser, and a couple others. Most importantly it included Smokey. Lately Jet seemed to be gaining support from both within and outside the club. Smokey worked on handling the situation on his own, but he had other things on his mind. Today Rainbow's bandages all came off, she was completely healed. Rainbow wiggled her neck around then stretched it up, showing off her scar.

"Wear your scars proudly kid, they're a sign of your loyalty to the club. Now that you're feeling good I've got you a couple gifts lined up. For now, grab some grub, you'll need it." With a swift pat, Smokey was off to do whatever it is he does.

Rainbow waited around anxiously for Smokey's return. Once he finally came back it was pretty dark out, he and a few other bulky stallions trotted in.

"Let's go Artie, your gift awaits." She trotted outside, following them into the night. They soon arrived at a large warehouse, Smokey walked her up to the side door, a dim light flickered above them. Smokey eased the door open, inside she saw a forest green pegasus tied to a chair, a black sack placed over his head.

"You did that dirty little hay seed a favor by going to help him, I know racers look after one another, but this sack of crap isn't a racer in my book, not after what he did to you."

"What do you expect me to do?" Rainbow looked up at him with wide eyes.

"Get even. You can cut em loose and let him walk out of here, or you can cut his throat and let our associate here take care of the remains. I know what I'd do, it's up to you though, it's only right that his fate is in your hooves now." Smokey nudged Rainbow inside and shut the door behind her. "Have fun in there kid."

Rainbow trotted towards her attacker, a menacing smile grew as she neared. She threw his mask off with her teeth. She then met gazes with the terrified green stallion.

"Artie? You're to blame for this abduction?!"

"Nope, if anyone's to blame you are, for being slow and dumb enough to let yourself get caught."

"Listen here you little stud bucket, I'm going to finish you off as soon as I get out of here, I'll cut that pretty little smile of your stupid face."

"I'd like to see you try, no sneak attacks this time." Rainbow reached into her pocket, pulling out a large hunting knife, she dangled it in front of his face for a minute and walked behind him. She cut the ropes and gave the back of his chair a powerful buck, which sent him tumbling to his hooves. Rainbow threw her knife into the wall, then kicked the chair out of the way.

"What are you waiting for? Not scared of pretty little filly are you?"

The green pegasus was shocked that she actually set him free.

Rainbow continued to taunt him, "There's no pride to be gained in kicking the crap out of you while you're tied up. Now bring it on!"

The green pony stood his ground, staring Rainbow down. Tired of waiting Rainbow charged towards her old rival. Just before reaching him she slid to a near stop, spinning around and delivering a powerful blow to his ribs, causing him to tumble over. Rainbow leapt on top of him, smashing her strong front right hoof into his face repeatedly. He pushed her off and gave her a swift but strong kick in the side of her face. Rainbow lost her focus for a moment, stumbling over. That blow reminded her of one she had received from Applejack during a fight they had, Rainbow had accused her of being incestuous as an insult, Applejack felt the line had been crossed.

"That's it? You hit like a mare, and I'm not even joking I know a mare who hits just like that."

The green pony just snarled and continued his assault. Rainbow was more than prepared, as he quickly approached her, Rainbow took flight, landing just behind him. As he quickly turned around to meet her, he felt two powerful hooves forcefully land on his face. The impact sent him rolling across the warehouse floor, his hooves holding his face. The hit left two deep cuts on his face, one on the back of his cheek, the other just above his eye. He tried to stand up but couldn't keep his balance.

"I thought you were going to finish me off, oh well I guess." Rainbow felt a familiar sensation fill her core, winning this fight reminded her of winning her first race. She looked around to notice Smokey and his bulky associate watching her. They had decided to come in after hearing all the commotion inside.

"Very impressive kid, I always knew you had guts, but you have honor as well. You were right, there's no pride to be gained in beating a pony who's tied up. Artie, you earned some serious pride tonight." Smokey gave her a nice long mane pat.

"Awe it was nothin, he's a pushover anyway." Rainbow poked at the bruise on her cheek as they walked out.

"Bruce, take care of that mess over there, we got things to go do."

Bruce nodded and tended to his duties.

As Rainbow and Smokey neared the club he attempted to explain her next gift.

"After a long recovery, I thought you'd enjoy some, let's see... Professional company."

"Oh awesome." Rainbow Dash didn't know what he meant but was excited.

"By the way I assumed you prefer the fairer of the two sexes, it's pretty obvious though."

"I'm really not sure what you mean by that?"

"I mean, you know, since its clear that we're batting in the same field."

"Batting? What?"

"You know, some mares like to get down, others only like to get gone down on... By other mares."

Rainbow just looked up at him with the cutest most innocent eyes possible.

"Forget it, you'll see when we get there."

They arrived there shortly after, where Smokey took it upon himself to announce Rainbow's courageous acts to the entire club. Rainbow walked around the room receiving compliment after compliment. Way to go kid, bro hoof! I always knew you were a fighter.

"Good one deary, tryin on them hoofy cuffs I hear." Doc gave her a shoulder bump and looked at the bruise on her face. "Cripes, let me get ya some ice for that, I'll be right back."

Rainbow sat and waited patiently for her ice, she was in pain and looked forward to the relief, although she'd deny it if anyone asked. Her state of pride had reached its peak tonight, nothing would phase her now. She noticed a pair of deep green eyes staring at her from across the room. There sat an orange unicorn with a long flowing deep red mane, boasting a simple cutie mark, three red hearts. Rainbow nervously smiled and looked at the table. Her pride now mostly swallowed. Smokey walked up in front her, "that's your gift over there, go introduce yourself."

Rainbow gulped "My gift?"

"Yup, go get er kid."

Rainbow nervously walked towards this gorgeous mare that was apparently her gift. She sat next to her and gulped once more.

"That looks like quite a doozy you got there." The orange mare touched her soft hoof to Rainbow's face.

"My name's Starlette, and you're Artie right?"

"Yeah that's me, nice to meet you."

"Let's go somewhere more private and get to know each other a little better."

"Or just stay here, whatever's fine. Heh heh." Rainbow gave her a very nervous smile.

"You don't often do things like this do you. Just follow me and try to relax."

She took Rainbow by the hoof and led her into a private room. Rainbow sat on a bed, Starlette sat next to her, she reached around and rubbed her hoof softly on Rainbow's sore cheek. Rainbow was wishing she had gotten that ice before leaving the area. Starlette leaned in and gave Rainbow Dash a sweet long kiss. Rainbow shied away soon after, blushing unnessicery amounts.

"Something wrong Artie?"

"No nothings wrong, this is just the first time I've done something like this." Rainbow admitted, lowering her head. "I guess I always thought my first time would be special ya know?"

"I had no idea this would be your first time sweetheart, here, I'll go return this payment to Smokey at once."

"Wait wait, hold on there, I don't want him to feel bad about the gift. Can you just, maybe stay the night and sleep here with me?" Rainbow didn't want her secret revield quite yet.

"I suppose I'm fine with that, are you tired now?"

"Very tired actually." Rainbow smiled and laid down on the bed, the orange unicorn turned the lights off with her magic.

They snuggled up close, Rainbow wrapped her wings around Starlette, the two ponies found sweet comfort as they drifted into sleep together. This sensation meant more to Rainbow Dash than any of them would ever realize. Morning soon came, Rainbow rolled and stretched her wings out, letting a deep yawn break her grogginess. Starlette was gone, but there was a note on the night stand. Thank you so much for the most wonderful night I've enjoyed in quite some time. We must do it again sometime Artie.

Rainbow felt a pang of remorse, she hadn't felt an emotional connection to another pony in several years, and she let this one go without even giving her real name to her. She shook her sadness off and ventured into the club. There she met Smokey, hoof stretched out prompting Rainbow to bump hooves with him.

"Way to go kid, Starlette was lookin all emotional when she left this morning, you show er what you're made of or what?"

Rainbow laughed at the big excited stallion behaving like a high school colt. "You bet your flank I did." Rainbow chose to play along. Joining her club mates in their daily routines, Rainbow once again felt her troubles slip away.

Another month had passed, spring time was setting in. Rainbow had just gone to sleep for the night when she heard an explosion. She jumped to her hooves and rushed out to investigate the noise. There she saw dozens of ponies running in various directions, all looking to escape the inflamed building. Doc stopped when he saw Rainbow.

"Come on lad, we've got to hurry, it's Jet, he's trying to destroy the club and rebuild one of his own."

"Jet did this? Where is he now?!"

"There simply ain't no time deary, let's get out of here now!" Doc ran out the escape doors.

Rainbow spotted Jet and a couple unicorns blasting away at Smokey's private quarters. Rainbow rushed towards them as soon as they broke through. One of the unicorns spotted her and shot a large destruction spell her way, sending her flying back into the wall. The impact knocked the breath out of her but she was okay. Her vision was blurred due to her disorientation along with plumes of black smoke filling the building. Rainbow snuck around through the outer hallway, making her way to the back door to Smokey's room. She slowly peeked in, looking through the closet shutters, she looked just in time to see Jet and his crew leaving. She ran through the door in search of Smokey, she found him laying on the floor silent and bleeding. There was a gaping wound on his left side where he had been recently stabbed. Rainbow quickly rushed to his side.

"Hey there kid, it's good to see a friendly face." Smokey talked slowly, choking in between words. Rainbow once again found herself in an unbearable situation, she was forced to choose watching someone she loved die, or facing the guilt of letting them die alone. She knew the choice was easy, but watching her new best friend suffer like this was overwhelming.

"Listen Artie, you got to go, it's... It's not safe in here, fly away to safety for me, oh and before you go... I love ya kid. You're like the daughter I never had, the perfect little sidekick I always wanted. Thanks for makin my last years worth livin. I can't repay you for what you gave me..."

Rainbow's aching heart couldn't take this again, she burst into tears, feeling every emotion she ever knew. She was beginning to have a nervous breakdown.

"My name is Rainbow! It's Rainbow Dash not Artie, I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner. And I'm not leaving you here, you're going to get help and you're going to live Celestia damn it!"

"Even now you remain loyal to me, there's really somethin about you kid, tell me your story, I want to know all about you Rainbow Dash, consider it a final request..."

"You want to know my story? Why I won't abandon you here? Smokey nodded.

"Fine, it'll kill some time while the fire trucks show up, just promise me you'll hold on til then okay?!" Smokey let out a small chuckle, "I promise kid."

"Back when I was just a little filly, before I started flight school, me and my mom used to run through the clouds. She would lift me up and drop me down in the soft piles, I'd ride on her back while she flew and I remember feeling like I was weightless and the world around me was nothing but freedom. I couldn't wait to learn to fly myself. My dad was never around, I never even met him and we were a poor family, barely surviving in a slow economy. Somehow my mom saved up enough to enroll me into flight school, it felt like a dream come true and I had made a goal to be the best flier I could be. After I graduated at the top of my class, I finally returned home. I was so excited and looking forward to showing off my awesome flying moves to my mom. But when I got there the house was empty and quiet. There I found a note left from my mom, it said now that you're all grown up and can take care of yourself, I'm going to begin traveling the world to find my place and who I was meant to be. I love you Rainbow Dash, I only hope you understand why I left and that you grow into the pony you're meant to be as well... I felt lost and alone, at that point I decided I would never leave anyone on their own, especially a friend. I decided I'd stay loyal to my friends even if it kills me. That's exactly why I won't leave you here, not as long as you have a chance to survive."

"I always knew you were somethin else kid, I just never knew how special... you ...really were..."

Smokey closed his eyes and fell into his final sleep. A very familiar pain radiated from within, Rainbow felt like she wanted the building to collapse, burying her here, ending all the hardships she's continuing to endure. Instead she backed out of the room, went outside, and once again flew into the night sky, never looking back. Her heart once again shattered, tears falling behind her, she wondered if she would ever find peace or a home again.

Ch. 10 Cold Inside

"Rainbow, is that all true?" Twilight stood up to hug her mourning friend.

Rainbow laughed and casually wiped a tear from her face, hoping no one noticed. "Of course it is Twilight."

"I bet you kicked that dumb old colt's butt with your awesome Kung Fu moves!" Applebloom had apparently woken up at some point during Rainbow's story.

Applejack spoke up, patting Applebloom's head. "You didn't leave anything out this time did ya?"

Rainbow cowered down, letting her mane fall in her face. "...no, I'm sorry I did before."

"Awe Dash, I was only jokin, come here, I'm not mad at ya." Applejack was more than surprised at Rainbow's sudden change in personality.

Twilight seemed to recognize this phenomenon. "I think I read about this somewhere, when a pegasus goes through a very traumatic experience, they can often become much more timid and passive. Even though they're normally competitive and assertive, it's been recorded in severe cases that they even stop speaking at all."

"Well I'm glad our Dashy is at least almost back to her good ol self." Applejack threw her arm around her moping friend.

"Well I agree completely, also I'm getting cold, and I think I hear a bug. Let's go back home now guys." Rarity decided she had endured the outdoors long enough.

The ponies all packed their things back up while Rarity called for the carriage. It seems the four ponies had lost track of time while Rainbow shared her past with her curious friends. The moon was nearly directly above them, indicating it was approximately midnight. Upon arriving back to Applejack's home, they were each given a spare room. Twilight and Rarity chose to share one.

"Hey Rarity, I'm going to go out for some air alright?" Rarity was already in bed, more than ready for some sleep.

"Okay, hurry back sweetheart, I'll be waiting." Rarity blew her a kiss then collapsed into a deep sleep. Twilight smiled and took a moment to enjoy the sight of her new found love laying quite peacefully. She walked up to her and gave ger a warm kiss in the cheek, then trotted out the door.

Twilight couldn't take her mind off Fluttershy's house, there were still unanswered questions waiting to be resolved. However she feared her friends wouldn't be able to understand, much less accept these answers. So she trotted off towards Ponyville on her own, disappearing into the night.

Twilight soon found herself entering the tattered ruins of her friends old home. It was too dark to see inside now, so she cast a spell, creating a small orb of light at the tip of her horn, making sure to keep it dim enough not to attract any unwanted attention. She heard a noise coming from upstairs, this time it caused her to jump. Twilight was a bit nervous, but she forced herself to calm down and continue her exploration. She slowly walked up the stairs, each plank seemed to shriek in agony as she continued up the stairs. The door was locked, horror struck Twilight, she knew earlier today the door was left wide open. Every logical cell in her body told her to run away, but curiosity overwhelmed her caution. Twilight tapped on the door.

"Fluttershy?"

No response, Twilight jiggled the handle and it came loose. Just then a low pitched groaning came from the other side of the door. Her mane stood straight up and she covered her mouth with her hooves to keep from screaming.

"Okay Twilight, calm down, calm down. There's a logical explanation, uh, the wind. It's just the wind."

Twilight calmed herself, she pushed the door open and peeked inside. It was the same as when she left it. She walked in to further investigate, the picture was gone, but the broken glass was still there. Her heart was racing, Twilight looked up into the closet, the light from her horn still left the gaping hole pitch black. She shot an orb up into the hole, the darkness seemed to consume nearly all the light. Another noise, it was coming from the attic. Twilight decided she had no choice, she climbed through the hole. She was immediately met by a nearly unbearable stench, small dead animals littered the floor, most of them rotting. Twilight looked around, dust clouded the air, and it was too dark to see anything. She brightened her horn, but the thick dust prevented her from seeing very far.

"Flu... Fluttershy?" Twilight heard a sobbing sound coming from a corner. She shined her light in that direction, through the dust she spotted a pair of eyes reflecting her bright light. With a quick flutter they disappeared behind a thick wall of dust. Twilight decided to swallow her fears and investigate. As the dust settled, Twilight saw a heart shattering scene. She felt as if she swallowed her heart and tongue as she looked upon her missing friend. Fluttershy was holding the lifeless body of her beloved pet rabbit, Angel. She rocked it back and forth in an attempt to comfort it.

"Hush now little one, if you ever want to get better you'll need your sleep." She sat her pet down gently on its pet bed and reached over to pick up a mostly decayed bird.

"Well aren't you looking good today Mr. Finchy, let's work on grooming those messy feathers of yours."

Twilight was for the first time in her life, at a loss of words. All she could do was cry and watch as Fluttershy desperately tended to these long since deceased animals. Twilight walked up to Fluttershy, she noticed that she seemed to be starving, her ribs were clearly visible. She lowered Fluttershy's hoof and gently hugged her. Twilight felt her rapidly pulsing heart, then felt her own sink into her chest.

"Hey Fluttershy, would you come with me back to Applejack's house please?" Twilight wasn't sure how to talk to or handle Fluttershy in her current state.

"Oh no, I can't Twilight, I have a lot of sick animals to take care of. Speaking of which, Angel Bunny, you need to take this medicine if you ever want to get better."

Twilight put a hoof to Fluttershy's face, turning her to make eye contact. Fluttershy seemed to look straight through Twilight, not actually making eye contact. Twilight saw huge bags under her eyes, as if she hadn't been sleeping or days. Once again Twilight found herself covering her nose due to the repulsive stench.

"Fluttershy, we need to go. Now." Twilight could hardly stand the odor any longer.

"I... I can't, I already told you Twilight."

Twilight put her hoof around Fluttershy, urging her towards the exit. Fluttershy resisted, and when Twilight didn't give up she began to panic. She flapped her wings kicking up dust all around them then quickly disappeared into another corner.

"You need help! If you won't come willing I'll force you out. It's for your own good."

Twilight wrapped Fluttershy in a veil of purple magic, lifting her into the air. She led her through the hole in the closet. They were back in Fluttershy's room where Twilight could at least stand to breathe. Once again Twilight heard a terrifying deep groaning.

"Fluttershy, what is that?!"

"Oh that's just Gummy, I think he still has a belly ache. You know he has trouble chewing his food, and he doesn't play nice with the other animals. So he's down here by himself all day, I bet he's lonely." Fluttershy seemed genuinely concerned about his feelings.

Twilight peeked underneath her bed, two deep purple eyes met hers accompanied by a low growl. Twilight gulped, "He's... Huge! When did that happen?!"

Gummy crawled out from under the bed. He was much longer than Twilight, his thick tail whipped the floorboards as he allowed his massive mouth to slowly open. Jagged teeth appeared to randomly placed along his gum line.

"Flut.. Fluttershy, when did Gummy get teeth?"

"Well, I gave him teeth so he could chew his food, he was getting really sick and needed more solids."

"You gave him teeth? I don't even... Fluttershy, please come with me, you're sick and need to take care of yourself right now. I'm going to do everything I can to help."

"I feel fine Twilight, but if you say so I'll go with you for just a little while. But I can't stay gone long." They walked downstairs then outside.

Twilight took a deep long breath, enjoying the crisp night air, Fluttershy immediately sobbing and begging Twilight to let her go back inside. Gummy retreated back under the bed.

"Twilight, I really need to stay here, please don't make me leave my little pets all alone."

"Come on you." Twilight was growing impatient, probably due to her long day and lack of sleep.

The two soon arrived back at Applejack's home. Everyone was already asleep, so Twilight led Fluttershy to an empty room and welcomed her to get some sleep. It didn't take long for Fluttershy to doze off, she seemed exhausted due to her frantic care taking. Twilight wasn't quite sure if she should leave Fluttershy alone, but soon the sweet beckoning call of Rarity's warmth in bed got the better of Twilight's judgement. She crawled into bed and wrapped her arms around her warm partner, cuddling close up.

Later in the morning, the six sat in the living room, Fluttershy had freshly showered and was smelling much better now. She was eating some warm apple strips for breakfast, Celestia knows she needs it. The ponies all gathered around, listening to what Twilight had to tell them. Despite all the obvious problems in her life, Fluttershy wanted only to return to her animals, not only to take her mind off her overwhelming guilt, but to escape the judgment of her friends. As far as they were concerned that was not an option.

"I... I really need to get back to Angel, he's been really sick lately, the others too." Fluttershy looked down at the floor, hoping the others would simply let her go.

"I'm not sure how to tell you this, or why you can't tell, but Angel's dead Fluttershy, all those animals in the attic are."

Fluttershy knew that it was true, but refused to believe it until now. She stopped and thought about that fact for a minute, unbearable mental anguish filled her thoughts, her heart seemed to stop beating.

"I know... You're right Twilight... You're right about everything, you always are... I just needed to keep taking care of him, I was so lonely there."

"Why didn't you come to us sooner? Any one of us would have gladly helped you with anything."

"I just couldn't Twilight. I couldn't even stand to look at you, at any of you. I saw you all fighting and crying, and it was all because of me."

"Because of you? It didn't have anything to do with you, why would you say that?"

"I couldn't make myself tell you, I didn't want you to hate me. So I just hid in my house and pretended I sold it and moved..." Fluttershy's was sniffling and sobbing like she never had before, she was lost in her own depression.

"Can I please just go? I don't belong here."

"No Fluttershy, you can't. You have nowhere to go, your house is in no condition for any pony to live there. And that disgusting attic is just going to get you killed, who knows what kinds of diseases are floating around in that foul air. What you need is our help, and we're all here to give it to you now, but first you need to trust that we love you and are really here for you no matter what you think has happened."

"What she really needs are some crazy pills." Rainbow attempted to lighten the mood with a joke.

"Rainbow! You're not helping!" Twilight scorned her off color humor.

"Jeez sorry, you know I was just joking right Shy?"

"I.. I know." Fluttershy replied under her breath.

Rainbow Dash approached her, she wrapped her wings around her and warmly comforted the sniffling pony.

"Everything's going to be fine, now tell us what happened to you, we're your friends and only want to help you, we love you." Rainbow Dash displayed a rare glimpse of her compassion. Something she often only really shared with Fluttershy.

"Thanks... But, you shouldn't love me. I don't deserve it..."

"Of course you do darling, why would you even say that?" Rarity joined in the comforting hug.

"I... I..." Fluttershy was interrupted by her own uncontrollable crying.

Twilight and Applejack both rushed to her side, doing their parts to comfort the more than distressed pegasus.

"Ask Rainbow, there's nothing you can say that would shock us now, and we'll never stop loving you no matter what you have to say." Twilight attempted to speak light heartedly but her voice reflected her sadness. Seeing her sweet innocent friend in shambles like this was all too much to take.

"I... You see, well..." Fluttershy stumbled around her own words, speaking in a less than audible tone.

"Just say it Shy, we won't judge you, tell us what's got you so worked up."

"Well... I... I killed Pinkie Pie!" Fluttershy blurted it out.

"I was helping her with Gummy and I saw her in the ballon so I went to talk to her to tell her what was wrong and she got mad at me but I was already mad at her so we started fighting and she yelled at me and... I... I just snapped, I lost control of my body... I.. Killed her..."

Rainbow let go and took a few steps back. Tears were welling up in her eyes. "You what?..." Before she could reply she ran outside and flew away.

"Rainbow wait!" Twilight chased after her, but there was no way to stop her. She headed back in to talk to Fluttersy and figure out exactly what she was saying.

"I'm so sorry, I'm leaving now, you can tell Rainbow Dash that she can come back in... I wouldn't want to be around me either..."

"Fluttershy stop it. Rainbow is just upset, honestly we all are. We never expected you to say something like that. Now come here." Twilight hugged her sobbing friend. "If you know something about Pinkie's death that we don't, you need to tell us."

"Okay... I'll tell you everything, I just couldn't bring myself to do it before. I couldn't even stand looking at you guys. You were all so sad and... It was all because of me. That's why I hid..."

"No more hiding, we're here for you. I'm sure Rainbow'll come around soon enough."

The three ponies sat around Fluttershy as she went on to tell them the truth, a truth that none of them ever wanted to hear.

Ch. 11 Blindsided

Fluttershy nervously looked from side to side, making eye contact with each of her friends as she recalled her frightening past. She looked back down at the floor and felt a vast array of emotions as she relived every minute of her last day with Pinkie. After fighting with her own inhibitions she began to speak, revealing the truth that none of her friends ever imagined possible. Rainbow Dash had came back, quietly resting outside beneath an open window, listening intently to what Fluttershy was about to say.

It was a day like any other, until Pinkie showed up at my door. She brought Gummy over for me take a look, he was very sick and neither of us were really sure why, so I decided to keep him for the night or at least til I could figure out what was wrong and how to help him get better. After a few minutes I realized that he was very malnourished, it seems all he had been eating was sugar and cupcakes. He needed meat, I don't really like to think about it but I know some animals need to eat other animals to live, that's just the way it works. So I took him into the Everfree Forest and let him go in a small pond, I watched him from behind a bush so I could make sure he knew what he was doing. It seemed his natural hunting instincts took over immediately, he went into the water, close to the bank. He opened his cute little mouth and waited for some unsuspecting prey to walk into his kill zone. Soon a small mouse wondered out into the open, I slowed my breathing making sure not to make any noise. It slowly walked in front of Gummy, then he snapped at it, clamping down on its tiny body. He rolled around and shook his head back and forth but it just escaped and ran away. It seemed there was no way for Gummy to hunt without his teeth. I knew he wouldn't last if he couldn't hunt for his own food, alligators don't eat food that's already dead, so that's not an option. I decided to go consult with Pinkie Pie the next day. So I made Gummy a spinach soup that was decently high in iron, hoping to hold him over til we could work out his problem.

In the morning I headed out to find Pinkie, but I couldn't. I looked everywhere hoping to find her before she took off with Rainbow for the day. Eventually I spotted the balloon in the sky with Rainbow Dash next to it, I knew that's where Pinkie had to be. I tried my best to fly up there but the winds slowed me down a lot, and when I finally made it Rainbow had already flown off somewhere else and Pinkie was trying to chase her. I landed in the balloon and tried to catch my breath.

"Oh hi Shy, what brings you to the sky. Hehe."

"I... found out... what's wrong... I'm tired wow. Anyway I found out what's wrong with Gummy."

"Oh really?! Does this mean he'll get better now?"

"Well... actually the problem is that he needs to eat a gator appropriate diet, all he's been eating is sugar and that's really not good for him at all."

"What, nah he loves cupcakes, what else could it be?"

"Trust me that's what it is, he needs to eat meat, and even more importantly he needs to be able to hunt for it himself. He can't though because he doesn't have any teeth, do you know why he doesn't?"

"Yeah duh, I took em out. You can't have a pet alligator with teeth, that'd just be silly."

That was when I felt the anger for the first time, this anger filled my chest and I began to lose control of what I said and did.

"You what?! Pinkie, Gummy could die because of that, look, I'm going to take him to Zecora and see if she can help with his teeth, then I'm going to let him live in the Everfree Forest where he belongs."

"You, you can't! He's my pet and I'm taking him back home, he loves cupcakes and there's nothing wrong, he just has a cold."

"I'm not going to let him die, he needs help."

Then Pinkie Pie just started glaring at me, she pushed her nose up against mine really hard and pushed me into the corner of the balloon's basket, then she said, "I'm going to take Gummy home right now, and there's nothing you can do to stop me. I'm not being nice anymore Fluttershy."

That's when I lost all control of everything, I remember everything perfectly, I remember wanting to hurt her. I stood up and pushed her away.

"Oh really? We'll see about that!" I pushed her again, much harder this time, she slammed into the side of the balloon's basket, which was now swaying frantically in the storm winds.

Pinkie lost her balance and I walked up to her then... then I... I...

I said, "I'll never let you hurt another animal again." Then I pushed her over the edge. As she fell she made eye contact with me, I saw every emotion she was feeling through her eyes. It looked like a mixture of fear, confusion, and betrayal. I imagine these were the same things Gummy felt as she ripped the teeth from his mouth. A few seconds after she fell, I saw Rainbow Dash flying towards her, I already knew it was far too late for her to be saved though. When I saw Pinkie hit the ground, I began to smile ear to ear, I felt happy.

And well, you know the rest. I lost myself after I lost you guys. I hid in my house and never wanted to leave, I desperately clung to the care and love my beloved little pets required. I'm not sure exactly when I started to blur reality with my imagination again. I haven't done that since I was just a little filly. At least as far as I know I haven't. Thanks for snapping me out of that by the way Twilight, I haven't felt that crazy since the day I killed Pinkie Pie.

Fluttershy covered her mouth with her hooves, surprised at the fact that she speaks about it so casually.

"I'm sorry guys, I really think there's something wrong with me."

"Ya think?!" Rainbow revealed herself from behind the window. Then once again flew away, feeling she needed to be alone.

Applejack and Rarity were in a state of shock or disbelief, they sat in silence trying to absorb everything they had just heard. Twilight on the other hoof was busy trying to decide rather the story she just heard was the truth or if Fluttershy fabricated the whole thing and convinced herself it was the truth.

She began to pry into her mind. "So you don't feel bad about murdering one of your best friends then?" Twilight spoke in a harsh unsympathetic tone. She was busy focusing on Fluttershy's entire body, watching her eyes, her body language, her breathing, even detecting her pulse.

"Oh but I do feel sad Twilight, I just didn't feel bad at the time it happened."

Twilight deduced that she at least believed she was telling the truth, but she decided to go deeper. She trotted up to her and touched her horn to Fluttershy's head. She closed her eyes and engulfed them both in a fiery purple aura.

Twilight began to see Fluttershy's most prominent memories, reliving them through her eyes. She found herself in a dark attic, she sat in the center, watching dust float around in the air. A circle of animals surrounded her, all staring into her eyes, their faces blank and emotionless. They sat perfectly still, all breathing in unison. In her hooves she held Angel, he seemed lively enough as he writhed and turned in her grasp, as if he were on fire.

"Now now Angel, be still and take your medicine or you'll never get better." Twilight then saw herself standing there in the dark, staring at herself pityingly.

"Is this what Fluttershy thought she was seeing?"

Twilight saw herself reach out with a black hoof, blinding Fluttershy. Then she flashed into another memory. She was in the Everfree Forest, staring down at a cow's skull. She began violently stomping on it, shattering it into sharp jagged pieces which she then collected in a small pouch. She ran back and met Gummy. He was already getting much larger at this point. Fluttershy had him tied down by each leg and his tail to several wooden polls in the ground, his mouth was propped open by a metal rod.

"Don't worry now Gummy, this is going to hurt, but you need teeth if you're going to survive in the wild."

Fluttershy was wearing her doctor outfit, she seemed to have a crude method of sterilizing her equipment then her skull fragments, dipping them into a boiling pot of water and setting them down on a steel tray.

"Now please try not to move too much okay? And most importantly, remember that I love you and am doing this to help you."

Fluttershy grabbed one of her many malicious looking medical tools, this one a thin metal rod with a razor blade at the end. She clumsily gripped it with her hoof and reached into Gummy's mouth, cutting into this gum. The terrified animal roared out in agony as she sliced into his mouth.

"There there now Gummy, almost done with the first one."

She used a pair of pliers to grab a sharp fragment of skull. She forced it into the fresh incision she had made, after setting it deep within, she grabbed two small metal wires and pierced his gum on either side of the "tooth" wrapping them around and tying the incision closed.

"Well... That's one down." Fluttershy grimly looked down at her bowl of sterile skull fragments, there were dozens remaining. She began to smile, then her vision blacked out once again.

Twilight now found herself inside Fluttershy's room, this was shortly after Pinkie's death. Fluttershy violently paced back and forth, her face battered and bruised. Fluttershy began to rampage through her room, kicking the walls and smashing her own belongings. She seemed to be trying to fight herself. She walked up to a mirror hanging in her closet. She stared at her reflection for a few moments. Her face was wounded and miserable, she was crying and biting her lower lip, however her reflection seemed perfectly content, she was smiling back at herself, her eyes blocked out by a nonexistent shadow. Fluttershy turned around and kicked the mirror repeatedly, shattering it and cutting herself in the process. She proceeded to frenzy in her own home, destroying anything that even remotely shared some connection to Pinkie Pie. She soon happened upon an old group picture, she smashed it immediately after seeing it. She looked closely at the partially torn image, she focused on Pinkie's happy carefree loving face, how innocent and harmless she seemed. Fluttershy took a piece of glass and began stabbing the image repeatedly and violently. She found an inkwell, she dipped one of her own fallen feathers into it and blacked Pinkie's face out. She then threw the inkwell out her window, breaking it. She stumbled back a few steps, and collapsed, her vision slowly fading.

Next Twilight saw everything she was looking for, she watched one of her best friends murder another. She saw it through her eyes, and even worse, she felt the satisfaction Fluttershy felt at that moment.

Twilight took a few steps back, now back in current time. She looked at Fluttershy, she saw her cute innocent smile, and her wide eyes staring back up at her. Twilight lost her balance and fell into Rarity, the experience was much stronger than she ever could have expected. She tried to recover herself. Something had to be done, Fluttershy needed help that Twilight wasn't prepared to provide.

"Applejack, don't let her leave, Rarity I need to talk to you. Come with me."

Applejack wasn't sure she was comfortable being alone with Fluttershy, but held her composure. Fluttershy slowly turned her head to meet Applejack's eyes. Her soft smile turned to a devious grin.

"Are you scared AJ? You know there's no need for that, right?"

Ch. 12 Turn to Dust

"Look, we need to figure out what we're going to do, and fast." Twilight paced back and forth in front of Rarity.

"Sweetheart, there's only one option, we need to inform the police immediately, otherwise we all face charges of our own." Rarity spoke logically for once, swallowing what she really wanted to say.

After a moment of vivid imagination, Twilight spoke. "We can't, I mean... I can't. I can't hand Fluttershy over to the police yet, she would be thrown into jail with street thugs and what not, they'd eat her alive in there."

"And perhaps she deserves nothing better." Rarity lost her self control for a moment.

"You're wrong Rarity. I saw what Fluttershy saw, I felt what she felt, and I know that there's something wrong that's caused her to lose control like that. Honestly I still don't believe that she's fully aware of her surroundings. She needs help, she's not a murderer." Twilight's curiosity had been sparked and her breakdown of the situation only made Rarity more focused on getting Fluttershy away from them, if only to avoid another tragedy.

"Well, take her Twilight, take her back to the university. I'm sure you and your friends will enjoy every minute you spend analyzing her messed up little brain. I on the other hoof will be going home now, Applebloom needs to get ready for school the day after tomorrow." With that Rarity walked up the stairs towards Applebloom's room.

Rainbow Dash wasn't far off. She was sitting in an apple tree, mulling over everything she had just heard. Everything she thought she knew about her life was now being called into question. The years she spent alone, the countless tears she cried, the endless stream of regret and pain that never seemed to fade. These all stemmed with the fact that Rainbow blamed herself alone for Pinkie's death. Once again, Rainbow's emotions got away from her. She pressed her hoof tightly up against her chest in a useless attempt to numb the pain from her broken heart. She angrily wiped tears from her face, more than tired of feeling these dreadful emotions.

"Why didn't you tell me Pinkie! You could have told me..."

Images of Pinkie's face and her last words filled Rainbow's mind. She desperately tried to remember everything that had happened before Pinkie fell. She pictured the town balloon on its side, she thought about Fluttershy's flying abilities, how it would have been impossible for the Fluttershy she knew to fly through those furious storm winds. She reached into the deepest recesses of her imagination, thinking of everything she could have done differently.

"If I was there, I could have stopped Fluttershy, right?"

Rainbow's confidence is a fragile shell compared to what it once was.

"Was there anything I could have done?.."

Her arms drooped over each side of the branch. She looked back towards Applejack's home, it was about a ten second flight away, or a twenty minute walk. She considered going back, but didn't. Instead she drifted off into sleep. She had a late night, and today had drained her both physically and emotionally.

Applejack stood there watching Fluttershy, her smile growing more menacing by the second.

"I ain't gonna lie to you sugar, I'm a little nervous about bein' alone in a room with a killer, but if you test me I won't hesitate to -" Twilight broke off her sentence, "Applejack I need to take Fluttershy with me to my research office in Canterlot today. I need to evaluate her current mental state."

"Uh, okay then. You're sure you're okay being cooped up in a carriage all day with her? I mean look at her, no tellin' what she might try and pull."

They both took a minute to look at Fluttershy, she seemed to be attempting to look them in the eye, but she just looked back and forth, seemingly right behind each of them. Her smile had turned to an expression of concern, and her eyes were beginning to tear up.

"I don't want to go to Canterlot, I want to go back... home." Fluttershy's now soft voice trailed off into silence.

"You be quiet! You're lucky we don't just haul you off to prison right now!" Applejack's temper was clearly lost, she lowered herself and snarled at Fluttershy.

"I'm sorry........sor.." Fluttershy cowered into a tiny little ball, her voice less than audible.

"Calm down Applejack, we promised her we wouldn't act like this no matter what she told us."

"Well I lied!" Applejack stormed off out her back door towards the orchard, slamming it behind her.

"Fluttershy, don't start this, we need to go now, we're losing valuable time. Rarity! The carriage is here, get Applebloom and lets go."

Rarity over-cautiously walked past Fluttershy, placing herself between her and Applebloom. Twilight walked up to Fluttershy, and gently led her to the back of the carriage. A separate compartment from the passenger's box, usually used for extra storage.

"We're going to have a long talk on the way to Canterlot, I have a lot of important questions that you need to do your best to answer as accurately as possible. Keep in mind that everything you tell me now will remain one hundred percent confidential until your trial. I'll only reveal what's necessary to keep you out of prison."

"Oh, okay Twilight. But if I don't go to prison what will happen to me?"

"You'll be placed in a facility meant to help you control your mental disorder, I'm not exactly certain what's wrong with you, but we need to find out."

"What if I'd rather go to prison?"

"What?! Why would you even think that?! Do you have any idea what they'll do to you there Fluttershy? You're so, small and weak, they'll enjoy tearing you apart."

"If I'm a murderer, that's where I belong." Fluttershy looked down at the floorboards of the carriage, her devious grin began to grow.

"I'm not having this discussion with you, rather you want my help or not, you're getting it. End of story."

"Yeah sure, whatever you say mommy. So, how about those questions then hmm?"

Twilight was thrown back by this sudden change in attitude, a small sense of fear was looming behind her.

"On second thought, I think we should wait til we get to my office." Twilight brushed the hair out of her face and looked out the window. She was beginning to question herself and her intentions.

"Um Rarity? Why is Twilight in the back with Fluttershy? There's plenty of room here for all four of us." Applebloom questioned out of boredom, Rarity was lost in thought staring out her window, not being much entertainment to her.

"Oh well, they need to talk privately is all." Rarity, went back to her thoughts.

"Are you guy's fighting?"

Rarity's cheeks turned a bit red, "Of course not, what do you mean by that anyway?"

"Just wonderin's all." Applebloom smirked and joined Rarity in gazing at the ground below. Sweet Apple Acres was just out of view, and they were approaching the edge of the forest.

Applejack was frantically and violently bucking all the trees in the orchard, letting the apples aimlessly fall to the ground. She bucked a medium sized tree with only a few apples in it, nothing fell. She bucked it again and again with no success. She snarled at the apples, they became the target of her anger. She was angry at herself for everything that she'd let herself go through lately, always hiding her problems, being overshadowed by everything going on around her. She wanted so badly to tell her friends about selling the orchard at the fire last night, she couldn't bring herself to. Fluttershy was the last straw, she had tried so hard to be the most reliable and dependable friend she could be, always making sure she was there to listen to her friends, and forgive them when they had wronged her in any way. She wanted only to have the five reunited and live happily together the way they once did. But with the news Fluttershy brought, they were only pushed farther apart than ever. Applejack felt she wanted nothing more to do with her friends.

She continued to buck the same tree over and over, each time more furious than the last.

CRACK

The frail tree had split straight down the center. The apples remained tightly clinging to their respective branches.

"Stupid tree, stupid apples!" Applejack continued to mindlessly wander around bucking trees, allowing herself to vent her anger.

She saw another tree, this one bigger and with plenty of apples knock down. With a swift and powerful buck, nearly all the apples came tumbling down, along with Rainbow Dash.

Rainbow woke up mid fall and attempted to to gain flight, but just fluttered around as she came crashing down into the ground.

"Oops, sorry didn't see ya there."

"Hey what gives!" Rainbow Dash shouted then immediately recoiled as if she expected to be hit.

"I'm just buckin' these apples, I didn't know you were still here."

"Well I don't really have anywhere else to go, maybe now that Fluttershy confessed to killing Pinkie I don't have to worry so much about myself taking the blame."

"Look, I'm mad at Fluttershy too, but to be honest, she really needs our help."

"You think I care what Fluttershy needs? I'm more worried about what I need right now. I'm going to turn her in to the Cloudsdale Police. Do you know where Twilight's taking her?

Applejack thought for a moment, her research office, Canterlot.

"Um, no, I don't know." Applejack looked off to her left trying to appear as nonchalant as possible.

"You sure about that AJ?" Rainbow leaned over to her side, making eye contact.

"Yeah I'm sure, who do you think you're talkin to! Uh, why do you want to turn Fluttershy in anyway, just let Twilight do her thing and you can stay here with me for now."

"I just want to clear my name so I can start my life over again. No offense Applejack."

Applejack gave her a fake smile. "Well just don't forget who you are, you're the loyalest of ponies, and the best of friends. Don't go changin' on me just because we hit another bump in the road."

"Applejack, I've hit so many bumps... I'm not even on a road anymore. Being loyal to my friends only gets me hurt. I'm done with this whole thing. The elements of harmony have been broken since before Pinkie died. They broke when Fluttershy let go of her kindness. Holding on to something we once were is what's driving us further and further apart. We're all done, might as well just accept it. I mean look at you, I know you just lied to me about knowing where Fluttershy's going, you kept the truth hidden from your friends at the fire, even though Twilight gave you the perfect opportunity to tell everyone about the farm. Face it, you're not the most honest of ponies anymore are you."

Applejack looked away, she knew Rainbow was right about everything. Although last night gave her hope that things could return to normal, they never would, especially not now. She looked down, trying to find something to say, but nothing came to mind.

"I love you AJ, but I'm going to go now. I need to find Scootaloo, she's probably not doing well without me, and she's the one pony I should have stayed loyal to all along. Well, catch ya later."

Rainbow gave Applejack a hug and flew off into the sky. Applejack stood there and watched her fly away. "I love you too... sugar cube." A few tears fell into the soil.

Applejack walked back home, her head drooping. She knew as well as Rainbow Dash that they were a broken bunch. She walked into her room, found an old jewelry box, and opened it up. Inside was a gold necklace, an orange apple shaped gem dangled from the center. A sense of pride usually accompanied Applejack when she looked at this, but today she only felt that she no longer deserved to own it. Suddenly the gem cracked down the center, the vivid gold became a dull grayish flat metal. Applejack got startled and dropped it on the floor, the gem shattered into dozens of pieces, as they hit the floor they disintegrated into dust. The gold necklace curled up into gray smoldering ash. Applejack closed her eyes, she knew she had lost her element, but now it would be able to find a new host, someone more worthy. She went to bed, some sleep might do her some good. She thought about the days to come, and a lonely life in Appaloosa.

Twilight soon arrived at Rarity's apartment.

"I'll come see you soon okay Rarity?" Twilight gave her a soft kiss and hugged her for a few moments.

"You behave in school kiddo, and soon I'll be your teacher if your grades are high enough." Twilight closed her eyes and smiled at little Applebloom before hugging her.

"I will Twilight, tell Fluttershy I said bye!" Applebloom happily trotted off into the apartment lobby.

"You do what you need to do Twilight, I'm still not sure how I feel about this whole situation with Fluttershy. I for one have made my peace with Pinkie Pie's death, however this is still quite unsettling. You're more than welcome to spend anytime you wish here with me. I love you Twilight. Be careful with her."

Twilight smiled and shared another warm hug before trotting back to the carriage.

"To The Department of Research please. I have some business to take care of there."

"Sure thing ma'am."

After a few minutes Twilight led Fluttershy into her office. She began to go through some books that she thought might hold some clue as to exactly what was wrong with her ill friend. With no luck she called one of her colleagues to help her investigate. A very sophisticated looking mare walked into her office. Her mane was a two toned icy white and blue, it was styled similarly to Twilight's. Her coat was light blue-gray and she wore thick framed glasses and a black scarf. Her cutie mark was an open book.

"Ah thanks for coming on such short notice, I know I can always count on you Constance."

"Yes as always Ms. Sparkle. I trust you enjoyed your miniature vacation? Of course you did. Now I do believe introductions are in order." Constance's soft but assertive voice suited her personality. She was a mare of many words, and one of the only ponies in Equestria who rivaled Twilight Sparkle's affinity for knowledge and books.

"Yes of course, Fluttershy, this is my good friend and coworker Constance, Constance, this is an old friend of mine, Fluttershy. The reason she's here is so we can find out more about a pretty serious mental condition she's currently suffering from. So far I don't have too much to go on, but I'm sure you can help me."

"Tell me what you know." Constance lit her horn with an odd blue wave of light. She levitated a notebook and quill which she used to begin taking notes, she noted key points as Twilight continued to describe everything she knew about Fluttershy's condition. Fluttershy just sat and listened, waiting for them to reach some sort of conclusion as to what was happening.

"Well Twilight, it seems your friend here must have had quite the troubled past. I think we may have encountered the worst recorded case of Moriarty's Syndrome to date." Constance stared at Twilight waiting for her to come to an agreement.

Fluttershy piped up. "Mo..riarty Syndrome?"

Twilight walked over to Fluttershy and looked into her eyes. She was trying to make all connections between her friends recent and previous activities and Moriarty's Syndrome.

"Yes Fluttershy, I think I'm beginning to see. I already knew you suffered from Pegasus PTSD, but to think you actually let it get this far." Twilight was amazed that Constance so quickly and confidently came to a conclusion without any further research.

"Um... Twilight... What does that mean."

"It's hard to explain, Fluttershy."

Constance smiled at the opportunity to share her knowledge. "Oh by all means, allow me Twilight. Moriarty's Syndrome is a rare mental disorder found only in pegasi, it stems from the emotional suppression found in PPTSD, or Pegasus Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. As I'm sure you may have heard, a pegasus that goes through an exceedingly traumatic experience might suffer from some slight to extreme personality changes. Changes which range simply from being more passive, to living in fear that anyone and everyone will be angry with you if you do or say anything to them. However in some rare cases, as discovered by Dr. Moriarty, the suppressed emotions of anger and confidence are completely isolated in the back of the affected pegasus' sub-conscience. However during events that would normally cause the affected pegasus to become very angry or confident, these emotions may switch places with all others, leaving the pegasus to act completely irrationally and very impulsively."

Fluttershy looked on in confusion, Twilight looked at the clock. It was getting late but she didn't have anything important to do tomorrow.

"Well we'll need to look into this so we can confirm your diagnosis Constance. Good work I might add, I don't think I ever would have thought about that."

Constance blushed, her modesty beginning to shine through. "Thanks Twilight, I think I recently read a book on obscure pegasus diseases, that's what brought it to mind."

Twilight walked out of the room with Constance to begin discussing their next course of action. She explained why she didn't want to hand Fluttershy over to the authorities, and why it was important to keep her actions secret for the time being. Constance agreed to every rule Twilight laid down, and they each went on their way to gather all the information needed to investigate, treat, and document their discoveries.

Fluttershy was sitting alone in the locked office, the office window locked tightly by a magical seal. She began to walk around, looking at Twilight's various desk top ornaments and paper weights. She grabbed a mildly sharp letter opener and rubbed it against her chest. It wasn't sharp enough to slice skin, but it could stab. She then fluttered to the top of a bookcase, perching herself right above the door, looking down at Twilight's desk at the opposite end of the room. She tightly clung to the letter opener with both her front hooves, waiting patiently.

Ch. 13 A Lost Cause

Rarity tossed and turned in bed, she desperated tried to force herself to sleep, but her mind wouldn't rest. Thoughts of Fluttershy filled her head, thoughts of her killing Pinkie, and worst of all thoughts of her hurting Twilight. Rarity rubbed her dry sore eyes. She walked into her spare room to check in on Applebloom, she was fast asleep.

"I need a snack." She thought to herself out loud. She ventured into the kitchen, and decided to investigate the refrigerator. She quietly opened it, making sure not to wake Applebloom, she peeked back into the room, making sure she was still sleeping. She then finished opening the door all the way.

EEEEK!!!

Rarity jumped back, slamming herself into the kitchen counter, sending several pans crashing to the floor. There on a plate in the fridge sat the bloody severed head of Twilight, staring at Rarity with a look of horror in her eyes. The loud noise immediately woke Applebloom with a startled jump. She hastily trotted into the kitchen to investigate the commotion.

"Rarity, what are you doing?"

"Applebloom dear! Please just stay there!"

She ignored Rarity and continued to investigate, she looked in the wide open refrigerator.

"What's wrong now? All out of your favorite salad dressing? This drama queen routine's really gettin' old Rarity." Applebloom rolled her eyes and went back to bed.

Rarity looked back into the fridge, a full cabbage sat on the plate, tightly covered in plastic wrap.

"I, wait a minute, I'm certain I... Applebloom, I'm sorry to have woken you. My mind must be playing tricks on me."

Applebloom just waved her hoof gesturing Rarity to go away, already more than half asleep.

Rarity shook her head back and forth, trying to calm down, her heart was still racing. A sharp pain filled her chest, she was more worried about Twilight now than ever. She looked back at her clock, it was already after midnight. She looked back at the cabbage and considered eating some, but couldn't bring herself to get near it. Sleep wasn't an option for this troubled mare. Instead she decided to go for a short walk around the block, hoping some fresh air would help settle her mind. She locked the door behind her, and headed out.

"Please come home soon Twilight." Rarity let out a deep breath, and watched it get carried away in the cold night air.

Constance and Twilight met back up outside the Department of Research. They had an abundance of medical books, a tape recorder, and plenty of ink and paper. Along with the supplies they had picked up dinner from a late night diner just across the street from the library. Twilight touched the metal plate on the outer door with her horn, it gave off a small flash and spark before unlocking and opening. Twilight held the door for Constance to walk in past her, and Twilight found herself resisting the urge to watch her flank as she walked by.

"Focus Twilight, think about Fluttershy." Twilight began to think about Fluttershy laying out across her desk, her mane dangling over one edge and her hooves resting on her gentle curves.

"Oh for Celestia's sake, come on!" She thought about the fact that she had actually been alone every night for almost a year. Twilight shook off her lapse in priority judgment and thought about what to do with Fluttershy for the night. She planned on taking her to a specialist in the morning, but all their offices are closed on weekends, so it'd have to wait another day. She figured it'd be best to document as much information on this as possible. Not many cases of Moriarty's syndrome have been observed before the affected pegasus was executed due to their violent crimes and killing sprees. This was an opportunity to write a new book, a book on the scientific approach to understanding and treating this rare condition. That was something that sparked both Twilight and Constance's interests more than the common pony would understand.

Twilight approached her office door, it was dark and quiet in the empty building. Nearly everyone had already gone home for the night, all that remained were Twilight, Constance, Fluttershy, and a couple janitors. The long hallway leading to the office was dark, only illuminated by the small amount of light escaping her door window. The two mares walked side by side carrying their supplies. Twilight unlocked her door, she nudged it open with her hoof. The first thing that she noticed was that Fluttershy was nowhere in sight.

"Fluttershy? Are you still here? We brought you some food, I'm sure you must be hungry." Twilight knew there was no way for her to get out. Only Twilight herself had the means to unlock her own office door.

Constance gave Twilight a worried glance, and took a few steps towards the door. Twilight decided to walk in and investigate. Fluttershy was still sitting patiently, waiting for her opportunity to strike. She saw Twilight walk in directly below her. She grinned at the thought of impaling her from behind, then leaped down with the letter opener tightly gripped in both hooves pointed at the back of Twilight's neck. Twilight heard the sound of Fluttershy kicking off the bookshelf, she turned around just in time to see a glimpse of yellow accompanied by a piercing pain. A levitating pile of books came crashing down to the floor, along with a few boxes of take-out.

Rainbow Dash finally made it to Appaloosa, She had been flying at a high speed basically nonstop since she left Sweet Apple Acres that afternoon. She made the two day trip in less than fourteen hours, needless to say, she was now exhausted. She found a small drifting patch of clouds just outside the school dorms where she knew Scootaloo was staying. She began going over a series of possible conversations she had imagined on the way over. She was worried about how Scootaloo would react seeing her after so many years. Rainbow Dash promised that she would take her to Cloudsdale Flight School as soon as she was old enough, which was over two years ago. Rainbow knew she deserved Scootaloo's anger, but lacked the confidence to confront her. She looked down at all the windows of the twelve story building. Not a single light was on, but one window had a Rainbow flag displayed. She decided to go have a quick peek in that window, if any of them were Scootaloo's, why not that one.

She flew down from her cloud and hovered outside the window. She looked through it just above the flag. Her heart began to pulse a bittersweet pain with every beat. She looked in and saw Scootaloo laying in bed fast asleep, her blankets and sheets on the floor next to the bed. Her wings were spread wide across her small bed, Rainbow shuttered thinking about how much bigger she's gotten, those wings were just little stumps the last time she saw her. She noticed something on her flank, it was a cutie mark, but it was partially covered by a sheet she was laying on. Rainbow pressed her face up against the window, trying to make out what it was. No luck, she thought maybe if she could make her roll over then maybe she'd have a clearer view. She tapped on the window, no movement. She tapped harder, next thing she knew Scootaloo sat up, startled by the strange noise. Rainbow retreated immediately back to her clouds, she peeked over the edge. Scootaloo was now at her window, she opened it.

"Rainbow Dash?"

Rainbow sat there, hiding on top of the clouds, her heart racing.

Scootaloo jumped out of her sixth floor window and gently fluttered to the ground. She was still a weak flier for her age, unable to actually take flight.

"Rainbow Dash, was that really you?"

Rainbow detected the joy and excitement in her voice, but couldn't bring herself to come out from hiding. Instead she just trotted away from the building on the cloud tops until she felt it was safe to take flight. She felt terrible for leaving Scootaloo behind again, but figured she could explain herself in the morning. She flew off towards another large blanket of clouds and decided to get some sleep before sunrise.

Rarity was slowly trotting around the block, painful worries clouded her mind, preventing her from enjoying the peaceful night.

"Applebloom's a big mare now, she'll be fine by herself for a while."

Rarity convinced herself that she absolutely had to go see Twilight immediately, and it was only about a twenty minute walk to the Department of Research.

"I know I'm worrying for nothing, I'm sure you probably just fell asleep at your desk or something." Rarity thought to herself, hoping for the best.

She continued down the quiet night street, losing herself from time to time in her vivid imagination.

"Twilight are you okay?!" Constance was standing over Twilight and struggling to hold Fluttershy back with her magic. Twilight's vision came into focus, she felt a sharp sting on her side. There was a shallow puncture on side just above her ribs. Blood slowly trickled down her side. She looked at Constance, two deep scratches were bleeding on her shoulder. Suddenly images of Fluttershy violently and rapidly slashing out at Constance with her crude weapon filled Twilight's mind. She realized Constance had received her injuries while attempting to protect her. Fluttershy was writhing around trying to escape Constance's magical grip. Twilight stood up and easily took Fluttershy's weapon away, forcefully throwing it into the side of the bookshelf. Then she levitated her into a chair, roughly forcing her to sit.

"I'm fine, are you alright?"

"Just some scratches, nothing I can't deal with." Constance put on a comforting smile.

Twilight angrily walked towards Fluttershy, but before she could lecture her she felt a hoof on her shoulder. Constance was behind her, she looked down and shook her head.

"It's not really her fault Twilight. She most likely felt that we had trapped her in here and the only way out was to eliminate the two of us. She has completely lost her ability to rationalize."

"You're right, I'm sorry, I just lost my temper when I saw you were hurt."

Constance blushed a little and tried to hide it by pushing her glasses up.

"You seem to have things under control here so I'll go get a first aid kit for these cuts."

Fluttershy stared at Twilight with a blank face, her eyes still looking straight through her, not making any eye contact. Seeing her like this brought a kind of pain Twilight had never experienced before, this pain was only amplified by the fact that she knew even with the best treatments available, Fluttershy would never be herself again.

Constance returned with some supplies, her wounds were already cleaned and dressed. Twilight grabbed some materials to begin cleaning her own wound.

"Here let me do it, I insist." Constance knew her magic was much weaker than any other unicorn she had ever met, but with that also came a came a sense of delicacy and precision that most ponies would gladly trade their right hooves for.

The cloth Twilight was holding with her magic became encased by a strange blue stream of magic, and Constance began treating Twilight's injury. Twilight flinched a bit when she coated the outer area with an antiseptic, but the soft warmth of the magical aura soothed her almost simultaneously. Twilight looked back into the mare's brilliant purple eyes as she intently focused on her task. A small whisp of blue magic brushed across Twilight's cheek, causing her spine to tingle. Constance simply smiled at her sensitive friend.

"That should do nicely, all done."

"Thanks for that Constance, I couldn't have done a better job on my own."

"Don't mention it, now let's get to work here, we have a lot to cover before the nights over, then we'll have to take her to your house or something if you still intend to keep our little operation quiet."

"We'll decide on that soon enough, for now let's eat and get started. So Fluttershy, are you hungry?"

Fluttershy looked down at the still closed boxes of food on the floor, then nodded slightly.

"Good, now eat up and try to keep yourself under control."

Twilight gave her a box of grass and sunflower pancakes. She then opened the blinds on her window, and led Constance out of the room. She looked back inside, trying to notice any changes in Fluttershy's behavior. She's just sitting there, slowly nibbling at her meal.

"I brought you out here because I'm not sure if we should keep doing this, Fluttershy's much more dangerous than I originally thought."

Constance walked closer to Twilight, placing one hoof softly on her shoulder. "You don't need to worry about me Twilight, I can handle myself. What's important right now is learning and recording as much as we can. This research could potentially save lives and change everything we know about pegasus psychology. I want to be a part of this, and I want to share it with you, you're my best friend Twilight."

"You're right, this is too important to pass up. And I can't think of anyone I'd rather be here with right now." Twilight gave Constance a tight hug, she gave her a soft kiss on the cheek, closing her eyes to enjoy the sincerity of the moment. When she opened them, she saw a heart broken Rarity staring at her from across the hall, a few tears dripping to the floor.

Twilight felt a painful pit in her stomach, she knew this didn't look good. Rarity turned around and trotted out the back door, then she went into nearly a full gallop as she ran home. Twilight pulled away from her friend and attempted to chase Rarity, her side began to burn as she tried to run.

"Rarity wait! It's not what you think..." Twilight's call went out in vein.

"Ugh, stupid, stupid. That's probably what she expected me to say." Twilight put a hoof to her face, feeling awful for allowing herself to end up in this situation.

Constance walked up behind her, placing her hoof on Twilight's shoulder.

"If you have to go, I can handle Fluttershy til you get back."

"No, no. Rarity will be fine, this needs my full attention right now."

The two mares headed back inside to start their long night. As they approached Twilight's office, they realized it was strangely dark, then once again horror struck. The office door was left wide open, and the lights were all shut off. They heard a soft chuckle at the end of the hallway, but it was too dark to see. Twilight shot a ball of light down the hall illuminating it dimly. As it reached the end, it revealed the blood soaked lifeless body of a large brown janitor. Another grim chuckle echoed from around the corner, Twilight and Constance both turned around and headed for the exit. As they rounded the corner they heard Fluttershy speak. "Where do you two think you're going? You wouldn't want me to hurt this poor old family stallion would you?"

"Please help me! I have a wife and three kids that need me."

Twilight cringed, blaming herself for this mess. She felt that she had to help, but urged Constance to leave.

"I'm not leaving you alone here Twilight, don't be stupid. We can figure this out, remember her state of mind."

Twilight nodded, then the two mares walked back, preparing to face an unimaginable evil. The Fluttershy Twilight once knew and loved was no longer here, this was a monster.

Ch. 14 Shroud of Bloodthirst

Rarity was about half way home when regret sat in. She felt Twilight deserved a chance to explain herself, and Applebloom was right, the drama queen act was getting to everyone around her. She leveled her head and turned around. She took a minute to compose herself, raising her head up high and standing fully upright. With new found confidence she trotted back towards Twilight's office.

"Ha, I have nothing to worry about, who could ever ask for a pony better than me anyway?" Rarity gave herself an ego boost, then carried on, trying to force the image of Twilight with another mare out of her mind.

Twilight led the way down the dark hall, her horn dimly glowing, casting a blanket of soft purple light throughout the hallway. The dim lighting only made the situation that much more terrifying for the young mares. Twilight spotted Fluttershy at the end of the hall, she was perched on top of the out of shape and wounded middle aged stallion, a utility knife clamped tightly in her teeth. Twilight sent the orb of light floating towards her, hoping to find out exactly what was happening. Fluttershy's eyes were extremely dilated, her menacing grin as wide as could be, the razor blade protruding from the knife in her teeth only added to the evil vibe that shrouded her. Fluttershy cought the orb in mid air with her hoof, violently smashing it into the ground. A thick plume of purple smoke engulfed Fluttershy, the injured janitor coughed as he inhaled the smoke.

Twilight reignited her horn. "Fluttershy, please stop this, what is it you're after? Do you want to go home? Come with me and I'll take you back to Ponyville." Twilight attempted to reason with her.

"Oh silly Twilight, all I really want is to see you pay for what you did." Fluttershy spread her wings and hopped off of the janitor.

"What do you mean, what did I do?"

Fluttershy was humming a vaguely familiar song as she stood behind the terrified janitor, placing the knife up to his neck. "Well then Twilight, I'm beginning to feel angry again. Can you help me?"

"Yes I can Fluttershy, but first I need you to stop what you're doing and come with me."

The janitor spoke up again, "Please don't kill me, my name is Hal, its Hal. I'm just a simple janitor, I don't deserve this."

"Shut up! SHUT UP!" Fluttershy began to violently slice into the desperately pleading stallion, she shook her head back and forth cutting deeper into him with the fresh razor with each swipe.

"Stop it! Please stop right now!" Twilight screamed at Fluttershy, in a complete state of panic as she watched her friend murder an innocent pony. Twilight ran towards her, her horn illuminated and waiting to get into range to grab and restrain Fluttershy.

Fluttershy knew she couldn't allow Twilight to get into range or her fun would be over. She took a large bite out of the dead stallions sliced neck, shredding meat and skin all the way down to his chest. She then forcefully lobbed the hunk of bloody flesh at Twilight. Twilight was caught off guard by the sheer gruesomeness of Fluttershy's actions. Before Twilight was able to catch it, the slab of meat hit her in the face, blood splashed across her nose and into her eyes. Twilight closed her eyes, she took a few steps back and fell over, she frantically tried to wipe the blood off her face. Disgust and repulsion overwhelmed her senses, disbelief and panic clouded her mind. Twilight scrambled across the floor, distancing herself from the chunk of flesh lying in front of her.

Fluttershy giggled and flew down the hallway, but not before picking the bloody utility knife back up. Twilight looked back at Constance, her eyes were shaking, her breaths were short and fast. Clearly she was in a state of panic as well after having witnessed horror beyond her imagination.

"Cons, Constance, we have to get out of here and call the police. I think Fluttershy just wanted us to watch her kill that pony." Twilight struggled to retain her composure.

Constance simply nodded quickly and turned around towards the back exit. Before they made it half way down the hall, they heard a loud crash at the end. They both ran to investigate, as Twilight neared the corner, she readied her horn, preparing to capture Fluttershy. Constance sent out two bubbles of light floating around the corner. Twilight took three deep breaths, on the third she leaped around the corner, her horn exploded with magic, enveloping everything in a light aura. No sign of Fluttershy, however the metal square magical locking mechanism on the door was heavily indented. Twilight pressed her horn against it, it sparked but didn't unlock. She heard the gears within clicking, but were bent and unable to complete their cycle.

"How in Equestria did Fluttershy do this?!" Twilight shouted at Constance as panic began to set in.

Twilight looked out the metal grid window on the door. Rarity was standing outside the door, shrugging. Once she saw Twilight's blood soaked face, her mood changed greatly. Twilight yelled through the door, "Get help!" Rarity could hardly hear Twilight's muffled words but got the message and ran down the street to an emergency booth. She stamped her hoof on the alert. A second later some pony began to speak.

"Canterlot City Police, what's your emergency."

"I don't know for sure, my friend is locked in the Department of Research and her face is covered in blood, she screamed through the locked door telling me to get help, please send everyone you can right away and please hurry!"

"I've informed a nearby unit of the situation, they'll be there in a few seconds."

"Thank you so much!"

Rarity ran back to the door, she kicked it as hard as she could, attempting to force it open. She only succeeded in hurting herself. She helplessly sat down in front of the door and began crying.

"I'm so sorry Twilight, this is all my fault I know it! Please don't die, I... I can't live without you, I won't. I need you to come out alive."

Twilight had her ear pressed up against the door, she was able to make out every word Rarity said, her heart pulsed rapidly, pumping pain throughout her entire body. Twilight knew very well that this may be the end for her.

"Well isn't that just the sweetest thing, hehe." Fluttershy's sinister voice echoed through the halls. Constance jumped and stood closer to Twilight, frantically lighting as much of the dark halls as she could, hoping to spot the crazed pegasus. Fluttershy was sitting in a dark doorway just around the corner. She took the razor and gripped it between her teeth, then she smiled. The magic soon faded, then she looked around the corner, Constance was facing away from her, and Twilight's eyes were closed as she leaned up against the door. Fluttershy prepared to attack again. Rage filled her heart and mind, all she wanted to do was inflict pain and suffering on everyone around her. She rushed around the corner, knife in mouth, Constance heard her coming and turned around, a light blue aura surrounded Fluttershy but wasn't strong enough to contain her. She broke through, and dived directly into Constance, she began to murderously slice into the helpless pony, cutting deep into her throat and chest. Twilight jumped up and attempted to grab Fluttershy, instead she grabbed both Fluttershy and Constance, they were still right next to one another, and the expanded aura just wasn't quite enough to hold the frantically flailing Fluttershy. She broke free and disappeared into the darkness.

Constance was laying in a growing puddle of her own blood. Her gashes were several centimeters deep and her carotid artery was severed. Constance attempted to speak, but instead blood welled up out of her mouth and she began to choke. Twilight looked down at her and bit her bottom lip. The pain in her chest was unbearable, and she felt the weight of the world come crashing down on her shoulders. Her legs began to shake and she collapsed next to Constance, she grabbed onto her dying friend and closed her eyes. She couldn't see a thing, it was too dark and the tears blurred what little vision she had. Twilight began to choke, her heavy crying was interfering with her breathing.

"No, please, this can't be happening. This isn't real, it can't be." Twilight's wishful thinking only caused her more pain. She noticed that Constance had already stopped breathing. Twilight wobbled up onto her legs, her coat was stained red from the pool of her close friends blood that she had been laying in. Twilight walked up to the door again, outside the window were flashing blue lights on a carriage, a couple police ponies were attempting to breach the door while another was questioning Rarity. Twilight looked back at her dear friend, she wasn't ready to cope with this. She wasn't ready to accept what had happened. She was broken. She knew better than anyone that this was her fault, her arrogance got the better of her judgment. The thought of making a breakthrough allowed her to put her loved ones in danger. Although she never imagined Fluttershy would be capable of anything like this. Twilight took a few steps back from the door, she looked down the hallway, it was still dark as can be, she almost welcomed Fluttershy to take her life next. She walked into the darkness, no light was cast, and she closed her eyes and braced herself for Fluttershy's attack. She looked back at Constance, her eyes were still partially open, they expressed a look of fear. Twilight began to stumble, the emotional distress was beginning to weigh in, she collapsed and blacked out, the dark hallways faded into nothingness as she felt the world around her spinning and spiraling out of control.

Twilight heard a dull thud, then another, this one sharper. Then another, this one loud and clear. She opened her eyes and was immediately stricken by a sharp and searing pain in her head. She felt as if someone had been chipping away at her skull. She looked up to see Fluttershy standing over her, sawing away at her horn with the utility knife.

"Oh, you're finally awake. Darn, too bad I didn't get to finish first." Fluttershy took a few steps back, leaving the knife stuck half way through Twilight's horn.

"Owe, my head." Twilight stumbled to her hooves. She looked back at the door, the police seemed to be using a battery ram of some sort to ram the door open, she then looked down at Constance, her eyes still open, but she was no longer bleeding.

"Hey, come here Twilight." Fluttershy walked up and yanked the knife out of Twilight's horn with her teeth. Twilight screamed out in agony as she felt the knife slice a bit deeper. Fluttershy began to swing the blade towards Twilight's throat, Twilight reacted at the last second, stopping Fluttershy with a small wall of magic. She then wrapped it tightly around her body, squeezing her as tightly as possible. Fluttershy choked as she gasped for breath, dropping the knife on the floor. Twilight walked with her further down the hall, levitating her into the back wall. Fluttershy let out a small yelp of pain as she hit the wall. Twilight was unphased by her cry. She exerted more magic, tightening her crushing grip. With every exhale, Fluttershy's breaths grew shorter until she was trapped in a cough, trying to gasp for breath, but her lungs were unable to expand under the pressure of Twilight's grasp. Twilight felt that Fluttershy's life was coming to an end, suddenly her horn cracked, the sharp sting caused Twilight to lose her grip momentarily. Fluttershy fell to the ground, desperately gasping for air. She started to stumble down the hallway, attempting to escape into the shadows. Twilight quickly grabbed her back hoof with magic, slamming her back into the wall. She lifted her back up into the air, wrapping her purple aura tightly around her neck like a rope. Fluttershy grabbed onto it with her hooves, trying to free herself. Twilight's eyes began to glow white, the aura on her horn exploded once again, growing exponentially larger. The deep purple magic appeared to be growing around Fluttershy like flames, they wrapped around her wings, ripping them off and sending them into opposite directions down either side of the hallway. Fluttershy attempted to cry out in misery, but the tight rope of magic around her neck only allowed her to let out a gargling choke. Soon Fluttershy's hooves stopped gripping the rope, her legs stopped kicking the air. She just dangled in the air, silent.

As soon as Twilight let her aura fade, her cracked horn split in two. The majority of it fell to the floor, bouncing off the tiles like glass. Twilight looked down at it in horror. It began to glow slightly, more cracks appeared and it burst into a black and purple flame. The horn was soon nothing but a pile of glowing ash that drifted away down the hall. Twilight touched the remaining part of her horn with her hoof. Upon touching it it became ash as well. She looked at Fluttershy, she laid there with her eyes close, a pool of blood had formed underneath her, dripping from back where wings once were.

The back door finally flew open, two police rushed in, followed by Rarity. They ordered Rarity to leave immediately but she refused, instead she ran straight to Twilight, hugging her, relieved that she was okay. The burning pain on Twilight's head overwhelmed her, she tightly shut her eyes trying to handle the agony. It was all too much, she fainted under the pain and stress, Rarity held her in her arms, gently lowering her to the floor. Rarity was nearly as devastated as Twilight was when she realized her horn was gone.

"We need an ambulance immediately!" Rarity yelled at an officer who then called it in.

Rarity looked upon the wreckage in the building. Fluttershy was dead, Constance was dead, two other ponies were dead. This was the worst catastrophe Rarity had ever seen, and certainly the most bloody. She noticed Fluttershy's wings were gone, she saw one up against the wall at the end of the hallway, the other was nowhere to be seen.

"What happened in here Twilight...." Rarity looked down at her unconscious love, and shed a few tears for the loss of another friend.

A few days later Twilight woke up in a hospital bed. Rarity was by her side.

"Oh you're finally awake?" Rarity spoke ecstatically.

"Rarity, where am I?" Twilight smiled and reached out to touch her hoof.

"You're in the hospital sweetheart, you were badly injured a few days ago, I wasn't sure when you'd wake up but I wanted to make sure I was here when you did."

Rarity's mane was matted up and messy, her coat was dingy and ruffled.

"How long have I been out?" Twilight looked at the clock, it was about ten in the morning.

"It's been four days. And before you worry about everything, I've taken care of all your meetings and appointments, they've been rescheduled, and I contacted your class substitute to fill in for you indefinitely. Don't worry my dear, Rarity's here to take care of you while you get better."

"Wow Rarity, you really are a life saver. Can I have some water?"

"Certainly dear, here you go." Rarity levitated a cup to Twilight's mouth, Twilight attempted to grab the cup herself, but only mustered up a sharp pain in her forehead.

"Ouch, what happened to me?" Twilight sipped from the cup while Rarity held it up for her.

"Well, um, I'm not sure how to break it to you, I kind of thought you'd remember. It's your horn, I'm not sure how it happened, but it broke off." The sympathy in Rarity's eyes scratched deeply at Twilight's heart. Her deep blue eyes soon became watery and too painful to look at.

Twilight looked down, she reached up to her head with her hoof, nothing was there. She double checked by reaching up with both hooves. Nothing was there, she felt panic beginning to rise up as she began to breath rapidly. Rarity walked up to her and place a soft hoof on her shoulder, she sat on the bed in front of Twilight and reached around her, sharing a warm hug, it was the only thing Rarity could think of that might be comforting. She kissed Twilight's forehead where her horn used to be. She then felt Twilight begin to shake while she held her, she was crying. She felt broken and useless. Rarity laid down in bed with her, holding onto the sobbing pony, hoping to make her suffering as endurable as possible, even if by simply making sure Twilight didn't have to endure one minute of it alone.

Ch. 15 Fade to Black

Applejack finished up a letter to Rarity, explaining everything there was to know about how and why she sold the farm, it also included her new address in Appaloosa. She pointed out to Rarity that she would be going to pick Applebloom during her next extended weekend, and planned to explain everything to her at that point. She then went on to finish packing up all her belongings, filling boxes marked according to what should be inside. She walked along her walls and hallways, taking all her pictures down as she past each one. With each picture she stopped for a moment to relive the memories tied to it. Applejack looked around the house, it was depressingly empty, the furniture was loaded into a large moving carriage. Applejack walked up to Applebloom's room. She had already packed away all her remaining belongings, but she knew Applebloom would always be a part of this room, as long as it stood. There were a series of small hoofprints on the inside of the door, a reminder of Applebloom's short temper and how she loved slamming her door to show it. Various stains and damages littered the room, a permanent reminder of its previous resident.

"I'm really gonna miss this place." Applejack continued to walk through her empty home, her lip quivered as she held back her emotions. She didn't need to deal with the movers outside attempting to comfort her.

With every box organized into the carriage, Applejack walked out of the house, staring into the seemingly endless rows of trees spread across rolling hills. She shuddered and stretched her legs, preparing for the long trip to her new home in Appaloosa. The sun had just risen, and her day would be wasted traveling. After a long trip, upon arriving at her new home, she met Big Mac and a few other orchard ponies. Applejack was assigned her new position among the orchard workers. She unpacked and set up residence in her new house, and drearily began her new life as an apple farmer. Not a big change career-wise, but this new location lacked the homey feel Sweet Apple Acres did, this was a job, not a home. Applejack let go of her old life, she knew holding on to it would only mean holding onto regret. This was who she was now, a nameless number in a large group of workers.

Rainbow Dash shielded her eyes from the rising sun. She wasn't ready to get up, a few hours of sleep after her long night of traveling didn't cut it. She decided she needed to get some real sleep, but she wasn't going be able to sleep in this sunlight, or with the noise of a waking city beneath her. Rainbow flew up into the sky, surveying her surroundings, this city has come such a long way in three short years. From the dainty western settlement, to this booming city. Equestrian economy is a strange thing.

Rainbow decided to go see Scootaloo today, it'd be hard, but it needed to be done, and she planned to take any form of punishment Scootaloo could throw at her. She flew down to the window with the hanging rainbow flag. No sign of Scootaloo within, but the window was still open. It was pretty chilly out last night so Rainbow wondered why it wasn't shut. She let her nosiness get the better of her and went inside uninvited. She snooped through her drawers, looking through various papers and report cards. Rainbow really wasn't looking for anything specific, she was just looking. Rainbow sat down on Scootaloo's bed, pulling her sheets and blankets off the floor and covering up. She hadn't felt so comfortable in a pretty long time, this small bed although firm, was much nicer than Applejack's spare bed.

"I'm sure Scoot won't mind if I take a quick nap here" With a long yawn, Rainbow was asleep.

Rainbow stirred slightly at the sound of a door opening. She opened her eyes, and met the stunned gaze of her once adoring fan.

"Rainbow?! Okay, I've completely lost my mind now. I'm just going to go over here and pretend I'm still sane." Scootaloo walked over to the corner of the room, assuming the fetal position. She wrapped her hooves around her knees and began rocking back and forth.

Rainbow wiped her eyes, "Scoot? Sorry to drop in on you like this. I was really tired though."

"Oh Celestia... You're talking to me now. This is probably bad. I need help." Scootaloo walked up to Rainbow Dash, swallowing her enthusiasm. She closely inspected the blue pegasus, bumping her with her hooves.

"You feel real." She leaned in closer, sniffing Rainbow.

"Alright that's enough kid." Rainbow pushed her away. "You know I'm actually here, I really needed to see you, I missed you and was worried about you. But you do seem to be doing fine, so I guess I'll be going now."

Rainbow jumped up and headed towards the window, but was soon stopped by a strong tug on her tail. Scootaloo tried to yell at her with a mouth full of tail.

"Where the hay do you think you're going?! You think I'm doing just fine?! Have you even looked at me?"

Rainbow turned around to meet her painful eyes. She saw that Scootaloo seemed to have a black eye, there was a small cut under her cheek with two small stitches.

"Have you been fighting?"

"No!.. Maybe.. But only when I have to. That's not the point. I'm alone here and I hate it. I want to go to Cloudsdale and live with you like we planned. Why did you leave? I missed you so much."

"You know why, I had to. I wish I didn't though, I thought about you almost everyday and I missed you a lot. I came here because I was worried. If you really need anything just let me know, even though I'm not really in a place where I can help you very easily." Rainbow recoiled as she thought about the fact that she was homeless.

"I'm not sure what you're dealing with here, but I'm sure you're a lot better off than I am right now, and I don't want to drag you into my messed up life quite yet. Can you hold out here while I get things in order at least?"

Scootaloo hated the thought of Rainbow Dash leaving so shortly after arriving. "I don't want to, I'll go with you and stay out of your way, I just need to get out of here, this place is awful. I'd rather be homeless."

Scootaloo looked down and paced around Rainbow Dash, she stopped and looked up at her with her wide eyes, silently begging her to say yes.

"No. Just wait a few more days and I'll come back for you okay? It's getting really cold out and I can't have you sleeping outside." Rainbow Dash let her maternal instincts guide her decision.

"Celestia help me Rainbow Dash, if you're not back in in exactly four days or less, I'll do something horrible to you!"

"I promise I'll be back, don't worry." Rainbow patted her on the head and headed off. She flew out the window and headed towards Cloudsdale.

Rainbow Dash expected Scootaloo to be much worse off than she was, she had a place to live, she was in school, and she seemed well off enough. Rainbow decided it'd be best for Scootaloo if she stayed out of her life for now, she had no intention of returning to see her anytime soon. Rainbow knew she was in no position to take care of anyone, hardly even fit to care for herself. Rainbow came to a sudden stop, allowing herself to roughly crash into a cloud. She tumbled across the top of it until she found her balance and stood back up on her hooves. She painfully smacked herself in the face with her hoof.

"Damn it!" Rainbow had forgotten to look at Scootaloo's cutie mark, but it was too late to go back now. She decided to let it go, and continued on her way. She soon found herself in the tattered ruins of her old home, which she hadn't seen in years. She decided to get her job at the weather factory back and start over here, a new life for a new mare. Her dreams and ambitions were just a distant memory in the back of her mind. All she cared about now was moving along in life, trying to find her way, and making peace with her past. Nothing else mattered anymore. She'd become a member of a corporation, a working class pony hoping only to climb the corporate ladder to make a decent living for herself. Who could ever realistically ask for anything more?

Twilight found it hard to exert any form of emotion other than sorrow. Her horn being gone was by far the worst punishment she would ever endure. On top of that she received a devastating letter.

Dear Twilight Sparkle,

Your recent actions and lack of judgement not only resulted in you getting hurt beyond imagination, but it resulted in the deaths of several ponies around you. These deaths include the death of Constance Donahooves, an irreplaceable and more than valuable asset to the research team here at the DOS. I, by the order of the Celestial-Lunar Court, am stripping you of your position as head of research. You no longer have a place in the Institute of Arcane Studies nor the University of Magic and Research. I know times must be hard for you personally, but I'm sure you'll cope, and I hope you understand that these actions needed to be taken immediately. Criminal charges have not and will not be filed by us, however any outside legal issues have not been shared with us and we have no concern or opinion residing over them.

~ Board of Chairholders, Research Division.

"Well this is just great." Twilight apathetically rolled over in her bed, prompting Rarity to attempt to console her.

"It's not all bad Twilight....... Well okay it's all bad, but I want you to know you can stay with me for as long as you need to. I'm here for you and I always will be."

"... Thanks Rarity." Twilight's words seemed emotionless and the ungratefulness in her voice made Rarity feel awkward.

"Maybe you should get some more sleep dear, you're tired and have had a lot to take in." Rarity kissed her on the cheek and returned to her chair next to the bed.

Twilight just laid there silent, she stared at the floor over the edge of her bed. She listened to her heart beating, hoping with every fiber in her body that it would simply stop and this nightmare would end. She attempted to use her magic again, she just wanted to see if she could make her sheet move. Even the slightest effort she put into using magic caused her to get a searing headache, as if ten thousand bats were shrieking simultaneously in her mind. Twilight knew she had a hard life ahead of her, she used magic literally every single day, all day in her day to day activities. She knew she'd habitually attempt to use her magic at times, causing this pain. She wasn't ready to deal with this new life, or her mistakes. She wanted to find peace, but knew it wouldn't come easily.

"Rarity, would you do me a favor?"

"Anything love, I'll do anything you ask."

"Leave please, and don't come back, just forget about me as hard as that may be." Twilight swallowed her emotions, keeping her tears locked inside. This sentence was just as hard for her to say as it was for Rarity to hear.

"Twilight, please. Just settle down and get some sleep, this is the stress talking. You need me, I can't leave you alone right now." Rarity hid her tears as well, she didn't want to let it show, but Twilight had broken her heart with that statement.

Twilight wanted to take it back, she wanted to beg Rarity never to leave her side again, but she didn't.

"Rarity, I'm thinking clearly right now, I'm not tired, I'm not medicated, I know what I'm saying, and I'm saying you need to leave now. I'm grateful for everything you've done for me, but I don't want to see you or be anywhere near you. So leave before I have to ask someone to escort you out."

Rarity was crushed, she felt like every once of energy had been drained from her body, and her heart was split in two.

"Twilight, why? Please tell me why at least. I feel I deserve that much."

"Well, you don't. Just trust me, we're both better off if you go." Twilight pushed a small button on the side of her bed, calling a nurse over.

As the nurse began to approach, Rarity stood up and grabbed her bag.

"That's fine Twilight, I'll leave, but if you change your mind about this you know where to find me." Rarity trotted past the nurse with tears pouring down her face.

"Twilight right? What can I help you with?"

"I just need some water thanks."

The nurse quickly returned with a pitcher of cold water. She poured a cup and levitated it to Twilight's mouth.

"Ya know you're really lucky to have a friend like that."

Twilight quickly gulped down the water. "What do you mean?"

"Well, she sat here for four days, hardly leaving your side at all. On top of that I over heard her begging the doctor to give you her horn, I mean, I'm a unicorn so I know she must really care about you to even consider that. I personally wouldn't give it up for anything. No offense."

Twilight felt terrible for treating Rarity the way she did, but she knew it needed to be done. "None taken, I honestly wouldn't have either."

The nurse trotted off, letting Twilight know she'd be near if she needed anything at all. Twilight felt more depressed than ever. She stood up and walked around her room, struggling to keep her balance. There was a plate of covered food sitting on the night stand next to her bed. Rarity must have forgot to mention it, it was probably hers, compliments of the hospital. Twilight was hungry, but didn't even consider eating. She ventured over to her window, looking up at the sun. The white moon was right next to it, passing just underneath. The Royal Eclipse Festival will take place in a few days. Twilight thought about how romantic it would have been to enjoy it with Rarity, and broke down. She went back to bed and buried her face in her pillows. She let the reality of the situation hit her like a ton of bricks, her life was over, there was nothing in this world left for her. She saw a glimmer of hope only a week ago when she reconnected with Rarity, but that meant nothing now. She'd only be a burden on her. Without magic Twilight had no talent, and no place in society. Her career as a teacher was no more, her knowledge was nothing more than a useless jumble of facts and research. All she had to offer to anyone now was information that was already known. Twilight felt herself sink into her bed, she tried to think of a way to fix everything but came to the same conclusion, she didn't want to live anymore. She had nothing left to live for, now that Rarity was gone. She severed her last tie.

Rarity stumbled through her apartment door, her home was empty again. Applebloom was back in school with Sweetie Belle. Rarity looked around for Opal, she was lying underneath the table grooming herself.

"Come here Opal I need someone to love me." Opal gave her a glance of disapproval and walked in the other direction.

"Well fine, you just abandon me too then, I see how you are!" Rarity went into her room and collapsed onto her bed, soaking her pillow in tears.

She also felt she had found a silver lining along the edges of her bleak and lonely life when Twilight showed up at her door a few nights ago. Now with that taken away, she found herself once again feeling alone, and more heartbroken than ever before. Rarity decided that this was probably inevitable and she would end up alone anyway, so she figured it'd be best to just continue her life the way she had been. Making dresses for whoever might want them, always looking out and hoping for a big break. Apathy washed over Rarity as she imagined the rest of her life while laying in bed. She soon cried herself to sleep, feeling that she'd lost all hope for a happy life. No other pony would ever be able to fill the void left in her life by Twilight, Celestia knows she tried the first time they split up, but nothing kept her mind off Twilight longer than a single night. All the drama wasn't worth it, she'd remain alone and focus only on her career.

"Love is just a filly's dream, nothing more." She thought this to be true for the first time in her life. She had a dreamless sleep that night, and woke up the next day feeling like she hadn't slept at all.

Three more days had passed, Twilight was finally able to leave the hospital, although she felt she had nowhere to go. With no job her rent wouldn't be paid, and she'd be evicted. She didn't even consider seeing Rarity again, instead she just made her way to her apartment's rooftops. She was surprised to find she was the only one there considering this was the day of the Royal Lunar Eclipse. She looked down on the streets, there were tons of ponies participating in parades and other celebratory gestures. Twilight found the empty rooftops peaceful, being alone was something she found strangely nostalgic.

Rainbow Dash left work early today, she wanted to see the First Annual Royal Eclipse Festival, even though she'd probably never want to see another one. She stood behind the crowds of pegasi, looking up at the moon as it slowly approached the sun. Her excitement was nearly nonexistent, she regretted taking time off work for this. But it was done so she might as well enjoy it.

Applejack was in the middle of her orchard, then she heard her coworkers begin to announce that the eclipse would be starting soon. She calmly joined them as the gazed up into the sky, admiring the brilliant moon as it approached the sun. The power of the princesses humbled Applejack, she couldn't even begin to imagine the power it took to manipulate such magnificent forces. She just looked on in awe as the event began to take place.

Rarity could hardly bring herself to even look out the window, the festival was a constant reminder of her utter failure. She decided out of curiosity to go attend the event, she wanted to see the dresses the princesses were wearing, she at least hoped they rivaled her designs. She walked out of her apartment and up the street to the parades. Upon arriving, she saw a huge regal carriage coming down from the palace. It landed on top of a golden stone monument, depicting the events of an eclipse at the base. The two princesses stepped out, each of them confidently wearing their new royal dresses. They were however in Rarity's opinion, quite mediocre and generic to say the least.

Celestia addressed the herd of ponies. "Welcome citizens of Equestria, to the First Royal Eclipse Festival! We are proud to announce that the New Lunar Law and Celestial Court are now united. We are a kingdom of peace and acceptance, and this festival will mark the end of an internal conflict that has effected all of Equestria for many centuries. We welcome you all to celebrate and enjoy this day of days."

Luna spoke next. "We will not only be united within the court, but within tradition. Things will be changing for all of us as we head into a new era. An era of love and toleration. A large series of laws will be passed today, same gender marriages will now be recognized by the Royal Court, discrimination of earth ponies in the educational system will no longer be tolerated, and foremost, the Cutie Mark Branding Administration will be hereby disband!"

Celestia put a hoof on Luna's shoulder, and gave her a nod of approval. Although Celestia didn't fully agree with all of Luna's ideals, she knew this union needed to be solid.

The two alicorns ignited their horns forcing the moon and sun to overlap. For a small moment of time the moon completely blocked out the sun. All the ponies below looked on in sheer amazement. The sun behind the moon seemed to radiate an intense fiery magic all around the moon, lighting the sky up in a way no pony had ever seen. The entire event was as beautiful and magical as it was hyped up to be.

Twilight looked at the magical event, appreciating the amazing talent it must have taking to pull this together. She stood up on the edge of the building, looking down at the dark ground beneath. She looked at Celestia and Luna, confidently standing side by side for the first time in over a thousand years. Things in the world were going to be fine, with the two princesses working together once again, no power would be great enough to stop them. The elements of harmony were no longer needed. Twilight thought about these facts, then she thought about her own life. It was the exact opposite. She sat down, letting her legs dangle over the edge of the building. She looked down, she wasn't sure but guessed she was about seventy floors above the ground. She closed her eyes and began to breath quickly.

"I love you Rarity, so much. I'm sorry..." She spoke quietly into the air, knowing very well no one could hear her. Then she was gone.

Applejack went back to her mundane life, the work never seemed to end, and she was fine with that. She knew the limits of her abilities, and they called for nothing more.

Rainbow Dash was less than impressed with the whole event, she returned to her activities. She wondered if anything would ever inspire her again, but didn't feel the need to go looking for any inspiration. She had what she needed and, and she didn't want to fill her life with anymore useless ambitions.

Rarity moped the entire trip back to her apartment, her head hanging low. She wondered if she'd ever see Twilight again, but forced those thoughts out of her mind. She knew Twilight didn't want to see her and that should be enough to keep her away. She went to her art table and began to sketch up a new dress. She felt completely uninspired, and found herself sketching a picture of Twilight's face. She crumbled it up and plopped down into her bed, staring at the now setting sun. She closed her eyes and imagined waking up with Twilight in her arms. Knowing it would never happen again broke her spirit, she drifted off into another dreamless sleep. She awoke the next morning, knowing she'd never find inspiration without love in her life, and without Twilight, she'd never again find love.

Epilogue

The stars disappeared beneath the eastern horizon while the night sky slowly became day. It was the crack of dawn, however today the moon and sun rose at the same time. Celestia and Luna stood side by side, the sun rose in the northeast, the moon in the southeast. Today was the day of the second annual Royal Eclipse Festival. Once the celestial objects were set in motion, Celestia silently headed back into the castle. Luna quickly followed, searching for words of comfort.

"Princess, please cheer up, we can't keep doing this. Today is a day of celebration." Luna cringed after realizing what she had just said.

"I know what today's meant to be little sister, but you know as well as I do, today is a day of mourning for us." Celestia slowed her pace, allowing Luna to catch up to her.

"I agree, but I believe the citizens of Equestria have noticed your lack of enthusiasm at our performance. To them, today marks a great triumph for ponykind, the eclipse represents the unity within the palace. Your ponies need us to be strong for them, they need you to be strong. This is meant to be a most joyous occasion for all, and I do believe Twilight would want us to be happy, not to mourn." Luna nervously stamped the ground just outside the palace walls, slowly looking up to meet Celestia's eyes, desperately hoping she'd understand and not be angry.

"Don't talk down to me Luna, I know very well what the celebration represents." Celestia calmly scorned her younger sister.

"I'm sorry big sister, I didn't mean to..."

"No, I'm sorry Luna, I don't mean to snap. It's just that to me personally, this celebration represents something else as well. It represents all the work I put into this consolidation of courts, it represents the hundreds of pointless political meetings and the thousands of letters and bills I had to sign day in and day out. These are the things that distanced me from Twilight for the last three years of her life. If I could trade I would. I'd gladly have a broken palace, I'd even have let Equestria split into two nations if it meant I could have her back." Celestia looked away as a few tears dripped to the ground.

Luna wrapped a wing around her sister, and nuzzled the tears off her cheek. "Twilight was a dear friend to me as well big sister. No one knew what she was going through. Do you still have that letter she wrote you? I think it's time you've learned that lesson again."

Celestia nodded and the two Princesses headed inside. They went into Celestia's research archive, she found the magical studies section, then ran her hoof along the alphabetized file cabinets.

"C, D, E, aha, F. Friendship." Inside she pulled out Twilight's many letters and began reading each one from the first, to the last. Luna sat by her side, most of these letters she had never seen, and with each word she felt her heart growing weaker. Soon the two princesses were caught between laughing at the wonderful memories some of letters brought back, and crying for their fallen friend.

Celestia let out a deep sigh as she pulled out the last letter.

Dear Princess Celestia, today I learned one of the hardest lessons anypony will ever have to learn. I learned that in every pony's life, there's a chance you might lose a very close friend. But even though they've left us physically, the impact they've left on our lives will stay with us forever. And more importantly, the loss of one friend, will strengthen the bonds between you and your other friends. Making everyday you spend with them more precious and valuable then ever before, because you can never be sure which day you spend together will be your last.

"I know I don't tell you this often enough Luna, but, I love you." A sniffling Luna looked up at her older sister. "I love you too big sister."

"That does it, today IS a day for celebration, I need to write a few letters." Celestia stood up and went into her private quarters.

She came out a few minutes later with three letters levitating in front of her. She closed her eyes and each one burst into flames, their ashes drifting out the window.

"Now sister, come with me and help prepare the ballroom. We're expecting very important guests today." Luna trotted behind her, glad to see her sister's change of mood.

Rainbow Dash woke up to a violent knock on her door. She leaped out of bed, and rushed around in a circle.

"What's that?! Who's there?!" She stopped panicking when she heard another knock, snapping her back into reality.

"Oh... heh, the door." She wobbled over to the door, knocking a few things of her night stand with her widely spread wings. A name badge fell to the floor, Rainbow Dash, Floor Supervisor.

"Rainbow open up already!"

"I'm comin, don't get your feathers in a knot." Rainbow continued on her way to the door, noticing the calender and that today was the day of the next eclipse.

She opened the door, and to her surprise there stood Scootaloo. Rainbow met her eyes with a shocked stare. She considered slamming the door and hiding from Scoot's wrath, but she didn't.

With a long sigh, she stepped out of the way, letting the shivering filly in.

"Alright kid, I know I lied but what can I say. I'm sorry." Rainbow Dash offered a halfhearted apology. "But wait, how did you get here? Did you pay for a carriage?"

"I flew." With those words a deep sense of pride washed over Rainbow.

"Look, I dropped out of school, ran away from home, lived on the streets for a few months, and taught myself how to fly long distances. It took me like ten tries to make it all the way up here. You can be mad at me, you can punish me, hit me, yell at me. I really don't care, just please, PLEASE don't tell me to leave."

Scootaloo was dirty and clearly cold, not being used to the cooler temperatures above the clouds.

"You didn't come back for me, and I missed you. I don't belong back there. I belong with you, you're like my big sister, but I know I need you a lot more than you need me..." Scootaloo stamped the cloud beneath her, looking away from Rainbow. She let out a short but deep breath, expecting the worst.

"I don't even know where begin with you. Alright come inside, you need to get cleaned up, then we'll talk."

Rainbow let Scootaloo walk past her into her small home. "My shower's through the first door on the left, the sink doesn't work so don't mess with it."

Rainbow sat down on her bed, pressing her hooves to her tired eyes.

"What am I going to do with this kid..." Rainbow soon decided. Although she wouldn't admit it out loud, she had missed Scootaloo as well.

Scootaloo came out of the shower, dripping wet. "No towels?" She said drearily.

"Nope, just air dry like I do, flip your mane back and forth and roll around like a crazy pony."

She began shaking her head back and forth, flinging water all over the walls and floor, then rolled around on the soft clouds. The clouds absorbed her water instantly.

"There ya go. Now I've decided, you're in a lot of trouble. You're going to live here with me, and I'm enrolling you in Cloudsdale City School AND Flight School. You're going to ace both or you're out of here."

"Yes! I'll do great I promise!" Scootaloo ran up to Rainbow, hugging her tightly in appreciation.

Just then a magical fire ignited and a letter appeared on Rainbow's nightstand. After spotting the official royal seal on the scroll, Rainbow rushed over to read it.

Dear Rainbow Dash,

I am inviting you to attend a small private party that I'll be hosting after the Royal Eclipse Festival this afternoon. As I'm sure you know, today marks one year since our dear friend Twilight Sparkle left our world. The small event I'm hosting is for her closest friends to get together and celebrate the impact she's left on our lives. I have a very important message to share with you all, a message left by Twilight that only recently filled my heart and left me a better pony. I sincerely hope you can attend.

~ Your Princess, Celestia

Rainbow rolled up the royal scroll and sat it back down on her table.

"Well Scoot, I guess we'll be making a trip to the palace." Rainbow Dash smiled and rubbed her hoof on Scootaloo's mane.

Applejack was raking leaves out of the orchard, she had come to like her new life. Apples had always been her life, and now she worked in a bigger orchard than she could have ever dreamed of. She had made a somewhat decent living ever since she started, and with her hard work and devotion, she's received a series of promotions and raises. Life was simple, yet satisfying for this particular earth pony. Big Macintosh called Applejack inside.

"AJ, you got some sort of fancy letter in here! I reckon it's from the princess."

"Alright I'm comin!" Applejack quickly sat her rake up against a tree and headed in. Sure enough, she had received a scroll with the palace's royal seal. Her letter was very similar to Rainbow Dash's, and she decided she couldn't disappoint the princess by missing this event. Work would have to wait for today. She packed up and caught the first available carriage to Canterlot.

Rarity hadn't slept much last night. Knowing today was the day that marked Twilight's death, and only a week ago was Pinkie's, Rarity's emotions were in turmoil. She had never been a pony very capable of controlling them. However during most of the last year, her inspiration had come back to her. She knew she had lost Twilight and would never get her back, but the memories she had, and all the pictures she cherished, filled her heart with the love that she would never allow to leave. Her business had picked back up, she filled orders for clothing stores, along with a few private orders. On top of her work keeping her distracted, she had acquired three new cats. All of which she devoted every second of her spare time to.

She wiped the tears from her eyes and let go of her the pillow she had been squeezing all night. She was startled by the sudden and unexpected appearance of a royal scroll on her desk. She picked it up and read it, not going wasn't an option as far as Rarity was concerned, but there was one issue.

"Hmm, what should I wear?"

The Royal Eclipse Festival went off without a hitch, Luna and Celestia each took turns addressing the public, assuring them that things were going to continue to get better, Equestria was going to continue to prosper, and Love and Tolerance will continue to reign supreme. After the successful event, the two princesses headed back to the palace to greet the guests. Celestia walked into the ballroom. The three invited guests were there, each laughing and talking about their new lives, they were telling one another about their new jobs, and how much they've missed each other. They took turns hugging and sharing memories and stories about their days back in Ponyville. Celestia and Luna walked into view.

"Thank you all for coming, I'm so glad to see you all could make the long trip here. I am however surprised to see you here Scootaloo, although you like any other pony are a welcomed guest in my palace."

Scootaloo blushed for a moment, not used to being the center of attention. She put her hoof on the back of her mane, and smiled. "Thanks, glad to be here." She stated simply.

"I don't plan to keep your attention long, I just wanted to share something important with the three of you in person. I've been mourning this past year. Mourning for the loss of a very important friend of mine, when I should have kept in mind a very valuable lesson she had taught me. This past year, I haven't spent nearly enough time appreciating my dear sister Luna, my friends in the palace, or any of you. Before I go on, I want to share something with you all, a lesson a very smart unicorn once shared with me."

Celestia pulled out Twilight's last letter, and read it out loud to the ponies below. While listening to the letter, each of them felt like they had grown closer than ever before. They joined in a group hug and promised to spend more time together. Celestia and Luna flew down and joined as well. They continued their chatter, laughing about all the good times they once shared. Twilight's wisdom, immortalized in that letter, reignited the magic of friendship within their hearts, pushing them towards a less bleak future.

Later that evening all the ponies returned home, and Luna was off to her quarters. Celestia walked outside, enjoying the beautiful night her sister had brought forth. Each star reflected in her eyes, she felt like a new alicorn, Twilight's words had re-inspired her to be the best princess she could be. Celestia was stunned that it had taken her a year to learn such a simple yet important lesson.

"Thank you Twilight."