When the Circus Came to Town

Ponies from the cult sat around one end of the fire, Dawn played the music. This time it wasn't her barrel organ, but it was kettle drums they had set up. I couldn't see anypony on the other side, the flames were too bright for me to make out shapes and too tall for me to see over.

Dumm Dumm Dumm Dumm.

She played them steadily in a calming, yet serious manner. All the ponies about to be brought into the group stood on the side opposite the ones that were already a part of it. I stood in the horizontal line with the new ones. Greytail spoke in a voice of authority.

"Do you swear to uphold the word of the Laughing Mare and the six prophets without question or doubt?"

Dawn explained what Greytail would be saying as we walked there. The Laughing mare was their diety, and the prophets were the ones that claimed a connection to the Laughing Mare, although everypony in the cult knew that only Cranky, the highest of the prophets, could communicate with the Laughing Mare.

A single voice echoed through the town, the conglomerate of the nine new mares and stallions, phillies and colts that were to bolster the ranks of the cult. "Yes."

"Do you swear to protect your fellow cultists?"
"yes."

"Do you swear to smile and have fun?"

A decent amount of laughter rumbled from the town center. We replied once it subsided.

"Yes."

I would have said yes to anything at that moment, I was too happy not to. The thought of my new family, of happiness.
"Then step forth."

I was in a trance from the drum, my actions weren't my own. I looked at the end of the line of initiates opposite me, a mare four years older than myself stepped up and walked through the blaze, to the other side, out of my sight. Then the next, and the next, and the next. Everypony in the line advanced through the fire, until it came to me. My mind was too far gone, I couldn't have resisted my legs if I wanted to. I got closer to the fire, it got unbearably hot. I entered the flame, my senses were numbed by Dawn's melody. I didn't feel pain, I didn't know that my fur was getting singed. The fire was soon behind me and my new family stood in front of me, Greytail himself patting my back.

"Go, make your addition to the carousel."

I looked to the side and saw the other ponies that walked through the fire. They were all dressed like members of the cult, colors everywhere, paint marking their once bland faces. Each one wrapped a rope around the neck of a corpse and pulled it up to the carousel's rotting wood. Eight were hanging from the slowly spinning structure, one hook remained for me to make my addition. I walked to the pile of corpses to make my selection, rope in mouth. I looked, my old teacher, one or two of the meat-heads from school, somepony I vaguely remembered, my father. My choice was clear, I dragged the stallion's body from the pile and wrapped the rope around his neck. I threw the rope over the hook and lifted the body to the same level as all the others, tying the rope and securing it in place. A smile formed along the faces of the dead, hanging ponies after the last one was put in place.

I smiled back.

The drums stopped after I stepped through the flame and I didn't notice, not until now. I felt hooves on my shoulders. I looked to my left, Lily stood there, looking at me with pride, I looked right, Dawn stood there with the same look on her face.
So there I stood, looking at the slowly spinning carousel with my family.

Life couldn't have been better.