“So… You had enough time to think, Ty?” asked Comet as she reentered the room.

“I… suppose… I’ss jus’… A human havin' sexual intercourse with a pony? Even if t' help soothe her 'heat' problem... How wrong does that sound?” I asked back, still a bit on the fence about Twilight's possible condition.

“Well, to be fair… from the perspective of a pony, such an act with a species of sentient being that ISN'T a pony; one that doesn't even EXIST in this world, mind you, would yield the same form of conflict you're going through. I’m almost positive that, if the heat hasn’t gotten all the way to her head by now, your Twilight is dealing with a similar internal battle… You DID say she had trouble telling you herself, no?”

“Good point…" I concurred before going awkwardly silent for a few seconds. "Forgive me if this sounds intrusive, Comet, but… how did you an’ Gillian manage t’ go through with it?”

“Well, as I said before, he was already in his transformed state when we did it… I must say, it really didn't make much of a difference, given that, despite him looking the part of a stallion, he is still human. That and, between you and I, he didn’t have any objections to it at all.”

“Seriously?? None?” I asked in complete disbelief.

“None at all. He actually said doing it with me would make it more appealing for him…”

“…Woooooooooooow…”

“That sick fuck!”

“Don’t be so quick t’ judge. We may be on the same boat as him pretty soon… given this whole thing wraps up without somebody bein' seriously injured or killed…”

“Y’know… you’re actually right again…”

“Yep. Bein' right is a good feelin'... Of course, not as good as--!”

“Don't even...!”

“Yeah… but once you get past the fact that you’re different species and just go for it, I can personally say your love will flourish… given you in particular make it out of here without dying or sustaining more damage than you have already.”

“Indee—!”

*POOF* With a sudden flash of silver, two ponies had suddenly appeared in front of me. One of them was sky blue with a mane of various colors. The other was tan with hair of black. Despite the two of them being locked in a violent struggle, I recognized them as Rainbow Dash and Gillian.

“Rainbow Dash???” I called. The sound of my voice must’ve grabbed her attention because she and Gillian stopped dead in their tracks to look at me. As soon as she registered me in her thoughts, she effortlessly kicked the stallion away and dashed towards me.

“Ty! So glad to see you again, big guy!” Rainbow excitedly greeted. “I’m bustin’ you outta here!”

“Wait… You are??” I wasn't so much surprised at her announcement as I was that she didn't seem to be in the least bit angry at me.

“Of course! Twilight and the gang should be waiting for us near Town Hall. Let’s get going!” As she instructed me to follow her, I noticed a glow of purple from my peripheral vision. I quickly cut my eyes over to the left to see Comet preparing to attack Rainbow with a magic blast.

“Rainbow, duck!”

“Wha—! WHOA!” she narrowly avoided being hit by the sneak attack as it whizzed over her head.

“I don’t think so!” scolded the cerulean unicorn. “You’re not going anywhere with him!”

“YOU’RE just lucky I don’t have the time to pound you halfway to Hoofington for what you did to me yesterday! Now come on, Ty! Let’s go!”

“I can’t! My hands an' feet are tied up.”

“Well you’re in for a bumpy ride, because one way or another, you’re comin’ with me!” she grabbed my feet with both her forelegs and with a mighty pump of her wings, she began to drag me across the floor. We didn’t get far before Rainbow narrowly avoided another blast of magic; this one silver.

“Leave the human here, and you MAY leave this place with your wings intact!” Gillian threatened, seeming none too happy. I looked over at Rainbow to see that she didn’t seem startled in the slightest. In fact, she’d been smirking.

“I’M supposed to be scared of a pony who can’t aim well enough to hit a target as big as a pegasus?” she taunted, much to my surprise and the chagrin of Gillian.

“Watch your mouth, you cur! I could have you erased from existence!”

“Nyeah nyeah! *Phlblblblblt*” She blew him the old-fashioned raspberry. If I wasn't mistaken, it was like she was TRYING to piss him off... "Maybe you should get yourself a pair of glasses. And a gym membership to go with it because you're as weak as you are blind!"

“Rainbow Dash, what the he—!” I stopped when I noticed her winking at me. In that same instance, Gillian charged another blast to shoot at Rainbow with. Rather than duck or dodge out of the way of this one, she waited there, grinning with confidence. As soon as the blast left Gillian’s horn, Rainbow lifted my legs up.

*ZAP* “Ouch!!” I shouted as the blast made contact with my feet. However, I noticed that the rope binding my now-tingling feet together had been incinerated.

"Clever girl... I'm impressed."

“Good! Now get up!” Rainbow commanded as she flew over to grab me by the shirt and pull me to my feet before swiftly dashing over to open the door. “Get outta here! I’ll catch up with you!”

“What?? Rainbow, I—!”

“Go!! Twilight needs you!” Her words left me totally speechless as they registered in my mind.

"She... needs me? I thought she hated me..." I knew I didn't have time to ponder Dash's words, so I readied myself for the run of my life... which I hoped wasn't to be taken literally...

"Don't you DARE take one step toward that door!" Gillian commanded in stark frustration, charging up his horn again. "...or you'll regret it!"

"...You know what? I think now's a good time for some payback..." Rather than freeze in place or try to bolt out of the door, I calmly turned toward the stallion and approached him slowly.

"*sigh* Y'know, Gillian? At a time like this, there's only one thing I hafta say t' you..." I told him as I stopped mere inches away from him. Surprisingly, he powered down his horn, possibly thinking I was complying with him.

"And what, pray tell, is that?" He asked, seeming to be humoring me.

"I'ss more of a question, really..."

"And that question is...?"

"What is this?" I could tell he'd taken the bait, as he cocked an eyebrow at me.

"What is... what?" He asked again, not seeming to understand what I meant.

"This. Y'know, this," I reiterated, pointing at absolutely nothing.

"Well, what do you mean by, 'this'? You're not gesturing toward anything, or making a clear point as to what you're alluding to."

"All I'm askin' is what THIS is. Jeez, how hard is that t' answer?" At this point, both he AND Comet were shooting me looks of confusion. He turned to her, his expression unchanging.

"...Did you do something to him, Comet?" Gillian asked his cohort.

"No... At least, I don't think I did..." the cerulean mare uncertainly answered.

"Ty!" Rainbow called, seeming to be worried. "What are you--?"

"In a sec, Dash. I jus' wanna know somethin'..." I assured before turning my attention back to the stallion. "Well? What is this?" Gillian shook his head at me with an expression of annoyance and confusion before he responded.

"*sigh* I have NO clue what you're referring to, but I think I'll take a stab at it... This is a house?" he guessed, seeming unsure of his answer.

"A house...? No... no..." I muttered before making a dramatic pause, turning away and feigning contemplation for what I was about to do. After a second-long suspenseful silence, I turned back to Gillian, furrowing my brow and baring my clenched teeth. "THIS IS PAYBACK TIME, BITCH!!!" I fiercely shouted before, in a swift, fluent motion, I cocked my right foot back as far as I could and let all of my pent-up aggression go in a single vengeance-fueled kick.

*THUMP* "OOF!" *CRASH* I punted that son of a bitch as hard as I possibly could, sending him flying into the kitchen like a hapless football and crashing into what sounded like the table. Ignoring the wave of pain coursing through my foot and shin, I took a second to look at Comet, who looked absolutely appalled at what just happened as she gawked into the kitchen, her eyes and mouth agape.

"Way to go, Ty!" Rainbow cheered, reminding me to get out of there immediately.

"Worth it!"

“…I owe ya one, Dashie…” I commended as I turned and took off as fast as I could out of the house… or at least, that’s what I would’ve done if I had any idea where to go or had any intention of leaving Rainbow there. Instead, I made my way to the door, making sure to grab hold of Rainbow’s tail as I ran by. I’d be damned if I was going to let my friend sacrifice herself...

“Get back here!!” Gillian yelled as he and Comet gave chase. As soon as we were outside of the house, I let go of Dash, who shot me a look of perplexity as she flew alongside me.

“What gives?" she asked. "I could’ve taken both of them on while you got away!”

“I have enough t’ feel bad about… I ain’t about t’ let you bein’ capped or hurt fall on my conscience…! I jus’ wish we had a—!”

“Look out!” she called as she flew in front of me to pull me down by my neck, so as to make me crouch as I heard a magic shot whiz past us. As soon as the coast was clear, I moved back to an upright running position as she flew beside me.

“…better way o’ gettin’ away from them!” I finished.

“Hmm... I have an idea, but it’s a bit of a long shot!"

"Anything's good at this point! Wha'ss the plan?"

"We don't exactly have time for me to explain it! I'll just need you to spread your legs and hold your arms out as you run so I have enough room!” before I could even ask why, she flew behind me. Trusting her, I did as she asked. Before I even had time to turn and look, however, I took note of an incredibly fast trail of rainbow shoot up from under me, as well as a strangely wet, warm, hard object pressed against each of my constricted wrists. In the next literal instant, my arms were rising toward the sky as my feet stopped making contact with the ground.

*FWOOSH!!!!!!*

“WHOA!!!!” Turns out Rainbow’s idea of an escape plan was to gain enough momentum to fly from under me between my legs, take the rope binding my hands together into her mouth, and use the momentum to lift me high into the air.

“Mrrn, yurr hrrvy!” she loudly mumbled as she rocketed toward the clouds. I understood it as her complaining about my weight. I took no offense, as she was my only hope…

“Sorry about that, but whatever you’re gonna do t’ get us the hell outta here, make it quick!” I hastily ordered, deathly afraid of what might’ve happened if she possibly got too distracted and let me go from the height we were at. At that point, I wasn’t sure what to regret more: My request that she move faster, or the fact that I was completely at the acrobatic mare’s mercy in the first place. She heard my command and fully delivered by rocketing off at an unprecedented speed only comparable to a fighter jet.

“WAHHAHHAHAHAHAHAAAAA!!!!” I shouted in a voice akin to a famous Italian plumber as we blasted off. I could hardly breathe, much less see anything as the winds ripped past us at a dangerous velocity. It sort of made me think back to that story Twilight told me about the time she tied herself to Rainbow in order to make a swift trip to Canterlot… I now know how absolutely horrible that must’ve been.

“Rainbow Dash, I hope you can get away from them soon because so help me, I am gonna lose it in more ways than one!!”

Fluttershy and I were well on our way searching the Southern section of town for our friends. So far, our efforts proved fruitless, but it'd still been pretty early on. My sporadic stomach cramps had settled down for the moment, allowing me to place full focus on the task at hoof. However, I'd been compelled to strike up a conversation with Fluttershy... There was something I needed to get off of my chest regarding the kindly mare, but I simply didn't know how to form my thoughts into coherent words. Rather than stay silent or wait until I was ready to talk, I went on a whim.

"So... Fluttershy..." I awkwardly began.

"Yes?" she plainly answered.

"Um... nice morning we're having... huh?"

"Um... yes. Well, sort of... We still have to find our friends and make sure they're safe..."

"Yes, yes we do. Say... speaking of 'friends...'"

"...I guess you want to talk about what happened earlier?"

"Clever..."

"Yes. I... I know we apologized already, but... I still can't help but feel bad..."

"Twilight, it's okay," Fluttershy assured. "You don't have anything to feel bad about."

"Yes I do... It's not just accusing you of trying to steal Ty... It's the fact that I could even come up with something so unbelievably insipid in the first place..."

"What do you mean?" she asked in curiosity.

"You see, when you told me about your feelings for him... I... I felt... I felt... um..." I uneasily trailed off, afraid of finishing my statement.

"...Scared?" she finished to my astonishment.

"Well... yeah, for lack of a better term... I felt like the security of my relationship was threatened, even though I didn't even have a reason to... I hate to admit it, but... your confession bothered me much more than I initially let on... which is why after I found him in Zecora's hut, it was one of the first things I told him..."

"Oh..." she responded, seeming to be listening intently.

"I'm sorry... It wasn't at all right of me to expose your feelings to Ty like I did... I told him more or less as a warning, selfishly hoping he would take action to be more wary of you... I suppose that's why he led you out to the balcony to talk last night..."

"I guess so... He never mentioned that you told him about my um... my... crush, though. He said he'd only picked up on it from the way I was acting around him when he came with me to my house. I thought I was at least keeping my calm around him, but I guess I'm not very good at hiding my emotions... Even so, I'm sorry for making you feel uncomfortable. He's your colt-friend and I, as your friend, should do a better job of respecting that. I shouldn't have even been crying over it when he left..."

"Huh... I would've guessed he'd simply brought it up to her referring to me... Still, I'm surprised she can still find things to apologize for when none of this is her fault..."

"Speaking of... He DID tell me that you let him know I was crying when you visited me," the pegasus continued. "I didn't consider it before, but I guess that's how I should've known you told him already."

"I suppose that would be a pretty significant clue..." I agreed before I'd suddenly become curious. "If you don't mind me asking, how'd your alone time with him go?"

"It was wonderful. We talked about a lot of things... from why I feel the way I do about him..." at that, I almost cringed.

"Watch it, sister!"

"...to why neither of us would do anything you wouldn't like..."

"Good, good..."

"He even gave me some advice on being more comfortable with myself," she finished with a positive inflection in her tone.

"I see... I didn't know you two shared such a deep conversation. I was under the impression that he simply... well..."

"Let me down easy?" she finished to my astonishment again.

"How'd she know I was about to say that...?"

"Well... yeah, to be blunt. How'd you know I was about to say that?" I inquired with utmost curiosity.

"Because I've... *sigh* been through it before..." she solemnly admitted, MUCH to my shock and sympathy.

"Wow... I'd have never guessed. I always figured she'd be one to prefer to be alone..."

"Wow, Fluttershy... I-I had no idea..."

"Yeah... Ty was much more kind in sparing my feelings than the last pony, though..."

"How so?"

"I'm not sure really... I guess it's just the method he chose. In a way, Ty did let me down... But in another way, he gave me a vote of confidence in finding my own special somepony. What he did to make me feel better, though... the massage he offered me for my troubles..."

"As if I need to be reminded about that...!"

"I was so shocked that he would even consider rubbing me even though you seemed to disapprove of it back in Zecora's house..." At that, I lost my composure, lowering my head as I blushed with radiant embarrassment.

"...Was I that obvious?" I asked, feeling a bit ashamed.

"No, not at all!"

"Fluttershy, you don't have to lie to make me feel better..."

"Well... okay, maybe a little... But, like I said before, he said he'd only do it for me just that one time... as a way of apologizing, even though I don't think he had anything to apologize for. If you don't mind me saying this... you're lucky, Twilight. Ty's a great pony. Even though he's not a pony... And his hands... they're so... soft..."

"Trust me, I know," I concurred. "I feel like I could just melt into him when he rubs me down... especially when I lie down on top of him..."

"Is that how he usually does it?" she curiously asked.

"Yeah... why?"

"He only had me lie down on the floor facing away from him."

"Well then... he really WAS being considerate of me when he gave her one..."

"Still, it was as amazing as it was relaxing. Especially on my wings... I fell asleep in only a few minutes, it felt so good..." she admitted with a small smile as she temporarily turned away from me, looking into the late morning sky. I couldn't help but chuckle a little.

"Heh, yeah that tends to happen... *ahem* I just wish I'd have given him the chance to admit that to me before I lost my temper..." My statement brought her attention back to me.

"I know you said it was a misunderstanding, but... if it's okay for me to ask... Why did you hit him?"

"I honestly don't know, Fluttershy..." I answered, a guilty sinking feeling emanating in my gut. "It's... like I instantly became an aggressively territorial Diamond Dog finding his hoard tampered with; wanting absolutely nothing to do with something that, because of a simple, minuscule perceived shift in its position by someone else, suddenly didn't belong to him... If you understand what I mean." She gave me a sort of puzzled look, seeming to not fully comprehend the comparison.

"I... kinda do. Could you explain it a little more?" she graciously asked.

"It's like this: When he mentioned he gave you an 'apology gift,' but seemed reluctant to explain himself, I assumed he meant that you two... um..." The two of us went silent for a moment before she gasped in shock, realizing what I meant when I trailed off.

"Oh! Twilight, we would NEVER do that!" she assured, seeming to be a bit flustered. "I wouldn't be able to LOOK at myself the same if that were to happen. The guilt would just tear me apart."

"Yeah, but after the way I treated him when we were discussing what to do... and him hesitating to admit to the massage... The worst thought that came to mind was that he kissed you again to make you feel better... or at the very least, just to make himself feel better... I see now why that's a horribly distrustful thing to imagine..."

"Oh... My...!" Fluttershy was flustered beyond belief, blushing vehemently as she fluttered her wings to keep herself afloat.

"I was afraid of losing him as it was... And that fear turned to misplaced distrust and seething contempt, which caused me to hit him... it's also what caused me to feel so... bitter towards you earlier this morning..."

"You have nothing to be afraid of, though. We're best friends, Twi. Even if we weren't, I'd at the very least acknowledge that you were with him... And besides, I know he likes you as much as you like him. You can trust him. You can trust me, too."

"Yes, I understand... Thank you," I replied, smiling contently at my friend.

"You're welcome, Twilight," she answered back, smiling as brightly as I was. With that, a brief silence washed over us and my smile faded into a slight frown before I spoke.

"Y'know... there's a sort of reason behind why I've been so... irritable and emotional lately..."

"There is?" Fluttershy asked, her eyes widening in intrigue as her smile disappeared, her facial expression turning to one of worry. "What's wrong?" At that, both of us went silent again.

"I suppose she deserves to hear this just as much as Ty does... *sigh* Well, here goes nothing..."

"I'm... in h--!" As I was about to begin my confession, a strange noise coming from seemingly nowhere startled me out of my train of thought. Fluttershy and I looked up to see a... a rainbow-colored trail of aura tearing through the sky. Within the trail, I noticed something... or rather, someone...

"Aaaaahaaaaaauuuh!!!" A shockingly familiar voice shouted as the trail streamlined across the horizon. It took all of a millisecond of thought for me to realize what we were laying our eyes on...

"Ty!" I shouted in alarm.

"And Rainbow Dash!" Fluttershy also shouted. As we called their names, I noticed various shots of silver and purple-colored magic blasts zooming in their direction.

"It looks like they're running away from those other two unicorns! We need to go help them, Twilight!" Fluttershy worriedly urged.

"And that's exactly what we're going to do! From the looks of it, they're headed back to Town Hall. Grab onto me! We have to make sure they're safe!" The yellow mare complied as she lay a hoof on my back. I was quick to charge my horn with magic and with a *POOF*, we were ready to save our friends...

Rainbow Dash was beaming through the air so swiftly that I wondered if she'd forgotten about the passenger she'd been stringing along. In the midst of our attempt to escape the hostile unicorns hot on our trail, she'd taken evasive maneuvers to dodge the magic blasts they frequently shot at us. She'd been periodically bobbing and weaving in all directions and doing barrel rolls as we soared through the sky. I was little more than a weighted rag doll in the clutches of my prismatic-haired savior, and I wasn't sure whether to regret this crazy plan or be thankful that she knew how to fly defensively and had the strength to carry me as long as she'd been. I was also surprised that she could maintain such masterful agility in such a presumably physically uncomfortable situation. All I could do was scream in rigid, petrifying terror (and make sure her unbelievably luminescent rainbow-colored aural trail didn't make me go colorblind) as we blasted through the sky going much too fast for me to at least be useful enough to warn her of most of the incoming attacks. I tried my absolute hardest not to vomit because of this hellish roller-coaster ride... that could quite literally be from Hell.

"Wr'rr Rlmrst Thrr, Tr!" she tried to assure me as we approached the heart of Ponyville. I managed to open my eyes enough to take note of the tower in the distance.

"Tha'ss great!" was all I could think to respond to the mare with.

"Yea, great! Now get us there an' get us on some solid ground!! I can't stand this shit!! My arms are tired, I can't see, I'm freezin' like a popsicle, and I can't breathe! Get me down, get me down, get me the HELL DOWN!!" As my mind went rampant, Rainbow moved to avoid another rapid barrage of silver and purple magic blasts by doing another barrel roll.

"WHOOOOOOAH!!" I shouted at the top of my lungs yet again, at this point convinced I'd contract laryngitis by the end of this. Admittedly, despite me being frightened out of my wits and in at least eight different types of severe danger, I have to say this adrenaline-pumping disaster piece of a botched rescue attempt... was kind of... dare I say, fun. That is, until one of the worst things that could have EVER occurred during the flight happened.

*POP* "MMPH!" Rainbow groaned in agony. Almost immediately, we went into a completely unscheduled, unintended, and all-out unexpected diagonal nose dive as we approached our destination. At this point, I did what I always do when I find myself about to paint the ground red from about five-thousand feet in the air... I shut my eyes tight, took a deep breath, and panicked.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"Oh, LAWDY NO! SHE GOT HIT! WE GONNA DIE! GAME OVER, MAN! GAME OVER!" Suddenly, we were pulled out of the nose dive by some sort of miracle. I opened my eyes to see Rainbow was still in limited control, as one of her wings seemed singed and smoking like a damaged airplane as we still glided toward the ground at a THANKFULLY slower, more steady rate. It seemed that Rainbow knew how to make a safe emergency landing in the case that she sustained damage as she flew. She used what I assume was all of her energy to pull us up and flare out her wings, giving them periodic flaps in order to stabilize us.

"Tuck and roll, Ty! We're going in for a crash-landing!!" Rainbow warned after removing the rope binding my hands together from her mouth. She was quick to curl up into a ball under me. Heeding her words and desiring to come out of this alive, I quickly mimicked her motion, but cradled my rescuer as the ground drew nearer and nearer...

*CRASH* "AGH!" *FLOP* "OOF!" *THUD* "AWGH!" *BOOM* "UUGH!" We landed HARD. Rainbow Dash and I tumbled violently along the earthy mounds of dirt known as the Ponyville street as I held onto her. Thankfully, it didn't take long for the friction between the ground and my body to slow us down to a screeching halt.

*PSSHHHHHhhh...* We'd finally come to a stop after our bout of sliding along the ground like a couple of hockey pucks on ice.

"Oww...!" I moaned in total agonized disorientation as I lay sprawled out on the ground with Rainbow laying on top of me, seeming to be largely unscathed in the crash, save for her injured wing, a couple of scratches, and a frazzled mane.

"Man... what a disaster," Rainbow stated as she still lay on top of me, picking her head up to examine the damage. "You feelin' okay?" she asked as she panted, out of breath.

"I... could be-- AH!-- better..." I didn't feel quite as lucky as Dash. I was very dizzy and completely winded from all the rolling around we did, I was nauseous from that nightmarish flight, I was trembling in post-traumatic, adrenaline-riddled stress, and the crash itself left me in unbelievable physical pain. Everything REALLY hurt like I'd been the victim of a vicious, merciless beat down at the hands of a crazed martial artist with superpowers. "How... how you feelin'?" I managed to ask as Rainbow rolled off of me and lay flat on her back beside me.

"Besides my wing, I'm pretty good... hah..." she answered, checking her scorched wing for any extensive damage. "Carrying you... really took a lot outta me, though..."

"Sorr-- Oww...! Hah... Sorry about that...!" I choked out as I moved to sit up. Pangs of anguish and the stings of various cuts and bruises along my beaten body made themselves very apparent as I tried to sit up. I took a special note of my clothes, which were in total ruins at this point. The left side of my shirt was torn almost completely off and my pants had been torn in various areas around the legs. My entire outfit looked like it had been run over by a monster truck and fed to a ravenous pack of wolves.

"This was my favorite shirt, too... Damn..."

"Next time... warn me when you decide t' pull a stunt like that... Never been so terrified in my life," I semi-joked.

"Heheheheh," Rainbow tiredly chuckled, managing to pull herself to a sitting position. "It's all we COULD do... But you gotta admit one thing; flying is pretty awesome. Isn't it?" she asked with a confident smirk, seeming to already know my answer.

"Oh, mos' def... but not when you're the one bein' dragged along..." We both shared a good laugh at that. "At the very least, it looks like we made it..." I said, looking around to see various ponies staring at us, clueless as to what had just transpired. I took note of the tower standing just a couple of yards away from us to gain some insight on where exactly we were.

"Rainbow!" I heard a voice call from our left. I turned to see an orange Earth mare accompanied by a zebra. "Ya found 'im!" Applejack cheered as she and Zecora approached us. Her face turned from one of excitement to one of worry when she got close enough to inspect us for damage. "Ma goodness, y'all look more beat than a pair o' Pinkie's bongo drums!"

"I FEEL that way, too," I added, feeling the nausea, shakes, and vertigo slowly creep away, but the results of everything else lingering like the aftermath of a tornado.

"At any rate, we're glad to see you've escaped," Zecora mused.

"Speakin' o' which... how--?"

"Ty! Dashie!" called another voice. We all turned to see Pinkie and Lyra racing towards us. Lyra stopped a good few feet away, but Pinkie kept coming. She didn't stop for anything as she galloped full-speed toward Rainbow. In a blinding pink flash, she tackled her friend as if she were holding something of value.

"I'm glad you're okay, Dashie!" She announced as she gave Rainbow the most brutal bear hug I'd ever seen her give. Pinkie was literally squeezing her so hard that Rainbow's eyes momentarily bulged out like a couple of veiny balloons ready to burst at the touch of a sewing pin.

"Jesus Christ! That doesn't look fun..."

"Pinkie...!! I'm fine...!! Let me go...!!" Rainbow choked out, clearly wanting no more physical torture. Obediently, Pinkie complied as she mercifully allowed Rainbow to live... but then she turned her gaze to me.

"No... No. No. No, no, no, no no, NO!" I managed to brace myself before the pink mare gored me like a professional football player. I was lucky she only decided to jump into me, as I managed to catch her before she sent me flying backward. Even so, she barreled into my tenderized belly with her head.

"AGH! Ow...! You really know how t' make a welcome memorable, don't you...!?" I painstakingly asked, shockwaves of agony coursing through my head, back, and arms as did my best to return the extravagantly excitable pink Earth mare's embrace.

"We missed you SO much!" she melodramatically informed me as I felt her grip around my torso tighten like a vicegrip. "We were worried we'd never see you again!" She squeezed much harder, disallowing me from breathing just like she did to Rainbow just a moment before.

*crack* "Owwww, ooh!" I moaned in pain as Pinkie squeezed too hard, giving my back a chiropractic crack. Seeming to notice, she immediately let go, looking a bit worried that she'd done me harm.

"*Gasp* I'm sorry! I didn't mean to do that!"

"Nah, you good," I responded, stretching a little to adjust to the sudden crack. "If anything, that only helped," I added as I softly wrapped my still-bound-together hands around the adorable mare's face and gave a few strokes of her cheeks with my fingers. She seemed to enjoy that, as she giggled like a little school filly.

"That tickles!" she excitedly stated before her expression turned to one of stern disapproval. "But don't think you're out of the hot water yet, buster! You broke your Pinkie Promise, and you're gonna have to pay!" At that, my heart sank, causing me to look down toward the ground in shame and fear.

"Oh man... Well, i'ss been a good li--!" My train of thought was interrupted when I felt one of Pinkie's hooves on my forehead, forcing me to face her.

"Wha--!" *Splat!* "ACK!" I felt the mare's fuzzy little hoof shove something into my mouth. From the sweetness of it, it seemed to be something with jelly in the center of it.

"Stop forgetting to eat sweets, Ty! This is like the twenty-seventh time you've done this! At this rate, your Pica's gonna take years to cure!" she scolded, much to the amusement of everyone around us, with the exception of Lyra, who seemed to be as lost as I was. I swallowed the treat Pinkie shoved into my mouth before taking a moment to gather my thoughts.

"Should PROBABLY tell 'er I don't really have Pica... but then I don't think that would nullify the Promise I made... but still..."

"Um... wait, I thought I broke the other--!"

"No, you didn't break that one," Pinkie interrupted, seeming to know what I was about to say, which only served to confuse me further.

"But how did you--?"

"Twilight thought the same thing."

*POOF*

"And speaking of Twilight..." Rainbow trailed off. Pinkie leapt off of my lap, allowing my gaze to fall upon two more mares; one of them a lavender-coated, blue, purple, and pink-haired Unicorn, the other a yellow-coated, light pink-haired pegasus.

"Oh boy... NOW i'ss time t' die..." I WOULD'VE been happy to see them... but considering Twilight's most recent feelings towards me over what she thought happened between Fluttershy and I the previous evening, coupled with what I learned from Comet about her possibly fragile physical and mental state, I instead felt petrified in heart-wrenching fear as I stared at the unicorn.

"Um... H-hi, Twi..." I murmured like an emotionally withdrawn child. Twilight didn't respond. She only stared at me. What struck me as odd, however, was how she stared at me: Her brow wasn't at all furrowed and she wasn't frowning. Instead, she gawked at me, frozen in place as if she were starstruck. I didn't know exactly what signals to pick up from the unicorn's awe-stricken gaze, but that did nothing to calm me down; it frightened me even more as my heart began thumping so hard that the others could probably see its imprint periodically protruding from within my chest. I warily, painstakingly raised my hands to attempt to wave at her. What she did in response, no less than shocked me beyond words...

I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw him... He looked like he'd been through a cheese-grater. His clothes were in tatters, he'd been coated in dirt, his hands were bound together, and he seemed to have been in a really brutal physical altercation.

"My gosh...! What did they DO to him!??" A lump welled up in my throat as I analyzed the human sitting in front of me. I also took note of Rainbow Dash, who'd seemed to be injured herself, but nowhere near as severely. I was glad they were okay, but... seeing Ty so... so... beaten up... it worried me...

"This is all my fault! I should've NEVER allowed him to leave the library! He would've never had to get hurt like this if I didn't hit him! He's probably mad at me and hates me and doesn't want to see me again... but... I still owe him an apology... I hope to Celestia he... *sniffle* forgives me... I wouldn't blame him if he didn't, though..."

"Twilight?" I heard him call, snapping me back into the real world. "...Are... are you alright?" I couldn't find the emotional strength to give him a worded reply. It was especially shocking to me that there wasn't a hint of bitterness or resentment in his question. I was just so full of happiness... fear... remorse... anger... my emotions were in a heated conflict over how I should've felt in that moment as tears began to form in my eyes.

"I'm so glad he's okay!"

"But Gillian and his filly-friend practically destroyed him! Plus, he must be furious with me..."

"He's alive though. Which means I still have a chance to make it up to him... And I may as well do it now..." As if on impulse, I began to trot toward Ty slowly, feeling the pressure building up as I tried not to cry. My heart was pounding like an Ursa Major's footsteps. Each and every step I took towards the battered human felt like there were weights on my hooves, dragging as if to stop me from reaching him. I felt steadily more timid as I approached. However, the closer I got, the more I anticipated just pouncing on him and showing him how much I... I...

"I'm sorry, Twilight..." he somberly apologized, much to my shock.

"HE'S sorry?" I picked up the pace, speeding into a gallop towards him. As I charged at him like a bull, I saw that he cringed, seeming to fear me doing something to him, causing me to slow down to a canter before stopping directly in front of him. "He must still think I'M upset with HIM..."

"I would never do anything t' hurt you... You know that, right? I... I shoulda jus' came out an' told you rather than punk out an' wind up gettin' you mad... I gave Fluttershy a--!" I quickly moved forward to interrupt him by placing a hoof over his mouth. In that moment, I could care less about the rubdown. I could care less that Gillian and Comet had apparently tortured him after they captured him. I didn't even pay any more attention to his ragged clothes or his numerous bodily injuries... I was only content with the fact that my colt-friend was alive and well... and I was willing to prove it to him. Tears were already flowing down my cheeks as I involuntarily cracked a smile to show that I didn't need to hear the rest. His confusion was evident as he simply gawked at me in such adorable bewilderment that I just had to do something to ease his mind...

"KISS HIM!" In that instant, I lost control of my body and let my lustful desire take over. In a fluent motion, I swiftly climbed onto his lap, wrapped my forelegs around his neck and pulled down as I lifted my own head up and closed my eyes, anticipating the moment our lips met once again for the first gloriously enamoring time in what felt like an insufferable eternity... and in only a second, my impulsive, love-fueled gesture was complete. I kissed him. I kissed him as deeply and as passionately as I possibly could... and this time, I was going to make it count...

I... could only stare in totally overwhelming bafflement, as I was rendered unable to process what was happening...

"...Holy..."

"...Frijoles..."