"...and that is when we struck. I well remember the shriek it gave as it was torn asunder... along with its final victim, I'm afraid. We assured the townsfolk that they were safe, but they had had quite enough, and fled, abandoning their homes to the Everfree Forest."
"Wait," Applejack objected, "You said they were safe, but that was only four of 'em. I thought you said there were five."
"Quite observant, friend Applejack!" Princess Luna exclaimed cheerfully. "My sister and I were never able to find the final wraith, and it did not strike again before I was banished."
"Huh. And you said they turned ponies inside out?" Applejack tilted her head.
"That is correct," Luna said, nodding her head.
"I wonder if that's related to what happened to Old Man McGee," Applejack mused, tapping her hoof against her chin.
"What a terrible thing to say!" Rarity said. "Just because he disappeared does not mean that he was taken by the wraiths."
"Actually, Rarity, he didn't disappear."
"Pardon, darling, I've lived in Ponyville all my life. I know as well as you do that he disappeared shortly before Fluttershy moved here."
"Um, I'm sorry, but no," Fluttershy said quietly. "He didn't."
"Whatever do you mean?"
"What Fluttershy's sayin' is, we found him. Or what was left of him, anyway. Wasn't very pretty, either. Sayin' he vanished was much nicer than sayin' that we found him with his insides on the wrong side of in. Guess your parents never told you, huh?"
Rarity looked ill. "That's positively ghastly! But it has been a thousand years. Surely the wraith, even if it did escape, would have died by now."
Luna shook her head gravely. "But wraiths do not live or breathe. They need only feed once every five years to sustain their existence. It would not surprise me if the wraith yet haunted this place. Ponyville, after all, is built on the ground where that city once stood, and my sister never mentioned destroying it in my long years of absence."
Rarity shrieked and leaped into Rainbow Dash's hooves a few moments before Pinkie Pie sat up and giggled behind where the unicorn had been sitting.
"That isn't funny!"
"What'd she do?"
"She bit my tail!" she said, drawing another giggle from Pinkie Pie.
"It was only a nibble," the pink pony said before bouncing over the log Rarity had been sitting on. "Good story, though!"
"Oh, it was no story, pink one," Luna said, tilting her head. "It was a warning. I did not think that the tale was widely known, and I thought it might be well for you six to know should anything happen this night."
Rarity's eye twitched. "What?"
"Is it not strange to you that Nightmare Night is a night as any other? It is the anniversary of our battle against the shades, originally intended to commemorate those who were lost, with the dark stories warning ponies of the dangers which at times lurk in these lands. Tell me, how long ago did this McGee perish?"
"Five years ago..." Rarity's eyes widened.
"Then it would be wise for you to be wary of any dark winds you feel this evening." Luna looked off towards the forest. "Perhaps I should patrol the woods to ensure that none wander into the darkness of the trees where the wraith waits. Good evening." The Princess of the Night bowed her head before spreading her wings, taking to the skies.
There was a moment of silence among the circle of friends.
"Well, it's about time for this pony to hit the hay bales. Gonna go round up my sister and go home," Applejack said, rising and stretching.
Twilight nodded in agreement. "I should make sure Spike doesn't eat all his candy tonight, plus I've got some more studying to do. I really think I'm making progress on that spell."
"I should go feed my animals," Fluttershy added.
"And I need to go clean up Sugarcube Corner!"
Seconds later, only Rarity and Rainbow Dash were left. "You can let go of me now, you know," Rainbow Dash said to the unicorn.
"But they all just abandoned us! I simply cannot spend the evening on my own, not after hearing that."
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Why not? Afraid the wraith will get you?" Rainbow Dash let go of Rarity, the unicorn slowly sliding down back to the street.
"I would have nightmares!"
Rainbow Dash sighed and crossed her front legs. "Look, Rarity. It was a good story, but there's no such thing as wraiths, and there's no way somepony got turned inside out in Ponyville—"
Rainbow Dash's words were cut off by the chatter of her teeth as a cold wind blew down the street, ruffling her mane. Rarity, too, wrapped her hooves around herself and trembled, the unicorn looking around fearfully before turning her watery gaze on Rainbow Dash. "Please?"
The pegasus grunted. "Fine. But I'm not sleeping on the couch."
The unicorn clapped her hooves happily, before shivering again. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes again for effect before landing beside the unicorn, who immediately pressed herself up to her friend's side, drawing a look from the pegasus.
"I'm cold," she whimpered.
Rainbow Dash shook her head as the pair strode down the street towards Rarity's boutique.
"Why did I get stuck doing this?" Rainbow Dash grumbled.
"Whatever do you mean, darling? Are you saying you don't enjoy my company?"
Rainbow Dash looked over at Rarity before shaking her head. "Nah. I mean, you're cool and all, I'm just not very good at this stuff. Scoots ran off during our camping trip and I didn't even REALIZE she was scared until she told me."
"Well, I think you and Scootaloo are absolutely adorable together," the unicorn said, rubbing her shoulder up against her friend's. "It is very kind of you to treat her so well."
Rainbow Dash shrugged. "Just seems like the right thing to do, you know? She doesn't really have anyone to look up to, so I thought I'd just be the most awesome role model ever."
Rarity giggled. "So you are."
A loud thump earned another scream from Rarity as she practically tackled the pegasus in the act of clinging to her. A large, dark-cloaked figure stood atop one of the buildings, looking down upon the pair of ponies with glowing eyes, the wind whipping at the ragged edges of the fabric before the whole thing began to fade away, like smoke drifting on the wind.
Rainbow Dash chortled. "That was a pretty slick trick. I wonder how they pulled that off?"
"That was the wraith!" Rarity hissed into Rainbow Dash's ear.
"No such thing," Rainbow Dash said dismissively. "Besides, if it was the wraith, it didn't look THAT scary. I could totally take it."
Rarity continued to cling to the pegasus as she hobbled to the front door of Carousel Boutique. "Come on Rarity, I can barely walk like this."
"I'm sorry," Rarity said, reluctantly letting go and returning her feet to the ground.
The pair paused in front of the front door, looking at each other. "You going to open it?" Rainbow Dash finally asked.
Rarity blinked. "Oh, yes, of course." Rarity's horn glowed as she retrieved a small key from behind her tiara, the unicorn unlocking the door as Rainbow Dash watched.
"So why did you choose that costume anyway?"
"Well, I'm no princess, but sometimes I like to feel like one." Rarity smiled as she strutted inside. "It is too bad you did not want to go as a knight; I think you would have looked quite dashing."
Rainbow Dash puffed out her chest. "What, are you saying my Shadowbolt costume isn't awesome?"
"Oh, it is a wonderful costume, darling; I did make it, after all. But I think it would have been nice to go in matching outfits. It would certainly have been appropriate given the way the evening ended."
"Yeah, yeah," Rainbow Dash said, waving her hoof. "You know, you could have totally gotten Spike to do it, if you wanted."
Rarity laughed sadly. "I could have, but I take enough advantage of the poor dear. In any case, I don't want to encourage him; you know how attached he is to me."
"You mean encourage him any more than you already do."
"Rainbow Dash! You act as if I am some sort of floozy!"
"Well, you sure show off in front of him."
"Humph. If that was the case, I would say that you are flirting with half of Equestria."
Rainbow Dash flicked her tail as she sauntered further into the boutique. "Nah, but I'm sure half of Equestria wishes I was."
"A bit full of yourself, are we?"
"Like you're one to talk. It's a good thing you like stallions, otherwise you'd probably be trying to wrap me around your hoof."
"Oh?" Rarity batted her eyelashes at Rainbow Dash as she walked up to her, her rump swaying as she walked. "And who says I only like stallions? Maybe I like mares too."
Rainbow Dash snickered. "Yeah, sure. Though I guess you—" Rainbow Dash's ears swivelled. "Is Sweetie Belle here?"
Rarity frowned. "She isn't supposed to be. Why?"
"Because..." Rainbow Dash suddenly whirled towards the stairs, launching herself through the air towards them; hoof beats sounded on them, and Rainbow Dash touched off the wall to pursue them upwards. "There's someone here!"
Rainbow Dash was forced to come up short as the door to Rarity's bedroom slammed shut in her face, growling and using her hoof to throw it open before bursting into the room. "Ah-ha!"
Silence greeted her in the darkened room, the curtains to the window wafting gently in the breeze as Rainbow Dash's eyes searched for the intruder. Grinning to herself, she took a few steps forward before pouncing, then yelled as the clotheshorse she assaulted toppled over and fell to the floor.
"Are you alright?" Rarity asked, flicking on the light to the room as she stepped in through the door.
"They were right here! They must have gone out the window!" Rainbow Dash charged over to the window, but looking out into the darkened street, she saw no sign of anypony. The pegasus slammed her hooves against the frame in frustration.
"Who was it?"
"I didn't get a good look at them. They were dressed in black, though."
"You don't think it was the wraith, do you?" Rarity asked, a slight tremor in her voice.
"Come on, Rares. I told you, that was just somepony playing a prank on us outside."
As if answering her words, a chill breeze blew in through the open window, making both ponies shudder from the cold before Rainbow Dash slid it shut.
"You were saying?"
Rainbow Dash shook her head. "So it's cold outside. So what?" She trembled again, rubbing her sides with her hooves.
"It is pretty cold inside, too," Rarity said, pushing the door to her bedroom shut once more with her magic before shivering. Rainbow Dash shook her head and began disrobing, earning a look from Rarity.
"What? You didn't think I was going to sleep in it, did you?"
"No. I simply thought you might have some discretion."
"We don't normally wear clothes, Rarity."
"Yes, but some of us have standards," the unicorn said, lifting her tiara and placing it on her nightstand before slowly pulling off her dress with much wriggling of her body, much to the amusement of Rainbow Dash.
"Doesn't wiggling around like that make it harder to get off?"
Rarity smiled. "Perhaps, but I thought you might enjoy the show."
Rainbow Dash flushed slightly as she walked over to the bed. "Just because I like mares doesn't mean that I eye up all my friends, Rarity."
The unicorn pouted. "Am I not pretty enough?"
"Nah, you're fine." Rainbow Dash waved her hoof casually before crawling into her friend's bed. "I don't need to look at your flank all the time to know that."
Rarity laughed before sliding into bed herself, wiggling her way down under the covers from above to avoid disturbing them before scooting over closer to the pegasus under the sheets. "It is awfully cold in here."
"Probably shouldn't have left your window open before you went out."
"I didn't!"
"The window was open when I got in here." Rainbow Dash said before sitting up and waving her hooves in the air. "Unless you think it was the wraith."
"There is no need to be sarcastic, darling. Besides, you saw that pony up here."
Rainbow Dash tilted her head. "True. They could have opened the window. They didn't look like a pegasus though; I didn't see any wings."
The light in the room abruptly extinguished itself, and less than a second later Rainbow Dash found herself in the very tight grip of her friend.
"It's just the light, Rarity."
"I didn't put it out," the unicorn said, burying her face against her friend's neck.
"So what, you're trapping me in bed instead of fixing it?"
Rarity murmured something quietly, shifting against her friend.
"What was that?"
"I said I was cold."
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Lemme go, I'll go fix it." It took her several seconds to extract herself from her friend's hooves, the pegasus sighing as she walked over to the light switch before flicking it with her hoof. "It went out on its own, huh?" She said, arching an eyebrow back at Rarity.
"It did!"
"Uh huh. I bet you were just trying to get your hooves on me."
The unicorn flushed under the blankets as Rainbow Dash flicked the switch back off. She took several steps back towards the bed before the lights turned themselves back on.
"Come on, Rarity, this is a pretty lame prank," she said, turning around to flick the lights back off again. She stared at the switch for several seconds, and it remained off; the moment she turned her back on the light switch, it flicked back on. "Rarity!"
"It wasn't me!" the unicorn cried from her position beneath the sheets. "Look at my horn!"
Rainbow Dash flicked the lights back off, her eyes flicking between Rarity and the switch. After half a minute of waiting and nothing happening, Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Come on Rarity, this is pretty lame."
The lights flicked on again, and Rainbow Dash could clearly see that Rarity's horn had not glowed one bit.
"Ugh. So who is doing this?" Rainbow Dash peered around the room, but no one answered.
"Come on. If you're going to do something like this, you had better at least pop out of the closet or something and try to scare me." Only silence answered her. "Fine." Rainbow Dash used one of her hind legs to turn the light off again before walking back over to the bed.
The moment she got back underneath the blankets, the lights turned back on. "Oh come on!" The pegasus exclaimed, before rolling over and pushing her face into her pillow. "I sleep in clouds, I can totally sleep with the lights on."
The lights began flickering in response, the click of the light switch announcing each change in illumination.
"Rainbow Dash, this isn't a unicorn," Rarity hissed warningly.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, I can't feel any magic."
Rainbow Dash sighed. "Since when was that your thing, anyway?"
"Humph. Just because I'm a fashion designer does not mean I don't know basic magic."
"Meaning Twilight taught you."
Rarity paused at Rainbow Dash's flat response, then sighed. "Well, yes."
"Ugh!" Rainbow Dash sat up. "This is lame. Will you cut that out?" The lights abruptly stopped flickering. Rainbow Dash sat there for several seconds, watching the room, before sighing and flopping back into her pillow. "Finally." She rolled over to face her friend. "See, Rares? Just some idiot pulling a practical joke."
Rarity, however, was having none of it. Her eyes were wide in shock, and she had a hoof outstretched, pointing over Rainbow Dash's shoulder.
"What is it?" Rainbow Dash shook her head and rolled over, only to have her breath catch in her throat. The apparition was standing not five feet away from the bed, silent as a ghost. It was shaped like a pony, its head hooded, face shrouded in dark cloth, but its eyes blazed with the light of the sun. Wisps of dark fabric flowed around it as it watched the pair, and a chill wind crept over the bed sheets.
With a cry halfway between a scream and a shout, Rainbow Dash launched herself past the wraith, ripping the blankets off the bed to use as an improvised snare. She felt the blankets catch around the thing, a solid mass struggling against them, and without a second thought, gripped the ends of the blanket in her mouth and hooves. Twisting on her hind legs, she hurled the blanket, captive and all, straight at the wall not five feet away. But when it struck, there was no satisfying thud of a body striking a hard surface, only the whoomph of fabric striking the wall, the blankets falling limply to the floor, revealing no space for anything underneath. Rainbow Dash glanced over at Rarity, who lay in her bed for several seconds, paralyzed by fear.
"Okay, that was kind of creepy," Rainbow Dash admitted as she poked at the blankets with her hooves before retrieving them, only to find herself pinned beneath a shaking unicorn.
"Is it gone?"
"Yeah, I think so." Rainbow Dash grunted as she tried to roll out from under her frightened friend, the movement only making Rarity grip her all the more tightly. "Uh, Rarity? You mind letting me up so I can put the blankets back on the bed?"
Rarity seemed reluctant to let go, forcing Rainbow Dash to pry her hooves off of her before throwing the bed sheets roughly over the top of the mattress. After clumsily trying to spread out the blankets for several moments, Rarity's magic finally caught hold of them, stretching them out over the bed and earning an exasperated look from Rainbow Dash. "What is with you today, anyway?"
Rarity swallowed. "I am merely a bit shaken, that's all."
Rainbow Dash sighed and flopped back on the bed. "Well, whoever it is who is pulling this prank, they're good. I'd almost think they were the wraith, with that last trick."
"Are you really so certain that it isn't?"
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Look, Rares. If it was the wraith, I'd expect it to do better than just try and scare us."
"I suppose you're right," Rarity said, before striding over to the bed, only to jump onto it with a shriek, burying herself beneath the blankets and wrapping all four of her legs around Rainbow Dash.
"What now?"
"Something grabbed my hoof!"
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Seriously? You're scared of a monster under your bed?"
"But it is there!"
Rainbow Dash tried to put her hoof over her face, but couldn't. "Rarity, I can't even move my hooves with you clinging to me like this. If you really want me to check, you're gonna have to let go."
The unicorn reluctantly relaxed her grip on the pegasus, allowing Rainbow Dash to roll over and stick her head down over the side of the bed, only to be met by a blast of cold air directly in her face. "Gah!" The pegasus said, jerking her head up abruptly.
"Did you see it?"
"Yeah, it's down there." Rainbow Dash glanced back at Rarity, who had resumed clinging to her back. "Look, Rarity, there's no way this is scarier than Discord or the changelings. All we have to do is corner it and we can grab it."
"But—"
"Come on!" Rainbow Dash pounded her hoof against the bed. "I go on this side, you go on that side, we'll take it together. Okay?"
Rarity nodded reluctantly, slowly letting go of her friend before sliding over to the far side of the bed.
"On three, got it?" Rainbow Dash nodded to Rarity, who hesitated for a moment before returning it. "Alright. One... Two... Three!"
The ponies crashed down to the floor on both sides of the bed, but the only thing Rainbow Dash could see underneath was Rarity's pale face peering out from the other side.
"Ugh!" Rainbow Dash pounded her hooves against the floor. "Gone again! Where did it go?" She took to the air, scanning the room before swiftly flying over to the closet. Putting a hoof to her snout, she motioned at Rarity to be quiet, before flinging open the door... revealing nothing.
"Dang it!" The pegasus slammed the closet door shut, only to be struck by a powerful blast of cold wind, hurling her back across the room onto the bed as the wraith appeared once more. Rarity shrieked, and Rainbow Dash joined in on the yelling before grabbing the closest thing at hand and hurling it violently at the monster. The creature vanished once more in a small cloud of purple sparks, leaving the lamp to shatter on the wall.
"Rainbow Dash!" Rarity said, her voice stern. "That was a—"
"Hey! You wanted me to protect you, I'm protecting you! Do you want the wraith to eat you?"
Rarity bit her lip for a moment before shaking her head.
"Alright." Rainbow Dash patted the bed beside her, and a moment later Rarity was there, burrowing herself under the blankets, only to be joined a few seconds later by Rainbow Dash.
"Are you really just going back to bed?" Rarity whispered.
"Well, yeah. I mean, it's obviously waiting for us to fall asleep. I figure we wait for a few minutes, then surprise it."
Rarity snuggled up with her friend under the sheets, wrapping her hooves around Rainbow Dash, tucking her head up under the pegasus's chin, her horn brushing against her cheek. After a few moments, Rainbow Dash let her front hooves rest on Rarity's shoulders.
"You're really scared of this thing, huh?"
Rarity nodded her head quietly as Rainbow Dash patted her on the back, chuckling quietly.
"And here I thought that Fluttershy was the only one who was scared of ghosts."
"I seem to recall you being rather frightened as well when Nightmare Moon used that spell on the trees."
Rainbow Dash coughed, clearing her throat. "I was just startled, that's all."
"Mmmhmm." The unicorn snuggled up closer to the pegasus, the warmth of her body seeping into her friend's stomach.
"Uh, Rarity?" Rainbow Dash asked, blushing.
"What is it, darling?"
"Could you get your hoof off my cutie mark?"
It was Rarity's turn for her face to flush as she slid her hoof further up her friend's side. "Sorry."
"No problem."
A loud thump from downstairs announced the return of the wraith, and Rainbow Dash found herself with the unicorn squeezing the air out of her lungs, forcing her to push her friend away.
"Jeez, it's not even in the same room this time."
Rarity pouted at the push, but her eyes flickered to the door. "Should we go look?"
A loud crash from downstairs made Rarity wince. "Unless you want it to wreck your store. Come on." The pegasus flew out from under the covers, hovering in midair. "And be quiet," she whispered.
Rarity nodded slowly as she slid her hooves back down onto the floor, creeping slowly towards the door before grasping it with her magic and slowly swinging it open. Another chill blast of air assaulted the pair as the wraith stood in the doorway, eyes still burning.
"Get it!" Rainbow Dash shouted, launching herself at the creature, which quickly fled downstairs ahead of the charging pegasus. Rainbow Dash was fast, but in such tight quarters it was hard to maneuver, and she was practically galloping along the wall as she burst out into the first floor, hot on the heels of the wraith. "I've got you!" She cried triumphantly as she throw herself down on it, only to meet the floor.
"Dang it, where did you go?" Rainbow Dash whirled around, only to be answered by a scream from upstairs. "Rarity?"
"It got me!" Rarity shrieked. "Oh no, whatever will I do?"
"I'm coming Rarity!" Rainbow Dash climbed back up the stairs as fast as she could, her hooves thumping against the wood as before she finally took to the air at the top, launching herself into the bedroom.
A cold wind blew in through the open window as Rarity shrieked and beat her hooves against the floor, dark tendrils wrapped around her legs. Her tear-filled eyes fell on Rainbow Dash, as she reached out with her hooves towards her, rolling over onto her back to try and kick futilely at the dark mass which held her. "Save me!"
"On it!" Rainbow Dash zipped over to her friend, wrapping one hoof around her shoulders, the other behind her hind legs as she pulled her up away from the monster, a loud ripping sound announcing her freedom as bits of the monster floated away on the breeze. The thing on the floor had no face, little more than an amorphous mass of ragged shadow covering a good chunk of the floor.
"We have to get out of here!" Rarity shouted to Rainbow Dash, wrapping her hooves around the pegasus.
"No Rarity, there's only one way to beat this thing!"
Rarity's eyes widened as Rainbow Dash leaned in close to her face, her hooves trembling and slipping from Rainbow Dash's shoulders. The pegasus could feel the warmth of the unicorn's breath as she started to lean upwards... only to be hurled away with a shriek as Rainbow Dash shouted "Catch!" at the monster.
Part of the blob turned instinctively towards the pegasus before it was crushed under the unicorn, three loud shouts of pain coming from Rarity and the blob of dark, writhing fabric suddenly revealed as Rainbow Dash flew over to turn on the lights.
"Rainbow Dash! How could you?" Rarity looked at the pegasus, tears in her eyes. "I could have been killed." Her lip trembled.
"Seriously?" Rainbow Dash shook her head. "I saw it coming a mile away."
The wraith shifted and writhed underneath the fabric before a head emerged. "How did you know it was us?" Applejack asked.
Rarity gasped and backed away from the sudden appearance of Applejack's face, only to trip backwards over Pinkie Pie's back as the pink pony wiggled out from under the costume. "You?"
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Come on, Rarity. I know you were in on it too."
"Moi? I have never been more terrified in my life!" Rarity replied indignantly, setting her shoulders as she stood tall and proud.
"Come on, your acting was almost as bad as the time Applejack got caught by the Timber Wolf."
Rarity sighed, drooping her head while the other two ponies rubbed their manes awkwardly.
"So where's Twilight?"
"Here," the pony announced from the doorway, still in costume, though her eyes no longer burned beneath the mask.
"That was pretty slick, with the teleporting. I didn't realize you were that good at it."
"Well, I have been practicing," the pony admitted, pushing up her mask to smile ruefully at her friend.
"So is Luna here too?" Rainbow Dash turned her head around to scan the room.
"Nah, she went back to the castle after scarin' y'all outside."
"Scaring? More like boring. If Rarity hadn't pinned me down, I would have grabbed her before she got away."
The ponies in the room all chuckled.
"Where's Fluttershy?"
"I'm here," the pegasus called softly from the window, waving inside.
"Alright, so let me guess. Twilight was running around inside trying to scare us while the rest of you waited up on the roof. Pinkie ran string down through the wall to change the light switch without using magic. When I chased Twilight downstairs at the end, Fluttershy let the rest of you in through the window?"
"Actually, I let them in through the window, darling." Rarity said with a smile. "Fluttershy was downstairs making the noise."
Rainbow Dash chuckled. "Way to go, Fluttershy." The shy pegasus brightened at the compliment. "But wait, if you all were doing that, who was hiding in Rarity's dresser?"
"What?" The others looked at her strangely.
"I totally saw the wraith over inside that big cabinet on top of it when I was looking around the room."
The others exchanged glances before Rarity strode over to her dresser, swinging it open with her magic. "What do you mean, darling? There's nothing-" Rarity shrieked before lashing out with one of her hind legs, Rainbow Dash narrowly dodging the kick and pulling her hoof away from her friend's back where she had placed it.
"Hah! I totally got you."
"Humph!" Rarity tossed her mane. "So what gave us away?"
"Uh, duh?" Rainbow Dash shook her head. "You're Rarity. You weren't scared of Discord or the changelings, and your first thought when we saw that manticore was to kick it in the face. Did you really think I wouldn't notice that you suddenly turned into Fluttershy?"
The other pegasus's head fell.
"Seriously, what the hay? Why didn't you do this at Fluttershy's house?"
"It was my idea, darling." Rarity said, tilting her head forward. "I made the costumes and asked Luna to tell that ghastly story so as to have an excuse to invite you to my home for the evening."
"You could have just asked," Rainbow Dash said, quirking an eyebrow.
"Well... yes, but that would have defeated the entire point." Rarity took a deep breath before letting it out slowly. "I was hoping that it might inspire you to be more gallant."
Rainbow Dash stared at her friend for a moment before letting out a sharp laugh. "What, you were hoping that if I saved you, I'd ask you out? If that's how it worked, wouldn't I be dating Fluttershy?"
Fluttershy blushed. "Actually, I like—"
"I know, that's not the point." Rainbow Dash waved her hoof. "Why didn't you just ask me?"
Rarity stamped her hoof on the floor. "Because I'm a lady."
"I'm a mare too, last I checked."
"I think what she means is, she wanted you to be the one to ask her out," Twilight said, stepping forward. Rarity sighed and nodded in affirmation.
"No wonder you wanted me to dress up as a knight," Rainbow Dash said, before chuckling. "I didn't know you were into that sort of thing, Rares."
Rarity blushed. "I didn't mean it like that. I just thought it would be cute."
"So what was your plan? That I'd sweep you off your hooves and carry you home, so I could drop you through the floor?"
"Actually, darling, I learned the cloud walking spell from Twilight."
"I see." Rainbow Dash smirked, leaning forward. "No wonder you were getting fresh earlier, you were hoping for me to drag you off and take care of you."
Rarity squeaked. "That was an accident! I didn't mean to!"
"Uh huh." Rainbow Dash grinned. "Alright, I get it now." The pegasus began advancing on her friend, flaring her wings as she slowly herded Rarity back towards the bed, licking her lips. "You know, that wraith might not be real, but wraiths aren't the only thing that eats ponies."
"Um..." Rarity looked askance towards her friends, her face crimson. "Help?"
Applejack coughed. "You know, I really should be gettin' on home, Apple Bloom is probably wonderin' what happened to her big sis."
"And I really do need to go feed my animals," Fluttershy put in quietly.
"Spike probably IS eating all of his candy at once because I'm not back at the library yet."
The others looked at Pinkie Pie, who looked back at them for several moments before catching on. "Ooooh! I see!" She put her hoof to her chin, her eyes staring blankly up at the ceiling. "Oh, I know! I totally have to go make a sign for the 'Rainbow Dash finally smooched Rarity' party I'm throwing tomorrow!"
Rarity yelped as Rainbow Dash pushed her back onto the bed. "I'm not acting this time! I really mean it! Please, help?"
The other four ponies avoided Rarity's gaze as they turned to leave, Fluttershy flitting away from the window while the others began making their way back downstairs as Rarity's voice rose in protest. Rainbow Dash slowly climbed up onto the bed, a predatory grin on her face as her wings spread wide to block the unicorn's escape.
"Um, happy Nightmare Night?" Rarity said weakly, before the pegasus pounced.
