Titanic: Ponified

Chapters

The Ship of Dreams
The Flowers of Romance
The Lights Go Out
The Ship of Nightmares
The Final Hour
Epilogue: The Days After
The Tickets

The Ship of Dreams

Chapter 2: The Ship of Dreams

"Sweet Celestia," Rarity breathed. "It's magnificent."

Beside her, the others could only nod. Bearing down upon them, in all of it's glory, was the RMS Titanic. In the papers, they had simply described the ship as 'a lean, mean sailing machine'. Whoever wrote that article, thought Rarity, left a few details out. Though she had heard that the Titanic was the largest ship ever built, she hadn't expected this. The ship rose out of the water, and towered over the six mares as they approached the loading dock. From their viewpoint, the ship took on the appearance of a giant black ax-head. It was streamlined, and the deck towered 50+ feet above them. Not much else could be seen from her viewpoint, however, and Rarity resigned herself to wait for their tickets to be excepted and to be boarded onto the ship.

Applejack waved to the taxis that had brought them there. "Thanks fer lettin' me and mah friends stay with ya, Auntie Orange! Ah'll make sure ta write!" An orange-maned mare waved from inside the taxi before it sped off back towards the city streets.

Pinkie Pie was bouncing up and down with excitement, looking between the ponies lined up at the docks to see the ship off. "Ohboyohboyohboyohboyohboy! It's finally today! We're gonna have sooooo much fun! Right, Dashie?" She turned to her rainbow-maned friend, who was staring up at the prow of the ship. She mumbled something under her breath and shook her head in frustration. She turned to the pink mare. "Yeah, if we ever get on the ship!" She turned to Twilight, who had been reading a brochure on the cruise the entire time. "How long until we get on?"

The purple unicorn didn't look up from her brochure as she answered. "Rainbow, I already told you. The ship's crew will start boarding as soon as it's convenient. They're probably checking the ships engines for any faults." She started walking towards the loading dock, magically pulling her luggage behind her. It appeared as though she had brought half of her library with her, as most of her luggage had the label "Books" on them. No one bothered to point out how unnecessary it was to do so, as they knew how important Twilight's books were to her.

Rainbow Dash sighed impatiently. "They don't need to check the engines," she droned. "If the engines had any chance of failing, then the ship wouldn't be allowed to sail, would it?" Twilight looked up from her brochure, first at the ship, then at Rainbow Dash. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but decided against it, and instead gestured to the docks. "Let's check if they're ready to board." She started walking again, leaving her luggage behind.

"Er, Twilight?" Applejack said. "Aren't y'all fergettin' somethin'?" Twilight turned and sighed angrily. "I keep forgetting that Spike isn't helping me with my luggage!" In the weeks that followed Twilight's tea party, Spike had grown distant with his friends. He stayed locked up in his room for hours at a time, only coming out to grab a book or a random object. Twilight had also caught him sneaking out at night more than a few times, and each time he was caught he seemed more and more annoyed at her than before. Though he had agreed to come to Manehatten the night before the ship sailed, he declined as politely as he could when Twilight asked if he would see them off at the docks. "Sorry, Twilight," he said, chewing on a ruby at dinner that night, "but I've got something really important to do tomorrow." He had gotten up from the table, run up to his room, and come back down with a small bag slung over his shoulder. "I'll see you when you get back." Before Twilight could say anything, Spike had opened the door and stepped outside shutting the door behind him.

The next morning, he was gone. A note he had left explained that he was needed back in Ponyville, though none of them knew what he meant by that. Twilight had assumed that he was still angry about not being able to come with them on the cruise, and that the note was an excuse not to face them when they left.

How odd, thought Rarity as she moved her own luggage towards the loading area. Admittedly, she, like Twilight, had taken her passion with her, bringing an entire wardrobe in several heavy trunks. Rainbow Dash had described it as 'A Busboy's Nightmare', which had sent Pinkie into a fit of giggles. Rarity had responded with a simple reason. "You never know what the evening may call for." However, what she would be wearing for dinner that night was far from being the biggest thing on her mind. For the second time, she found herself unable to stop thinking about Spike. Is he angry at me? Did he hear what I had said at Twilight's house? Or is he simply jealous of our good fortune?

The questions were driven from her mind as the sound of a foghorn blasted through the air. A large, burly earth pony trotted over to a ticket booth, and began to speak.

"FILLIES AND GENTLECOLTS! IT IS MY GREAT PLEASURE TO ANNOUNCE THAT THE RMS TITANIC IS NOW READY TO BE BOARDED!" He paused to allow the surge of cheering to pass over him. "WE WILL BE ACCEPTING FIRST-CLASS PASSENGERS NOW. ALL PONIES WITH A FIRST-CLASS BOARDING PASS, PLEASE MAKE YOUR WAY TO THE LOADING DOCK. FIRST-CLASS, PLEASE." He set down the megaphone and trotted over to a large green platform surrounded by railing. Closing the gateway he had walked through, he pulled a lever to the side. The platform rose up slowly, making its way to the prow of the ship.

Wow! thought Twilight as she and her friends made their way through the surging crowd towards the boarding area. What an inventive way of transporting ponies and their luggage! They must have made that specially for the Titanic! Of all the things she had looked up about the ship, she was most interested in how it would pass through the reported ice floes passing through their cruise route. Looking at the bow of the ship, she noted that the streamlined design of the ship would allow it to maneuver through the floes. Besides, she thought to herself, the ship has been guaranteed to be 'unsinkable'. The captain would never let that name be tarnished! She slowed as she arrived at the ticket check. The mare checking the tickets was staring with distaste at a ticket, a nervous looking unicorn sitting off to the side, sweating profusely.

Twilight was about to get the ticket checker's attention when she suddenly flung the ticket at the sweating unicorn in a flurry of anger "GUARDS!" she shouted. "WE HAVE A FALSE TICKET HERE!" The unicorn flew into a panic as two large pegusi appeared out of the crowd and began to reach for him. "No! Wait!" he started babbling about being framed and having been given the ticket by a stranger as he was hauled of to Celestia knew where.

"Huh," Twilight mumbled. "Tough security." Turning around, she saw her friends all staring intensely at their tickets, trying to find something that looked out of place. Rolling her eyes, she stepped up to the ticket checker. "Hello," she said, pulling put her ticket. "My friends and I have several rooms reserved." The ticket checker looked at the ticket, scanning it for any apparent flaws as accurately as before. For a few seconds, she din't move, and Twilight imagined being carted of to a jail cell for falsifying a ticket. Then the ticket checker smiled, tore a stub of the ticket off, and handed it back to Twilight. "That all seems to be in order. Welcome aboard the Titanic. Please wait with your luggage on the raising platform.

Twilight sighed with relief as she moved past the gate towards the once again lowered green platform. She stepped onto it and looked back. Fluttershy was having her ticket examined, and was hiding partly behind Rarity, who was to lost in thought to notice. Looking around the platform, Twilight noticed that there were hardly any ponies on the platform. Wow! We're going to be the first passengers on board the ship! What an honor! I wonder if we get to meet the captain? Her thoughts were interrupted as she noticed a beige unicorn standing in the corner of the platform. He had a short, red mane, and his cutie mark was a cube made out of three interlocked gears. He had a camera around his neck, and was holding a pad and pencil up with his magic. He had been staring at her with wide, teal eyes, but when Twilight looked over at him, he jumped and dropped the notepad. His pencil rolled over to Twilight, and she giggled. The unicorn blushed, but didn't budge, instead looking over at the false ticket unicorn, who was still being dragged around by the two guards. He jumped again when he noticed that Twilight had picked up his pencil and notepad and brought it to him.

"Here. I think you dropped this. Sorry about scaring you."

A silent nod, and he took the pencil from her.

"Are you reporting about the ship? I'm-"

"I know exactly who you are, Twilight Sparkle." The sudden volume change in the unicorn's voice startled Twilight, and she took a step back when he stepped forward. "My team and I have covered you and your friends for a while now." His previous nervousness had completely vanished as he stuck out a hoof. "I'm Sethisto, chief editor of The Equestria Daily. You can call me Seth, though."

"Oh," was all Twilight could say as a wave of relief passed over her. He hasn't been stalking me, he's just a newscolt. And a handsome one at that. The thought had just passed through her head before she realized she was staring at his flank. No! Bad eyes! She quickly looked up at him and shook his hoof, hoping her stare had gone unnoticed. It apparently had, and Seth turned to his luggage and put away his notepad. Tucking the pencil behind his ear, he floated the camera up to his eyes. "You wouldn't mind a picture, would you? It would be great for the papers. 'The Element of Magic, First On Board!' How abou-" He stopped. His camera fell back around his neck, and he stared past Twilight.

Turning, Twilight saw her friends stepping onto the platform. Waving to them, they came over to her, leaving their luggage where it was.

"That ticket lady had it out for me, I tell ya!" Rainbow Dash's complaints were being pushed into the ears of an unwilling Applejack, who seemed ready to buck her like an apple tree. Rarity turned to Dash, a look of annoyance on her face. "Of course it seemed that way," she said. "The way you were acting probably made her wonder how anyone let you have a ticket for the ship at all, let alone a first-class ticket! " She turned to Twilight. "Sorry for the wait, darling. Rainbow here decided to have a nice chat with the ticket checker, and we had to keep her from tearing of her wings. I hope-" She stopped, noticing Sethisto for the first time. The news reporter's jaw had dropped, and he was staring at them like a little filly looking at at pile of birthday presents. He stuttered. "T-they're all h-here..."

Twilight turned to him, realizing she had forgotten about him. "Oh, I'm sorry! Rarity, this is Sethisto! He's a reporter here to write about the ship!" Rarity held out a hoof, and, unlike with Twilight, leaned down and kissed her hoof. Rarity blushed, and Twilight went wide-eyed. What was that? she almost screamed it out loud. Why Rarity? What made her so special? Why not me? She stopped when she realized what she was thinking. Why do I care?

While lost in her thoughts, Twilight hadn't noticed that Sethisto had begun conversing with the other five mares as the platform was filled with more ponies and their luggage. She came back to reality as the platform jolted and began rising up to the deck of the ship. Pinkie began bouncing again, bumping against several other ponies in doing so.

"Oh boy oh boy! Here we go! Off on our grand adventure!"

"Uh, Pinkie? You know the ship isn't sailing yet, right?"

---------------------------

"My goodness! Look at these rooms!"

Twilight stared at the luxurious suite before her. The walls were a deep ruby red, with golden patterns covering them from floor to ceiling. The ceiling itself followed this pattern, with small light fixtures hanging down from the corners. In the center of the room stood a large oak table, preset with what appeared to be a complete breakfast. A chandelier hung over the main table, crystals hanging down by the hundreds. A chest of drawers stood at the far end of the room, with paintings and small sculptures adorning the top. The silken rug looked like something out of a ninth century Neighponese throne room.

Stepping inside, Twilight and Rarity tried to take in everything at once, finding it all but impossible. Trotting over to a door, Twilight looked in and found the bedroom to be even more luxurious than the main room. Two large canopy beds stood facing each other from other sides of the room. Another, larger rug lay in the center of the room, a large decorated disk resting in front of a massive fireplace. A mirror stood above it, reflecting the entrance the the washroom. Twilight was speechless.

Rarity appeared beside her. "Oh Twilight, aren't they wonderful? These are the most comfortable looking rooms I've ever seen! I already feel at home!" She was giggling and acting extremely unlike herself. I guess this is would be the kind of thing to get her excited. Twilight strolled over to the far bed, and placed her suitcase on top of it. "Don't you find it strange," she said, opening the suitcase and removing a hair brush, "that our room is not only next to Pinkie and Dash's, and Fluttershy and AJ's room, but that Seth is staying across the hall from us?"

The white unicorn chuckled. After the platform had taken them up to the deck of the ship, Sethisto had left (after several shots of the girls, just the unicorns, Twilight by herself, Rarity and Applejack, more, more, more!), only to meet up with them when they had found their rooms. "It seems to me, dear Twilight," Rarity clucked, turning to her violet roommate, "that you were the one who seemed the happiest of all of us that dear Seth was staying across from us. In fact," she tapped her chin, pretending to be thinking deeply. "I do believe it was because of this development that you chose the room directly across from him." She looked at Twilight, a smug smile appearing on her face at the sight of Twilight' blush. She trotted over to her and took Twilight up in her forelegs. "Oh, I knew it! From the moment I saw your face after he kissed my hoof, I knew that you liked him! You're head over hooves for him, aren't you?"

Twilight twisted out of Rarity's grasp and turned back towards the bed. She was desperately trying to hide her growing blush, and began unpacking herclothes, pretending to search for a closet at the same time. "I'm sorry, Rarity," she knew she couldn't pull it off, but she tried anyway. "but I don't know what you mean." She realized her mistake too late as she felt a pair of hooves pull her from the bad and turn her to stare into two deep pools of azure. She could feel Rarity probing inside her head as they stared into each others' eyes. She managed to push herself away, leaving a frustrated Rarity behind her.

"Twilight Sparkle! If there is anything I know other than the art of the dress, it is when a pony has found love! And if you think that you can make me believe that you have not fallen in love with Sethisto," Rarity walked over to Twilight and grabbed her again, this time moving Twilight's head close to her own. "You. Are. Mistaken." She punctuated each word by moving her face that much closer to Twilight's.

She gave in. With an angry sigh, Twilight let herself fall back onto the bed. "All right! All right! I'll say it! I think Seth is... is..." She paused, looking up at the underside of the canopy. Rarity leaned over her and raised an eyebrow. Twilight rolled over, avoiding her gaze. "... I think he's sexy!" She grabbed a pillow and began yelling into it.

Rarity squealed and jumped on the bed next to Twilight. "Oh Twilight! I knew there was somepony out there for you! Somepony who could take your mind off books and studying and-" She was taken aback by the sight of Twilight lifting her head off her pillow, tears forming in her eyes. She started to cry as she spoke again.

"B-but that's just it! I can't th-think of anything but him! I h-haven't been able to f-focus on anything since he k-kissed your hoof..."

Rarity wrapped her forelegs around her friend's waist and pulled Twilight into a hug. "There there," she comforted Twilight as best as she could. "This really is your first time feeling this way, isn't it?" She looked Twilight in the eye, and when she nodded, Rarity sighed and got off the bed. "Tell me everything you're feeling right now. Yes, everything," she said, answering Twilight's questioning look.

Twilight sniffled, then laid down on the bed again. "There's nothing else that'll work, is there?" Seeing Rarity shake her head, Twilight sighed and looked up at the canopy. "Fine. When I first saw him, he didn't leave any mark on me. He was nervous, and I had to coax him into taking his pencil back. But then when I tried to introduce myself to him, it was like he had changed into a completely different pony. He was nice, social, and apparently a huge fan of me. Me. Then I found myself staring at his flank, and when he kissed your hoof, I just wanted to push you off of the platform. I... I... I really am attracted to him. And it isn't just sex, if that's what you're thinking." She looked up at Rarity, who was rubbing her chin, lost in thought. Looking at Twilight, she said, "I never thought that, dear. Continue," and shut her eyes again.

Twilight did so. "I guess this is how Fluttershy feels whenever she's around Big Macintosh. It's like suddenly the only pony who's opinion matters is his and I need to hear it and feel it and-and taste it..." she stopped and let out a long sigh. Twilight felt at peace. Rarity was right, she thought. This is the only way to relieve the stress of it all. Sitting up, she wiped the remaining tears off of her face. Rarity opened her eyes and smiled. "There," she said, heading towards the bedroom door. "I bet you feel much better now, don't you?" Twilight nodded.

"Good." Rarity moved into the main room and began moving her many suitcases around, opening them and setting up their contents around the room. "Now, to tell him." Twilight, who had followed Rarity into the room, stopped and stared at her in disbelief.

"Rarity, I can't just go over and tell him!"

"Of course not, dear."

"Then what do you mean, 'tell him'?"

"At the ball."

"The ball?"

"Don't tell me you've forgotten!" Rarity pulled out dress after dress, tying to find a specific one for the masquerade ball that was to be held that night. She had spent a full 24 hours on the dress designs for that night only, trying the most mysterious, most alluring designs she could think of. In the end, they had come out as perfectly as she could imagine. She turned to Twilight, still sorting the dresses. "Did you?"

Twilight laughed. "Of course not! I just don't think that-"

"Good," Rarity said, turning back to the dresses. "You aren't supposed to think when you're in love."

Twilight opened her mouth to argue, but something in the back of her head told her not to. Instead, she hung her head and said, "Alright. At the ball. Should I go get the dress for it?"

Rarity turned to her. "That's an excellent idea, Twilight. I may have to make some adjustments if you really want to 'wow' Seth. Bring it here."

Twilight sighed, resigning herself to a higher power (if Rarity could be called that) and went back into the bedroom to find her ball gown.

----------

Rainbow Dash was panicking. She was holding onto Pinkie Pie as tightly as she could. Though she hated to admit it, she had developed a fear of being crushed after her attempt to find the perfect pet for herself. In the final test, she had trapped herself under a boulder, and had become traumatized from the experience. She had returned unscathed physically, but the mental and emotional toll had left her with a crippling fear of tight spots. At the moment, the large crowd that had gathered on the ship's railing was not assisting her in forgetting the experience. The only thing that kept her sane was the comfort of holding onto her pink friend as they made their way through the crowd to the bow of the ship.

"Pinkie?" Her voice was no more than a squeak. "Why are we doing this? The ship doesn't need us to be here for it to sail." She was pulled up to a railing, and looked out at the pier below.

"There," said Pinkie Pie, appearing beside Dash. "That's why."

Rainbow Dash couldn't believe her eyes. This ship really is the biggest thing talked about! Displayed before her was an enormous crowd of ponies, all waving to the passengers. Some had cameras, others had signs with messages on them (HI STEVE!; MAZELTOV!; GIVE ME BACK MY TICKET, 'SCOTCH!), and still more were simply screaming up at them, as if expecting their shouts to be heard by the passengers. Rainbow turned to Pinkie. "Okay,' she admitted. "This was worth it." Pinkie grinned at her.

They both jumped when the sound of the ship's foghorns blasted out across the pier, signaling that the ship was ready to depart. The world around them exploded into cheers as the sound of the engines starting alerted the crowd of the coming spray from the propellers. Dash's fear suddenly resurfaced as a surge of ponies pushed her up against the railings. "Oh no oh no oh no oh no oh noooo-" Her panicked breaths were pushed out of her as she felt her boy weight shift. Something behind her was lifting her over the edge. It was at that moment that she lost control of herself. "NOOOOOO!" She tried flapping her wings, but they wouldn't listen to her. She was falling, falling over the edge towards the propellers below...

Then a hoof was grabbing hers, and the falling stopped. Rainbow looked up into two frightened blue eyes. Pinkie Pie pulled Rainbow Dash back up the side of the ship. Dash came flying over the side, landing on top of Pinkie Pie. She simply laid there on top of Pinkie, staring into her eyes. Pinkie was on the verge of tears. "Dashie..." Dash couldn't even call it whispering. "I'm so sorry..." Her forelegs rested around Dash's neck, and suddenly she realized. Oh Celestia, no. Not now.

Not now.

She couldn't take it. Shutting her eyes to avoid Pinkie's, Dash pulled herself off of Pinkie Pie and flew out of the crowd, trying desperately to get to a safe place.

"Dashie, wait!" Pinkie ran through the crowd, following the rainbow trail as the ship began to pull out of the harbor. Looking back at the crowd, she saw no turned heads. No one had noticed anything.

Rainbow Dash flew through the hallways, not caring if she hit anyone. Fly. Fly. Find the room, get in bed and hide under the covers. She knew she had to apologize, but she dreaded the thought of talking with Pinkie Pie after the moment they had just shared. Ruined it. Gone and ruined it. Stupid, stupid, stupid. She found her room and dashed inside. Rushing to the bedroom, she pounced on the bed and started to cry into a pillow.

The door opened again.

No.

Closed again.

No.

The sound of hoofsteps.

Please.

A breathing on her neck. A voice in her ear.

"Dash. We need to talk."

-------------

"Uh, Rarity?"

"Yes, Twilight?"

"I don't think I'm gonna be able to find Seth here."

Looking out at the party before them, Rarity almost agreed with her. Apparently, this was the only event on the cruise that allowed passengers from all classes to come together for. It seemed that the entire ship had been stuffed onto one part of the deck, and it appeared that ponies were threatening to spill over the sides of the ship. The waters were calm, but the ship was tilted from the concentration of weight at the bow of the ship. Turning to Twilight, Rarity gave her a reassuring smile. "Twilight, I can tell that you're nervous. I'm certain that I would be too, if I had fallen for somepony."

But it isn't and it won't be.

She led Twilight down the steps to the main area of the ball. Speaking to Twilight again, Rarity calmly reassured her that Sethisto would be 'charmed out of his mind'. Twilight didn't seem any more reassured by that. Eventually, Rarity stopped trying to keep her calm, and let her snatch up a glass or two of wine. She herself began enjoying a glass of champagne when she noticed a familiar face in the crowd. Turning Twilight's head, she whispered in her ear. "Looks like he found us."

Trotting over to the drink table Seth was located at, Twilight and Rarity were both surprised by his unflattering getup. Sethisto was wearing only a dark red cloak, a black top hat, and a pair of glasses that changed his eyes. Rarity found herself wondering what Twilight had ever seen in him. Twilight, however, didn't seem to care, or even notice, simply walking right up next to him.

"Sethisto, darling! How good to see you! I must say your mask looks quite dashing on you!" She ignored the poisonous look from Twilight, and walked to the other side of him. Her distaste with his outfit was hidden by the cheery greeting, and he grinned. "I think you two are missing yours." He levitated over a pair of masks, appropriately violet and sapphire colored to match there eyes. Handing a mask to Rarity, he laid Twilight's directly over her eyes, adjusting them himself. "Perfect," he said, making final adjustments with his hoof. Twilight was blushing madly, and Rarity knew she couldn't mess up her chances. Sipping her champagne nonchalantly, she sidled off to the side, leaving the unicorns to talk. They didn't even notice her leave.

Rarity giggled as she made her way through the crowd. Oh Twilight, she said to herself. Don't mess this one up. You need him. She suddenly stopped, and turned. She felt as though something was off, that somepony was watching her, or Twilight, or following them. She began to study the faces around her. All of them were covered by some form of mask, some small, some large, some fanciful, some plain. She was about to begin backtracking when a voice called out to her.

"Rarity? Is that you?"

Turning, she spotted the source of the voice. Oh thank goodness, she thanked Celestia in her head. Someone I can talk with whom I know. She walked over to the stallion, who had begun walking towards her himself. His pristine white coat clashed with his dashing black suit, and his hat (Top hats must be in this time of year, thought Rarity) hid his mane well. But it was his cutie mark, and unmistakable trio of crowns, that gave his identity away.

"Dear Rarity!" Fancy Pants threw a foreleg around her neck as they met, holding a glass of wine in the other. "It's so good to see you again! You haven't written or visited in weeks! We simply must chat! Come along now."

Rarity blushed. "I'm terribly sorry, Fancy Pants. I've been extremely busy these past few weeks. Had to make a whole wardrobe for five of my friends after I learned that we would all be taking a little vacation here on the ship. Weeks can go by so quickly when you're working. You know how it is." Fancy Pants nodded as he brought her over to a table with three other ponies with her. "Oh, of course," he said, sitting her down across from him.

Fancy Pants straightened himself up in his seat. "Well," he said. "I do believe introductions are in order. Rarity, you're already acquainted with my darling Fleur." The dreamy-eyed unicorn sitting next to him waved a hoof at her and smiled. Rarity nodded back at her. Fancy Pants turned to the unicorn next to him. "This young fellow is my old friend, Tuxmond Gold." The unicorn nodded, and reached out a hoof. Rarity took it reluctantly, finding herself put off by his eyes. They were a shade of yellow that reminded her of Discord's. He shook her hand roughly, speaking in a hardy, deep voice. "Ms. Rarity. I've heard so much from Pantsy about you."

Fancy Pants turned to Gold. "I told you not to use that name anymore, Tux. My college days are over. I am a man of respectable quality now." Rarity had a hard time imagining Fancy Pants as a college party colt, but still, it would not be the strangest thing to hear all night.

Now Fancy Pants had turned to the last one, another unicorn who sat next to Rarity. "Now this handsome fellow here, he's a rare one. Young stallions these days are spoiled by their looks, but he's been gifted with the most charming of personalities. Why, I only met him today, and I feel like I've known him all my life. Oh, but I still haven't introduced him. Rarity," he said, flourishing a hoof for dramatic effect, "this is Jack."

Turning to him, Rarity was shocked. Unlike the other stallions at the table, this one had kept his mask on, a brilliant ruby-red display of flames that sparkled in the candle light. The mask clashed with his deep blue coat (The same as my eyes, she noted), and reflected beads of red light onto the tablecloth. His eyes shone out from behind the mask, only the pupils showing from behind it. He was staring intensely at her, and when she extended an uneasy hoof towards him, he took it in his own and kissed it, never breaking eye contact. Rarity was taken aback by his forwardness, not unlike Sethsito's, but she found his to be more... alluring. He released her hoof, not breaking his gaze into her eyes. He tipped his hat, revealing a flash of a dark green mane.

"Milady." His voice was lighter than the others, and Rarity was stunned by the gentleness of it. He sounded like a close friend, somepony she had known for years, and yet he was so alien to her. Jack did not break eye contact, and Rarity found herself unable to take her eyes from him herself. This did not go unnoticed by Fancy Pants, and he slowly broke into a smile. "Aha!" His outburst forced Rarity's head to snap back to him, though she could still feel Jack's gaze falling on her.

Fancy Pants continued to smile. "I knew it! I knew I had met someone perfect for you, Jack! I told you, didn't I? I just needed to remember her name. It must be fate to have met here, on the Ship of Dreams. You simply must dance together!"

Jack mumbled something, then suddenly snapped back to reality, finally taking his gaze off of Rarity. "You know what?" his voice seemed to have changed to a more energetic, 'Pinkie Pie-ish' tone, surprising Rarity. "That sounds wonderful." He turned to Rarity adn extended his own hoof. "Would you care to dance, Miss Rarity?"

Taken aback, Rarity paused for a few seconds. Warning lights had gone off in her head, telling her to say no. But something was making her ignore the lights, pushing them back to the far reaches of her head. Just this once, she thought, and, smiling, accepted his hoof and said, "I would love to, Mr...?" She waited.

He laughed. "Just Jack, please." He took her hoof and moved out onto the ballroom floor (if the deck of the ship could be called a ballroom), leaving a beaming Fancy Pants and an uncomfortable-looking Tuxmond Gold behind. Fancy Pants sighed, and leaned against Fleur de Lis. "Did you recognize it, darling? The look in their eyes?" He turned and pecked her on the cheek. "Just like us, all those years ago." Fleur nodded, and nuzzled against her husband lovingly.

Rarity felt like she was underwater as she trotted along with Jack. She felt the same as she did in her dreams of Prince Blueblood before the dream had come crashing down on her. This time, however, she showed no signs of waking up. Jack stepped into place, rearing up on his hind legs expertly, and pulling Rarity up with him. He placed his head near her ear and whispered, "Just follow my lead."

She had not even heard. Her legs moved with his, and he wrapped his forelegs around her waist as they settled into a comfortable step, moving with the music. Stay calm, Rarity. He'll turn out like Blueblood. Using his looks to try and steal a kiss from me. Or worse. But Rarity did not trust herself anymore. She was not sure of anything around her, and she thought she could hear music in the back of her head.

Then their eyes met again, and suddenly she couldn't move. Her legs locked up, and Jack was now dragging her around the dance floor. losing her balance,she let Jack hold her weight, and it sent them both onto the ground. Rarity's mask fell off, adn she was suddeny wishing that anything except that had fallen off. She could feel every pony on the ship with their eyes on her and the stallion she was lying on. Whispers traveled to her ears:

"Poor boy. Picking up a drunk like that."

"Somepony had one too many."

"You'd think they wouldn't allow drunkards like them on board."

She got up and, without looking at Jack, Fancy Pants, or any of the other ponies there, ran up the stairs and out towards the rear of the ship. A dazed Jack got up, looked down at the mask, and, swearing under his breath, ran after her.

Looking at him run off to find her, Twilight looked about to go after her. Sethisto stopped her. "I think he's got it handled." Looking at him, Twilight smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I do hope she's OK, though. I don't want the cruise to be ruined for her on the first night."

Seth laughed. "Rarity? The Rarity that talked your dragon friend out of a greed-growth problem? I think she'll be fine." He lloked around. "Say, aren't your other friends here, too?"

Twilight gasped. "You're right! I haven't seen them at all since the ship set sail! I know Applejack and Fluttershy are supposed to be here, but I don't know if Pinkie and Dash were coming! I haven't heard from them since we boarded! I thought I heard Dash crying earlier, but it stopped as soon as I heard it."

Seth shrugged. "Hey, if they don't want to show, that's fine. They can deal with it themselves. I'm sure they'll have plenty of fun all by themselves." He chuckled. "Now then," He turned to Twilight and offered a hoof. "Would you care to dance?"

-------------

The fire roared in the fireplace, illuminating the dark room. On the rug, two figures disentangled themselves and sat up, nuzzling next to each other. Rainbow Dash sighed, inhaling the scent of Pinkie Pie's mane as listened to the crackle of the flames.

Pinkie stroked Dash's mane. She giggled when she felt Rainbow's breath on her neck. "Do you feel better, Dashie?"

Dash pressed her face into Pinkie's mane. "Mmmmmmm." She brought her eyes up to meet Pinkie's. "Take a guess."

Pinkie's eyes widened. "Oooh, I love guessing games. OK, ummmmm, let me think, uhhh-" Her deep thoughts were interrupted by the touch of Rainbow's lips on her own. Pinkie closed her eyes, settling into the kiss and laying down again. She wrapped her arms around Rainbow Dash, and rested a hoof on her cutie mark.

Dash moaned softly. Her kiss became more heated and passionate, pressing into Pinkie harder. Her tongue ran across Pinkie's lips for a second before a softly giggling Pinkie let in to explore her mouth. The taste of cotton candy overwhelmed her senses, and Rainbow moaned louder than before. Her tongue and Pinkie's fought inside Pinkie's mouth, each wanting full access to the moist realm of the other's mouth. Hours, it seemed, passed before Rainbow finally pulled away, panting with arousal. Pinkie Pie was still giggling, and got up. Shaking her flank in Dash's face, Pinkie trotted over to the bed nearest the fireplace. She slipped under the sheets, still giggling.

"I think we're missing the welcome party, Dashie."

Rainbow Dash laughed, and strolled over to where Pinkie was waiting. She pulled back the covers and slid on top of the giggling pink mare. "Let them have their fun," she said, stroking Pinkie's mane, "and we can have ours." She pressed her body against Pinkie's, her hoof moving lower, caressing her chest, her stomach, her hips, her flank, her flank, her flank...

And still her hoof went lower...

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And now, a note from the author.

Whew! Practically doubled the chapter length! Thought it would be shorter, but I just couldn't find a good place to stop the chapter until now.

When I started the story, I didn't expect a five star rating in the first hour. Of course, that was the average from only six ratings, so it may not be as great as people say it is. From what I can tell from the comments, you probably thought that Spike would be the Jack of the story. Nope! Sorry! I'm afraid Jack is the Jack of the story. And it's not just going to be Rarity who gets shipped, as if you didn't already know. Already I've paired up the best non-canon ship ever (ooh! Who could it be?) and I'm just getting started. I plan on shipping all of the Mane 6 at least a little bit (well, maybe not Fluttershy).

I really hope I didn't f**k up the ship's departure scene. I know this wasn't in the movie, but not everything is going to play out like it did. That scene was to take place of the attempted suicide scene (watch the movie). I don't think I did well, but I couldn't think of any other way to pair up my favorite F/F couple. So there's that.

To Sethisto (if you go on this site and bother to check out stories): PleasePleasePleasePleasePleasePleasePlease pleeeease don't sue me for this. I know that I didn't exactly pair you up with your dream mare, but I promise it get's better. If you don't want me to use your persona, just let me know, and I will get rid of him immediately in the next chapter. I had planned on Seth being an easter egg, but he sort of grew into something more.

Thanks to the bronies out there for their praise and ratings. I would not have continued without you. See you next chapter!

Oh, and please don't try convincing me to kill off a certain character when the inevitable happens.

The Flowers of Romance

Chapter 3: The Flowers of Romance

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Rarity ran. She didn't know where, or remotely cared for that matter. All she knew was that she had to get away from the dance, no matter where it led her. In her head, she imagined what the next morning would be like. Every pony on the ship would look at her whispering to others nearby. She could almost hear their words.

"Oh look, it's Ms. Empty Bottle."

"I bet she's already started her day with a glass or two... or three."

"Careful, dear. Don't want to stand too close to the railings."

She fought back tears. Save them, whispered the voice in her head. Wait until you've stopped. But she didn't want to. She wanted to keep running and running, away from Twilight, away from Fancy Pants, away from Jack...

Jack.

Rarity almost stopped to turn around. The voices in her head were yelling a jumbled mess of messages, trying to get her to listen.

Go back to him. Face the music and apologize.

You could just as easily keep running.

But that isn't what you want, is it?

Why should you care what he thinks?

Why do you care what he thinks?

That made her stop. Slowing down, Rarity finally opened her eyes, looking around at the area she had gone to. Of course, her head said. Of course you come here.

She was at the stern of the ship. Moonlight shone down, illuminating the area in brilliant silver light. Walking a bit further, she found herself at the railing of the ship. Looking down, Rarity saw churning pools of white froth where the propellers were. Looking further out, she could see clouds in the distance. Oh how I wish I were a pegasus right now. It made sense that she was here. It was furthest from the party, and no one would bother to look for her, let alone here. She was surprised that she had, or even could, run that fast, having traveled the ship's length in what seemed like seconds. She stepped closer to the edge of the railing and continued to look out at the night, soaking in its darkness.

You could jump. The thought passed through Rarity's head in such a way that she looked around at her surroundings to see if anypony had said it. Seeing no one, she turned her head down to the waters below. It was only a quick little jump, and she wouldn't need to worry about it anymore.

Rarity realized that the thoughts going through her head were actually hers. Good lord, she thought. Maybe I am drunk. She stepped back from the railings, turning to start the long walk back to her room. The sound of hoovesteps made her stop.

Peering through the darkness, Rarity saw a figure galloping towards her. Oh Celestia don't let it be him. Her voices started to argue whether or not she meant to say that. It didn't matter in a second.

Slowing to a trot, Jack stepped out of the shadow of the ship and onto the stern. Floating beside him was a mask. Rarity recognized it as her own. He moved closer to her, but Rarity moved away. Sensing her discomfort with his following her, he spoke.

"You forgot this."

"It isn't mine. I was simply given it by a friend."

"You should still wear it."

She looked at him with disgust. "What, so ponies can recognize me as your drunken whore?" The moment the words left her lips she regretted them. She turned away from him so he would not see her tears.

The hurt in his voice made her wince. "I didn't mean for that to happen, and you are most certainly not a whore."

"Then why do you want me to wear that accursed mask?"

She felt him trot up next to her. The mask levitated in front of her face. She could hear his hesitation.

"Because... because it matches your eyes."

Rarity placed the mask on her face to hide her blush. Without a word, she began to walk away from Jack. She stopped when she heard him laugh. She turned, her eyes glittering with tears she refused to shed. She didn't understand him. He was confusing and alien to her, and she could not see through him. Everypony has a motive, her mother had told her, and if you look carefully, you can see it in their eyes. She stared at the two dark beads shining out from the ruby red mask, trying desperately to see his true intentions.

She could not.

Jack moved toward her, and she did not move back. He still had a small smile on his face, and Rarity wanted to slap it off his face. How dare he laugh at my sadness! her thoughts hated him, but her words wanted to forgive him. "Why did you just laugh?" He stopped, still smiling, still staring.

"You're exactly as I thought you'd be."

"What?"

"You aren't like the other mares I've met." He trotted up next to her. Rarity didn't move away. Jack continued to walk past her, and she reluctantly followed. Fine, her head told her. Play his little game. When he breaks your heart, you'll be sorry!

"It's a beautiful night for a stroll, isn't it?"

"Don't change the subject. What do you mean I'm not like other mares?"

"Oh, you're just... different. You speak your mind to me."

"Oh?" Rarity's uncontrolled tears had long stopped, and she had regained her haughty, insulted manner. "And how does that make me any different from 'other mares?'"

Jack chuckled again. "Glad to see you aren't on the verge of tears anymore. I much prefer this version of you over that one. I hate it when I make a beautiful mare cry."

Again, Rarity found she was glad that she was wearing a mask under her face. She was sure that it had turned beet red by this time. She hid her flattered look, and simply said, "Answer the question."

Jack sighed, looking out at the ocean. They had stopped at the railing of the ship. "I've tried to find a lady for myself, but everypony I meet has the same problem: They will do anything to get to me. I could tell them their outfit is trash when its luxurious velvet, and they would agree and go to find something else to wear. I don't know why."

It's because you're charming, kind, intelligent-looking, and, above all, sexy. Her head had decided to work with her, it seemed, and Rarity was not sure if she had only thought those words, or actually spoken them out loud. When Jack didn't respond, she determined they were merely her thoughts. She didn't bother to try and deny them. "Oh, I think I may have an idea why," was what really came out of her mouth. She looked over at him. He was still staring out at the sea. He acknowledged her statement with a mumbled "Yes..."

"Jack?"

"Yes?"

"Why did you really bring me back my mask?"

"I didn't. I brought you back a mask that somepony else gave you."

She stared at his eyes. Nothing. I can't see anything in him.

"I brought it back because it matched you."

"I'm sorry?"

Silence.

"Jack? Can you hear me?"

"Yes."

"Why are you doing this?" She moved closer to him, trying to get him to stop staring at the ocean. No reaction. She continued. "Why do you say something, then act like we've only just started talking? Why are you so obsessed with staring out at the ocean, and WHY," Her last question shocked him out of his trance, " wouldn't you stop staring at me when Fancy Pants introduced me to you?" She found herself once again on the verge of tears, and once again began to walk away from Jack. It appeared her head had not wanted to help her.

"Because of how it represents you. Alluring and, admittedly, entrancing."

This is getting old. She turned again, not bothering to hide her anger at him. She didn't speak, merely watched, as Jack turned and said, "I'm sorry if I've been acting strange. You weren't the only one embarrassed at the party. I'll answer your questions, if that makes you feel better, and if you'll walk with me a bit." He tilted his head, as if he were a little filly looking at something for the first time. "Would you?"

Rarity sighed in defeat. She gave up. There was no point in trying to figure him out. She walked over, and nodded. Jack smiled at her, and offered a hoof. Rarity turned her head up, and began walking along the side of the ship. Following, Jack cleared his throat.

"You asked why I followed you here. I thought you would have figured that out by now. I did it because I needed to apologize. And because it was the gentlemanly thing to do. I hope you understand."

Rarity huffed, then lowered her head, the haughty air about her disappearing. "Thank you," she said, letting her stuffy attitude drop. "I didn't really know what I was going to do after I stopped running. I suppose if you hadn't shown up, I wouldn't have shown my face around the ship for the rest of the cruise."

Jack grinned. "Ah! So I will be able to see more of you! Wonderful!" Looking up at him, Rarity couldn't help but smile back at him.

"Yes. I suppose I'll be fine in the morning. Now, you keep-"

Jack snapped his head back into position. "My previous behavior was a mistake. I'm sincerely sorry if I made it seem like I was ignoring you. I had my attention focused on the beautiful scenery." As he said this he motioned a hoof towards the ocean. Rarity looked out, and had to agree with him. "Luna most certainly knows how to make a night beautiful. I heard it was made especially for the ship's first night on the ocean."

He continued. "I suppose that answers your third question, but not all of it. When I stared out into the ocean, it gave me something to look at besides you."

Rarity turned her head to him again. "Why on earth would you do that? Is there something wrong with my face?" She began searching her face with a hoof, dislodging her mask and making it fall to the floor. Jack picked it up with his magic, and stopped her frantic face-rubbing with a gentle hoof. Rarity stopped, and for a second they stood there, eyes locked, the noise of the waters beneath them the only sound. Looking into the flames of his mask, it was at that moment that Rarity realized why she had acted strange. She knew why she had locked up during her dance with him, and why she had been able to forgive him so easily. The answer came to her in one simple sentence.

I am in love with him.

Her blush was not lost on him, and Jack placed the mask over Rarity's face again. Leaning closer to her, he whispered in her ear.

"The same reason I couldn't take my eyes off of you when we were first introduced."

Rarity shivered as Jack pulled away. He began walking again, and for a few minutes, they simply walked in silence, looking at whatever they could to avoid each other's gaze. Every time Rarity looked out at the sea, Jack would look at her, taking in all of her features. Rarity's snow-white coat shone in the moonlight where it could, and her dress accentuated her supple curves and straight posture. The dress itself was a magnificent display of gemstones and fabric, the moonlight reflecting in every facet. The result was a vividly shining image of an angelic white mare, her face hidden by a cascade of violet. Her long, curled mane lay out across her face, slightly frazzled from her running, and it covered part of her face. He knew that she had put it this way to try and hide the tears she had shed while running. The rest of her mane rolled down her neck, and rested on her back. The faint scent of lilac drifted from it, and he closed his eyes, letting the scent envelop his senses. When he opened his eyes, again, Rarity was staring back at him. He jumped back, startled, and fell over.

Rarity giggled. "Were you..." she could hardly speak, trying hard not to laugh at his reaction. "Did you smell me?" She stopped trotting, watching Jack scramble back up to his feet, blushing.

"No, I.." He was stopped by a hoof on his lips. Rarity smiled up at him. "Don't answer that," she said. He nodded, and she removed her hoof from his lips. They continued to walk in silence. This time, though, Rarity would not allow it. She turned to him, and asked, "Is Jack really your name?"

The question had come out of nowhere, and he paused, thinking a bit. Then he spoke:

"No, not really. It's just a name I've grown so used to that I don't use my real name unless absolutely necessary, which is rarely. How could you tell?"

"Just a hunch"

"Well, I got the name because I am, according to every pony who's ever played me in poker, the greatest card player in Equestria. The whole reason I'm here is because I won the ticket in a poker game. I even got my cutie mark from playing poker, see?" his coattails lifted up, revealing his cutie mark. A playing card was pictured, with green flames spouting from the top of it. Looking closer, Rarity saw that the card in question was a Jack of Hearts. Of course it is. She drew back when she realized how intently she was staring at his flank. Good lord, she thought. What am I doing? Staring at his flank like an obsessive schoolfilly?

He asked you to.

He did not!

He offered it to you.

Shut up!

She was pulled from her thoughts by the sound of Jack's voice. He covered his flank again, and kept speaking. "As you could see, my name, Jack, comes from the card on my flank. Some ponies even suggest I change my name legally to Jack Hearts, but that would be wrong."

"So what's your real name?"

He stopped, and mumbled something.

"I'm sorry?" She was stifling a giggle.

He hesitated. "...Gemstone Hue."

She didn't laugh, instead walking up to him and nuzzling his neck. "It's a very handsome name for a stallion such as you." She was surprised when he pulled back from her, an uncomfortable look in his eyes. He retreated into the shadows cast by the ship's tall chimneys. She tilted her head, smiling gently. "What's the matter? I won't bite you." She stepped towards him again.

He shuffled his hooves nervously, not looking her directly in the face. "I... Er..."

The faint sound of drifting music turned his head, and he silently thanked Celestia for the distraction. "Ah," he said, gesturing towards a faint light in the distance. "It appears we've arrived back at the scene of the crime. Would you care to dance?" He offered a hoof.

The mood had been killed. Rarity's haughty expression returned, and she drew away from him. "I don't think you understood what I meant when I said I'll be fine in the morning. I don't plan on going back to that party." She was once again surprised to hear him laugh. She watched him step out into the moonlight, a soft smile etched on his face, dark beads glittering with the same look he'd had on when he'd first asked her to dance. She suddenly wanted desperately see the face behind his mask, to see that she wasn't imagining his perfection.

He spoke softly, quieter than the music playing behind them. "I didn't ask if you wanted to go to the party," He continued to hold out his hoof for her. "I asked if you wanted to dance. You never gave me the one you promised."

Rarity looked at his outstretched hoof. The music had changed to a slow-paced waltz, and she could imagine Fancy Pants and Fleur dancing with one another, her head resting on his shoulder as he held her close to his body, warm and comforting. Her mind changed their faces, and it was suddenly Jack and she, dancing together, in a world all their own. The thought comforted her, and she nodded, accepting his hoof.

Once again, Jack pulled Rarity and himself up onto their hind legs, and wrapped one foreleg around her waist, the other still holding her hoof in his. They moved with the beat, dancing in the moonlight. Rarity closed her eyes and let Jack lead, her movements becoming an unconscious mirror of his own. She rested her head on his chest, and felt him pull her closer.

Oh please, Celestia, she thought through the calm bliss. Don't let this be a dream. Let me really be in the arms of my perfect stallion, dancing in the moonlight on the deck of a romantic cruise. She opened one eye, not seeing any pillows or bed sheets, and feeling only the softness of his coat and the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed. She closed her eye again. This is really happening. It's just like a dream, a fantasy, but Oh! it's really happening. She was pulled by her thoughts as Jack's movements suddenly became more fast-paced. She heard the change in music, becoming a faster, fierier dance, and she smiled at Jack, copying him and moving quicker, spinning and twirling herself in his arms. He lifted her up, and for a second he was holding her above his head, spinning her like she was nothing. Then she fell back down in front of him, and she bent back, letting Jack hold her up as they leaned closer to each other. The dance ended, but neither of them moved from their positions. He was looking down at her, one hoof holding her up, the other resting on one of her hind legs, which was raised above their heads. Both of them were panting lightly, and neither showed any sign of losing their balance.

Do it.

Rarity saw Jack moving closer to her head, his hat tipping over and falling off. It revealed a small, spiked mess of dark green hair, and she slowly rested her hoof on the exposed mane. Jack didn't react, only moving closer to her face.

Please.

His warm breath washed over her, and she shut her eyes.

Oh Celestia, yes! Kiss me!

Their noses touched, and the scent of his sweat from their dance, enveloped her, intoxicated her. She desired it, she needed it.

NOW!

Their lips met in the moonlight, briefly, hesitantly, as if waiting for something to tell them to continue...

And then Jack pulled away, and the magic was gone, and Rarity was back on the deck of the ship, in the arms of a mere gentlecolt. He stood up, and lifted Rarity upright, and separated himself from her. They both returned their forelegs to the ground, and Rarity was left with a tight pressure in her chest from what had almost been. She stared at the gentlecolt before her as he collected his hat and placed it on his head, covering his dark mane once more. He finally looked at her again, and spoke in a quiet, almost childish voice:

"I apologize. I must have put you in an uncomfortable position. I-"

"Don't apologize for that."

He looked up. The mare he had been honored to dance with was crying, this time because of him. He had hurt her, and he knew why. Turning away, Jack tried again. "I apologize for doing that to you. I was the one uncomfortable like that. Please don't think I don't like you. I really do." He turned again, back to her. "Really."

"Then why did you stop?" Her voice was hardly a whisper. He winced at the pain in it, and trotted towards her. She didn't move.

"Because I was afraid."

"Of what?"

He stopped, mere inches from her. He wanted to close the gap and kiss her, hold her in his arms and apologize and comfort her. But instead, he leaned in and whispered:

"The same thing that keeps me from taking my mask off."

He moved back, looking at her, expecting to be slapped, or shouted at, or to have his mask grabbed at. Instead, he felt Rarity push her head into his neck, nuzzling up to him. He could feel wet spots on his neck where she was crying, and wrapped a foreleg around hers. He comforted her as best as he could, wishing he could take back his mistake. When her sniffling finally died down, he leaned close to her ear, and whispered:

"I would make it up to you, if you gave me the chance to."

She lifted her head up. Sniffing, she looked into his eyes. She wanted to see behind his mask, to see what his eyes really looked like. Was he afraid of her being disgusted by his face? Was he disfigured? No, it couldn't be! She sniffled again, and nodded, not wanting to speak. His face lit up again, and he hugged her.

"Thank you," he said, pressing his face into her hair. "I know I can make this better." He released her, and turned to return to his room. A small cough stopped him. He turned, realizing his mistake. “Oh, I'm sorry. I forgot to say-" He was silenced by Rarity, as she forced her lips to his.

She pulled away as quickly as she had come onto him. Jack stared straight ahead, eyes somewhere only he knew. His sentence finished itself absently. "... good night."

She smiled, and walked past him. She spoke over her shoulder. "If you can impress me tomorrow, then perhaps you'll get more than that. But that's all for tonight. You're lucky to still have a chance with me."

Jack grinned. She had gone back to her normal self. Or something close to it. He watched her leave, then turned again to find his own room. As he began walking, he heard a voice call over his shoulder.

"Why won't you take your mask off, and show me your face?"

Now it was his turn to smile. Without looking behind him, he pulled the mask off, not showing his face to Rarity as he waved it above his head with his head.

"Because, my dear..."

He replaced the mask and faced her. She was closer than he had thought, and he was glad he hadn't turned. He grinned, and waved his hoof dismissively.

"That would ruin the illusion."

And with that, he was gone.

-------------

Rarity shut her bedroom door behind her. Twilight had not yet returned, and she was glad she would be alone to think for a while. Walking towards her bed, she used her magic to unzip her dress and remove her mask. Letting the dress fall to the floor, Rarity faced the mask towards herself. Staring into it, she saw herself in the mirrored face of the mask, tinted blue.

It matches your eyes.

He had been right. The mask was the same deep azure that Rarity's eyes were. Her mother had always told her that her eyes were the most beautiful thing about her. Never let anyone hurt your eyes, she had said. They can mess up your hair, they can stain your coat, and all of that can be fixed. But never let them damage your eyes. It would break my heart. She had promised her mother that day that she wouldn't let anyone do that to her. Looking in the mirror next to her bed., however, she saw that she had broken her promise to her mother. Not the first time, a voice in her head told her.

Rarity's eyes were red, bloodshot from crying. Jack had gotten to her, it seemed, and she had paid the price for it. Her entire composure seemed to be gone, stolen by a colt with a flaming red mask. She didn't care at the moment, though, and, sighing, she hung the mask over the mirror and got into her bed. The soft, ruby sheets relaxed her the moment they were pulled over her head, and she pressed her face into the pillow.

I would make it up to you, if you gave me the chance to.

She had agreed, almost immediately, without considering once how rude Jack had been to her. He had taken advantage of her, tricked her, had passed through her shield of grace and inner strength and hurt her where it could not heal.

Hadn't he?

She had asked him why he would not remove his mask. She had already guessed that he was hideously disfigured, and his answer had only confounded her more.

Because, my dear; that would ruin the illusion.

What illusion? What was he hiding? What did he have to hide that was so embarrassing that he could not tell the one mare that he had fallen in love with.

No, Rarity, not him. You.

She had not lied to herself when she had told herself she was in love. There had been no doubt at the moment, and there was no doubt now. Perhaps that's why I didn't hesitate to give him another chance. Her thoughts were a swirling cauldron of long-forgotten emotions, boiling inside her, and heating her up. Perhaps I really do want something to happen with us.

Another thought shouted at her. Of course you do, you dolt! Were you sleepwalking when you were dancing with him? Rarity closed her eyes, pressing deeper into the pillow. She was confused. She didn't know what to do or say anymore. I just hope, more voices chimed in, that you'll be normal once you figure things out with him. She resigned to let Fate take her where she needed to be tomorrow, and, with a relieved sigh, drifted off into a deep, dreamless sleep.

She was not awakened by the sound of another pony opening her bedroom door, or by the two figures that tiptoed through the dark to the other bed, giggling almost drunkenly. Pulling back the bed sheets, the two ponies climbed on top of each other, still giggling, and pulled the covers over their heads. Rarity didn't even stir.

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When Rarity woke up, it was to the smell of baked goods in the other room. Rolling over, she opened her eyes to look at the clock on her bedside table. 10:30, she read. She silently thanked her conscience for being on time with her wake up calls. Her stomach rumbled, and she sighed. So much for resting in bed.

Sitting up in bed, Rarity looked across the room at Twilight's bed. She saw somepony sleeping in the bed, but it most certainly wasn't Twilight. Shocked awake by the stranger in the room, Rarity let out a yelp and fell out of bed. This woke up the sleeping pony in the other bed, who groaned and sat up, rubbing her forehead. The violently blue coat stood out like a sore thumb with the crimson bed behind her, and a cascade of silvery hair instantly jogged Rarity's memory.

Trixie groaned again. "Just who so you think you are, disturbing The Great and Powerful Trixie's beauty sleep? You-" She stopped when she saw the shocked and confused look on Rarity's face, then laughed. "Ah yes, the snooty one. I didn't realize you didn't know Trixie was here. Surprised?" She lay back down on the bed, and stretched. Rarity simply stammered, trying to make sense of the situation. "Bu-but you-you- when- what- ha?" Trixie laughed at her attempts to speak, then sat up again, sniffing the air. "Mmmmm. By the sound of it, Sparkle will be here to explain any second. Trixie's starving."

As if answering Trixie's call, Twilight Sparkle opened the bedroom door, levitating a plate of various pastries, several cups, and a pot of freshly brewed tea. She had an uncharacteristically seductive look on her face. "Oh Trixieeee..." She trotted over to the bed, swinging her hips back and forth. "I brought you somethinnnnnng..." Rarity's thoughts only became more entangled as she watched the purple unicorn strut over to her bedtime companion and climb up on the bed. She set the tray down on the other side, poured some tea for herself and Trixie, and brought one of the many pastries up to Trixie's mouth. "Here it coooomes..."

Almost gagging at the sappy, lovesick sight, Rarity watched, not making a sound, as Twilight fed Trixie the pastry, unaware of Rarity's wakeful presence. Looking over Twilight's shoulder, Trixie winked, then closed her eyes and pushed Twilight's mouth onto the pastry, leaning forward so that their lips met around the pastry. With a soft moan, Twilight shut her eyes, wrapping her forelegs around Trixie's waist and biting down on the pastry. Pulling Twilight down onto the bed, Trixie started to lick Twilight's lips free of the leftover crumbs from the pastry. Twilight took the hint, and let Trixie's tongue slide into her mouth, pulling her closer and moving a hoof down the length of Trixie's body, letting it rest on her cutie mark. They continued like this for several minutes; Rarity simply stared, shocked that Twilight had an ounce of passion in her at all. When Twilight pulled herself on top of Trixie, sliding a hoof down between her rear legs, Trixie pushed her away. Twilight fell to the side of her, confused. "Trixie?"

Laughing softly, Trixie pecked Twilight on the lips. "As inviting as it may seem, it appears you've already brought Trixie some pie. And tea with a slice sounds very nice right now. Wouldn't you agree, Rarity?" She called to her over Twilight's shoulder, and Rarity suddenly remembered the reason why she was laying on the floor tangled up in her bed sheets. Spinning around, Twilight locked eyes with Rarity. Her cheeks turned beet red, and she immediately jumped off of Trixie, getting out of bed, and almost shouting, "Rarity! I hadn't realized you were awake! I-er- I thought you might like some tea? I brought a cup for you, if you-" Her attempts to convince Rarity that Trixie was not laying in her bed laughing her horn off were stopped when Rarity stood up. Hanging her head, Twilight trotted over to the other side of her bed. She poured a third cup of tea while Trixie levitated her own cup over to herself, still snickering at Rarity's reaction to her foreplay with Twilight.

Bringing the cup over to Rarity, Twilight finally spoke again. "I guess you want an explanation for why Trixie is in my bed, and not Seth." Seeing Rarity nod, her mouth still open in amazement, Twilight continued. "I suppose it really all started back at the party last night. It was just after that stallion went running after you. By the way, who-?" Twilight was stopped by Rarity. In a distant voice, she whispered, "You first."

Twilight nodded, and Rarity lowered her hoof. "Like I said, you had just run off, and Seth convinced me not to chase after you..."

-----------------

Twilight sat down, panting. The fast-paced tango that she and Seth had just danced had taken the breath out of her. She looked across the table, where the tan unicorn had sat down, looking out into the crowd. He wasn't as exhausted as she was, but she could see sweat running down the side of his face all the same. In the back of her head, Rarity's words from earlier ate away at her inhibitions.

You have to tell him.

Of course. And I will.

Now.

No!

Yes!

"Enough!" She realized that she had spoken out loud, and several heads turned toward her, including Seth's. She blushed, and quietly said, "I'm sorry. I was preoccupied. A lot is on my mind."

He nodded. "I know how you feel. Sometimes I get so overwhelmed by my work I just blow up inside, while on the outside my mind shuts down. I get over it soon enough, but it’s a long time before that happens usually, and I can barely handle it while it lasts." He pulled two glasses of champagne off of a tray from a passing waiter with his magic. He handed one to Twilight, and raised it in a toast. "To the Ship of Dreams."

She raised her own glass, and for a second she was lost in his eyes. Oh, he's good. Then she mimicked him. "The Ship of Dreams." She sipped her drink, marveling in its strong taste. She placed the glass on the table. "Wow, they didn't spare any expense with the drinks here."

Sethisto laughed. "Yeah, I guess so. I've gone to so many fancy dinner parties for news stories, I've kind of gotten used to the taste of expensive drinks. I really should try cutting ba-" He paused. For a second, he was frozen in time, his mouth still wording his sentence. Then he stood up, and began to walk towards a pony nearby. Twilight stood and followed him. "Uh, Seth?" She stopped when she saw who he had walked over to. Her jaw dropped. Seth had walked up to the pony, which she could now see was a mare, and was leaning down to kiss her hoof. The mare paid him no attention, though, instead staring at Twilight. Trixie grinned smugly, and trotted over towards Twilight, leaving a drooling Sethisto behind her.

No. Not her. He can't like her. She saw Trixie moving closer to her, the star-covered cape twirling behind her. "Oh shit," Twilight cursed under her breath. She turned and ran. She couldn't face Trixie. Not Trixie. How? Of all the mares in all of Equestria, he chooses Trixie to choose over me! Dammit! She could hear Trixie calling behind her. "Twilight Sparkle! You come back here! The Great and Powerful Trixie has something she needs to say to you!"

Twilight turned a corner, hoping to find a closet to hide in or a stairwell to hide under. No such luck. Instead, she slammed into a solid wall of metal. It had not been a corner she had turned at all, but simply part of the ship's design. Twilight fell back, and, cradling her nose, looked back behind her. Trixie had slowed to a trot, and stopped when she was directly next to Twilight. Her horn glowed, and suddenly Twilight was on her feet again. She moved her hoof away from her face, and turned her head away from the blue unicorn. Trixie snorted, and said, "Is your nose messed up, or are you just happy to see Trixie?"

Dabbing at her nose, she found it to be bleeding profoundly. She began to look around frantically for something to staunch the flow, but Trixie's hoof held her head in place. Using her magic again, Trixie concentrated on Twilight's face, and Twilight gasped as she felt the warm flowing blood disappear, and the pain in her nose disappeared. Prodding it with a hoof, Twilight found it was completely fixed, not a bruise in sight. Trixie inspected her handiwork, and nodded, satisfied by her job. "There. How's that for something to boast about?"

Twilight looked up at the blue unicorn. Something about her seemed different. Looking her in the eye, she saw a different Trixie than the one that had gone running off out of Ponyville all that time ago. "Uhhhh, thank you?" Twilight wasn't entirely sure why Trixie had followed her, or had even wanted to talk to her in the first place. She was about to get an answer.

"Trixie has been waiting a long time to you, Twilight Sparkle. To have a little chat with you about the little 'lesson' you taught me the last time we saw each other." Trixie stepped closer to Twilight, pushing her up against the wall she had run into. "And now, I can finally give you what you deserve." Twilight shut her eyes, ready to take any pain Trixie could deal out.

She was shocked to feel a pair of lips on hers. Opening her eyes, she saw nothing but blue. Trixie had stood up on her hind legs and pinned Twilight to the wall, forcing their lips together. Twilight pushed her away. "Trixie! What in Equestria are you doing!?" Trixie huffed, surprising Twilight even more, and she sat down on the deck, twirling a lock of her silver hair in her hoof. "Trixie is thanking you for helping her."

"What?"

"You really don't remember, do you, Sparkle? No, of course you do. When you destroyed Trixie's business, Trixie had to run. She had nowhere else to go. Without her stage, Trixie was simply a powerless unicorn. On her own, Trixie decided to make you her rival. Trixie scrounged, sure, but that was the easy part. The hard part was finding books to study, spells to learn. Eventually, Trixie got good enough to secure a job. After that, she simply learned more and more. And it's all thanks to you, Miss Twilight Sparkle." She leaned in again, but Twilight stopped her with a hoof. "Wait," she said, confused. "That's all fine and good, I'm happy for you, really, but why are you trying to kiss me?"

Trixie laughed haughtily. "Weren't you listening? Trixie made you her rival. At first, it was because Trixie wanted revenge. Trixie realized, though, that it was definitely more than simple vengeance. No, Trixie didn't want revenge anymore. Trixie simply wanted you, Sparkle." And with that, Trixie kissed her again. Twilight struggled, but Trixie held her arms to her side. Their horns rubbed together, and Twilight felt a wave of unwanted pleasure wash over her. Trixie pulled away, and whispered, "Trixie knows you want this. Why else would you have run away from Trixie?" She lowered Twilight's head, and she felt something warm on her horn. Something warm, and wet. She jumped back. Trixie giggled, and spun Twilight around. She leaned in again, but stopped suddenly. Looking up, Trixie's face turned redder than Rarity's had been when she fell during her dance. "Who dares watch Trixie indulge in her private affairs?"

Turning, Twilight gasped when she saw who had been watching. Sethisto stood in the shadows, practically hidden in the darkness. She could see his jaw hanging open, and suddenly she was filled with rage.

First, he plays me for a fool.

Then, he chooses Trixie over me without even seeing that I like him.

And now, he's watching me kiss somepony?

Her anger reached a boiling point, and she turned back to Trixie. Wrapping her forelegs around the mare's waist, Twilight forced Trixie's lips against her own. Trixie pulled back. "Sparkle! Somepony is watching us!"

She brought Trixie's face close to hers, rubbing her horn up against Trixie's. "Let him watch," she whispered.

Trixie's eyes went wide at Twilight's suggestion, and Twilight mashed their lips together again. Forcing her tongue into Trixie's mouth, she heard a small moan escape Trixie's lips. As she began caressing Trixie, only one thought went through Twilight's head:

How do you like these apples, Seth?

----------------

"...And I guess we just sort of stayed like that until Seth left. Then I brought Trixie back here, and... well, you fill in the blanks." Twilight set down her tea cup, now empty. Trixie still had a smug grin on her face, and was chewing on a slice of pie. Rarity simply stared into space for a short time, then slowly said, "... I see."

Standing up, Rarity fixed up her bed, using her magic and not moving from her spot. Finally, after several minutes (hours?) of silence, she trotted over to the door, her face unchanging. In a monotone voice, she said, "Well, I'll be going. I really would like to see the spa here."

Twilight frowned. "I know it's hard to accept, Rarity. She did turn your hair-"

"Oh no. That's not why."

"Then why are you leaving?"

"I do believe Trixie mentioned something about pie?" Opening the door, she stepped out into the main room of their suite. Turning, she gave Twilight a coy smile, and winked. Then she left.

Realization hit Twilight like a library book in the face. Her blush didn't go unnoticed by Trixie, who trotted over to Twilight and wrapped her forelegs around Twilight's waist, speaking into her ear, "She seems to know what she's talking about, doesn't she? Well," her hooves moved down Twilight's body, and she finished in a whisper, "shall we?"

----------------

Rarity closed the bedroom door. She waited outside, and smiled when she heard the sound of two mares giggling coming from the inside. Well, Twilight. I suppose anypony's better than nopony. She turned, not wanting to eavesdrop on the "business" in the bedroom, and made her way to the kitchen. She was wondering if there were any leftover pastries when she heard several voices talking in the kitchen. Peeking in, Rarity saw four mares sitting around the kitchen table, each involved in their own plate of food.

"Oooooooooohhh, look! Rarity's finally awake!" Pinkie Pie bounced off of her chair, hugging Rarity tightly. Pushing her away, she drew up a chair and sat down in between Applejack and Rainbow Dash. "I suppose Pinkie Pie made those pastries for us?" She picked up a croissant and took a bite, savoring the familiar taste of Ponyville's well-known baked goods. Rainbow Dash laughed, and grabbed an eclair. "Of course! Who else could make something so good?" Fluttershy nodded in agreement, quietly chewing on a piece of cake (somehow that was possible). She swallowed, and explained that two of Pinkie's suitcases had been stuffed with baking supplies, ingredients, and the like.

Ah Pinkie Pie. As random as always. It’s almost like clockwork. Walking over to the stove, Rarity found a pot of hot water left from Twilight's tea. After getting herself a cup of tea, she walked back over to the table, only to find Rainbow Dash and Applejack using the spot where she was sitting as an arm wrestling arena.

Applejack grunted out something unintelligible. Rainbow Dash stared her down. "What's that?" she asked, putting her free hoof to her ear in a mocking gesture. "I can't hear you over the sound of me winning that last... piece of... pie!" She punctuated the last word by slamming Applejack's hoof on the tale. Dash stood on her hind legs in her seat, cheering for herself. "And the crowd goes wild! Ha ha ha!" She sat back down and smiled smugly at an angered Applejack. The earth pony glared at her. "Yeah, well, ya'll can go on and enjoy that little treat. Ah myself don't want to be ruinin' my muscle with trashy sweets." At this, Rainbow Dash laughed. "Pfffft." She scooped up the slice of pie and tossed it into her mouth, chewing it up and swallowing. "Tell that to Pinkie Pie. She's lived off of sugar her whole life, and look at her! She's perfect!"

Pinkie Pie giggled and scooted up close to Rainbow Dash. She pecked Dash on the cheek and whispered, "You don't look so bad yourself, sweet cheeks." She rubbed a hoof on the pegasus' flank. Dash blushed, and her wings shot up. Applejack broke out laughing, while Rarity simply stared. "YOU TOO?" The anger in her voice was enough to stop Applejack's laughing and put Fluttershy underneath the table. The 4 mares could see steam blowing out of Rarity's ears as she continued to rant.

"Of course! How could I not have seen it before! Of course you two are perfect for each other. And of course Twilight finds Trixie here! Of course! How could I not have guessed it already! This is the Ship of Dreams! And I suppose that dear Fluttershy has confessed her long-buried love for our favorite little cowpony here, too!" She was hyperventilating, trying not to completely lose control (things could turn violent).

To her surprise, Applejack snorted. "You okay, Rarity? Somethin' happen at that party last night? 'Cause ya seem like ya've had a hard time wooing yer "Prince Charming". And no, Fluttershy and ah ain't confessed our love for each other. For, as strange a notion it may seem to ya, ah'm most definitely, most fantastically straight." Rarity was shocked by Applejack's use of vocabulary. It was completely unlike the cowpony to speak that way. Just as she was about to say something, Fluttershy spoke up from beneath the table. "Erm, Rarity? I'm also straight. You know that for a fact, remember? Unless you've forgotten, which is completely alright." She turned her head down again, covering her face with her hair.

Rarity put her head in her hooves, embarrassed that she had lost her temper. Had Jack really been so much of an influence on her that she could no longer stand to see her friends in any relationship at all? She had even called Fluttershy out on her crush on Big Macintosh, a secret she had Pinkie Promised not to talk about in front of anyone else, especially Applejack. Looking over at Fluttershy, she began to apologize. Before she could, however, Pinkie Pie's face appeared in front of her.

"Wow, Rarity, this Jack guy must have really done something bad to you! I haven't seen you this sad since Spike-" Rarity stuffed a hoof in her mouth. Regaining her composure as quickly as possible, Rarity spoke in as calm a voice as she could. "Yes, Pinkie. I remember what happened. That isn't important right now. What is important is how you knew who Jack is, and how you knew he and I had any relations last night?"

Pinkie Pie gasped and zipped out of the room, returning in a flash with three envelopes in her mouth. "Oooh goh fum may!"

"I'm sorry?"

Pinkie spit the envelopes out onto the table. "You got some mail! Three letters! Well, one isn't really a letter, and one isn't really for you, but they all have something to do with you, sooo..." She pushed the three "letters" over to Rarity. "Go ahead and read 'em!" She sat down and watched Rarity shuffle the envelopes. One had already been opened, and was addressed to Twilight. Rarity saw that her name was scrawled in smaller font just below Twilight's. Looking up, she saw that Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy were all staring at her. She coughed, and they all jumped and went back to doing various jobs, Fluttershy picking up dishes from the table, Applejack claiming she dropped something under the table, and Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie claiming they wanted to look at the main room of the suite. Rolling her eyes at their terrible excuses, she returned her attention to the letters. She chose to open a red envelope with a golden embossed seal on it. Tearing it open, Rarity found it to be an invitation. She read:

Esteemed Guest:

You are formally invited to a port-side brunch, held by Sir Fancy S. Pants. Please dress formally. The event will be held from 11:30 to 3:00, and we hope to see you there.

Looking at the envelope Rarity shivered. If she went to the brunch, how long would it be before Fancy Pants asked her about the events of the night before? Would other ponies at the brunch recognize her? Surely she didn't have to wear her mask again? And Jack! If Jack were there, would he avoid her, or try and make it up to her, as he had promised? His words echoed in her head.

That would ruin the illusion.

That had been is reason for not removing his mask that night. Would he wear it to the brunch, if he were there? Did he know that she had been invited, too? She brushed aside the torrent of questions racing through her head, and put the invite aside. Picking up the already opened letter, she slid a piece of parchment paper out of the envelope. Opening it, she was surprised to find that it was from Spike.

Spike sent a letter to me? Why? How? The latter question was answered when Rarity remembered that Spike could send letters wherever he wanted with his sending flames (as he so called them). She unfolded the letter completely, and began to read:

Dear Twilight (and Rarity),

Surprised? I bet you forgot that I can still send you letters with my sending fire! Ha! I'm going to send a letter every day, and I hope I can get a letter back from you, too. It'll be great to hear about the cruise, and I guess it'll be the closest I get to actually going on the cruise.

The library has been very easy to take care of. The bird hasn't caused any trouble as far as I know, but I'm the one who does all the work, anyway. I still wish I could have gone on the cruise with you. I miss you two a lot.

I'll be glad to see you again. But until then, tell me all about the cruise when you write back.

Love,

Spike.

P.S. Rarity, you left this back in Ponyville. I hope it gets you a look or two. You deserve it.

Rarity sighed happily as she folded up the letter and placed it back in the envelope. How sweet of him. He- She stopped, and looked around the table for the object she had apparently left behind in Ponyville. She called out to Pinkie Pie. "Er, Pinkie, darling? Was there a package of some sort that came with one of the letters?" Almost immediately, Pinkie came into the kitchen again, this time with a small gift-wrapped box in her mouth. Laying it in front of her friend, Pinkie said, "Whew! I finally get to see what's in there! It's been eating at me all day!" She sat down next to Rarity, and watched with building anticipation as Rarity untied the ribbon on the box. Neatly unfolding the wrapping paper ("you never know when you'll need it" her mother would say), she found a small cardboard box beneath the paper. She opened it and gasped. "Spike, you..."

It was the Fire Ruby. She had forgotten the one thing in the world that had ever gotten her to think about her feelings for Spike. Pinkie Pie ooohed, and said, "Wow, you really did forget something important, Rarity! That's like your prettiest necklace ever! It was so nice of Spike to send that to you! Now you can really impress that Jack guy! I bet-" She stopped at the sound of Rainbow Dash's voice in the other room. "Oh Pinnnnnnkiiieeee..." the voice echoed into the kitchen. "You left me here to test the couch out. Alone." Pinkie gasped. "Ohmygosh!" She began backing into the living room again. "She's right!" The pink pony ran into the living room, leaving an emotionally strangled Rarity sitting at the kitchen table.

He sent it to remind me. Her first thoughts had been of how selfish Spike was to have tried to keep her from meeting anyone on the ship. Then she reread his letter. And read it again. And again.

I miss you two a lot.

You two.

She had ignored the fact that the letter was addressed to her as well as Twilight, and had thought he was talking to the six of them as a whole. She had been wrong. Rarity lifted the Fire Ruby out of its box and placed it around her neck. She had not worn it since the day it had stopped Spike from destroying Ponyville. Like a film reel, the memories came rushing back to her, and played over in her head...

Rarity shut the door to the Carousel Boutique, sighing with relief. After hours of dealing with Pinkie's "Spike's Not Crazy And A Monster Anymore" party, she had finally been able to get away from the loud noise and boisterous partying ponies throughout the town. She trotted towards her kitchen, ready for a soothing cup of tea before getting into bed. She would have to be well rested for the next day. Repairs would begin on the town as soon as the party ended. She took off the party hat she had been forced to wear, along with the Fire Ruby that had inadvertently saved the day. Spike, in his monstrous greed-grown form, had recognized it and changed back to his regular size, having reminded him of his selflessness in his darkest moment of greed-filled destruction. Rarity had been put in the spotlight as the hero of the day, and Spike hadn't minded, even though it was his gift that had saved him and the town.

Rarity was about to begin boiling the water when she heard a knock at the door. She sighed and headed to the door, wishing that she could be having her tea instead of dealing with a customer at this time of night. She opened the door, ready to explain that the Boutique was closed for the night, but saw that it was not a customer.

It was Spike. The dragon had followed her to her home. "Hello, Rarity," he said quietly. "Can I come in?" Looking at him, Rarity knew she couldn't say no. Smiling, she nodded. Spike smiled back at her and stepped inside, walking over to a chair and sitting down in it. Rarity headed back towards the kitchen, and called over her shoulder, "Would you like some tea, Spike? I was just about to make some when you knocked."

"No thanks," was his reply, and she knew something was wrong. He was here for a reason, and Rarity had a terrible feeling she knew what it was. Setting a pot of water on her stove top, she set it to boil, and went back out into the living room. Spike was holding the Fire Ruby in his hands, staring at it with a surprisingly depressing expression on his face. Rarity smiled uneasily. "You weren't planning on eating that, were you?" she joked, hoping to get him to cheer up. Her joke was in vain; however, as Spike shook his head and set the Ruby down. "No. I just wanted to look at it." There was a silence for the briefest of moments, and Rarity suddenly had a flight of fear. Why had Spike wanted to come in, and why was he so upset? Why wasn't he happy that he was no longer a monster? She opened her mouth to voice one of the questions when Spike asked one instead.

"You're never going to wear it again, are you?"

The question shocked Rarity. She looked at Spike like he was something else, something that didn't belong in her house. "Why, Spike, why would you think something like that? Of course I'll wear it again! I'll just save it for special occasions. It isn't simply any piece of jewelry, you know." Spike looked up, and smiled for the first time that night. She smiled back at him, happy that his melancholic attitude was gone.

Spike spoke up again. "Rarity, about what happened while we were falling." He got up and took a step closer to her. She did not move away. He looked at her, his eyes filled with hope. "I was wondering... Why did you stop me when I started to tell you..." He trailed off, simply staring her in the eyes now. She trotted past him, moving up to the Fire Ruby and picking it up with her magic. She spoke as she brought it over to a nearby dresser. "I think you know why I did that, Spike." She opened a glass case that she had placed above her dresser, and set the Fire Ruby gently down on the satin resting pillow inside the case. Closing the case, Rarity stepped back to admire it. "There. A nice little place to put it, don't you think?" She turned, expecting his response. Instead, she felt something warm press against her lips, and saw nothing but purple. Spike had walked up to her while she was putting away the Ruby and kissed her.

For a second, Rarity didn't know what to do. Spike's arm wrapped around her neck, pulling her deeper into the kiss. Then she shut her eyes, and, to Spike's great relief, pressed back. They stayed pressed together for a time, and only separated when the sound of the tea boiling over broke Rarity out of her trance. She blushed and began walking back towards the kitchen to fetch the pot, and when she returned she found Spike in the same spot he had been left in, his eyes glazed over. She walked over and gently pecked him on the cheek.

"Spike? Are you there?" Her words brought him back to earth, and he responded distantly.

"Yeah?"

"Did you get what you wanted?"

Spike looked up at her. "What do you mean?"

Rarity sighed. She poured two cups of tea and brought them over to her couch. "Spike, as much as I want to believe it can work between us..." She paused, and set down the tea on her coffee table. Spike didn't move from his spot. "Yes?" He sounded wounded, and Rarity knew that she was about to hurt him terribly. Without turning, she continued. "Someone your age is simply too young for me. And that's ignoring the fact that you're a dragon and I'm a unicorn." She turned towards Spike. "I personally don't care about that anymore, and I pray to Celestia that nopony else does, but-" She stopped when she caught sight of Spike's face.

The purple dragon had still not moved from his place in front of the case with the Fire Ruby. He was no longer smiling, instead showing no emotion on his face. His eyes, however, were filled with a cold rage that scared Rarity. When he spoke again, she could almost see the poison dripping of his tongue.

"I said I didn't want any tea."

He walked past her, rushing towards the door. When he reached the door, he threw it open, and for a second he simply looked out into the night. Then he spoke again, almost whispering, "I shouldn't have come here. I knew, deep down, that this would end badly. Don't worry." He turned to her, his face still void of emotion, his eyes matching now. "I won't tell anyone about this if you don't. It'll be like nothing ever happened." He turned to go.

Rarity was shocked. She'd never seen Spike this way before. He seemed almost a different dragon when he spoke, almost in a different accent. Seeing him about to leave, she moved quickly over to him, and put a hoof on his shoulder. He did not turn, so she moved around to face him. Looking him straight in the eyes, Rarity said, "Spike. Listen to me." He stared through her, and she shook him. He didn't move. She sighed, and continued. "I don't care what anypony says about us. I really do want to try and start a relationship with you. But you are still just a child, and-"

"I'm 14 today."

For a second, Rarity wasn't sure if she had heard him correctly. Looking at him, she couldn't tell that he was any age older than 10. Without missing a beat, she replied, "And I'm 23. It would be wrong like this. I'm almost a decade older than you, and we both know that it couldn't work like this. Wait, Spike. Spend time growing up more. Learn about the world, and when you're old enough to be called a true gentledragon, I'll be here, waiting." She leaned down, and pecked him on the lips.

Spike sighed, and smiled for the first time since he'd come in. "Okay, Rarity," he said, accepting things for what they were, "I'll wait. And I promise that I'll be the best I can when I get that chance." He turned and walked out the door. He stopped, and turned back to Rarity. "Oh, yeah, and about the age difference thing? I'm working on that. Then he disappeared into the night, back to his home across town.

Rarity laughed and shut the door. "He can be so silly sometimes," she said to the empty space around her. She walked back to her tea, but found she didn't want it anymore. With a frustrated sigh at having wasted perfectly good tea, she brought it back to her kitchen and set it on her stove. "I'll reheat it in the morning." She waked over to the staircase leading up to her room, but stopped, and turned back to the Fire Ruby. Staring at it, she noticed for the first time (amazingly)that it was on the shape of a heart. A sudden burst of emotion caught Rarity off guard as she thought back to all the times Spike had tried to do something nice for her, helping her with chores or her work.

Sighing, Rarity levitated the case over to herself and walked up the stairs. Entering her room, she trotted over to her dresser and placed the case on top of it. Then she opened it up and pulled the Ruby out. She stared at it, and thought of how funny it was that the stone in her hoof had brought them together. Finally, the dam broke. Letting her emotions get the best of her, Rarity kissed the gem, and placed it back into its case. Letting tears come, she got into her bed, and slowly drifted off to sleep.

Now Rarity stared at the Fire Ruby in the mirror. It had been years since she'd worn it. After that day, she would always wake up and see the gemstone sitting in its case, waiting to be worn again. Eventually, she had moved it, unable to cope with feeling guilty whenever she looked at it. It was moved to a higher perch, actually above her bed's canopy where she could not be reminded of how much she had hurt him that night.

Spike returned to normal after their talk, though Rarity did not see him for several days. When she saw him again, he acted in a much friendlier mood toward her. He hadn't been lying when he said he was working on their age difference, and for her birthday the next year he had presented her with what appeared to be bath salts, a container of large, fine-smelling beads that were colored a light turquoise.

"Just use one," had been Spike's warning. That night, Rarity had taken a bath with them, and when she emerged, she found herself years younger. He had told the truth. She was now five years younger. "And you still have more," he said, sipping a smoothie at the local cafe the next day.

Though she had been open to a relationship that day, it was Spike who stopped her this time. He had come to terms with their previous agreement, and didn't want to ruin their friendship with something that wouldn't work. And so Rarity found herself on the end of her agreement intended for Spike. Now she was the one being impatient, and Spike was willing to take it slow, trying to do his best to learn all he could. He learned to sing and play several more instruments, and he regularly played at Ponyvilles' night clubs to earn money that he saved for Celestia knew what.

Then she'd given up. She convinced herself she'd ruined her chances, and was almost thoroughly convinced when she saw Spike and Scootaloo one day, kissing by the lake side. She had been heartbroken at first, but resigned herself to letting Spike live his own life. She hadn't complained about his relationship with Scootaloo, or when it ended a year later (they had come to terms on it, and were still very close friends). She had forgotten her feelings for him completely. Until they'd gotten the tickets to the Titanic, that is.

And now Jack comes into the picture. Her thoughts were a mess as all the memories of herself and Spike rushed her through a hallway of her memories, abruptly ending at a large image of the azure unicorn. Where was he, in all of this? Was he a buffer, someone who was there to keep Spike from her for even longer? No, he had no idea who Spike was. It didn’t matter, anyway. If she came back with news that she had found a coltfriend on the ship, he wouldn’t be upset. Like his letter said, he wanted her to find somepony, right? He wouldn’t care, he’d be happy for her.

Wouldn’t he?

She was shocked out of her thoughts by the sound of a bell chiming, announcing the time of 11:00 a.m. She gasped, looking at the invitation to Fancy Pants’ brunch. “I’m going to be late!” she shouted to nopony in particular. Rarity rushed towards the bathroom, desperate to look her best for the brunch in the short time she had before departure. She had completely forgotten the other letter she had received, left by itself on the table. The letter was written on stationary paper that the rooms were all supplied with, and Rarity’s name was written neatly on the front. The letter had been partially unfolded, and anyone who looked at it would have seen the name of the sender written on the bottom of the paper:

Jack.

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Once more, we present: A Note From The Author.

Oh, Rarity. Why are you so complicated? You make writing your character so much harder for me. I don't mind, though. I like a good challenge every once in a while.

Ha! Surprised? The story is about 5-6 years ahead of the current season! What a twist I've put in! It makes adding in back story so much easier, because I get to make stuff up! Lots and lots of stuff!

As the name of the chapter suggests, there's been a lot of coupling up in this one: we got, of course, Jack and Rarity (for the last time, Spike is not Jack! Jack is Jack! Well, Jack is Gemstone Hue is Jack, but they're one and the same!), our favorite unicorn Trixie stepped in to capture Twilight's heart (exeunt Sethisto, stage left), we have Dash getting a little Pinkie Pie (wink wink nudge nudge), and I even went so far as to hint at a previous relationship that many have condemned because of Rarity's presence: Spikaloo! Fortunately, I got rid of that ASAP, so we never have to talk about this again.

What's with the chapter length, man? I keep adding on, like three thousand words each chapter. Which means you can expect 13,000 next time (not really). If all goes well this weekend, I may be able to get the 4th chapter up by tomorrow night (after the Oscars, of course). I'm also working on two more projects, which is why this took twice as long to make as the last chapter. Don't expect me to publish those until this is over, though. That is, supposing you care what I make next, of course.

Expect drama and (somehow) action in the next chapter! Oh, an innuendos! And more Spike flashbacks! And I'll finally get Fluttershy (or AJ) shipped! Talk to you then!

The Lights Go Out

Chapter 4: The Lights Go Out

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Celestia's sun shone brightly on the deck of the Titanic as it passed calmly through the waters of the ocean around it. The weather was unnaturally sunny, as the ship's route brought it through a particularly cold part of the world. It had been blessed with a brief period of warm, clear daylight, perfect for the brunch being held on the port side of the ship. The good weather, however, was not the topic of discussion at the brunch, and was hardly on the minds of any ponies there; one unicorn in particular cared not of the sun and its business with the weather.

Jack needlessly straightened his bow tie and coughed. Looking back and forth between the many fancily dressed ponies, he checked his pocket watch. Jack was, to say the least, nervous about the brunch. I should never have disclosed my room number. He had reluctantly accepted Fancy Pants' invitation when the unicorn showed up at his door, Fleur de Lis draped over his back in her signature pose. Now, though, he realized that there would be a certain somepony that he had intended to avoid for the day.

He wasn't trying to avoid Rarity to hurt her; on the contrary, he was avoiding her so that he could make their next meeting that much more anticipated. He had hoped to Celestia that she had received and read his letter to her. His mind went through everything he had been through since they had last met seen each other.

Rarity was the only thing that had been on Jack's mind since he'd stepped into his room the night before. He had never been surer of his feelings before: he was in love with Rarity. Immediately after realizing this, he had proceeded to bang his head against the wall of his bedroom until a disgruntled neighbor knocked on his door complaining about the poor timing of his noise-making. Once he had calmed down the angered pony, he had finally been able to get into bed and sleep. He had dreamed of her, imagining everything that could have gone right that night. His dreams were filled with the images of them dancing, the moonlight shining down on them like a spotlight. Her eyes burned into his memories, twin beams of blue energy leaving a mark on his mind. However, upon waking, the illusion was gone, and he was left with a dilemma; he had promised to make up his behavior the night before, and had not planned anything yet. His mind had raced, desperate to find an answer before it was too late. He searched his room, hoping to find some way to win back her heart. The answer was found in the painting above his fireplace.

The picture painted had inspired him to write the letter he had slid under Rarity's doorstep (it had taken him hours to figure out where her room was). As quickly as possible, Jack had run to the desk in his bedroom, found some stationary paper and a quill, and had hastily written down:

Dearest Rarity,

As I said, I will attempt to make up my rude behavior from the night before. Please, if you still want to give me another chance, then meet me at the prow of the ship just before sundown. I would also like to treat you to dinner, if you would like.

Sincerely,
Jack.

He had considered asking Fancy Pants to deliver the letter, but he was unable to be found, so Jack had asked around until Rarity's room's location had been learned. Delivering the letter without being seen had taken all of his nerve, and he had waited around the corner of the hallway where the room was located for thirty minutes after seeing four young mares enter the room he had been told was Rarity's. Her friends, he thought, and his mind went spiraling. What if they read the letter? What if Rarity told them what I'd done last night? Would they keep Rarity from reading it? Are they going to judge me from what Rarity may or may not have told them? Am I going to let these thoughts get to me? In the end, after almost an hour of waiting in hiding, he had trotted up to the door, slid the letter under it, and galloped away as fast as he could. He returned to his suite, and congratulated himself on working up the nerve to try to win Rarity's heart. Before he could do anything else, though, Fancy Pants had appeared in the doorway, a distant-looking Fleur next to him and an uncomfortable looking Thurmond Gold standing behind him, and invited him to the brunch. Carelessly he had agreed, and it wasn't until Fancy Pants and his company had left before he realized that Rarity would surely be there, ruining his plans.

Now, Jack was nervously awaiting first sight of the mare he had fallen for. So that I can run away from her. His thoughts fought between themselves, and he wished he could turn them off for a minute. He stood up from the table he was at, and began to walk towards the nearest exit, desperate to leave before he ruined his own plans. He was beating himself up on the inside, but he had to stay away from her until the time he had set for them arrived. "Then," he mumbled to himself, "no more hiding." He made his way to the exit, and left the brunch completely unaware of the mare that had been following him towards the exit, desperate to speak with him.

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Rarity was not having a good day.

She had hastily gotten ready for Fancy Pants' brunch, and had almost been late after she and Twilight had gotten into a "disagreement" about what time of day was right for playing (Rarity gagged at the term Twilight had used when describing her non-platonic "activities" with Trixie) with one's partner. After practically getting shoved out of the room, Rarity had found Pinkie Pie looking over the last letter she had received. The cotton candy pony had been insistent on Rarity's reading of the letter, but at the moment it was merely tucked away in her dress pocket, waiting to be read at a later moment. When she reached Fancy Pant's party, she had immediately been swept up into a whirl of questions by other ponies present at the brunch. Though the interest in her hoof-made dresses was great for her business, Rarity could not have cared less about her profits at the moment. It was only after she told the ponies interested in her work that she was from Ponyville that she was able to think clearly (though the insult of being judged by the town she was from hadn't helped). She had sat down at a table and ordered something to eat before she had finally gotten the time to look at the letter.

It was from Jack. It instructed her to meet him at the prow of the ship just before sundown. So, she thought. This is his attempt to make up what he did last night. Or rather, what he didn't do. The thoughts of their almost perfect moment in the moonlight being ruined by Jack's sudden hesitation to kiss her made her sniffle a bit. All throughout her time at the brunch, Rarity had been trying to figure out why Jack had been so hesitant to show any emotion that would give his feelings away. He shouldn't have even bothered to hide them, she stifled a laugh that had broken through her melancholy stature. I can tell he has feelings for me. I can only hope that they're as strong as mine are for him. She had hoped to meet with him at the brunch, but at the moment, she was almost positive that he had purposely avoided the brunch because of her. She knew that she was being negative, but something about the contents of his letter had made it seem as though he only wanted to see her at the time he had set.

These thoughts were pushed to the back of her mind when she caught sight of him. At first, she couldn't tell if it was him. The unicorn she was looking at was turned around, and she could not see his (or her) face. My mind is making me see him! He's driving me insane! But there was no mistaking it: the azure unicorn she had seen was Jack. She sighed in relief when she caught sight of the flaming card on his flank. Thank Celestia! I can finally speak to him. Her hopes, however, crashed back down to earth when she saw Jack heading towards a nearby exit. "Oh no you don't," she murmured, and followed after him. Just as she was about to yell and make him turn around, so that she could finally see his face (his mask could not be seen on it, nor his person), she was blocked by an extended hoof. A voice in her ear whispered, "I wouldn't try to follow him if I were you."

Standing behind Rarity was Tuxmond Gold, his bright titular-colored coat shining in the noontime sun. He smiled warmly down at Rarity. "Please, madam. If you would come sit with me? I've been looking for somepony with some sense to talk with." His hoof was on her shoulder, and somewhere in her mind a warning light went off and was extinguished in the same moment, and she hesitated. Turning back towards the exit, she saw that Jack had disappeared, gone back to his room or wherever else he could be needed. Accepting her fate, she sighed and nodded. "Lunch right now sounds delightful." She had left her table before her food had arrived, and she only noticed now that she was starving. Gold smiled and took her hoof. "Excellent." He led her to a table that was already had a bottle of wine set on it. Rarity noticed that several ponies looked nervously at her when she sat down and had a glass poured for her by Gold. "Why are those ponies looking at us like that?" she asked him.

Gold chuckled as he poured himself a glass of the wine. "Well, as much as you don't want it to be true, there are some ponies who recall the little incident you pulled." Noticing Rarity's blush, Gold waved a hoof dismissively. "Don't worry. I know for a fact that you weren't drunk. I can tell when a mare is infatuated with a stallion, and Jack isn't exactly hard to fall for. I've even heard stories from him about other colts coming up to him and announcing that they'd changed their sexuality because of him." He laughed and sipped his glass of wine. He winced. "Mm. Should let it breath for a bit." Rarity, who had been about to taste the wine, placed it down on the tabletop. She cleared her throat, and tried to pass the time before she would have to return to her room to prepare for her meeting with Jack.

"So, Mr. Gold." Her attempts to make idle chit-chat were failing, she could already tell. "Why did you not want me to follow Jack? It really is eating at the back of my head." She heard her voice and regretted the tone she had used. Come on, Rarity, think straight! You've never had trouble with this before! To her great surprise, Gold neither laughed nor smiled. Instead, he looked down at the table, apparently lost in thought. He sighed, and spoke heavily. "I was so afraid for you, when I saw your first exchange with Jack. I had hoped that he could change, but he's using the same tricks as before. Sometimes I think that he does this to play with me, not the mares he takes home."

Rarity was taken aback by the last part of Gold's little speech. Jack, taking home mares on a regular basis? He can't be serious! She tried to hide the surprise in her voice, and simply asked, "What do you mean, 'the mares he takes home?'" Her brain had shifted into high gear, and she was now searching desperately through the list of situations that Gold could be talking about. Her list dwindled down to the worst possible when she heard Gold's answer.

"Oh, you poor girl. So young, so naive." He sipped his wine, this time without a grimace. "That's better." He set the glass down and stared across the table at the unicorn before him. "How old are you, Rarity? 19? 18?" At this change of topic, Rarity blushed. "24," she mumbled, and sipped at her wine glass nervously. Gold laughed, and said, "Well! You must tell me your secret!" His expression hardened suddenly. "I'm warning you, as I've warned many before you: don't fall under Jack's spell. He's young and free-spirited, and he'll leave you within a fortnight, no matter what prior commitment you've made to him." He leaned over the table closer to Rarity, and she could smell the rich scent of the wine on his breath. "Do you understand?"

"Yes." The answer had come out of her mouth before she had thought it, and Gold leaned back in his chair, raising his glass in a toast. "Then may I make a toast? To truly enjoying the cruise, without worry or care of the world back on shore." Rarity raised her glass in toast, and it clinked with Gold's. Though she hadn't really meant what she'd said, Rarity had no intention of letting Jack infest her mind again. Besides, her head told her. if he really is just using me, I want to make sure that I'll be one step ahead of him, and when the time comes, I will destroy him. "Hypothetically, of course." Without meaning to, she had spoken out loud. Looking up at Gold, he seemed to have not noticed, staring at a passing couple. Dammit, Rarity! You will control yourself! She would remain in control of her own actions and thoughts when she confronted Jack at the prow of the ship that evening. She had to. Speaking of evening...

"Mr. Gold, as grateful as I am for your advice, I think I shall retire for the evening," she said, dabbing her lips with a napkin and standing up from her seat. "Thank you for the wine. It was... intoxicating." She was at a loss for more words, so she simply began to walk away, wanting to find Jack as soon as possible. She heard Tuxmond Gold's parting words, and she shivered for a reason she didn't want to know.

"Remember, Ms. Rarity, there are always other stallions you can find. They may be waiting for you as we speak, simply hoping that they can get to you before Jack does."

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Applejack was in hell. She was sure of it now.

The day had started out pleasant enough. She had loved being able to wake up at a late hour without the prospect of being chewed out for skipping her duties as an apple farmer, and had lay in bed, smiling up at the ceiling with her eyes closed. After Fluttershy had woken up several minutes later, they had prepared themselves for the day, and were about to have their breakfast when Pinkie Pie had arrived at their room with a hoof around a distant-looking Rainbow Dash. It had only taken seconds for Applejack to realize that the two mares relationship had finally blossomed the way Pinkie Pie had talked about whenever she and Applejack were making apple fritters for the bake sales at the Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie had proceeded to invite them to a "breakfast party" with Twilight and Rarity. As she had suspected, both Twilight and Rarity had been surprised that Pinkie and Rainbow had gotten together, both too preoccupied with their own business (Twilight was "too much of an egghead", as Dash put it, to have noticed; Rarity was too concerned about her own relationship with Spike to ever look at her friends as potential couples themselves). Once she had finished her breakfast with her friends (minus Twilight, who stayed in her room for the duration of her time there), Applejack and Fluttershy went back to their room, where Fluttershy said she was going for a walk, though she looked like she wouldn't be able to make it out on her own for more than two minutes. Nevertheless, she had left Applejack to her devices. After a few minutes of staring at a particularly interesting bowl of fruit, she decided to go for a walk herself.

This was when things had taken a turn for the worst. Two days before the cruise, a heated discussion between Applejack and Rarity had ended with Applejack deciding that it was best for her if she used her Manehatten accent for the duration of the cruise. "You know these types, Applejack," Rarity had explained. "One small slip-up, one potential flaw in your figure or act, and they'll never shut up about it. It's of utmost importance that you use your amazing accent to keep those pompous fools from teasing you."

However, Applejack had soon found that her accent was the least of her worries. Leaving her room and going above deck, Applejack had found herself being stared at by many of the passing ponies on the ship. At first, the farm pony had not been able to guess why others would stare at her. It only took a few overheard whispers to figure out what made them stare.

"What an atrocious hat!"

"Is she seriously wearing that hat in public?"

"Oh, that's rich!"

Naturally, Applejack had had to use all of her willpower not to shout at the ones making fun of her last attachment to her deceased father. However, she had felt her spirit breaking with each overheard insult, and her brisk trot slowly turned into a self-pitying slink. That had not been what sent her over the edge, though. She had been looking down at the ground, attempting to distract herself from the degrading statements of the passersby, when the worst possible situation presented itself.

WHAM!

Applejack found herself thrown to the floor, and the sound of another pony hitting the ground only confirmed her fears. Aw, buck mah life. Looking up from her position on the floor, she saw a furious-looking member of the ship's crew staring down at her. She stood up, and had been about to apologize when, to her great shock, the colt slapped her upside the face.

"Insolent worker! Get back down to the workrooms!" His voice rang in her ears, and it matched his appearance, intimidating and rough, even for an earth pony. As the earth colt ranted, Applejack felt tears welling in her eyes. He continued to shout at her, “You think you're good enough to trot up here like you belong in this society? You hardly belong with the hicks, and I hope you understand that you're lucky to be on this ship at all-"

"SECOND OFFICER LOUD MOUTH! WHAT IN CELESTIA'S NAME DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING?!?" The aptly-named earth pony turned at the sound of another pony's voice, and froze up when he recognized who it was. Even Applejack could tell who had just yelled at the worker.

It was the captain of the ship. The papers had given his name, and his name tag was a redundant presence on his chest: Captain North Star. Applejack shuddered. Though she had seen him in the papers a thousand times, his actual appearance in front of her was intimidating, to say the least. Perhaps it was the fact that he was still screaming at the pony known as Loud Mouth (an understandable name) that made her cringe when she looked at him.

"S-sir" Loud Mouth was trying to stammer out an answer for his captain with great difficulty. "Th-this reprobate of a worker was-" He was silenced by North Star with a hoof in his face.

"This 'reprobate' is a PASSENGER, not a worker! And not only that, but a lady! A lady," he shouted, gesturing towards Applejack's reddening cheek, "who you have just laid a hoof on! What do you have to say for yourself?" He stared daggers at the subordinate crew member, and Applejack had to stifle a laugh when she saw the buckets of sweat pouring from Loud Mouth's brow.

"I-I-"

"I'll tell you what! I'll give you a break!" North Star placed a hoof on Loud Mouth's shoulder, a terrifyingly kind-looking smile on his face. "You're dismissed for the rest of the cruise. You have that time to reflect on your morals, and when we get back, well..." He shrugged, and Applejack could almost hear Loud Mouth's heart pounding. He managed to stutter out a tiny "Y-yes s-sir..." before he turned and walked away, leaving the captain and Applejack alone.

Now his attention was drawn to the swelling red mark on Applejack's face. Bending down to look at it, he began apologizing. "My dear lady, I have to apologize for the actions of that scumbag. He's been a problem ever since he was promoted to second mate, gaining an undeserved ego that made him into the monster that just slapped you. I hope you're alright, Miss...?" He stood up straight, and looked down at her, his dark green eyes soft now, no anger showing through his stare.

Applejack stood still for a moment, shocked at the sudden change the captain had made. He was no longer a god-like ruler, bringing fear to whomever so angered him, but simply another passenger on the ship. She shook her head to clear it. "Ah-" She shook her head again, remembering to use her accent. She looked back up at him, and calmly said, "I'm Applejack, Captain."

North Star laughed. "Oh please, I feel like I'm talking to a crew member when regular ponies call me that. To you, Ms. Applejack, I'm North Star." He bowed to her, and she blushed a little, pulling her hat down a bit. Looking back up, North Star continued. "Once again, my apologies. My crew is not all like that, I assure you. I despise ponies who can't seem to understand that those not from Canterlot or Manehatten or any place like that are still ponies like them. It disgusts me to have seen you slapped for not wearing fine clothing, and I hope I can do my best to forget it. I simply have to make it up to you." Here Applejack froze. She did not want to have to have something done for her, but she could tell that North Star would not take "no" for an answer. Not that ah would want tah say no. He ain't the kinda colt who looks tah be abusing. Her thoughts were interrupted by the feeling of a hoof on Applejack's still-orange cheek. North Star raised her head up, and she was resigned to look him in the eye. "Well, madam? I have an invitation to a dinner with the captain with your name on it, if you are so willing."

Warning lights went off in her head, but she paid them no mind. Not this time. Pushing away North Star's hoof, Applejack smiled, and said, "Thank you very much. I'd love to have dinner." She turned to walk away, but was stopped by North Star's massive form moving in front of her. Jeez! This fella is bigger than Big Mac! She looked up at him, and he smiled down back at her.

"Would you like to go for a walk? You look like you have an interesting tale to tell. Perhaps if you were to tell me your story, I would tell you mine. Is that alright?" Something about the way he said it seem more like a request than a command. Applejack blushed again and said, "Aye-aye, Captain." With a laugh, she and North Star began to walk along the side of the ship.

As they began a conversation on how they got where they were, Applejack took back her previous thoughts in her head. Hey, maybe ah'm not in that bad a place, after all.

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Loud Mouth sat in the transmissions room, looking menacingly out the window of the room at the deck below. The sun was beginning to set, and he could see a blue unicorn pacing back and forth along the prow of the ship. His mind, due to the incident that had taken place between himself, the captain, and some deceiving orange earth pony, was tuned to think the worst thoughts first.

Perhaps he's going to jump. That would spice this boring little boat ride up. And perhaps dear Captain North Star would forget all about my encounter with that little wench. He knew he was being completely ridiculous, but he also knew that blowing off steam was good for him. And at that point, nothing seemed better to him than making fun of the pony he hated the most on the ship.

He was pulled from his negative thoughts by the sound of the radio transmitter taking a message from another ship. Oh joy, he thought. What news do you bring us, outside world? More news about the weather? He tore the sheet that had printed out from the typeset machine. He was about to read when he noticed that the letter was intended to be read by "Captain North Star's eyes only!" He laughed once. North Star's eyes will never see this. It's the least I could do for the little "break" he cut me. He crumpled the message up and threw it away. Then he left the room, chuckling at the thought of what minor damage on missed message could do for him. Perhaps it's his wife, trying to contact him about a family tragedy! Or maybe he's been demoted! Oh, that would be the best! He shut the door behind himself, and the trashed message unfolded a bit at the rush of wind that came with the door slam. Though the letter had been typed in Horse code, nopony would have been able to tell that it had ever been that way. The message had been translated to proper Equestrian, and read:

TO CAPTAIN NORTH STAR STOP FOR HIS EYES ONLY STOP

THIS IS THE S.S JACALIFORNIAN REPORTING THE PRESENCE OF ICE FLOES WITHIN 48 HOURS OF YOUR SHIP, THE R.M.S. TITANIC STOP IF YOU DO NOT WANT THE SHIP TO BE IN DANGER OF BEING HIT, IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT THE SHIP'S COURSE IS CHANGED STOP PLEASE SEND A MESSAGE BACK CONFIRMING THAT YOU HAVE DONE SO WHEN YOU DO STOP

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The sun was going down. A red-orange glow was being cast upon the prow of the ship as it sailed into the sun, chasing the celestial body as if hoping to catch it. Jack sighed at the sight. I couldn't have asked for a better setting for this moment. Any minute now, Rarity would be joining him here, and he hoped he could change her mind about him. No doubt she thinks I've been playing her. I was a fool to think that I could do something as rude as pulling away from a kiss and still try to convince her I was in love with her. I was lucky to have gotten another chance. Such a generous lady.

Hoofsteps.

Jack spun around and moved into the shadows, observing the figure heading towards him. There was no doubt about it: it was Rarity. He grinned and, careful not to make a sound and give away his location, he moved into place, ready to sweep the unicorn of his dreams off her feet.

Rarity trotted along the side off the Titanic, hearing Tuxmond Gold's words echo through her head.

So young. So naive.

Don't fall under Jack's spell.

... the other mares he's taken home.

She considered all of the things she knew about the unicorn. He was a good poker player, which, she deduced, meant he could have a gambling problem. If so, that would mean he may be a heavy drinker, thus explaining Gold's advice against "falling under his spell". It would also explain why Gold said that this had happened before, though she was almost sure he was lying when he had said that. Seeing that she was nearing their arranged meeting spot, Rarity shooed her suspicions to the back of her head, and stepped up to the prow of the ship.

No one was there.

At first, Rarity felt outraged. How dare he! Standing up a lady that he promised another chance at love to! These thoughts were immediately replaced with worrying ones. Is he alright? Was he stopped by someone? I should go and find him! All thoughts that he could simply be late were impossible; something had to be wrong. She was about to turn when a hoof covered her eyes.

"Don't move."

She squeaked. Jack had hidden from her, intended this from the start. She remembered his hesitancy to show her his face, and she figured that this was his way of keeping her from seeing it this time around. Testing her theory, she calmly spoke to him. "I suppose this means you aren't wearing that accursed mask?"

She heard his chuckle, and suddenly she was being pulled up to her hind legs, her eyes still covered by his hoof. He whispered in her ear. "You guessed. But that isn't why I did this." He began to move her legs for her. She obliged, playing along with his game. His voice continued to whisper. "I wanted to show you...this." And with that, he removed his hoof from her face.

Rarity gasped. She had been brought to the very tip of the prow, and was being held at the edge of the railing. If Jack were to let go, she would fall down into the sea, to be lost in the waves forever. On instinct, she squirmed. But Jack held her firmly in place. "It's OK. I'm holding on to you. You will not fall." His voice was comforting, and she let him hold her while she simply stared out at the ocean and the sunset. Slowly, she raised her forelegs out to her sides, and in the beauty of the moment, she screamed out, "I'M A PRINCESS! I'M THE PRINCESS OF EQUESTRIA!" She heard Jack laugh behind her, and she turned her head to catch a glimpse of his face. Jack, however, had other ideas. He held Rarity's face in place, preventing her from looking at anything but the sunset. "Sorry, Your Highness," came his voice, only a hint of sarcasm in it, "but you'll simply have to deal with staying like this until the sun goes down.

And so Rarity was held in place, and she loved every minute of it. Jack stayed close to her, his forelegs wrapped around her waist and his head resting on her shoulder, and finally, when Rarity started to believe that Celestia was purposely keeping the sun up to stop Rarity from ever seeing Jack's face, dusk fell.

Jack pulled Rarity back, and let her slide out of his grip. She slid down onto the floor, in a dreamy state between reality and fantasy, when she heard his voice calling her, from which world she could not tell.

"Well? Was that an accident, or am I going to have to find your suite by myself and show you what I look like tomorrow?"

Her eyes slowly opened, and the light of the stars shone down. She was reminded of the night before, when she had opened her eyes to a masked prince shining in the starlight. This time, though, only his hoof was visible, offered to her. She took it, and she found herself pulled into a face-full of blue fuzz. He'd pulled her up and put her head on his shoulder. She was now staring down at his flank, her eyes focused on the flaming playing card of his cuties mark. She blushed heavily, trying not to stare at any other part of his body. She felt his hoof stroke her mane, and she unintentionally cooed, and buried her head into his shoulder when she realized her mistake. He continued stroking her mane, and she finally managed a muffled, "What are you doing?"

She could almost hear his grin. "I'm setting the mood," he said.

Rarity was almost afraid to ask. "For what?"

She was pulled from his shoulder, and he turned, one hoof still holding onto hers. "Why," he said, keeping his face turned away from her, "you haven't forgotten the dance that I owe you? A proper one, of course." He spun her, and she felt his hoof wrap around her waist again. His voice came from behind her. "If that's alright with you."

She almost didn't answer back for fear of being too loud. She blushed, and breathed out her answer.

"Yes, please."

He kissed her neck, and began spinning and twirling her madly. She could not see his face, and knew that he would not let her. Unless...

She began to dance back, trying to slow herself and him long enough to catch sight of his face. She could have sworn she saw him grin, and he changed pace with her. Soon it became more of a fight dance than what Jack had begun before. And all through it, he would not reveal his face. But Rarity kept at it, moving as fast as she could. Eventually, he managed to get behind her again, and grabbed her waist. She giggled, breathing heavily from the quick movements of the dancing. She heard him panting in her ear, and she put a hoof on his cheek. "Now can I see?"

A growl back. "Not just yet." And she was spinning, this time giggling almost uncontrollably at the dream-like situation she was in, and didn't bother to try and stop him. He twirled her and moved along, with no beat to dance to. It didn't matter to him, or her for that matter. Alright, he thought, finally turning his head toward Rarity. I think I've kept her waiting long enough. He stopped and, moving a hoof to the back of her head, lifted Rarity's face up to his own. Her eyes were closed, and she was panting, her breath warm against his muzzle.

"...Can I?"

A pause. Then, "Of course."

Rarity opened her eyes.

Two gemstones stared back at her. Twin emerald pools stared into her soul, and she found herself unable to breath. "I..." She knew there were no words to describe the moment. Jack's voice echoed out from somewhere beyond the gemstones. "Well? Did I keep you waiting for nothing? Or am I really as handsome as I think I am?" She didn't answer. She couldn't answer. Without a word, Rarity brought her hooves to his face. Taking it in both her hooves, she slowly brought their faces closer. The emeralds disappeared under Jack eyelids, and she closed her eyes. Don't. Not this time. Please don't ruin this moment. She felt their muzzles touch...

And then she threw away her hesitation, for fear that history would repeat itself, and she mashed her lips against his. Her hooves were forcing him to kiss her, and she hoped that he was not trying to pull away. She let her forelegs wrap around his neck, and she released his face, expecting the moment to end, for him to pull away again.

Then, to her greatest relief, he kissed back.

Jack pressed his body against hers, and they were both absorbed in passion, trying desperately to get as much as they could out of one another. Rarity opened her mouth and ran her tongue over Jack's lips. He obliged to her request, and she was wrestling with his tongue, for control of the other's mouth. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her in closer, squeezing her against him. She lost her balance, and she pulled him onto the floor, refusing to let their mouths separate. His hoof moved lower, and she moaned softly when he caressed her cutie mark. Finally, she pulled away, leaving a strand of saliva connected to their tongues. Panting, she waited for the strand to break before she spoke again.

"You... are..." She was silenced by him, a small peck on the lips as his silencer. He leaned over, and whispered, "As much as I would love to take you here and now, I think that that's enough of a go for one day." She held on to him as he pulled himself up, and she stood back up herself. They stood there for a moment, simply staring into each other's eyes.

After a brief minute, Rarity tilted her head back and laughed. Jack looked at her, confused. "What's so funny? Is there something on my face?" She looked back to him and shook her head. "Besides my saliva? No. I just realized..." she giggled again, "we almost had sex just now, even though we've only known each other for a day. It's so ridiculous, but I feel as if you're someone I've been able to trust for years." She trotted up to him, and nuzzled into his neck. "But that doesn't mean we can't-" She was pushed away by Jack, and the confusion returned to her head. He looked down at her, and said, "You were listening, weren't you? I would love nothing more than to show around my rooms," he looked out into the night, "but I don't want to waste this beautiful night. Besides, having one's way with a lady on a first date is rude, and I've got a reputation with the ladies to uphold." He tipped his hat, and winked at Rarity. "That's what a gentlecolt does."

She looked at him for a time, contemplating whether or not he was seriously against making love to her, and eventually she gave up. Laughing softly, she nuzzled up to him again. "Fine. But promise me you won't make me wait for you tomorrow?" She looked up at him, and her eyes shone in the growing moonlight. He was mesmerized by them, and answered slowly, "Of course, my dear. That would also be rude." He turned, and gestured in front of her. "Would you care to go for a stroll? I would love to know more about you."

Rarity nodded deftly. Those eyes. She knew that that first moment when she had seen his large, bright, emerald eyes looking at her with such desire would never leave her memories. I could fall into his eyes. She began walking with him, never breaking eye contact. Jack walked alongside her, and they began a conversation on who they were and how they got to be on the ship. She found Jack's story to be an interesting one.

The azure unicorn had not been lying when he'd said he was lucky to be on the Titanic. He was born into a middle-class family of six in Manehatten, where his father ran a jewelry store. Being the only son in the family, Jack, then called Gemstone, had been taught how to take care of the shop, learning to recognize the value of different gemstones and to tell the difference between a real gem and a fake one. He was not remotely interested in the jewelry business, but when his father had passed away, he had felt obliged to run the store, though his sisters offered to do it for him.

"I wanted to make good on the promise I made to my father," he said, staring off into space, seeing visions of the past. "I held on to the store for a long time, but eventually business started to slow. We became poor, my mother and I. My sisters, for all they had offered to do, had cut most ties with the family and eloped or run away to find themselves or some other bullshit excuse (pardon my language). Eventually, my mother, bless her heart, grew ill, and I had to sell most of our possessions to pay for her medicine. Then she died." He said the last sentence with such sadness ringing in his voice that Rarity was almost convinced this had happened merely days ago. She leaned over, and gently kissed him. "I'm sorry," she whispered, and Jack stopped in his tracks. When she pulled away, he was misty-eyed. "Thank you. She would have loved to meet you." He continued walking. "Anyway, with most of my family gone now, I sold the store, and ended up trying to find my true calling, getting a job as a bartender. It paid the bills, and I loved the people I met, but I wanted more. The only solace was coming home to my apartment and staying up late drawing."

"You draw?"

"Yes, but not very well. It isn't exactly what you would call my 'special talent'."

He sighed, and lifted up a necklace he was wearing. "This is all I've got left of what my father taught me." It was a sapphire, small and cut into a diamond shape, resting in a silver casing and shining out at the night. Rarity stared into it, and absently touched a hoof to the Fire Ruby, which she had decided to wear after a serious internal debate with herself. Jack noticed this, and lifted up the Ruby up so that it shone in the moonlight. "My goodness," he muttered, twirling the gem with his magic. "This is the most exquisite gem that I've ever seen. Where in Equestria did you get this?" He stared down at her, twin beams of green staring into her eyes with great interest.

Rarity uneasily took the gem with her own magic and laid it back across her chest. His eyes followed the gem as she answered. "It was a gift from a... er... very close friend." Jack suddenly looked back up at her urgently. "Ms. Rarity! Are you actually engaged, or is this really just a gift from a friend?" She was surprised by his reaction. "Why, of course it's from a friend! I would not have come here tonight if I were engaged!" She tilted her head back and huffed mockingly. "That would be rude."

Jack laughed at the little joke. He looked at the gem once more, and said, "Whoever gave this to you, whoever he is to you, must really have feelings for you." Rarity suddenly flashed back to her meeting with Spike, all those years ago. Her smile disappeared for the briefest moment, not long enough for Jack to notice. Then it returned, and she happily said, "Yes, that was what I imagined, as well."

The conversation turned to Rarity after that, and she explained her story, going into great detail of how her greatest accomplishment was to have acquired the Carousel Boutique. Jack listened with interest, and every few minutes they would stop, and he would pull her close and kiss her neck and lips. She could not have imagined a more perfect moment, until the next one came, and she was still with him. Eventually, though, he yawned, their talks finished, the night taking its toll on him, and he looked at his watch. "Well, I'm glad that you gave me this second chance, but I really do want to get some sleep. I couldn't get any last night, and I'm exhausted." He turned to her one last time, bowing. "Ms. Rarity. I shall see you again tomorrow." He was surprised by Rarity trotting up to him and pressing their lips together. He savored her taste, and when she pulled away it was too soon. She smiled at him. "Would you like to meet over breakfast?"

He yawned again. "Mm. Lunch. I won't be waking up very early tomorrow." She giggled, and turned to go, bidding him goodnight before disappearing behind a corner. Jack stared at the corner or a long moment, and silently said to himself, "You, Jack Heart, are the luckiest stallion alive."

Rarity was in bliss as she walked towards the first-class suites. She had lived her dream fantasy, and had not woken up to shattered dreams and soiled bed sheets. Oh Celestia; I thank you for those tickets. I you were here now, I would throw myself at your hooves and kiss them in thanks. She hummed a waltz, and began trotting along to the beat. She had just caught sight of the entrance to the first-class cabins, when she heard hoovesteps coming from behind her. She spun.

Nopony was there.

She giggled. Oh? Does Jack still want to play a bit? Well, I'm sure I have enough energy for that. She strutted over to where she'd heard the noise, coming from a thin gap in between two buildings on the ship. "Jaaaaack," she sang, almost drunkenly. "I know you're back theeeeeere." She waited at the entrance to the small "alleyway", and when he didn't come out, she giggled and said, "Okay, I'm coming after you. But you'll be sooooooorry!"She turned into the alleyway, and stopped, immediately realizing her mistake. The stallion standing before her was not Jack.

It was Tuxmond Gold. Or it could have been, if not for his terrible state.

He looked almost bedraggled. His hat was nowhere to be seen, and a tangled mess of copper-colored mane lay over his face. His golden eyes glared out at her, in some sort of mixture of contempt and outrage. His suit was gone, with nothing to replace it. When he spoke, his voice dripped poison.

"Well. I had hoped this would have turned out better." He stepped towards her, and she suddenly realized what the warning light had been for, back at the brunch. Oh sweet Celestia of Equestria. "No." The whisper came out almost involuntarily, and when he heard it, Gold threw his head back and laughed. "Oh yes," he said. "You didn't really think I'd meant somepony else when I said other stallions you could find? I practically said my own name!" He scratched his head, and looked at his hand in disgust. "And still you met with him. After I warned you that he would break your heart." Another step towards her, and she was truly frightened by the colt in front of her. She wanted to run away, but was afraid he would chase her. In desperation, she tried to explain. "I think you misunderstand, Mr. Gold. My relationship with Jack is very much real, and I know that he would not betray me." She hoped that his room was near where they were.

He laughed at her. "You idiotic bimbo! Do you really think he gives two shits about you? You're just another pathetic piece of eye candy, a whore with no purpose save what he desires from you." He looked up and down Rarity's body hungrily, and Rarity felt her teeth grinding in anger. He looked back up at her eyes. "What I desire from you."

Gold licked his lips. "But of course he tricked you. Just shows how much of an idiot you really are. Still believing in fairy-tale romances." He looked around the area, as if he were referring to an audience for support. "But I suppose I'm really the one to blame for not coming for you sooner. Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid." He began trotting unsteadily toward her, prompting her to backpedal into the railing of the ship. "Should have seen this coming. Should have taken you when I had the chance. But now," he had reached her, and she could not run away. The tang of the wine from brunch was still lingering on his breath, and he said, "Now I can take what I deserve from you."

He grabbed her by the throat, and lifted her up with his magic. She wanted to scream, but he was keeping her mouth shut. Gold levitated Rarity over into the little gap in the architecture, and he roughly threw her on the ground. He licked his lips again, and his magic began to pull her dress off.

Oh no. Oh no. Oh please, Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Jack, anypony please be taking a stroll and see us. She felt his hoof on her flank, and with a sudden jolt of realization, she began to cry. His tongue flicked against her neck, and tears of sadness and fear turned to ones of rage and hatred. He whispered in her ear, "I think you'll enjoy this." A feather light brush at her private areas.

Rarity knew at that moment she was capable of killing.

It didn't matter. Gold grabbed her and shook her, slamming the helpless unicorn against a wall. She felt him tearing at her dress, and began to lose hope for the situation. Please, she begged herself, shutting her eyes tightly and letting tears stream down her face. Please let me fall unconscious before he does it. Please. But Gold had anticipated her attempts to avoid the worst, and he struck her violently in the face. She whimpered, unable to scream or cry her objections through the strength of his magic.

Gold had become a monster, no longer the charming colt from the brunch that day. He laughed maniacally, and said, "You think I'll let you try that? Oh, you stupid little girl. I'm going to make sure you feel every," he slapped her across the face. "Little," he jabbed her in the stomach. "Thing!" He struck her neck, and suddenly Rarity could not breathe. She choked and coughed, and Gold simply laughed, sliding her down the wall and crawling on top of her. "There. Now, I want you to stay nice and quiet, so that I can play my little grown-up's game, understand? I don't want to hear-"

"Mr. Gold."

He stood up and spun. Jack stood at the entrance of the building gap. His face was unreadable. "Mr. Gold," he repeated, "I have seen your actions towards the mares we've met on this cruise, and put up with the disrespectful way you've treated them. I've known you for only two days, and in the first ten minutes of our 'companionship', you managed to convince me that you were a sexist. Now you have proven your stereotype, along with the fact that you are a rapist and a sadistic pig." He walked towards Gold and his cowering victim. "You have also insulted me by attempting to hurt and take advantage of the mare I have fallen in love with. With that in mind, I must ask you to step away from Ms. Rarity now before I am forced to kill you." His expression had not changed once, and he had not faltered, now standing mere inches from Gold's face.

Gold looked enraged for only a second. He turned to Rarity, his face once again the cool and contained colt she had seen before he had revealed his true nature, and spoke to Jack. "You are an idiot. You truly do match your little whore. You know I had to tell lies before? To try and bring her to me? But of course she still wanted you." Now he spoke to Rarity. "You little wench. I should kill you. If it was not him, I would have done so already. You don't deserve to be touched by me." He released his magical hold on her, and she crumpled to the floor, whimpering. He leaned over, and Jack began to move to stop him. "You'll see me again later," he whispered. He stood up, looking back to Jack, who had put a hoof on his shoulder. He moved away, and said, "Enjoy your two-dollar whore."

And with that, he spat in Rarity's face.

In one fluid motion, Jack turned, reared up on his front legs, and bucked Tuxmond Gold in the face. The sun-colored unicorn slid a few feet across the ground, and when he started to get up again, Jack took Rarity by the hoof and ran.

Rarity could not think. She was in shock. She had just been rescued from a rapist, and was now headed who-knew-where. She trusted Jack with her life, but could not help but think of the monster that was surely following them. When her legs stopped working, Jack hurriedly pulled her onto his back with his magic and continued to run. Rarity faded in and out of consciousness, feeling the pain from where Gold had struck her for the first time. When Jack stopped suddenly, she began to panic, and flailed her legs around, trying to form words but still stuck somewhere only she knew.

Jack opened and shut the door to his room quickly. He rushed over to his bedroom and lay Rarity down on the bed. She was wide-eyed, breathing heavily, and was rigid with shock. He looked at the small collection of books he'd brought with him, and selected the medical guide he always kept with him. Looking up the spells necessary to heal her wounds and relieve her of her trauma-induced shock and stress as best as he could, his horn began to glow again. He looked over her, and immediately began to fix her face. The most valuable piece. I can't let her be scarred by that scumbag. He felt tears in his eyes as he saw the red marks, bruises, and swelling leave her, and eventually she looked just as she had before they'd said goodnight. Besides the frozen look of fear on her face.

That was another matter. Jack leaned over her, hoping for some form of reaction. He was suddenly confronted with a set of lips on his. Rarity, through her shock, had wrapped her forelegs around his neck and pulled him in. He closed his eyes and sighed in relief, happy that she at least seemed alright. After several minutes of having their lips pressed together, they separated. Rarity smiled up at him, and he saw that her shocked, traumatized look was mostly gone. Now she looked at him sensually, like he had just saved from...

Oh yeah. He stared into her eyes for a moment, before her horn glowed, and the lights suddenly went out in his room. He jumped in the dark, and finally said something. "What are you doing?"

Her voice came out seductive and soft, and he felt her hoof brush against his chest. "I don't think I mind you being rude anymore." Realizing what she was implying, he stuttered out, "M-Ms. Rarity, I think you should rest. You've been through a lot, and-" She silenced him, and rubbed herself up against him. "I know that you want this, even more than I do."

A pause. Then, through the darkness, "At least turn the lights on so I can undress."

He waited for an answer. A faint purple glow appeared in the darkness of the suite. Rarity's face shone in the glow of her magic, her eyes shining brilliantly. He heard a zipper come undone, and her dress fell off. She leaned closer, and he felt her hoof move his own onto her body, lower, lower, lower...

"I don't think that that will be necessary."

-------------------

Rarity woke up to an unimaginable sensation of warmth. She did not open her eyes, instead trying to make sense of the warmth before she saw it. Then she remembered.

She opened her eyes to a large wall of azure fuzz. At first she was confused, and she reached out a hoof to touch it. Then she felt the bed sheet over it fall off, and all of the memories from the night before fully crystallized themselves in her mind. She turned in the bed, looking around the room she was in. On the floor was her dress, torn and crumpled like a dead animal. Strangely enough, Rarity didn't feel sad about losing one of her dresses. It served its purpose. Content with where she was, she turned back to a still-asleep Jack, and snuggled against him, taking in the radiating warmth from his body.

Closing her eyes, Rarity let the memories of her night with Jack replay in her head. It had almost been a dream, and she was sure she had faded in and out of focus during the night. She sighed, and pressed her head into Jack's chest, breathing in his scent. Oh, it's like a dream. Everything's so perfect. My one and only Prince has finally come to me! She began to drift into dreamland again when the mass of blue fur moved. Jack turned, and he opened his eyes to the white unicorn lying next to him. He smiled, and spoke softly. "Good morning." He began to sit up, but Rarity pulled him down again, burying her head in his shoulder. Her voice was muffled by his fur. "Wha ime ih ih?" He chuckled, and said, "I'm sorry?"

She lifted her face from his shoulder, and repeated, "What time is it?"

Looking at the clock on his bedside table, he almost jumped out of bed. "Good lord! It's almost 12!" Again, he tried to get up out of bed, and again Rarity pulled him back down. This time she planted her lips on his, and he calmed down and shut his eyes. Everything was perfect for a moment before she broke their kiss and whispered, "I think I'm okay with letting my friends wonder where I am. Besides," she nuzzled up to him and looked at him with puppy dog eyes. "I've always wanted someone to cuddle with." She rested her head on his chest again, closing her eyes and simply enjoying the moment. I don't think I've been this relaxed in years. She felt Jack's hoof stroke her mane while the other held her close to him. He leaned over and began kissing her neck. She cooed and couldn't help but press into him again. A small moan escaped her when he began to caress her cutie mark, and she pushed him away, giggling and drawing the sheets around her.

She slid close to him, and whispered seductively in his ear. "I didn't think you had any spirit left in you after last night." She laughed when she saw his face turn red, and she wrapped her forelegs around him, drawing him into a warm hug. He nibbled her ear, and she began to laugh uncontrollably. "No! Wait! Please don't! Not my-" She couldn't finish her sentence as he pushed her into the pillows and kissed her again. She closed her eyes, still giggling, and pulled him closer. Jack lay on top of her, when he felt her tongue press on his lips, he opened his mouth and heard her moan softly as he slid his own tongue past her lips. No matter what had happened between them, kissing her was always the best. He could smell lilac and vanilla wafting off her coat from her perfumes, and after several minutes of fervent kissing he was overwhelmed by her embrace. His last intelligible thoughts before he sank into a pool of primal instinct and emotion were of how tire he would be after they were done.

---------------

"What are you so afraid of? You're Applejack!"

"Yeah! That's just it! Ah'm Applejack! The simple-minded, apple-bucking hick from Ponyville! An' he's Cap'n North Star, the big, burly, well-educated stallion who grew up where ponies like me were his servants!"

Rainbow Dash sighed, frustrated with Applejack's stubbornness. Since the orange earth pony had come over that morning, she had been talking non-stop about the captain of the Titanic, somepony with whom she had apparently gotten to know and befriended on the ship the day before. Now, though, she was in a rare state of panic that rarely made an appearance when it came to Applejack. The apple farmer was slumping over Dash's table now, a self-pitying expression on her face.

Rainbow Dash shook her, trying to get some form of response from her friend. When Applejack groaned, Dash said, "Look, if I'm gonna help you, you need to tell me exactly what happened. Every." She leaned in close to Applejack's face. "Little." Closer. "Thing."

The two mares stared at each other for what seemed to be the longest time. Then Rainbow Dash blew on Applejack's eyes, and when she pulled away Dash laughed and said, "Ha! And once again, the winner is the one and only Rainbow Dash!" She was silenced by a hoof in her chest, and she fell out of her chair. Applejack looked down at her, an un-amused look adorning her face. "Look," said Applejack. "If ya'll really want tah know what happened 'tween me and North Star, I'll tell ya. But if ya'll get bored and try tah leave, you ain't gonna see me fer the rest of the cruise! OK?"

Rainbow Dash, wheezing on the ground trying to regain her breath, nodded quickly. Applejack sat back up in her seat, grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl in the center of the table, and began recounting her time spent with North Star the day before.

-------------

"...and when we finally made our way back to the docks, all the strange rocks we'd found were gone! Vanished without a trace!"

Applejack stared at North Star. "You're kidding! Rocks don't just disappear! What, did the crate just up and leave?" She mentally patted herself on the back for keeping up with her Manehatten accent. Just as good as when ya first went there, Applejack. She and North Star had walked along the side of the ship until sundown, at which point the captain had invited her to a dinner at the head of the ship. After he'd brought her to the wheel of the Titanic (a complexly laid out mess of buttons, dials, etc. located at the head of the superstructure on the ship), he'd gotten several crew members to set up a table and dinner for them. Applejack had at first been skeptical of the captain's actions. Granny Smith always said that if a colt is showing off his power, he ain't no good. But her skepticism had been evaporated when he explained that the crew did this for him every day, as it was necessary for him to stay at the wheel during sundown ("Must pay respect to Celestia and all that," he'd explained).

As the dinner progressed, he'd entertained her with stories of his previous ship, the Queequeg, a name which Applejack knew she had heard before, but just couldn't remember where. His stories were borderline fantasy novels, and Applejack had suggested that he retire from his seafaring work and become a novelist. At this, North Star had laughed.

"Miss Applejack, as clever an idea that is," he said, wiping a non-existent tear from his eye, "I have no intention of ever retiring from being a captain. The sea is my passion. It calls to me." As if to add dramatic effect, he looked out at the sunset. The effect worked immensely well, and Applejack found herself staring into a reflection of herself in his shimmering green eyes. Oh hell, she thought, realizing she was ogling at him. I've gone an' gotten me a crush. Horsefeathers, Applejack, ya can't crush on somepony as important as him! She nervously looked out at the sunset, feeling a thin line of sweat form above her brow. The two earth ponies sat in reflective silence for several minutes, waiting for the sun to set. Looking out, Applejack could see two figures at the bow of the ship, standing close together in what Applejack could only guess was an intimate pose.

Finally, North Star turned back to her, and said, "So, Applejack." The dropping of the word "Miss" from her name made Applejack worried. Oh Celestia. Is he startin' tah think about me as a... She shook her head, warding herself away from such thoughts, and turned slowly back to meet North Star's eyes. "Yes?" Her voice came out in such a gentle tone she almost facehoofed. Now he's got me talkin' like a buckin' prissy-britches! She was startled out of her thoughts by North Star.

"Now that I've told you most, if not all, of my story, why don't you tell me yours?"

Aw crud. She'd been worried about the topic of back-stories since the two had sat down to dinner. She had not planned on becoming friendly with any of the other passengers on the ship, even stating that she would not leave her room without another one of her friends with her. Therefore, she had not bothered to create a false background for herself. She knew she could not tell North Star that she was from Ponyville, let alone disclose the fact that she was an apple farmer (though she was unsure if North Star was already aware of this, due to the fact that she had not bothered to hide her cutie mark). He would be appalled. He would be disgusted with her. He'd break mah heart. She sniffled a bit. North Star noticed this and asked, "Applejack? Is there something wrong?"

Looking up at him, Applejack almost began bawling at the sight of his eyes. He really cares 'bout me. She tried to speak twice, and collected herself. Come on, Applejack! He doesn't really like you! He likes the civilized, well-mannered, Rarity-imitating fake Applejack. She took a deep breath, and said, "I would love to, but I have to head back to my room. I have somewhere to be in an hour, and I must get ready immediately. I promised a friend that I wouldn't be late."

North Star looked at Applejack in a way that frightened her a bit. When she avoided eye contact with him, he laughed. "My dear lady," he said, leaning over the table and resting his head on his hoof, "as much as I regret criticizing a woman of your caliber, you are a terrible liar. Now." He got up from the table and trotted over to Applejack, putting a hoof on her cheek and turning her face towards his. "I want to know two things. One: why are you refusing to tell me about yourself? And two:" He stared directly into her eyes, and she knew she could not pull off another lie. She wanted to shut her eyes, but she could not bring herself to break away from the deep green stare of the colt firmly grasping her face. His question, tough, was what finally got her to break.

"Why are using a fake accent to try and impress me?"

Applejack jumped back. How the hay did he see through it? Was it when ah messed up just when ah'd met him? She backed up, and he simply stood in place, waiting for her to answer. She opened her mouth to speak several times, and finally managed a small, "I'm not faking..."

Now North Star looked mad. He walked towards her, until he was directly in front of her. "Madam," he said, using a dangerously calm voice that Applejack hoped did not mean what she thought it meant. "I had hoped that you would not be so difficult. I know that that isn't really your voice. The only question is why you are still bothering to use it." They stared at each other for several intense moments. Then, abandoning all hope, Applejack leaned in and kissed him.

She held his head in place, and his struggles only made her feel worse. She let him go, and let her tears show. She sprinted over to the door, and looked back at North Star. The captain's hat had been dislodged, and he was looking at her in disbelief. Through the tears, Applejack heard herself speak.

"Because ya'd never like me if ah hadn't talked that way." Then she ran back to her room, where a confused Fluttershy was there to comfort her.

----------------

"...and basically, after that ah didn't come outta mah room fer the rest of the day, and ah only got up today because Fluttershy cared enough to try and help me."

Rainbow Dash leaned back in her chair, rubbing a hoof against her chin. Applejack looked at the cyan pegasus, waiting for the inevitable "Well, you kind of rushed off." It never came. Instead, Dash leaned over to her best friend and pulled her into a hug. "I promise that I'll do anything I can to make sure you two make up." She gripped Applejack tighter, and continued. "If I had been torn apart from the pony I love, I probably wouldn't get up either."

Applejack waited a few seconds, testing to see if Rainbow Dash wasn't tricking her. When nothing changed, the orange mare returned the hug, burying her head in Dash's shoulder and letting herself break down. Rainbow Dash patted Applejack on the back, and comforted her. When Pinkie Pie came in, she walked up to Applejack and rested a friendly hoof on her shoulder. She and Rainbow looked at each other for a moment, and Dash had a sudden lucid vision of Pinkie Pie and herself, back on the deck of the Titanic. For a moment, she was falling again, and this time Pinkie did not reach out. Then she was back in her chair, holding Applejack in her arms.

After another minute of quiet sobbing, Applejack lifted her head up, and regained as much of her composure as could. She turned to Pinkie Pie, suddenly smiling with a new-found confidence. "Alright, girls," she said, looking between the two mares. "What's the plan?"

----------------

Rarity and Jack lay back onto the bed, panting. She tried to relax, slowing down her breathing as best as she could, but it didn't help. She simply lay next to him, staring into his eyes and trying to speak. She was still coming down from her high, and when he sidled up next to her she could smell the scents of their love-making. It was intoxicating, and she buried her head in his chest, letting herself be absorbed by the overpowering smells.

Jack wrapped a hoof around her waist, and she let out a small squeak of tenderness. When he squeezed her, she moaned into his chest. "Oh, Jack, please." She looked up at him, a pleading look in her eyes. "I think if I take anything more I'll faint." He smiled down at her, and planted a soft kiss on her lips. "Was that okay?" He chuckled at her heated expression, and turned over in bed, groaning as he finally got up. Rarity stayed in bed, rubbing her stomach with a hoof. She stared dreamily at him, and when he went to shower she finally sat up in bed.

Looking around, she spotted several of her clothing articles, some torn from her "encounter" with Gold (quite forgotten in the meat of the moment), and others torn by Jack himself. She giggled again, and said to nopony in particular, "Some like it rough. I suppose I'm Some." Observing the room further, she noticed what appeared to be an easel in the center of the room, facing away from her. She looked at it for some time. Then, a light bulb went off in her head. "Ideeeeeaaaaaaaa!" she sang out, and began looking around frantically for what she needed.

She began speaking over the sound of the running water in the bathroom. "Jack, why is there an easel in here?" When she didn't hear an answer, she continued looking for what she needed for her plan. Suddenly, she heard Jack's voice through the running water, distant but clear enough to hear. "Oh, that? Yes, I draw a lot. It's something of a hobby of mine."

Rarity recalled him saying something about drawing the night before. As she continued to look around the room, she asked, "How long have you been drawing? Are you any good?" She heard him laugh from beyond the shower. "Well, I don't mean to brag... Look behind you."

Turning her head, Rarity jumped at the sight of one of what she assumed was one of Jack's drawings. It was an enormous copy of the Canterlot castle, towering above her almost like the real one. "My goodness! How in Equestria did you learn to draw like this? It's amazing!" She turned back towards the easel, and a red glint caught her eye. "Aha! Found you!" She brought the item she'd spotted over to her using her magic, and put it on. As she adjusted her position on the bed, she heard Jack speak. "Well, I wasn't very interested in art until I took a trip to Prance with my mother, several years before she died. While I was there," Rarity heard him turn off the water, and his voice was easily heard now, "I found myself overwhelmed by the culture. I read everything I could, making good use of the Prench translation spell I had learned the week before. It was at an art gallery meeting that I began to try my hand at drawing, using the styles of famous Prench painters as the foundation for my work. My first drawing was done at said art gallery, and when I lost it, I thought that it was a sign that drawing wasn't my calling, no matter how much I had enjoyed making it. Then, the most amazing thing happened: one of the owners of the gallery found the drawing, which i had signed, thank Celestia, and when he found me he asked if I would draw something for his gallery. I ended up drawing about twenty portraits of famous Prench models. After that, I kept on drawing whenever inspiration came to me. It's been a passion of mine for years."

Jack walked back into the room, a towel lying across his back. He looked around for his hat, and when he found it he levitated it onto his head. Then he looked over at his bed, and jumped. Rarity was laid out on the bed, eyeing him seductively. Around her neck was the Fire Ruby, and she motioned for him to come closer. When he did, she spoke into his ear.

"Draw me like one of your Prench girls."

Jack drew his head back and looked between the mare posed before him and his easel. Again Rarity said, "Draw me, Jack. Please." He stared at her for a moment, taking in her pose and appearance. Then he walked over to the easel, and levitated a sketching pencil to the paper. "Don't move. I have to capture this exact moment. You've never looked more beautiful." he began to draw, and Rarity obliged.

He drew for hours, never once pausing. Rarity felt time fly past her as the hours ticked by. She was amazed that she was able to hold still for so long. Though I suppose it's rather easy when you have something nice to look at. She almost smiled, almost ruined the moment, but managed not to, instead staring at the sapphire-colored flank that had caught her eye when Jack had begun drawing.

Finally, as the sun began setting, Jack dropped the pencil to the ground, and sighed contently. "Okay," he said, wiping his brow. "You can move now. I'm sorry for taking so long. I had to get everything perfect." Rarity stretched, and finally got out of the bed she had stayed in the entire day. She trotted over to the easel, and Jack turned it for her to see.

It was as if Rarity had looked into a mirror. An exact copy of her stared out at her, a look of arousal on its face. She felt tears well up in her eyes, and she hugged Jack. "It's beautiful," she whispered, and kissed him. When she pulled away, he rolled the picture up and gave it to her. "It's only as beautiful as the one it portrays." She giggled, and took the drawing, setting it on the nearby table. Turning back to the bed, she said, "I've grown rather attached to this bed. I suppose that staying in it for an entire day will do that to you." She wiggled her flank at him, and his blush made her laugh. "Would you care to join me?"

Jack opened his mouth to speak, and was promptly interrupted by the sound of his stomach gurgling. Both of the unicorns blushed, the moment ruined. "I, uh, I think we should go for a bite to eat first?" he half-asked, trying to cover up the embarrassed look on his face. Rarity burst out laughing, and Jack sighed wearily. He turned, and picked up his hat again, placing it neatly on his head. "Well?" he said, clearly annoyed with Rarity's laughter. "You haven't had anything to eat today, either. Would you like to have dinner with me or not?" He turned to the giggling mare on his bed, and through her laughter he heard a "Yes." Sighing, Jack walked over to the door that led out to the main hallways of the ship. "Well then," he said, opening the door and gesturing outside. "Shall we?"

Rarity finally stopped laughing, got up, and nodded. She looked down at the Fire Ruby, and for a second felt a pang of guilt. Then it was gone, and she walked out the door of Jack's room, her Prince Charming walking beside her as she went.

---------------

Rainbow Dash stood in front of the captain's cabin. Aw man, she thought. Why'd I let Pinkie Pie talk me into this? She answered her own question a second later. Because that girl can get anything out of you if she rubs your wings right. She huffed and turned to look at the two other mares hiding behind a corner. Applejack looked solemn, her hat down over her eyes, and Pinkie waved at her from behind the corner. Then she gestured for Dash to get on with their plan. Turning back to the door, Rainbow Dash gulped. If this doesn't work, Pinkie, I'm never making cupcakes with you again. Then she raised a hoof and knocked on the door.

For a moment, nothing happened. Dash couldn't hear any sound coming from the other side of the door. She turned, happy her job was done."Welp!" she called out to Pinkie and Applejack. "Looks like nopony's home! I guess we'll have to think up another-"

Before she could finish, though, she heard a bolt being drawn back from behind the door she'd just knocked on. Oh crud. Turning, she watched the door open, and a weary-looking North Star stepped out. "Yes, miss? Can I help you with something?" He sounded old, and his face matched it. He looked like had hadn't slept the night before. Dash stared at him for a moment, then shook her head and started her dialogue. "I'm sorry to bother you, sir. But I've always been a big fan of the famous Captain North Star." She opened the saddlebag that was slung over her back, and with a wing she pulled out a notepad. "You wouldn't mind signing this for me, would you? I've always wanted to get a signature from my hero." She seemed to choke out these last words, and Pinkie Pie facehoofed.

"C'mon, Dashie!" She looked desperately at the pegasus from her hiding spot. "You've got to do better than that! How else is Applejack gonna get her coltfriend back?" At this, Applejack looked up from the ground and almost shouted, "Pinkie, he ain't mah coltfriend. Besides, ah don't see how getting his signature is gonna make up fer what happened yesterday." Pinkie shushed her, and Applejack sighed, frustrated at the pink pony's ignorance at the impossibility of her plan working. She stood up. "Ah've had enough of this." Trotting out of her hiding spot, she ignored Pinkie's cries of protest. "Applejack, no! You'll ruin everything!"

Applejack walked over to Rainbow Dash, who was sweating profusely as North Star signed her paper. When the captain looked up and saw the orange mare that had run from him the night before, he almost tore through the paper he was writing on. "Miss Applejack?" She didn't look at him, instead keeping her eyes on the ground. She walked up next to Rainbow Dash, who looked over at her like she was crazy. "Applejack, what are you doing? You'll ruin Pinkie's plan!"

Applejack looked over at the cyan pegasus. "Rainbow Dash, ya'll're mah best friend, an' ah love ya, ah really do. But please, let me handle this, or ah'm gonna buck ya off the ship." Dash backed up at her friends words, scared at Applejack's seriousness. Then her ego returned, and she said, "Fine! If you want to mess thing up on your own, that's fine by me!" She took off, flying towards the corner Applejack had come from. A pink hoof extended from behind the corner, and Dash was suddenly pulled out of the sky.

Applejack turned back to North Star, who was staring at her with a look somewhere between disbelief and confusion. "Miss Applejack?" he repeated, looking down at her. Applejack forced herself to meet his eyes, and found herself stuttering. "North Star, ah-ah'm really s-sorry 'bout yesterday." She tried to continue, but couldn't manage to keep from sounding hurt. She looked down again, and mumbled, "Ah don't think that a city pony such as yerself would want ta be seen with a farmer like me. Ah'll jus' be goin' then." She turned to leave, and had walked five steps when she heard him laugh.

Turning, Applejack's look of worry turned to outrage when she saw North Star laughing at her. He's laughing! At mah sadness! She gritted her teeth, and began to trot over to buck him in the face. Then he spoke again. “Miss Applejack, I hope that you didn't think I would judge you based on what you sounded like! That's ridiculous!"

The orange mare stopped. North Star looked at her, and when he saw her hurt expression, his features immediately softened. He trotted over to her, and put a hoof on her shoulder. "I hope that I have not hurt you, Applejack. I think you are a very interesting young lady, and I would be honored if you would have dinner with me again." Looking down at her, North Star saw her facial expression change, going from a depressing, gloomy look to one of relief. Applejack sighed, looked up at North Star, and said, "Of course. Ah'd love to."

Pinkie Pie giggled excitedly from her hiding place as she watched he two earth ponies walk off towards the deck of the ship. Rainbow Dash, who had been pulled behind her, looked confused. "Wait," she said. "I thought you said that your plan was ruined? Why are you excited?" Pinkie turned to her marefriend, and winked. "That was my plan, silly filly! I just had to get Applejack to get out there and talk to him herself! Otherwise she'd never fix things with him." She pulled Rainbow Dash close. "Now, I think I promised a very special somepony a wing massage for doing this for me." She stuck her tongue out, and Dash chuckled and said, "Yeah, you did. Let's head back to the room, okay?" She got up and flew off to her room, the pink party pony racing behind her. "Hey, no fair! You can fly!"

--------------

The sun had set by the time Rarity and Jack finished their dinner. Leaving the on-board restaurant, they took a walk around the ship. It seemed to be a ritual for them, and they agreed to take a walk every night until the ship docked. The night was much colder, as the course of the Titanic had led into an icy territory in the far northern area of the world, and Rarity was shivering when they'd reached the entrance to the first-class cabins. Jack noticed this, and suggested that she go to her room and get her coat. He offered to wait for her, but Rarity insisted that he come with her. "You've already shown me your bedroom," she said, a knowing smile crossing her face. "Why don't I show you mine?"

When they arrived at Rarity's room, she showed him in. Closing the door, Rarity turned to Jack, who was looking around the room with apparent interest in everything except her. "What an amazing room! I don't think I've ever seen anything like it!" Rarity knew what he was trying to do, and went over to her bedroom door. "Yes, it's a very nice room. The bedroom looks even better. Would you like to see?" Jack looked at her, a false look of innocence on his face. "No thanks. These rooms are good enough. Why don't you get your coat? We can have a walk, and then maybe I'll look at your bedroom." He grinned mischievously, and Rarity huffed. "Fine," she said, and opened the bedroom door to find her coat. She turned on the light to see where the closet was, and was immediately yelled at by two figures in the bed at the other side of the room.

"Gaahh!"

"Turn off the light!"

Rarity shut the light off just as Jack came running up to the door. Moments later, an annoyed looking Twilight Sparkle appeared out of the darkness, a bed sheet wrapped around her body. Her hair was ruffled, and the sheet she was wearing had the faint scent of...

"Lovemaking! Twenty-four seven! Is that all you've been doing since I left the room yesterday!?" Rarity was almost shouting at Twilight, who groaned and mumbled, "No, Rarity. We haven't. Trixie and I were simply using the time we had alone together to our advantage. You didn't come back yesterday, so we didn't-" She stopped and looked at Jack, noticing him for the first time. She looked back and forth between the two, her eyes opening wide. then a smirk appeared on her face, and she leaned against the door frame. "It looks like I'm not the only one who's been 'lovemaking'." She extended a hoof to Jack, who took it while staring at Twilight with a look of what appeared to be shock on his face. He finally opened his mouth to speak, and asked, "Who exactly do you have over for company?"

Rarity turned to him, a look of confusion on her face. "Jack! That's Twilight's business! You simply can't-" She was interrupted by the light in the room coming on again. On the other side of the room, a groaning Trixie sat up and yelled across the room. "What is keeping you so long, Sparkle Butt? Trixie is getting impatient!" Twilight looked nervously behind herself, and said, "Coming, Trix!" Turning back to Rarity, she asked, "What are you here for?" Deciding not to tell her why she actually had brought Jack to their room, Rarity explained that she needed her coat. Twilight let her in, and when she trotted over to get the coat, she heard Trixie mumble, "Ah! The prissy one returns. Have fun making your friend worry?" Trixie's question was ignored, and Rarity quickly found her coat and left the room. She found Jack and Twilight sitting at the table outside the room, deep in conversation.

"... of course, I had never been kissed before. That just made it all the more satisfying." Twilight leaned back in her chair, watching a disturbed-looking Jack stare down at the table. When he saw Rarity with her coat, he quickly stood up and trotted over to the door. "Well, Twilight, it's been a pleasure meeting you, but Rarity and I have a walk to go out on." He opened the door and gestured to Rarity. "After you, madam."

Rarity walked out of the room and turned back to Twilight once more. "I will be back this evening," she said, wrapping the coat around her body. "So please try and finish whatever you're... doing... with Trixie before then. Alright, Sparkle Butt?" She giggled a bit, and Jack trotted out the door after her. She shut the door, leaving Twilight alone at the table. She waited a minute, listening to the fading sound of Rarity and Jack's hoofsteps outside. Then she got up, and stepped back into the bedroom, closing the door behind her.

Trixie was waiting on the bed, her robe the only thing covering her. "Well, finally. It took you long enough, Sparkle Butt." She watched Twilight levitate the blanket off of her body and put it back on the bed, and wrapped herself up in it. She looked at the purple unicorn, and licked her lips. "Now, bring that big purple flank of yours back over here. Trixie wasn't finished yet."

---------------

Jack looked noticeably startled as he and Rarity stepped out of the first-class area. Rarity herself felt embarrassed beyond what she could imagine. I brought my coltfriend to my room and showed him my friend having sex! Of all of the things that could have possibly gone wrong, this is the Worst. Possible. Thing! She looked over at Jack, who was staring out at the ocean, an intense look on his face. She nuzzled his neck, and said, "I'm sorry about what you saw back there. Twilight Sparkle has never been in a relationship before, and I assume that she wanted to make the most out of what she had at the moment." Jack broke eye contact with the ocean, and looked down at the white unicorn next to him. He nodded, and said, "Yes, I gathered as much when she sat me down and told me the story of how she and her friend came to find each other."

Twilight Sparkle, you unbelievable bitch. Rarity hid her anger at Twilight, promising her thoughts that they would have full rein when she confronted Twilight that night. When she spoke, her voice did not betray her. "Yes, well, at least that's over with." They walked out to the deck of the ship, and looked out at the night for a minute. The waters around the ship were filled with small chunks of ice, and they could hear small scraping noises as they bumped against it. She leaned against Jack, and he wrapped a foreleg around her.

"Are you still cold?" Jack asked. She nodded, and he led her to an area they could both sit. He sat her down, and pressed against her, trying to warm her up as best as he could. He felt her shift for a minute, and her face appeared in front of his. Her azure eyes bore into his emerald ones, and she asked him, "What happens after the cruise?"

Jack paused. He hadn't thought of that. "I..." He trailed off, and stared off into the depths of Rarity's eyes. She waited for him to answer, and when he didn't, she thought of what that meant. Did he not think of the future because he was distracted? Did he not think he would fall in love on the ship? Is he going to leave me? She felt a tear well up in her eye, and when she sniffled Jack answered. "Please don't think that I'll leave you. I'll never leave you. I'll make this work." He hugged her, and tried to comfort her. Rarity simply stared past his shoulder out into the night. A dark shape floated out in the darkness, and she paid it no mind. Instead, she wiggled out of Jack's grip and began to walk away. Jack ran after her, yelling. "Rarity, wait! I'm telling the truth! Please believe me!" When she turned to face him, she saw the sincerity in his eyes, and her gloom began to lift from her shoulders. Why am I acting like this? Do I not want this to work out? Have I gotten too used to being left behind by every pony I've ever thought was right for me? She sighed, and walked back over to Jack. She rubbed her cheek on his. "I'm sorry. I don't know what's come over me."

Jack put a hoof on her cheek and held her face up closer. "Let's not worry about what's waiting for us in the future. Let's just enjoy what we have now." Then he kissed her. Rarity's body relaxed, and she began to backpedal towards a wall. Jack eagerly lifted her up on her hind legs, and pressed her up against the wall. She felt his hoof rubbing against her waist, then her flank. I love it. I love it too much to worry. She let the kiss completely absorb her, and then there was only... Jack. He was sliding his hoof under her coat when the unimaginable happened.

A loud shriek rang out from nowhere. Jack pulled away from Rarity, and he began to look around frantically. Rarity blinked several times, falling back down to earth, and she turned her head in the direction of the scream. Then the world around her shook.

The two unicorns fell to the ground as the ship rocked uncontrollably. The sound of tearing metal and breaking wooden planks tore through Rarity's mind, and in that instant, there was no more peace, only noise and the shouts of Jack desperately trying to keep her from being forced any further away from her. When she felt his hoof grab hers, she opened her eyes to see his face, filled with shock and terror and looking past her. When she turned, she saw the remains of a pale object crumbling into the ocean. Chunks of the object slid around the areas where it had broken off, and when one of them slid and touched Rarity's body, she jumped. It was freezing cold.

An iceberg had just struck the Ship of Dreams.

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Look at that! It's: A Note From the Author

Okay, I lied. There was no Spike flashback. But there were innuendos! And action! And the ship is finally going down!

Now, a word on the couplings in the story.

Rarity and Jack: I have placed most, if not all of my talents in writing into these two unicorns. Creating the Jack character has helped me on my quest to develop original characters for when I write an actual book (*snort*). Rarity is best pony, therefore she is most important ship. Plus, with her "sophistication", I'm allowed to write passionate love scenes (of course, I had to skip sex; PG-13, boys!)without having the character sound out of style.

Dash and Pinkie: This ship has been going around since episode four (or five, whichever has Gilda), and I've been happily writing down the words you see of their relationship together. Of course, if there were to be any sex scene in the story, it would probably not be them (see above). Now that the ship's going down, I get to show how far these two girls will go for each other. Expect drama times ten from these two in the next chapter!

Twilight and Trixie: I've never really cared about Twilight's romantic pursuits, if she even has any. The Doctor? Taken. Celestia? That's borderline incest. Luna? Maybe. I've always imagined that she'd just end trying to marry a checklist or a book or something. Trixie is a fine match for her, if only due to her dominant nature (spicy spicy spicy!). You probably won't see much of these two, and I'm still pondering whether or not I should kill off Trixie. Don't pay any attention to that last line! It is unimportant as of now! It does not foreshadow anything!

Applejack and North Star: Ah, Applejack. The least intimate of the relationships on the boat. How appropriate that you get nothing until now. But don't worry, my dear. You and North Star will get your due in good time. Once the inevitable happens.

Fluttershy and- Oh wait, I didn't ship her. Well, she's still in the story. Don't worry, you shy fans, you! You'll get her next time!

Now, one thing that I didn't lie about was the chapter length. I promised I wouldn't give you 13,000 words last time, and I didn't! I gave you 16,000 words! How about that? Maybe I can keep extending these. Oh well. We'll see.

At most, I have three chapters left to do. Then it's off to the wastelands for me...or is it? As previously mentioned, I've been working on two more projects (February 26 through March 10- sorry guys!). So maybe you won't be done with me yet! *insert maniacal laughter here* Well, you're probably bored of my shtick by now, so I'll be going. the ship is sinking, and that's all that matters. So long, bronies!

The Ship of Nightmares

Chapter 5: The Ship of Nightmares

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The world around Fluttershy made no sense.

Her time on the ship had not been the best, admittedly. While all of her friends were finding some way to stay entertained, Fluttershy had been left to her own devices. She missed her pet rabbit, Angel. Now, though, she was glad that he had not come along.

She regretted not asking Applejack to go for a walk with her. The time she'd spent on that walk had led to her becoming severely depressed about the whole situation she was in. Of course, she couldn't bother her friends with her issues. That would be selfish of her. Still, she felt bad about withholding her feelings from them. As a result, she'd not gone back to her room until early next morning, where she'd found an even more depressed Applejack slouching in her bed. Unable to cope with the negative energy given off by herself along with Applejack, she decided to send her to Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, with the hopes that they would be able to help her. After sending her off, though, she realized that she was once again alone. The only solution she could think of was to go on another walk around the ship. She'd wandered through the interior of the ship, admiring the artwork hung around the Grand Staircase, and chatted with a few ponies lounging in nearby chairs. Many of them recognized her from her modeling days with Photo Finish, and they'd asked her why she'd quit. To avoid being shunned, she'd made up a lie about her pay check, and her audience had lapped the story up.

After hours of looking at the various pieces of artwork, Fluttershy decided she wanted to find Rarity. She was certain that a day at the spa with Rarity would bring her out of the gloom she'd felt on the trip. This is supposed to be a vacation. I'm supposed to be relaxing right now. She was disappointed to find that Rarity had not been seen since the day before, and she had left Twilight's room depressed, not even bothering to ask why Trixie was at the table eating a sandwich. She'd gone to the spa anyway, and by the time she was done with her treatment the sun had already set.

After that, Fluttershy had given up on her friends. They obviously have more important things to do than listen to my worries. She'd found a restaurant to eat at, a gloriously over-priced eatery called the A La Carte. The food had been fantastic, and with a full stomach Fluttershy had left feeling better than she had in weeks. Maybe I was just grumpy because I needed some food. She'd gone out to the bow of the ship, where she sat and looked out at the unnaturally calm waters of the sea. That was when everything had gone wrong.

Looking out across the black waters of the nighttime ocean, Fluttershy had seen a large, intimidating shape moving towards the ship at a quick pace. She'd immediately flown up to the main controls of the ship and tried to warn the crew member at the wheel of the impending danger.

"Excuse me?" Even Fluttershy could not tell if she was actually speaking over the sound of the crew members yelling at each other. Apparently, one of the Second Officers had thrown away an important message from one of the other nearby ships, which had put the ship at risk of some unknown disaster. The Officer in question was being shouted at by a large colt in an official-looking uniform. When none of her attempts to get their attention had worked, Fluttershy had finally lost her temper.

"HEY!" she shouted. The two colts looked over at her. She shrank back down, and quietly said, "Thank you. There's something I need to say."

The larger crew member walked over to her. "And who exactly are you?" he said, not bothering to hide the frustration in his voice. Fluttershy shrank down a bit more, and she whimpered out, "Fluttershy, sir. There's something heading towards the ship, and I thought you'd like to know."

The two ponies had pressed against the viewing glass that showed them the ocean from their station. "Sweet Celestia! This is what the Jacalifornian warned us about! It's an iceberg!" He spun on his heel back to Fluttershy. "Thank you for telling us, Miss Fluttershy. You may have just saved the ship. We'll take it from here." She smiled, and had walked back out to the prow of the ship. Looking up at the control room, she couldn't help but grin. Saved the ship, huh? I guess that beats a spa day with Rarity any day. She turned, and began walking back towards her room, when she stopped in her tracks.

The iceberg towered over her, too close to not hit the ship. With a fearful shiver, she realized that she had been too late to do anything about the ship. She hadn't saved it, only warned the crew of the inevitable disaster. Turning around, she screamed, and managed to run about five paces before she heard the sound of the iceberg crashing into the Titanic.

Fluttershy was thrown off her hooves, and she only managed to avoid face-planting on the deck of the ship by using her wings to balance herself in the air. Without looking back, already knowing that the damage was done, she raced towards the First-Class cabins. Her thoughts had shifted to whether or not her friends had heard the collision, and she felt tears coming to her eyes as the words of the crew member echoed in her head.

You may have just saved the ship.

No I didn't.

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Applejack ran along the side of the ship, keeping up pace with North Star. She and the captain had felt the collision, and now North Star was rushing to where he thought he'd heard it. Applejack only wished that whatever they'd heard was not as bad as she believed.

Rushing past a pair of unicorns who had fallen in the shock of the crash, Applejack noticed that one of them was Rarity. She almost stopped, but decided against it, instead choosing to continue running after North Star. Once he slowed down, Applejack ran up beside him, panting slightly and wishing he wasn't so fit, even for her. She looked up, and was shocked by what she saw.

Chunks of ice were scattered across the deck, sliding along the bent parts of the area that had been crushed by whatever had crashed into the Titanic. From beyond the ship, Applejack could see s smear of red paint on what looked like the remains of an iceberg. Oh Celestia, no. She began to walk closer to the edge of the ship, now unprotected by railing, and stopped when she felt North Star's hoof on her shoulder.

"Applejack, my dear, don't get near the edge. The ice is very slippery, and the waters are too cold for anypony to be able to survive in." She turned back to the captain, and saw a great look of sadness on his face. "Well, how're we gonna figure out the collateral damage?" She sounded hopeful, and hoped she had a reason to sound that way. But North Star shook his head, and said with a terrible finality, "I'm afraid it doesn't matter how much damage has been done, my dear. It is enough."

Applejack looked at North Star like he was an alien. "B-but North Star, ya'll can't mean-" She was silenced by his look, and when he spoke to her she knew exactly what he meant.

"The Titanic is going to sink, whether we like it or not."

----------------

Twilight Sparkle opened the door to her suite. Looking down on the floor, she saw a crumpled Fluttershy laid out before her. The yellow pegasus was rubbing her head in pain, and when her eyes made contact with Twilight's she sprung up from the ground like a flower. She began speaking rapidly in a high-pitched tone that almost hurt Twilight's ears.

"TwilightthankgoodnessIfoundyouApplejackisn'thereandPinkieandRarinbowwon'tanswerwhenIknockontheirdoorthere'saproblemtheshipisgonnasinkwe-" Twilight stuffed a hoof in Fluttershy's mouth, rubbing her forehead with another. She spoke in a surprisingly calm voice when she answered Fluttershy. "Okay, Shy, what is it you're trying to get across? Trixie and I were studying together, and we were just about to-" Her hoof was dislodged from Fluttershy's mouth, and the mare went rushing into Twilight's bedroom, pulling an angry and disbelieving Trixie out several seconds later. Trailing behind the blue unicorn were several book pages, and Trixie was desperately trying to collect them all.

"Insolent fool!" At the moment, Trixie didn't care that Fluttershy was one of her lover's best friends, and began to buck her hind legs, hoping to make contact with some part of the pegasus' body. Fluttershy, however, managed to avoid all of Trixie's throws at her, and dragged her in front of Twilight. Dropping her, Fluttershy came back down to the ground and began speaking again, this time slower and more understandable.

"I was taking a walk along the side of the ship, okay? Then I get to the front of the ship, and I saw something terrible! It was an iceberg! And so I went to the crew members at the main control room and warned them. But when I got back, the iceberg was already here, and it crashed into the ship and now it's gonna sink!" She took a deep breath, trying to gather herself. Then she continued: "I tried to warn Applejack, but she wasn't in the room when I got there. When I tried to get Pinkie and Rainbow Dash, they wouldn't come to the door, even though I definitely heard them in the room. I couldn't make out what they were saying..." She pondered a bit, and her eyes widened in horror. "Ohmygosh! What if they got hurt when the collision happened? We have to go help them! Come on!" She dragged Twilight out of her room, leaving behind a still hurting and still very-much angry Trixie behind.

Twilight didn't know what to say. Her brain had shut down, and he was only moving on Fluttershy's whim. The ship's going to sink? But it's unsinkable! That's what all of the construction workers said! And how could they be wrong? Her faith in science had told her that the Titanic's maiden voyage would be perfectly safe, and now science had betrayed her again. She snapped back to reality at the sound of Fluttershy pounding against the door to Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash's room. She sighed, frustrated, and turned back to Twilight. "Can you open the door?"

Twilight stalled for a moment, then slowly nodded her head. Her horn glowed, and she heard the door's lock click. Fluttershy grabbed the door handle and threw the door open. Rushing inside, she searched frantically for her two friends. After a minute of looking through the main room, she went up to the bedroom door and kicked it in. Twilight was about to try and calm Fluttershy down when she heard three screams.

The first came from Pinkie Pie. She was laying on one of the beds in the room, her face pressed into the mattress. The scream had been one of ecstasy, and Twilight realized what they had done too late.

The second scream came from Rainbow Dash. She had been sitting up when Fluttershy had barged in, and she covered up her exposed areas that were for Pinkie's eyes only. Her shout had been one of shock and disbelief that Fluttershy had just flown in on her having sex. Her face was redder than a beet, and her expression quickly changed from one of shock to one of rage.

The third scream, of course, had been Fluttershy's. She covered her eyes, and fell backwards into Twilight, sending the purple unicorn rolling into the table nearby. Looking up, she saw only two things: a door slamming shut, and a very angry pegasus staring down at her, flames shooting from her ears. In a dangerously calm voice, Dash asked her, "What exactly do you think you're doing?" When Fluttershy meeped and hid behind her hair, Dash pulled her up by it, and pushed her into a chair. Twilight, meanwhile, had scooted out of sight behind the wall separating the main room from the kitchen, and was now observing the conflict between the two pegusi.

Rainbow Dash put her face millimeters from Fluttershy's before asking her again. "Why did you think it was okay to break into our room?" She knew she was being harsh on Fluttershy, but a line had been crossed, and she wouldn't be satisfied with a "sorry". Fluttershy's answered squeaked out from between her lips. "Th-there's an emergency, and I-I thought you got hurt."

Dash reared back and laughed. "Is that really your best excuse?" she said, taunting her slightly with her over-inflated voice. "What's the emergency? Angel sneaked on board the ship, and now you can't find him? Is your favorite plant missing? Is-" Her monologue was interrupted by Twilight. A purple glow surrounded her horn, and suddenly Dash's mouth clamped shut. She couldn't speak.

Twilight cleared her throat, drawing Rainbow Dash's attention. "She's telling the truth, Rainbow Dash. There is an emergency. A serious emergency." She walked up to Dash and released the spell. "The ship is going to sink," she said, and let it sink in for Rainbow Dash even as she herself accepted it. She shut her eyes, and said, "The Titanic is not unsinkable. It ran into an iceberg, and according to Fluttershy, the damage is too great for the ship to be helped. It's going to sink, and we need to get out of here now."

Rainbow Dash stared at Twilight for a second, disbelieving and skeptical. Then she turned back to the bedroom door, where Pinkie Pie was waiting for her. If she's telling the truth, then I have to... Oh gosh. She threw open the bedroom door and zipped inside, grabbing the most valuable things she'd brought and packing them in a small saddlebag. Then she went to the bed, leaned down, and whispered the news to Pinkie Pie.

The cotton candy-colored mare shot straight up in the air, holding still for a few seconds. Then she blazed around the room, snatching things up so fast they seemed to be vanishing. She appeared in front of Twilight, and raised a hoof in salute. "Pinkie Pie, reporting for duty! What's the plan, Captain Twilight?" A confused Rainbow Dash came out of the room several seconds later, her eyes spinning in her head. Twilight paused, once again pondering just how Pinkie managed to become the mare she was. Then, shaking her head clear of these thoughts, she said, "There isn't exactly a plan, but I guess the first thing we should do is find Rarity and Applejack. Then we can get to a lifeboat, and we'll be alright. We should-"

She never finished her sentence. With a great shudder, the faint sound of the engines faded away. The Titanic was no longer moving. Then they heard a groan, and suddenly the ship began to tilt, slowly at first, then more rapidly. The four mares panicked, and ran out of Rainbow Dash's room, hearing the sound of china sliding off the kitchen counter and shattering on the floor. They ran up the hallway, towards what they hoped was an exit. Twilight stopped suddenly, remembering that she'd left Trixie behind, and turned around to go back for her. To her relief, she saw the unicorn in question running towards them, her own saddlebag draped over her back. Trixie caught up with them, and the five mares ran towards the exit, hoping to get above deck and find their friends before it was too late.

----------------

Rarity was aware of only two things at the moment. The first was that Jack was trying desperately to keep her from fainting from shock. The second was that something very cold was rubbing against her flank, and it was making her shiver.

The crash they had felt earlier threw them both onto the ground, and now Jack was trying to get himself and Rarity up on their hooves. This was harder than imagined, as large pieces of ice were now sliding around the deck of the ship. He pulled her over to a corner, and propped her up against the wall. "Rarity, are you alright?" Looking at him, Rarity had never seen somepony look so worried about her before. She nodded, and he sighed with relief. Turning back towards the source of the crash, Jack saw a smashed part of the ship near the front of the prow. The sound of the ship's engines could no longer be heard, and Jack was certain that the Titanic had broken down. This meant they were stuck in place. At least, the unicorns and earth ponies are, he thought, watching several pegusi who had been above deck when the iceberg collided with the ship flying away into the darkness. He was almost sure that they had no idea what direction the nearest shore was, but at the moment that didn't matter to him. Turning back to Rarity, he said, "We need to get to the lifeboats. Can you walk?"

Rarity took a deep breath, and answered, "Please, I need a minute. I think I'm in shock." She wrapped her forelegs around Jack and tried to calm down. The soft feel of his fur and the surprisingly even pattern of his breathing comforted her, and after a moment she got up and began to walk out onto the deck of the ship. She turned to Jack, and said, "I'll go to lifeboats once I find my friends. You go along, and I'll be right behind you." To her surprise, Jack's face seemed to twist into an expression of frustration. He trotted up to her, and said, "I don't think so. Leaving you here would be wrong, both morally and socially. Now please, Rarity, if you would be so kind, let's begin looking for your friends." He gestured towards the First-Class cabins. "Shall we?"

Rarity nodded, a smile coming back to her face. The two unicorns began to gallop towards the cabins when the ship suddenly shifted. Rarity was thrown off balance as the ship began tilting forward. She landed hard, and yelped in pain as Jack rushed over to her. He pulled her up, trying to see what was wrong, but Rarity shrugged off the pain and continued towards the cabins, ignoring the slight limp she now carried. Jack rushed after her.

Rarity hoped that her friends had heard the sound of the collision, or at least felt it. Making her way over to the First-Class cabins, she was relieved to see Twilight, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash making their way up above deck. As a fifth mare came up top, Rarity was disappointed to see that it was not Applejack, but Trixie who was traveling alongside her companions. Then where's Applejack, if not with you? She galloped over to the five mares, calling out their names,

Twilight turned her head, her face lighting up when she saw Rarity running toward them. She met her halfway, and said, "I'm so glad you're safe! You know what's happening, right?" Rarity nodded, and Twilight smiled as best as she could. She noticed that Applejack was still not present among their group, and she asked Rarity if she'd seen Applejack recently. Rarity thought a second, scratching her forehead. Then she turned, and began running in the opposite direction, rushing past Jack just as he joined the group of mares. She shouted back to them. "She's at the prow of the ship! She had somepony with her! I'm not sure who it was, but they were probably going to investigate the damage. Come on!" The other six ponies stared at her retreating form for a moment, then went racing after her, desperate to help their friend.

--------------

Applejack and North Star made their way to the main control room of the Titanic. Once there, North Star sprang into action, becoming the official-sounding and demanding captain that the newspapers had spoken of.

"First Officer Murclop! What's happened to the ship? Is the damage repairable?" The large, beige earth pony at the front of the wheel had his head in is hooves, and he turned to North Star with a look of despair on his face. "I'm afraid it would be pointless to try and fix the damages, sir. Five of the sixteen compartments in the lower decks. I'm afraid the ship cannot be saved. We had best order the lifeboats to be uncovered and used." He trotted over to the door and began to leave when North Star stopped him. "How did you not manage to see the iceberg before it struck?" A cold rage was building up in his voice, and Applejack was afraid she would see the intimidating beast she had first met the day before.

Murclop looked over at the other colt in the room, who was staring at the floor with a traumatized look on his face. Applejack recognized him as Second Officer Loud Mouth, the colt who had hit her the day before. "We were supposed to get a warning from one of the nearby ships, the Jacalifornian." said Murclop, still staring at Loud Mouth in disgust. "At first, when no message came through, I thought that we were in the clear. Then I learned that Second Officer Loud Mouth over there threw out the message from the Jacalifornian without reading it."

Loud Mouth finally looked up at North Star, and mumbled something about being off duty. North Star slowly trotted over to him, and stood over the colt for a second. Then he violently grabbed him, lifting him up by his uniform and slamming him against the wall. He looked Loud Mouth in the eye, and whispered quietly, "Is this true? Has this really happened because of your foolishness?" The Second Officer said nothing, only staring distantly into the captain's eyes. North Star threw him to the ground, and said, "Get out. Get out and man the lifeboats, or so help me Celestia, I will throw you into the waters that are surely flooding the hull of the ship as we speak!" He towered over the shrinking colt, and Loud Mouth dashed out of the room, past the already leaving Murclop and leaving it silent except for the heavy breathing of North Star. After a moment, Applejack finally spoke. "North Star? You alright?" He turned, and saw the scared look on her face. His expression softened, and he trotted up to the orange earth pony. "Applejack, I'm sorry that you had to see me that way again. I was aware of how it frightened you when we first met, and I hate to have done it again."

Applejack shrugged. "Hey, ah just wanted to know if ya'll were okay. Ah don't mind you gettin' mad at that foal. He made a mistake that cost ya'll yer ship, and you were right ta yell at him." She looked up at him, and grinned wryly. "Besides. If ya'll hadn't done that, ah'm pretty sure ah would have instead." North Star smiled back at her, and looked out at the prow of the ship, which he could see was slowly dipping into the ocean. His smile disappeared, and he sat down in front of the wheel of the ship. He lowered his head, and said, "I'm sorry, Applejack. This was not my intent. I want you to forgive me."

Applejack was confused. "But," she stammered out. "Ya'll just said that Loud Mouth character was the one behind it all, not you. What do ya mean forgive ya?" North Star shook his head, and Applejack saw a tear run down his cheek. "Miss Applejack," he said, his voice filled with sorrow. "I am very sorry to have brought you into this. If I had known it would end this way, I would not have gone after you. But now it is too late." He felt a hoof on his shoulder, and he turned to meet Applejack's gaze. She stared into his eyes for a minute, two minutes, more, and then she leaned in and kissed him.

North Star was shocked at first. Does she not realize what I mean when I say that? Why would she do this? Then after several seconds of being lost in his thoughts, he closed his eyes, and the taste of apples overwhelmed his senses. He wrapped a foreleg around Applejack, and she pressed her forehooves against his chest. They held themselves in that position for hours, it seemed, until another groan was heard from the ship.

Applejack pulled away from him, and looked out at the bow of the ship, which was now almost submerged in the icy cold blackness of the sea. North Star got up, and pointed a hoof at the door. "Applejack, you have to go now. I have to finish some business here before I join you." She looked up at him, not able to tell if he was lying or not. Then she turned towards the door, walking outside. Before North Star could shut the door, though, she turned to him, and gave him a warning. "Ya'll had better show up at the lifeboats, or else. Ya got that?" He chuckled and nodded. "Of course, my dear. Farewell."

He turned back to the controls lining the wall, and began to turn off any unnecessary functions on the ship. Then he heard Applejack's voice, very quiet now.

"Ah love you."

He paused, waiting for her to say more. When he turned, she had left. Sighing, North Star shut the door to the control room and locked it. Then he turned back to the control panel, recalling something his mentor had said to him, long ago.

"When your time comes, and it will, you must remember this: If you are a captain, you must go down with the ship. It is the honorable thing to do."

North Star sighed again. His mentor had died the year after, when his ship, the Peking, had gone under just outside of Trottingham. Now he resigned himself to fate, and sat down to wait for the inevitable to happen.

---------------

Applejack met up with her friends when she'd run from North Star. She held back her tears, and spoke with them calmly, trying to understand the full story behind the collision and what would happen next. She was told everything the others knew, and agreed that they should head toward the lifeboats.

Rarity coughed. When the others turned to her, she shuffled her hooves nervously. "I don't suppose..." she said, almost as shyly as Fluttershy spoke. "Could we go back to the room? To get some of my things?" Applejack gritted her teeth, but before she could tell Rarity off, Twilight stopped her. "Yes, I think that'll be alright. You and AJ both haven't gotten a saddlebag, and you probably brought something special along with you. The lifeboats will be available for a while, just hurry up!" She, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy trotted off to find the lifeboats, leaving Jack, Rarity and Applejack alone.

Applejack turned to Rarity. "Are ya'll jokin'? Ya'll think that some silly possession is more important than yer own life?" Rarity turned her head up at this, only infuriating Applejack further. She turned, and began walking towards the cabins, with a distraught Jack in tow. Applejack groaned openly, and ran after them, deciding that if they didn't make it to the lifeboats because of this, Rarity would be her raft for the journey home. It was 12:05.

----------------

Jack was not a very well-exercised pony. In the few minutes of running up and down the ship with Rarity, he'd become exhausted. Now Rarity stayed three steps ahead of him at all times. He panted, and felt sweat running down his back. He heard distant hoofsteps behind him, but he paid them no mind. All that mattered now was protecting the unicorn rushing ahead of him. He found this almost impossible, though, as his spirit finally broke, and he slowed to a trot, letting Rarity get further and further away from him. He watched her turn a corner, and tried to catch up to her. He was discouraged to hear the sound of her hoofsteps fading away, and sped up despite his body screaming at him not to.

"Rarity! Wait!" He knew she could not hear him, but he knew where she was headed. The sound of hoofsteps behind him made his head turn again, and again he saw nothing to identify with the noise. He kept moving, and made his way to where he believed Rarity's room was. He saw no one, though, and began trying to retrace his steps. He ran back around the corner, and was met instantly with an impact on the head. Falling to the ground, Jack looked up to see Tuxmond Gold smirking down at him

"Well, well, well." Unlike their last meeting, Gold was now adorned in a smart-looking tuxedo, his hair neat and orderly underneath a top hat. He had an artistically styled cane in his hoof, and Jack assumed that was what had struck him. Gold discarded the cane, and pulled Jack to his hooves. "It appears fate has given me another chance," said Gold, and Jack recognized his tone of voice. "I do hope you understand that when this ship sinks, you are going down with it." With these words, Gold pounded a hoof into Jack's stomach, and suddenly he could not breathe. He leaned forward, and Gold caught him. Gold began dragging the injured unicorn towards the staircase that lead to the lower decks. There was nothing Jack could do, as Gold was holding him in a grip using his magic. He shut his eyes, giving in to the demented unicorn dragging him, and began to fall unconscious. Then he heard a shout.

"NOT MY COLTFRIEND, YOU BASTARD!" Rarity had appeared from around the corner, and was now charging at Gold, her horn already aglow with furious power. A nearby vase shot towards Gold, and he easily sent it flying back at Rarity. She dodged, and leaped into the air, coming down onto Gold's back. He gasped in pain, and his grip on Jack weakened. Then he turned, and shot a beam of magic into Rarity's chest. She grunted as she was flung into the wall, and Gold charged towards the stairs. He began his descent, Jack in tow, and Rarity caught sight of his eyes for a moment, before they disappeared beneath the deck. She tried to get up, but Gold had hurt her badly. She lay there, and found herself sobbing into the carpet of the hall. I couldn't help him. It's my fault.

She looked up when she heard the sound of approaching hoofsteps. Applejack came rushing around the corner, and gasped when she saw Rarity lying crumpled on the floor. She rushed up to her broken friend, and managed to pull her up with some difficulty. Checking Rarity's injuries, she winced at the growing red welt on her stomach. Rarity thanked her for her help, and slowly trotted over to the staircase that Gold had gone down. I'll find you, Jack. And when I do, Tuxmond Gold is a dead pony. She began to descend when Applejack stopped her.

"Hey, why're ya'll goin' down? We gotta get back up to the main deck, remember?" Rarity turned to the orange mare she called her friend, and said in a dangerously serious voice, "I have some business to finish up down there. Please don't follow me. I wouldn't want you getting hurt." Then she turned, and continued down the staircase until Applejack couldn't see her anymore. She stared at the spot Rarity had been standing at. Then, after a minute of contemplating whether or not she should follow Rarity down the stairs, she turned, and rushed back to where her friends were to tell them where a certain white unicorn had gone.

---------------

The sound of dripping water filled Jack's ears. Gold had dragged him down the staircase, and through several corridors he knew were meant to keep anypony else from finding them. Surprisingly, the hallways of Second Class had been almost silent. Jack guessed that the passengers were either still asleep or already above deck, filling up the few lifeboats the ship had. Then Gold had pressed down on the back of his neck, and Jack had lost consciousness.

When he woke up, he found himself somewhere in the depths of the ship, below even the Third Class area. Gold had walked along the metallic, heated walls, and Jack deduced that he had been brought to the boiler rooms. Then Gold had found what he was looking for.

Jack felt Gold's magic shove him into a heated wall, and he heard his flesh sizzle. The gold unicorn towered over him, and brought out a chain with a strange lock on it. Jack was fastened to a pipe on the wall, and Gold rammed him in the stomach again. Then he leaned down and whispered in his ear, "I'll enjoy throwing your two-bit whore off the stern of the ship." Jack struggled against his bonds, and Gold laughed at the sight. "You idiot. You can't break that chain yourself. And don't try opening the lock, either. Only the key can do that. Cheerio." Then he slammed the metal door to the boiling hot room, and Jack listened as his hoofsteps faded.

Jack studied the room he was in. It was small, for one, and had no windows or doors save the one his captor had just exited out of. Everything in it seemed to be made out of metal, and was attached into the wall. Jack could see nothing to use to get the chains off of him. He only hoped that Rarity would be able to avoid Gold until she was safely on a lifeboat. He shut his eyes, and tried to ignore the sound of water flowing freely somewhere nearby. It was 12:15.

---------------

Rarity raced through the corridors of the Second Class cabins. She noticed many of the stewards running from cabin to cabin, awakening the remaining passengers and warning them of the imminent disaster. Some laughed, believing it was a joke, and shut their doors, leaving the steward standing in front of it frustrated. Rarity shook her head, and focused on the task at hoof. All other needs had been shoved to the side, replaced by one, driving cause.

Find Jack.

She looked throughout the Second Class area, asking stewards if they'd seen Gold or Jack anywhere. Only one of them gave her any help: a minute or so earlier, the steward had seen a gold unicorn in a tuxedo come up from a stairwell that led down to the boiler rooms, down at the very bottom of the ship. Rarity thanked the steward, and rushed to the staircase he'd described, and began to rush down. She only made it halfway down the stairs before the boilers exploded.

Rarity felt the shock of the explosion, and she felt the stair beneath her disappear. Suddenly she was flying down the staircase, and her magic was the only thing that kept her from smashing into the grated platform at the bottom of the stairs. As she tried to regain her balance, the sound of the steam escaping the boilers filled her ears. It sounded as though 20 locomotives were blowing off steam in a low key. She covered her ears, and tried to get a grip on the moment. After a minute, when the shrill whistling did not let up, she uncovered her ears and made her way down towards the boiler rooms. Then she had a sudden realization. Jack was down there. If Gold had left him in one of the boiler rooms...

Rarity began sprinting down the corridor, screaming Jack's name. She tried to listen for his voice, but she heard nothing but the whistle of the boilers. She doubted that Jack could hear her at all, and she began throwing open every door she passed, checking briefly to see if her lover was somewhere inside. After two of the rooms gave her nothing, she began to fear the worst. Oh Celestia, please let him be alive. Don't let him die. She continued searching, and started to see the damage the explosion had done. Some of the doors were blown off their hinges, and others had destroyed handles, as the force of the blow had done enough to ruin the locks on the door. It was in one of these rooms that she found Jack.

When Rarity first saw him, she thought that she was too late. Jack lay on the ground, a busted pipe spewing steam over him. Then she heard him groan, and she rushed to his side, assessing his current state to see if he was hurt anywhere. Looking him over, the only visible problem she could see were the indents around his chest where he had been chained to the pipe that had burst on him. Gold, you bastard. You had better hope we don't find you before the ship sinks. Her face lit up when he opened his eyes, and she hugged him.

"Thank goodness you're alright." She buried her face into his shoulder, and he groaned again. "Rarity?" He asked her, as though she were not really there, that there was a chance it was not her. “I thought Gold had gotten to you." She moved her face in front of his, and shook her head. "I'm afraid Mr. Gold didn't make an appointment with me." He laughed, and she helped him onto his hooves. "Well," she said, pointing towards the blown up door. "Shall we hurry over to the lifeboats? All of our friends are probably wondering where we are right now."

Jack nodded, and trotted out into the hallway. He looked left and right, and then left again. His eyes widened and he shouted, "Rarity! We need to go now!" Peeking out of the room, Rarity was shocked when she saw what had frightened Jack. Coming toward them in a rush were several waves of water. It had been spilling in for only 50 minutes.

Rarity shrieked, almost more worried that her coat would get wet than the fact that the water was rushing in too fast. She began galloping in the opposite direction, calling back to Jack. "Well, what are you staring at!? We have to run!" Jack snapped out of his trance, and turned on his heel to follow Rarity. It was 12:30.

The two unicorns rushed past several confused firecolts, only able to shout the briefest explanations to them as they ran past. The sound of their shouts of surprise along with the growing sound of rushing water only gave them the spirit to run faster. Now Rarity was the one becoming tired, as the combined effects of her coat and the boiler room were causing her to overheat. Seeing this, Jack acted instinctively, grabbing the coat with his teeth and pulling it off of her. Before she could react, he threw it behind them, where it was caught up in the rushing waters of the invading sea.

Rarity was almost furious with Jack. "Why in Equestria would you do that?" she yelled at him, expecting him to apologize for his rude actions. Instead, Jack simply said, "You were hot. That coat was heavy, and getting rid of it got rid of the excess weight." She huffed, and turned her head back towards the staircase that had just come into view several yards away. She and Jack made their way to the stairs, and soon found themselves on the Third Class level. Seeing that the rest of the staircase had been blocked off because of the rapidly rising water, the two made their way through the slightly less luxurious Third Class cabins. To Rarity's horror, she saw nopony trying to warn the Third Class passengers about the ship's collision, In fact, it appeared that the entire Third Class had been abandoned by the attendants of the ship. She didn't pause, however, instead deciding it would be safer to try and find a way above deck first.

This task, however, proved to be more difficult than the white mare had thought it would be. The Third Class was made up of twisting hallways and identical corridors. Rarity could not tell if they had run down a corridor before, and the two soon found themselves lost. Rarity paced in a circle, trying to think. Then, as her mind never failed to do, she had an idea. She looked down at the floor, checking to see which way the ship was tilted. Seeing that it was pointing up in the opposite direction they had been running, she turned and began galloping down the hall. Jack hurried after her, wishing there were directories for the different sections. She reached the end of the hall, and soon found that while she had been heading in the direction she'd wanted to, it was not the correct one. The exit stairwell was located nowhere near where Rarity and Jack were.

Rarity felt herself start to hyperventilate when she realized they were taking too long to get off of the ship. She felt Jack wrap a hoof around her neck. He comforted her, and she began to sob into his chest. "I-I" She could only stutter, sniffling in between each word. "I caused this m-mess. If I hadn't w-wanted to go back f-for my s-stupid possessions, w-we would be on a lifeboat already. I-I'm s-sorry." He patted her back, and whispered, "We will make it out of this, regardless of whose fault it is we're in this mess. I promise." She looked up at him, and was reassured by his smile. Then they began searching for some exit, marking places they'd gone through with magical bolts. They moved quickly, and found the exit just as they noticed water flooding in from two hallways over. Scrambling up the stairs, Jack turned to magic a shield over the doorway to prevent water getting through. Then he realized that the passengers might not be able to get out if he did that. Hearing the sounds of doors opening and ponies shouting, he turned back to Rarity and made his way up the stairs with her.

Now at the Second Class area, Rarity could hear distant music coming from somewhere to the right. Ah yes. The restaurants. I'd say it's wrong that they leave them open, but that's their choice. She headed in the direction of the music, and Jack followed. They found the restaurant, and asked for directions to the nearest staircase. The waiter on duty gave them directions to the Grand Staircase, then went back to cleaning tables, apparently unaware of the danger he was in. They left, Rarity with a troubled look on her face, Jack with a worried one. They began navigating through the hallways of the Second Class area. It was 12:45.

Now Jack was worried. Passing a clock on their way through the halls, he was almost certain the crew had begun loading lifeboats, if not lowering them. He did not know how many there were on the Titanic, but he knew there would not be enough. The ship was not prepared to be sunk on its maiden voyage, or any voyage, for that matter. The crew was unprepared to handle the situation as well, and Jack wanted to make sure that Rarity at least would be able to get on a lifeboat. If not her, then who? Me? Gold? No, I have to get her on a boat. They made their way along the corridors, dodging the occasional panicked passenger. Seeing the entrance to the Grand Staircase, they looked at each other and smiled, becoming more convinced that they were going to get above deck. Entering the room, however, they discovered two things that made them think twice. The first was the fact that water was already rushing into the room, and was almost up to their ankles by the time they'd made their way to the head of the stairs. The second was the presence of Tuxmond Gold at the top of the first set of stairs.

For a second, Gold had a look of surprise on his face. Then he saw Rarity standing beside him, and he smiled down at them. "Why, Jack," he said, and his undermining tone infuriated Rarity. "It appears you have a guardian angel." It was 12:55.

-----------------

Twilight had not been sure of very many things since the iceberg had struck. At this point, however, she was 100% sure of exactly two things. One: Rarity was pushing it while taking her time gathering her things, and Two: she herself was panicking.

The last 40 minutes had gone by in a panicked and relatively chaotic blur. After she'd sent Applejack, Rarity, and Jack to go retrieve their most precious possessions, she'd immediately realized her mistake: to Rarity, her most valuable possessions meant everything she'd brought on the ship. After ten minutes of waiting, she began to head towards their living areas, when a confused-looking Applejack had come up from below deck. The orange mare had said something about Rarity going further below deck to "finish up some business". If those words had had any special meaning, Applejack had not picked up on it.

Twilight had been furious, almost setting her hair on fire again. After several breathing exercises, which Fluttershy had been happy to teach to the lavender unicorn, she had begun asking where Jack was. Applejack had not seen him when she'd spoken with Rarity, and Twilight's first guess had been that they'd both gone below the deck to "roll in the hay", as Applejack so called it. She immediately disproved her own theory, as she was sure they knew of the speedily rising water level, and would not have gone lower without a very important reason. She'd spent the next ten minutes pacing in a circle, pondering what would have driven Rarity to go below the First Class area. Then the lifeboats had begun loading.

Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie had immediately zipped over to the first one, pleading to get on. The crew member loading the boat had settled them into it, and the two mares began signaling wildly to the rest of their friends to get on the lifeboat with them. Applejack and Twilight, however, refused to get on: Twilight didn't want to leave any friend behind, and Applejack was waiting for the captain to show up. The apple farmer and Dash had had a brief exchange about who the real Element of Loyalty was, and Rainbow Dash got out of the lifeboat, telling Pinkie to stay inside. Pinkie Pie had been hesitant, but in the end she agreed, and Rainbow Dash and AJ headed off to find North Star.

Fluttershy had been quietly sitting on a nearby bench, looking up at the night sky with a somber expression on her face. Twilight sat down next to her, and they'd discussed what would happen after they got back from the disaster.

"If we get back," Fluttershy had said, and she'd burst into tears when she'd finished her sentence. Twilight tried to comfort her, but the possibility of not all of them making it back to Ponyville had scared her as well. She had soon found herself crying on Fluttershy's shoulder at the thought of Spike getting the news that she hadn't gotten off the ship in time. When Applejack and Rainbow Dash returned, Applejack was crying. Rainbow Dash was hugging her, and slowly escorted her onto the lifeboat with Pinkie Pie and several other ponies who had boarded the boat in the time they had been gone. Twilight had stopped crying, along with Fluttershy, and asked Rainbow Dash what had happened. Rainbow Dash didn't answer. Instead she'd lowered herself to the floor and curled up in a ball next to Trixie, who decided that she was done waiting and went to board the lifeboat.

And still Rarity did not show up.

After 15 minutes of waiting, things suddenly became chaotic as a rush of passengers came up above deck and headed towards any open lifeboat they could. They quickly filled up, and Rainbow Dash tried to fly down to Pinkie Pie when her lifeboat was lowered into the water. The attendant had stopped her with his magic, and scolded her for being so brash.

By 12:55, Twilight had given up on Rarity. She imagined Spike's face when she brought the news to him, and felt tears burning at her eyelids again. She and Fluttershy had found a lifeboat, but Rainbow Dash did not move when they told her Rarity was not going to show up any time soon.

"Fine!" the blue pegasus yelled. "If you want to leave your friend to die, that's fine! But I'm the Element of Loyalty for a reason, and I'm not going to let Applejack yell at me for this!" Apparently Applejack's speech had profoundly changed Dash, and she proceeded to fly over the ship, heading off to who-knew-where to find Rarity.

Now Twilight sat in a lifeboat, and she stared up at the magnificent ship that had been their home for two days. She saw the area where the iceberg had struck, and was shocked to see how far the prow of the ship had sunk in the hour and fifteen minutes since the collision had occurred. Fluttershy turned to her, and said quietly, "I hope they're alright."

Twilight nodded, and said, "They have to be, Fluttershy. They have to." Fluttershy yawned and rested her head on Twilight's shoulder, and closed her eyes to try and catch a little sleep. Twilight nuzzled up to the yellow pegasus, and continued to stare at the Titanic, wondering where Rarity and Jack and Rainbow Dash were. It was 1:10.

------------------

Jack stared up at the calmly insane colt that had tried to kill both him and Rarity in the last two days. For a moment, none of the three ponies in the room moved. Then Rarity took a step up the stairs, and Jack resisted the urge to try and stop her. Instead, he followed her, taking a very slow step, then another, then another. He and Rarity made their way slowly up the steps, and stopped halfway up the stairs. Rarity looked back, and saw that the water level had gone up two steps of the staircase since they'd begun climbing. At this rate, they would all be drowned if they didn't hurry. She turned back to Gold, who was still smiling evilly down at them, and said, "As much as I want to, Mr. Gold, I can't get you back yet for what you've done to Jack and myself in the past few days. I must ask you to move and-" She'd spoken too long.

Gold pounced down the stairs, extending his forelegs in front of him, and rammed into Rarity. With a yelp, the two fell down the Grand Staircase, landing thankfully in the waterlogged area of the room. She gripped his neck, and held him in place as Jack came down the stairs and shoved Gold off of her. The golden colt rose up again quickly, and dove at Jack, striking him in the chest and clamping his teeth down on his neck. Now it was Rarity's turn to do something.

Rarity ran at Gold, who paid her no mind, and she levitated a picture from one of the side alcoves. With a tremendous grunt, she slammed the picture down on Gold's head. He turned, and Rarity saw blood on his lips. He charged at her, no longer the charming-gentlecolt they'd both met two days ago. Now he was a savage, grunting beast, and he tried to ram her again. This time, however, Rarity ducked, and Gold went soaring over her back. She raised herself up before he could make it over her, and felt his foothold snatch and loosen in the same second. A dull thud was heard, and Rarity collected Jack and began to run back up the Grand Staircase. She heard Gold fidgeting, and ran as fast as she could.

When she reached the end of the staircase, she was relieved to see the next one directly in front of her. She galloped towards it, even as she heard Gold scream out her name. She rushed to the stairwell, and hid behind it, in a little room that was used as a storage cupboard. Once inside, she looked at Jack's neck. A part of it looked like it had been used as chewing tobacco, and Jack groaned in pain when she touched it. She looked frantically for a first aid kit, then remembered she kept one in her saddlebag at all times. Opening the soggy bag, she pulled out the kit and hastily applied gauze to his neck, and when she gave him painkillers he sighed with relief. He showed that he was good to go, and Rarity threw open the door to the cupboard, ready for anything. Tuxmond Gold was waiting for her.

He looked disgusting. His hair was died orange with what Rarity assumed was his blood, and one of his teeth was missing. There were bruises covering the visible parts of his body, and he grinned down maniacally at them. "Got any more bandages?" he asked, his voice a deadly whisper. Rarity answered by slamming the first aid kit in his face, and she and Jack ran up the staircase before he could regain his focus.

The two unicorns burst out onto the deck of the ship in time to be swept up in a crowd of panicking passengers. They sighed with relief when they could no longer see Gold, and they moved along with the crowd. When they were finally able to break off from the group, they looked around again to see if they were truly safe. Then Rarity jumped onto of Jack and kissed him. He eagerly returned her affection, and for a minute they simply stood in place, locked in each other's embrace and kissing frantically. Then they separated, and Rarity shivered again. Jack found himself regretting not keeping her coat with him, and made due with giving her his dinner jacket. She blushed at the gentlemanly gesture, and they set off to find a lifeboat.

Turning the corner at one of the superstructures, Rarity paused. "Th-this is..." she stammered out, and gripped Jack's foreleg with her own. He looked at the alley they had turned into, and in a second recognized it as the place that Gold had first revealed is true character. He looked down at her, and said, "There is nopony here. We can walk straight through here without being harmed, and-" He was interrupted by her shriek.

Pointing to the other end of the alley, Rarity began shaking as another pony turned into the alley. Not wanting to take any chances, Jack pulled Rarity by the hoof and began to dash away from the stranger. Rarity was trying not to go into shock. He can't have known, he can't have! There's no way that that could be Gold! She didn't dare turn around, instead running alongside Jack until they saw a lifeboat loading up. They silently cheered, and made their way over to the lifeboat.

The attendant there eyed Jack's bandages, and Rarity quickly diverted his attention to her. "Excuse me, sir? We'd like to board the lifeboat." The attendant laughed, and said, "Yep. I bet you do. And you can. Him, however," he gestured to Jack. "He's gotta wait for women and children to board first."

Rarity's eyes went wide, and she put her face directly into the attendants. "As you can see, kind sir, there is nopony else around the area that is trying to board the lifeboat, so why don't you let my companion here board with me?" Again the attendant laughed, and shook his head. "Captain's orders. No men allowed on board the lifeboats."

Rarity stared at him for another few moments, before she was pulled away from him by Jack. "Rarity," he said. "I want you to board the lifeboat. I promise-"

"No."

Jack blinked. Rarity stared defiantly at him. She walked away from the attendant, and after a confusing second Jack ran after her. When he caught up to her, he asked, "What do you mean 'No'?" When Rarity turned to him, she had the slightest grin on her face. "You ask me, after I save your life twice in one day, to abandon you on an enormous sinking ship? I don't think so. I'm going to stay with you until we can both be put in a lifeboat safely." She looked down at her hooves and added in a mumbled, "Or otherwise."

She turned back around, and began walking towards the other side of the ship again. Jack stared after her a few seconds, before she turned around and told him, "Besides, we still have a debt to repay for dear old Mr. Gold." Then she continued on, and this time Jack ran after her, not wanting to leave her alone with Gold still on the boat. It was now 1:35.

---------------

Twilight wished she hadn't Pinkie promised not to use magic on the cruise. She had worried the moment Pinkie Pie had shown up at her house the day before the cruise to ask her the favor. Though she warned Pinkie that it could be dangerous to not use magic, Pinkie had assured her that nothing could go wrong. Pinkamina Diane Pie, you owe me five bits.

Staring across the black waters she was now floating above, she saw the lifeboat in which Pinkie and Trixie were put into. If she stared hard enough, she could make out Pinkie Pie's head poking above the others, staring out at Twilight's lifeboat. Twilight could almost hear her voice over the wind.

"Forever!"

She sighed, glad she had come up with something to keep her entertained, if only for a mere moment. Then she remembered that Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Jack were still on board the ship. She looked back at the ship, and gasped. In the 40 minutes she had been in the lifeboat, the ship had dipped at a relatively slow rate, and the prow was not yet submerged in the water. But that was not what had made Twilight gasp.

Looking at one of the loading stations, Twilight could see a riot of ponies rushing at one of the lifeboats as it began to lower into the ocean. Twilight shut her eyes and turned away at the sight of a unicorn being pushed over the railing of the ship into the dark waters below. Then she heard the gunshots.

Looking back up at the ship, she saw one of the officers on the ship holding a gun, which was pointed up at the sky and firing rapidly. To Twilight's relief, the shots stopped the rioting ponies from jumping into the lifeboats, or worse, into the ocean itself. She sighed and leaned back in the lifeboat. There was nothing Twilight wanted to do more than curl up and sleep the disaster away. But the recurring nightmarish thoughts of what could have happened to Rarity, Jack and Rainbow Dash kept her from closing her eyes. Instead, she continued to observe the ship, stroking the mane of the slumbering yellow mare cuddled up next to her. The time was 1:45.

--------------

Besides the fact that Rarity was furious at the lifeboat attendant had not let Jack board the lifeboat, Rarity was not sure what was keeping her going. She was exhausted, both physically and emotionally (and perhaps a bit mentally exhausted as well), her coat was a mess, her dress and saddlebag were both soaking wet, she was out in 0-degree weather, the ship she was on was sinking, and somepony was trying to find and kill herself and her lover. Yet still, she trudged onward, not complaining to Jack once. This must be how Applejack feels all the time, she thought, and laughed once. Jack turned his head to look at her, and said, "You're not thinking of what we're going to do if we meet up with Gold, are you?"

Rarity giggled again, and said, "No, but if I was, it would be the right thing to do. We need to know what to do if we find him." She looked up at him hopefully, as if to ask for him to help her plan Gold's demise. Jack was about to answer back when a voice came out from the shadows next to them.

"I think she meant to say when I find you."

They both spun. Tuxmond Gold entered the arena once again, this time not bothering to hide the insanity that lay behind his sparkling eyes. He took a ragged step forward, and Rarity saw that he had torn his clothes to pieces to keep from freezing above deck. He licked his lips, and said in a weary voice, "Do you know," and here he paused, taking another step towards them, "how much of an ANNOYING PIECE OF SHIT YOU'VE BEEN!!?" He screamed the last words, and pointed a hoof at Jack. "I have been trying all my life to find someone as beautiful as HER," Now he pointed at Rarity. "to come along so that I may sweep her off her hooves. And YOU," Back to Jack. "just haaaad to come and mess with her little head." He took another step towards the two, and Rarity suddenly felt like she was in a cage with a wild animal. Gold's head was twitching, and he laughed like a hyena. Rarity bristled, and to Jack's surprise did what appeared to be a pirouette, coming back to the same spot she'd been at before. She studied the maddened pony snarling at them, and nodded to nopony in particular.

Gold laughed again, and spoke through his giggles. "Soooooooooo. You think you can dance your way out? Okay then. Let us dance." And with that, Gold pounced.

In one quick motion, Rarity yanked on Jack's mane and yelled a "Prepare yourself!" to him. The colt did so, and shielded his face from the raging pony coming at him. Their bodies made contact, and Rarity forced Jack forward, making his strike as strong as Gold's. The two colts sprawled out onto the ground, and Rarity took advantage with his struggle to grab the broom she'd spotted when she'd spun around. First: Examine the environment.

She swung the broom, and it snapped over Gold's head. He shrieked, then shoved Jack aside to face Rarity. She smirked at the anger on his face, but was worried about his sudden increase in strength. Second: Examine opponent's skills/weaknesses.

Gold grabbed her neck in one fluid motion, and Rarity knew she had done something wrong. Dammit, Rarity! You spent two years memorizing every technique used in every Sherclop Holmes story ever written! I thought you had this down! There was a sudden pressure on the back of her neck, and everything went black. The last thing Rarity saw was a grinning madcolt looking down at her with a look of triumph.

When Rarity awoke, it was to the feel of an ice cold railing hit her back. She didn't dare open her eyes. She felt the tilt in the ship rising, and deduced he'd taken her to the stern of the ship. Oh no, how long was I out? She was terrified, and began screaming at the top of her lungs. Gold forced a hoof in her mouth, and she gagged on it. Then, very slowly, he began bending her neck back. She began to feel the strain on her neck, and felt tears burn her cheeks. Gold's voice floated into her ear, and whispered, "Which would you prefer? Broken neck? Or falling to your death?"

Rarity couldn't answer, and she knew that it didn't matter. She was going to die, and Jack was too late to help her. With what she believed would be her last breath, Rarity began to tilt her body backwards over the edge. Gold began laughing, and Rarity thought out her goodbyes for everypony. Goodbye, Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie. Goodbye, Sweetie Belle. At least none of you will know what really happened to me. Everypony except Jack-

*KLANG!*

Gold suddenly let go of Rarity, and the white unicorn dove to the ground and began kissing it, rubbing her now aching neck while doing so. She looked up just in time to see Jack getting struck down by Gold, making him drop the metal object he'd been carrying. Gold moved back over to her, and slapped her in the face. "Get up, you pathetic mule!"

That tore it.

Rarity's face turned bright red, not with embarrassment but with rage. She stood up, and raised herself up on her hind legs. She shoved Gold into the railing, and she held him in place and stared into his eyes. She saw his fear, and that made her smile. She pushed him further over the rail, and he tried to get a grip on it. The icy rails made it impossible. Rarity whispered into his ear. "You can hurt me. You can destroy my possessions. You can mock me in any way, but if you EVER call me a mule," and now she turned and held him in place with her hind legs. "I will destroy you." And she pushed him over the edge.

She waited for the scream, but it never came. Oh no. She cautiously looked over the rails. Gold was clinging on to one using his magic. She stared down at him, bitter rage seeping through her stare. Gold looked back at her with an equally angry stare. He smiled, and began lifting himself up. Then Jack woke up.

He walked over to where Rarity was, confused that Gold was apparently not there anymore. then he peered over the railing, and dove backwards instinctively. He stared at the rails for a second, before turning to Rarity. He was breathing heavily, and asked her, "Did you...?" She nodded, and his eyes widened. Then they widened more as he spotted a raged hoof make its way over the edge of the stern and grab on to Rarity's tight-fitting shoes.

Rarity screamed, fell over, and began to slide towards the edge of the ship. Jack rushed over to help her, and he began to try and pull off Rarity's shoe. Gold, meanwhile, had drawn something out of his only remaining jacket pocket. It was a pistol. Jack' mind went blank, and for a second time stood still. The guards. He took a pistol from one of the guards. Oh Celestia, how determined is he to kill us? He continued fiddling with Rarity's incredibly tight shoe, while Rarity herself was biting onto the railing to keep from being pulled off. Jack could hear her screaming through gritted teeth, and knew he didn't have much time. Gold had pointed the gun directly at his head, and as he heard the trigger pull back, he desperately punched the shoe as hard as he could.

The fastener broke.

The look of shock on Tuxmond Gold's face as he dropped soundlessly into the waters of the cold, uncaring ocean below would stay burnt into Jack's memory for the rest of his life. The golden unicorn fell, and he dropped his pistol in shock. Jack heard the gun clang against one of the propellers, and then another, duller clang as Gold's body struck another propeller, ricocheted him over the other one and into the sea.

Jack pulled Rarity away from the edge of the ship, and for a minute he stared over the edge of the ship at the spot Gold had hit the water. Looking at the propeller Gold had struck, Jack could see a small splotch of red. Rarity regained her footing, and walked over to him. He stood up, and immediately went back down on his knees and vomited over the railing. Rarity jumped back a bit, and when she was sure he was done, she rested a hoof on his back and patted it. He looked up at her, his face somewhere between shock and despair. Rarity met his eyes, and said, "We should go." He nodded.

Rarity kept Jack from falling over as the two made their way down the length of the ship. Rarity was still rubbing her neck where Gold had bent it back, and Jack was trying to find a grip on the moment. I just killed a pony, he thought.

And he was going to kill you.

I killed a pony.

You killed a criminal.

He didn't deserve it.

He was going to kill Rarity.

The azure-coated unicorn slowly managed to regain his composure, and the two made their way back to where the lifeboats were. Rarity rubbed up against him, trying to calm him down. It was not working, and Jack could still hear his heart pounding in his head. She knew that he was in danger of having a panic attack, and she wasn't going to let him get more hurt than he already was. She tried harder, nuzzling his neck. He looked down at her, and when their eyes met she saw how traumatized he was. She sighed, and said, "Jack, I know you wouldn't have let him go if you had a choice, but his time-"

"This time?" His eyes were already wide, and Rarity instantly realized her mistake. She shook her head, and said, "Jack, please don't get upset, you know what I meant. You didn't have a choice. You chose me over him, and I'm eternally grateful for that." She leaned in to kiss him, and he didn't move. Their lips met for a split-second before Rarity pulled away, spluttering and spitting on the ground. Jack, surprisingly enough, laughed at the reaction. "Guess you should have remembered I threw up, right?" She turned back to him, and punched him on the shoulder. She stared at him for a minute, awaiting an apology from him. Then, without warning, they were both laughing, and continued on their way back towards the lifeboats.

When Rarity began to recognize where the areas around them, she sped up, desperate to find a lifeboat they could climb into. I only hope that Twilight and the rest made it onto the boats already. Spotting one, she grinned, and turned to Jack. "Found one!" He brightened at the sight of it, but frowned a second later. Rarity's expression turned from one of delight to one of confusion, and she turned back to the lifeboat she'd spotted. To her horror, she watched as it began lowering, and rushed towards it, shouting for them to wait. But it was too late. The lifeboat sank beneath the edge of the ship, and Rarity stopped, halfway between Jack and the loading dock.

She looked left and right, trying to find anypony who could help them get a lifeboat. She searched and searched, finding only panicking ponies running back and forth. She and Jack went to where each of the loading docks had been, finding nothing. Rarity began to panic as well, and Jack sat her down on a bench nearby. Turning to another bench several yards away, Rarity spotted an elderly couple sitting on a bench, each one comforting the other and holding them tightly. She saw this, and suddenly knew what frightened her. Tears formed in her eyes, and she breathed the answer out.

"We missed the lifeboats."

Jack stared at her. She began to sob into her hooves, which were pressed firmly against her face. He sat down next to her, and hugged her. She cried into his chest, and he felt her tears begin to soak through his shirt. He let her cry for a minute, simply holding onto her so that she would not fall away from him. It was 2:05.

When Rarity was finished crying, she pulled away from Jack. Looking towards the prow of the ship, she saw the water level rising. Crowds of panicking ponies were shoving past one another, and some were being swept out into the sea. She looked up at Jack, and said quietly, "Would you like to take a walk?" He nodded, and they began to head back towards the stern. They passed the old couple, and Rarity couldn't help but smile at the two elderly ponies comforting each other, happy and loved in the face of death. She leaned into Jack, and he leaned over and kissed her cheek. She smiled, and let herself accept how things were. I am going to die. But I will die with the one I love. She sighed, accepting her fate completely, and nuzzled Jack's neck again.

They'd been walking for several minutes when the sound of music drifted along the deck. Turning, the two unicorns saw the Titanic's band playing a song, though at this point the band had been reduced to five string players. The song they played was different from the others she had heard over the course of her stay. Instead of bright, cheery music, as she'd heard all throughout the cruise, this song was somber, and slightly calming. Even as she and Jack watched, many of the ponies nearby stopped running around frantically and simply watched the five musicians perform. The song was overwhelming, and Rarity felt herself start to cry. "They...they-" she choked on her words, and Jack was there to comfort her again. The music drifted throughout the ship, and Jack knew it was to calm the remaining passengers. He could already feel Rarity's sobs dying down, and he moved her back and forth with the music in a sort of awkward dance. She sighed into his coat, and shifted her head to his shoulder. The song ended, and Jack watched the musicians thank one another and separate, leaving a small crowd of solemnly clapping ponies.

Rarity looked up at Jack, and gave him a look that told him to come closer. He obliged, and she brought his lips to hers, and savored every moment of their kiss, wanting to make the last minutes they had together last. She kissed harder, and he began to push her backwards. She eagerly let him control her movements, and felt a wall appear between them, and she was being lifted up onto her hind legs. They pressed against each other, and before their kiss could become any more heated she felt something hard press against her chest. Without breaking their kiss, Rarity pulled the Fire Ruby out from under her dress.

Suddenly she realized that she couldn't die. Not if I have this. She had to find somepony who could take it back to Spike, or she would have to find a way to survive long enough to reach Twilight, in one of the lifeboats she saw glimmering out on the surface of the water. She pushed Jack away and started to look around for a pegasus to fly it to her. Jack, who at the moment was somewhere between anger and confusion, walked up to her. "Why did you do that?" he asked, and Rarity looked apologetically at him. "Jack, I'm so sorry, but I have to get this back to my friend. It's the most important thing I can do right now." He looked at her for a second, and began to speak, "Rarity, I..."

A sudden increase in the angle of the ship sent him sliding down the deck. Rarity gasped, and grabbed onto him with her magic. Looking back towards the prow of the ship, Rarity saw what appeared to be an enormous wave of water heading up the forward deck of the boat. Many of the ponies who had been rushing around the deck earlier were now being pulled out to sea. The wave was climbing up the deck of the ship, and Rarity could feel the ship's angle into the ocean increasing as she dragged Jack back towards her. The time was 2:15.

The ship was going to sink soon.

----------------

Twilight was terrified now. She had not been able to spot any of her friends boarding any of the lifeboats, and now all of them had been sent out. Again, the image of Spike's face when she broke the news to him flashed in her mind, and she held back a tear. No. Rarity can't be a goner. Rainbow Dash must have found her. Please, please let Dash have found her! Watching the ship, she'd seen the sudden increase of the Titanic's angle in the water. It had also begun to rotate, the stern turning in the direction of most of the lifeboats. The ship also seemed to be moving forward in the water, ever so slightly. The ship had begun to slide into the water, at an angle that Twilight had estimated to be about fifteen degrees, though the angle was still steadily increasing. In the confusion, Twilight thought she'd seen a pony fall off the ship from the stern, striking a propeller and falling into the sea. She'd dismissed the sight as a fear-induced hallucination, and had kept looking for any sign of her missing friends. She didn't have the time to.

Suddenly, without so much as a warning, the lights on the ship went out. It was 2:16.

----------------

Jack and Rarity ran as fast as they could. The angle of the ship was increasing, and soon it would be impossible to move up to the stern. Water was rushing at them quickly, and though the stern was in sight, Rarity was not sure she would be able to make it. She had run out of energy long ago, and was now running on pure adrenaline, and the effects were now taking their toll on her body. She was panting heavily, and Jack was trying to keep her going as well.

Jack shouted over the sound of rushing water. "Rarity! You have to keep going! Please!" The pearly mare behind him stared desperately ahead, as if the stern would come closer if she stared hard enough. She stumbled once, and Jack panicked. He rushed behind her and prepared to keep her from falling. In the darkness, all he could see was a ghostly figure that he knew was his lover. He stared directly ahead, and watched her falter once, twice, and straighten again. He sighed with relief as the railings became focused in his vision. He sped forward, pushing Rarity with him and ramming them into the rails.

Rarity groaned when she made contact with the frozen metal pole. A warm glow enveloped her, and she felt herself being lifted up by Jack. Turning in midair, she saw Jack attempting to grasp the bar with his teeth. But the ship's angle had increased too much. He slid back every time he stopped putting all of his willpower into running his heart out. Now he could not move up anymore, only staying in place when he ran. In a last effort to grab the rail, he leaped into the air, hoping it would provide him with the force he needed to get to the railing. His heart dropped when he saw that he had merely jumped straight up in the air, and he shut his eyes, awaiting the feel of his dress shirt sliding against the deck.

When nothing happened, he opened his eyes, and found himself in a pearl-white glow. Rarity looked down at him, a relieved smile on her face. Then she brought him over to the rails, which he wrapped his forelegs around. He reached out to Rarity, and she took his hoof. As the stern reached its peak height, Jack and Rarity stared down at the groups of ponies falling off the ship, some near where they were, some still by the prow of the ship. Jack looked over at Rarity and shouted over the noise, "Don't let go of my hoof!"

The white unicorn shut her eyes and sidled up next to Jack. She pressed her head into his shoulder, and wrapped her tail around his. She looked into the twin emeralds that showed her so much care, and said, "I will never let go."

It was 2:18.

An ear-splitting crack sounded from somewhere below. Jack squinted, trying to make out what the source of the noise was. Then he saw the funnels that capped the ship falling into the sea. With a shout, he wrapped Rarity in an aura of magic, and braced himself as the entire ship broke into two pieces. The stern fell downwards, and Rarity screamed as she felt herself slipping out of Jack's grasp. But he held on, and kept her from sliding out of his grip. The front of the ship disappeared into the dark waters, and the iceberg's goal was half completed. Jack felt the stern begin to rise again, and he gripped Rarity tighter as the stern rose into the air, almost vertical by the time the front half of the ship had completely disappeared into the sea. He could see small pieces of debris floating around the rest of the ships. Looking out, he could see the lifeboats, which had been drifting away from the ship the entire time. He saw that one of them, one that looked well under-packed, was drifting back towards the ship. They would never be able to come back for them before they froze to death.

Looking to Rarity, he felt more helpless than he'd ever felt before. There was nothing he could do but wait for the stern to sink into the sea. And then...

Rarity pressed against Jack, and they kissed in the glow of Jack's warming aura. They felt the stern begin to sink, and held onto each other as tightly as they could. Then they waited for the inevitable to happen. Jack felt tears drop off his cheeks and fall down the long, terrifying drop to the deadly waters that held the same fate for them that had occurred to the hundreds of ponies who were already on their way to the sea bed. Rarity cried with him, and they prayed for a miracle.

It was 2:20.

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Well, look! We got ourselves a mighty fine Note From the Author!

Jeez! How did I do that? Two freakin' chapters in one freakin' week? I treat you guys too well!

Well, that's not entirely why I got this chapter done. The two main reasons I could get this to you guys only three days after my last chapter was One: I have had the flu for the last four days, and as much as it sucks, I've been able to get much more writing done; and Two: I LOVED writing this chapter. The action! The romance! The cliffhangers! The cliff-faller-offers (take that, Gold!)!

To those of you who noticed the fall in words per chapter: You've discovered my secret! As the story comes to a close, you get less! There will probably be only 10,000 words next chapter! Nyehahahahaha!

If the Universe loves me, I will probably be able to rush out the last chapter tomorrow. And the next day, perhaps an epilogue! See what happens after the excitement of the shipwreck! Maybe.

We're almost at the end, folks! Be here for the final, fantastic, absutively, posalutely most fantabulous chapter of them all (it probably won't be): the final one! After which I will never be heard from again!

I was lying. I actually have a really big story I want to Ponify, if possible (that's the term for anything that I or any of you may want me to change to a MLP version). So far, everything's crystal clear in my head, but when I try and write it down, I'll probably develop Parkinson's again.

So, looks like I've covered everything. I guess I'll be hitting the Dusty Trail. Later, pwnies!

The Final Hour

Chapter 6: The Final Hour.

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Pinkamina Diane Pie was a mare known for her spontaneous behavior, her knack for throwing parties, and her strange ability to be able to be anywhere at the exact moment she was needed without any explanation for how she managed to pull it off. She was not, however, known for her depression.

At the moment, though, there was nothing anypony could do to keep her from leaning over the lifeboat and crying. It was not the crying that most ponies heard from her, full of exaggeration and other generally annoying traits, but the kind of crying one hears when they meet somepony who had just lost something very valuable to them. It was depressing, it was gloomy and worst of all, it was-

"Pathetic!" Trixie covered her ears with star-covered hat to block out the faint sound of Pinkie's sobbing. "Would somepony stop this pathetic showcase of sorrow before Trixie puts her horn down her throat!?" Pinkie had been crying since the ship had split in half, and Trixie was tired of her two-minute "sob fest", as she called it.

Applejack glared over at Trixie, tempted to buck her out of the lifeboat. The other ponies in the lifeboat were also glaring at the blue unicorn, and she simply stared back, ignorant of their ill-will. Applejack finally spoke, and her tone gave her intentions away. "Ah dare ya'll ta say that again, sugarcube." She moved closer to Trixie, and this time she sensed the line she was crossing, and simply turned around and continued to mumble to herself, as she had done since the lifeboat hit the water.

Applejack turned to Pinkie Pie, whose face could not be seen under the long strands of now-straight, now-dull pink hair. She moved over to the moping earth pony, and said, "Pinkie, look. Ah know that your torn up about Dash and all, but so are we. Do you think we didn't love Rainbow Dash too? And what about Rarity? She-"

"She doesn't matter." Pinkie looked up from the side of the lifeboat, and Applejack was frightened by her look. The straightened hair gave Pinkie a look that made her seen as though she would attack Applejack without warning. The farm pony backed up a bit, and tried to continue. Pinkie stopped her with a hoof. The pink mare tilted her head to the side, and asked, "Do you think that Rainbow Dash left me?" She lowered her hoof from Applejack's mouth.

Applejack paused. She didn't know what to say. She knew what Pinkie was like when she looked and acted this way, and the orange mare didn't know whether or not she should say Yes or No, or if it even mattered at all. Pinkie would still think that Applejack was lying if she didn't say what Pinkie wanted to hear, and that always ended badly. So instead, she made a zipping motion with her lips, trying to play with Pinkie, not answer her.

Once again, though, she found this method to be more damaging than she though, and Applejack soon found Pinkie Pie crying her eyes out on her shoulder. The two hugged each other, and Applejack found herself crying over her own love lost. Trixie simply sat there, watching with nonchalance. She yawned, and curled up into a ball on the floor of the lifeboat. None of the three mares were watching the ship anymore, unlike a certain lavender unicorn at a lifeboat that was slowly moving back towards the Titanic.

Twilight stared at the massive piece of the ship as it grew steadily larger as the lifeboat made its way back to said piece. She had warned the navigator of the ship that there were most likely other ponies still left there, and that with their lifeboat being the least occupied one, they should make their way back to the ship. The navigator had agreed, and now Twilight could barely make out the features of the stern. There was a blob on the end that could be a propeller. A small rectangle that could be a bench. A struggling, frantic shape that could have been a pony.

Twilight sat back and let Fluttershy's calm breathing lull her towards sleep. It would be at least 15 minutes before the lifeboat would be near enough to the ship (or what was left of it) to start looking for any still-living passengers. She closed her eyes, and drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

-----------------

The stern of the sip was rapidly closing in with the ocean below, and Rarity was afraid that the shock of the cold would give her a heart attack. She shut her eyes again, and leaned into Jack, who was equally as worried about the sea's temperature. The ocean was only 200 feet from them. 180 feet now...

Jack turned to the cowering mare beside him. "Don't worry," he whispered in her ear. "I won't let you freeze." She looked up at him, and tried to see if he was telling the truth or not. But, like the night they had first met, she could not see a thing. She sighed in defeat, and nodded. 120 feet...

She pressed up against him. "Do you think we can make it to the nearest piece of driftwood if we jump?" At first, Jack looked at Rarity like she had just suggested taking on both the princesses mono e mono. Then he understood what she meant, and nodded. "I think that if we make our way to the right a bit," he said, gesturing towards the nearing life boat. "We’ll survive long enough to get to the lifeboat. If we find a raft.” Only 70 feet...

She nodded, and cautiously stood up on the rails. She felt as though she were defying gravity as she made her way to the right. Jack followed her, and they both felt themselves begin to slide as the rails bean arching down into the water. 50 feet now...

The two glanced at each other and nodded. They took each other’s hooves, and Jack began to count down.

"Okay. 3..."

40 feet.

"2..."

30 feet.

"1!"

The two unicorns jumped.

There was a short rush of chilling wind, and they hit the water. Rarity froze up when she hit, unable to move from the shock of the freezing water. For a moment she thought she was having a heart attack, and she began to sink. Then Jack pulled her up, and she gasped as her head broke the surface of the water. Jack pulled her as he began swimming away from the ship, trying not to stop and let the cold overwhelm him. He swam past bits of scrap wood, testing any piece that was large enough to climb on. Eventually he felt the weight of carrying Rarity start to pull him down as well, and he began to lose hope.

Rarity was trying to move her legs, wanting desperately not to pull Jack down. She forced her eyes open, and by some amazing chance she saw a large plywood board floating nearby. She tried to speak, but she couldn't manage to open her mouth. Instead, she began weakly pushing herself through the water, trying to get Jack to notice the possible raft. Her movements got stronger and stronger as her body adjusted as well as it could to the frigid waters, and eventually she was fighting Jack's movements well enough to be pulling him instead. That, or he's getting weaker, Rarity thought as she felt his weight shift onto her. She paddled the last few feet to the raft, and tried to get Jack onto it. She was too weak, and began slipping under the water when Jack pulled her onto the raft in one swift motion.

Rarity felt what seemed to be a warm blanket envelope her. She looked at Jack, and saw his horn was glowing. He's using every last bit of energy he has... to make sure I'm okay. She tried to speak twice, and on the third try it worked.

"Th-thank you." Her voice sounded like it hadn't been used in days, and she coughed before continuing. "Now you," she said, and took Jack's hoof in hers and began pulling him up onto the platform.

The board dipped. In an instant, Jack was back in the water, pulling himself away from the raft and Rarity. He still held onto her hoof, as if letting go would drop him into the ocean, never to return. He looked up at her, and said in a very clear voice, "The board will only hold one of us."

Rarity understood what he said, but denied that it had any meaning. Again, she tried to pull Jack up onto the platform, and again it dipped under his weight. She tried again, and this time Jack resisted, not letting her pull him up. Looking down at him, she saw he was shaking, and wasn't sure if the blue she saw was his coat or frostbite. His teeth were chattering, and she could see bits of frost appearing on his shirt where the water met the frozen air. Her horn glowed to warm him, but he raised his hoof to stop her. "R-Rarity," he said, his emerald eyes shining out in the cold, blue light. "Don't. It's p-pointless. Th-the w-waters t-to c-cold."

She bit her lip, and again attempted to move him. To her horror, his limbs felt stiff when she moved them, and she knew then that he was freezing to death. Jack stared intently into Rarity's eyes, and they never once broke eye contact. She felt the burn of hot tears on her cheeks in the cold. She whispered, "No, Jack. It isn't pointless. Let me-" He interrupted her, again raising a freezing hoof, this time to her lips. The chill frightened her.

"Rarity, p-please. Y-you know that w-we c-can't both f-float on that. It c-can't support our w-weight t-together. There isn't any other thing out here that I c-can get to, and the l-lifeboats won't make it t-to the ship in t-time," he paused, shuddering, and looked out to the stern, which sank into the sea, following the prow to the bottom of the ocean. Then he turned back to Rarity, and said, "Y-you'll be alright, I p-promise."

"And you?"

Jack winced at the question, and pulled her closer to him. "P-please, d-don't worry about me," The look in her eyes told him that she was not going to take that as an answer. He sighed, and placed a hoof on her cheek. She shuddered at the touch, but he did not move it away. Without avoiding the answer he didn't want to give her, but had to, Jack said, "I have to leave you here, Rarity. I'm sorry." He had stammered once.

She stared down at him, and lowered her head on the raft. Her eyes were looking out into space, and she said nothing for a moment. Then, she opened her mouth, and let out a miserable groan. Jack placed his hoof on her face again, and when it made contact with her cheek she said, "Take me with you."

"No."

"Please."

"No."

Rarity looked over at Jack, and found that their hooves had remained held together throughout their conversation. She tightened her grip, and said, "What if I hold onto your hoof? You won't sink. Why can't you just stay afloat?" She had a hopeful sparkle in her eyes that made her look almost childish.

"B-because I'm going t-to-"

"DON'T!" Rarity suddenly stood up on the raft, making it tilt. She was still holding his hoof, and she had to lay back down to avoid falling off the float. She leaned in closely, and whispered in his ear. "Don't you dare say what I think you're going to say." It was almost a threat to him. Almost.

"Rarity, I am going to die."

She screamed, and began sobbing into the plywood. Jack simply watched her, and he felt like he deserved to die. Then he leaned in and kissed her forehead. The cold pinch of his lips made her look up, and he saw the hurt in her eyes. "Rarity, listen to me." Somehow, he was not shivering anymore. Rarity felt his pulse weakening in her hoof.

Jack lifted her chin up, and spoke to her in a comforting voice. "There is nothing you can do about this. Just know that even after I'm gone, I want you to keep living. Find somepony else. Don't dwell on me. That will only hurt you more."

Rarity tried to interrupt. "Jack..." He stopped her.

"Let me finish. There is no reason you should forget me. I know how much I mean to you, and to me you're the most important mare in the world. Seeing that you're going to be okay made me more relieved than I've ever been, and I'm so happy that you can continue to live and laugh, even if I can't. Every hour we had together, however few there were of them, was perfect. I couldn't have asked for more, and I hate that this has happened more than you do."

He was slipping.

"But there's no reason you shouldn't be happy anymore. I'm one of billions of living beings on this planet, and I can assure you that there is somepony else out there for you. Do not let me keep you from being happy after this. It's okay to mourn, but let there be a time you can open yourself to others. Don't let me be your last. Please."

Rarity was crying again. She gripped his hoof, and kissed it once. Every moment now mattered, and she leaned in to kiss him. Jack stopped her again.

"I'm not done yet. I know you can't imagine it right now, but I can see it in your eyes as we speak. I see a beautiful mare sitting by a fireplace. She's surrounded by young fillies, and she's reading them a bedtime story. There's another pony in the room, a colt, who is watching you with the kindest, most caring eyes. He's watching you read your grandchildren a story, and when you're finished he'll bring them up to their beds and kiss them goodnight. And while he does this, you'll have a moment to yourself, sitting by the fire, to remember me, and remember what I said. And you'll close your eyes, and see my face, and you'll say 'You were right, Jack. I made it.' And no matter what happens in your life from now on, you'll never have to be afraid of how you might turn out, because no matter how badly things go for you, you'll always be alright. Do you know why?"

She shook her head, silent with awe at Jack's words.

"It's because I've seen how you'll turn out."

Now his horn glowed, and a sapphire necklace levitated from under his frozen shirt. He offered it to her, and Rarity took it in one hoof, still holding on to his with the other. With some difficulty, he said, "I want you... to keep this as a... token of my love for you." His breathing was slowing down, and he leaned forward. Rarity met him halfway, and they kissed once more, one last time before he left her, and she ignored the cold, biting pain from his lips. Their tears mixed when they met, and some fell into the sea, others on the raft. They pulled apart, and finally Rarity spoke.

"I love you."

Jack stared into the azure pools, and slowly let go of her hoof. He began to slide down into the ocean, and he whispered back.

"I love you, too."

The necklace slipped over his head, and Jack Hearts disappeared under the surface of the water. Rarity gripped the necklace, feeling an unbearable rush of sadness wash over her as Jack became no longer visible. She curled up on her raft, setting the necklace in the center of it, and cried into the night, letting her sadness overtake her. She let her tears pool around the gem, and soon she felt them soaking against her coat. She realized she was still wearing his dinner jacket. She removed it, and laid it down next to her. Using it as a pillow, she waited for the lifeboat to return, crying herself into a barely-conscious state.

---------------

Twilight was frantic. In the time the lifeboat had spent looking for survivors, they had found almost nothing. Everything around them was either dead or otherwise non-living. The corpses around them had scared Fluttershy into burying her head into Twilight's chest, which for her had been extremely uncomfortable and slightly disturbing. To her, each of the corpses reminded her of either Rarity or Rainbow Dash, and she'd stopped looking for them, unable to stomach the sight.

Fluttershy's experience had been worse. Along with the sight of the ship's remains, she had continuously heard the words of the crew member she had spoken to just before the nightmare had started.

You may have just saved the ship.

She had shut her ears, not wanting to hear the words playing over in her head. But that hadn't helped, and the yellow pegasus had broken down crying after the ship's stern sank into the water. Her whispers of "I'm sorry" had frightened her fellow passengers, and Twilight had been kind enough to comfort her, patting her on the back and stroking her pink mane. There was nothing she could do to help Fluttershy deal with her guilt, though, as Fluttershy had refused to let Twilight know anything about what had happened.

After several minutes of silence, save the sounds of the paddles pushing the boat through the icy water and Fluttershy's sobs, the boatcolt turned, and said, "If you want to have a look, you can still see a part of the ship. Maybe." Several ponies poked their heads over the side of the lifeboat, but Twilight was ready to turn around and head towards the nearest ship to be rescued. She couldn't find Rainbow Dash, and Rarity was nowhere in sight. At the moment, she couldn't care less about Jack's whereabouts. She was ready to curl up against her crying friend and fall asleep (or try to), but was stopped by the sound of the boatcolt crying out.

"I see somepony! There's somepony out there!"

Twilight spun her head in every direction, looking for the pony the boatcolt had said he'd seen. Please oh please let it be one of them. It has to be one of them. At first she could not see anything moving, and she began to believe that the boatcolt had seen a piece of drifting debris make a strange movement. Then she heard the sound of a very familiar voice ring in her ears.

"HELP! HELP! FOR THE LOVE OF CELESTIA, HELP MEEEEEE!"

Twilight almost jumped out of the boat. There, on a random piece of what looked to be plywood, was Rarity. She was ragged, tired-looking, and was clearly freezing to death. Twilight waved and called out to her. "RARITY! IT'S TWILIGHT!"

The white unicorn looked elated, and she began trying to paddle the board closer to the lifeboat. Finally, after several minutes of panicked paddling, from both Rarity and the boatcolt, Rarity was close enough to the ship that she could hop on. The boatcolt helped her onto the lifeboat, and both Twilight and Fluttershy rushed over to hug their friend. Her skin was almost freezing, and it was amazing that she hadn't perished in the sinking.

Rarity described her experience on the ship as it sunk. Fluttershy had to hide behind her mane when Rarity began telling them about Gold and his horrific actions, and she'd hugged Rarity when she began to tear up after describing the things he'd tried to do to her.

"It's okay, Rarity," Fluttershy said, hugging the sobbing mare and stroking her mane, as Twilight had done only minutes before. Fluttershy's own tears had disappeared from her face entirely, and the mare that had been sobbing into the floor of the lifeboat minutes ago had been replaced with one who knew exactly what to do to comfort a friend. When Rarity had calmed down, Fluttershy pulled away and let her continue. The white mare had gone on to explain how she got onto the platform they'd found her on when she stopped suddenly, a tearful expression appearing on her face as she choked on her words. Fluttershy moved forward to comfort her, but Rarity shoved her away, a strange reaction to the kind mare's attempt to help.

Rarity began to sniffle, and brought what appeared to be a jacket to her face, and began to, as Twilight saw it, "take in its scent". At first, Twilight was properly confused with the grief-stricken mare. Then she recognized whose jacket she was smelling.

Realization hit Twilight like a blast of misguided flame from Spike. She trotted over to Rarity, and placed a friendly hoof on Rarity's shaking shoulder. The white unicorn looked up from the jacket, and she saw the sympathy in Twilight's lavender eyes. The purple unicorn hugged her, and Rarity heard her whisper, "I'm so sorry, Rarity." Then she'd lost her grip, and began crying profusely into Twilight's shoulder. Twilight simply nodded, and continued to comfort her, letting her run herself dry of the tears she was shedding.

----------------

Applejack was still holding a shuddering Pinkie Pie when she heard the sound of a ship's fog horns. She looked up from the pink mare's back, and began to look around wildly for any sign of a ship that could help them. Seeing none, she hoped that it was in the areas she couldn't see due to Pinkie's grip, or else she would begin to think she was losing her mind. Even as Pinkie Pie sobbed over her lost lover, Applejack herself thought about her last words with North Star before she'd reluctantly and sadly entered the lifeboats. The exchange had not been happy.

----------------

"What?" Applejack couldn't believe the words she heard. She looked to Rainbow Dash for confirmation that North Star had indeed said what she'd heard. The shocked look on the cyan pegasus' face told her enough to believe it was true. She turned back to North Star, who had on a regretful expression. "What do ya mean, ya have ta stay?"

North Star turned away from the orange mare, and began to fiddle with several knobs. "I was always told that a good captain goes down with his ship. I was also told that I was destined to go down this way. Now my time has come, and instead of fighting, I'm going to sink honorably and calmly with the Titanic." He looked back at Applejack, and was shocked to see her look of sadness gone, replaced by one of rage and disbelief.

"Am ah really that bad?" She took a step forward, and North Star didn't dare move. He began to speak. "Applejack..."

"Don't try an' make me think otherwise! Ah know a colt like yerself would never let die this way when he had a promisin’ lady waitin' for him." She started to choke up, and she stared up at him with unwilling hatred. "A lady who loves him more'n anything in the world." She took another step, and Dash found herself being pushed out of the way by the teary-eyed farmer.

"Now tell me, North Star," she said, pushing her face up close to his, letting their foreheads meet in what she wanted to be a fighting stance. "What makes ya'll think ah ain't got the feelings to care that ya'll're gonna let yerself go down with the ship because'a some dumb ol' story that yer Pa' or whoever told ya when ya'll were a little filly?" She stared straight into his eyes, never fidgeting. He stood still for a few moments, then said, "You could never understand my reasons for this, and for that I must apologize-"

"OH! YA'LL APOLOGIZE!" Rainbow Dash winced. Whenever Applejack began using sarcasm when she was angry, things got ugly real fast. She edged toward the door, but stopped short when AJ said, "Stay here, Dash. Ah might need you yet." She continued to stare angrily at the captain, and began using a fake voice.

"Oh, ah couldn't understand! That explains just about everything! The simple little farm pony is too stupid ta understand the fancy workings of a city pony like you!" She slapped him, and Dash winced. She wished desperately that she could be with Pinkie Pie at the moment, laughing and cuddling together in the lifeboat. But AJ had tricked her into coming along using reverse psychology, and now she was stuck in this mess.

As Applejack continued yelling at North Star, the captain rubbed his cheek, and slowly came closer to Applejack. He put a hoof on her cheek, and she tried to push it away. Before she could, though, North Star had brought her face up to his and kissed her.

Rainbow Dash's eyes widened, and she turned around, not wanting to ruin everything. Every few seconds, though, she peeked behind her to see if the two were done. North Star held Applejack to his lips, and after struggling for several second she gave up, and closed her eyes. The two ponies wrapped their forelegs around each other, and North Star felt tears running down Applejack's cheeks onto his own. He kissed harder, and Applejack was brought onto her flank by the passion in his actions. He loves me, she thought. He really loves me.

She pushed back, and North Star fell into a chair. Just as Applejack began to straddle him, a little cough sounded from the corner of the room. The two earth ponies broke their kiss and turned to a severely traumatized-looking Dash. The cyan mare blushed, and said, "Uh, are you gonna come with us or not? Because as nice as it is to see you two are happy together, I've got my own marefriend to fly back to."

Applejack's face turned beet-red, and she slid off of North Star. She turned to him, and asked, "Ya'll still ain't comin' with us, are yah?" She was looking down at the floor, already knowing what his answer would be. North Star lifted her chin up, and said, "Applejack, my dearest, please understand that I must stay here. I'm going to keep the lights on in the ship for as long as possible, and when they finally go out, then I will try and find you." He gave her a one last kiss, and let her go. He turned back to the control panel, and began configuring the lights again. He turned at the sound of Applejack's voice.

"Ah love ya."

He smiled, and said, "And I love you." Then he tipped his hat, and said, "Farewell, ladies. May the first lifeboat leaving hold the both of you."

Applejack tipped her hat in return, and left without so much as a "C'mon, Dash." The pegasus had caught up with her moments later, and when she asked why Applejack was crying, all she could say was, "Because he loves me."

----------------

After that, Dash had been kind enough to load her onto a lifeboat. The pegasus herself had not, however, and Applejack had not seen her since. She had at first been hopeful that North Star would join the passengers in boarding the lifeboats, but her hope had been shot down when the she'd seen the prow dip under the water. When the ship's lights finally did go out, it was several minutes before the ship itself broke in half. It had been half an hour since the lifeboats had all been sent out. When the lights had still not gone out, Applejack's heart broke.

Now, though, she held in her sadness for Pinkie Pie. The mare was still crying over the loss of Rainbow Dash, and Applejack couldn't help but feel it was somehow her fault. If ah hadn't tricked Dash into comin' with me, she'd be here with Pinkie, not... She could finish her thought. Instead, she clutched Pinkie tighter to her chest, and tried to calm her down. Then she heard the fog horn again.

This time, Applejack pushed Pinkie away and began searching frantically, trying to make sure she was not going mad. Suddenly, Applejack was blinded by the searchlights of a large boat that came into view. She fell backwards, and Pinkie squinted in the bright light cast down on the small lifeboat. The other ponies on the boat cheered, with the exception of Trixie, who simply yelled, "What took them so long?" up at the ship. AJ sat back up, rubbing her head and staring up at the ship before them. Then, slowly but surely, a smile spread across her face.

They were going to make it.

----------------

"...and he gave me his necklace, we kissed one last time, and then..." Rarity felt more tears come to her eyes as she recounted her story to Twilight and Fluttershy, and she choked up before she could continue. The two listening mares each put a hoof on a shoulder, and Rarity stopped herself from breaking down again. "I-I'm sorry," she said, wiping her eyes and smiling. "I really am being over-dramatic about all of this, aren't I?"

Fluttershy shook he head. "No, Rarity. There's nothing wrong with how you're reacting to this. You've lost somepony important to you, and we're here to help you." She nuzzled against Rarity, and the white mare blushed. "Fluttershy, please!"

Twilight watched the two mares, smiling. She turned towards the other lifeboats, and gasped in shock when she saw another ship pulling them up. She'd heard the fog horn, but it had been so distant that she thought it was an illusion. Only now did she realize that illusion were strictly visual. She motioned to the boatcolt, and he began frantically paddling towards the large ship, shouting "Wait! Wait! There's still one out here!" Twilight chuckled at the act, and settled back to wait for the lifeboat to be raised.

---------------

The crew of the Clopathia was in a state of utter panic. Sometime during the night, one of the crew members had come rushing into the captain's chambers, where his wife had also been staying, and had interrupted a very private moment between the captain and said wife. After several smacks upside the face, the officer had delivered the news that the Titanic was sinking, and that it needed their assistance at once. The captain had laughed, stating that the Titanic was "unsinkable", and that the officer had read the message from the ship wrong. When the captain was told the officer had not been sent a message, but seen the ship sinking itself, he demanded to see proof that the ship was indeed going down. What the officer had shown him was unimaginable.

The ship had risen out of the water. It pointed up in an almost vertical angle, before it broke apart and began to sink into the sea. The captain, after a moment of stunned silence, had ordered the immediate change in course to help the surviving passengers. By the time the Clopathia had arrived, the Titanic had already sunk. But the sight of at least a dozen lifeboats gave the crew enough to go after, and they began pulling up the lifeboats.

Now Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Trixie were waiting for their friends (or rather, Pinkie and AJ's friends, and Trixie's lover) to step off any one of the lifeboats that were being hoisted up at the moment. Applejack sighed, and turned to Pinkie Pie with a hopeful smile.

"Hey, maybe Dashie managed ta get onto another lifeboat, huh Pinkie?" She grinned at the moping mare, whose hair was still straight, and whose colors were still dull. The pink pony violently faced Applejack, almost banging their heads together in the process.

"Only I can call her Dashie," she said, and AJ smacked herself mentally for making the small mistake. Pinkie Pie got upset at the smallest of things when she was like this, and it annoyed everypony else constantly to see her this way. The pink pony was in the explosive stage of her depression, and eventually Applejack knew that she would soon begin crying again, cycling through the two stages of her demented gloom. Until then, however, Applejack braced herself for whatever Pinkie could throw at her, and in the case of Pinkie Pie, it could be anything.

"Why wouldn't she board our lifeboat, though? What could she possibly have forgotten that made her go back?" Pinkie was pacing back and forth, angrily pounding her hooves into the ground with each step. She was in hysterics, and Applejack didn't dare to approach her, waiting for her energy to die out instead. As she watched, the deranged mare began counting her hooves, trying to name reasons Rainbow Dash was not with them now.

"Maybe she forgot her favorite Wonderbolt doll or something! No, she didn't bring any of those. Maybe there was something I forgot, and- no, I brought everything I had with me. Then maybe she- no, that doesn't make sense- well, what about- no, she didn't need that- but that only leaves..." She let out a terrified gasp, and began to choke on her tears. "She left because of me!" She broke down crying again. Applejack shook her head, giving up on the mare having any chance of getting any better anytime soon. The earth pony turned to where the lifeboats were being raised, and waited for Twilight and Fluttershy to appear. She was desperate for Fluttershy's help with Pinkie Pie: if anypony could cheer her up, it was Fluttershy. Twilight’s presence would also be a benefit: along with the knowledge that another one of her friends was alright, there would be somepony to keep Trixie occupied.

The blue unicorn, though clearly frightened that her lover had not yet shown up on the Clopathia, had been arguing with Applejack since they'd left the lifeboat. No matter how long Applejack ignored her, there was nothing stopping the unicorn from talking her ear off. Applejack was getting to the point at which she would gladly have swapped places with Rainbow Dash to get away from the nightmare that was Trixie. Nah, scratch that, Applejack thought, thinking through her choice again. Swap Rainbow Dash with Trixie an' ah'll be happy. She nodded to nopony in particular, and was surprised to feel a hoof on her shoulder in response. She jumped and turned, effectively startling the pony who'd put their hoof on Applejack's shoulder.

Trixie pulled away from the startled orange mare, a look of disgust on her face. "Ugghh! Don't do that! You'll get Trixie's mane dirty!" She fluffed her silver mane, tilting her head up in content at the farmer pony. Applejack gritted her teeth, and managed to put her anger into words.

"Why exactly did ya'll startle me, then?"

"Trixie was simply trying to more you out of her way. You have not yet done so, and Trixie demands you do."

"Oh." Applejack said "oh" with a kind of sarcasm Trixie had heard in many of the ponies she'd met in her time. It was the kind of tone that told Trixie when to expect the next buck to the face. But she'd gotten used to threats, and her horn glowed a brilliant blue. With a profoundly calm air around her, the ego-inflated unicorn pushed Applejack out of her way, and trotted over to the railing of the Clopathia. Looking over, she attempted to spot Twilight Sparkle out of the hundreds of ponies that were still in lifeboats. She knew her lover was alright, but until she was standing next to her, she would be taunted by the scratch she felt at that moment in the back of her chest.

Glaring over at the selfish mare, Applejack contemplated bucking Trixie over the edge of the railing. She shook her head and sighed. "They'd probably just rescue her," she told herself, and turned back to the bawling pink mare who was now moping in a corner, pulling her tail and covering her face with her hair.

Applejack was about to try and calm Pinkie down again when she heard Trixie scream. Spinning, Applejack was delighted to see Trixie dancing around the lifeboat docking station. This could only mean that the next lifeboat coming up held the only pony in the world who could keep Trixie from being the self-centered unicorn she was. Applejack heard distant cries of "Trixie!", and she knew Twilight would be the first one off the lifeboat when it was ready to unload.

Once the lifeboat had made its way up the side of the Clopathia, Applejack grinned at the sight of her prediction coming true as Twilight Sparkle bolted out of the lifeboat into the waiting arms of her lover. Trixie fell to the ground, and the string of complaints that came rushing out of her mouth was almost immediately silenced by Twilight as she forced her lips on Trixie's. As the two mares kissed on the floor, the other ponies began climbing off the lifeboat, and Applejack saw Fluttershy waiting for the others to leave. She rushed over to the unloading area, and eagerly awaited Fluttershy's exit. When the yellow pegasus finally did leave the lifeboat, it was with somepony Applejack had thought was long dead.

"Applejack, darling! You're alive!" Rarity rushed into Applejack, wrapping her forelegs around the confused earth pony and drawing her into a hug. Fluttershy smiled at the show of affection, and Applejack, more embarrassed by it, pushed Rarity away. "How- What- When- Yer still alive?" she stammered out, making Rarity laugh. "Of course I'm still alive! I just hugged you, did I not?" She giggled again as she watched Applejack blink slowly several times, trying to take in that the unicorn before her was not a ghost. She turned to Pinkie Pie, who had finally stopped crying, and said, "Pinkie, dear! I'm so glad you're alright! Where's Rainbow Dash?"

The effect was immediate: Pinkie Pie once again burst into tears, curling up into a small pink ball in the corner. Rarity looked confused for a moment. Then she saw the look on Applejack's face, and her eyes widened. She trotted over to Pinkie, and sat down next to her. Her wet mane brushed against Pinkie's, and the pink mare looked up. Rarity smiled sadly, and said, "I lost one too." Then both of the mares were crying, and Pinkie wrapped her forelegs around Rarity, and they hugged each other while tears flowed down their faces.

Applejack turned to Twilight and Trixie, who were standing up from their session together on the floor. "Ah don't suppose Jack made it, did he?" Twilight shook her head, and Applejack looked back over at the two sobbing mares. Well, at least yer not the only one who lost somepony, AJ. She realized what she was thinking, and almost hit herself for thinking that way. How could ya say that about one'a yer friends? That's terrible! Looking at Rarity, crying with Pinkie in the corner, Applejack herself felt like simply trotting over and joining them. Instead, she turned to Fluttershy, and began to make small talk about how she'd survived the sinking. The conversation got boring, though, and they soon fell into a deep silence that reflected throughout the group. Even Rarity and Pinkie stopped crying, and simply laid back against the wall, staring into space for a time.

Eventually, all of the lifeboats were emptied. There was nopony left behind that could be saved, and the Clopathia began to sail away from the final resting place of the RMS Titanic. Rarity got up and trotted out to look at the remains of what was once the Ship of Dreams floating in the water. She raised a hoof to her lips, and blew a kiss out to the wreckage. Goodbye, Jack. I'll miss you. Then she turned away, and didn't look back.

She joined the others as they all sat around in a circle, each holding a cup of hot chocolate that a crew member of the Clopathia had passed to them. She sat down in time to hear the end of Applejack's story regarding North Star.

"...ah knew he loved me. He proved it, too. After he said that, he came up ta me and gave me the biggest kiss ah've ever had. Ah don't know how long we were glued together, but ah guess ah got a little carried away, 'cause suddenly Dash was coughing nervously, tryin' ta warn us she was still there. An' ah had it bad: if Dash hadn’t done that, ah would'a done him then an' there." The orange mare blushed, and sipped her cocoa passively. Then she gained a somber look, and stared into the hot beverage. She finally spoke again, whispering, "Ah can't believe Dash is gone."

Pinkie threw her cocoa away. The others hardly noticed, each in their own reflection on the loss of their rainbow-maned friend. Pinkie looked between each of them, and she began reminiscing aloud. "I remember all of the pranks we'd do. They were always the best, and I think that's when I realized I loved her." She sniffled, and each of her friends looked over at her, remembering the pranks she'd play on them. Pinkie continued, letting a single tear drop off her muzzle. "We had such fun times, making cupcakes together and playing games. And when she finally admitted she felt the same way about me, I was so happy. That first time we kissed, I thought I was gonna spend the rest of my life with her. I miss everything about her. I miss her wings, I miss her rainbow mane, I miss her cute magenta eyes, and I miss how I'd know she was nearby because I could hear her falling towards me."

As she spoke, the others around her found themselves imagining Rainbow Dash this way as well. With her eyes closed, Fluttershy could remember her oldest friends look perfectly. Her magenta eyes, her glossy multicolored mane, the sound of her scream as she fell on top of her... Wait. Fluttershy opened her eyes, and began looking around, trying to find a source for the noise she'd just heard. It had sounded just like a scream, and it was distant, almost as if she'd imagined it.

Fluttershy heard Pinkie Pie talking over the noise, which she could now hear steadily getting louder. "...and I remember her when she'd crash into my room, and I'd pretend I was mad, and then we'd laugh and-" She stopped, sniffling a bit, as the sound of somepony screaming grew louder and louder. Now all of them were looking around, trying to find the source to the screaming. Then Fluttershy looked up.

"Eep!"

She zoomed out of the way as a blue blur rocketed down towards them. Applejack's jaw dropped open as she identified the blur for what it was. "No... it can't be..." The blur zoomed down, and they all could now tell that it was what was giving off the screaming noise. Pinkie's eyes widened, and her hair began to spring back into its usual place when the blue blur slammed into her. The other five mares gathered around Pinkie and simply stared in amazement.

Rainbow Dash got up. She looked between the others, and said, "What? Is there something wrong with my face?" She was suddenly surrounded by them as they all tried to hug her at once, resulting in some form of a group hug. The cyan mare struggled, crushed in the grip of the four mares hugging her. When they finally let go of her, she chuckled. "Yeah, I guess I kinda left you hanging there, huh?" Then she noticed the pink mare underneath her.

Pinkie Pie stared up at her lover, tears forming in her eyes again. To her great surprise, she saw that Rainbow Dash also had tears in her eyes. "Pinkie," she said, and that was all she could manage, because the pink pony had grabbed Dash's face in both hooves, and mashed their lips together. Rainbow Dash took only a moment to act surprised, then pushed into her marefriend, rubbing a hoof on her shoulder. Pinkie's hoof rubbed down to Dash's flank, and Dash pulled away and said, "Not yet, Pinkie. Wait for when we're alone. Then you can have what you want." she giggled, then got up, and pulled Pinkie Pie up with her. The pink mare had returned to her normal self, if she could be called such, and she was grinning madly. She also appeared to be compressing, and when she began to vibrate Rainbow Dash yelled, "Take cover!"

The six mares hit the floor just as Pinkie shot up into the sky, leaving a trail of pink behind her. When she reached the apex of her climb, a large firework seemed to go off as large colorful lights seemed to shoot out of Pinkie. When she fell back down to the ground, she landed gracefully on her hooves, and cheered at the top of her lungs.

"DASHIE'S ALIIIIIIIIIIIIIVVVVVVVVVVEEEEEEEEEE!!! LEEEEEEEEEEET'S PARTY!!!"

She grabbed Rainbow Dash and tried to kiss her and dance with her at the same time. Other passengers stared at the strange spectacle, and Rarity, noticing the strange looks, was quick to intervene. "Pinkie darling, please, we're all excited that Rainbow Dash is alive and well, but I think that we can hold a party for her after we make it back to Ponyville." Pinkie gasped, and said, "Oh my gosh! That's right! Rainbow Dash, what happened to you?" She sat down and pulled out a bucket of popcorn, letting the others know for sure that she was back to her Pinkie Pie self.

Rainbow Dash nodded, and began her story. "Well, it was after Applejack and I came back from our little talk with North Star (I'm sorry he couldn't be here, AJ, really I am), and I put Applejack onto the lifeboat. But instead of getting on, I went to the other side of the ship to look for Rarity and her coltfriend what’s-his-face. Anyway, once I got to where Rarity's room was, I began snooping all over the place. I finally think I'm getting somewhere when this crazy-looking guy comes outta nowhere, and he starts spitting and clawing at me like an animal!"

Rarity gasped. Rainbow Dash had a run-in with Gold? No wonder she was so held back! She listen intently as Dash continued, undisturbed by her gasp.

"This guy's obviously lost it. I tried to help him up to the main deck, but he just starts screaming at me and rambling like crazy. So I grab him by the tuxedo (he had really fancy clothes), and I flew above deck. He was still screaming, and he popped me a good one in the head. I fell about 30 feet with him onto the hard wood floor."

She shivered. "I blacked out, and I don't know what that psycho did while I was out, but when I woke up he was gone. I also noticed that the ship was now tilted about 30 degrees downwards."

"Once I got back on my feet, I started to rush around the ship like crazy, trying to find somepony who could explain a thing to me. But there was nopony, and just as I was getting ready to fly off the ship, a fishing net fell outta nowhere and got me all tangled up. That was when the ship broke in half. And, being the lucky mare I am," she said, not bothering to hide the sarcasm in her voice. "I managed to end up on the front end of the ship. So I went under."

Pinkie gasped. "But how'd you survive, Dashie?"

Rainbow Dash looked annoyed for a moment. Then her expression cleared, and she responded, "How indeed, Pinkie. I managed to disentangle myself from the net, but to avoid drowning I had to climb in a barrel, which I got stuck in for a while, until I was able to fling myself out just in time to see this ship sailing away. I figured, 'Hey, it's worth a shot.' and flew over here as fast as I could with wet wings on a below-zero night. Which is why I fell on you just now, Pinkie." She grinned and blushed, rubbing the back of her head. "Sorry about that."

Pinkie Pie giggled, and said cheerfully, "On, that's no problem, Dashie. It was worth knowing that you're still here to have fun with us!" It was like there had never been any other Pinkie at all.

Dash laughed again, and said, "Aw, you guys didn't really think I'd die that easily, did ya? It's me, remember?" The others rolled their eyes, knowing full well that the big-headed pegasus in front of them was indeed Rainbow Dash. They laughed, and with Dash's story done, they fell into a deep, reflective silence about their time on the ship.

Rainbow Dash thought about Pinkie Pie, who had saved her from falling off the ship before the cruise had even started. If Pinkie hadn't come along at that moment, she probably never would have admitted her feelings towards her, and she'd be unhappy the rest of her life. The Ship of Dreams really had given her the opportunity to live her dream, and he knew that it was a reality now. Rainbow Dash smiled.

Fluttershy thought about the words of the crew members before the iceberg struck. Only now did she realize that it wasn't her fault for warning them too late. The ship had been doomed from the beginning, and she had done her part to help the ponies aboard. That would have to be enough. Fluttershy smiled.

Applejack thought about North Star, the honor-bound captain she'd fallen in love with. He'd left her, his love of the sea too great to separate from it, but Applejack was alright with it. She would find somepony else, somepony who could put her over everything else. Her time with him was brief, but it was the happiest time of her life. Applejack smiled.

Pinkie Pie thought of Rainbow Dash, who'd scared her more than enough times during the past two days. From falling of the ship to not boarding a lifeboat when the ship was sinking, the risks this mare took were enough to give Pinkie a heart attack. But she loved Dash with all of her heart, and she couldn't have asked for anypony better. Pinkie Pie grinned.

Twilight thought about Trixie, the mare whom she had first been a rival with. And yet, after months of traveling alone, the mare had met Twilight again, and they had become lovers in one night. She silently thanked Sethisto for what he'd done for her, and wondered if he was on the ship they were on now or in the waters with the Titanic. The ship had given her what she'd always wanted: somepony to love and be loved by beyond blood. Twilight Sparkle smiled.

And Rarity thought about Jack. The stallion had appeared out of the blue, swept her off her hooves, and left her, though quite without meaning to, in only two days. He had been an amazing pony, and Rarity only wished she'd had time to ask him why he'd kept that mask on during that first night. But she was happy with what she had, and she knew she could find love again. Not like his, but she could find love. Maybe. Gripping onto the jacket he'd left on her and the jewel he'd given to her, Rarity smiled, and looked up at the stars that shone brightly down on the six mares, promising them a light they would be able to see until they were old.

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Oh God! It's Another: Note From the Author.

Well, here we are. We've reached the end of the story, and I've got nothing left to say about it.

Some of you may be disappointed with this chapter, maybe because it's much shorter than you thought it would be, maybe because it doesn't seem dramatic enough to you, I don't know.

Looking back at my words, I think I may have lied. I do still have an epilogue to write for this, and I plan on making it a nice sweet wrap-up to the story. You'll love, I'm sure. If not, well $*@# you.

I've done the best I can with this, so I hope you enjoy. The last bit of this'll be up in a few days, and then I'll be changing the little symbol to complete. Sigh.

Well, that's all I've got to say. So long, folks.

Epilogue: The Days After

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"Twilight!? Twilight, are you in here?" Rarity looked around the Ponyville library for the lavender unicorn who'd asked her to the library that day. She tugged nervously at her scarf, checking in the nearby mirror to see if it had become misaligned with her neck. She had received a letter from Twilight asking her if she would like to come over for tea with herself and their other friends. She'd happily sent her approval of the idea, and had headed over to the library after deciding what she would wear. Now she looked around the room for her bookish friend. To her surprise, it was not Twilight who answered her, but Spike.

"Rarity! So glad you're here! Thought you might not make it." Spike grinned up at her from a fully set table, at which sat five other mares along with the purple dragon. Rarity walked over to the table, and Spike got up to draw her a chair. She accepted it gratefully, and thanked him when he served her tea. Taking it with her magic, she sipped quietly as she tuned in distantly to the conversation already in progress at the table.

"...and as long as everyone's here, I guess we can tell you the news." Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie looked knowingly between each other, and Rarity sighed at the cute gesture between the two mares. Seeing them together after the six had returned to an at-the-time depressed Ponyville had made not only her but the entire town happy, and they'd spent every waking moment together. Pinkie Pie had asked Twilight to enchant a necklace Rainbow Dash had given her so that she'd be able to walk on clouds whenever she wore it. The two had been living together ever since, and the couple had become as well known as Lyra and Bon-Bon were. Now they were truly happy, and it warmed Rarity's heart to see them together.

Pinkie Pie put a hoof to Rainbow Dash's lips. "Not yet, silly! Twilight isn't here! She's still getting the sweets!" The pink mare giggled, and looked anxiously at the kitchen doorway. A moment later, Twilight Sparkle came rushing through the doorway, a plate of sweet-tasting foods floating behind her. She set the plate down in the center of the table, and sat down next to Rarity, who she grinned at and said, "So glad you're here, Rarity! Now, what did Pinkie have to say?" She looked over at the pink pony expectantly.

Spike looked nervously at the hastily put together plate of treats, then at the sweating lavender unicorn next to him. "Twilight, why didn't you let me help you? You look exhausted." His observations, though correct, were immediately shrugged off by Twilight, who simply said, "If it took me almost dying in a shipwreck to realize how much work I gave you all this time, then I deserve this. Besides," she said, looking down at her powdered sugar-covered body, "I think I'm getting the hang of this. Really." She looked back at Spike, who rolled his eyes at her and drank his tea nonchalantly.

Pinkie Pie spoke up again. "Okay, now that Twilight's here, I can tell you all the super good news! I-" A small cough from Rainbow Dash made Pinkie's head turn. Her eyes widened, and she said, "Oh yeah! I promised I'd let Dashie say it! Go ahead, Dashie, tell 'em!" She stared excitedly at the cyan pegasus, awaiting her own announcement more than the others sitting around them.

Rainbow Dash cleared her throat, and looked around the table at her friends. "Well, you guys know how close Pinkie and I got since the ship..." She paused, noticing the uncomfortable looks that Rarity and Applejack gave her. Blushing, she hurriedly continued. "Anyway, we've been going out for a while, and I've never been happier." At the mention of her name, Pinkie nuzzled against her lover, giggling. Dash continued, unfazed. "We really love each other, and we want this to last forever. So, last night, after our usual Friday night dinner..." Now Dash flipped back a lock of her hair that had been covering her neck, and Pinkie did the same, revealing a necklace around each of their necks. Dash's was of a balloon, pink in color and matching Pinkie Pie's cutie mark. Pinkie's did the same, a rainbow-colored lightning bolt adorning her neck.

"..we proposed," Dash finished, and the table went crazy. Applejack hugged Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy let out a mighty "yay". Twilight began pestering Spike about where she kept her books on planning weddings. Spike was, in turn, ignoring her, and was already discussing what he'd wear to the wedding with Rarity, who was trying to talk to the dragon and Pinkie Pie at the same time.

"Now, we have to find something perfect for you." Rarity was already imagining the types of gowns she could make for Ponyville's premiere party pony, and her eyes were sparkling. She turned to Spike, and said, "Of course, you simply have to be their best colt- er dragon," she blushed at her mistake, but Spike shrugged it off. He waved for her to continue, and she did so with great gusto. "I'll make you the perfect ensemble, something to match those fabulous green eyes of yours."

At this, Spike blushed, and once again Rarity giggled at his crush on her. Her thoughts changed again, only briefly, but their message was clear to her, and it made her frown with indecision. Spike didn't notice, still blushing and scratching his head. "Well, I wouldn't say fabulous..." His modesty made her laugh again. She turned back to Rainbow Dash and said, "I know you'll hate to, Rainbow Dash, but you have to come to my boutique at some point to have yourself fitted for the wedding. I-"

She couldn't finish her sentence. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie were lifted into the air by Applejack, who had interrupted Pinkie in the middle of her story about how they'd both decided to propose to the other on the same date. Applejack dragged them with her out the door, an enormous grin on her face. Fluttershy followed them out the door, trying to explain that she couldn't take them out for their bachelorette party at the same time together. This left Twilight, Rarity and Spike at the table. After a minute of silence, Twilight finally spoke.

"Well, like I was trying to explain to Spike-" The sound of a crash outside interrupted her, and she rushed to her door, peeking out to find the source of the noise. Her eyes widened, and she began to leave to fix whatever problem she'd found. Remembering Spike and Rarity, she stopped and turned to the two, smiling apologetically. "I have to help them with this. Spike do you think that you can clean up the table? I think our little get-together is over." She turned to Rarity. "I'm sorry we didn't have that much time. You can stay if you don't mind it just being the three of us." With that, she shut the door.

Of course. Just when you feel uncomfortable around him, you're left alone together. Rarity's smile faded, and she sipped at her tea. She avoided Spike's gaze when she could, and he seemed not to notice. The purple dragon stood up and began collecting plates, and Rarity quickly finished her tea, not wanting to make him wait near her. When he went into the kitchen to set down the dishes, Rarity stood up to leave, and stopped herself before she could. She bit her lip, unsure of whether she should act on her thoughts or not.

Why not? Again the question pushed itself into her head, and Rarity was frozen in place with indecision. In the weeks that followed her return to Ponyville, Rarity had been troubled by Jack's final words to her. She had attempted to find somepony to be with, but each time some part of made her leave before she could ask anypony to dinner. And now, after a month of toying with the necklace he'd left her, she'd brought it with her for some unknown reason to this tea party. She looked up at Spike as he reentered the main room of the library, snapping softly and humming a song while slowly bobbing his head. When he saw that Rarity was still there, he stopped, and stared at her, confused.

"Uh, Rarity?" He waved at her, and when she didn't respond he took a step closer, peering worriedly at her face. "Are you okay?" She finally moved again, realizing that she had been staring at him, and she nodded vigorously.

"Oh! Yes, yes, I'm fine. I just wanted to know..." She hesitated, waiting for an excuse to come to mind. She recalled their earlier conversation, and said, "...when you wanted to stop by to get fitted for your outfit for Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie's wedding. Without warning, her mouth continued moving, completely independent of the rest of her body. "And then I thought that perhaps we could have dinner together."

It took a moment for Rarity to realize what she'd just said. When she did, her face blanched, and she unconsciously moved a hoof to the necklace hiding under her scarf. She blinked several times, staring intensely at Spike. The dragon was staring back at her, his eyes dilating repeatedly, trying to register what he'd just heard. Then he blinked once, and opened his mouth to speak. He said nothing at first, and terrible visions passed through Rarity's head. Then he found his voce, and he said:

"Did you just ask me out?"

He's mocking me. She hated her mind more than anything at the moment. No, he isn't. You're being silly. You've amazed him and yourself by saying what you did. Now answer him nice and slow, and say "No, Spike, it isn't a date.

"Yes."

Thank you for nothing, you stupid brain.

For a second, Spike stared at Rarity, unsure if she was really there. Then he smiled, and she'd never seen him as happy as he was now. "Sure! I'd love to!" He began to leave, and turned suddenly. "When is this happening?" There was a look on his face that told Rarity he still didn't believe she'd just asked him to dinner. Rarity wanted to move toward the door, but instead she stepped closer to him. Again she felt the necklace against her skin, and she realized she'd planned it from the beginning. Sighing, she looked at the skeptical dragon before her, and said, "How does tomorrow sound? From the looks of how Twilight was treating you, it seems you'll have some extra time on your hands." She smiled at Spike, and he grinned happily back at her. She saw no reason to not like him. He'd grown up into a fine young gentledragon in the years she'd known him, and he was so kind to her.

Spike gripped a nearby chair for support, and said, "That sounds great! Just send a note. I'll be sure to get it!" Rarity nodded, and felt the necklace under her scarf again. She pulled it out with her magic, and levitated it in front of her. Spike stared at it, wondering why the unicorn had brought it in front of them. After a moment of what looked to be deep thought, Rarity moved the necklace over to Spike, and said, "I want you to have this. Like you asked. I'm sorry it took so long to remember." She dropped it into his open hand, and he looked down at it with wide eyes. He looked back up, and repeated the words he'd said as a joke the last time they'd had tea together.

"'Just bring me back a sapphire...'"

Rarity giggled at his amazed look, and stepped closer to him. Then, against her better judgment, she leaned over and pecked him on the cheek. Spike froze up, and Rarity saw what looked like steam coming out of his nostrils. She giggled again, and went over to the door. "Well, Spike," she said, turning to him when she reached the door. "I'll see you at my boutique tomorrow. One o'clock, okay?" She winked, and shut the door before he could answer.

Stepping outside, Rarity felt somehow liberated. She looked out at Twilight, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie trying to get Applejack and Rainbow Dash disentangled from some sort of rope bond, and she smiled. She began to walk away from the library, and she looked up at the sky. A pattern of clouds lay across the sky, and she decided it was the perfect time to go for a walk. She began to head towards the nearby park, and thought about what Jack had asked of her.

Please, find somepony else. Be happy without me.

She felt a single tear crawl down her cheek, and she whispered, "I think I'll be fine, Jack. Thank you." Then she continued on her way, a content smile on her face as she made her way along the streets of Ponyville in the warm summer morning.

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Spike watched the door shut behind Rarity, and for a minute he simply stared at the door in amazement. She asked me out. She did. Not me. His grin shrank down to an elated smile, and he turned back to the table. He began to pick up the other dishes, and he thought about the past few months. He'd been left behind while his friends went on a luxurious cruise, which had turned out to be less than relaxing in the end. Then they'd come back, six out of less than half of the passengers, and they'd been bombarded with news reporters. The princess had even visited to see if Twilight was okay. All in all, the past few months had been a blur of excitement for them. For Spike, especially.

Spike stared at the two mares dancing together at the table. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie stared back, and Rarity nervously laughed and made up some excuse for their behavior. Spike didn't hear. He knew who the two had been mocking, and he wondered whether or not to show if he knew. The others joined in on Rarity's charade, and Spike let them think he believed Rarity's alibi.

"I'm sorry, I must have missed something. Who's that supposed to be?" He stepped over a blushing Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash, and began picking up dishes...

Spike walked to the kitchen, and began to wash the dishes, humming as he went. The only sound other than him was the sound of running water from the sink.

Spike was tired of Rarity's conversation. He finished picking up the dirty dishes at the table and went back into the kitchen to clean them. He'd just picked up a tea pot when he heard Rarity's voice drift dreamily in through the doorway.

"Perhaps I could find him. My soul mate..."

He dropped the tea pot on his foot.

Spike washed the dishes, thinking of how busy he'd been. Occasionally, he looked at the necklace, and laughed. Then he returned to the dishes, whistling now as he went.

Spike sat in his room. He held his foot up and inspected the damage. Nothing that couldn't be healed quickly. He was more worried about what he'd heard Rarity say. If she found somepony on the ship, she would certainly forget about him. And as much as he wanted her to be happy, he knew that there would be nopony right for her on the ship. There would only be the snooty Canterlot ponies that had given Spike strange fearful looks when he and Twilight had lived in Canterlot.

Unless...

Spike had an idea. Grinning, he limped over to the desk Twilight had given him, and began a letter.

Dear Princess Celestia,

Hello, it's Spike. You know that favor you say you owe me?

Spike grinned when he went to bed that night. His plan was already detailing itself in his head.

Spike finished the dishes and set them out to dry in the sunlight. Then he left the kitchen and walked over to the stairs. On the way, he picked out a science fiction novel from the large array of books and opened it. He approached the steps and began to read.

Spike walked through the Canterlot archives. Celestia had granted him an access card to it, and that night he'd snuck out and hailed a carriage to the castle. Fortunately, knowing several of the royal guards personally made it easy for him to enter the castle and make his way to the archives.

He grinned as he looked through the books lining the walls. Twilight would've had his head if she knew what he was doing. Finally, after what seemed like hours of looking, he found the book he was looking for. He stared at the title, a mischievous smile on his face. Across the cover of the book lay the title Transmogrification: 404 Spells for the Non-Magical. Spike tucked the book under his arm, and went on his way, picking out whatever other books he needed for his plan.

Spike turned a page in his book, making his way effortlessly up the stairs. He held the book with one hand, and in the other hand Rarity's gift to him was gripped tightly. He twirled it as he went, and he made it to his room without faltering.

Spike sighed in frustration. He'd found the spell he was looking for, but he needed something to manifest it in. He'd looked throughout his room, but was unable to find anything that he wanted to or could use. He kicked at the floor, and looked angrily at his bed. Then it hit him.

Spike walked over to his bed and pushed it out of the way. He punched in the knot of rotten wood behind it, revealing the secret area he kept his hoard in. It was relatively small, but Spike was proud of it nonetheless. He sifted through the gemstones, looking for a very specific one that he knew would be perfect for his plan. After a moment he found it. It was a small sapphire, and it had been the first gem in his hoard. He'd promised himself that he would never eat it, and now he had a reason not to.

He pulled it out and, using a well concentrated drill of fire, melted a hole in the gem. Then he put a small, thin chain he'd brought from his last visit to the Carousel Boutique and threaded it through the gem. It was perfect. He noticed that the chain was melting, and managed to meld it into a sort of casing for the gem. Then he stepped over to the small cauldron in his room.

Three days of reading had given him the potion that would enchant him into any creature he could get DNA from. One accident with Twilight and a trip to the black market later, and he'd gotten everything ready for the mixture sitting in front of him. Raising the newly-made necklace, he dipped it in the cauldron, and waited.

The mixture bubbled, and then began to implode. He felt a tug on the necklace, and suddenly it was absorbing the mixture into it. Spike held on even as the necklace heated up, and he was surprised that Twilight had not woken up. Then it was over, and Spike lifted up the now glowing gemstone. He smiled, and was about to put it on when he recalled the instructions.

"The spell is of limited effect, however. Those hoping for a permanent transformation, keep hoping. After ten uses, the spell becomes obsolete, and the enchanted item will cease to work."

Spike sighed, and after a minute of thought he placed it around his neck. He was enveloped in a purple light, and when it subsided Spike no longer stood there. Instead, a purple unicorn with a bright green mane and tail stood in the center of Spike's room. He lifted his head up, and made his way over to the mirror in the room, his four legs wobbly. He stood in front of the mirror, and smiled. When he spoke, it was with the same soft voice that Twilight Sparkle's #1 assistant was known for.

"Nice."

Spike turned another page of his book. He stood outside the door for a moment, and looked back at the stairs, waiting to see if Twilight would call from below. The lavender unicorn was still helping with whatever mess she'd seen, though, and after a minute Spike turned the door knob and entered his room.

Spike stared into the mirror and concentrated. After a moment of deep focus, the horn atop his head began to glow, and the unicorn's magic glowed brightly. The color of his mane changed, turning darker as he let the spell take effect. His coat began to change after his mane, brightening from its usual purple to a deep shade of blue that the mare he loved was so well recognized for.

The glow faded, and again Spike looked at himself in the mirror. He tested the effect of the spell, and was delighted to see that he was not blue and dark green when he changed back into a dragon. Waiting the minute it took before the enchantment of the necklace wore off, Spike counted how many times he'd put it on. That was three. He had seven left.

The door shut behind him as he walked over to his bed. Spike sat down, and continued to read the novel he'd picked out, all the while keeping a thoughtful smile on his face. After a few minutes of reading, he set the book down on his bedside table and folded his hands on his chest. He thought about Rarity, and what they would do for their date together. He knew she had said just dinner, but perhaps he could convince her to go for a walk in the park. He grinned up at his ceiling, and thought about everything that could have happened to cause this change of heart. He thought about Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, engaged and happily in love. He thought about the Titanic, sunken and now supposedly at the bottom of the sea floor now.

And he thought about the pony Rarity had fallen in love with that she'd told him about whenever he visited her now. He thought about Jack Heart.

Spike looked at himself. He circled the clone, and after a while he nodded. The clone nodded back, and said, "Should I do what you wanted me to do?" Spike nodded, and the clone raised the needle with his magic. Spike turned, and he bit down on his lip when he felt the first big sting on his flank. When the clone was done, a flaming playing card adorned Spike's formerly blank flank. He smiled at it in the mirror, and with a small low of his horn the clone was gone. Then he removed the necklace and waited a minute for his body to change back. That was four.

After a minute of staring up at his ceiling, Spike got up. He looked down at his bed, and thought of what a great gift it had been for his 17th birthday, months after he'd outgrown his little basket. He still kept the basket, and it was now sitting on his desk, filled with sheet music and small scraps of poetry he'd written ("A hopeless romantic," Rarity had called him). He walked to the end of the bed, and began to move it out of the way.

Spike walked down the alley, slightly nervous about his meeting with Shady. Though he'd known him for almost a year, Spike still wasn't sure if he could trust the pony not to try and hurt him. He was his best customer, and Spike had never wronged Shady, but still, you never knew about these underground types. They were wild cards, and Spike was worried about it.

The purple dragon jumped at the sound of a colt's voice at the end of the alley. Spinning, he sighed with relief at the sight of Shady Deal, the most reliable black marketer Spike knew. The colt coughed once, then spoke in an intensely heavy Italian accent.

"Spike, my dragon-brother, have you gotten what I asked for?"

The dragon nodded, and set the bag of gemstones on the ground. Then he kicked it over to Shady, whose horn glowed for a second, inspecting the contents of the bag.

"And my cheese-whiz?"

Spike spoke up this time. "Let me see the ticket first."

Shady looked at him in distaste for a moment, then smiled. "Clever boy," he said, and the ticket floated in front of his face. It glided over to Spike, and the dragon drew out a spray can as it did. He snatched up the ticket at the same moment the can of cheese-whiz was snatched up with him. Shady bowed, and said, "As always, my friend, it's been a pleasure doing business with you." Then he was gone, leaving a grinning Spike holding the golden-colored ticket. Printed on the front were the words RMS Titanic.

Spike punched out the hole that he used to cover up his hoard, and let it fall into the inside of the hidden cavern in the tree trunk. He looked proudly at his small pile of gems and gold coins before turning to a wooden box that sat in the corner of the hidden area. Unlike the rest of his hoard, the box looked incredibly dingy, with small dents in it. He smiled again, and lifted it out of the hollow area. He set it on his bed, and closed the area off again. Then he looked to the box, and twirled the necklace in his hand.

Spike shut the door to the library and locked it with the spare key. He knew that the owl would be able to handle his job. And if not, well, he'd flipped the sign to closed for the week. Then he slipped the necklace on (that made six). Nopony noticed the smartly-dressed unicorn make his way from the library, two suitcases floating on either side of him.

Spike stared thoughtfully at the box in front of him. Then, listening to make sure that Twilight was not in the building yet, he went over to his desk and pulled out a small ornate key from one of the drawers. Then he turned back to the box, and slowly inserted the key into the lock. He felt the bolt inside draw back, and he opened the box.

Spike watched Rarity from afar. She looked as beautiful as she had when he'd first seen her with the dress she wore now on. He straightened the tie he'd managed to learn to tie, and began to walk towards her. Before he could, though, a large crowd of ponies rushed in between himself and the mare he so desperately wanted, and when they had dispersed Rarity was gone. He could see her on her way towards theTitanic, meeting up with Twilight Sparkle and some newspony she was talking to. He sighed, and trotted over to wait for his ticket to be accepted. He sat next to a fancy-looking unicorn with a gorgeous earth pony laid across his back. Soon, he struck up a conversation with the stallion, and learned that he was a friend of Rarity's from when she'd stayed in Canterlot. Suddenly he knew how he would meet her on the ship, and he did his best to appear an enjoyable colt to Fancy Pants as he began to talk about how he'd gotten his ticket for the Titanic. He looked back over at Rarity, who had now been joined by the rest of her friends, and sighed happily as they were lifted up onto the ship.

"Don't worry, my lady. Soon we'll meet, and I will show you how I feel."

Red light reflected off of each facet of each of the hundreds of rubies that made up the shining flames of the mask in the box. Spike looked down at it with as much pride as he had his collection. He lifted the mask out of its compartment and lifted it to his face. Turning to the mirror, he saw Jack Heart looking back at him for a second. He contemplated putting the necklace on one last time. Then he thought of Rarity. Only one left.

He set the mask down in the box, and for a second he considered showing her at the boutique tomorrow. He would put on the necklace, his transformation would shock her, and after some convincing that he was real she would kiss him, and they would fall in love all over again. And when he removed the necklace, when the charade was over, she would love him as Spike, not Jack, and they could live happily together. He gripped the necklace. Maybe...

"Nah."

Spike turned, and set the necklace inside the box, along with the mask. Then he shut it, and placed the box inside the hollow area behind his bed. He couldn't tell her. Not now, anyway. It would ruin everything. When she loved him, Spike, for who he was, then maybe he could show her the truth, and for one final night he could be Jack and she would love him as they had on the Titanic. But he wouldn't do that now. Not when she was only just ready to move on.

Spike looked out from his window, and smiled when he saw the small receding form of Rarity heading back to the Carousel Boutique to prepare for their date. Perhaps she thought of him now. Then he set his bed back in place just in time to hear Twilight slam the library door shut. Her voice echoed from the main room downstairs.

"Spike?"

"Yeah, Twilight?"

"Do you want to go somewhere for lunch? Fluttershy and I were going to go to the cafe."

Spike smiled at the sound of lunch at the cafe. "Sure, Twilight!" he called down, and grabbed his book. Marking the place he'd stopped at, he opened the door to his room, and shut it behind him as he went downstairs to enjoy the day with his friends.

The End

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And now, we give you: One Final, Saddening Note From the Author

I would not have been able to create this if it hadn't been for those of you who gave me the confidence to write the whole of this story. I must thank those who commented especially. I could not have done this without you.

Expect me to keep writing. I have something new I'll be bringing to FIMFiction soon. I'll see all of you (and hopefully more next time) then.

Forever yours,

NotARealPony.com

The Tickets

Titanic: Ponified
A MLP: FIM Fanfiction
Based on James Cameron's Titanic

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Chapter 1: The Tickets

"Twilight? Twilight! Twilight, darling, where are you?" Rarity looked around the Ponyville library for any sign of her violet-hued friend. She had received a letter from Twilight saying that something important had come up, and that she needed to come over 'as soon as convenient'. When Rarity had been about to reply that she was unable to come at the time, another note appeared, bearing the single sentence, 'If inconvenient, please come anyway'. Now Rarity was worried. What could Twilight have possibly needed her for? Was it a fashion emergency? Was Twilight going to a formal event, and needed the help of Ponyville's most talented fashionista?

Rarity was about to find out.

With a loud crash, a purple blur came zooming from the kitchen into the main room. Twilight came to a halt mere inches from Rarity's face, which greatly unsettled her. Twilight looked like a little filly who had gotten every single item he had wished for on Hearth's Warming Day. Her mane was frazzled, and her pupils were mere specks on her wide, violet eyes. With a shudder, Rarity pushed Twilight away, calmly dusting off some non-existing dirt Twilight had flung on her.

Twilight began jumping up and down repeatedly, reminding Rarity of Pinkie Pie whenever she got in a 'partying' mood. Twilight started babbling something hardly intelligible.

"RarityI'msogladyou'rehereyou'llneverguesswhatIjustgotwejusthavetowaitfortheotherstoshowupandIcanfinallytellyou-"

She was abruptly stopped as Rarity calmly put a hoof to her mouth and pulled her back on the ground. She smiled at her. "Now, Twilight, I can hardly stand Pinkie's bouncing and rambling. Please, just sit down and tell me what's going on." She motioned to some chairs, and Twilight nodded, still keeping a large grin on her face. She sat down at the table, and Rarity followed her, moving around piles of upturned books that lay across the ground.

Sitting down at the table, Rarity looked around, taking note of the chaotic state of the library she had entered. Books were strewn about, some overturned, some looking as if they had been read and left on the floor, some with pages falling out. The strangest thing about the books, however, was their subject: every book Rarity could see on the floor had something to do about boats. Books on boating, books on the history of boats, ships' logs, and even a copy of Herman Melhoove's Pony Dick laying on the ground, opened to a picture of the Pequod with scribbles all over it. Twilight herself was ignoring the mess, looking anxiously back and forth between Rarity and the door to the library. Rarity cleared her throat, drawing Twilight's attention.

"So, I suppose Spike isn't awake yet? You seen to have been..." she gestured to the mess around them. "...busy, and he usually does a nice job of keeping things from falling apart in here." She looked back at Twilight, who had gone back to staring at the door.

"Hm? Oh, that." Twilight seemed to take notice of the chaos around her for the first time, and lost interest in it immediately, looking back at the door again. "No, Spike is awake, he's just-"

As if on cue, the purple dragon himself came through the kitchen door, holding a large tea platter in his hands. When he caught sight of the mess, he groaned. "Jeez, Twilight! You tell me to make tea for seven, I assume we're having friends over, it takes about ten minutes to get it all set up, and in that time you somehow manage to trash the library. You do realize that our friends are coming over-" He stopped at the sight of Rarity, and face instantly brightened. "Rarity! How nice to see you!" He seemed to be a different person as he calmly maneuvered over to the table, avoiding the books without looking down once, and placed the tea set down.

Rarity smiled at him. "Hello Spike. Twilight really has your work cut out for you today, doesn't she?"

Spike laughed. "Nah, this isn't that bad! I've had to clean up worse before. I just wish she gave me a heads-up sometimes." He lifted the teapot up. "Would you like a cup?"

Rarity nodded. "Very much, yes." As Spike gratefully served her tea, she could practically see the hearts in his eyes. She stifled a giggle. His little crush can be so adorable sometimes. Rarity had become aware of Spike's feelings for her on his birthday, after he had nearly destroyed Ponyville and gone berserk. It had been the gift that she had(admittedly) conned out of him that had saved him from becoming a greed-filled monster for the rest of his life. In the chaos, Spike had attempted to tell her his feelings, but she had stopped him, for what reason she couldn't remember anymore. She couldn't recall if the tears that she had shed that day were from the fall, as she so claimed later, or from whatever else might have caused them to be shed. She had, thankfully, been able to put the event behind her without having to break his heart. It's silly, really. She thought to herself. The thought of a pony falling in love with a dragon, or vice versa for that matter, is absolutely ridiculous.

She stopped. A pony falling in love with a dragon? Wasn't it the other way? No, she thought, it's neither. Spike is simply infatuated, not in love. I stunned him with my looks, and its messed up his head, the poor boy. She looked at him. He had finished pouring tea, and was now trying to clean up the books that Twilight had thrown about. She sipped her tea, and decided it would be easier to think about her feelings(HIS feelings she corrected) about him(her!) alone. As she set down her cup, one last thought on the matter drifted through her head.

Why not?...

Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. Twilight uncharacteristically shrieked, and zipped to the door faster than Pinkie Pie could have. Opening the door, she was greeted by an equally excited blur of pink that zipped through the opened door and directly into a preoccupied Spike, who was carrying a large pile of books that blocked his vision. Or at least, it had been blocking his vision.

"YAAAAAHHH! PINKIE!" Spike lay on the ground, fuming at the pink earth pony that had caused the mess that now surrounded them. Pinkie Pie giggled at the angry dragon. "Heehee, oops! Sorry, Spike! I was just sooooo excited about what Twilight had to say! She was all 'Oh Pinkie, you need to come over right now!' And I was all 'Okay, Twilight! I am there if you need me!' And then I was on my way and I saw Applejack and Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy and I was soooo excited when they told me that they had gotten a message from you. They all said 'It sounded very important Pinkie' and I said 'YAY! We get to go on an adventure together! And then I-"

Pinkie was silenced by a hoof in her mouth from an annoyed looking Applejack. Her eye twitched slightly. "Sugarcube, why don't we all sit down? Ah'm pretty sure Twilight wants ta tell us her news ASAP." Across the room, Fluttershy, who had walked in after checking to make sure it was safe, nodded in agreement. "Oh, yes, Twilight's letter made it sound very urgent, and I'd hate to keep her wait-" She was interrupted by a rainbow blur that went blazing past her, and she squeaked and hid behind a nearby potted plant. Peeking out, she sighed in relief as the blur that had scared her came to a complete stop next to Pinkie Pie. "Oh, Rainbow, you startled me."

Rainbow Dash turned, looking a little less than apologetic. "Yeah, well, it's kind of hard not to. I mean, it's you." Noticing Applejack's stare, she quickly changed approach. "But, yeah, I'm sorry about that." She turned back toward Pinkie Pie, and pulled her up off the ground. "Come on, ya goofball! Do you want Twilight to tell us what's up, or are you gonna chat it up with Spike all day?" She started to pull a still giggling Pinkie toward the table.

"Of course I want to hear what Twilight has to say, Dashie! That's why we're here!" She zipped to the table, pulling Rainbow Dash with her. She sat down and, eyeing the tea first, began lookin around the table as though something were missing.

Rarity looked up from her cup."Something wrong, dear?"

"YES!!!" Pinkie's sudden outburst caused everyone to look at her. She looked like she was about to have a panic attack. "WHERE ARE THE TEA TREATS? YOU CAN'T HAVE A TEA PARTY WITHOUT TEA TREATS?" She began hyperventilating, and Twilight, who had been knocked back by Pinkie's entrance, was now running towards the kitchen. Everyone else was backing away from the table and Pinkie except Rarity, who simply stared Pinkie down.

Rarity was about to snap when Spike appeared again, with a plate of sweets. Placing them down, Pinkie seemed to deflate and immediately set upon the sweets, seemingly oblivious to the looks of fear on her friends. Spike leaned towards Rarity and whispered in her ear. "I figured Twilight would forget. Made these myself." Rarity didn't break eye contact with Pinkie. "You're my hero," she whispered back. Spike blushed and went back to cleaning the scattered books with a new spring in his step.

The other mares joined Pinkie and Rarity at the table. Twilight's previous hyperactive mood had disappeared, replaced by her regular air of self-control that made Twilight Twilight. She sat down and took a sip of her tea. She waited for Spike, who had finally been able to clean up all of the mess, before she cleared her throat and began.

"Now, I suppose you're wondering why I sent you all that letter." Taking note of the responding nods, she continued. "Well, it's because I have some very good news." She broke out into a wide grin, and, using her magic, floated six slips of paper over to the table from her desk. Each of the slips was gold-colored, and they were imprinted with the name:
RMS Titanic.

The other girls gasped. Spike simply stared. "Twilight..." he looked over at her. "Was that what was in that letter the Princess sent?" Twilight nodded excitedly, then continued before anyone else could comment. "That's right. You're all looking at six first-class tickets to the maiden voyage of the RMS Titanic!"

Rarity looked up at her. "Twilight, how on earth did you get these tickets? They cost a fortune! Even ponies like Hoity Toity can't afford tickets, much less first class! And that's just one! How did you get six?"

Spike coughed. Drawing Rarity's attention, he pointed over to the desk Twilight had gotten the tickets from. "I believe I mentioned I letter from the Princess?"

Twilight nodded. "Spike's right. I got the tickets from the Princess this morning. I was so excited I had to write to you all. I'm sorry if it seemed like I was in trouble, but I was really excited about all of this."

Fluttershy shook her head. "Oh, no need to apologize. I would have been just as excited." The others agreed with her. "If it was me," said Rainbow Dash, picking up one of the tickets, "I would have zoomed straight to all of your homes and gave you each a ticket myself!"

Rarity spoke up again. "You say that Celestia gave you these tickets?" Twilight nodded again, and brought the note over using her magic. She cleared her throat.

To my faithful student, Twilight Sparkle,

These past few weeks, it appears that your studies in friendship have taken a toll on your mind. The reports I'm getting have nothing to do with you in any way, and I am worried that you aren't learning anything anymore. I don't mean to put any stress on you about it, but I believe that you may be working too hard on other subjects. I think that some time off with your friends would be good for you. Which brings me to some exciting news.

As you know, for the last 2 years, thousands of ponies have been working on creating the largest ship in the world. You also have probably heard that the ship, named the RMS Titanic, was finished several week ago. Well, it is with great pleasure that I am able to tell you that its maiden voyage is in a few weeks! It will be sailing from the coast of Manehatten to the faraway reaches of Trottingham, and the voyage has been described as legendary and unforgettable. I myself became intrigued as to when it would set out, and hoped that I could perhaps cruise along on the maiden voyage. Sadly, I am unable to do so, as I am constantly needed by the court of Canterlot. However, I was lucky enough to be gofted with several tickets from the captain of the ship.

Enclosed are said tickets. There should be six, one for you and the other Elements of Harmony, your closest friends. I hope you can enjoy yourself on the cruise, and perhaps you may even be able to write a friendship report while on the ship itself.

Sincerely,

Princess Celestia

Twilight looked up. All of her friends had picked up their own ticket, and Pinkie Pie seemed to already be thinking about the parties on the ship. Spike, however, looked downcast.

"Only six?" His voice sounded small, and it snapped the others out of their trance. Twilight's smile disappeared momentarily, and she lifted the letter up again, and read:

P.S. Sincere apologies, Spike. No matter how hard I tried, I could not acquire a seventh ticket. I will make it up to you someday, so please try not to be depressed. I don't get to go either.

Twilight looked at Spike. "I'm really sorry, Spike. The Princess tried. It's not the end of the world."

Spike sighed and looked up at her, a smile coming back to his face. "Yeah, I guess it's just one of the hangups to being the plus one of the Elements of Harmony." He got up and walked to the kitchen, taking his tea cup and plate with him.

Rarity looked back at Twilight. "How terrible!" She was almost shouting. "How is it that the captain of the ship would be so greedy as to deny the Princess, of all ponies, another ticket for Spike? Who would be so cruel?" She stopped when she saw the look Applejack was giving her. "Sorry ta disappoint, sugarcube," she said in an indifferent tone, "but the captain can't just give away tickets like that. He probably didn't want ta give any free tickets away at all. Six was probably a big dent in profits in his eyes. Ah know how businesses work, no matter what ah may appear." Rarity's unbelieving look disappeard as she realized Applejack was right: someone in the Apple family had to know how to run a business. "Still," she said, "It's only seven tickets! How many ponies do they think could fit on that ship? 'The largest ship in Equestria', remember?" All of them nodded, remembering the first news that the Titanic was under final construction. It had been called the unsinkable ship, larger than any ever created.

Rarity continued. "Even if seven tickets were given away, I would bet my boutique that you could fit at least 2,000 ponies on board that ship! What's seven tickets to 2,000 buyers? That's still turning a profit!" She was surprised to hear a laugh coming from Rainbow Dash. She turned to her, a look of poison in her eyes. "Oh?" she said, "And just what makes my logic so laughable, Rainbow Dash?"

Rainbow stopped laughing. She looked up at the white unicorn across from her. "I'm sorry, Rarity," she snickered, "but you don't know how much it cost to build the ship, did you?" When Rarity shook her head, Dash nodded in understanding. "Well," she said, leaning back in her chair, "counting all the supplies it took to build the ship, the lost materials, the designing team, and a million other things, the cost of the ship turned out to be around..." She paused for dramatic affect. "... 100 million bits." She folded her forelegs on the table. "How you like them apples?"

Rarity was stunned. She didn't give Rainbow Dash the satisfaction of being right, though, and instead turned toward Twilight again. "Even so, the tickets cost a fortune. They must add up to that much!"

Twilight sighed. "They would, if they were all first class. But only 100 first class tickets are being given out for the maiden voyage. That's why they're so expensive in the first place. But that isn't the point." Twilight looked back at Rarity. "Even if we had an extra ticket, I don't think Spike should come."

Rarity looked at her like she was another pony. "What? Why ever not?"

Twilight looked back at the kitchen door, then turned to Rarity. "Spike's just a little kid. Being in the first class section of a five-star cruise ship-"

"Should be a learning experience for him!" Rarity was overreacting, she knew, but she really did find it unfair that Spike couldn't come. "He could learn how to act like a proper gentlecolt, and he won't go through that awful period of being a rude beast again! It-" Now it was Rarity's turn to have a hoof put to her lips. Twilight shook her head. "That's just it, Rarity," she said, moving her hoof away from the unicorn's mouth, "Spike is still learning. Having a little kid like him will get us in trouble eventually. Plus, you were right. He is a dragon. And even if he isn't a fire-spitting, house-burning, gem-stealing monster, he'll be seen that way by the ponies on board. You remember how all of those high class ponies act." Twilight got her answer in the form of a twitch in Rarity's eye as she recalled the fiasco that was the Grand Galloping Gala. The haughty behavior of the ponies present there had ruined the night for Rarity and her six friends, as their being from Ponyville made them laughable heathens to the high class ponies from Canterlot.

Twilight continued. "Spike probably wouldn't be allowed on the ship. They would see him as a fire hazard, or something. I hate it as much as you do, but I think it's best that Spike doesn't come."

Rainbow Dash finally broke the two unicorns' back-and-forth. "I hate to admit it, but I think Twilight's right. Spike probably wouldn't last the night without burning something. There's no point in arguing, no matter how much you want to dance with him under the stars." At this, Dash got up and began dancing on her hind legs with an invisible partner. Pinkie Pie eagerly filled in the positioned, and they began waltzing around the room.

Rarity blushed at Rainbow's accusation. "As much as it may seem," she stated haughtily, "I assure you, I have no feelings for dear Spike. He is a very close friend, and-" But she was cut off by Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie's dance as they stopped right next to her seat. Dash bent back, doing an impression of Rarity as she put a foreleg to her forehead. Her accent was flawless as she spoke. "Oh Spike. How could I have been so blind for so long? You're so perfect."

"Uh, Dash? Pinkie?"

Pinkie spoke in her best baritone voice. "My lady Rarity, I knew it was only a matter of time before you came around."

"Dash! Pinkie!"

'Rarity' wrapped an arm around 'Spike'. "Oh, darling! Kiss me!"

"RAINBOW DASH! PINKIE PIE!"

Both of them dropped the act and looked up at Twilight. She pointed toward the kitchen. Bothgirls blanched when they saw the bewildered face of Spike looking at them in disbelief. He stuttered something unintelligible before Rarity sprang into action. She laughed loudly and said, "Oh Rainbow Dash, that's hilarious! Do you really think that I could pull off something like that? Even if I found someone on the ship, I could never find Mr. Perfect, let alone dance with him under the stars! You mock me!" She wiped a fake tear from her eye, and Fluttershy joined in, giggling quietly to herself. Applejack slapped Dash on the back, and she and Pinkie fell to the floor. Twilight was the only one who wasn't playing along, sitting at her chair, silently sipping her tea and shooting glances between Rarity and Spike.

There was a brief moment of terrifying silence. Rarity's mind was racing. Dash, I swear on Luna's moon, if you've just ruined my friendship with Spike... But the cover played through. With a laugh, Spike headed back to the table. "I'm sorry, I must have missed something. Who was that supposed to be?" He stepped over Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash, who were both blushing madly, and started picking up the empty dishes. Rarity didn't even flinch. "Oh," she said, waving a dismissive hoof, "Pinkie and Rainbow here had this insane notion that I might find my 'special somepony' on the cruise." Spike stopped, his eyes closed, and for a second panic flashed on his face. Then he continued collecting the dishes, snickering. "Well, by the looks of it, they expect you to fall in love with he first pony you meet! That is, unless Dash meant something when she picked her dancing partner." Everyone laughed at his wisecrack except Dash. Even Pinkie was giggling, still laying on top of Rainbow. "Hehe.... dancing partner..." Rainbow Dash pushed Pinkie Pie off of her, then got up and left without saying anything.

Pinkie Pie looked visibly upset. "Dashie, wait!" But Rainbow Dash had already left, leaving her ticket behind as well. Pinkie Pie grabbed Dash's ticket and headed toward the door. "Thanks for the ticket, Twilight! I'll have to give Dashie hers once I talk some sense into her." She waved and closed the door. She poked her head through the front window an dgave them a final message. "Oh, and Spike?" Spike looked up from the table. Pinkie grinned. "It's not your fault." Then she was gone.

The remaining five stared at the door for a minute, before Fluttershy mumbled something to Applejack. She nodded, and turned to the others. "Fluttershy just reminded me, ah have ta get back ta Big Mac and Apple Bloom. Ah need ta finish ma chores before ah do anything else. Ah'll talk ta y'all later, OK?" She got up and left, leaving Fluttershy alone at her side of the table.

At this point, Spike, who had been confused since he'd come back into the room, looked at Twilight. "Did I really insult her that bad?"

Twilight opened her mouth, but it was Fluttershy who answered. "Oh no, Spike. It isn't your fault, just like Pinkie said. Rainbow Dash just doesn't like being the center of a joke. It's an old problem of hers." She sighed and passed Spike her empty tea cup. "But she was right about one thing. The type of ponies there will be perfect for you, Rarity. You could easily find someone suited to your tastes." Spike faltered picking up the tea set.

Rarity glanced at him briefly. She laughed. "Oh please," she said, "I'm certain most of the colts there will be Prince Blueblood all over again if I try anything more than a conversation." Spike left the room. Rarity sighed, letting her guard down. "Of course," she added, "there may be somepony on that ship who could be kind enough. Somepony who feels out of place surrounded by the cream of the crop, even though they've dreamed of it for so long. Perhaps I could find him." Her monologue drifted into a sort of dreamy state as Rarity's eyes fogged over. "My soul mate..."

Her dreams were shattered by the sound of something breaking, followed by a shout of pain from the kitchen. Rarity snapped back into her proper position as Twilight rushed into the kitchen. Fluttershy squeaked again, and flew under the table. Rarity sat alone at the table for several moments. Then Twilight came back out, and, pulling Fluttershy out from under the table, she sat down again. She looked up at Rarity, and said, "He's fine. A teacup fell on his foot. Nothing serious."

Rarity got up from the table. "Well, it's getting late. I think I shall have to retire for the night. Thank you for the tea, Twilight. It was," she waved a hoof, "perfect." She headed toward the door.

Twilight followed her. "We can talk about the cruise later, I'm sure?" she asked.

Rarity turned to her. "Of course," she said. "The five of you are bound to come to the boutique sometime. You'll need dresses for the cruise of course. Can't just go to a party on board in old rags, now can you?" She winked, and Twilight smiled with relief. Rarity turned to Spike, who was walking out of the kitchen with a bandage wrapped around his foot. He was mumbling something incomprehensible to her. "Terribly sorry that you can't come with us on the cruise, Spike." she said. "If only that captain wasn't so stingy with the tickets."

Spike turned to her and shook his head. "Nah, forget it. Someone has to watch the library while Twilight's gone, and I'm the one who actually does the work around here." He started limping up the steps to his bedroom. When he reached the top of the steps, he turned back to her. "Just bring me back a sapphire or something." Then he left.

Rarity chuckled. She turned back to Twilight and Fluttershy, who had gotten up herself. "Well, I suppose I will say good night." And with that, she was gone.

Fluttershy turned to Twilight. "I guess I'll just go then... If you don't mind, of course." Twilight nodded. "I'll see you later, Fluttershy." Fluttershy smiled, then turned and left. Moving towards the stairs, Twilight took one last look at the remaining ticket on her desk. She smiled, then went up to her room to find something to read.

------------

Rarity closed the door to her shop, and went straight up to her bed. She was surprised at how tired she seemed, even though she hadn't been very busy that day. You'll be very busy in the next couple of days, though. Six entire ensemble for a one week five-star cruise. The Gala dresses were hard enough. She dismissed the thoughts of work from her head. All she wanted to think about right now was her large soft bed.

After getting prepared for a good night's sleep, Rarity slipped into bed. As the enchanting spell of sleep claimed her, her last coherent thought was the question that had gnawed at the back of her head the entire time at Twilight's house:

Why not?