"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.