“No way… I-it can’t be…” Applejack stuttered in disbelief.

"But it is," I assured matter-of-factly.

“I don’t believe you!” Pinkie accused. “There's no way YOU could be Ty! Ty is a pony!”

“Ohh, how wrong you are…”

"I'm tellin' you, Pinkie. I'ss me."

“Nuh-uh! No way! You are NOT Ty! There's no way in a million-bajillion-kazillion YEARS that you could be him!"

"Pinkie, it rea--!" Twilight tried to interject.

"Where is he and what have you done to him, imposter?!"

"He's right here, talkin' to you right now!" I raised my voice in a small, yet growing sense of agitation. All she did, however, was suspiciously eye me up like she'd suddenly become some kind of expert detective as she approached.

"There's no way I'm buying that. You’re… you’re a… some kind of alien or giant gorilla thingy with almost no fur or something!" at that, I shook my head at her rampant skepticism.

"Oh? An' why exactly would you think that?" I flatly inquired.

"Well for one thing, I know Ty was from a different world or something, but there’s no way Twilight would seriously have a special somepony outside of her own species on top of him being from another world! That wouldn't make any logical sense!" My face instantly went into a slack-jawed state of shock.

"Really? YOU of all ponies, arguin' about LOGIC??"

"What!?? Oh, come on! How are YOU gonna argue logic!? You break logical rules all the time!"

"That may be true, but Twilight told me herself why she would never do anything like date somepony who isn't a pony!"

"Huh... Now THAT'S more understandable. My only question would be why such a topic would come up in the first place in a conversation between those two... but then, I don't think I'd be very satisfied with the answer..."

"She would always go on and on and on about how it would never work and how it would make no logical sense and how neither of the two involved would be able to have foals and how they would face a lot of public trial and trivialamalation and a whole bunch of other stuff I don't remember!” I raised an eyebrow in intrigue at Pinkie's small rant.

"Well now... tha'ss a bit of a curveball..."

"That's 'tribulation,' Pinkie..." Twilight glumly corrected, thus confirming that the pink mare wasn't lying or joking herself.

"Yeah, that!" Pinkie, although jumping the gun, did have good reason to be skeptical… even if said reason WAS a bit unbelievable to me in itself. I looked over at Twilight, who could only lower her head in shame as she looked up at me, seeming to be silently asking for forgiveness.

“Well, I guess I can’t blame either of ‘em. Pinkie DID say Twilight said all that herself an' Twilight probably said somethin' along those lines before she even met me. Nothin’ t’ be upset at her about… but it DOES bring about a topic o' discussion with the unicorn later on…” With that thought, I looked back at Pinkie.

"Plus, you might sound like him, but there's nothing else that wold prove to me that you're him."

“Well believe it or not, I’m Ty,” I assured.

“Oh yeah? Prove it!” the pink mare challenged.

“And how exactly do you want me t’ do that?”

“Hmm…” she pondered for a second. “Ooh! I know! I’ll ask you a question only the REAL Ty would know the answer to… Something that no faker baker or liar liar pants on fire would know… something so specifically specific that—!”

“Well? What’s your question?” I asked, getting impatient.

“…Okay, Ty— IF you really are him, that is…” she emphasized as she practically teleported in front of me to stare pryingly into my eyes before jumping back to give me some breathing room. “What happened in Canterlot after you broke a Pinkie Promise?” At that, I smirked for a quick second before scowling as I recalled that horrific incident.

“YOU, A.J., and Dashie here beat me senseless,” I accused, pointing fingers at all three of them. “I still remember all that mess… You with the randomly appearin’ everywhere I went when I tried t’ get away from you all... A.J. puttin’ me in that awful headlock..."

"T' be fair, Ty, ya DID bite me t' get outta said headlock," reasoned the farm mare.

"Point taken. In hindsight, you DID kinda taste like apples," I joked.

"That right?" the orange mare questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Yea. You taste nice," I replied. I was certain that wasn't the best thing for these ponies to hear from someone they interpreted as an alien, so I was quick to correct myself. "Not t' say I'mma try an' eat you or nothin', of course..."

"Heh, wouldn't count on it, sugar cube. Especially since ya'd probably be suckin' yer food through a straw if'in ya tried." Applejack and I shared a short little chuckle at that.

"Duly noted. Now where was I... Oh yea! There was the part where Rainbow took a door t’ the face an’ gave me a black eye for it… Personally, I thought it was somewhat uncalled for an' in poor sportsmanship."

"You did a lot more than that to make me hit you, y'know," Rainbow countered. "I wouldn't have been so mad if you didn't humiliate me three separate times."

"Humiliate? Tha'ss kinda stretchin', ain't it?"

"No. You pulled some pretty dirty moves on us; me specifically. Between the hat trick, the door, and faking me out when you jumped over me..." she raised a valid point.

"I'm sure I did... Come t' think of it, I KNOW I did... Sorry. But hey, I'm sure you're all vented out by now, ain't you?"

"Definitely! And it's all thanks to all those piping hot flank-whoopings I deliver to you at your discretion," the sky blue pegasus mare quipped to my dismay, getting a few laughs out of some of the others. I deadpanned as I brought my gaze to her.

"Tch! Forget YOU, Rainbow Dash!" I comically dismissed to her amusement, despite feeling VERY tempted to grace her with a certain one-fingered gesture familiar only amongst humans. "...Oh an’ don’t think I forgot about the part where you butt-slammed on my stomach an’ threw a pie in my face after Rainbow an’ Applejack were done destroyin' me, Pinkamena…”

“WHOA, IT REALLY IS YOU!!” the pink mare finally realized.

“But… what happened t’ you???” asked a dumbfounded Applejack.

“Did… those bad ponies turn you into a monster or something?” added Fluttershy.

“No, wait…” Rainbow began, seeming to realize something. “If… if I remember it right… I’d say you were… in your 'human' form right now… right?” At that, Fluttershy, Pinkie, Applejack, Rarity, and Zecora all gawked at Rainbow Dash and then back at me.

“Yyyep," I confirmed. "Looks like the cat’s out the bag now… I owe most o’ you an explanation. But now’s not the time.”

“He’s right,” Twilight interjected. “I’m not too sure if Fluttershy filled you in on the situation, but—!”

“We got the memo, Twi,” interrupted the farm pony. “We were told Ty was dragged out here by some nasty individuals… but… what’s all this about a ‘human form?’ I thought he was always a pony! Just from a different world.”

“Well… um…” Twilight blushed, lowering her head in what I could speculate was embarrassment. “Actually… he IS from a different universe… but uh… yeah, he was never… actually a pony. THIS is his true form…”

“Ohh…” Pinkie, Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy collectively droned.

“But… why did you have to hide it? And for so long?” asked Pinkie. “I mean, I think it’s amazing how you could find a special somepony in a different world! Even if you did say yourself at one point that you didn’t approve of a pony going into a relationship with a non-pony and he isn’t a pony and looks like a giant, freaky monster.”

“Hey…!” I complained.

“Oopsie! I mean… uh… a giant, really adorable, er... handsome-looking monster!” she corrected herself with a toothy smile that just oozed her discomfort as the room went momentarily silent.

"...I'll take it for what it's worth..."

“And I for one congratulate you on ignoring the barriers between your builds in the name of love,” Rarity praised.

“Hmph. Says the one who thinks I look ‘horrifying…’” I flatly remarked. At that, the white unicorn’s cheeks turned pink as she covered her mouth with a hoof, her eyes shifting about nervously.

“Yes, well um… I… didn’t quite mean it like that… I meant er… horrifying as in… intimidating. In terms of looks, minus all the icky Everfree Forest muck sullying your outfit… you’re still uh… pretty dapper,” she said with an equally uneasy, toothy grin.

"Nice that they're tryin' t' be open-minded, but it don't take a genius t' pick up the awkward feelings lingerin' around here..."

“Hm. Nice save. But i’ss okay. I know you all mus’ feel some level o’ disgust or contempt or fear or somethin’ because I’m not a pony like you all are…” I somberly assumed.

“No! Not at all, actually,” Fluttershy countered. “I mean… it IS kind of surprising to find out like this… but even if you’re not a pony, we still know who you are…” as she said that, she slowly, carefully approached me. I could see the apprehension in her eyes and her mannerisms, but I knew she meant well.

“Aww, come ‘ere…” I reached towards her. She expectantly flinched, but after a second, she shakily lifted her hoof and let it fall meekly into my open hand. I was considerate in that I very slowly wrapped my fingers around it before gently dragging her in for a hug. I heard her squeal in surprise as I wrapped her up in my arms. I placed one of my hands on the back of her neck and softly ran it down. My hand brushed past her wing as each of my digits caressed her svelte, velvety, canary yellow body.

“*GASP* Oh… my… that feels wonderful…” she dreamily whispered as she threw her forelegs around my neck.

“See? I’m just as nice as a human as I am as a pony, no?” I asked in curiosity as I stroked my friend a few more times, hoping I'd re-earned her trust.

“Y… Ye… mm-hmm…” Fluttershy nuzzled into me, seeming to be warming up in more ways than one.

"I wonder if they ALL get this… relaxed when bein' rubbed by human hands..."

*AHEM* I heard an annoyed voice clear its throat, signaling me to let go. I released Fluttershy to see an upset Twilight glaring at me.

“I think the point has been made clear,” she firmly stated. If I didn’t know better, I’d say she was… jealous! I found that just adorable… but I knew that she didn’t see it my way.

“Yea. Sorry, hon…” I apologized as I reached over to scratch under her chin.

“Mmm… you’re just lucky your hands are so soft…” she murmured, seeming to be cheering up as I rubbed her.

“Does it really feel that good?” inquired a curious Rarity as she and the others observed me rubbing Twilight.

“Mm-hmm…” Fluttershy nodded as I saw her walk back to the group, smiling contently. “It was like being wrapped in a soft, tickly blanket…”

“*GASP* I wanna turn! I wanna turn!” Pinkie volunteered, bouncing with glee.

“I’m sure it can’t be THAT great…” Rainbow brashly muttered, not knowing what she was missing out on.

"I wouldn't be so sure, Rainbow," Fluttershy countered. "I'd try it if I were you. Just look at Twilight..."

"Huh..." the blue mare murmured as her eyes beheld the true glory that is the human hand massage. "...Okay, I think I will if you say it's that good…”

“Hay, I’d give it a shot myself, all things considered…” Applejack commented.

“Yes, as sure as I am that you’d all love a rubdown from MY colt-friend, that’s going to have to wait,” Twilight firmly interjected after I’d stopped rubbing her. “Right now, we’ve got to focus on the issue at hoof. Now then…”

Twilight took the moment to bring everypony up to date on the situation, which brought about expectantly alarmed reactions from the other mares.

“How dreadful!” Rarity exclaimed in appall. “Who does this… this… rapscallion think he is!?”

“Does he REALLY think he’s going to lay a hoof on you, much less Princess CELESTIA??” added Rainbow.

“I don’t know how he plans on taking me, but I won’t allow it to happen,” Twilight assured.

“Seems t’ me like he’ll… ow! …go by any means necessary…” I suggested, trying my best to move into a comfortable position despite all the aches and pains I’d triggered by doing so. “I mean… he DID come close to killin’ me… an’ given how long he claims t’ have been watchin’ us… who knows what he might do…”

“This unicorn sounds like quite the creep… it seems no price to pay is too steep,” Zecora began. “And if my dreadful premonition serves to be right… then I’d say his next target could be—!”

“Spike!!” Twilight shouted in horror, seeming to anticipate Zecora's riddle. "Oh, no! He's at home all alone!"

“Aww damn…” I muttered. I could only hope that Zecora’s prediction was wrong.

“No! Not little Spikey-Wikey!” shouted Rarity in an equal amount of despair.

“We have to go back to the library! Pronto!” Twilight announced. With that, the six pony mares took on collective looks of worry as they readied themselves to leave the hut. I tried to get up myself, but found it very hard, not only because everything hurt, but also because this house was so small.

“Ty… I… I think you should stay here for now…” Twilight suggested, to my bewilderment.

“What?? Why?”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to go running into Ponyville in your current form. Plus, you don’t seem to be in much of a condition to run all the way back to the library from here…”

“You can’t jus’ like… teleport us there?”

“I don’t have enough energy to take all seven of us there at the moment. I used a great deal of it when I was searching for you. And I regret to say I don’t exactly have enough to heal you, much less change you back and then run back to the library from here…” I was speechless. My disappointment at her words left me without the ability to argue against her. She was right in that I shouldn’t go running through town as I am. But was there really NOTHING I could do?

“Twi… I—!”

“We don’t have time to argue over this. I need to go and make sure Spike’s okay…”

“…fine. Go,” I dejectedly conceded. I could tell she felt bad, because when I looked at her, she wore a similar look to that of a child who’d had to say their final goodbyes to a beloved pet.

“Ty… you know if I had any better choices, I’d go with those. I… I understand that you’d rather go with us… but right now, that’s much too risky.” I sighed in regret as I looked to the ground. She trotted up to me, climbing onto my lap and grabbing my face with her hooves to direct my attention to her. “I’ll come back for you as soon as I can. Please understand that this for the best… I-I have to go now.” With that, the unicorn gave me a kiss and a lengthy hug, during which I'd once again picked up that strange, musky scent emulating from her. It wasn't quite as pungent as last time, but...

"What is that smell? It ain't exactly offensive... but seriously, that odor is strong!"

"Beats me, but... whatever it is... it's... alluring, I guess I could say..."

"...Seriously?"

"Don't ask why, but... I think there's somethin' about that smell that jus' makes me wanna find out where i'ss comin' from."

"...Right. I'mma get back t' you on that... Right now wouldn't be appropriate." With that small mental discussion, Twilight and I reluctantly separated before she turned around to rejoin her friends. I watched helplessly as they said their goodbyes to Zecora before they turned to me. All I could bring myself to do was wave at each of them, offering a half-smile to see them off.

"Oh! I almost forgot!" exclaimed Pinkie Pie. She pulled a slice of chocolate cake out of her mane (a feat of hers I have STILL yet to discover how she accomplishes) before dashing toward me, climbing onto me. "Now say 'ahhh...'"

"Thus, my point about why Pinkie Pie is never allowed to argue the case of logic..."

"What am I, a baby? I don't need you feedin' me no cake like I-- *SPLAT* ACK!!"

"Good boy...! You ARE a boy... right?" It took all the energy I had left in me to refrain from doing something I might've regretted doing to the energetic party pony. Despite this, and with a mouthful of cake, I simply shut my eyes and nodded, patting her on the head. She reacted with one of her hyperactive little giggling fits as she leapt off of me. "Fluttershy was right! That DOES feel good. And remember your Pinkie promise about eating sweets every day!" she reminded as she regrouped with the other five pony mares. In a moment, the six mares were out the door and I was left stranded in the middle of the forest with only a zebra to keep me company.

“Fret not, strange being; ‘tis not the end. In the meantime, would you like a new friend?” asked Zecora, taking note of the disappointment scribbled across my face.

“*Gulp*…sure. Do you have any milk, by the way?”

My friends and I bolted through the Everfree forest with no regard towards the dangers that lurked about. We needed to get back to the library A.S.A.P. and nothing was going to get in our way.

“Twilight. Do you think it was a good idea to leave Ty back there?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“To be perfectly honest, Rainbow… that was the LAST thing I’d wanted to do… But you saw how beaten up he looked. Plus, we really don’t need the distraction of trying to calm the entire town down enough to accept a human while there’s the possibility of a dangerous enemy we have to deal with…”

“Quick question, Twi…” Applejack spoke. “When were y’all gonna reveal this whole ‘human’ thing to us? I mean, it’s been quite a while since you two got together… were y’all plannin’ on keepin it secret the whole time?”

“No. We WERE working on telling you before we found a proper method of revealing his existence to the rest of Ponyville. But neither of us was really very focused on the matter lately. We’re both to blame for our growing complacency in terms of the subject… I’m sorry.”

“There’s no need to apologize, dear,” Rarity addressed. “It’s quite understandable that you couldn’t find a suitable time to introduce this… most stupefying news with us… or rather, MOST of us, considering Rainbow Dash’s knowledge…”

“I only knew that he wasn’t actually a pony,” Rainbow countered. “That and that he was human. Until just a minute ago, I had no idea what he looked like as a human… To be honest, you were right, Rarity. He DID look kind of intimidating... Not enough to scare ME of course, but you know what I mean.” We made it out of the forest and continued our dash through the town.

“Still, he seems nice as a human,” Fluttershy stated.

“You’re only saying that because you got that apparently-wonderful back rub,” Rarity humorously countered.

“*GASP* No…! Well… maybe a little… but whether he’s a pony or not, we know he’s nice enough that we can accept him…”

“Yeah, but what about the rest of the town?” Pinkie asked. “You guys remember what happened when Zecora first showed up, right? Even WE didn’t like her or give her a fair chance. The only pony to do so was Apple Bloom.”

“That’s true,” replied Applejack. “But I wouldn’t be able t’ speak on behalf o’ the whole town in Ty’s case. He was… so much bigger ‘n’ Zecora… or any of us. I mean, he’s still a mite smaller than say, a dragon or a bear, but he looked big enough t’ give Ponyville a fright.”

“Well this time, I’m sure Ponyville’s much more accepting of sentient beings who aren’t ponies by this point, right?” I rhetorically inquired. “I’m not saying the fear factor is gone completely, but all things considered, I don't think we should have too hard a time welcoming him into Ponyville in human form… it’s just a matter of when we can do so…” With that, we eventually made it to the library. I didn’t hesitate to practically break the door down as I hastily entered the house.

“Spike!!” I called. “Spiiike!”

“What is it!? Why are you screaming?” answered a familiar voice as its owner came waddling down the stairs, rubbing his eyes and yawning.

“Oh thank Celestia you’re okay!” I galloped toward the small dragon and hugged him tight, inadvertently causing him to choke.

“Yeah, I’m… okay. Can you… ack! …let go of me now?” I obliged immediately, releasing my beloved #1 assistant. “What’s the big idea? And where’s Ty? I thought you were looking for him, not me.”

“We found him. We left him at Zecora’s.”

“Oh. Well why didn’t you bring him back here?”

“Whoever kidnapped him stole the magic energy he had, which forced him to revert back to human form. We couldn’t risk alarming the town while we came back to make sure you were okay.”

“I see… so the bastard’s still alive, is he…?” Spike said in a suddenly menacing tone, confusing me beyond belief.

“Excuse me? What do you mean?” I asked.

“Oh nothing… except that I’ve just gotten a brilliant new idea!” he answered in a voice VERY much unlike his own. I stepped back as he began to glow bright silver. In an instant, the dragon standing before me was replaced by a unicorn stallion… with red eyes… and black hair… and a tan coat…

“Wh…? Who are you!? What have you done to Spike!?” I asked in inherent anger as I took a stance of battle. The girls followed suit as they lined up next to me, looking as ready to fight as I was.

“Ladies, ladies, relax!” the invader calmly said. “I assure you, your little pet dragon is fine… in the care of my partner here…” just then, another figure materialized beside him. In an instantaneous flash of dark purple, a unicorn mare appeared beside him, levitating my poor, distraught assistant in a sphere of magic. He was frantically banging on the walls of the magic field, trying to break free, to no avail.

“Spikey!” Rarity shouted. “You ruffians let go of him this instant!!”

“Or you’ll regret messin’ with us!” added Applejack.

“Oh? And what will you do if I don’t?” dared the stallion.

“We’ll—!”

“Oh! Before you answer that… Excuse me for a moment.” With that, the stallion powered up his horn and performed a teleportation spell, leaving us with his partner in crime, who had Spike still trapped in a magic sphere…

“Why do you rhyme everything when you talk?” I asked Zecora in a mix of bewilderment and interest.

“Why does the sun rise?” she asked back, smirking at me as she was brewing something in a giant cauldron. “Why are there blue skies? Why is it that your name is Ty?”

“Y’know, there’s actual explanations for all those things… even IF the explanations I have might contradict the answers considered ‘correct’ here…”

“My speaking in rhyme is simply natural. It defies explanation, whether fantastic or factual.”

“Oh yeah? Well I got a bit of a screwball for ya…”

“I see… so no matter WHAT, you just rhyme two things together? Like… some sort of impulse?”

“In a sense, you could say it is impulse to rhyme. But is it impulse when I willingly do so all the time?”

“Okay then…” I slyly replied, smirking. “What rhymes with O—!”

*POOF*

“Oh, hello there!” said a new voice as its owner teleported into the hut without warning. Gillian had come back, alone this time. “I heard you survived our little… confrontation in the woods.”

“You…!” I angrily rasped, preparing to fight, despite the pain.

“How dare you trespass into my abode uninvited?! Leave now or face the risk of being smited!” Zecora shouted in outrage.

“Oh please…” Gillian retorted, chuckling with spite.

“What? Are you here t’ finish me…?” I asked, feeling a mix of intense aggression and fear.

“Oh no, not at all! What would give you the idea that I…” he stopped himself, realizing the error in his statement. “…you know what? Forget I asked. In any case, I just got this brilliant idea and you’re going to be playing along.”

“Like hell I am!” with that, I ignored the twinges and bursts of pain as I wrathfully lunged towards the unicorn. I saw his horn taking on a silver glow, but before he could cast a spell, I managed to lay a hand on his mane, causing him to lose his focus. Before either of us knew it, we’d gotten into a physical altercation with him swinging away at me with his fore hooves as I tried to subdue him with holds and the occasional punch while we rolled on the ground. We quickly rolled out of the hut as we scuffled, but not before presumably destroying a good amount of Zecora’s decorations.

I have to say, he was a tough opponent. Not nearly as tough as Rainbow on a bad day, but still; what he lacked in physical strength, he made up for in magic. Every time I’d managed to put him into some kind of submission hold or get him in a position wherein I could easily start hammering away at him, he’d just teleport out of it and come charging back at me for more. Other instances while we fought, he’d use his magic to take hold of one of my limbs and pull it to an entirely uncomfortable position before I’d manage to hit him or shake him off with a free arm or leg. The scuffle culminated in him teleporting out of one last position I’d gotten him into where I managed to land a solid hit on his eye.

“Okay, that’s enough of this… you’re coming with me!” with that, he cast a spell that enveloped my entire body, lifting me very high up into the air. Struggle as I might, I was totally unable to break free.

"It's no use! Take th--!" *WHAP* “Ow!” the unicorn shouted. I went crashing oh-so gracefully into the ground, welcoming a face full of mud. I groggily pulled myself up enough to see Gillian holding his head in pain as he turned around. Behind him was a highly upset zebra wielding what looked like some kind of bamboo staff and a yellow saddlebag slung around her shoulder.

“Begone, villainous unicorn! For you, there’s much more than that in store!” she warned.

“Oh, you best believe I’ll be back for you, zebra…” the stallion spat. “But as for right now, I came here for the human, so we’ll continue this another time!” With that, he dashed over towards me, placed a hoof on my shoulder and with a flash of his horn, everything went black as we were both dematerialized…

*POOF* “Welcome to Ponyville, asshole!” he taunted as he let go of me. I looked around to see that we were indeed teleported to the middle of Ponyville; just outside of Town Hall, to be exact. But he wasn’t done there. He shot a blast of magic into the air and with a thunderous *BOOM*, a giant white arrow appeared over the area in which he stood and I lay in a substantially worse off condition than he’d initially left me in. “Oh, and before I go… one for the road!”

*THUMP!* “Oof! Augh, you fuckin’ coward…!” the jerk kicked me in the stomach while I was down before stepping back, waving and smirking as he cast another teleportation spell on himself and disappeared.

“Ohhohoh, if I get another chance, I am gonna whup his ASS…!” With that thought, I rolled over onto my back and anticipated the inevitable, being too riddled with fatigue and aching to try to run and hide. As expected, ponies began to walk out of their homes to inspect what the noise was that disrupted their presumably mundane, quiet evening, only to instead lay their widened, fearful glassy eyes on a nearly passed-out human being lying on the ground dirty, beaten, weak and in a lot of pain...

“What do you two want? Why are you two plotting to overthrow Princess Celestia?” I asked, demanding a good reason for their misdeeds.

“It’s… not so much what WE want… it’s more of what he wants,” the mare answered, to our surprise. “I’m just here to support my one true love…”

“What do you mean?” asked Rainbow.

“I mean that whatever he wants, I’ll give it to him! He wants me? I’m all his. He wants to terrorize Ponyville? I’m there beside him. He wants to do away with Celestia? I’ll be the one to watch in glee as he sits atop her throne as Equestria’s new emperor…”

"The NERVE of these guys...!"

“But… why?” asked Fluttershy in horror. “Don’t you see all the ponies you’ll be hurting in the process? Or the human you've already hurt?"

“That’s none of MY concern who gets hurt…” the mare coldly replied, much to my dismay.

“…well what if… YOU were hurt?” Rarity asked. “Would it be your concern then? How do you think your friend would react?” The cerulean mare seemed to have been stricken with that question. She lost her composure as she looked down in thought. Just then, a distant booming sound shook all of us out of our stare down. A second later, the evil stallion rematerialized next to her, now sporting a few scratches & cuts and a black eye.

“Whew! What a hassle...”

“What happened to you, honey?” asked the mare as she inspected the damage.

“That miserable human, that’s what…”

“What miserable human?” I asked, growing increasingly upset.

“Your boyfriend. You know any other humans that exist here? Lemme tell you; he put up quite the fight. But I’d like to say my business with him is all taken care of…”

“What did you do to him!!?” I shouted.

“Relax, Twilight Sparkle. I didn’t do too much. Just got into a bit of a tussle with him before I brought him to the middle of Ponyville. I also made sure to draw a lot of attention to him so everyone in this town can know your dirty little secret...” he chuckled menacingly at his own remark, serving to further irritate me. “To be perfectly honest, I’d expected him to be much less… resistant, considering what Comet and I had done to him beforehand… I suppose I have that meddlesome forest-dwelling zebra to blame for undoing my work.”

“What?? Oh no…!”

“Oh and before you worry that cute little head of yours, the zebra’s fine… for NOW, anyway. In any case, YOU have a decision to make: Try to save your precious little dragon at the cost of prolonging the amount of time your boyfriend spends scaring the public? Or go fetch him now while we make our daring escape to a more… reasonable location to negotiate how things are going down…? The choice is yours, my pretty little pony…”

This conniving jerk had me stuck between a rock and a hard place… I wasn’t sure WHAT to do… attempt to free Spike but then have a large portion of Ponyville catching sight of Ty and having the town quite possibly enter a state of panic, thus having him taken away by Ponyville authorities… or go and bring him back as soon as I could at the cost of this stallion and his companion taking Spike away, thereby disabling me from the quickest way to warn Princess Celestia of the impending threat?

There were so many factors to consider, and little to no time to consider them. At the very least, I had my friends to back me up, no matter what decision I made... But then, I knew his magic had been augmented by a sample of my own, and I was running low as it was. In addition, it was me he was after.

“What does he want to use me for? I figure he’s using Spike as bait to try and capture me, but I can’t leave him in their clutches… But then what about Ty? I’m confident he can find his way here… in the case that he has enough strength left to do so. But if I left him to come back on his own, who’s to say he wouldn’t meet stern resistance from vigilante citizens or the police and possibly be captured and dragged away? I really can't afford to let THAT possibility come to fruition, either... Hmm… AHA! I’ve got it!”

“Well, Ms. Sparkle? What’ll it be?”