"What did you do?" Applejack asked, scaring her little sister with her threatening tone and booming voice. The other two crusaders backed away from Apple Bloom; both ready to run while the apple farmer was preoccupied with the red maned filly. They backed away until they were blocked by one of Cheerilee's forehooves.

"It was an accident!? Right Scootaloo and Sweetie Be-" Apple Bloom realized her so called friends had planned to leave her. They waved to Apple Bloom, but they were soon pushed next to her by Cheerilee.

"Right behind ya," they said in shame.

"I'll leave them in your care." Cheerilee stated before turning away from the diminutive crusaders. The three fillies smiled uncomfortably at Applejack. Applejack didn't know what to do with the fillies; maybe Rarity had some ideas. The earth pony did think that they were adorable; in a sort of helpless hoofsized kind of way.

"So my little-er ponies, how did you do this?" Applejack asked, earning a collective groan from the three fillies. They all knew it was the first of many short jokes.

"Let's just say alchemy is best left to the professionals."

"And where did you practice potion making?"

"Twilight's library," they answered. Applejack knew that they had probably destroyed whatever was left of the Books and Branches library. The apple farmer lifted the three in front of her eyes; their stature reminding her of the toy soldiers in Rarity's boutique. Applejack felt she had the obligation to at least show them to Rarity.

"Get in," she ordered, removing the hat from her head and placed it in front of the fillies. They hopped in the gigantic Stetson hat. Their world was flipped over and thrust into darkness as they plummeted into Applejack's blonde mane. All they were able to see was whatever was directly in front of them and there was an odd scent of apples in the air. "Rarity's gonna get a kick out of this." Sweetie Belle's heart sank at the thought of her older sister seeing her like this. Sweetie Belle stood up in the shaking darkness, and the white unicorn began to speak,

"Of all things this is the-"

"Best! Possible! Thing!" Rarity squealed, nuzzling her little sister against her cheek. Sweetie Belle struggledagainst the older unicorn's magic. Sweetie was smothered against her face; she screamed for help whenever she had the chance. Rarity loved the idea of her now smaller sister, and her earlier deal with Sweetie that involved a certain filly doing whatever she said without question.

"Rarity! Stop!" Sweetie begged, getting a strong sense of motion sickness. The younger unicorn had expected this kind of treatment, but not to this extreme. She had guessed that Rarity was going to coddle her and make embarrassing statements. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo laughed at the expense of Sweetie Belle's feelings.

"This is just perfect! With you like this it'll be so much easier to foalsit."

"But we don't need a foalsitter!" Sweetie argued.

"As far as I'm concerned, you do. No offense, but you three can't take care of yourselves." Rarity reminded, causing the smaller unicorn to huff in dissatisfaction. "But if you think you could handle yourselves in the big, scary world, I have no right to keep you from it." Rarity used her magic to lift up the three fillies that shrieked I surprise.

"Rarity, what are you doing?" Applejack asked, wondering what Rarity's intentions were. Rarity cautiously winked towards her friend, but kept it out of sight from the children.

The white unicorn placed the Curie Mark Crusaders on the floor where they got a view of Rarity and Applejack's full stature. Rarity kept a certain expressionless look on her face, scaring the fillies.

"Just follow my lead." Rarity whispered, earning a nod from Applejack. "Since you don't need your caring sisters, I trust that you'll take care from now on."

"You can't do this! I live here!" Sweetie Belle argued, but her efforts were ignored as they were ushered out the door. Scootaloo looked back at Sweetie Belle with an intention to hit somepony.

"You just had to open your mouth!" Scootaloo accused. "We were perfectly fine, until you had to talk back to your sister." Scootaloo kicked at the ground in frustration.

"We'll be fine." Apple Bloom assured, leading the way across the hallway.

Inside of Rarity's workstation, Applejack was beginning to give Rarity a harsh expression.

"Why would you do that?" Applejack asked, feeling a bit like Rarity's dramatic moments. "They'll get hurt out there!" Rarity smirked at Applejack's reaction.

"Just trust me AJ. They'll come crawling back to us with what I have planned."

"Ah don't think this is a good idea." Applejack commented.

"Oh, Opalescence." Rarity called in a sing song tone. A white furred cat peaked out from under the covers of Rarity's bed. The cat purred and jumped onto Rarity's awaiting hooves. "Momma needs your help. Yes she does."

"You're scaring me Rair'."

***

"How long have we been walking?" Sweetie Belle complained, staring at the floor as she walked. Scootaloo growled in annoyance, feeling she was the only one who thought logically.

"Two minutes and twelve seconds." Scootaloo reminded, "this is the fith time you asked." They had just managed to have rounded a corner that was close by.

Light sounds of steps resonated through the hall, and the noise immediately captured the attention of the diminutive fillies. They looked around the area but found nothing. The Crusaders continued their march through the halls, starting a casual conversation about various topics ranging from possible cutie marks, to potential Crusaders. Their chat was cut short by the same stepping sounds. Only this time it was much closer.

"Shh! What was that!?" Sweetie Belle asked, looking around the area. The sound of footsteps echoed through the halls as any noise was magnified to their size.

"Ah don't like the sound of that." Apple Bloom commented; the earth filly's voice cracked in nervousness. Apple Bloom turned her head and scanned the area for the umpteenth time, but she found nothing. This continued several times with each filly turning back one at a time. And as expected, it was false alarms. The Cutie Mark Crusaders eventually became used to the task; finally, Scootaloo turned around and noticed a stalking Opalescence that quietly followed them.

"Heh, good kitty?" The pegasus of the group nudged the others to turn around. Scootaloo instructed her friends not to panic. The two shifted their bodies slowly, keeping their eyes away from Opal's. The snowy cat had a devilish grin and crouched to an optimal pouncing position. Sweetie Belle looked up to her predatory pet and backed away.

"Say something Sweetie. It's your cat." Apple Bloom ordered, shaking in fear while she spoke.

"Opal it's me. You know Sweetie Belle?." Opalescence's face kept its creepy grin, clearly stating that she did not care. "Uh... I feed you, with food!" Opal's grin widened with interest.

"Phrasing!" Scootaloo screamed, "Sweetie! Don't remind her of food, or you'll literally be feeding her." Sweetie gulped in surprise as she just realized her mistake. The unicorn began to rack up more things to tell her cat.

"I'm the one that bathes and keeps you clean." Sweetie mentioned, sparking an angry look in the Persian cat. Opal growled and brought her nose in close to the already frightened filly. Sweetie Belle somehow manage to keep her cool, staring back into the eyes of Opal.

Opal's mouth opened wide, showcasing a straight display of sharp, meticulously brushed teeth. Sweetie remembered the times where Rarity had Opal in a headlock with her magic, brushing the cat's teeth while she struggled for freedom. Of course her memory was cut sort by the looming threat that was about to eat with said pearly whites. The intoxicating smell of catnip wafted through Sweetie's nostrils. The unicorn was paralyzed in fear, staring into the abyss that was the maw of Opalescence. Opal leaned forward, and Sweetie's head was already inside of the mouth.

"Bad Kitty!" Rarity's voice boomed. Her voice as over dramatic as it usually was for scripted situations. Rarity telekinetically lifted Sweetie Belle away from Opal's mouth just before the cat closed it. Applejack followed behind and knelt down to lift the filly, grabbing the scruff of Apple Bloom's neck carefully. The red maned filly was whisked into the air reminding Apple Bloom of when she did the same.

"You should be ashamed, Opal! How could you eat my dear, cherished, adorable little sister!?" Rarity stretched out the details in as a belief that she was selling her performance. Sweetie Belle immediately felt safe in Rarity's grasp, and she believed Rarity's scare tactic.

"Don't worry, Apple Bloom. Your big sister's here." Applejack consoled, holding the terrified filly close to her. Applejack and Rarity cooed words of comfort to their scared siblings, leaving the orange pegasus on the floor.

"Aw come on! Don't leave me!" Scootaloo begged, chasing after them. But with their unfair size advantage, Rarity and Applejack left Scootaloo behind, completely forgetting about her. Scootaloo's pace eventually faded and she stopped to catch her breath. She kicked at the floor and muttered a few profanities directed towards the Apple family, Rarity, Sweetie Belle, and her rotten luck. Her curses were almost immediately interrupted by a low pitched snarling.

"Good kitty?"