Two days later…

Rainbow Dash lay back on the couch, staring up at the ceiling, which was painted a pleasant heliotrope color. The scent of lilies hung in the air, mixing with the fumes of dandelion tea, and she breathed deeply, allowing the scents to comfort her.

“I understand if you don’t want to talk right now,” a voice like summer rain on a window came from her left. “But refusing to confront your problems isn’t going to help anypony, least of all you.”

Turning, Rainbow looked at Rain Breeze, who was seated on a chair a few feet away from her, holding a notepad and pencil in her magic. She smiled gently at her.

Rainbow swallowed and looked back up at the ceiling. “How’s Zipline?” she asked.

“Zipline is fine,” Rain Breeze answered. “He’s having a disciplinary hearing right now, I think.”

Rainbow sat up suddenly at the words. “Is he in trouble?” she asked.

“He...made mistakes,” Rain Breeze explained, choosing to look at her notepad instead of at Rainbow. “And he has to be held accountable for him, he knows that. But he told me that he doesn’t care what they do to him, as long as you’re safe.” She looked back up at him. “But that’s not what we’re here about. We’re here to talk about you, Rainbow Dash.”

Rainbow sighed and settled back down onto the couch, continuing to stare up at the ceiling. The blurred images of her captivity raced through her mind like a kaleidoscope. But one image stood out clearly: her own hoof, clutching a gun, aimed directly at Zipline’s face.

“Rain Breeze,” she whispered. “Do you think I’m a bad pony?”

Rain looked up at Rainbow. “Why do you ask that?”

“Because I almost...I almost killed Zipline!” Rainbow burst out. Tears stinging at her eyes, she recounted the whole story, telling of the chemical tortures that Nevermore had put her through, how he had forced her to attack Zipline, how she had aimed the gun into his face and pulled the trigger. Rain listened silently, patiently, her face softening into an expression of motherly concern. When Rainbow finished her tale, she flopped back down onto the couch, tears freely running down her face. Rain sat for a moment, allowing her to cry for a few moments, to release the tension that she’d been holding inside her. Finally, she levitated over a hanky and began to gently wipe Rainbow’s eyes.

“Sweetie, you’re not a bad pony,” she said, taking Rainbow’s hoof in both of her own. “You’re a very good pony who had a horrible, horrible thing happen to you.” She smiled at her. “Zipline told me what happened already.”

“He did?” Rainbow whimpered.

“He told me that you couldn’t do it,” Rain continued, rubbing Rainbow’s hoof reassuringly. “You pointed the gun aside at the last second. Even after all that, you couldn’t bring yourself to kill somepony you loved. That speaks to the goodness of your heart; that is something that nopony, not even Nevermore, can take away from you.”

Rainbow sniffled and sat back up, calming herself down.

“Rainbow, listen. If you ever want to talk to me about anything, my door is always open,” Rain stated. “You’re family to us, after all; we look out for each other.”

Rainbow smiled and hugged Rain. “Thank you.”

“Of course, honey,” Rain smiled, hugging her back. She glanced up at the sunshine yellow clock on the wall. “Now, I’m sorry Rainbow, but we’ve run out of time. Why don’t you go play with Scootaloo? I’m sure that she’s been looking forward to seeing you again.”

“Great!” Rainbow said, quickly lighting back up. “Thanks for making time for me, Rain!” She trotted out the door.

“Anytime, dear,” Rain called after her. Settling back onto the couch, she set aside her notes, tucking them into a folder and putting them into the drawer of the table next to her. Taking out a fresh folder, she opened it up and rested it on her lap, examining the preliminary notes contained within as she prepared for her next patient.

The clock reached 10:30. There was a knocking at the door. Right on time, as expected. “Come in,” Rain called.

The door opened wide and Phillip Finder entered, doffing his trilby and placing it on the hatrack in the corner.

“Hello, Phillip,” Rain greeted him.

“G’day, Doctor Breeze,” Phillip answered dully as he walked over to the couch and laid down upon it.

“Phillip, please,” Rain corrected. “Call me Rain.”

He blinked, continuing to look up at the ceiling. “Right.” He paused. “Sorry, it’s just...I’ve never done this before.”

“I understand. First-time patient jitters,” Rain nodded with a small smile. “There’s no real secret to this. You just need to talk.”

“About what?” Phillip asked, looking uncertain.

“About whatever’s on your mind. About whatever’s troubling you,” Rain told him.

Still he hesitated. Rain sighed. “Phillip, I cannot help you if you do not trust me,” she chided him gently. “I am here to help you, not judge you. Nothing of what you say in this room leaves this room. On that you have my promise.”

Phillip blinked once more, then took a deep breath and began to speak.

“It’s funny,” he said. “I feel I owe Nevermore a favor for this. If it wasn’t for that night, I wouldn’t have realized how tired I am.”

“Tired?” Rain queried, taking a note in her notepad.

“Tired of being alone,” Phillip explained. “Tired of pushing against the rest of the world. Tired of being angry and scared all the time.” He paused, then spoke in a quieter tone. “Tired of being a monster.” He rolled over and looked over at Rain Breeze.

“Rain, tell me the truth,” he said softly. “Is it possible for a pony to change?”

Rain smiled at him and reached out, taking his hoof in her own. “They can if they truly want to. And if they need help doing it, then that’s nothing to be ashamed of.” She patted his hoof reassuringly and settled back in her chair. “Now, where do you want to start?”

Phillip lay back on the couch. Rain noticed that his posture had already relaxed slightly since he had entered.

“I guess it started with my dad…”

“And that, gentleponies, is the truth, and nothing but,” Zipline declared, standing at attention before his judges. The heat of the lamp above him made sweat trickle down his brow, and he hoped that none of them mistook that for nervousness.

Seated on the other side of the wide table, three Royal Guardsponies stared imperiously at him. “You realize that you acted recklessly and endangered several ponies through your foolish decisions,” glared a Master Sergeant unicorn with a dark brown coat and a black, helmet-like mane, adorned in the armor of a Solar House Guard.

“There is no excuse for my poor decisions in taking the potion, I know that,” Zipline stated, refusing to bow his head in shame. “And I know that I acted rashly when Rainbow Dash was abducted. But I would also like to state that I had to act quickly to save her life. I have seen and experienced firsthoof what Doctor Nevermore does to hostages; I cannot bear to think what would’ve happened to Rainbow if we had arrived too late.” He stared back coolly at the sergeant. “In the same circumstance, even if it hadn’t been my honorary daughter’s life in danger, I would have done much the same.”

The sergeant blinked, then looked at the other two ponies on the chair. On the other side was a pegasus lieutenant with a short, sky blue mane and aqua green coat, also from the Solar House Guard. He looked at Zipline over the top of his steepled hooves, considering him carefully.

“Commendable as your rescue was, Private, it could very easily have gone much worse,” Lieutenant Steady Stream stated. “You should’ve reported the abduction and waited for backup.” He glanced down at the folder in front of him. “This is another addition to your long disciplinary record, Private. It is becoming obvious that we cannot trust you to follow instructions. And we cannot have ponies we do not trust in the Solar House Guard...or indeed, in the Royal Guard at all.”

Zipline’s shoulders slumped, but he forced himself to stand bravely, looking up with a neutral expression. He had made his choices; now it was time to face the consequences.

“How can you be certain that we cannot trust him?” the third pony asked.

Every head turned to the speaker. This was a tall black unicorn with a long white mane tied back in a ponytail and sparkling blue eyes. A pair of polished silver bars adorned the collar of his golden armor.

“I, too, have read Private Zipline’s record,” Captain Polaris stated, looking directly at Zipline. “And while I agree that he...can be a challenge at times, he has never done anything that demonstrates that he cannot be counted on when he is needed.”

“But sir—” the sergeant protested.

“He knows when it is acceptable to relax and when it is time to be serious,” Polaris continued as if he had not heard. “And his record also indicates that when lives are at stake, he is always the first to run towards the danger and the last to leave his post, and he never panics or loses focus. I personally recall his actions during the invasion of the giant cocaktrices at the apex of the Secretariat Comet: he remained at Princess Celestia’s side the entire time and personally downed no less than four of the creatures.”

Lieutenant Stream begrudgingly nodded in assent.

“Personally, if one of my daughters, or one of the Princesses was in danger, I would want somepony like Zipline to be on the rescue team,” Polaris continued, a small smile briefly crossing his face. “I agree that many of his actions over the past few days are less than commendable, but I also find it impressive that he is willing to take responsibility for them by confessing of his free will.”

Zipline straightened up, hope filling his core once more.

“This is what I recommend,” Polaris stated, serious once more. “Zipline will have all furloughs and leave temporarily suspended and he will be reassigned to desk duty. He will also have his firearms license suspended until he can retake the training and safety course. This way, he will be in a position where he can be monitored and where it will be...unlikely that he can get himself into any serious trouble until he can prove to us that he can be trusted.”

The other two ponies looked at Polaris, then at each other. Zipline stood statue still, heart pit-pattering his chest.

Finally, both ponies nodded in assent. “Very well. This sounds fair,” the sergeant agreed.

“If we are in agreement, then, this hearing is adjourned,” Polaris stated. “Private?”

Feeling as though he was floating, held aloft by sheer relief, Zipline stepped forward, removing a small square of paper from a pocket in his armor and handing it to Lieutenant Stream. The lieutenant took the firearms license and tucked it into his folder.

“Now, report to Warrant Officer Bookend and have him give you something to do,” he ordered, a small smirk tugging at his lips. “I’m sure he can find you something productive.”

“Yes, sir,” Zipline saluted. Turning on his heels, he strode to the door and opened it.

“Zipline.”

Zipline turned around and caught Captain Polaris’ eyes. “And do something about that phobia of yours.”

“Yes, sir,” Zipline saluted. Polaris returned the salute, a small smile crossing his features once more.

Smiling in reply, Zipline exited into the hallway and started to trot down the hallway towards Bookend’s office. He glanced out one of the palace’s high windows at the shining, sun-kissed city outside and sighed happily.

Nevermore and Star Watcher might still be loose, but his wife and daughters were safe, Miraculous Cure was in jail awaiting trial, and he’d been allowed to stay in the Guard. At the moment, he had nothing to fear.

“We only got here today. You should be resting, doctor,” Star Watcher stated, allowing Doctor Nevermore to lean against him as they trotted down the dark hallway. "Besides, the master may be busy."

“This is necessary, Star Watcher,” Nevermore grunted in reply. As he spoke, he winced softly and reached up to massage his bandaged ribs. “I must speak with him.”

“Very well, doctor,” Star Watcher assented. They turned a corner and found themselves facing a set of double doors. Two ponies, swords at their hips, stood guard.

“He’s in a meeting now—” one of them started to say. Nevermore fixed him with his iciest glare. “—but I doubt he’d mind if you came in, doctor,” the guard gulped.

“Look after Lenore,” Nevermore instructed Star Watcher as he pushed the doors open and entered the room.

The cavernous chamber was cool and dim, the only light coming from a dimly-lit crystalline chandelier that hung from the ceiling. The far wall was adorned with a large fresco of The Last Judgement, an abstract depiction of the damned being sentenced to eternal punishment in Hell. A large golden pipe organ was set in the back of the room.

Zugzwang was sitting at the pipe organ, his back to the door. His hoof slowly stroked the keys in solemn thought. Three other ponies stood behind him, all of them arguing.

“No, I’m not insulting the Scorchers’ reputation, I’m simply stating that five thousand bits a pony is a pretty steep price,” a pale green unicorn with a light brown mane, tail and beard, blue eyes, and a cutie mark of a suitcase and two gold bits declared in a Mareish accent. He was tossing a gold bit to himself, scowling at the mare next to him.

“Big job means big pay. That’s the offer, and that’s what we expect,” snarled the mare. She was a dark orange earth pony with a long, scruffy, fiery red mane and tail and smokey gray eyes. The right side of her face and all four of her hooves were adorned in burn scars. She was dressed in a fraying turnout jacket, which she had spray-painted with a large facsimile of her cutie mark: a burning match. The decoration was enhanced by the numerous cuts and bullet holes in the jacket. Even with the large jacket covering her, Nevermore could see that she was built as solidly as a mountain.

“I still do not see why you have to get the Scorchers to perform this job,” sniffed the third visitor, a pure white unicorn mare with a long mane of silvery-blonde hair streaked with scarlet. She held a cigarette holder in a pale red magical aura. Her cutie mark was a golden envelope addressed in red ink, with an inkpot of scarlet ink and a scarlet quill. “The Scarlets are more than capable of performing such a task, and much more quietly—”

“No,” Zugzwang stated, silencing the three visitors. “Tinderspark and the Scorchers will be the ones to perform this assignment, and Lucky Bit will ensure that they are adequately paid for their services.”

“Thank you,” Tinderspark grunted, nodding. She turned on her heels and quickly exited the room, barely glancing up at Nevermore as she passed him.

“You realize that this is a lot of money,” Lucky Bit told Zugzwang, still tossing the coin to himself.

“You have to spend money to make money, mein freund,” Zugzwang replied without turning around. “I thought you would have learned that during your time in the Mareish Mob.”

Lucky chewed his lip in thought for a moment, then nodded. “Right. I’ll go get the money sorted out.” He turned around and spotted Nevermore standing there. He gasped in shock, dropping his coin, then recollected himself and exited as quickly as he could.

“Mein Geliebte, I want you to contact your best strike teams. I will have a task for them later,” Zugzwang declared, turning to Scarlet Letter and taking her hoof with a smile. "And afterwards, perhaps the two of us may have some private time to spend."

“Of course, my dove,” Scarlet Letter replied, kissing Zugzwang on the lips.

"How is Crimson?" Zugzwang asked.

"He's starting to walk now," Scarlet replied excitedly. "Soon, he will be walking and talking."

"Wunderbar," Zugzwang breathed, apparently delighted, although Nevermore could see the false emotion in his black eyes.

"We shall see you later," Scarlet winked, blowing a kiss at Zugzwang as she turned away. Placing her cigarette holder between her teeth, she turned and exited, being careful not to look directly at Nevermore. As soon as the door shut, Zugzwang turned to Nevermore, his face twisting into a mask of barely controlled fury.

"Du verdammter Idiot," he snarled. "Do you have any idea how much your failed experiment cost me?"

Nevermore stared coolly back at Zugzwang as his benefactor stomped towards him.

"At least tell me you learned something from this fiasco," Zugzwang huffed, trying to return himself to some level of calm. "Having to remove you from the board this early is not beneficial—"

“I understand now,” Doctor Nevermore breathed, stepping forward. “I know how to truly break Phillip Finder; his friends.”

Zugzwang paused, extracting a cigarette and lighter from the pockets of his suit. "Go on," he whispered, lighting the cigarette and placing it into his mouth.

“They form the foundation of his mind, of his spirit,” Nevermore explained, a grin crossing his face as he thought of the delicious torments he could create with this knowledge. “Merely kill them, and they will live on his soul. But tear them down, cast them so low that they cannot be built up again…”

“...and the foundation crumbles,” Zugzwang smiled. “Yes. Yes, I see.”

“I have many ideas,” Nevermore said, almost licking his lips in eagerness. “I will need time to prepare them, however.”

“You shall have what you need, doctor,” Zugzwang reassured him. He glanced up at the grandfather clock in the corner. “I have a representative from the Griffon Mafia coming soon; I expect it will be a most profitable meeting. I recommend you begin your work as quickly as possible.”

“Of course,” Nevermore said, turning and trotting quickly back to the door. As the doctor exited, Zugzwang reached beneath his suit and extracted a small pouch that he wore around his neck. Taking out the object contained within, he stared at it hungrily, slowly turning it over in his magic to examine every inch of it.

“Soon,” he whispered. “Soon.”

Author's Notes:

Rainbow's okay, Phillip's getting help, and Zipline got to keep his job. That's good!

Nevermore is still free and Zugzwang has something big planned. That's not good!

And with that, we finish this story. I hope you enjoyed Trifle Not With Monsters. Phillip Finder and friends will return in The Fillydelphia Solution, coming soon!

Minor revision 8/18