In a large circular chamber, the sound of a gavel banging on a table echoed throughout the room. Sitting at a large circular stone table were seven large dragons in brown hoods. Directly in the middle, Master Ash placed his gavel down and looked around at the other Dragon Council members.

“I believe we’ve all reached an agreement,” he said. “Tomorrow we all make the preparations needed.”

The Council muttered in agreement.

“Are there any questions at all?” asked Master Ash.

None of the Council members said a word.

“Then it’s settled.” He picked up his gavel again. “This meeting is ad–”

The large metal doors suddenly swung open. “Hold it!” a voice shouted.

Master Ash and the Dragon Council looked over and saw three figures standing in the doorway. The one in the middle stepped forward. Master Ash’s eyes widened as he recognized the figure walking towards him.

“Garble,” he said in a surprised voice.

“The one and only,” he replied. “Here to save the Dragon Lands from a new threat.”

The Council looked at one another.

“Save the Dragon Lands?”

“From a new threat?”

“You heard that right,” said Garble.

“Enough!” ordered Master Ash. His eyes narrowed as he looked down at Garble. “What is this threat you’re talking about, Garble? We normally get intel about threats to our kingdom from the Dragon Defense Agency. How did you get information about some threat that our officers missed?”

“Because this is something they never thought about,” answered Garble. “It involves Dragon Lord Ember and the ponies.”

An eerie hush fell upon the chamber. Several Council members looked at each other with concern on them. Ash raised an eyebrow and his lip curled down.

“What do you mean by that?” he demanded. “What has happened to Dragon Lord Ember?”

Garble held out his hands and smirked. “Whoa slow down there,” he said. “Take it easy there, old man.”

“Garble!” Ash exploded in anger. “How many times have I told you to not address me like that! Especially in front of the Dragon Council!”

“Whoa! Alright, I’m sorry,” he said. “Let me make it up to you.”

“This better be good, boy,” said Ash, spitting out the last word in a mocking voice.

“Very funny,” he said irritably.

Garble took off his backpack and held up a finger. He leaned over and opened the bag, digging through it for a minute.

“Ah! Here we go!” he announced. He stood up and held out an envelope.

“What is this?” wondered Master Ash.

Matched opened the envelope flap and pulled out six photos. “Feast your eyes on these,” he said as he handed them to Master Ash and the rest of the Dragon Council.

The Council took the the photos and looked at each one. Almost immediately, muttering began to echo throughout the chamber.

“What the?”

“How horrible!”

“How could this have happen?”

“That pony has a lot of nerve doing this!”

“I hope Lord Ember is alright.”

“What kind of barbaric pony does this!?”

Garble lowered his head and smirked deviously as he heard the angry and shocked comments from each Council member.

“What do you think, Master Ash?” asked one Council member.

No response came.

“Master Ash?”

Garble and every other dragon looked at the head Dragon Council member. Ash was staring at the picture he was given, but his demeanor had changed. His eyes darkened from yellow to a burning orange. Black smoke started billowing from his nostrils. The flames that lit up around the Council Chambers shot up and their burning intensified. The Council members scooted away from Ash as an ominous feeling settled in the room.

Master Ash rose his head up at Garble. “Who is this pony?” he questioned in a threatening tone.

Garble, intimidated by the change in demeanor, stepped back a little. “Uh...that’s R–Rarity I t–think,” he said in a nervous voice. “S–she was one of t–those ponies in our kingdom not too long ago.”

Master Ash slammed his hand against the table, making all the dragons jump in surprise.

“You will tell me more about this Rarity pony at once, Garble,” he demanded. “I want details about this whole incident.”

He looked up at the doorway. “Guards! Inform Commander Cynder that I will be wanting a detachment of my army ready within an hour!”

“Yes, Master!” they both acknowledged.

“Now leave us!” ordered Master Ash. “It’s time to get to the bottom of this; starting with you, Garble.”

Garble smirked and bowed. “With pleasure,” he said.

The doors slammed shut, leaving Garble and the Council to themselves.

Ember stood on a metal platform and shook nervously. The wind was howling and there was thunder rumbling in the air.

“W–what’s going on?” she asked.

Suddenly, a light shined on her that blinded her for a moment. She lowered her arm as the light dimmed and gasped as several tall, hooded figures circled around her and towered over her. Ember couldn’t help but gulp nervously and her legs were shaking.

“Who are you all?” she wondered.

The one in the middle responded by lowering the hood. Ember gasped as she saw who was behind the hood and fell to her knees. Glaring at her with a burning hatred in his eyes was none other than Master Ash.

“Master? What’s going on?”

“Read the charges!” he announced, ignoring Ember’s question.

The dragon next to him pulled out a scroll and unfurled it. He boomed, “Lord Ember, you are charged with assault and causing an international incident. How do you plead?”

“N–not guilty!” she quickly replied. She looked at Ash. “Master, what’s going on here? Why am I here?”

“Did you not hear what you have been charged with?” he asked. “You have caused an international incident in attacking a pony! We can prove it!”

“How?”

“I can,” came a somber voice.

Ember’s insides froze up. “No...not you.”

From the shadows behind Ash stepped out an upset looking Spike.

“Spike, you have no idea what even happened!” pleaded Ember. “I–I was saving you! Rarity was manipulating you into doing stuff for her! Can’t you see that?”

“The only thing I see is a so called Dragon Lord hurting my friends!” argued Spike. He looked away as some tears rolled down his eyes. “You hurt me in more ways than you can imagine Ember. I thought you cared about friendship, and I thought you cared about me.”

Ember nodded and said, “I do! Please let me explain!”

“Enough out of you!” boomed Master Ash. “You have apparently committed one other crime as Dragon Lord; breaking the heart of a dragon. You have failed in your mission!”

“No!” Ember cried.

“And you have failed the Dragon Council! You’re a disgrace to the Bloodstone Scepter you hold in your claws!”

“No!”

“In fact, I think you’re not worthy of holding such an honorable scepter and title!” barked Ash.

Ember suddenly felt a tight pull that threw her off balance. She gasped as the Bloodstone Scepter she was holding was pulling away from her. She grunted as she tried to hold onto it desperately, but the pull became too much. She lost her grip and the scepter flew directly into Master Ash’s claws.

“I was wrong in choosing you as Dragon Lord, Ember,” said Spike. “I was really wrong.”

“I agree,” said another voice.

Ember felt her insides freeze again and stuttered madly as she recognized the voice. Out of the shadows a navy blue dragon with large yellowish horns stepped out and frowned disappointingly at her.

Ember gulped again. “F–f–father?” she asked.

“You have disgraced us all, Ember,” said Torch. “You have disgraced yourself, the Council, the family, and all of dragons everywhere!”

“I didn’t mean to!” she pleaded. “Let me explain!”

“No more words, Ember!”

The dragoness gasped as flames suddenly erupted from the black pit beneath her.

“Now burn for your failures in the one place you belong; in Tartarus!” boomed Master Ash.

“Ember waved her hands around. “Please wait! Don’t do this to me!”

The metal platform suddenly gave out, and Ember fell down to the fiery pits below.

“Nooo! Spike, help me!” cried out Ember as she fell deeper and deeper.

Ember rose up out of bed with a cold sweat covering her.

She panted and looked around the area. She was back in her guest room, with no signs of fire or any of the Dragon Council. A few flashes of light came from the window nearby, followed by some thunder rumbling.

Ember wiped her forehead and let out a sigh. She slowly got out of bed, but couldn’t move beyond the edge of it. Everything from yesterday still played out in her head. The huge blowup with Rarity. The fight she had with the unicorn. The struggle they had together. Finally, a dragon she called her first best friend saying five certain words to her.

I hate both of you!

Ember shuddered as those words echoed again in her head. She mustered up the strength to get up and walk over to the window nearby. She looked out it and let out a sigh as the weather outside perfectly reflected how she was feeling right now. A downpour of rain was pounding against the windows and made it hard to see outside. A few bolts of lightning shot out of the sky, followed by some rumbling thunder.

The dragoness put her head against the window and thought deeply. “What am I going to do?” she wondered.

The door suddenly knocked, breaking Ember out of her thoughts.

“Ember?”

The dragoness recognized the voice instantly. “Come on in.”

The door opened, revealing a rather weary looking Matches, but with a small smile on his face.

Ember raised an eyebrow. “What happened to you? You look like you haven’t slept a wink.”

Matches let out a yawn and stretched. “Been up almost all night.”

“All night?”

“Yeah,” replied Matches. “I just couldn’t sleep at all. Not with what’s been happening.”

Ember felt a new wave of guilt wash over her. “Matches, you shouldn’t be the one feeling like this,” she said. “I was the one who screwed up yesterday.”

“I’m not saying you shouldn’t take responsibility, Ember,” said Matches. “I’ve been up thinking about where to go from here, and I think I finally got a solution.”

Ember’s ears perked up. “You did?” she asked.

Matches nodded. “Yes, but it’s going to be a bit tricky.”

“Can’t be any trickier than the position we’re in now,” said Ember. “So what is it?”

He looked behind and said, “Come on in.”

“Come in?” asked Ember.

The dragoness’ confusion was immediately replaced by surprise as Twilight, looking just as tired, walked in with a solemn expression on her.

“What are you doing here?” asked Ember.

“Twilight and I finally got around to talking,” said Matches.

Ember’s eyes went wide. “You talked to her?”

“More like she came to talk to me,” he said. “She’s been deeply worried about what happened between you and Rarity.”

“You’re telling me,” muttered Ember.

“Ember, there’s so much I got to ask you about what happened yesterday,” said Twilight. “Matches told me what you said to him on the train.”

Ember shot a glare at Matches.

“Don’t get mad at me,” he said. “She was just as curious as I was.”

“So what did you two talk about?” she asked.

“Twilight and I talked for a while, and came to an agreement,” said Matches. “She’s agreed to let you explain yourself for yesterday, but she’s got a few conditions.”

“I’ll do whatever it takes to put this mess behind me,” said Ember. “Name it.”

“One, you will speak before me and my friends about your actions,” said Twilight. “They want to know everything that led to this.”

Ember gulped, but nodded. “Alright.”

“Two, Rarity will be part of the meeting as well, but you are ordered to stay a good distance away from her. I’ll stand by you just in case you two try anything funny. Starlight has agreed to stand by Rarity to do the same duty.”

Ember scowled a little as she felt like she was being treated like a child, but again nodded. “What else?”

“The third and final condition is this; you and Rarity are to tell us about how Spike factors into this.”

The dragoness froze and her stomach did a flip. She held up her arms and stepped back. “Whoa! Let’s not get crazy now!” she objected.

Matches crossed his arms and glared. “Ember, I think it’s safe to say that this whole thing involves Spike. It doesn’t take a genius to figure this out; especially after what happened at the Academy and what you told me.”

“I agree,” said Twilight. “I think I’m starting to see the puzzle come together and the cause of this whole mess. From what I could get from Rarity about her talking about Spike and what Matches said, it’s obvious that something is going on between you, him, and Rarity. I think it’s time we got answers about this.”

Ember cursed herself and let out a sigh. “Alright, but just don’t try to press the issue too much,” she said. “I don’t know how Spike would react if he heard that.”

Twilight looked away and frowned. “He’s not coming.”

Ember’s eyes narrowed. “What!?”

“He’s not joining us,” repeated Matches. “Twilight says he’s been just too miserable to even leave his room. I think it’s for the best we let him stay out of this.”

Ember lowered her head and the guilt she felt earlier built up in her. Reluctantly, she nodded and looked back at Matches.

“Fine, I’ll do it.”

Twilight smiled softly. “Good. I think it’s for the best we get to the bottom of this. I’ll go around and get my friends. Ember, you go eat and meet outside the Friendship Council chamber.”

Ember nodded. “I’ll be there shortly.”

Matches narrowed his eyes. “Remember, Ember, no lying this time. No deceptions or anything at all. We just want the truth about this, and it’s time for both you and Rarity to come clean.”

Ember simply gave a nod as both Twilight and Matches walked back out and closed the door, leaving Ember to her thoughts. Another rumble of thunder caught her attention. She looked outside, where the rain only seemed to be coming down harder and the wind howling against the window. Her eyes narrowed slightly and she took a deep breath.

“No matter what I will fix this; one way or another,” she vowed.

Shortly after breakfast, Ember stood outside the entrance to the Friendship Council chamber.
She couldn’t help but feel very nervous. She could hear some muffled talking coming from behind the doors, but couldn’t make out a single word. She took a deep breath to calm herself, but did little to settle her racing heart and mind. She looked over to Matches next to her, but he was unmoving, didn’t glance at her, and not even so much as smiling a little at her.

She tried to avoid looking at the other side of the door, but she couldn’t help but do a quick glance. Starlight was standing nearby too, but she looked concerned. Ember then noticed something that surprised her a little; the look of Rarity.

Usually, the unicorn would glare or stare coldly at Ember, but she did none of those to her. Rarity looked down at the floor, unaware, or possibly not caring at all, of Ember and her surroundings. Her usual well kept mane was a disheveled mess, with strands of her mane sticking out. Her eyes were a bit red and there was some black mascara running down her cheeks.

“What happened to her?” wondered Ember.

“Starlight told me that Rarity’s been like this since yesterday,” explained Matches. “Apparently she’s taking this whole thing very hard. From what Starlight has told me, Rarity hasn’t spoken much since the trip back, and hasn’t been herself since then.”

Ember looked on at Rarity with a puzzled expression. I guess she hasn’t taken what Spike said to her very well. She does kind of deserve it though after all the stuff she’s done with Spike. Maybe this will finally make her see how much of a shallow–

Ember shook her head and grimaced. No. Stop thinking like that right now. That kind of thinking is what got you into this mess, and it’s not going to get you out of it.

The creaking sound of the Council chamber doors creaking open broke Ember out of her thoughts. She, along with Matches, Starlight, and Rarity turned to the door and saw Twilight stepping out with a bit of a stern look on her.

She looked over at Matches and at Starlight. “Bring them in,” she ordered. “We’re ready now.”

“Yes, Twilight,” said Starlight.

“Yes, your highness,” stated Matches.

Ember and Rarity were both escorted into the chamber and the doors slammed shut behind them. Twilight and all her friends, except Rarity, sat in their respectful thrones and looked at both ladies. There were no smiles on any of the ponies’ faces; not even Pinkie Pie. Twilight and Applejack stared with a disappointed look on them. Fluttershy and Pinkie looked on sadly and shook their heads. Rainbow Dash narrowed her eyes and looked disgruntled.

Twilight cleared her throat. “I believe you all know why we’re here today.”

Ember and Rarity responded by nodding.

“I don’t think we need to explain how bad this is, girls,” said Twilight. “The whole point of Ember’s visit was to solidify the alliance between Equestria and the Dragon Lands. Now, thanks to what you two did yesterday, it’s at risk of falling apart. Needless to say, you two have a lot to explain about your actions.”

Ember raised a hand. “Twilight, can I ask something first before we continue?”

“Go ahead,” she replied.

Ember tapped her fingers together nervously. “Are we on trial or something?”

“In a way, yes, but not in the normal way,” she explained. “What we want to know is what happened yesterday by hearing from both you and Rarity. Once that’s done with, we will try to figure out how things can be fixed.”

Ember nodded slowly. “I understand,” she said. “What do you want to know?”

“I’ll begin,” offered Rainbow. “Ember, Rarity told me that you attacked her first. Is that true?”

Ember slowly nodded and looked down at the floor in shame.

“And what exactly did you do that for!?” demanded Rainbow. “Rarity had just saved Spike’s life, and this is what you do to her!? Attack her!?”

The dragoness bit her lip nervously.

“Just what the hay made you do something like–”

“That will be enough, Rainbow,” ordered Twilight. “I think we’ve heard enough.”

The pegasus looked at Twilight with a mixture of anger and confusion on her face. “What do you mean we’ve heard enough!? Ember hasn’t answered some of my other questions. How exactly have you heard enough?”

“Ember’s answer to your first question has made me suspicious to something I’ve been thinking about.”

“I think I know what you’re getting at, Twilight,” said Applejack.

“What are you two talking about?” asked Rainbow.

“You’ll understand soon, Rainbow,” said Applejack.

Rainbow crossed her arms and sulked in her chair.

“Um, Rarity?” asked Fluttershy. “There’s something I’ve noticed about you since Ember announced she was coming to visit.”

“What is it?” Wondered Rarity.

“You haven’t been yourself,” she said. “You’ve been so distant since Ember announced she was coming to visit. Why is that?”

Rarity darted her eyes around nervously and took a deep breath. “That’s a bit hard to explain, Fluttershy,” she said nervously.

“How though?” wondered Fluttershy. “Weren’t you happy to hear she was coming? She wanted to strengthen the alliance; an alliance, I might remind, was made in part by Spike.”

“You don’t need to remind me, darling,” said the fashionista, hastily. “I know what Spike has done.”

“But this is something that I’ve been wanting to ask about,” said Applejack. “You’ve been pretty snappish when it comes to Spike and Ember, haven’t you?”

Rarity gulped and her cheeks turned a slight shade of red.

“At my farm, you and Ember were arguing over who would get paired up with Spike. Then at the beach, you seemed more focus on Spike with that little swimsuit stunt you pulled. It’s like as if you did that on purpose.”

“I–I have no idea what you mean,” argued Rarity. “I was trying something new is all! Spike had nothing to do with this!”

“Really now?” wondered Twilight. “You have been acting funny even before Ember showed up. You even told me some things about Spike and Ember that you seemed concerned about.”

Rarity froze as a thought clicked in her head. No. She’s not going to bring that up, is she?

Twilight narrowed her eyebrows. “Judging from your reaction, I think I now understand what exactly is going on.”

“I can too,” said Applejack.

“See what?” asked Rainbow.

Twilight took a deep breath. “Rainbow, it’s all very easy to put together now. Rarity–”

“–Has secretly had her own feelings for Spike and is now jealous of Ember because she’s become his new crush. She kept her feelings bottled up until yesterday when she fought Ember for Spike’s heart, but ended up breaking his instead.”

Everypony in the room turned to Pinkie Pie smiling proudly. They all looked at each other with shock and awe.

“Um...right, Pinkie,” said Twilight, incredulously. “You got it right pretty much.”

“I’m amazed you figured it out with both me and Twi,” said Applejack.

Pinkie raised an eyebrow. “With you two?” she asked. “Silly, Applejack, I had this figured out a long time ago.”

“WHAT!?” the group exploded.

“You’re joking, right!?” demanded Rainbow.

“Say what now!?” asked Matches.

“Pinkie, that makes no sense!” argued Twilight. “If you knew about this, why didn’t you say something earlier then!?”

“Hey, it’s not my fault you all didn’t figure it out sooner,” said Pinkie. “Besides, it was so obvious, Twilight.”

Twilight narrowed her eyes. “Excuse me?” she asked in an irritated tone.

“You knew Rarity was feeling pretty down about Ember coming over, and you didn’t see how she was feeling about it. When I was decorating the castle, I accidentally got some confetti in Rarity’s mane, and she didn’t complain to me once about it. Usually, Rarity makes a fuss about how long it will take to make her mane nice again and spend an hour cleaning the confetti out. Besides, being grumpy and so cold should have been signs that Rarity was jealous about Ember; especially when she heard about how much Spike liked her.”

Twilight’s left eye twitched. “Anything else you want to add, Pinkie?”

Pinkie rubbed her chin and shrugged nonchalantly. “Nope!” she answered.

Twilight groaned and rubbed her head frustratingly.

Rarity huffed and crossed her arms. “I don’t spend an hour doing that,” she whispered.

Matches shook his head. “I don’t think I’ll ever understand that mare.”

“Me neither,” Ember agreed.

A thought clicked inside Matches’ head. “Wait a minute then,” he said. “If this was caused in part by Rarity’s feelings towards Spike, then that means…”

Ember gulped. He’s not going to suggest that, is he?

“That would mean then that Ember’s own feelings towards Spike led to this,” he reasoned. “Remember what she made a few days ago?”

Rainbow raised an eyebrow. “That’s right. The cloud formation she made.”

“Ember even told me after that about her mixed feelings about Spike,” said Matches. “Which means…”

“Both of these things have caused a rift between Rarity and Ember,” finished Twilight. “Their feelings towards Spike must have reached a boiling point and fought over him.”

Starlight whistled loudly. “And I thought my relationship with Sunburst and Trixie was rocky,” she said.

Twilight looked over at Ember. “I’m right, aren’t I, Ember?”

The dragoness looked down and said nothing.

“Come on, Ember,” urged Matches. “It’s time to finally come clean. You know exactly how it lead to this, and the best thing to do is to admit it.”

Ember looked up with a fierce look in her eyes. “Fine!” she bellowed. “You want to know the truth!? I may have some feelings for Spike, but that doesn’t exactly mean I see him like that!”

“Ember, calm down,” ordered Matches. “You’re acting hysterical.”

“I am just trying to give my side of the story on things and clear some things up!” argued Ember. “You and everypony here think I somehow have a major crush on Spike, but I see him as a good friend and try to stay focused on my duties as Dragon Lord! I don’t have time to pursue romantic interests or something trivial!”

Rainbow leaned over to Twilight and whispered, “I think we hit a nerve.”

“Slow down,” urged Twilight. “I’m sorry if we brought up something you don’t like to talk about, but we just wanted to confirm the truth.”

“Well you did,” said Ember. “Twilight, I don’t like what I did yesterday and how I made Spike upset, but,” she pointed at Rarity, “if it wasn’t for her, this wouldn’t have happened.”

Rarity narrowed her eyes. “Me!? What exactly did I do?”

“Don’t act so innocent!” barked Ember. “You’ve been harassing me from the start about Spike and keeping me away from him! You even accused me of some stupid love letter I didn’t write!”

Rarity raised an eyebrow. “Oh, you mean that crude love letter? Don’t try and hide the fact that it was in your book!”

“I never wrote that though!” argued Ember. “How about some of your actions? While I was doing that interview, you got the ‘clever’ idea of walking off with Spike and trying to have him confess to you! I know that’s what you were doing! Need I remind you of how I saw you and Spike on the beach yesterday?”

“I already told you and my friends that I was saving Spike from drowning in the ocean,” argued Rarity. “You can even ask Spike himself to confirm that.”

“You’re probably just saying that to make yourself look like a hero!” shot Ember.

“You are acting out of control!” berated Rarity.

“Bold words coming from somepony who used Spike for labor!”

“I treat him as a friend; not a slave!”

Ember and Rarity attempted to walk towards each other, but Matches held Ember back and Starlight used her magic to hold Rarity.

“He deserves better than you!” argued Ember. “I at least don’t use Spike!”

“He knows me more and has been a wonderful friend to me!” yelled Rarity. “You think you can just walk in and take him from me like that? You got another thing coming, lizard bitch!”

“Jealous hag!”

“Scaly bimbo!”

“Manipulative bitch!”

“Stupid dragon!”

“Stupid pony!”

“ENOUGH!” bellowed Twilight’s voice.

The room shook violently for a second and the group all looked at the furious princess glaring daggers at Ember and Rarity. Her horn glowed and both Rarity and Ember were lifted into the air.

“This is the kind of behavior that got you two where we are now!” she boomed. “Look at you two! Take a good long look around you and see the mess you two caused!”

Ember and Rarity looked down and were met with disapproval glares from Twilight, her friends, and Matches. The two looked at each other with worried expressions.

“You two have forgotten what the purpose of this visit was!” scolded Twilight. “It was supposed to solidify the friendship between ponies and dragons; not destroy it! Strengthen the alliance; not crumble it!”

“But...but Rarity was using Spike to–”

“Ember, that is enough!” ordered Matches. “Listen to yourself! You go on about Spike and care about him, but have you even thought about how both you and Rarity’s actions led to this?”

Ember looked away to hide her shame.

“You two have turned this whole diplomatic trip into a complete disaster thanks to your fighting!” scolded Twilight. “Let me ask you two this since this whole thing has been about Spike. Have you two ever considered Spike’s own feelings?”

Both Rarity and Ember opened their mouths to speak, but couldn’t say anything. They nervously darted their eyes around and looked away from the others glaring at them. Rarity felt a shiver run down her spine. Ember gulped loudly and tapped her fingers together rapidly.

“I think the silence alone is enough of an answer,” said Applejack.

“I know Spike has had a major influence on you, Ember,” said Matches. “He introduced friendship to you, and he’s your first friend. But is this really what he would want? To see you and Rarity fight like this?”

Ember looked down and felt a new wave of guilt rush over her.

“Rarity, I expected a lot better from you especially,” said Twilight. “You know how much of a close friend Spike is to Ember. He taught her about friendship and to carry on what he taught her. Need I also remind you that Ember saved Spike in the volcano when he fell down?”

Rarity bit her lip and couldn’t bear to look at the glare Twilight was giving her.

“Both of you let your emotions get the best of you in the end,” said Twilight. “Ember, you could have easily told me or Matches about what Rarity was doing. Rarity, your jealousy clouded your judgement and made things even worse.”

Rarity looked over at Ember and glared. “I made it clear to Ember to not do anything funny with Spike,” she argued. “It’s not my fault she resorted to love notes to try to win Spikey’s heart!”

Ember growled. “That again!?” she yelled. “I told you that note wasn’t made by me!”

“Don’t try and lie!” barked Rarity. “This whole thing could have been avoided if you just listened to me!”

“Well I think–”

“STOP!”

The group looked over at Starlight, who had a frustrated look on her. She walked up to Ember and Rarity and glared at both of them.

“So you two have been doing nothing but fight over Spike huh?”

Ember and Rarity nodded.

“Do you two really want to know something important about Spike?” wondered Starlight. “He actually did care a lot for both of you.”

Rarity and Ember looked shocked and confused.

“He cared about both of us?” wondered Ember.

“He liked both of us?” asked Rarity.

Starlight nodded. “The day after the Wonderbolts’ Academy visit, I got him to talk to me about what Ember did. He told me himself he liked both of you, and wasn’t sure what to do.”

Ember’s jaw dropped and Rarity’s eyes watered up and didn’t bother to hide it.

“I don’t believe it,” said Ember in shock. “He was serious about that?”

Starlight nodded again. “He was serious about it. After what you two did though, I think you broke his heart.”

Ember and Rarity frowned as the realization settled in.

“Don’t you two see?” asked Twilight. “Your love for Spike has turned both of you jealous and hateful. If you truly cared about Spike, you both wouldn’t have let this go as far as it did. If you loved him, you wouldn’t fight over him like this and hurt him. He never wanted you two to bitterly fight over him. He wanted to bring dragons and ponies closer together as friends, and what you two did went against everything he hoped for.”

Rarity and Ember looked around at their friends. All of them shook their heads in disgust and frowned at them. The two of the looked at each other and stared at each other remorsefully. Slowly, they were lowered to the ground and the aura around both of them disappeared.

“I think the two of you now understand what you’ve done,” said Twilight. “This has gone on long enough and it’s time to put it behind us. I think for starters, you two should apologize to each other for your own actions that lead to this.”

“What about Spike?” wondered Ember. “Can we talk to him?”

Twilight shook her head. “Not now. I think he needs a little more time, but when he’s ready, you two can talk to him and explain what happened.” Her horn glowed and both girls were pushed closer to each other. “Now go on and apologize.”

The room fell silent as everypony looked on; save for the rumbling of thunder from outside. Rarity and Ember stared at each other awkwardly. Rarity looked away and Ember dragged her foot around the ground. They both felt the looks from their friends intensify and both felt more and more uncomfortable as minutes passed.

Finally, Ember said, “She’s right, Rarity. This has gotten out of control. I know we’ve had our disagreements, but maybe it’s time we stop this. I mean just think about how Spike is taking all this right now. You heard what he said to both of us, and if we continue to fight, it’s not going to get any better. I don’t know how, but we got to somehow make it up to Spike.”

She held out a hand and took a deep breath. “What do you say? Truce?”

Rarity looked at Ember’s claw and then at the hopeful look on her face. She then looked over to her friends, who all looked at her with anxious expressions on them. Rarity closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She slowly raised her shaky hand up to the dragoness and could feel her heart racing.

Twilight smiled a little. “I think we’re finally ready to move on,” she whispered.

The room suddenly shook as something rumbled outside. The group all looked around in shock and wonder.

“What was that?” wondered Rainbow.

The ceiling shook and the crystals from around Golden Oaks tree roots rattled and clanged together violently.

Matches looked up and as lightning flashed across the sky, a silhouette appeared above the glass ceiling. He let out a gasp as he saw the large figure and stumbled back a little.

“What the?” he asked, incredulously.

“You saw that too?” inquired Twilight.

He looked over at the princess and saw she was just as shocked as him. He nodded and said, “I don’t believe what I just saw out there.”

“Who’s out there?” asked Applejack.

“If I’m correct, I think things are about to get a lot worse now.” Matches waved a claw. “Come on! We got to go out and see for ourselves!”

The others nodded and quickly followed Matches through the doors and down the hallway. As they ran, Ember felt a chill run down her and her stomach twist up a little.

I got a really bad feeling about this, she thought to herself.

The group ran outside in the pouring rain and looked up in the sky. Bolts of lightning flashed across they sky, revealing a lot of silhouettes flying around. Fluttershy fainted, but Rainbow quickly caught her. Twilight and the others stared at the sky in awe and fear. Ember, took a step back and gulped.

“What in Tartarus is going on here!?” She looked over at Matches, who looked equally worried. “What do you see?”

Matches shook his head. “It’s hard to tell in this rain,” he said. Lightning flashed across the sky, and he let out horrified gasp. “No! It...it can’t be! What’s he doing here!?”

“Who is here!?” demanded Ember.

“It’s...it’s…”

“Look out!” shouted Rainbow.

The group gasped as several large creatures landed on the wet ground. All of them were clad in black armor with gold trimming on them and helmets obscuring their faces. Many of them held spears, while others wielded swords. They all lined up and left a large opening that made it look like a hallway. Two more dragons landed in the clearing at the end. Both were carrying a flag that was waving and flapping in the wind.

Another flash of lightening briefly revealed the flags and Matches let out a gasp. “No! Why is he here!?”

“What’s going on!?” asked Twilight. She looked over at Ember, who was petrified and had a horrified look on her. “Ember, what’s wrong?”

The dragoness gulped and shook a little. “T–the...the flag,” she said in a shaky voice. “It’s his symbol.”

Twilight looked at the flag flapping wildly in the wind. Another flash of lightning allowed her to see it briefly. The flag was as black as the armor the dragons were wearing. In the center was a half shaped circle that was angled to look like a narrow eye. The eye itself was yellow and had a black line through it as if it was glaring at those looking at it.

“I don’t understand,” said Twilight.

“It’s the symbol of Master Ash’s army,” answered Matches.

Twilight’s eyes went wide. “Oh, no,” she whispered.

“There she is!” one of the armored dragons pointed. “Get her!”

Before Twilight and the others could respond, three black armored dragons ran up and grabbed Ember by the arms and dragged her away.

The dragon lord struggled and tried to break free. “Let me go!” she demanded. “What are you doing!?”

“Ember!” Twilight shouted as she ran towards her.

She was suddenly stopped when the third soldier held a spear up near her throat and growled at her.

“Back away, pony!” he barked. “She’s coming with us for her own safety!”

Twilight backed up and said, “Safety? What do you mean by that?”

“Don’t pretend that we aren’t aware of what happened! You’re lucky we don’t have orders to destroy this town for what you’ve done!”

“What are you talking about!?” asked Twilight.

“Allow me to explain,” a cold voice called out.

Ember’s insides froze as she heard the voice. “Not him,” she whispered.

From above, a large black dragon in golden armor and wielding a large sword landed with a tremendous thud that shook the ground. Twilight and the others looked at the dragon with awe. Fluttershy darted behind Rainbow, who tried to look brave but her shaky legs betrayed her. The dragon looked down at the group and glared at them.

One of the armored dragons ran up and saluted the golden figure. “Master Ash, we have managed to secure Lord Ember!”

“Very good,” he said. “Keep her away from the ponies and make sure they don’t get near her.”

“Yes, Master,” the soldier replied with a salute.

Ash’s eyes fell upon the nervous Twilight standing in front of him. “Princess Twilight, I assume?” he inquired.

“Y–yes,” she replied. “Are you Master Ash?”

The dragon nodded. “Indeed. You’re probably wondering why I am here and have brought an army big enough to burn this village to ashes.”

“You wouldn’t dare,” snarled Rainbow.

“Stop it, Rainbow,” ordered Twilight. She looked at Ash. “That’s what I was going to ask.”

“Well maybe one of your friends can answer me this question before I tell you why,” he said.

Ash looked around the other ponies and his eyes narrowed. “Where is the one called Rarity?”

Rarity stepped out from behind Applejack and Starlight and held a shaky hand up. “I am, but what does this–”

“SEIZE HER!” barked Master Ash.

In an instant, the guards quickly ran over towards Rarity. They all held their spears out and pointed them at the frightened unicorn.

“On your knees, pony!” one of the dragons ordered.

“W–what?” she asked in a terrified voice.

“I said on your knees, pony!” the soldier moved in closer with his spear. “Kneel over and put your hands behind your back!”

Rarity’s knees shook violently from the sight of all the dragons pointing their weapons at her. She kneeled over slowly and put her hands behind her back. One of the guards walked up and kicked Rarity in the back and forced her to the ground.

“AHH!” she screamed in pain. “Get off of me, you–AHH!”

The dragon pressed his foot into Rarity’s back. “Shut it!” he barked. “You have a lot to answer for after what you’ve done, you primitive pony!”

“Stop it now!”

The guards looked over to see Twilight and the others running towards them.

“Let go of Rarity right now!” demanded Twilight.

“You’re in no position to bargain, pony!” the guard responded. “Princess or not, this no good unicorn is coming with us!”

“WHAT!?” the group exclaimed.

Rainbow flew over to Master Ash and snarled. “What the hay do you think you’re doing taking our friend from us!?”

Master Ash looked over at the guard and glared. “Get off of her right now. She may be our prisoner, but that’s no excuse to hurt her like that.”

“Hey! What’s your problem with–whoa!” Rainbow was suddenly pulled away by a magical aura covering her.

“Rainbow, don’t provoke him!” berated Twilight. She looked over at Ash. “Why are you taking Rarity away? What has she done to anger you?”

“Do you still feign ignorance of your friend’s actions?” inquired Ash. “You know full well what she did, and how she must pay for it!”

Ember’s eyes widened as a cold feeling settled in her. Oh, no. He couldn’t have known about that could he?

“W–what do you m–mean?” asked Twilight, nervously.

Master Ash looked over at the guards and said, “Bring her to me at once.”

Two guards escorted Rarity out, who was whimpering in pain and had tears running down her face. She looked up at the tall dragon glaring at her and was shaking so much, the guards’ armor was rattling.

“Rarity!” he boomed. “You are under arrest for assaulting Dragon Lord Ember!”

“WHAT!?” screamed Rarity. “No! This can’t be!” Her eyes fell upon Ember and she glared. “What did you tell him!? Is this your idea of revenge!?”

Ember struggled and finally managed to break the grip the guards had on her. She ran over to Master Ash and said, “Master, stop now! Rarity didn’t do anything wrong at all!”

Ash put a claw on Ember’s shoulder. “You don’t need to worry any longer about facing retribution from this pony, Lord Ember. Rarity will be dealt with and you’ll never have to worry about her attacking you again.”

Ember looked horrified, and turned towards Matches. “What did you even tell the Council in the report!?”

Matches shook his head. “I didn’t tell them anything about this! You should know that I wouldn’t say anything about this!”

Ash looked over at the green dragon and said, “That reminds me, Matches. Guards, seize him too!”

“What did you just say, Master?” asked Matches.

The guards surrounded him just as fast as they did Rarity and brought them to his knees. Matches struggled and grunted, but was soon restrained and handcuffed behind his back.

He looked at the elderly dragon with a mixture of confusion and fear. “Master, why?”

“Where do I even begin with what you did wrong, soldier. Or should I say, ex-soldier?” he asked.

“E–ex?” said Matches.

Ash leaned into Matches’ face. “The Dragon Lord is assaulted, and you weren’t there to save her? What exactly were you doing?”

Matches gulped loudly. “I–I w–was relaxing at a b–beach nearby.” He smiled nervously at him.

Ash looked like he was going to explode. “A BEACH!? You mean to tell me that while Lord Ember was attacked, you were relaxing at a beach!?”

“M–master, wait!” pleaded Matches. “Let me explain!”

“No more!” Ash boomed and held out a claw. “Guards, take this so called soldier out of my sight and into the prison carriage! We’ll deal with him later!”

“With pleasure, sir,” the guard said. He kicked Matches in the back. “Let’s go, you disgrace of a guard.”

Matches had both of his arms being pulled by two guards, and he struggled to make them stop. “Wait! Don’t do this! Let me explain!”

He soon came upon a large metal chariot being pulled by several dragons with a few iron barred windows. The doors opened and the guards threw Matches in violently.

“No!” he yelled. “Ember! Twilight! Help m–”

The doors slammed shut, silencing the dragon’s pleas.

Twilight looked at Ash with a nasty look. “Leave him alone! He didn’t do anything wrong!”

“He did worse than that!” he replied. “He failed to do his duties in guarding and protecting the Dragon Lord! He must be punished for his actions!”

“Master, no!” cried out Ember. “Matches shouldn’t be punished for something like this! I went on my own without him!”

“Be that as it may, he still should have been more alert in his duties.” Ash looked at the prison carriage and shook his head. “What a shame, corporal. You had so much potential and you wasted it.”

“Wait a minute, Master Ash!” called out Twilight. “If Matches never said anything in the report to the Dragon Council, then how did you know about what happened between Ember and Rarity?”

“A concerned dragon who had his suspicions and was correct,” he replied.

“Who is this dragon?” asked Ember.

“You can say I’m a close friend,” a sinister voice said.

Ember’s eyes widened and felt her blood boiling quickly. “No...it can’t be. It can’t be him.”

Behind Master Ash, another dragon stepped out in a brown cloak. The dragon removed the hood covering his head to reveal a smug looking Garble staring at Ember.

“Garble!?” Ember exclaimed in shock. She looked over at Ash. “Master, this is your source!? You can’t be serious!”

“Whoa there, Ember,” said Garble. “No ‘hello’ or ‘I’m happy to see you’, Garble? Isn’t that what friends do?”

Ember’s eyes narrowed. “You know full well we aren’t even friends!”

Garble gasped. “How dare you, Ember?” he asked in a mocking voice. “I thought we were friends!”

“Master Ash, you can’t be serious!” yelled Ember. “Garble has been against friendship from the very start! You can’t just accept anything he says!”

“Normally, I would take what my grandson tells me with a grain of salt, but he has proof,” said Ash.

“Grandson?” whispered Rainbow. “He’s related to that big dragon?”

“Quiet!” ordered Applejack.

Ember gulped a little. “He does?”

“You wound me, Ember,” said Garble. “Thinking I wouldn’t have proof of what happened between you and Rarity.”

The Dragon Lord’s eyes narrowed. “What is it then?”

Garble reached into his cloak and pulled out an envelope. “Why don’t you all feast your eyes on this?”

He opened the envelope and pulled out several small papers. He waved a hand over to signal Ember to come over. The dragoness ran over and leaned in to look. She gasped and stumbled back as fear gripped her and her legs started shaking.

Garble smirked. “Oh, I’m sorry about that, Ember. I forgot how painful that must have been. After all, reliving something like that would frighten any dragon.”

No! No! No! No! No! She thought to herself.

She looked again at the photos, hoping it was some bad dream, but wasn’t. There were five pictures of her and Rarity at the beach fighting each other. All of them showing them in different positions and hitting each other.

“How...how did you even get those?” she asked. “Where did you–”

“Get them?” finished Garble. He held up a camera hanging around his neck. “You could say that I took up some freelance photography with my camera.”

“Camera?” asked Ember. “You never were a photographer though! And where did you even get this so called camera!?”

Garble shrugged. “What can I say? I took up a hobby, and it looks like I did so in time to see Rarity’s true colors.”

Ember snorted and smoke billowed from her nostrils. She looked at Ash with a glare. “Master, this is all a mistake! There’s too many coincidences for something like this! Besides, you know Garble hates ponies and has been against this alliance from the start!”

“His hatred towards ponies may be true, Ember,” said Ash. “However, he has discovered the truth.”

“No!” cried out Ember.

Ash put his claw on Ember’s shoulder and had a solemn look on him. “I know you wanted to make peace between dragons and ponies, but I’m afraid what Garble has shown us is a sign that ponies are not ready to embrace this.”

“That’s not true!” objected Twilight. “We’ve been showing Ember and Matches around and they’ve had a good time!”

“I showed them the Wonderbolts’ Academy!” stated Rainbow.

“I showed them around my farm!” said Applejack. “They’ve had a great time here in Ponyville! You can’t just say that what happened between Ember and Rarity means ponies don’t want to be friends with dragons!”

“Oh, cut it out!” yelled Garble. “How do we know there aren’t more ponies like Rarity who would hurt Ember or one of our other leaders?”

“That’s not the point!” argued Twilight. “We’re saying that this incident shouldn’t just destroy this alliance!”

“Well it’s too late for that now,” said Garble with a devious smile. “Rarity did that the moment she landed the first punch on Ember.”

“That’s not true!” shouted Ember. “You don’t understand what was–”

“Enough!” barked Master Ash.

The group fell silent and looked at him.

Ash looked over at Twilight. “Princess, I understand that not all ponies are like what your friend did, and while I am furious about what happened, I too don’t want this alliance to crumble.”

“WHAT!?” exploded Garble. “Come on, old man, we shouldn’t trust these ponies again after what happened!”

Some of the guards around muttered in agreement.

“He’s got a point.”

“What’s to say another pony won’t attack my wife?”

“That unicorn could have killed Lord Ember!”

“SILENCE!” boomed Ash. “Let me finish what I have to say!”

The army fell silent while Garble scowled and looked away.

“Princess Twilight, I know that Rarity is a friend of yours and you care about her, but this is a matter that must be dealt with in the Dragon Lands.”

“But–”

“There is no changing my mind now,” interrupted Ash.

“Isn’t there anything we can do to help Rarity?” asked Starlight. “We can’t just leave her behind.”

Ash closed his eyes and thought to himself.

“Ignore them, old man,” said Garble. “We know Rarity is guilty of this and we shouldn’t waste anymore time about this. Let’s just go ahead and take her back and let every dragon watch her be burnt to ashes for what she did!”

“Burnt!?” Rarity shouted in horror. “No! You can’t!”

“Master, you can’t let this happen!” objected Ember. “You don’t understand what happened!”

Ash opened his eyes and looked at the Dragon Lord. “Really then? Do you want to tell me what happened between you and Rarity?”

Ember opened her mouth to speak, but suddenly felt something cold wash over her. She wanted to say something, but found herself tongue tied.

“Well?” asked Ash.

“Um...that’s a little hard to explain,” said Ember, bashfully. “You see, the truth is that–”

“Say no more, Ember,” interrupted Master Ash. “I understand that what happened to you was a horrible ordeal, and you don’t want to recall it so recently. You don’t need to tell us anything.”

He turned to Rarity and glared. “She is the one who will be answering about what happened. Whether she wants to or not, she will tell us the truth.”

Ash looked at the two guards holding her down. He pulled out a large metal ring with a red ruby on it. “Take her away! Make sure you put this magic nullifier on that unicorn’s horn so she doesn’t try to escape!”

“No! You can’t do this! It isn’t fair!” cried out Rarity.

“Quiet, pony!” ordered Ash. “Guards, put her in the second prison transport!”

“Yes, Master!” the dragon replied.

The dragon guards dragged Rarity away, who was still struggling violently.

“No! Help! Twilight! Spike! Anypony! Help me!” she yelled desperately.

The prison wagon doors opened and one of the guards grabbed Rarity. She looked into the cold look the dragon was giving her and froze up.

“Stay still and be quiet,” he threatened. “Or else there will be no dessert tonight for you.”

The guard placed the nullifier ring on Rarity’s horn and secured it tightly. He looked at the other guard and nodded. The two of them picked up Rarity and tossed her into the wagon violently.

“AHH!” Rarity screamed in pain. Her head pounded slightly as she crawled away from the wall she was thrown against. She slowly leaned up and managed to get a look at the castle.

Her eyes watered up and let out a whisper, “Spikey.”

The doors slammed shut, leaving Rarity by herself.

Ash looked over at Ember. “It’s time to return home now, Lord Ember. Until things have been settled between Equestria and the Dragon Lands, I won’t allow you to return here and put yourself in danger.”

“Master, does this mean that the alliance is...well…” Ember looked down and couldn’t find the courage to speak.

“Over?” questioned Ash. “That is a debate for another time, Lord Ember. For now though, we need to return home at once. Rarity will answer to her crimes and we will determine her fate.” He grabbed Ember by the arm and pulled her closely. “You’ll be escorted back by one of our carriages. If another attack happens, I will make sure you are protected.”

“Don’t you think that maybe you’re overreacting just a–”

“Soldiers!” barked Ash, ignoring Ember’s pleas. “Prepare to move out and return home!”

“SIR!” they all shouted in unison.

Ash turned to walk back to a nearby carriage and pulled Ember along.

“Wait a minute!”

The black dragon turned around to see a worried Twilight staring at him.

“What is it, princess?” he asked. “Our business here is concluded now.”

“I want to make sure Rarity will be given a fair trial!” demanded Twilight. “Ember is right! There’s too many coincidences!” She pointed at Garble. “He tried to attack me and Rarity during the Gauntlet of Fire! You can’t trust him over something like this!”

Garble laughed loudly and shook his head. “Wow! Being a princess in Equestria must mean being dumber than the rest of these ponies! Have you forgotten these?” He held up the photos. “This is proof enough about how much Rarity really had it in for Ember.”

Twilight narrowed her eyes. “That doesn’t change the fact that you just happening to be at that place and have a camera is enough to fully trust you. You may say that you were concerned about Ember, but I don’t buy it for a moment. Especially after the last two times we met you.”

Garble scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Save me your words, pony. You don’t have a shred of evidence that I did anything wrong. I, on the other hand, have proof your friend wanted to hurt Ember, possibly even more if she was given enough time.”

“I’m sure I can find some proof,” said Twilight. “There’s more to what lead up to Rarity and Ember fighting, and I’m sure you’re behind this.”

Garble looked at Twilight for a moment and then laughed again. “You really think so huh? If that isn’t the biggest load of bull–”

“Enough, Garble!” barked Ash.

The drake smirked at Twilight and backed away from her.

Ash looked at Twilight and narrowed his eyes. “It is unusual to have a defense team in our lands. Usually, the Dragon Council hears arguments from both sides and then decide the fate of the accused. However, it seems you do care very deeply for your friend there. The Council will consider this motion and decide on what to do.”

“WHAT!?” exploded Garble. “This is a joke right!?” He held up the photos again. “I got the ultimate proof right here! What more do you want, old man!?”

“Quiet, boy!” snapped Ash. “How many times do I have to tell you stop calling me that!? Furthermore, there is nothing wrong with Princess Twilight’s request for Rarity to have a lawyer!”

“But I have the proof!” argued Garble.

“I know you do, but unlike you wanting to rush to judgement, I want to know the truth,” shot back Ash. “You have a lot to learn about patience, boy. Right now you are really testing my patience with your attitude.”

“How long should it take to know, Master Ash?” wondered Twilight.

“Possibly a day or two,” he answered. “We will let you know of our decision by dragon mail. If we do decide to accept your request, you better have the proof to back up your claims.”

Twilight nodded. “I understand, and I will have it.”

“Very well.” Ash turned to his carriage and walked towards it with Ember by his side. “Soldiers, prepare to take flight!”

Ember looked back at Twilight with a remorseful expression on her. “Twilight, I don’t know what to say,” she said, sorrowfully. “You have to find something, anything, to prove Garble was somehow behind everything!”

“Don’t worry, Ember,” assured the princess. “I’ll find something to prove this. I promise you.”

“I’m just sorry about all this, Twilight,” she said. “I never wanted any of it to go like this. Just do one thing for me.”

“What is it?”

Ember looked down in shame. “Tell Spike I’m sorry, and that I was the worst friend he ever had.”

Twilight gasped. “Ember, wait!”

The dragoness turned away and walked off with Master Ash into the elegant carriage awaiting him. She paused for a moment and slowly turned her head back, but she stopped and walked into the wagon and the door was closed.

Ash looked at his army. “On my command, take flight!” He looked over at Garble. “Come now, Garble, it’s time to go home.”

The red dragon looked at Twilight with a smug smile. “Good luck trying to prove something that I didn’t do. Once you realize you got nothing on me, you'd better be ready to eat your own words.”

Twilight glared at Garble and watched as he walked away from her and joined Master Ash.

The elder dragon looked up and shouted, “Take flight!”

Slowly, the army took off into the rain and flew off into the mist. The carriages took off and for a brief moment, Twilight saw Rarity looking out the window of her prison carriage, but quickly disappeared in the rain. Ash and Garble followed behind after the rest of the dragons took off and flew off into the distance. Twilight watched until she couldn’t make them out anymore in the blinding rain and took a deep breath.

“Twilight!”

She turned around to see Starlight and the others looking at her with worried looks on them.

“What do we do now?” she wondered. “We can’t just let Rarity rot in jail.”

“Where are you going to find a lawyer, Twilight?” asked Applejack.

“How are you even going to prove Ember’s claims?” inquired Rainbow.

Twilight sighed. “I’m not sure yet, but I got some ideas. Some of the stuff Garble said or did has me concerned. It’s almost too convenient he was around and with a camera. We got to find something to connect him to this and fast!”

“What do we tell Spike?” wondered Fluttershy. “Don’t you think he should know about this?”

“I’m not sure what to even say to him,” she said.

Starlight looked over and her eyes widened. “Um...I think you better think of something fast then.”

“Why?” wondered Twilight.

Starlight responded by pointing her finger. The others turned around and were shocked to see Spike standing at the castle entrance. He had a shocked look on him as he stared at the sky. He then looked over at Twilight. She gulped a little bit and felt her insides freeze up.

“Twilight, what just happened?” he asked.

Author's Notes:

This chapter wasn't too hard to make to be honest. It went a lot smoother than the last one and didn't take nearly as long. I've just been preoccupied with a second job I have taken up, so it slowed me down significantly. Enjoy!