Rat groaned as he blinked the sleep out of his eyes, shaking his head and glancing around. Surely they must be at the Everfree Forest by now.

“Isn’t this romantic…” He mumbled. “A little moonlit boat ride with a mare of my dreams. I can hardly believe my luck…”

The unicorn’s ears perked. The world around him was completely unrecognisable. The river had disappeared, the landscape had changed from a clear plain to an urban centre, and the boat, Sky and everything else had simply vanished into thin air. All that remained was a foggy street in Canterlot, long after the sun had gone down.

Rat got to his hooves, tail flicking from side to side nervously as he scanned the street, on the lookout for guards or...whatever had brought him here. As he peered into the fog, shapes shifted before him, taking the form of shadowy ponies and dark griffons before dissipating into nothingness again. In time, Rat began to wonder whether he was staring at something real or if he was making those shapes himself.

“Where the fuck am I…?” He whispered, ears splaying back as he stared deeper into the fog. Over time, the shapes changed into a more consistent form, taking the shape of a large stallion with a glowing blue horn.

“Stronghooves?” Rat ventured, taking a few tentative steps forward.

“Hello, Rat Racer.” Stronghooves replied, stepping out of the fog fully-formed. “I’m glad you could make it.”

“Well hey, you couldn’t keep me away.” Rat chuckled nervously. “Commute was a nightmare, though. So...I guess I’d better start with the obvious question. Am I dead?”

“No.” Stronghooves shook his head, smiling kindly. “You’re dreaming...in a way. This is a place where ponies’ minds are linked together by magic.”

“And it ain’t just coincidence that it’s you and me here, is it?”

“Clever boy.” Stronghooves chuckled. “No, you’re here for a purpose, and I’m going to endeavour to make that purpose clear to you.”

“How are you going to do that?” Rat cocked his head.

“As I said before, this is a place where ponies’ minds link, and that means that we can see each others’ memories.”

Rat put his hooves over his head, yelping. “Well back off, bub! What happened between me and that mare in Neighpon is nopony’s business but mine!”

Stronghooves put a hoof on Rat’s shoulder, snickering. “Oh, it’s okay Rat. I’m your friend. I’m not going to judge you for any mare trouble. However, I’m very interested in delving into your own memories to give you a little clarity.”

“Cla...clarity?” Rat frowned, standing back up again.

“No doubt you’ve acted on my advice about Sky.” Stronghooves said, trotting down the street with Rat in tow. “You know all about her little sister problem by now, don’t you?”

“I know about that and a few other things besides.” Rat replied pensively. “I read through Sky’s diary and found out all about what your mom and dad did to her. I...guess I have a few questions.”

“Fire away.” Stronghooves nodded, frowning himself. Some of this subject matter was clearly quite sensitive, but Rat pressed him regardless.

“What happened to make you abandon her when she was a kid?”

“I was worried that you might start with that question.” Stronghooves sighed. “I confess that it doesn’t paint me in a favourable light, does it?”

“Not exactly.”

Stronghooves fell silent as he led Rat up onto a little stone bridge spanning a small river, one of the many tributaries that fed into the monstrous waterfalls that ran off of the mountain. The huge stallion placed his forehooves on the balustrade, resting his head atop them as he stared into the water.

“The short answer is that I was tricked.” Stronghooves said quietly, as Rat joined him. “What did she tell you?”

“Well…” Rat mumbled, straining to remember what he’d read in her diary. “I read that you’d kept bringing her food after she got kicked out...that you protected her from everypony out there...then someday you just...disappeared…”

Stronghooves nodded. “My parents had caught me sneaking food out of the house to give to Sky, and they sat me down and had a long talk with me. Told me things I...I believed at the time. They were my mother and father. Why would they lie to me?”

“She got raped, Stronghooves!” Rat growled, grabbing the Captain’s shoulder and glaring at him. “That night, the night when you left her alone, she got caught by…”

“STOP!” Stronghooves interrupted, holding up a hoof and closing his eyes. “I know, I screwed up, and screwed up bad. I just...I don’t want to hear what happened to her…”

“It happened, Captain.” Rat said savagely. “You can try and block it out as much as you want, but because of your mum and dad, she got really badly hurt. You keep talking to me like it’s my job to make her better, but I dunno if I can do it.”

“I know.” Stronghooves nodded, voice growing more quiet. “It’s not fair of me to ask you to do that alone. That’s why I’m going to help you.”

“Help me? You mean with this whole mind-link magical bullshit, right?” Rat asked skeptically.

“Yeah.” Stronghooves nodded. “You and I are bound by the same thing. You want the Count’s little plot to end once and for all. You want a safe future with Sky. It’s not every day a burglar makes a friend, right?”

“N...no. Not really. I don’t...have...many…” Rat shook his head. “Look, I just met her, okay! I’ve only known her for a little over a week and you’re talking about me like I’m her soul mate!”

“I mean nothing of the sort.” Stronghooves said apologetically, shaking his head. “But you do like her, don’t you?”

“Well, yeah…” Rat admitted slowly. “She’s a nice mare in spite of everything, and she’s pretty fun, too. I can see myself being her friend. She’s just…”

“Damaged.”

“Broken.”

“And is that the reality that you are prepared to accept?” Stronghooves asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Not on your fucking life.” Rat grunted stoically. “She and I are a great team and we can do anything together. I just need a game plan.”

“And I’m here to give you that game plan.” Stronghooves smiled. “Have you ever heard the Air Force saying about making sure that your oxygen mask is on properly before you help your friends?”

“Yeah?”

“Well, you’ve got to mentally prepare yourself if you’re going to make things right with Sky. See the hard task ahead of you for what it really is.” Stronghooves said, giving Rat a hard look. “As not only a quest of compassion, but of personal redemption.”

“What do you mean, redemption?” Rat challenged.

“Rat…” Stronghooves said quietly, staring out over the stream again. “What happened to Fox Chaser?”

“I told you that it was a bad carriage accident. We both got out fine eventually.” Rat shook his head, looking out over the water as well. “Stop looking into it like it was something like what happened between Sky and Shadow.”

Stronghooves remained silent.

“It was!” Rat continued, compelled to fill the silence.

“So if we looked into your memory of what happened, unadulterated and unchanged, that’s precisely what we would see?” Stronghooves asked almost serenely, watching as a single twig floated down beneath them. “A sad story with a happy ending? A pony and his beloved little brother on a mission that went bad, the heroic elder unicorn digging the poor foal out of the wreckage of carriages and nursing him back to health?”

Rat nodded, defying the twinge of uncertainty that played about the back of his mind.

“Are you so confident that you’d be willing to show me?”

“I...guess I could, yeah…” Rat frowned, glancing across at the Captain. “But if you’re wrong, you drop it, okay?”

“Fine.” Stronghooves smiled, meeting his gaze. “But if I’m right, you’ll know for certain that the mission ahead of you is as much for your own wellbeing as it is for Sky’s.”

“Deal.” Rat grunted, holding out a hoof to shake Stronghooves’s.

The guard captain took his hoof gratefully, giving it a gentle shake as his horn flared. “Let’s look into your past, shall we?” He grinned, lifting Rat bodily off of the bridge.

Before the burglar could protest, Stronghooves flung him into the stream, far deeper than Rat could have possibly imagined. In but a moment, he was surrounded by black water, blotting everything out as he found himself enveloped, caressed...but not unable to breathe, strangely enough. As the initial panic of being so suddenly dropped into a body of water died away, Rat experimentally wiggled his hooves, his horn lighting up to give him some sense of perception, of connection to his own body. It was as if he had been left at the bottom of the sea, the pressure of the water certainly present around him, resisting his movements. And yet, strangely, he could breathe.

“What the fuck…” He burbled, nothing escaping his lips but a stream of bubbles.

Looks like that’s not going to work, then… He thought to himself, rolling his eyes.

Rat struggled to orient himself, twisting in the water as he tried to find something that he could consider “up.” However, as he turned and writhed, breathing heavily as if each inhalation might be his last, he found no point of reference. He was trapped.

Just as Rat was beginning to wonder how he was going to get out of this situation, he caught sight of a dim light, an indication that in this void there must be an exit, a way out. Rat kept his eyes on all-too-distant light, swimming furiously. He didn’t trust the water to remain breathable forever.

As it drew ever closer, the water around him became lighter, a school of fish swimming by his head as he focussed on breaching the surface. The water became less and less breathable by the second, and Rat found himself holding his breath and fighting the growing darkness around the edge of his vision. A large armoured hoof reached down through the water, and in his desperation, Rat took it.

“You took your time.” Stronghooves smiled brightly, pulling Rat out of the water and setting him down next to him.

“Yeah, well I took the scenic route.” Rat chuckled, spluttering and coughing up water. “So...where...are we?”

“See for yourself.” Stronghooves smiled, giving the smaller stallion a nudge.

Rat shook his shaggy mane to dry off just a little, peering up at the city before him. Soaring buildings towered overhead, reflecting the sunlight and practically blinding the ponies down below.

“Mane...Manehattan…” He muttered. He’d recognise his home city anywhere.

“Yes. Manehattan.” Stronghooves nodded. “A very important day in Manehattan. The day your life took a significant turn for the worse.”

“We’ll see about that.” Rat countered. “Come on, I know the way to the City Central Bank from here. You’ll see for yourself.”

“I’m sure I shall.” Stronghooves grinned, following behind him.

Rat led the captain away from the docks and into the city centre, down uniform, wide streets that made Canterlot look like a confused mess. The burglar threw back his head confidently as he strutted past a pair of mares, his friendly smile turning into a reproachful frown as they paid him no notice.

“The entities in this memory can’t see you.” Stronghooves explained helpfully.

“Could’ve told me that before I made an ass of myself…” Rat muttered.

“That wouldn’t have been anywhere near as funny.”

“Damn it, you are related to her, aren’t you?”

“Where do you think she learned it?”

Rat shook his head, shrugging Stronghooves off as he reached the bank. Instead of trotting towards it, however, he made his way across the busy street and into an alley opposite. Stronghooves followed with innocent curiosity.

The burglar came to a halt as he caught sight of himself, a version of himself from five years ago. His mane was far shorter back then, his coat better kempt than his older, wiser counterpart. Standing before him stood a young colt about fourteen years of age, eagerly putting on his burglar’s mask.

“Fox…” Rat the elder muttered, an unexplainable pang of guilt shooting through his head.

“Okay, so you know what to do when we get in?” Rat the younger asked.

“Go in there, scare the crap out of everypony while you blow the vault!” Fox nodded, grinning excitedly.

“That’s right.” Rat winked, grinning right back at his little brother. “Do that horn-flaring thing and everypony’ll get down on the floor before you know it. If anypony tries to be a hero, knock ‘em out and see if anypony else wants to have a go.”

“If ponies start getting riled up, I can only give you a few minutes tops.” Fox warned.

“I know. Don’t worry, kiddo. You and I’ll look out for one another. If you get in trouble, give me a shout and I’ll come running.”

“Because you watch my back…”

“And you watch mine.” Both Rats said at the same time.

“I love you.” Fox whispered, nuzzling Rat the Younger with a friendly, caring smile.

“I love you too, kid. Now come on, let’s get out there and pull off the biggest heist in Manehattan’s history.”

As the two brothers trotted out of the alleyway and pulled their hoods over their heads, Rat felt compelled to reach out a hoof and stop them. However, when he tried, it passed right through his younger self, like a ghost.

“This is a memory, Rat.” Stronghooves said quietly. “You can’t influence or change it any way. They can’t talk to you, they can’t hear you...and you can’t touch them. It’s like rewatching a security crystal feed.”

“Security crystals are sometimes wrong.” Rat argued doubtfully.

“Only when the footage is doctored.” Stronghooves countered.

The two stallions followed the burglars as they trotted their way into the bank, practically right on top of them as they both wove through fast-moving traffic.

“Dangerous street.” Stronghooves observed. “You chose the busiest road in Equestria’s biggest city for this job?”

“Makes it harder for the guards to get a decent perimeter up.” Rat the elder shrugged. “You try getting a platoon of guards through this mess. Manehattan drivers hate stopping for anything short of the end of the world.”

“Point taken. Of course, the traffic worked against you, didn’t it?” Stronghooves said softly. “You’re panicking, Rat Racer.”

“No, I’m not.”

“Of course you are. You’re not as convinced as you were when you first agreed to this. You’re not as sure that you’re right.”

Rat blinked. His throat suddenly felt very dry indeed. “I’m just...sick…”

“Yes, you are.” Stronghooves whispered. “But this is the first step to getting better.”

Rat shrugged him off, stepping into the bank with his younger self and his little brother.

“OKAY, GET THE FUCK DOWN, KIDS! THIS IS A ROBBERY!” Rat the Younger roared, snapping out his crossbow and loading a taser cartridge into it.

“Yeah, stick ‘em up, bitches!” Fox grinned, his horn flaring as the surprised ponies within backed away.

“YEAH, I...wait, no, Fox…” Rat explained patiently. “You’re not supposed to tell them to stick their hooves up if they’re down on the ground. How the fuck is that meant to work?”

“They could roll onto their backs?” The colt suggested, shrugging blankly.

“Fuck’s sake…” Rat the Younger breathed exasperatedly. “Okay, everypony get down, roll onto your backs and stick your hooves into the air...I guess…”

The confused patrons did as they were told, as Fox advanced on them with his horn practically burning through his hood. The incredible magical power he held sparked and crackled as he covered the hostages, leaving Rat free to vault the counter and trot into the back of the bank.

“This would’ve gone so well if it wasn’t for that asshole hitting the alarm.” The elder burglar commented as he watched his past self disappear around a corner.

“What’s the response time of guards in the Manehattan city centre?” Stronghooves asked curiously.

“Five minutes, but it takes them at least fifteen to bring breaching teams in. We’d only have to deal with a few responding officers.” Rat replied automatically, transfixed by the scene before him. Memories of the job came flooding back, filling his mind with doubt and adrenalin and...fear. The fear grew overwhelming and his ears flattened against his skull.

This isn’t right…

He was jolted from his thoughts by an alarm blaring throughout the whole museum, making Fox jump and loose a spell into the ceiling. Masonry exploded as the magic projectile struck the lovingly-chiselled marble, sending dust and chunks of rock tumbling down onto the hostages. Ponies got to their hooves and galloped for the door en masse, pushing the little unicorn aside and phasing through Rat and Stronghooves as the former glanced around in fear.

“What the hell happened?” Rat the Younger barked, charging out from the back of the bank.

“One of them must’ve hit the alarm!” Fox yelled back, struggling to be heard over the deafeningly loud klaxon.

“Shit!” Rat yelled. “Come on, kid! We’re getting outta here!”

“Right!” Fox yelled back, pulling up his scorched hood and galloping after his brother out into the city.

“You know, it’s not too late to admit that I’m right and save yourself some pain.” Stronghooves commented, as Rat the Elder looked after them.

“No.” Replied he, galloping as fast as he could to catch up to them. “I’ve gotta...gotta see this for myself.”

He stopped at the bank entrance, staring as the two burglars tore down the polished stone steps, right towards the rushing traffic below. Only a few guards stood in their way, but Fox blasted them aside with bursts of non-lethal magic. Rat saw his past self enveloped in an eerie white light, the weight-reduction spell he always used to run faster under duress. Fox was every bit as fast as his big brother, only a few metres behind him as the two tried to jump onto a moving carriage.

While Rat managed to stick the landing, the carriage was far too fast for Fox, who slipped on the edge and disappeared into the mass of heavy traffic. Rat the Elder looked away at the last second, his heart dropping into his stomach for the first time in five years as he heard a sickening crunch.

Both he and his younger self stood in shock for at least ten seconds as carriages crashed into one another, forming a twisted mass of shattered wood, bent metal and screaming ponies. In time, as feeling returned to his body, Rat the Elder began the long, slow walk towards the wreckage, every cell in his body screaming at him that Fox was gone forever, while a small part of him compelled him to check, to make sure, that it hadn’t happened.

“Rat...look at what happened to your poor little brother. Do you really think he could’ve survived that?” Stronghooves asked quietly.

“Yes...you don’t know him...you don’t know what he’s like…” Rat whispered, venturing closer. “He survived everything.”

“Everything but this.” Stronghooves said, walking with him as Rat approached the tangled mess.

“That’s not true, Captain.” Rat shook his head, walking through incorporeal carriages and ponies pulling one another free of the wreckage.

There, in the centre of it all, pinned underneath a broken carriage wheel, lay a little colt in a torn cloak, staring at nothing. His ribcage was shattered and indented underneath the weight of the vehicle. There was no way a pony could possibly survive injuries that severe.

“No…” Rat whispered. “I’ve gotta be remembering this wrong…”

“This is exactly as it happened, Rat Racer.” Stronghooves growled, putting a hoof on his shoulder. “Fox Chaser died at the scene. You remember pulling him out of the wreckage and hugging him as if it would change the past...but it didn’t.”

Rat stared on as his past-tense counterpart did just that, horn flaring as he blasted wood and metal aside in an effort to get to his little brother. Tearing the cartwheel aside, he clutched Fox tight to his chest, holding his lifeless form as he desperately tried to will life back into the young colt.

“I’m sorry…” Both Rats whispered simultaneously. “I’m so sorry…”

As he watched the scene unfold before him, Rat broke down into a sobbing fit, staring down at the asphalt as he tried to block out the sight of his lifeless little brother. Tears dripped down his face, disappearing into vapour as they struck the pavement. He stood there long after his past self had tossed Fox onto his back and galloped away, whimpering hollow promises to make everything okay again. Rat stood there in the silence of the fading memory, crying for his lost brother, the little colt who’d given his life meaning for such a long time.

“Do you believe me now?” Stronghooves whispered, breaking the lonely silence with a voice that seemed to come from everywhere at once.

“What the fuck have I done…?” Rat muttered weakly.

“You made a promise to watch your brother’s back and you failed...terribly.” Stronghooves growled, as Manehattan faded away to leave the two of them back on the stone bridge. “So tell me, Rat Racer. How can you judge me for failing my sister when you failed your brother?”

“I...didn’t...fail…”

“You failed.” Stronghooves insisted, walking in a slow circle around Rat as he wept. “You promised not two minutes before that job that you’d watch his back, the same way I promised that I would look after Sky, and you blew it! Don’t you see, Rat? You’re every bit as guilty as I am! You had one pony in your life, one little colt who gave it meaning and purpose, and he’s dead because you couldn’t watch him for two seconds!”

“I know!” Rat sobbed, squeezing his eyes shut and gritting his teeth as he bowed his head. “I could’ve caught him, or I could’ve made him lighter so he didn’t fall as hard, or...or…”

“Or you could have done any number of things that changed the future.” Stronghooves snarled. “But you didn’t. A little pony only just starting out in life is dead because of your inaction, your poor decisions, your inattentiveness! Do you really feel as if you can preach to me about taking care of those closest to you? Do you understand the guilt I’ve endured since that day? DO YOU?”

“Ye...yes!” Rat whimpered, backing away and bumping into the Captain’s chestplate.

“DO YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT IT IS WE’VE BOTH LOST?! THE LIE YOU’VE BEEN LIVING, ALL BECAUSE YOU COULDN’T ADMIT TO YOURSELF THAT YOU FAILED THAT BADLY?!”

“SHUT UP!” Rat shouted back, his voice the pitch of a terrified child’s. “I KNOW I FUCKED UP! IT WASN’T...IT WASN’T MY FAULT!”

“IT WAS YOUR FAULT!” Stronghooves roared, teleporting in front of him and backing Rat further into a corner. “THE JOB WAS YOUR IDEA, THE CALL WAS YOURS. FOX WAS JUST A CHILD! HE HAD NO REASON TO NOT FOLLOW YOU IN YOUR FOOTSTEPS! YOU TOOK A RISK AND NOW A PONY IS DEAD, AND HE’S BEEN DEAD FOR FIVE YEARS! DON’T EVEN TRY TO CLAIM THAT THIS ISN’T YOUR FAULT! THIS IS THE BIGGEST MISTAKE YOU’VE MADE IN YOUR WHOLE LIFE!”

Rat was struck speechless, curling up in the corner and letting out choked whimpers as he struggled to breathe through his sobbing.

Stronghooves watched him in this state for a time, cocking his head and regarding him with a curious, searching expression. Finally, a little smile appeared on his muzzle, his anger turning to understanding and compassion as he lay down next to Rat.

“It’s not fair, is it?” He whispered. “We do the best we can for our siblings. It’s our job as big brothers to look out for them, to keep them safe...and we’ve both failed. Ponies have gotten hurt because of those failures, and it’s important to account for them.”

“Why...why the fuck did you show me that?” Rat sniffed, after a long silence.

“Because you need motivation, Rat.” Stronghooves answered, tussling the burglar’s tattered mane. “You need to understand just what helping Sky means to both yourself and I, why we are alike, why we can - and should - work together in order to save her.”

“Why...why the fuck should I?” Rat whispered. “I’ve lost Fox...my own little brother...I feel so sick…”

“And he was the last thing you had in this world, the last pony who really cared for you...except one.” Stronghooves whispered.

“Sk...Sky...cares about me?” Rat sniffled, looking up at Stronghooves as a devastated son would at his father for guidance.

“Yes, she does.” Stronghooves smiled back at him, putting his heavy forehoof around Rat’s shoulders. “You and she have a great deal in common, you’ve both suffered loss and you’re both the last thing in this world that the other has left. In fact, I daresay the way she looks at you says a lot. It perhaps suggests that she likes you a little more than...well…just a friend.”

“It’s not gonna bring Fox back…” Rat whimpered.

“Nothing in the world can bring Fox back.” Stronghooves shook his head. “But perhaps, in a way, you can make peace with yourself by helping my sister with me. Sharing the load and being the two good stallions in her life, we can in some way undo the sins of the past.”

“I...don’t trust you…”

“Not yet.” Stronghooves sighed. “But in time, you will.”

“Just...leave me alone…” Rat sobbed. “I just wanna...sit here and think for a while, okay?”

“Well, that seems fair, but you know you’ll wake up when I leave. It’s quite an unpleasant awakening, too. I’ve seen it before.”

“Ye...yeah? From who?” Rat asked, wiping his eyes.

“Sky.” Said Stronghooves, as the dream world disappeared around them. “In fact...she’s been having dreams like yours for weeks now.”

Rat jolted awake, hooves scrabbling at the side of the boat as he tried to re-assimilate himself to the world of wakefulness into which he had been dropped. He rocked the little boat, smacking Sky around the head and punching her awake as well.

“Rat! What the fuck’s going on?” She yelped, scrabbling to get away from him in the limited space.

Still, Rat Racer thrashed about, and by the time he’d grown re-accustomed to his surroundings, it was far too late. The boat tipped over in the water, sending both ponies into the river with a heavy splash.

“Da...damn it!” Sky squealed, breaching the surface and trying to grip onto the keel with her hooves. Rat burst out of the water a moment later, tears streaming down his face as he gripped the boat with all of his might.

“I’m sorry…” He hissed through gritted teeth. “I’m so sorry…”

“It’s okay…” Sky frowned, reaching across and patting his shoulder. “I guess that’s one way to wake up in the morning, huh?”

Just for a moment, however, Rat paid her no mind. His eyes rested on the little raft downstream from the capsized boat, the raft upon which Shadow and Fox had sat not three hours beforehand. To Rat’s eyes, at least, it was empty, the two young ponies swallowed into oblivion forever.

“You’re pretty skittish today.” Sky observed, crossing her forehooves and laying down on the boat.

“Yeah?” Rat replied distractedly, wringing his tail out. “I...er...hadn’t noticed.”

“Rat…” Sky stared. “Don’t lie to me. Something’s the matter. I know it is.”

“Nothing’s the matter, Sky.” Rat shook his head, slumping down next to her. “I just had a bad dream, that’s all.”

“Yeah?” Sky cocked her head, pressing her soft wet nose to his cheek gently. “Well you know something? I spent years raising a compulsive liar, so I know when somepony’s stretching the truth, right Shadow?”

“Yeah!” Shadow called out from the raft, crossing her own forehooves and shuffling away from Fox sulkily. “Bitch never let me get away with anything…”

“I let you get away with a ton of shit!” Sky protested, though her attention was caught again by Rat gritting his teeth and splaying his ears back.

“Come on, Rat. Stop bullshitting me.” Sky said quietly, running her hoof through his wet mane and pulling it out of his eyes. “Something’s bothering you and I’m gonna help you fix it. We’re a team, right?”

Rat nodded silently, but said nothing more. Sky glanced up at Shadow, who shrugged.

“Sweetie…” Sky whispered. “When you went through my diary and found out about what happened to me, you said you were gonna help me make everything okay, right?”

“Yeah…” Rat nodded again, his voice dull and croaky.

“Well...sometimes...sometimes it’s okay to ask for help when you need it, too.” Sky continued slowly. “You’re a sweetie for saying you wanna be there for me, but if you really wanna make things okay, you’ve gotta open up to me, too.”

Rat remained silent a while longer, saying nothing but occasionally sniffing. When he finally looked up at Sky and met her gaze, there were tears in his eyes.

“Sky…” He said quietly. “We’ve gotta talk...about some shit that happened a few years ago.”

“Go on.” Sky pressed, nodding.

“Okay...er...shit...I’ve never really...told anypony about this…” Rat croaked. “I got...I made a huge mistake back around five years ago...and...you deserve to know about it…”

“Rat, whatever it is, I promise I won’t judge you.” Sky shook her head, nuzzling his cheek again. “Come on, what happened?”

Rat took a few deep breaths to calm himself, shuffling his forehooves awkwardly as he tried to put the story together in his head. “Okay...well...look...about five years back, me and Fox...we wanted to make big money together. You know, actually rock the boat, do something awesome, make some cash so we could hang out for the rest of our lives surrounded by beautiful mares and never have to work again.”

“Yeah.” Sky nodded, understanding completely. That had, after all, been the point of the Elements Job.

“Well...okay...we hit the big bank just off of Times Square.” Rat continued. “Big fancy place. Upscale, near a busy road. Loads of traffic.”

“Makes it harder for the guards to respond if anypony hits the alarm.” Sky nodded. “I guess somepony did?”

“Yeah.” Rat nodded grimly. “Fox kept an eye on the hostages while I went for the vault at the back of the bank, but somewhere along the way one of them must’ve hit the button, cause all of a sudden there were walls closing in all around me, screaming as hostages ran for it. We had to...run for our lives...and it...we had to abandon the job.”

“Once security’s been alerted, you’ve only got five minutes to finish the job, tops.” Sky smiled, wiping an errant tear off of Rat’s cheek. “Then what happened?”

“Well...Fox and I ran for it…” He shrugged. “Just like we had to. You remember how I told you we were near a busy street? Carriages everywhere, going really damn fast...and...Fox fell...and…”

Rat said nothing more, his face contorted into the Thousand Yard Stare as he looked into his own past, recalling the memory that Stronghooves had shown him and wrestling with it.

“He got hurt.” Sky finished for him.

“N...no…” Rat choked. “Sky...I...I think he died.”

Sky glanced up at Fox and Shadow, giving them both a very long look before fixing her gaze back on Rat.

“I know the memory hurts…” She whispered. “But Fox is still here, sweetie. He’s on that raft with Shadow. It’s okay...you both got out okay…”

“No...you don’t get it…” Rat shook his head. “I’ve been...living a fucking lie...for five fucking years. Pretending he was alive...so well that I started believing it myself. I watched him grow up...I watched him run jobs with me, play with me...fall in love...and I wondered...all the fucking time...why ponies sta...stared at me like that...and now...now I know…”

“Rat, he’s not gone.” Sky insisted. “I can see him right there…”

“You weren’t there, Sky.” Rat growled, squeezing his eyes tightly shut. “You didn’t see how fucked up his little body was...how...he’d stopped moving...stopped breathing...and I wished so hard that maybe he’d come back someday...that he’d put his little hoof on mine again…”

Sky glanced up at Fox again, meeting his watery little eyes. The young colt turned away from her, burying his head under Shadow’s wing and sobbing quietly himself.

“Rat…” Sky whispered softly.

“You can’t help me, Sky. Not like this.” He muttered. “You wanna do your best...and...and I get that...but he’s not here anymore...my little brother...is gone...forever...and it’s all my fucking fault…”

“Rat, whatever the hell you think happened, it wasn’t your fault.” Sky said quickly, putting a forehoof around his shoulders. “You’re a great big brother and an awesome burglar. You said it yourself. He fell. It was an accident, and you can’t blame yourself for shit that you can’t control. Yeah, maybe you think you could’ve done something, but the reality is that you couldn’t...because you would have done, right?”

“Ye...yeah…” Rat sniffled. “But...Sky…I...can’t see him anymore...he’s...gone…”

Sky’s ears perked as she heard a small whimper from the raft.

“Well...maybe...maybe you had a bad dream...or...or remembered something wrong…” Sky tried.

“No!” Rat insisted. “He’s gone, Sky! He’s gone forever! I’m never gonna see him again and the only reason I could see him before was because I was...too...afraid to...let...go…”

Sky felt cold all of a sudden, still unable to wrap her head around what Rat was saying. She gave him a gentle squeeze nonetheless, kissing him on the cheek. “Hey, Rat...don’t...don’t worry about it, okay? No matter what’s wrong, no matter how scared or sad or anything you are...I’m here for you.”

“You…” Rat muttered. “You got me into shit with...Tom...Tommygun...you fucked up my career, my front door, my hideout...my life…”

“Yeah, look...I’m sorry...I shouldn’t have ever brought you into all of this shit with the Operatives.” Sky sighed. “I’ll make it up to you, okay?”

“No…” Rat shook his head. “No...you don’t…you don’t understand…”

He took another few difficult ragged breaths, looking up at her with the frightened gaze of a tortured pony.

“You...changed everything...took me away from all of that...gave me something to do...gave me a fri...friend...a pony I could hold onto...so...I could...let Fox go…” He whispered, nuzzling her nose softly. “I...I guess I’m grateful.”

“Yeah, well...we’re still gonna get you your life back.” Sky smiled confidently. “Don’t worry, sweetie. Everything’s gonna be back to normal before you know it. You’ll see.”

“Things aren’t gonna be normal, Sky…” Rat shook his head, drying his tears. “Things are never...never gonna be normal again for you and me. We’ve got...so much fucking pain, both of us. I’m cut up about Fox...and you...I know what you’ve been through, what really happened to Shadow...you’re hurting over it, too…”

“This isn’t about me, Rat…”

“No. It’s about us.” Rat said stoically. “It’s about you and me and what we’re doing and what we can do...and it’s gonna be about being really brave and holding on tight to me...because...when you see the truth about Shadow...you’re gonna hurt...bad…”

Sky caught herself blinking back tears, squeezing Rat as tightly as she could in her weak, soft forehooves. In time, Rat’s quiet sobbing subsided, and he wrapped his hooves around her, too. The two ponies stayed like that for a long time, each loath to say anything to the other for fear of upsetting someone and driving them away forever. They simply hugged, drying their fur out over time as they waited for the sun to rise, and for the longest time it was unclear who was supporting whom. Rat carried with him the knowledge that his brother had passed away and he had wasted half a decade holding onto his memory. Sky herself carried a tempest of conflicting thoughts and memories, details of the Elements Job pushing at the edges of her mind as she tried to comfort him.

In time, Rat’s sobs turned back into soft little whimpers, and Sky held him all the tighter. She whispered in his ears, just repeating the words “It’ll be okay” and “Sshhh” over and over again like a mother cuddling a crying foal. Even if the words only went in one ear and out of the other, the soft, caring tone of voice calmed Rat down over time, returning him to a state where he was at the very least less hysterical.

“Sor...sorry…” Rat muttered after a long while. “I...didn’t...mean…”

“Hey.” Sky whispered, shaking her head and giving him a friendly squeeze. “You’re my buddy, Rat. We’re partners, and I wanna make sure you’re doing okay. No matter what you’re going through, we’ll work through it together, deal?”

“Ye...yeah…” Rat nodded. “But that’s the thing, Sky...it’s something you’re going through, too.”

“Come again?”

“Well...re...remember the Elements Job?” Rat asked, finally meeting Sky’s gaze again with tear-streaks down his cheeks.

“Yeah.” Sky nodded.

“Well, I think...Shadow...kinda...went the same way as Fox…” Rat said slowly. “And...and it’s not your fault…like you said...accidents happen, right?”

“Yeah...the Elements Job was kinda hard for both of us.” Sky smiled, exchanging a glance with Shadow. “But it ended...better...I guess. She was okay. She got out alive.”

“Sky…” Rat shook his head. “Think about what happened...how bad she got hurt...try and remember…”

“Rat, I know you’re cut up about what happened to Fox, but it’s okay. He’s alive and so’s Shadow. They’re safe, and they’re both here for you.”

Rat’s face fell, and he contented himself by snuggling closer to Sky and sighing. “Will you just listen to me? This is kinda important.”

“Rat...I think you’ve had a bad dream or something.” Sky said, gritting her teeth just a little as doubt crept into the back of her mind. She frowned, trying her best to dispel the feelings of guilt and upset.

It’s okay...just remember that she’s okay. She’s right in front of you. Rat’s just confused. Maybe Fox got hurt, and perhaps even killed, but Shadow’s alright. You can see her right there.

“No, Sky...look, just...listen…” Rat insisted. “Look, I dunno how to tell you this or how to make everything okay, but...she’s gone. She died during the Elements Job. You wrote it in your diary yourself. Look, I know you’ve been relying on Shadow to keep you going all this time, but...she’s gone. You’ve gotta believe me when I say she’s gone.”

“Rat...she’s right there.” Sky replied softly, placing a hoof on his shoulder. “Don’t worry about Shadow right now. Let’s just make sure that you can get back on your hooves. I get that you’re sad because of what happened to Fox, and sometimes I have nightmares where I remember what happened, too. Is that what happened?”

Rat closed his eyes and turned away, nodding.

“Okay.” Sky whispered, kissing him on the snout. “Yeah, I can understand that maybe it gets hard sometimes, but I promise that I’ll be here to make it okay, alright?”

“Yeah…” Rat replied, taking Sky’s forehoof in his own and squeezing it. “Thanks, sweetheart. I...we’ll deal with all of this shit together, you and me, right?”

“Exactly.” Sky smiled. “Look, I appreciate what you’re gonna do, and I know you’re looking out for me since you found out about the shit that happened a few years back, but we can deal with everything together once this job’s done, right?”

“Yeah...er...but there’s a condition.” Rat added. “You can’t keep deflecting me anymore. When we deal with this stuff together, we fucking deal with it. No more hiding, no more lies. We’re gonna take on everything together, you and me.”

“Yeah, sure, we can do that…”

“No. I want a promise.” Rat insisted, looking Sky in the eye and holding her hooves as tightly as possible. “Please, Sky. I’m gonna need your help, and I know you need mine, too. There’s a lot of shit that hurts you, shit you don’t wanna tell ponies about, stuff even you don’t understand...and you’ve been waiting for a pony like me to come along and help make it better.”

“What...what makes you think that?” Sky blustered, ears splaying back.

“Because I was, too.” Rat muttered.

Sky fell silent, the realisation that Rat really wasn’t that different finally hitting her. The idea of him undergoing the same struggles had occurred to her, but the nightmares, the unexplained feelings of guilt and self-loathing, the parallel accidents...for the first time since she’d met Shadow, Sky saw something in another pony...either a kindred spirit, or a stallion doing an incredible impersonation. When she looked into his eyes, she saw a mix of pain, confidence and the tiniest glimmer of hope there, a strange combination that twisted his face into a weak smile.

Does he really see the same stuff in me?

“Fine.” Sky said finally. “Fine. You...you win. We’ll work through all of this together once this job’s done. I promise.”

Rat stared into her eyes for a little longer, his smile widening. “That’s good enough for me.” He whispered, tucking her head under his own and nuzzling her fluffy white ears.

Sky sighed as she nuzzled his neck in turn, letting out an irritable little whinny as she settled down. She hadn’t prepared for this.

“Fox?” Shadow uttered quietly, spreading her primaries so as to peek under her wing at the inconsolable little colt.

Fox sat there, barely even moving, the tiniest occasional whimper interspersed amidst his heavy breathing.

“Fox…” Shadow whispered softly, laying down next to him and fluffing up her feathers to keep him warm. “Look...Rat probably didn’t mean that...he’s been acting crazy ever since he woke up…”

“Yeah, I know…” Fox squeaked. “But Shadow...he...he looked at me like...I wasn’t even there...he looked at me...just like everypony else does…”

“Well, maybe that’s just because you’re a good burglar.” Shadow suggested, her expression softening by the moment as she drew on the compassion she’d only ever shared with Sky. “He’ll come around, you’ll see.”

“Was...was that a...a compliment?” Fox snorted disbelievingly, wiping away some of his tears.

“Er...no! You would think that...you...you dumb-shit!” Shadow corrected herself hurriedly.

“Come on…” Fox muttered, giggling quietly. “You didn’t even put any effort into that one.”

“Yeah, well…” Shadow shrugged, huffing melodramatically. “I...can’t...maybe I just don’t want to put any heart into it while you’re all cut up like this…”

“Is that your sweet side talking?” Fox challenged, looking into Shadow’s eyes questioningly.

Shadow glanced away, her ears flicking and swivelling as she blushed. “Er…no...it’s just...the part of me that wants you to stop crying...it’s bad enough on this raft without you making it even wetter.”

Fox’s eyes drifted down to her forehooves, shuffling nervously underneath her body, and a tiny little hopeful smile crossed his face. “You always stop me crying. I don’t know how you do it, but...you make me smile. Thanks, Shadow…”

Shadow squeaked, pulling her free wing over her head and looking very pointedly at the other side of the river. “Well...er...great, I guess...and...maybe you make me smile too...er...a little…”

Fox cocked his head, his horn flaring as he pulled Shadow’s wing away from her face by magic. What he saw may well be the silliest, goofiest grin in Equestrian history.

“Oh, Shadow…” Fox giggled, snuggling up next to her and kissing her on the cheek. “You are sweet! I knew there was a nice pony underneath all of that grumpiness!”

“Yeah...well...maybe it’s Stockholm Syndrome or something.” Shadow chuckled noncommittally, struggling to control her smile. “You get stuck with an asshole long enough, I guess you start to...you know…”

“Like them?” Fox finished.

For a while, the only sound was that of running water as the two of them drifted down the river together. Cogs turned in Shadow’s head for what seemed like hours, as she struggled to find the right words to express how she felt about him.

In time, she raised her head, looking Fox in the eye as her smile faded. “Yeah.” She said simply.

Fox blushed, too, placing his forehoof on hers. “Well...that’s okay, Shadow. I...kinda like you, too…”

“Jeez, I didn’t notice.” Shadow snickered, looking down at their interlocked hooves and trying to ignore the burning sensation in her ears. “You were so subtle...trying to kiss me the night we met and everything…”

“Yeah...heh...I guess I kinda gave it away...er...a bit…” Fox whispered. “You’re not too mad, are you?”

“Nah, but you suck at kissing.” Shadow replied, resting her head on her free forehoof and staring out over the water. “I dunno what the hell it’s supposed to feel like, but it’s gotta be better than that uncoordinated crap you did.”

The two young ponies settled down next to one another, squeezing each others’ hooves a little tighter.

“I can try again, if you want.” Fox suggested, after a while.

Shadow’s ears perked, her head so close to the water by now that she was at risk of drowning herself. “Er...well...I dunno about...I mean, I guess you could...I...er...you need the practice...you...dumbass…”

Fox grinned, placing a hoof on Shadow’s cheek and turning her head towards him. As she stared into his eyes, she squeaked and whimpered softly, all of her image issues momentarily forgotten.

“You’re super-pretty, Shadow.” Fox whispered, leaning in and pressing his lips to hers.

Shadow’s eyes went wide, her whole body tensing up for a moment and her huge wings springing out completely. She’d done her best to mentally prepare herself in the few moments since he’d asked, but she’d never been kissed like this before. All of her training, all of her veneer and grumpiness and confidence abandoned her, replaced by one overarching realisation.

Wow, he’s shit at this…

As Fox finally pulled away, Shadow caught herself breathing far faster than she really felt she should, placing a hoof over her chest to check her pulse. Her heart beat faster than ever, a strange tingling feeling spreading across her entire body as she realised what had just happened.

“We...well…?” Fox asked warily. His horn glowed dimly in the half-light, evidently worried that he’d consigned himself to another surprise trip into the drink. Shadow, however, stared blankly at him.

“No.” She said finally. “That was crap. Like, absolute complete crap.”

Fox sighed, his whole body seemingly deflating as he made to lay his head down on the raft again. Shadow took his cheek in her own hoof, yanking his head back up again and forcing him to look into her eyes.

“You’re supposed to do it like this.” She whispered, kissing him back.

Sky and Rat lay together as the sun rose over the horizon, the clouds above dyed bright orange as the first light of day hit them. For just a little while, Sky’s fur was tinted gold as she stared out across Equestria.

“Huh…” She muttered. “We’re pretty close to the forest.”

“Yeah...about that…” Rat grumbled, opening his eyes and staring downriver. “So...this is the Everfree Forest we’re heading into, right?”

“Yeah.” Sky smiled brightly.

“Like, the Forest from which nopony has ever returned?”

“Well, there were these six ponies who did it a while back…”

“The Forest from which almost nopony has ever returned?”

“Well, if you wanna put it that way…”

“And you’re totally okay with doing this?”

“Well, not exactly…” Sky shrugged. “But do you wanna go up against the Operatives again? I mean, we can totally do that!”

“No no no no!” Rat cried hurriedly, waving his forehooves. “Come on, let’s not get hasty! I didn’t say I wanted to meet those guys again, but there’s gotta be another way, right?”

“Sure!” Sky nodded. “So, how else are we gonna get Poison Joke for these darts? Come on, I’m curious!”

“Well…” Rat frowned. “Er...we...we could…”

“Exactly.” Sky smiled. “Hey, look, it’s a big dangerous forest and there’s a lot of shit to look out for, but it’s like we said, right? We’re a team, and we can do anything together.”

Rat whimpered, nodding nervously. “Yeah...you’re right...we can do anything if we do it together. We’ve got this.”

As Sky patted him on the back encouragingly, the boat shook wildly. Water churned beneath them as their little vessel crossed the threshold into the Everfree Forest. Rat gave a soft squeak, cuddling up to Sky and giving her a slightly teddy bear-esque squeeze.

“Relax.” Sky smiled. “It’s nothing, sweetie. It’s like I said, you and I don’t have a damn thing to worry about, okay?”

“Yeah?” Rat quailed, lifting a forehoof and pointing further downriver.

As Sky followed his hoof, she gave a little squeak of her own. Straight ahead, the disturbed water churned and rushed around what looked at first to be a vast whirlpool that spanned the river. As Sky and Rat watched, a huge scaly something emerged from the very center of it. Two bright yellow reptilian eyes rested on the burglars as it reared up, a huge membranous crest spreading out from its lizard-like head to make it appear even bigger for its prey.

“Sky?” Rat said simply, as the monster opened its mouth to reveal a set of enormous, razor-sharp teeth.

“Er...yeah?”

“You were saying?”

Author's Notes:

Sorry guys, I finished the next chapter and decided that it worked better as an edit to this current one.