I took a deep breath as the image before me faded to black, once again showing my reflection. It pained me to admit, but seeing Vinyl and I as foals again brought a tear to my, if only because it was the very first time I felt the warmth of goodwill and genuine gratitude. A small, delicate ember that my deadening soul and lonesome heart had sought out all of this time, igniting something within me that I haven’t felt before. Hope. I may have helped her that day, but in reality, it was she who saved me. A fact that I failed to acknowledge at the time.

“Hmph. You seem to be thinking that you’ve done a good deed, Severin.” Samael’s deep and terrible voice echoed, sending a chill down my spine.

“Was it not?!” I responded curtly, and with a balled fist, despite knowing there was nothing I could do against him. My sternum ached, remembering all too well what happened not moments before the viewing, as if to remind me what I was dealing with here, “She was being attacked for Luna’s sake! I jumped in to defend her!”

Samael let out a mocking and demoralizing laugh, as if I just missed something that was supposed to be painfully obvious, “Was it truly for her sake that you fought them? Or was it for your own satisfaction? I saw something burning within your eyes as you charged at them.”

“He was angry, Samael,” Alya countered, “There is such a thing as righteous anger, which should hold no bearing against him, as I truly believe is the case here.”

“Normally, that is true,” he responded. He held out his old, cracked, skeletal hand towards the mirror, “But look closer, and tell me if you still believe in that.”

The mirror formed the image, once again showing the three bullies surrounding Vinyl and taunting her, while simultaneously showed me, and the expressions I showed as her undeserved torment befell her. At first, I was shown to be indifferent about it, until I saw her eyes were welling with tears. My eyes narrowed as my face formed my all too familiar frown when that happened. However, when I saw them dump her food on her, my eyes widened in shock, not expecting them to take their torment that far. When Hoops finally hit her, my pupils constricted, my nostrils flared, and I let out an unnatural hiss as I charged at the assailants. That's when Samael stopped the image.

"As you can see, this isn't righteous anger we're looking at. This is pure, unadulterated hatred seething within him." Samael pointed out with absolute certainty. There wasn't even a hint of doubt to be found as he delivered that bold statement. Even though I couldn't see his face, I could feel him smirking victoriously, almost mockingly at me.

His unholy crimson eyes bored into my very soul, almost reading my thoughts as any counter I had to give withered away from my mind, being replaced if the ugly, cold sting of guilt. After all...he was absolutely right. Even Alya had nothing to offer in my defense. If even she couldn't find anything to defend me with, then what was I to do?

As if he wanted to add insult to injury, he continued the image, and what I saw shook me to the core. At the moment I broke Hoops' muzzle, the image once again gauged my expression. Upon feeling and hearing the sickening crack from the impact, the corner of my lip curled to a smirk. When he fell to the floor and writhed in agony, I stood over him for a moment. My eyes lost their spark, becoming nothing more than a mirrorless sheen of what they once were, and a pleased, yet menacing ear-to-ear grin had spread across my face the more he cried and rolled around like a hapless animal.

Then it showed me turn to the others and lifted my hands in a defensive manner to the other two bullies, then the image stopped once again, "You took a twisted pleasure in watching that colt writhe in agony by your hand!"

"No...I-I didn't...!" I argued weakly

"Oh?! Need I keep going then?!" He roared, "Has it ever occurred to you why the other two ran away from you in fear?! Do you honestly think it was simply because you had knocked out Hoops so quickly?! LOOK AGAIN!"

The image continued once more, but this time, it only showed me. It only showed how my menacing smile widened, and my pupils once again constricted. The most terrifying part, however, wasn't my smile or my pupils. It was how my eyes seem to have been disconnected from reality, how the longer they looked into them, the more they realized that I wanted nothing more than to hurt them in the worst of ways, like they've done to me, and others for so long. It was the fact that I had finally snapped, and Tartarus was coming with me.

Then it became clear to me. The reason I was trembling wasn't because I was scared or nervous, but rather because I was enjoying the anticipation of the coming bloodshed at that point. Then my warning came to leave her alone. It took then a moment to react because they were too afraid of what they saw within me to make any sudden moves.

"What say you now? Do you still deny that you took pleasure in your actions?"

"...No. I don't." I respond, "I enjoyed every minute of it. However, you too, are missing something, Samael."

"Choose your next words very carefully. They bear more weight here than you realize."

"No, Severin is right. I was hoping he could see what I've known from the start, and he did." Alya intervened, "While what you say is true, that he did enjoy putting those three in their places, I can also see that it wasn't the act of violence itself that motivated or pleased him. It was the fact that he finally stood up to his tormentors, and emerged victorious. Surely there is no fault for self defense."

"Self defense?!" Samael scoffed, "He was not the one being attacked! His friend was! If you're implying that getting involved in an affair that didn't concern him will somehow absolve what was welling within his heart, then you're sorely mistaken!"

"Am I?" Alya challenged, "While I agree that Severin wasn't the one they targeted, he was also the one who protected a defenseless filly, who desperately needed it at the time. Not just her, but *all* of the young foals were in desperate need of a champion, and he took up that mantle."

"Preposterous!" Samael roared, "There will always be need for a champion for any cause their simple minds can think of! Mortals always justify their actions, no matter how extreme under the guise of justice', 'honor', and other ideals that will ultimately mean nothing in the very end! In the end, 'evil', is nothing more than a point of view!"

"Yet here you are deeming Severin's actions as such!" Alya countered, "If you truly believed that, then you wouldn't be trying so hard to condemn him!"

"He is an exception! That wayward soul is dangerous! If he were to have a little 'blackout' like before, he could throw everything to chaos!"

"And caging him in Tartarus would be so much better?! That would only guarantee his and our downfall! If the way you guarded Tirek is any indication, then I fear the day Severin would escape!"

"Coddling him would prove just as disastrous! He needs to be held accountable for his actions, just like all the others before him!"

"His actions, Samael? Or someone else's?"

Samael chuckles, "I'm afraid that argument won't benefit you as much as you think it will. You shall soon see. The both of you will." He once again makes a strange motion with his deathly hand, causing the mirror to ripple, "For now, I shall hold my tongue. At least until I take Severin in."

My eyes remain on the mirror. Although I remain motionless, I can't help but notice my heart palpitating as I fell a wave of fear and dread welling within my chest, leaving me utterly breathless. A strange concept that. I'm dead, yet I can still draw breath in this otherwordly plane, and still feel the beat of my heart, however faint it was only moments ago. Before I could think further on the matter, the mirror formed into another scene of my life, and I was taken aback from what was revealed to me. "No...not this. Anything but this..."

Samael cackled, seemingly taking delight from my dismay, and simply said, "Watch on."

I had long since buried this memory as best as I could, so that I could forget the hell that it wrought upon my frail mind and body. It was the beginning of a downward spiral that I desperately tried to get out of, but failed so miserably at. It was the first time I saw how cruel the world could truly be to helpless and vulnerable foals.

"Severin..." Alya called, "...are those...?"

"...My foster parents..."

Author's Note

I deepest apologies for taking so long to update this story. I'm just getting back in the groove for writing, and hopefully I can keep it up. If there are any errors i missed, please point them out to me and I will correct them as soon as possible. Thank you so much for reading!