Nightshade

Chapters

Part One: Nightshade
Part Two: Sinister Shadows
Part Three: A Taste of Normalcy
Part Four: Truth Unveiled
Part Five: Denial
Part Six: Guilt
Part Seven: Anger
Part Nine: Act of Kindness
Part Eight: Memory
Part Ten (Final): The Attributes of a Flower

Part One: Nightshade

"It's a girl!" The doctor's

voice resounded clearly through the delivery room.

The young father, a unicorn stallion, stood next to his wife's bedside holding her hoof.

"Did you hear that dear? It's a girl! Why, she looks almost as beautiful as you," he remarked, grinning from ear to ear as the nurses took the foal to be cleaned up.

"That's wonderful sweetie," the mare managed between deep breaths, still winded from delivery. "Whose side does she take after?"

"She's a unicorn like her dashing young father," he responded with pride, leaning in to kiss his wife on the forehead.

"Great, counting you I'll now have two kids running around the house playing with magic," she stated with a tinge of sarcasm in her voice.

The nurses soon came back with the unicorn foal and placed her in her mother's care. The new parents sat admiring their little miracle for what seemed hours. She had a gray coat like her mother and a silver mane that glistened when the light shone upon it. Her blue eyes were wide open, examining this strange new world that she had just been plunged into with a look of wonder.

"Have you decided what you want to call her?" enquired a nurse pony who had just entered the room.

The new mother pondered for a moment, looking at the foal who had now fallen asleep on her forelegs, then gave a response.

"Let's just stick with something simple then. I'll call her... Flower. She'll bloom into a beautiful, talented young mare one day, just like her mother," she said, returning her husband's earlier joke.

The pony took a few notes and walked out without another word, leaving the couple to themselves again.

After a few minutes the father spoke once more. "Alright, Daddy's got to get back to the factory my little Flower; he's already an hour late for his shift. You take good care of your mommy for me." The young stallion gave both his wife and new daughter a kiss, grabbed his things, and headed out of the room.

The young mother laid the foal in its cradle. She sat back and watched the foal's quick, rhythmic breathing until she too began slipping into her own dreamland.

--Four years later--

"Alright Flower you can go play outside for a few minutes." Flower’s father said as he finished his dinner.

"Yay!" Flower shot up from her seat at the table and hurriedly ran outside. Every night before she went to bed her father would let her go outside to pick some of the beautiful flowers he had told her she was named after. Sometimes she liked to pick some to give to her mother but usually she just ate them herself. She decided to give some to her mother tonight though since she had eaten them all the night before. After she picked what she deemed a sufficient number she decided to take some white ones, yellow ones, and red ones to her mother.

"Here, I picked these for you!" She offered them up to her mother who was sitting on the sofa reading the paper.

"Hmm? Oh, thank you dear," she said halfheartedly, patting Flower on the head before returning to her reading.

"Are you ok, Mommy?" Flower leapt up onto the sofa and nuzzled up close to her mother.

The mare let out a deep sigh before responding, "Yes dear I'm fine, mommy's just tired is all. Speaking of which, shouldn't you be getting to bed?"

"Ok..." Flower hugged her mother. "I love you Mommy."

Her mother returned the hug tightly. "I love you too my little Flower."

Not long after Flower had gotten cozy in her bed she heard a familiar disturbance.

"Uh oh..."

She didn't like when her parents yelled at each other. They said they weren't angry but Flower wasn't so sure she believed them.

"You're never here for her! You're at work from dawn 'til dusk and hardly get a chance to spend time with either of us!" The voice of Flower’s mother rang out through the halls, breaking the silence of the night.

"Well I'm sorry but somepony's gotta bring home the bits around here and you sure as hell don't!" Flower's father snapped back.

Flower's mother began sobbing.

"That's because I'm raising our daughter! You think I just sit around on my flank all day?! Once she gets into school I can start working part time but until then I have to be here for her; we can't afford a sitter right now!"

Flower tried her best to block out the yelling with her pillow, but to no avail. It continued for what seemed like at least an hour before Flower finally managed to cry herself to sleep.

-Seven years later-

Flower didn't want to go to school today. Not one bit.

The cries of the bullies still echoed within her head. "Blank flank! Blank flank!"

Her parents had been fighting again last night too. They had stopped for a while when she first began school but after several years she was starting to notice it happen nearly every night. It didn't keep her from sleeping anymore; she had learned to tune it out. Their fighting still made her feel sick though, especially because her parents acted like it never happened when she asked them about it. Because of that she assumed there was nothing she could do to help, so she just continued ignoring it. She wearily forced herself to get out of bed. She let out a large yawn and prepared herself for the day ahead before walking into the kitchen.

"Morning, dear." Her mother was in the kitchen, brewing coffee.

"Morning Mom." Flower sat down at the kitchen table and watched the sun coming up over the peak of the evergreens that grew near her home. She could feel its warm rays beating down on her face through the windows and as it sent a comforting warmth through her body she couldn't help but smile a little bit.

"How's dad doing?" she asked her mother, still soaking in the sun's therapeutic warmth.

"Still has that nasty cold; he won't be going to work today." She poured some of the steaming hot coffee into a mug and delivered it to her husband, who was half asleep on the sofa, then returned to the kitchen. "Would you be a dear and take care of breakfast for me before you go?"

"Sure thing Mom." Flower got up from her seat at the table and took a step outside into the cold winter air. The frigid wind was a harsh transition from her warm spot by the window and it sent an uncomfortable chill down her spine. They couldn't afford to buy much food lately, so she usually had to forage for flowers and berries for their meals. She didn't mind it that much though, since she had always loved the varying plant life that grew in the area behind their home. She picked a wide variety of flowers and even found a few new ones today, which she would add to her collection later.

Flower didn't have much of an appetite today; there were too many other things on her mind for her to worry about eating. The anticipation of the inevitable bullying about her blank flank at school and the fight her parents would probably have tonight was making her feel sick. She wished she could make things better for her parents so that she could see them smile again.

She stepped back inside and left the wicker basket, which was now filled with a colorful plethora of different blooms and berries, on the table for her parents. "I'm going to head to school now Mom. Breakfast is on the table."

"Alright, have a good day."

Flower started to head out the front door but then stopped and called back.

"Love you Mom, love you Dad." They didn't seem to hear her though, as they simply continued with what they were doing. Flower headed out into the busy streets and started trotting to the schoolhouse. A lone tear fell from her cheek as she went.

School went as she expected it would that day. She was bullied about her blank flank during recess, her classes were a bore besides herbology, and she sat with the few friends she had at lunch. It was routine to her now.

Why should I be popular? I’m poor, I don't play any sports, and I don't even have a talent for crying out loud. I’m simply a nopony and I have to accept that.

After what seemed like an eternity the school bell finally rang and she was free to head back home where at least she knew she was loved. Even if it wasn't the best situation, it was her haven.

When she walked down the street she liked to observe some of the lives of the townsponies. Bakers were setting out freshly made pies, gardeners were watering their crops, and the town guard were attending to emergencies. Everypony seemed busy, but they all seemed happy too. She wanted her family to be happy like that. Maybe, she thought, if she got a talent that made a lot of money, she could make her parents happy too.

When she was nearing her home she noticed that there was some activity going on inside. Two royal guards were coming out of the door each carrying what looked like lumpy sacks on their back.

"Halt!" A guard blocked her as she made her approach. "This is a crime scene; nopony is allowed on the premises until further notice."

"C-crime scene?" Flower stammered. "But this is my house sir. I wanna see my parents."

The guard's face quickly changed from serious to a look of genuine pity. "You'll want to come with me honey." He led her inside.

Flower was on the verge of tears. She was sure that something had happened to her parents; that somepony must have hurt them. She hoped it wasn't true but she knew it was deep down.

The guard led her to a mare in a long black coat who was standing in the kitchen examining a small baggie which was on the table.

"D-did somepony hurt my parents Miss?"

"I'm sorry my dear but they were poisoned. They're gone," the mare replied rather matter-of-factly.

The tactless response cut deep into Flower's heart like a knife. She stopped holding back the tears upon it being revealed that her parents weren't hurt; they were dead. After a few minutes of sobbing she gained the composure to speak again.

"W-who poisoned them?" she asked, swallowing back the lump that had formed in her throat.

"We aren't sure who but we know what they did it with: this plant. A deadly nightshade." She held the baggie containing the plant where Flower could see.

Flower's heart nearly stopped. It was one of the new plants that she had picked that very morning before leaving for school. She had forgotten to set the new ones aside for herself. Her parents must have eaten them. She didn't know what to think or say; her mind was going in all different directions and she was starting to hyperventilate. An odd tingling sensation in her body and a bright flash of light startled both her and the mare in the dark coat, who let out a mortified gasp and stared bewildered at Flower.

Why now? What could it possibly be? She didn't want to look but she knew she had to. She turned her head slowly and looked back at her flank with trepidation. Sure enough, a cutie mark had appeared, one looking exactly like the flower the mare had just shown her. A deadly nightshade.

What does it mean? What kind of talent could the flower that just killed my parents possibly represent? It was too much for Flower to handle. She couldn't think coherently anymore and the room started to fade. She blacked out.

-Several years later-

Flower sat alone in the darkness staring at the ground and considering the last several years. She had been sent to an orphanage after her parent’s affairs were settled, as she had no other family to take care of her. When she turned eighteen though she moved out on her own, and had been scraping up enough bits to survive since then,but just barely.

Flower thought back to the few friends she had made during the years. Her best friend had died in a house fire a few years before. Some of the other ponies she knew started ostracizing her when a rumor began spreading that she had been responsible for both the death of her own parents and the death of her friend. It eventually caused her to lash out and hurt one of her classmates unintentionally. After that fiasco the ponies in town started giving her strange looks and the fillies and colts in her school started to avoid her out of fear that she might hurt them too. She had given them something that they thought confirmed the rumors about her. Finally she lost the will to continue trying to make friends.

Every time she grew close to somepony something happened. Every friend, every classmate, even her own parents. When she loved something, it never lasted long. That day she finally decided what her cutie mark represented; the only thing it could possibly mean.

Everypony I form a relationship with soon fades away... This mark on my flank is an eternal reminder to me; an eternal warning to others... I am like the nightshade... I am cursed... This is my lot in life.

Part Two: Sinister Shadows

Flower, now travelling under the moniker of Nightshade, continued her daily routine forging deep into the Everfree Forest. The castle had recently commissioned her to supply the guards with a wide variety of helpful potions and deadly poisons on a regular basis. They never mentioned what they needed them for, just that it was ordered by Princess Celestia herself for use in some difficult circumstances that the palace guard was having to deal with.

Mixing herbs was one thing she actually found enjoyable. It gave her a daily escape from life, a way to forget her past for a short while. It never lasted long enough though. When the brewing was completed and the amnesia brought about by her busyness began to wear off it was back to reality. She wished she could just stay in an eternal haze and not have to think about her past anymore.

After a long trek she finally reached the place that she loved the flowers most: the ruins of the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters. The ruins were something that she could relate to. They were feared by most ponies and forgotten by the rest. She knew of the beauty that lie hidden within the ruins though, unlike the rest of them. An enormous variety of plant life grew in, around, and on the castle. She could pick most of what she needed for her daily tasks in this area alone.

It was getting close to dusk, so Nightshade knew that she needed to hasten her pace if she wished to be out of the forest before dark. As she finished with her foraging she looked up for a few moments. In her vision was a large stone arch, dilapidated and strewn with crawling vines. She watched as the slowly setting sun fell within the boundaries of the arch and sent beams of radiant light pouring through its many fissures.

The sun was the other thing that she had always loved, though she rarely got a chance to admire it. Most of her daytime hours were spent within the wooded areas of the Everfree where few rays of light were able to sneak through the looming treetops. She enjoyed the sun because it could take simple things and make them look gorgeous and inspiring. The arch it was currently resting within was a sterling example. After taking in her fill of the sunshine she started her journey back through the forest with nothing to keep her company but the sound of her hooves on the dry, crackling leaves that covered the forest floor.

When Nightshade exited the forest the sun was just falling past the horizon and Luna's glowing moon began its ascent into the cool night sky. She began to canter down the rocky dirt path towards her dwelling. As she passed through town the ponies still out and about grew silent and watched her closely, but she simply continued on her way; it was part of the routine. Fillies and colts were herded indoors, shutters were closed, and everypony stayed wary of her passing through the streets. Many truly believed that she was cursed and that they would be too if they got too close to her.

Nightshade came to the decrepit shack that had once been her parent's home, stepped inside, and barred the door. The castle officials had given her the deed to the old house in return for her services. They had offered to provide her with better lodgings but she had insisted that this would be all she needed besides a few brewing supplies. She sat down and began her work.

She started with some of the simpler potions on the list. They were each measured and concocted with utmost care. Nightshade always made enough to keep some for her own use. After completing the more mundane potions she began working with the more elaborate ones: things like healing or feather potions. She didn't make any of those for herself however, as she had little need for them.

Finally she donned her protective gear and began working with the poisonous materials. It was the easiest task for her execution-wise as the plants had practically the exact effects that she needed them to; she just had to extract the toxins. However this task always brought an air of sadness to her being. It not only reminded her of her tragic mistake but she knew these ingredients could be used to harm more innocent ponies if placed in the wrong hooves. That was the last thing she wanted to be responsible for.

She especially hated working with her namesake, the bloom that had killed her parents, but it was one of the most potent and effective poisons she had access to and that was what the castle guard needed. Nightshade finished with her work and began throwing away the scraps of plant that were left over. She placed each of the completed brews into her saddlebag and prepared to catch the night train to Canterlot.

Canterlot’s citizens were no different than the ponies in Ponyville. The ponies that were still awake watched her with fear and avoided trotting too close to her. To them she was a carrier of deadly concoctions, a spreader of disease, a creature of the night.

As her journey to the castle continued she noticed a gruff looking unicorn stallion looming in the shadows, watching her every move. She had noticed him watching her a few nights before. He was different than the others. He didn't have a look of fear; it was something else, but she couldn't quite place it. Nightshade decided to ignore him and started approaching the castle gates.

"Delivery!" she shouted out to the gate guards, who then took notice of her. One made a motion with his hoof. Soon the main gates opened and she entered the courtyard.

She proceeded to her regular drop-off spot and knocked on the door. Shortly, two castle guards and another pony, who was adorned with white robes, opened the doors to make the trade with her. The robed pony took the potions from Nightshade and in return placed a small satchel of bits in her saddlebag.

"Are you sure you can manage with that amount, Miss Nightshade? Wouldn't want to be cheating you," he enquired politely.

Nightshade offered a rather cold reply. "I'll be fine. Don't worry about me."

"Well, alright then, goodnight." The pony shook his head and headed back into the castle as the two guards closed the door behind him.

As the main gates shut firmly behind Nightshade, she began trotting down the paved path back to the train station. She noticed that most everypony that had been out on the streets when she first came by were no longer anywhere to be seen. The silence of the city was almost deafening.

As she passed an alleyway a small shadow broke into her field of vision, followed promptly by a faint breeze brushing across either side of her face. Suddenly, something pulled taught around her throat and began choking her. A lasso had been thrown out of the pitch blackness and found its rest around her neck. It dragged her into the alley as she bucked her hind legs and tried to scream.

Her eyes quickly adjusted to the change of lighting and she recognized the strange stallion that had been watching her earlier. That look he had given her had been a look ridden with cruel intentions. He lifted her with the rope and hit her head hard against the brick wall, then dropped her to the ground. Blood started to seep through Nightshade's mane.

"Stop struggling and then maybe I won’t slit your damn throat," the stallion threatened without a trace of remorse in his voice.

When she realized she wasn't escaping without a fight she quickly reached towards her saddlebag to grab something, only to find that it had fallen off her when she was jerked into the shadows and was far from her reach. The stallion tied the end of her noose around the leg of a nearby dumpster and started rummaging through her saddlebags.

"What a horrible night to have a curse, eh? Even if you scream nopony would help you for fear that you'd curse them too. The superstitious fools. All the better for me though."

She realized she had no way to stop this from happening. This stallion was going to rob her. Nightshade began crying, praying to Celestia that this pony wouldn’t hurt her.

As quickly as she had been pulled into the alley, a shadow stormed through the air and straight into the side of her attacker. It knocked the stallion on his back, but not for long. He swiftly regained his balance and turned to face this new being that dared to interrupt his plans.

"This ain't none of your business, so I suggest you get on out of here before you get yourself hurt." He tried to sound threatening, but it was obvious he was slightly shaken by the hit.

Almost the instant the stallion finished his taunting the dark figure landed another hit directly across his face, knocking one of his teeth out. Once Nightshade finally realized what had happened she looked up to see her attacker magically unsheathe a large knife and start swinging it at the dark figure. She now noticed that the figure was one of the town's batpony night guards.

The guard deftly maneuvered his way around the attacks of the enraged stallion but couldn't seem to find a window to retaliate. Nightshade remembered her saddlebag and quickly untied herself. She hurried over to begin searching through the bag for something. The other two ponies continued their combat and the unicorn began identifying the patterns in his attacker’s dodges, causing him to start gaining the upper hoof. He lunged his blade directly at his combatant, but stopped just short of his mark.

Nightshade cut him with a blade, which had been poisoned with a paralyzing agent that she had been keeping in her saddlebag. It was just a small cut but it allowed the poison to do its work, instantly immobilizing the stallion. The guard looked shocked at first but quickly regained his composure and started putting the seemingly lifeless stallion in hoofcuffs.

Nightshade wasn’t staying around to be questioned about the encounter. She was still terrified from the ordeal, and shaking from the adrenaline rush it had given her. Getting home was the only thing she wanted to focus on. The guard had seen all he needed to make an arrest anyways she figured. She began trotting towards home, still dizzy from the head trauma that she had endured. As she went on her way two other guards arrived at the alleyway to take the unicorn stallion into custody. Her defender, the batpony, noticed that she had disappeared and immediately began surveying the area. He spotted her and started a quick but non-threatening approach towards her.

"Hey, are you okay?" he questioned worriedly as he caught up with her. "That looks like a nasty hit you took on the head."

"It's nothing; please leave me alone." Nightshade didn't want to speak to anypony right now, she just wanted to get back to her home, her haven.

"Nothing? He nearly robbed you! That wound on your head is swelling; are you sure you don't need to go to a hospital?" He was visibly troubled about not getting her medical attention but he didn’t seem to want to force it on her either.

"I don't need any help." Nightshade increased the speed of her gait.

"You damn sure needed help a few minutes ago!"

Tears began running down Nightshade's face but she didn't stop trotting. The batpony must have realized how harsh his statement sounded and he began to apologize. "Hey, I uh... That was uncalled for. I shouldn't have said that to you when you've already been through so much. I know you probably don't want to trust anypony right now. I'm sorry."

"No. I'm sorry." Nightshade stopped and turn towards him. "You saved me from that stallion and I haven't even had the decency to thank you. What is your name?"

The batpony's demeanor picked back up a little. He seemed to be making progress with her now.

"The name's Lucky Star. Everyone calls me Lucky. Might I ask your name?"

"Thank you Lucky Star; if you hadn't come along... I'd probably be taking a beating from that pony, but I'm not. Thank you." Nightshade continued on towards her home now. Lucky continued following her, even going so far as to board her train back to Ponyville. She assumed he did so to make sure she got there safely.

Once they arrived at her shack she turned to face him once more. "Thank you for escorting me to my home and for... for everything else." Nightshade stepped inside her home and began to shut the door behind her, but it was stopped by Lucky's hoof.

"Standard protocol that I check the victim's home for anypony or anything else dangerous in case there's more than one pony out to get you. I'm afraid you're gonna have to deal with me for a bit longer." Lucky stepped inside and began searching the house.

Nightshade resigned to the fact Lucky would be there a for a few more minutes and went through her cabinets to find something appropriate for her wound. She quickly mixed up a healing poultice that would numb the pain and stop the swelling and she started to apply it.

"Here, let me do that for you," Lucky stated as he came back into the room. "I was a field medic before I got recruited into the town guard."

She hesitantly handed him the healing poultices and bandages and allowed him to begin gently applying the medicine to her head. As he worked it in, it produced a calming effect for her and the tension in her body began to fade.

"Nightshade," she began. "I'm called Nightshade."

Lucky continued applying the salve. "So, now I know what you're called, but what's your name? Most parents wouldn't name their foal after a poisonous plant."

Nightshade had almost forgotten that she had been called anything else in her life, but she didn't want to remember. She wanted to be Nightshade.

"Nightshade is my name. If you don't like it that's your problem," she shot back, hoping to throw him off the subject. It worked.

Lucky finished wrapping some bandages around her head. "Well then Nightshade, I think you're all cleaned up. Take a look."

Nightshade observed herself in the small, cracked mirror that she owned and saw that Lucky definitely had experience with treating wounds. The bandages were applied very cleanly and professionally. The pain had almost completely faded but a dull throbbing still remained.

Nightshade noticed that Lucky appeared to be staring at her. He almost seemed to be examining her in the moonlight that was creeping through a crack in the wall. She turned to look more closely at him and noticed a very strange expression on his face; it was something she had never seen before. She began to grow uncomfortable as the pony continued looking her up and down.

Nightshade softly spoke. "If you’re done you may leave now..."

Lucky's ears dropped and he backed away a bit. "Oh uh, right. I... I hope you heal up soon."

He slowly headed out the door and closed it behind him. Nightshade lay in the silence of the night.

Somepony... helped me... he didn't have anything to gain, he could have been killed by that stallion. He must not have recognized who I was, but he didn't seem shocked when I did tell him my name. He was so helpful, while I only responded coldly to him. I guess not everypony is superstitious of me. What was that look he gave me before he left? It doesn't matter. I'll probably never see him again.

Her mind continued asking all these questions but was unable to come up with any answers. She kept recounting the events of the day over and over in her head until they lulled her into a deep sleep.

Part Three: A Taste of Normalcy

A fortnight had passed since Nightshade’s ordeal in Canterlot, but she was still haunted by nightmares of her assault. She awoke in a cold sweat. A sharp pain in her head, which she was beginning to grow accustomed to, hit her like a brick wall as she forced herself to get out of bed.

Nightshade trudged to the front door and took a step outside into the crisp morning air to retrieve a small parcel from her porch. After the attack the guards had insisted that they would deliver her needed supplies directly to her doorstep and collect their potions personally to avoid future incidents. She never truly realized how much she enjoyed her routine excursions into the Everfree and the long, peaceful train rides to and from Canterlot until they were gone.

She immediately began mixing her potions for the day, and before she knew it the task was completed. When she finished, the sun was reaching its apex in the sky, which was currently devoid of any clouds. It would have been a perfect day to take a leisurely stroll through the forest, she thought. As she contemplated her plans for the rest of the day she packed her completed potions into a box and set them aside.

Nightshade hadn’t done much of anything since that night in Canterlot. Walks through the Everfree were something she still enjoyed, but since she had no particular reason to do it anymore she rarely did.

There was a metallic rattling at the door as a blonde-maned mailpony slid the daily newspaper through the mailslot in Nightshade’s door. Nightshade levitated the newspaper to her table and sat down to peruse it for a few minutes. The front page story was an interview with Ponyville’s famous fashionista, Rarity, discussing her new line of dresses.

Everypony else’s life just seems so normal. There’s rarely a crime committed in this town or in Canterlot... and apparently when there is it’s not even reported. Though, they never have cared what happened to me before, so why would they start now? They all fear me... avoid me... but that stallion that attacked me didn’t fear me, nor did the guard who rescued me. Maybe there are others like them that aren’t afraid of me?

Nightshade set down the paper. She came to the resolution that there was something she had to do; something to see if she could really be accepted by these ponies.

I’m going to make a friend.

She picked up her saddlebag and a few bits and ventured out into the streets of Ponyville.

The hustle and bustle of Ponyville during the day helped her to blend in and avoid being too conspicuous. She walked down the streets slowly, admiring the many different goods that were in the store windows as she went: the beautiful gowns of Carousel Boutique, the ripe, delicious apples being sold from a street vendor, and the wonderful assortment of sweets, cakes, pastries, and pies on display in the local bakery.

The tantalizing scents flowing out of the bakery and pervading her nostrils were too much for her to resist. She stepped inside and started browsing through the collection of tempting treats. After deciding upon a delicious looking apple tart, she asked the pony at the counter for one.

“That’ll be three bits please!” The mare’s voice was as sickeningly sweet as the desserts that she was purveying.

Nightshade levitated three bits from her saddlebag and set them on the counter in front of the pony.

“Thank you,” Nightshade offered with a smile before starting to head back outside.

“You’re welcome!” The mare offered back a smile so large it puzzled Nightshade as to how it even fit on her face.

Nightshade walked to a park bench and sat down to enjoy her lunch.

Well, so far so good I guess. Nopony’s running in fear yet, so that’s a plus. Maybe I can make a friend out here... or maybe they just haven’t noticed me yet. Perhaps it’s-

“Nightshade?”

Her thoughts were interrupted by someone calling to her. She looked up to see a familiar pegasus mare.

“Nightshade is that you?”

“Misty!” Nightshade shot up from her seat with a childlike excitement and galloped over to hug the friend she hadn’t seen since high school. Mist Racer was one of the few ponies that had ever bothered to make friends with her despite the rumors.

“It’s been so long Nightshade! How’ve you been?” Misty asked while returning Nightshade’s hug.

“It’s... been okay I guess.” Nightshade looked at the ground.

Misty’s eyes were drawn to the bandage wrapped about Nightshade’s head.

“Are you sure you’re okay? What happened to your head?” she asked.

“I really don’t want to talk about it right now,” Nightshade deadpanned, while trying to push the memories from the attack out of her mind.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked,” Misty apologized, rubbing one of her hooves on her opposite foreleg nervously.

“No, no it’s fine. How’ve you been doing?” Nightshade didn’t want to make her friend feel uncomfortable. Misty perked up a little bit at her response.

“Well it’s been going pretty great for me. I just got accepted onto the weather team with Rainbow Dash. Can you believe it? Little old me, working alongside one of the Elements of Harmony! It’s so awesome!”

“Sounds like you’ve been pretty well off then.” Nightshade gave her a warm smile. “I’m glad to see you’re following your dream.”

“Yep! Hey, you wanna come finish up your lunch with me and a friend of mine? We were sitting right over there when I saw you. He went to grab our drinks while I came to see if it was really you.”

Nightshade decided to comply with her request.

“Sure, that sounds great.” She picked up her tart and waded alongside Misty through the sea of ponies walking through town.

They arrived at a small table, which had an umbrella over the top, and sat down. Misty passed her a menu.

“Pick out a drink you like, and it’s on me.”

"Thank you." Nightshade began scanning the menu.

“Oh! Here comes my friend now.”

After choosing a drink Nightshade looked up from the menu to see Misty’s friend. Her mouth hung agape when she saw who it was.

“Well hey there, stranger. Fancy meeting you here.” Lucky Star extended a hoof towards Nightshade, who was still speechless.

Finally she broke free of her shock and returned his hoofshake. She continued staring at him with a confused expression, however.

“Do you two know each other?” Misty seemed perplexed at their strange actions upon meeting.

“Misty, this guard helped me when I... got this wound in Canterlot,” Nightshade explained to her.

“What?! Lucky how come you didn’t tell me?” She bonked him on the back of his head with her hoof. “Nightshade was one of my best friends in school!”

Lucky shrugged. “I didn’t know you knew her so I didn’t think it was important.”

Oh, so that’s what he thinks of me: unimportant.

“Well I did know her and it was important!” Misty responded angrily.

Nightshade decided to she needed to say something to change the subject before Misty became livid with him. Misty had always had a short fuse when they were in school. She remembered having to get Misty out of fights with the other classmates on a semi-regular basis.

“So, Lucky, why aren’t you on guard duty?” She decided that would get them focused on something besides fighting.

He seemed to think deeply for a moment before responding.

“Well, uh... for one we night guards take the daytime off. I’ve also been given a short vacation, and I’ll be staying here in Ponyville for a while. It’s a nice change of scenery from the castle and mansions in Canterlot.”

The trio continued conversing for a long while. Nightshade and Misty caught up with each other, while Lucky mostly observed, only occasionally throwing in a witty joke or otherwise partaking in the conversation. Nightshade eventually noticed that it was nearing sundown, so she said goodbye to her friend and started trotting back to her home.

I don’t think I’ve had a day like that since I was a filly! That was actually fun. I hope I can start hanging out with Misty more often.

Nightshade felt happy for the first time in a long while.

On her short journey back to her abode Nightshade noticed a strange presence. A presence that she felt had been stalking her since the night she was attacked. She watched the shadow jumping from place to place in the corners of her eyes. Sometimes it followed her, and sometimes it jumped ahead of her, but it always followed wherever she went.

Tonight she was prepared. She reached into her saddlebag and produced from it a small glass ball filled with a mixture of herbs similar to what she used to paralyze her attacker in Canterlot. Levitating it with her magic, she slowed her pace and watched for any movement from the shadow.

Bingo.

The moment she saw it move she turned and sent the glass ball rocketing towards the shadow like a magic missile. It went into a bush and she heard it shatter. There was a rustling in the bushes for a brief moment, but then the noise faded. She waited motionless for a short period of time to watch and listen for any movement, but there was none.

Must have hit it then.

She readied her small dagger that she kept stowed in her saddlebag and cautiously approached the bush. She didn’t know what she was going to find behind it, but she knew it could very well be dangerous. When she stepped close enough to see the shadow she gasped and dropped the dagger onto the ground.

“Oh my Celestia!”

Lying there on the ground before her was none other than Lucky Star. The ball had hit him dead in the face and he was completely motionless. Small shards of the glass had stuck into his flesh, and blood was starting to ooze out of some of the wounds. “I am so sorry! Oh, I hope you can hear me.” She couldn’t leave him there in the open, so she decided she would have to drag him the few hundred feet to her home. Remembering a small rolling table she had for working with her herbs, she galloped to her house to retrieve it and swiftly returned to get Lucky onto it.

After struggling for a few moments she managed enough strength to hoist him onto the table and roll him back to her shack. Retrieving some tools and healing herbs from her cabinets, she began removing the shards of glass from his flesh and stitching up the larger wounds that had been inflicted. He hadn’t lost much blood as the pieces of glass had acted as temporary plugs to keep the blood from escaping his wounds. After cleaning him up, she applied some of the healing herbs and then lay him onto her bed. She made a small pallet of blankets and cloth for herself to sleep on. All of the reasons that Lucky could have been stalking her kept running through her head. She wasn’t sure if she should be scared, confused, or both.

Why in the hay is he following me? Does he have bad intentions as well? This doesn’t make sense... Why would somepony save my life and then begin stalking me for no reason?... That potion won’t wear off for a good twelve hours with how strong I brewed it; I should probably get some sleep while I can.”

Nightshade put down her head and tried to clear her mind, but there was too much to think about. She wondered if it was Lucky's intention to bring harm to her in some way, and she wondered how Misty and he had become friends in the first place. Then she began wondering if maybe Misty was in on it as well.

Lucky has some major explaining to do when that poison wears off, and he’d damn well better have a good excuse for this nonsense.

The few hours of sleep that Nightshade managed that night were full of worry and unrest.

Part Four: Truth Unveiled

When Nightshade awoke, the new day’s first rays of light were starting to peek over the horizon. Lucky was starting to move around a bit, but she estimated she still had nearly an hour before he could speak again. She was conflicted; she felt bad that she had harmed Lucky when he had just saved her life two weeks ago.

What else was I supposed to do? He was following me. For all I knew he could have been another degenerate looking to rob me.

She levitated a container from her table, opened it, and removed an assortment of flowers to have for her breakfast. After she completed her meal, Lucky began stirring around more and groaning occasionally. As his activity increased Nightshade grew nervous. She decided she should be prepared to defend herself just in case Lucky awoke in a violent mood.

She found some twine and bound his forelegs so that he couldn’t get up, and she set a dose of her paralyzing serum on a nearby table.

After a few more minutes Lucky finally came to and observed his surroundings for a brief moment before his eyes turned to Nightshade. She was trying to keep a brave face, but her insides felt knotted from anxiety.

“Er, good morning... What’s uh, what’s going on?” Lucky asked with apprehension in his voice. He managed to force a smile in his half-awoken state.

“Why were you stalking me?” Nightshade wasted no time in beginning her questioning. She wanted to get to the bottom of the situation.

Lucky hesitated for a moment before answering.

“S-stalking you? I wasn’t stalking you I-”

Nightshade cut him off. “Don’t play dumb with me! I’ve been seeing a shadow following me since the night I got attacked in Canterlot. I finally catch it, and it turns out to be you. You’ve been following me, and I wanna know why!”

“Nightshade... be careful with that thing.”

In her anger, Nightshade had put her dagger up to Lucky’s throat without even realizing it. She put the dagger down, backed away, and sat back down on the floor.

Lucky sighed and shifted nervously.

“I suppose I can’t continue keeping it from you.”

Finally, some answers.

“It’s... my job. I’m under orders from Princess Luna,” Lucky began. “I’ve been assigned to be your-”

Nightshade interrupted Lucky once again. “Yeah I’m just gonna stop you right there. If all you’re going to tell me is lies then you need to get out of my house.”

She picked up her dagger and cut his forelegs free from the twine.

Lucky stretched and stood up. He walked over and placed a hoof on Nightshade’s shoulder. She instinctively backed away and took a defensive stance. Lucky’s ears dropped and his demeanor turned solemn.

“I’m telling you the truth. It doesn’t matter whether you believe me or not... I’ll just leave now.”

Before Nightshade could say anything else he was out the door and flying into the air. She watched as he disappeared over the treetops. A sigh of relief escaped her as some of the tenseness from the ordeal faded.

Now he’s just making up stories to cover for himself... This whole thing is really creeping me out. I need to get some real answers. I need to find out why he’s following me, and I’ve got a good idea of where to start.

Nightshade arrived at Mist Chaser’s home and rapped on the door. She realized she had never been inside Misty’s house when they were younger; she had only ever seen it from the outside. Her feeling of uneasiness continued to grow as she impatiently waited for a response. She didn’t know if her friend might have had a part in the whole thing.

After a few moments she heard a soft click emit from the door and soon Misty stepped out to meet her.

“Oh, hey Nightshade! What’s up?”

“We need to talk,” Nightshade whispered curtly. “Inside.”

Misty seemed confused but she led her friend inside and closed the door. Nightshade began searching the unfamiliar surroundings nervously, making sure that no one else was in the house. It was a simple one room cottage like her own, but much more well-kept. Upon confirming that they were alone she sat down.

“So, uh... What was it you needed exactly?” Misty was clearly puzzled by her friend’s abrupt visit and behavior.

“I need to know everything you know about Lucky Star.”

“Oh? What about him?” Misty questioned.

“He’s been... following me. I don’t know why and I figured since you two appeared to be buddies that you might know something,” Nightshade stated accusingly.

Misty stayed silent. She seemed hesitant to say anything about him so Nightshade continued.

“He gave me some crazy excuse about orders from the princess or something like that.”

After a few more moments of silence Misty responded.

“He’s telling the truth.”

“Not you too,” Nightshade said with disgust.

“Have I ever given you a reason not to trust me Nightshade?” Misty pleaded. “Have I ever lied to you for as long as you’ve known me?”

Nightshade thought back. Misty had never been a dishonest pony for as long as she had known her, and was one of the only ponies Nightshade had ever trusted. She still couldn’t believe that Lucky’s story was true though.

“It isn’t anything against you, it’s just that his story is so...” Nightshade’s voice trailed off.

Misty gave her a sad look.

“If you want the full story you’re going to have to talk to him yourself, but I can vouch that everything he tells you will be the full truth.”

Nightshade felt guilty for treating Misty like an enemy as they used to be such close friends. She decided she should at least listen fully to Lucky’s story.

“Fine. Where can I find him?”

“He’s still keeping watch. He’ll be there when you’re ready to speak with him,” Misty replied.

Nightshade hugged her friend and started back towards her home in deep thought.

How could he be telling the truth? If the princess is the one ordering him to watch me then that still doesn’t answer why she’s doing it; and if I have earned the favour of a princess then how come ponies treat me like an outcast? Surely somepony besides Misty and Lucky know about it if it’s true.

I just don’t understand how all this could happen right under my nose. I never noticed anypony following me before that night in Canterlot... though I suppose I wasn’t quite as wary of ponies before then.

I need to try to calm down a bit before talking to Lucky again... I can’t believe I threatened him with that dagger. I didn’t even know I was doing it. Maybe a good night’s rest will help calm my nerves. Maybe.

She eventually reached her home, went inside, and barred the door behind her. As she lay down to sleep, she couldn’t help but remember what Misty had said about Lucky still watching her. It made her feel vulnerable and uncomfortable. She got back up and made sure that the windows were firmly sealed, and she slid a chair in front of the door. It wasn’t much, but it made her feel more secure. Feeling that she was safe enough to rest now, she lay back down and closed her eyes.

The next morning, by the time her daily routine was completed, she had worked up the courage to speak with Lucky. Still wary of his intentions, she took a small vial of her paralyzing agent with her just in case. She stepped outside into the sun’s warmth and called out to Lucky.

Naught but a few moments later, he emerged from some nearby brush and stood in the open, but kept a fair distance from her. Nightshade spoke first.

“It’s okay, you can come closer. I just want to talk.”

He took his time in approaching her, making slow, deliberate steps.

“Misty told me that I could trust what you said. So I want to hear the full story. Why are you following me?”

Lucky took on a bit of a braver demeanor.

“Alright, but no interrupting me this time.”

“I promise,” Nightshade agreed.

Lucky sat down closer to Nightshade and took a breath before beginning.

“Well, as you may or may not know, as Princess of the Night, Luna, has the power to walk among the dreamscapes of other ponies.” He looked at Nightshade expectantly. She nodded. “Quite a few years ago, she stumbled upon a nightmare. In that nightmare was a scared little filly, alone and searching desperately for her parents. At first, she passed it off as any other nightmare and didn’t think much of it. She eventually noticed that the filly had the same nightmare nearly every night however, and she grew curious.”

Nightshade’s memory went back to those nightmares she had as a filly. She remembered many times that she had awoken and wanted to go to her parents for comfort, only to remember that they weren’t there anymore. Tears began to form in her eyes.

“Luna asked some of the night guards to locate you and try to find a source to your nightmares,” Lucky continued. “They reported back to her about how your parents had died and how you were in an orphanage since you had no other family to take care of you. I suppose she took pity on you after hearing all the things you had been through. When you left the safety of the orphanage a few years ago she assigned me and one other guard to take shifts as your personal protectors, and since your talent appeared to be working with herbs and plants she provided you with the potion brewing job at the expense of her own personal coffers. Simply put, you haven’t been alone since you left the orphanage.”

After a few moments of silence Nightshade responded. “If I’ve found favour in the eyes of Princess Luna, then why have ponies continued avoiding me? Surely some of them knew I was under her protection.” Despite how much of the story lined up with her life she still doubted its credibility.

“Well, I think you may have brought that upon yourself. You never would allow anypony to get close to you, so they just stopped trying. Plus, always travelling under the shadow of the night, making regular trips to the Everfree, and carrying a load of poisons around doesn’t exactly attract many friends, even if you have the best of intentions.”

Nightshade didn’t want to admit it, but the things Lucky was saying actually made sense. It explained why she had gotten the potion job so soon after leaving the orphanage, and why everypony avoided her.

“So, I’m not... cursed?” Her voice trembled at the last word as her emotions overwhelmed her. She began sobbing deeply. Lucky approached her and wrapped a hoof around her to try and help console her. She didn’t pull away from him this time; she buried her face in his neck and cried until she could speak once again. “Thank you. Thank you for everything.”

They had gone into Nightshade’s home and continued talking over a meal for what seemed like hours. Lucky continued explaining some of the details of his job and Princess Luna’s interest in Nightshade. He told her how Misty had been the one that informed the night guards about Nightshade’s situation and helped in the decision to supply her with protection and employment.

The longer they spoke the more comfortable Nightshade grew with him. She actually began considering him as a friend.

When the sun started to go down Lucky decided that he should head out for the night and allow her to rest.

“I’d better leave you be for now; I’m sure you’ve got a lot to think about. Just uh, call if you need me, heh.” Lucky stood up to leave.

“Will do,” Nightshade responded warmly.

He walked toward the door, which her back was turned to. A moment later she felt something warm press against her cheek and quickly spun around to see Lucky’s face close to her’s, the same strange look in his eyes as she had seen when he bandaged her the night she was attacked. A wave of heat ran to her face and she realized she must have been blushing harshly.

“I uh, sorry.” Lucky promptly turned and went out the door, shutting it behind him. Nightshade simply sat there flabbergasted.

I- Did he just?..

Even when she was young she had never even thought about such a thing happening to her. It seemed so far-fetched. She let out a childish squee of excitement at the thought, but soon regained her normal stoicism.

Don’t jump to conclusions Nightshade. You aren’t even sure that’s what it was. Plus, even IF it was, you don’t know if he actually meant anything by it... By Celestia I am gonna find out though.

She donned her saddlebags and headed out into the streets of Ponyville.

Part Five: Denial

The cold evening air greeted Nightshade as she stepped outside, sending a shiver down her spine. She began trotting towards Misty’s home. It wasn’t that far of a trip, and she wagered that she could find out more about Lucky’s actions from Misty.

The activity in town was beginning to wind down, given the time of day. Shops were closing up, ponies were heading home for the night, the clamor that was ever so present midday had ceased, and she found that she kind of missed the noise.

When she arrived at Misty’s house she knocked on the door. Nearly a minute passed with no response.

“Misty? Are you home? It’s me, Nightshade.” She knocked once more.

What the hay could she be doing this time of day? I thought the weather team was off duty by now. Guess I could go look for her in the meantime.

She headed back into the town at a leisurely stroll, enjoying the first bit of moonlight that was beginning to shine, but also trying to keep a look out for Misty. As she was looking around, she suddenly found herself colliding directly into a stallion who also was not watching where he was going.

“Oof!” they both exclaimed in unison. Both of their saddlebags were knocked from their backs from the impact; herbs fell from Nightshade’s and apples from the stallion’s.

After coming back to her senses she looked up and saw the large stallion standing over her with an emotionless look in his eyes. Suddenly, memories from the night of her attack were triggered and she fell down and coverered her head with her hooves like a scared filly.

“Woah there, I didn’t mean to startle ya miss! Ah’m sorry, ah shoulda been payin’ attention,” he said in a deep voice. The stallion began picking up what had spilled from Nightshade’s bag and placed it all back inside for her. “There, good as new!” He grinned bashfully and pushed the bag back towards her.

Nightshade was speechless for a moment, but then trepidatiously lifted the bag back onto her back with her magic.

“Thank you,” she managed to say to the stallion.

“Yup.” He began to pick up the apples that had spilled from his bags. He was startled for a moment when Nightshade’s magical aura placed each of them back into the saddlebags and back on his back. He turned back to her. “Thank ya kindly ma’am.” He nodded to her and headed back on his way. Nightshade continued searching for Misty.

Well, Lucky was definitely right about one thing. Somehow, the way ponies have always treated me was all because of my own actions, nothing to do with any rumors or curses, or they’d still be avoiding me for sure.

After a few more minutes of wandering, Nightshade saw the familiar pegasus mare dash by her, seemingly oblivious that she was even there. She called out to her.

“Hey! Misty wait up!”

Misty brought herself to a sudden stop, almost causing herself to fall. She turned around and began looking back and forth before spotting Nightshade.

“Heya! What are you doing out in town this time of day?” Misty enquired.

“I was going to ask you the same thing,” Nightshade offered with a slight chuckle.

“Oh, I had to cover somepony’s shift today so I ran a little overtime with the weather team. C’mon back to my house and we can talk there; I’m bushed.”

They made the short trip to Misty’s house and went inside. Misty prepared some tea and tarts for them to snack on before sitting down with Nightshade to talk.

“So ‘Shade, you never told me what you were doing out in town.”

“I was looking for you actually; I’ve got more questions to bother you with I’m afraid.”

Misty looked worried. “Did you talk to Lucky? I told you that you could believe what he was saying.”

“Oh no no, it’s not that, we got that all sorted out. It’s something else about him.”

Misty released a sigh of relief. “Well, what about him?” she questioned.

Nightshade tried to think of a tactful way to approach the question.

“Did he ever talk about me?”

Misty raised an eyebrow, seeming a bit a puzzled by the question.

“Well of course he talked about you, you’re practically his job, and since you’re alone so much you’re pretty much the only thing he had to talk about most times.”

“I don’t mean like that, just…. What kind of things did he say about me?”

“Why is it you ask?” Misty enquired, raising an eyebrow.

So much for tactful, just gonna have to tell her now.

“I ask because...” Nightshade could already feel herself blushing before she could even finish the thought. “He kissed me.”

Misty continued staring at Nightshade for a moment but then looked to the floor and giggled knowingly.

“N-not on the lips or anything! It was just a peck on the cheek,” Nightshade shot back, embarrassed by her vague choice of words.

“It’s not that,” Misty began. “I’m just terribly unsurprised.”

“What do you mean?”

“In the years I’ve known him I’ve never seen him show interest in any mares. I knew that he had somepony that must have been more special to him, and it doesn’t really surprise me it was you. When you spend that long observing somepony, you’re bound to find things you like about them, maybe even start to love them. On the other hoof I’m very surprised at you.” Misty giggled again.

“Me? What about me?”

“I didn’t think you’d be swept off your hooves so easily. I never thought of you as a romantic.”

“Whoa whoa, hold on there, you think I like him or something?” Nightshade asked, shocked that Misty would assume such a thing. “On the contrary, I find it quite appalling!”

“O-oh. I just assumed that-” Nightshade cut Misty off before she could finish her thought.

“Well you assumed wrong, how could he expect me to just fall in love with him when I know it’s been his job to stalk me for the past few years? You can call it guarding or whatever you like but the idea of having any romance with somepony who’s been secretly watching me sleep for years is a bit unsettling to say the very least!”

Misty winced at the harshness of Nightshade’s words.

“I, I didn’t mean to...” Misty’s voice trailed and she looked to the floor.

Well that didn’t go very smoothly.

Nightshade released a deep sigh to try and calm her nerves when she realized how rude she must have just sounded.

“Misty, I’m sorry.” She put a hoof around her friend’s shoulder. “I didn’t mean to go off on you like that. It’s just with all that’s happened... I just find it hard to see the good in anypony anymore.”

“No, you’re right. I shouldn’t have assumed,” Misty sniffled and cleared her throat. “I know you’ve been through a lot and I shouldn’t be trying to force even more emotions on you. I’m sure any intentions Lucky had were completely innocent. I’ve known him long enough to believe that.”

“I’ve got to tell him he’s barking up the wrong tree with me. It may be his job to keep me under surveillance, but it’s not his job to try to romance me and I’m not having any part of it.”

“I suppose I can’t blame you.” Misty replied, slowly nodding her head. “Just, go easy on him, he’s not a bad pony.”

“No promises. I’m a bit on edge from this whole ordeal, as you probably could tell from my little outburst.” Nightshade said regretfully. “It’s not my intention to hurt anypony’s feelings though.”

Misty smiled and relaxed a little.

“I know that more than anypony. No matter how much you’d been through you were always there for me back in school. You always were quite blunt though.”

They both laughed.

After a little while Nightshade said her goodbyes and headed back to her home. Once she was about halfway there she heard somepony trot up next to her and turned to see Lucky following her at a close distance.

“Heya, what were you and Misty up to?” he asked playfully.

Nightshade didn’t want to make a scene in the middle of town, but she didn’t want to ignore Lucky either. She chose to attempt to silence his questioning.

“I don’t really see why that’s your business, as long as I’m safe,” she said to him coldly.

Lucky took the hint and backed off a little, returning to the shadows he so perfectly blended in with, but Nightshade could still hear him following her. Her response had come across ruder than she had planned, but it was effective for the time being.

When they arrived at her home Nightshade tried to go in and shut the door behind her, but it was stopped by Lucky’s head, which was sticking halfway through the doorway.

“Ow... Good thing I wear a helmet,” Lucky joked.

“Sorry, I didn’t see you there.” Nightshade attempted to close the door again, but Lucky stopped it with his hoof.

“What’s wrong Nightshade, why the cold shoulder all the sudden?” Lucky asked, a worried look on his face.

“I think you know perfectly well.” Nightshade replied, hoping to draw some answers out of him.

“I know, I was just being stupid, I didn’t mean to come on so strong it was just...I just don’t think I’ve ever seen you smile so much in one day. You looked so perfect. I meant nothing wrong by it.”

“Well you can watch me from afar from now on.” Nightshade closed the door, this time unhindered, and locked it. She heard Lucky shuffling about outside the door a minute before finally hearing him trot off slowly.

Nightshade was conflicted about treating Lucky the way that she was, but she felt with the situation that it was the only solution. She wanted to get her point across and that was the only way to manage it, she thought.

Hopefully that will keep him off my back for a while, or at least get any thoughts of romance out of his head.

Part Six: Guilt

About two months had passed since Nightshade had spoken to Lucky. After the night when she had chided him for his advances he stopped coming out in the open to talk as he had been recently. She wasn’t really surprised by it, as it had been her intention to get him to back off in the first place. Still, she couldn’t help but feel a little remorse for treating him like that.

Nightshade had begun spending more time with Misty, having lunch with her in Ponyville, or just taking strolls and chatting, on an almost daily basis. She enjoyed catching up with her friend after being isolated for so long a time.

Currently, they were taking a walk through Ponyville, just making small talk.

“Oh! Did I tell you a got a promotion with the weather team recently?” Misty asked jovially, attempting to break a lull in the conversation. “I get to work with the clouds now, no more weather factory for me!... Well, that is if Rainbow Dash finds my technique good enough for the job. Ohhh, I really don’t wanna have to go back to mixing rainbows again.”

Nightshade had been silent for a few moments, deep in thought. “I’m sure you’ll do fine. You’ve always been a great flyer,” Nightshade assured her. “Sorry I’m not all here, my mind’s just been elsewhere today for some reason.”

“Is it anything you want to talk about?” Misty offered.

Nightshade stopped walking and gazed at the ground for a moment, digging at it with her hoof nervously.

“I don’t know really, it’s just... I wonder if I did the right thing,” she finally responded.

“About what?’ Misty questioned, raising an eyebrow slightly.

“I mean, should I have been so rude to Lucky? He’s never done anything to hurt me, even if he seems a bit creepy. I mean, I know what it’s like to be misunderstood. I just don’t want to make him feel the way that other ponies have made me feel in the past.”

Misty sat down on a nearby bench and motioned for Nightshade to join her. Nightshade sat next to her while she appeared to be lost in her thoughts.

“Well, what is your conscience telling you?” Misty replied after a few moments.

Nightshade shrugged her shoulders.

“Well, obviously it’s giving me doubts about it. I just feel like I could have told him to back off without literally telling him to back off like I did.”

Misty smiled.

“Then it’s not really my place to disagree is it? You have to do what your gut tells you to, or else that feeling will never go away.”

“I guess, but I’m still not sure what I’m supposed to do about it,” Nightshade grumbled, slightly agitated that Misty wasn’t giving her the definite answer she wanted. “I just wanted a second opinion is all.”

Nightshade got back up from the bench and Misty followed as they continued their walk.

“I’m sure you’ll figure it out when the time comes, but for now let’s talk about something else, yeah? Have you ever...”

Nightshade’s mind went back into her own thoughts as Misty continued rambling. She felt like Misty was purposefully avoiding the subject, almost like there was something she didn’t want Nightshade to know. It was probably nothing, but she still wondered why Misty wouldn’t give her a straight answer to her question.

Maybe she does know more than she’s letting on. Regardless, she’s right, if I don’t do something about it this nagging feeling isn’t going to go away. Now I just gotta figure out what to do exactly.

Later that day, back at her home, Nightshade continued pondering over what to do about her situation. Her gut was telling her that she had gone about doing what she did all wrong, but it wasn’t telling her what to do to remedy it.

I can’t just go apologize to him, he’ll probably get the wrong idea and think I’m hitting on him or something... I don’t really see what else I’m supposed to do though. He’s the one that I wronged so I’m going to have to talk to him.

I keep telling Misty that he’s never done anything but help me, but I still find myself wondering whether that’s really true. Maybe I’ve just stopped him from doing something before...

But then why would he have helped me when I was being... robbed. That’s it. If he’s supposed to guard me all day every day then why did that stallion even have a chance to hurt me? Shouldn’t Lucky have stopped him the second I got dragged into the alley? Come to think of it, that stallion did manage to take a few things from my bags that night, and I never got them back.

I bet he let that pony start taking things just so he could take them for himself without being noticed once he stopped him.

The more Nightshade continued thinking about it, the more paranoid she became. Had all these possibilities really been sitting right under her nose this whole time? She kept realizing and inventing new ways that Lucky might have been trying to take advantage of her all along.

Letting a stallion bash her head in so he could rummage her saddlebags, following her afterwards to case her home for more loot, trying to take advantage of her emotional state. Everything appeared as evidence of Lucky having malicious intent.

Nightshade’s anger grew with every new idea and possibility. She brooded over these thoughts for what seemed like hours, never running out of things to be suspicious of.

I bet Lucky’s nothing but a common criminal, using his title of night guard as cover. That whole story about Princess Luna and guarding me is probably just an excuse to stalk my every move. If I ever see him again I swear to Celestia he is going to get an earful. I’ll reveal him for what he really is.

Part Seven: Anger

Nightshade awoke from a restless sleep; her mind had kept her busy with suspicions and conspiracies through the night. None of Lucky’s stories seemed to add up to her anymore; they all appeared to her to be lies and excuses.

She couldn’t help but be angry, but she knew that it wouldn’t do her any good to take it out on anypony besides Lucky. She decided that her daily walk through town with Misty would help to clear her mind for the time being, at least until she ran into him again.

She packed up her saddlebags with a few staple herbs and potions that she always liked to keep on hoof, along with a few other items. As she went to levitate the last of her things into the bags she brought one of the items, a slender object wrapped in a cloth, a bit closer to her face and pondered over it for a moment.

Probably shouldn’t... I don’t want to risk creating anymore controversy around myself.

Letting the item fall back down to her table, she loaded the rest of the items into her bag and headed for the door. She unlatched it and went to swing it open, only to have it bounce back shut abruptly. She heard something tumbling over, and the voice of a mare grunting. She opened the door again, this time a bit more cautiously, to see who it was.

A pegasus mailmare was clumsily lifting herself off the ground and brushing the dirt off her coat. Her muzzle was beginning to turn a reddish hue and starting to swell, and her eyes seemed to be a bit off-center from the impact. Despite her best efforts to clean herself off, when she stood back up she still had clods of dirt in her blonde mane. She looked up at Nightshade, blood starting to drip from her nostril, and produced a huge grin before speaking.

“Sorry! I guess I wasn’t paying attention; my bad!” she said almost gleefully.

Nightshade was somewhat shocked by the mailmare’s bubbly demeanor despite having just taken such a hit to the nose.

“B-but I was the one who-” Nightshade began in a whisper before being cut off.

“Anyway, here’s your mail! Bye-bye!” The mailmare produced a small package and laid it on the ground, then turned to fly off, whistling a happy tune.

Well that was... something.

Nightshade managed to regain her focus and looked at the package, seeing it was from the castle. She lifted it with her magic and shook it slightly, the jingling noise confirming its contents.

I guess it’s nice that the castle sends me both my supplies and my payments now but, I really do miss my evening excursions.

She recalled travelling back and to between Ponyville and Canterlot, the peaceful train rides, the castle. It was such a distant memory to her now, even though it had only been a few months ago. Despite not realizing it at the time, she enjoyed the sights and sounds of Canterlot, and seeing the posh ponies and royal guard at the castle.

It might be that she would never get to visit it again if the packages kept being delivered to her. There was no other reason for her to go besides for her deliveries, and she didn’t know anypony in Canterlot anyways.

She then recalled what she missed most of all. The serene beauty of the Everfree Forest, the sunset through the ruined archway, and the beams of moonlight shining through the treetops at dusk. Most ponies didn’t recognize the allure of the Everfree as she did; most avoided it out of fear.

The ruined castle in the heart of the forest had always been the most beautiful part, with its array of plant life and its echoes of times long forgotten. If she could just go back there, she thought, she might be happy, or at least content, once more.

It’s too dangerous to go without a cause though, and now I have no cause to go out there anymore. They think they’re “protecting” me, when really they’re just holding me back. All thanks to one little night; no... all thanks to Lucky. He’s the one behind all of this.

When Nightshade arrived to Misty and her’s usual meeting point, she found Misty already there waiting for her.

“Sorry, I got held up a bit. I didn’t leave you waiting too long did I?” Nightshade asked apologetically.

“Not at all,” Misty responded with a smirk as the two began walking. “I just got here myself actually.”

They walked and talked for a while, Misty talking about her job mostly while Nightshade mainly listened.

“Hey you wanna go grab a bite? I’m famished,” Misty asked after they had been walking a while. She motioned Nightshade toward a nearby bistro, and Nightshade followed.

Misty ordered a large meal while Nightshade opted for a light brunch. As they sat eating their meals a familiar, but unwelcome, voice assaulted Nightshade’s ears, which folded back in reflex.

“Hey there guys, how’s it goin’?” Lucky questioned in a joyful tone as he approached their table.

“Hi, Lucky,” Misty managed to mumble through a mouth full of hay-fries.

Lucky looked at Nightshade expectantly, but she chose to avert her eyes to the ground beneath her rather than respond. Lucky just shook his head and continued small talk with Misty.

“So, I heard you started a new position on the weather control team, how’s that going for ya?”

Misty took a gulp of her drink before replying. “Well, I’m still on my probationary period, so I have to be sure I don’t disappoint my manager if I want to keep it.”

“Well, I hope you don’t disappoint them then,” Lucky said, chuckling a bit.

“I know she won’t,” Nightshade insisted harshly, still not looking up from the ground. Both Misty and Lucky looked at her with confusion in their eyes.

Lucky spoke first.

“Is there, uh, something wrong Nightshade?”

Nightshade finally looked back up and glared at Lucky, trying not to betray any emotion.

“Nothing’s wrong,” she deadpanned.

Lucky and Misty shot each other a quick glance before looking back to her.

“You can tell us if there’s something you want to talk about.”

“I told you I’m fine,” Nightshade reiterated, now starting to betray a bit of agitation in her voice.

“Are you sure? You’re acting a bit strange,” Lucky asked again. “If there’s anything we can do-”

At this point, Nightshade snapped.

“You’ve already done enough Lucky! You’ve already ruined my life and taken everything good I had left away from me! If you hadn’t come along and shoved yourself into my life I’d be a whole lot better off for myself!” Nightshade had begun crying, not tears of sadness, but of anger, and passion.

She suddenly remembered where she was and looked around to see half of Ponyville staring at her with either shocked or disgusted expressions. Immediately, she shot up and started galloping towards her home as fast as her legs could carry her. She heard Misty calling for her to stop, but she dare not risk the citizens of Ponyville having any more reason to shun her. She needed to be alone, so she kept going.

Nightshade barred her doors and windows and shut all the curtains before collapsing onto her bed. She was sobbing uncontrollably at this point from a combination of anger, embarrassment, and confusion.

Her pillow was thoroughly soaked through with a combination of her tears and mucus by the time she managed to sob herself to sleep, but at last she finally lay silent, oblivious to the world, and unaware of anything that might have been awaiting her when she awoke.

Part Nine: Act of Kindness

Nightshade decided that she would finally go to her favorite place once more: the ruined castle in the Everfree. She figured it would be quite a while before Lucky would be returning to Misty’s house anyway, since he had to fly all the way to Canterlot castle and back, even if he didn’t stay there long.

She wanted to experience the same feelings she used to have when she went on her treks into the forest; she wanted to see the place where the best flowers bloomed in the ruins of the old castle’s courtyard.

As she was arriving at the entrance into the forest, she pondered why it was that so many other ponies feared the Everfree. The explanation most gave was that it was unnatural or scary, but the only real difference she saw was that it was self-reliant. The weather worked on its own, the animals hunted and foraged for their own food, and even some of the plant life had a mind of its own.

Why does that merit the other ponies fears, though? They simply seemed to fear it because they didn’t fully understand it. Maybe the reason she had never feared it was that she had never understood her own life, so to fear what she didn’t understand was to fear herself.

The ponies in Ponyville never had to wonder if their harvests would be fruitful, or if it would be raining on the day they wanted to go out; they could just change the weather whenever they pleased to fit their needs. Her life had never been so simple.

Perhaps the few ponies that didn’t fear the Everfree were ponies like her: ponies that had no idea what was coming next for them. The forest reminded her of herself in a way, the way it had to care for and tend to itself, other than the handful of creatures that were brave enough to help it.

Self-reliance is a scary concept to those who haven’t experienced it. They can’t control things that are able to fend for themselves. Ponies fear what they have no control over, even if it isn’t out to hurt them. So, even though I could fend for myself physically, there was no substitute for having somepony to rely on emotionally. Because of that I grew bitter and lashed out, which only worsened the issue.

She could see the ruins of the castle over the treetops now. The sun appeared as if it were sitting directly atop the tallest turret, like some kind of beacon, for her. She shifted her saddlebags and slowed her pace slightly, wishing to enjoy her walk a bit longer.

The main difference between me and this forest is that this forest has left a mark on the world. Not only with because of all the history that’s held within the ruins, but because of the hundreds of ponies that live in fearful respect of the place, even though it rarely causes anypony any inconvenience or trouble. I have nothing like that to leave behind.

About the time she finished her thought she arrived in the clearing that held the castle ruins. The sun still seemed to sit atop the castle’s turret, and stray beams of sunlight were shining down onto the small area that housed most of the plant life that she had always come out here searching for.

She walked over to the spot and began looking among all the flowers, reciting their names, their effects, and what potions she used them for in her head. After looking around a bit, she plucked a large yellow flower which was shaped like a trumpet.

This ought to finish it up.

She opened her saddlebag and removed a few of her tools and a partially filled potion flask. Soon, she had prepared the trumpet flower and added it to the partial potion. She used a spell to increase the effects of the potion, which caused it to begin bubbling for a few moments before becoming still again.

Wrapping up her tools and setting them aside neatly, she took a seat in the patch of flowers, still levitating the potion beside her.

Be strong, Nightshade, for your friends. For Misty and Lucky.

She closed her eyes and quickly drew the potion to her open mouth, then swallowed the whole flask of liquid in an instant. There was hardly enough time for her to set the potion down before she began feeling it burn away at her insides. It was as if she had swallowed a vial of liquid fire.

The sudden onslaught of pain drug her to her knees. She didn’t want to fight it, but every instinct was telling her to try to stop the pain.

It should only be a few minutes more. You can be strong, just remember it’s to protect your friends.

“Hello? Nightshade are you out here?” a voice rang out near the edge of the clearing

Lucky?! What the hell are you doing here?

“Nightshade!” Lucky spotted her, and quickly flew over.

She was starting to mildly convulse at this point, so she knew there was no point in trying to make him leave.

“It’s t-too... late. P-poison,” Nightshade managed to tell him.

“But, you’ve got an antidote here in your bags? R-right? I’ll get it, don’t worry!” Lucky began searching wildly through her bags, but she hadn’t brought any other supplies.

“Stop,” she barely whispered, causing him to whip his head around and look at her, tears beginning to stream down his face, a look of pure desperation visible in his eyes.

Why is he even here? Wasn’t there some kind of emergency?

“Argh!” Nightshade howled out in pain. She didn’t have long left before the poison would shut down her vital organs.

This pain is unbearable, I don’t even care, I’m just glad... glad somepony is here with me...

Nightshade began trying to speak between deep breaths.

“Lucky... I’m... gl- gl-”

Seeing that she couldn’t manage to get the words out, Lucky moved over closer to her side and held her hoof in his.

“Don’t try to talk Nightshade.”

The pain and convulsions had stopped almost fully for Nightshade, and she could feel herself starting to lose consciousness.

“I was always your friend Nightshade... I’m not- I’m not like the others.”

Others... What is he talking... about...

Nightshade could see that Lucky’s face had drawn close to hers as her eyes fell shut.

Part Eight: Memory

Nightshade’s deep slumber was interrupted when the bright beams of sunlight seeping in through one of the windows assaulted her eyes. She quickly amended the situation by turning over and shoving her face into her pillow.

“Ugh... just five more minutes,” she grumbled to herself.

She wished she could just lie there, but she knew she couldn’t when a familiar voice called to her.

“Time to get up honey; breakfast is ready!” her mother’s voice chimed.

Nightshade begrudgingly rolled herself out of bed and her hooves hit the floor with a thud. After freshening up and getting her things together for school, she made her way to the table, where she found her parents already eating.

“Gee, thanks for waiting for me,” she commented jokingly.

Her mother gave her a stern look for a moment, but then smiled playfully and chuckled.

“Well we just weren’t sure if you were EVER going to get up, is all.”

Nightshade joined them and he three ate their meals, Nightshade and her mother bantering a bit while her father remained mostly engulfed in the newspaper, as per the usual. When they finished they cleared the table and Nightshade prepared to leave for school, while her father prepared to go to work.

Nightshade started to leave but was stopped short by her mother once more.

“Flower, I want you to stop by the bakery af...”

The rest of the sentence faded as the name hit Nightshade like a ton of bricks.

Flower.

She remembered.

As she did, a deafening boom seemed to come from nowhere as time around her stopped and everything turned to gray. The walls of her childhood home, along with her parents themselves, began to crumble, leaving only the small room that was now her home.

“NO!” She ran to her mother and tried to throw her forelegs around her, but as she did the shade of her mother turned to ash. She began sobbing.

If this is a nightmare, then why haven’t I woken up yet?

Nightshade wiped her eyes and looked up to see something covered in a cloth on the ground in front of her. Curiosity got the best of her, so she uncovered it to see what lie beneath. She quickly averted her eyes and fell back onto her hindquarters at what she saw.

Was that....

Slowly looking back at the object, she saw herself in the reflection of a mirror, but she was different.

Her eyes looked empty and soulless, black as night. Her coat and mane were a more sickly pale than their normal silver tone, and her teeth were pointed and sharp.

As she sat staring, she heard an unfamiliar voice come from behind her.

“You know who the true culprit is, child.”

The mirror and the rest of the scenery rippled and then disappeared, and she was left in a black void. She remembered now why she had begun calling herself Nightshade. She remembered the things she had done.

I am...

Nightshade awoke once more. She pinched herself with a bit of magic just to be sure it wasn’t still a dream. She levitated a small mirror nearby and looked at herself disgustedly for a few moments before also levitating a nearby comb. She began brushing her mane as she pondered her dream.

How have I let myself be so ignorant…. I had this all figured out a long time ago, but I lost sight of the truth somehow. It isn’t Lucky, or the stallion that robbed me, or anypony else that’s to blame for how my life turned out, it’s just me. Everything that’s happened to me is my own doing.

The answer’s been right here on me this whole time... I know what really caused all this to happen.

Which means I know what I have to do.

Nightshade placed the comb and mirror on a nightstand and got up from her bed. She looked around the shack for a moment, remembering the days when it was just a single room in her parent’s home instead of the decrepit shack it had now become. She sighed sorrowfully and trotted over to the window.

Still dark out, I guess I could just…. No, I should wait until sunrise. I wouldn’t want to exclude Misty. I’ve caused her just as much grief as I have Lucky, I’m sure.

To pass the time until the sun rose, she grabbed a few of her spare herbs and began concocting some basic potions: things she could do without much thought. The process had become somewhat of a coping mechanism for her over the years. When she began to be overwhelmed, she could always make some potions to get her mind off the whatever situation was bothering her at the time.

Something she had always wondered over the years, however, was if making potions really was her special talent. She seemed to have a knack for it, but there were plenty of other ponies that were skilled at things that weren’t necessarily their special talent. Everypony else she knew had discovered their cutie mark under much happier circumstances than she, and their special talents had become clear to them at that very moment.

Nothing had ever been clear for her. Her life had been nothing but a living hell from the day her cutie mark appeared. She never had any clarity or closure, only confusion.

After using up the herbs that she had stored up, she still had some spare time to kill, so she just tidied up around her shack. As she wiped the dust off one of the bookshelves something caught her eye.

She lifted the old diary that she had kept when she was a filly and blew the dust from the cover. It had been years since she had even used it, since before her parents had passed. The pages were mostly worn and unreadable from years of weathering, and she could only make out a few words here and there, but the memories were there. Giving a hint of a smile, she sat the book down on the table, opened it to an empty page, and began writing.

Nightshade opened her eyes and felt a pain on the side of her face. She lifted her head, scoffing when she realized it was from the quill that had now left an imprint on her cheek. She looked out the window and, judging by the sun, presumed she had dozed off for quite a few hours. It was around noon.

She got up and began clearing her things from the table, putting some of them away in her saddlebag. When she was about to pick up the diary she remembered that she had actually gotten some writing down before falling asleep. Hesitating for a moment at first, she ripped the page from the book, crumpled it up, and proceeded to toss it aside.

She walked outside into the sun and started walking towards Ponyville, ignoring the new shipment of herbs at the doorstep.

As she arrived in Ponyville she began asking around for Misty. After asking half a dozen ponies or so to no avail, somepony finally spoke up.

“I could help... if, uh, that’s okay.”

Recognizing the voice, she turned and replied.

“You know where she is, Lucky?” she asked him.

“She’s at home, out sick from weather duty with the feather flu,” he replied, looking at the ground and playing in the dust with his hoof.

She immediately turned to head in the direction of Misty’s home, but promptly turned back and motioned for Lucky to trot with her.

“You don’t have to hide you know,” she encouraged.

His ears perked up slightly, and he increased his gait to match Nightshade’s own.

“Nightshade, I’m-”

“Just wait ‘til we’re there Lucky; just enjoy the walk for now... please.”

Lucky nodded in understanding, and they continued on their way.

When they arrived, Nightshade knocked on the door without even thinking, but cringed when she realized that Misty would probably be asleep due to her sickness.

“D-don’t come in! I’m contagious!” Misty yelled through the door.

Nightshade turned and looked at Lucky quizzically.

“I don’t think she’s ever had feather flu before,” Lucky said matter-of-factly.

They both started laughing, and Nightshade proceeded to open the door and walk inside.

“Guys, don’t! I’m serious!” Misty exclaimed from the sofa she lay upon.

“Misty, do we look like pegasi to you?” Nightshade asked, still giggling.

Misty seemed to think about it for a few seconds before responding.

“O-oh... right. Well, what is it anyways? You startled me.”

Nightshade simply sat down on the floor and grew silent, her smile from a few moments ago fading as she returned to her normal solemn state when she remembered why she had come.

“Guys,” she began, “I’m... I’m so sorry.”

“But what did you-” Misty stopped short when Nightshade motioned a hoof to silence her.

“You’ve both done more to help me than I’ve ever deserved from you, and all I’ve done in return is accuse and berate you for everything you do.

Lucky, you’ve done nothing to harm me; in fact, you’ve saved me from harm, and I accused you of being the one to cause all my problems.”

Nightshade paused, looking at Lucky expectantly, but he simply nodded and remained in silence.

“And Misty, you’ve been one of the few friends I’ve ever had. You’ve been there for me since we were fillies, and I’ve been cold, demeaning, and just plain rude to you. You’re the only pony I’ve ever considered family.”

“Ohhhh, Nighty,” Misty cooed as tears began forming in her eyes.

“Neither of you are at fault for anything that has happened to me, and I just wanted you to hear that I acknowledge that now.”

“We knew you were hurting,” Misty said, getting up from her sofa and sitting down beside Nightshade. “We just wanted to make you feel like you had somepony to confide in, but all we did was drive you away, we should have just left you alone.”

Nightshade shook her head. “No Misty, you did everything you should have, I’m just... just a big jerk, I-”

She was cut short by Lucky firmly placing a hoof on her shoulder and shushing her.

She was slightly aghast at this action, and was about to question him, but he shushed her again.

While looking at him, she noticed a small blue gem in the side of his helm glowing and vibrating. After a few moments it stopped.

“I’m sorry about the timing, but there’s been a perimeter breach at the castle, and due to the feather flu outbreak they’ve had night guard on call for daytime so I’ve gotta rush,” he said.

Lucky immediately bolted out the door and was in the air before it had even shut behind him; it slammed close with a thud.

“What in the world was that about?” Nightshade asked, shocked at Lucky having broken the mood of the situation so suddenly.

“New form of communication. The different vibration patterns mean different types of emergencies. All the crystals are linked to a central stone in the castle, so the keeper can input the vibration into it and all the guards are alerted to the situation no matter where they are... pretty neat, huh?” Misty explained.

“Yeah, I guess,” Nightshade responded half-heartedly, still upset by the whole thing.

Shortly afterwards, Nightshade got up to leave.

“You don’t have to leave so soon ‘Shade; we’ve already established you can’t catch my flu after all,” Misty pleaded.

“I’m just going to go for a walk; I need to get some fresh air and think for a while. I’ll come back afterwards and maybe Lucky will be back by then,” she assured Misty.

“Alright then...” Misty pouted, returning to her sofa to lie back down.

Nightshade smiled and chuckled at her before heading outside.

Part Ten (Final): The Attributes of a Flower

Night had begun to fall by the time a crime scene was established and any investigations began.

It was apparent that Nightshade and Lucky were poisoned, but the circumstances surrounding it weren’t so clear. Misty simply shook her head at the sight and turned to head to her tent. Once inside, she called one of the unicorn mages in to begin reverting her appearance.

"All this effort with disguises and all this time spent for nothing," she said bitterly as the unicorn's horn began glowing and an aura surrounded her.

"It isn't your fault, captain. It was Lucky's job to keep an eye on her... but we see how that turned out."

"I shouldn't have let her out of my sight, we've lost a valuable chance. What was that damned message that made Lucky leave in the first place anyway?"

"Well, according to the communication stone's guardian, nothing has been transmitted in nearly three days, so we are assuming that either he or Lucky was lying... or-"

"Or that somepony else has learned of the communication stone." Misty finished his sentence, eliciting a slight nod from him in response.

"Dammit!" Misty exclaimed, slamming a hoof against the desk in her tent.

"Hold still now, we don't want the spell to turn you into a walking color wheel again," the unicorn said, chuckling to himself.

They continued in silence for a time before a young guard came through the door of the tent. He turned to Misty and quickly stood erect.

"Captain, we've finished investigating the scene and have determined with certainty what took place." After finishing, he continued to stand there quietly for a few moments.

"...Well?" Misty said impatiently.

"S-sorry ma'am." He pulled out a set of notes and continued. "The poison was the cause of both deaths. There was no sign of struggle so we believe it to be a double suicide. L-Lucky's body was found very close to the mare's with traces of the same poison she drank found around his lips. The mare's body shows signs of having been dead for a significantly longer period of time, suggesting she got a stronger dose of the poison than... than Lucky. That is all." The stallion began to turn to leave before Misty spoke up.

"I know he was a friend of yours, but he let his feelings control him, rather than sticking to the mission at hoof. He deserved it."

Without turning around to face Misty, the stallion spoke.

"All due respect, captain, nopony deserves to die like that...." He walked out of the tent.

Misty shrugged off the stallion's comment and turned to the unicorn that was still in the tent.

"How much longer on this spell? I need to make a report of my own."

After her disguise had been removed, Misty trotted to a nearby, much larger tent with a symbol of the moon above the opening. She entered and kneeled.

"My Princess," she said humbly before rising back to her hooves.

"'Tis terrible to think that one can be so filled with despair, she dost forget even the death of a close friend," Princess Luna said softly. "Though thou were quite convincing we must admit. Please, sit."

Misty obeyed and sat down on a cushion on the ground.

"I assume you've heard that my peers are suspecting that somepony has learned of the communication stones?" Misty asked.

"Yes, and it is most troubling to us," Luna responded, looking down defeatedly.

Misty nodded before replying.

"It's a shame. If we were correct in our suspicions about her talent, that mare could have been a valuable asset to us. I just wish we could have been able to confirm it sooner. It’s not often a pony is born with a talent to kill."

Luna looked back to Misty.

"I wonder though, my subject, have we become no better than our enemies? That we would refer to the loss of a life as simply the loss of an 'asset'?" Luna asked, sorrow visible in her eyes.

Misty had no response and looked at the floor, ashamed of her choice of words. Luna continued speaking.

"Perhaps if only I had walked more among her dreams, I could have quelled her dark thoughts, instead of only encouraging them." A tear began rolling down Luna's cheek, but she quickly wiped it away on her foreleg.

Around that time, another guard came through the tent's entrance and quickly bowed to Princess Luna before turning to speak to Misty.

"We searched the mare's house, captain, this is the only further information we found." He gave a small scrap of paper to her. "This letter was on the floor, crumpled up."

"Thank you. Dismissed," Misty shooed the guard away from the tent.

"Read it aloud if you would, we would like to hear the final record of this mare," Princess Luna requested.

"Yes, my Princess." Misty cleared her throat.

“To anypony who finds this: I’ve been thinking about my cutie mark, about my “special talent”. A few have told me that upon seeing what the deadly nightshade did to my parents, I realized the potential of what a plant could do to a pony, and so my talent became the mixing of potions and poisons. That is what I have believed most of my life.

Just because I’m good at something doesn’t make it my special talent though, does it? I know ponies who are reasonably skilled at tasks other than their talent, maybe I’m like them. Maybe potions have nothing to do with what I’m meant to do.

I’ve also met ponies whose cutie mark is a representation of something, rather than directly related to what they do. Even some of the Element bearers are proof of this. Balloons can mean laughter, butterflies kindness, and gemstones generosity.

What does a deadly flower mean, or just a flower for that matter?

Flowers are pleasant in theory. Many look, smell, or taste pleasing to most ponies, but every rose has its thorns. My parents trusted the innocent look and taste of the flower, and ate it. In return it ate them from the inside out.

The petals of a flower draws ponies to it. The same is true for poisonous flowers as well. They lure somepony with the appearance of innocence, and that pony pays the price for falling for it.

I am not only skilled with the use of poisonous plants; I resemble one. My parents loved me, and died because of it. Other ponies hear the story about them and are drawn to my sorrow, but I only hurt them. It won’t be long before I cause something worse to happen.

My special talent is representative of the things me and the deadly nightshade have in common. Other things are drawn to us: ultimately drawn to their demise.

I can’t let that happen to Misty and Lucky.

When a flower dies, it helps the things growing around it flourish. The death of a flower allows other life to thrive. I must make a decision for the good of others.

I must allow my friends to thrive.