(SiC) Part 9 - Sailing Through The Storm

Chapters

That's Not Your Momma
A Big Storm is Brewing
Critter Trouble
A Blessing or a Curse?
Still Loyal, Even When it Hurts
Life Without Applejack
Surviving With Twilight
Home Again
Scootaloo's Scuffle
Song of Soarin'
Dash's Decision
Twilight Talks
Betrayal
Making Her Wish Come True
We Are Here For Each other
A New Experiment
Heroes of the Storm
A Different Mare Now
Twilight Sparkle, the Cursed Anathema
When One Member Suffers, We All Suffer

That's Not Your Momma

Rarity came home from her group study. She was concerned about Pinkie and couldn't stop thinking about how scary she was to be around. She saw that her parents were busy making dinner and she noticed that they had put her foal in the crib. She looked around for Sweetie Belle but figured that she must have been out with Scootaloo and Apple Bloom. Hopefully, she would be back before the rain started. Rarity needed to get busy on some dresses that she was working on since she had so many orders put in, but she hadn't touched her son all day. Her parents had been there for her and they came back specifically to help her through all of this. Rarity stood there and stared at her foal as she thought about what to do. She jumped a bit when a voice from behind her startled her.

"He's been waiting all day for you," Rarity's mother said. "Go on, pick him up."

Rarity's mother got closer to her daughter and put her front hooves on the crib.

"Momma," Strong Faith said.

"Oh, look! He wants you, Rarity. Pick him up."

Rarity smiled and put her front legs near him so that he might crawl up to her.

Strong Faith completely ignored her and crawled over to Rarity's mother. "Momma!" the baby cried.

"Oh, dear. I think he might be a little confused who the real mommy is." Rarity's mother scooped up the foal and he became relaxed in her hooves. "Here, you hold him, darling."

Rarity took her son and he began to cry.

"Momma!" the foal screamed!

"Mommy's right here," Rarity said.

The foal began to kick and become more upset. "Momma!" he cried again. He lashed out and began hitting her.

Rarity's mother took the foal back and Strong Faith instantly calmed down again. "Rarity, maybe you should take some time to work on your dresses. I think Strong Faith needs a diaper change."

Rarity paused for a moment as the awkwardness kicked in. "You know, I probably should change him since I haven't been around and I don't think he recognizes me as his mother."

"Nonsense, Rarity. You have too much on your hooves and I'll take care of this. You can play with him later on when he's more calm. He's probably just having a bad day. Go on," Rarity's mother commanded as she pointed with her front hoof. "He'll be here for you when it's dinner time."

Rarity sighed and walked away. "You would think after all this time that you would be a better mother and you might actually spend more time with your child instead of working on dresses," she muttered to herself. "You're nothing but a spoiled, rich snob who has her parents do everything for her." Rarity walked into her room and looked at her list of orders. It was going to be a long day, but perhaps after work, there would be some dark chocolate ice cream therapy for her in the freezer.

In the kitchen, Rarity's father was busy making a stew for dinner. He looked and noticed that his wife that was working on chopping the veggies was not there. He found her putting their grandfoal back in the crib. He walked over to her and asked. "Honey, didn't I just hear Rarity walk in the door?"

"Yes, she just got home from her group study," she answered.

"Don't you think that perhaps she should spend a little more time with her foal? I mean, she hasn't even been going to her special group therapy anymore."

Cookie looked at her spouse and replied, "You know what she went through was very traumatizing and she's so young. She has also been extra busy with her business; I don't want her to feel overwhelmed."

"I understand, but I just think it would be wise if she were to spend just a little extra time with her son. I think it might be better for the both of them."

Cookie frowned a bit. "Maybe later on. Did you see all her orders that she has to get done? I mean, she barely had the time to make it to her Bible study today."

"I suppose so. I hope things settle down. I understand that she's going through a lot of stuff right now. Let's discuss this after dinner and see if we can perhaps resolve this situation later."

In her room, Rarity did not begin working but sat down on her bed and looked out the window. A great feeling of hopelessness and despair plagued her mind as she watched the storm clouds come in. She thought she was mature and responsible enough to take care of this foal on her own without the help of her parents, but it was clear that she was still not ready for that. Right now she desired two things. A gallon of ice cream and crying, but she was too tired for either and her head was aching from all this stress and worry. Rarity was in the mood to give up. To just lay on her bed and wallow in whatever ponies were supposed to wallow in. She grabbed her necklace that her parents gave her and put it around her neck in hopes that wearing it might change her darkened mood. She then glanced at her table beside her bed and looked at the sticky notes she made. She used her magic as she sorted through each one. Each note had a Bible verse on it about raising a pony to be strong in the Lord and various other verses about being a strong mare in the Lord. These verses used to strengthen her spirit, but now reading them seemed to sap the life out of her and actually hurt her feelings greatly. She knew that the hurt was coming from the truth about how her life was now and that she would need to try harder in life. Her past regrets crept into the back of her mind and crippled whatever morale she had left in her. The painful reminders of her past brought tears to her eyes and now the Bible that once comforted her, left her feeling hurt and alone. She began to wish things in her mind that left her feeling more hurt, including wishing that her son was never born. Rarity was ready to throw in the towel for the day. She had enough and wanted to surrender the good fight that she had tried to fight. She grabbed her night time sleeping mask and put it over her eyes and tried to go to sleep, but no matter how hard she tried to rest, her mind would not let her be at peace and she lay there in misery.

A sudden knock at her door startled the white unicorn.

"Rarity? May I come in?" her mother asked.

Rarity took the red velvet sleeping mask from off of her face. "Yes, I suppose."

The door opened and Cookie came in and sat on her bed. "Rarity, dear, why are you in bed? I thought you had a lot of work to do."

"I do," Rarity answered. "But I'm not in the mood to do anything."

"Oh, would you like to talk about it?"

"Not now," Rarity said. "Why did you come to me anyway?"

"I just wanted to let you know that dinner is ready."

Rarity turned her back to her mother and looked at the window. "I don't want to eat now. My belly hurts for some reason."

"Is there anything I can do for you?" Cookie asked.

"Yes. would you mind going out and picking up a gallon of my most favorite ice cream?"

"I suppose I can do that for you, but I hope you may have some dinner as well." Cookie looked at her daughter with a bit of concern. "Is there anything else I may do for you? You appear as if there's something bothering you."

"Yeah," Rarity said. "You can let me be."

Cookie put her head down and closed her eyes. "Very well," she said before getting off her bed and walking over to the door. "If there's anything you want to tell us later, your father and I are always here for you." Cookie took one last look at her daughter before she closed the door quietly.

Rarity listened as the sound of her mother's hoofsteps faded away in the distance. She began to weep as she put her two front hooves on her stomach. Her stomach only bothered her because her mind was plagued with so much guilt and depression. This was a battle that she would not be able to fight on her own, yet she was too ashamed to ask for help. The tears made her light-blue makeup run down her cheeks and stain her white fur. "I am no longer beautiful," Rarity said to herself.

Rarity curled up in a fetal position and listened to the sounds of the trees rustling in the wind. The relaxing sounds of the wind made her not worry so much and eventually helped her to drift off to sleep.

A Big Storm is Brewing

Rainbow Dash was now home. She looked up at the clock and saw that it was getting late, but Soarin' had been getting home later and later it seemed. She had to start making dinner within a few hours, so she trotted over to the fridge and opened it up. To her surprise, there was nothing in the fridge for dinner and there was certainly nothing in the freezer as well. She had to get going to the store and fast. Rainbow Dash ran into the living room, grabbed her saddle bags and put them on herself. She didn't know what she was buying at this moment, but she was sure that she could find something since Soarin' wasn't a picky eater. Cooking actual meals, or what could be called, Soarin' sized meals was a new experience for her. She didn't consider herself very good at making meals, and by no means did she enjoy it, but this was a new life and sacrifices had to be made somewhere for each other. For Soarin', she'd give up her whole day to attempt to make him good food if he wanted because she truly did love him that much. She guessed that the one good thing about her new struggles was that it helped her focus on other, more important things in their marriage rather than spending time trying to be the best that she possibly could be when it came to sports and fitness.

It was a good thing that they had opened a Pony-mart not too far from where she lived. She left the house and flew over to the shopping center. She hated going there because shopping was boring to her and it didn't help that there was almost always long lines to wait in, but it had to be done. Rainbow Dash entered the store and walked up and down the aisles while putting things into the shopping cart that she was pushing. It seemed that each time she'd go to pick up something else, she'd find yet another thing that they needed. She also wanted to make sure that she got every single item needed that she could possibly think of since going back to the store for one or two forgotten things was beyond annoying to her. Rainbow Dash knew that Soarin' ate like a house on fire and she still had quite an appetite even though she was hardly active these days. To her, it was as if her body was constantly combating some kind of illness and the pain flare-ups also made her very hungry regardless of how sedentary she could be.

"Celery, carrots, bread," Rainbow Dash said as she shoved each item into the cart. "I think that covers it all." Just as she was getting ready to check out, she saw a huge sale on pies. Apple, Pecan, and Pumpkin. All on sale and set on display in a way that practically begged for her to pick one up. She fought the temptation despite how nice the display looked since she was trying to cut Soarin' back on these kinds of foods and once as a top tier athlete, eating treats like this was not a good idea. Soarin' also had a way of finding foods that were hidden no matter how well she tried to hide them. She decided to pass it up and head over to the check out counter. She was thankful that for once there was no pony in line.

Rainbow Dash quickly placed the items from the cart onto the conveyor belt and proceeded to the opposite side where she would be cramming everything into her saddle bags.

The clerk gave her an odd look. "Feeding Princess Celestia's entire army or something?" he asked.

"Nope, " Rainbow Dash said with an awkward smirk. "It's just for me and my special stallion. Mostly for him. Actually, way more of this stuff is for him."

"It looks as if you're feeding a top tier Wonderbolt!" the clerk said as he grabbed an item and punched in the price into the register.

Rainbow Dash smiled. "Well, that's actually not a lie."

"You feed a Wonderbolt?" the clerk asked.

"Feed a Wonderbolt?" Rainbow asked. "I'm only married to the best one!"

The clerk stared at Rainbow Dash's mane for a few moments and then it hit him. "You're Rainbow Dash and you're married to Soarin', aren't you?"

Rainbow Dash nodded her head yes quickly and proudly.

"I can't believe all the stories I've heard about you!" The clerk said as he dropped her bag of carrots in excitement. "I read the stories about you shattering every Wonderbolt's record! My brother is such a huge fan of yours and he told me a story that you had some kind of freak accident that made you halt your Wonderbolt's dream."

Rainbow looked away rather sad now. "Yeah," she sighed.

"I'm so sorry to hear that. Maybe someday you'll get it back and fly with them again."

"I'm kind of afraid that it may distract me from what I really need to focus on, but knowing me, I bet if I had the chance and felt better, I'd go for it in a heart beat, but I just don't feel that's something I should ever try to do again."

"Why not?" the clerk asked.

"Because I think I need to focus on other things in my life and getting ready for new experiences," Rainbow replied.

"The clerk picked up a bag of celery and punched the price into the register. "What kind of new experiences?"

Rainbow Dash shoved some cans into her bag and looked up at the stallion. "You're really nosy, aren't you?" she asked.

"My apologies," he said. "This job can get quite boring and I sometimes talk too much, but what kind of new experiences if you don't mind telling me?"

Rainbow Dash sighed at how personal this conversation was getting. "I'd like to become a mother."

"Oh, well, I'm sure that you'd make a great mother."

"Gee, thanks," Rainbow said as she continued to stuff more food into her saddle bags.

The clerk was tempted to probe her with more questions, but he sensed that this was enough. It was as if Rainbow Dash had this sort of magical aura that gave off mass appeal to almost everypony and was always active whether she was well or sick.

"Okay, your total is two hundred and twenty five bits, please."

"Two hundred and twenty five bits?" Rainbow thought to herself. She knew that changing their diet to organic, thanks to Applejack's rants about it was expensive and Soarin' had the appetite of at least four grown stallions, but still, coming to the store usually wasn't this much of a shock to her when it came to paying up. At least Soarin' was bringing in some extra money from working over time. Rainbow Dash gave the clerk a large bag of two hundred bits and a smaller one of twenty five.

After the clerk poured out the bags of bits and counted them on the counter, he put an orange sticker on her saddle bags signifying that she had paid for what was inside. "Have a nice day, Miss Dash. I hope to see you again soon."

"Thanks, take care," Rainbow Dash said as she turned her back to him.

"Wait! I mean, excuse me, Miss Dash," the clerk called out.

Rainbow Dash turned back to him and noticed that he had pushed over a pen and a sheet of paper. "Huh?"

"Would you mind signing an autograph for my brother? He's been a huge fan of yours ever since you pulled off the world's first sonic rainboom."

"Well, sure. I can do that for him." Rainbow grabbed the pen.

"Wait!" the clerk said.

"Okay, now what?" Rainbow asked.

"Please use this pen instead. My brother from Fillydelphia gave it to me when I moved to Ponyville for just this occasion. It's rainbow colored ink." The clerk pushed the pen over to her.

Rainbow Dash took it and signed her name on the paper. Sure enough, the ink was rainbow colored. She had carefully signed her name on the paper as neatly as she could. She put the pen down and looked up at the stallion as if he were going to ask her to do something else.

His eyes lit up with excitement as he took the pen and paper back. "Thank you so much! I can't tell you how much this will brighten up his day when I go back to visit my family!"

"You're welcome. I'm sure I'll be back again soon knowing how much my spouse eats," Rainbow Dash said with an awkward smile.

The stallion laughed and then proceeded to help the next customer in line.

Rainbow Dash left the store and the security guard gave her a friendly nod when he saw the special sticker on her saddle bags. She spread her wings and took off into the air, but a strong gust of wind nearly brought her back down to the ground.

"Wow, I almost forgot how heavy these bags are, especially when I haven't gone shopping in a while. This storm looks like it's going to be a killer too." Rainbow realized that she'd probably be better off walking most of the way home with this heavy luggage and this incoming storm. Her bags were over packed to the top with all kinds of goodies and she was barely able to button each side. She looked about as clunky and cumbersome as her pet tortoise, Tank. She was thinking about Pinkie right now and was kind of hoping that she wouldn't bump into her. She was a bit spooked because of that whole incident she had earlier with her. She knew Pinkie seemed to be a bit manic ever since she had known her, but she had been getting worse as time went on. Rainbow felt it was only a matter of time before she would end up in the pillow room, locked away for a while. Rainbow's nostrils twitched with delight at the scent of rain in the air. She had to get going fast before she got caught in a down pour.

BANG!

The sound of thunder and the flash of lightning in the distance made her jump a bit. She was rather annoyed at that. Getting scared was something that she didn't like and thunder only used to frighten her when she was a little filly. It seemed that ever since that traumatic experience when those two mares used lighting to hurt her, she had been more afraid again. Rainbow Dash felt something heavy clunk against her hoof. She looked down and noticed that one of her cans that she had bought fell from her bag and was rolling down the hill.

"Son of a biscuit," Rainbow muttered as she chased after it. She felt rather clumsy as she tried to keep her balance with the giant saddle bags on her back. She looked even more ridiculous carrying all of this stuff as she chased after the can that eventually landed against a rock. Rainbow Dash picked up the can and stuffed it back into her bag. She was about to head back, when she noticed a rather familiar looking pony heading towards the door of one of the small houses in the distance. "Is that," Rainbow Dash paused for a moment as she squinted her eyes to make out exactly who it was. "Soarin'?" she asked, completely shocked that he wasn't home by now and that he was walking to some strangers house it seemed.

When he got to the door, he knocked on it and it opened immediately. A very young looking mare with an amber colored coat and an orange colored mane and tail popped her head out and smiled at him. Soarin' looked around from left to right as if he was making sure that nopony would see him. He took out a bag of bits and gave it to her. The young mare gladly took the bag of bits and welcomed him inside.

Rainbow Dash tried to make out who she was, but she couldn't see very well, not to mention that her cutie mark was hidden from her view inside the house. She stood there in disbelief. "No, just no!" she shouted out. "I can't believe he would go back to doing something like this again! This can't be happening, not when we're married! My God, this hurts so much." Rainbow Dash walked over to the house and knocked on the door. The feeling of her heart breaking was great at this moment.

There was no answer.

She knocked louder several times, but yet they were either ignoring her or they couldn't hear her depending on which room they were in.

BANG!

Another crackle of thunder rang out through the skies. Rainbow Dash couldn't wait around here any longer. She felt the raindrops land down on her coat. She had to get going home and fast. She was starving and her mind was running wild at this moment. Just married and she had already caught him with another mare. Rainbow Dash hurried on home and had just enough energy and strength to make it up to their house. She opened up the door, stepped inside and slammed the door shut behind her. The moment she did that, the rain came pouring down in torrents and more thunder began to boom with great intensity. She leaned against the door and put her front hoof to her head as she closed her eyes. Her emotions were running wild and she wanted to cry, but she refused to do so. Rainbow Dash walked into the kitchen, placed the heavy saddle bags on the table and shook her body like a dog to get her coat dry, a neat little trick she learned from Fluttershy. She didn't feel like making dinner, but it didn't matter right now. She wasn't even angry, she was heart broken and that heartbreak made her crash into a deep depression. She tried to ignore the possibilities of what Soarin' was doing with that mare. She was already bound to him for life and there was nothing she could do about that, nor even wanted to because she was loyal. Loyal to her God and loyal to her spouse, no matter what the situation.

There was no time for tears or regret, she had to get moving. She took out some pots and she was going to make something quick. Chili with brown rice sounded good and she started on it. The entire time, her mind was flashing back to the previous days before they were married. She remembered Twilight's warning that the best way to predict someone's outcome in the future is usually determined by their past. She knew that getting married wouldn't all of a sudden get rid of every single lustful desire, but she really felt that Soarin' was guided by the Spirit, unless she just thought wrong. She remembered the day of his confession and repentance. She remembered how he tried so hard to stay pure and even ended up getting confused by what's good and sacred in marriage. It would have to be quite a cruel and evil act to go through all that they had been through only to play off their fledgling marriage like it was meaningless.

Rainbow Dash finished preparing dinner and placed it down on the dining room table. She took her seat closest to the steaming pots, but did not eat. She decided to wait for her husband and hoped that he'd be in soon and get done with God only knows what he was doing with that mare.

Within a few moments, Soarin' came in the house drenched from the down pouring rain. He dried himself off with a towel nearby and sat down in front of Dash. He was a little bit surprised to see her with her front legs crossed against her chest and she had a pouty look on her face.

"Um, sorry I'm late, Dash. You didn't have to wait for me to eat, you know."

Rainbow Dash didn't say a word. Her eyes were angrily locked onto him as if she were staring a hole through his soul.

"Dash? Hello?" Soarin' asked.

Rainbow Dash finally spoke. "Do you want to tell me exactly why you were extra late today? How long has this been going on for?"

Soarin' had a dumb founded look on his face. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Rainbow Dash was down to her last nerve. She put both her front hooves down on the table and spoke in a slightly annoyed tone of voice. "I happened to notice you with that amber mare with the orange mane and tail and you were giving her money. Don't lie to me or act like it didn't happen. Is our marriage really that meaningless to you?"

Soarin' gulped. "I....uh....It's not what it looks like, I swear."

"Then tell me what business do you have with that mare."

"I can't say right now because it would ruin everything. I didn't really expect you to find out so soon. I need more time."

"More time for what? I caught you, and you won't even confess? What is wrong with you? I thought you loved me and was dedicated."

"I am," Soarin' replied with a smirk. "That's why I'm seeing this pony, to show my love and dedication for you in a new way."

"Soarin', you make no sense right now. Why not just spend all your time with me?"

"Of course it doesn't' make sense to you right now. This is part of the surprise!"

Rainbow Dash didn't know what to believe or say. If this was his excuse to not admit to what Rainbow saw, it was a terrible one. She didn't trust him now and she wasn't sure what she would or even could do about this situation.

Soarin' looked around the table at all the pots and then smiled awkwardly. "May we start eating, Dash?"

Rainbow Dash still had a pouty look on her face, but she took the lid off the pot of chili and pushed it over to Soarin'.

Soarin' took the pot and emptied most of it onto his plate. He was extra hungry today after his long day with the Wonderbolts. He drove his face into the food and chewed loudly with great pleasure.

She watched him devour his food as if he didn't have the slightest care in the world or had any conscience.

Soarin' picked his head up, already finished with his first serving. "Aren't you going to eat, Dash?" he asked with food all over his face.

Rainbow Dash sighed and took the pot. Knowing Soarin', he'd be able to finish this meal for six ponies by himself. She took her portion of food and slid the pot back over to him. Even though she was starving, she had no appetite to eat after what she saw today.

Soarin' took the pot and gladly piled the rest onto his plate.

Rainbow Dash was beginning to realize that he didn't need a plate to eat off of and she could save time by having to wash one less dish if she just let him eat out of the pot.

The two ponies quickly finished dinner and no matter how much he begged, she wasn't going to let him have the tiniest slice of apple pie.

Soarin' looked at the bedroom and then back to Dash. "So....."

It didn't take a mind reader to know what he was thinking. "FINE!" she said. She knew he didn't deserve this, but at least this would be someway of getting her frustrations out at the moment.

Critter Trouble

Fluttershy was running a little bit late. She had rescued a lost group of ducklings and reunited them with their mother. Back home, it was time to take care of her recovering serpent, Sammy. Fluttershy rushed over to the refrigerator and took out a brown paper bag with Sammy's name on it. Inside of it was a dead mouse. Fluttershy almost forgot that Sammy liked to have her toy around with his food or else he didn't want to eat it since he could be picky like that. She tied a string to the mouse's tail and walked into the living room with the dead mouse being dragged across the floor. She had to tip toe past several animals because her house was getting over populated and cluttered.

"Sammy! Mommy has your treat!" Fluttershy found the serpent. His head was sticking out from under the couch and his body could not be seen. Fluttershy tossed the dead mouse in front of him and wiggled the string attached to its tail. "Come and get it before it gets away, Sammy!" She tapped her hoof on the floor rapidly as she jerked the string around. "Oh no! It's getting away, Sammy. You better catch it before it's too late!"

Sammy turned his head away. His little eyes spoke of regret.

"Sammy? Aren't you going to eat?"

Sammy slid all the way under the couch hoping that Fluttershy would take that as a no.

"Well, if you're not going to eat, then I know a very hungry pregnant mommy who wants to eat their dinner", Fluttershy said as she walked back into the kitchen and put the dead mouse back into the bag. She then took some cheese out and came back into the living room. "Fiona!" Fluttershy called out. She waited a moment for the mouse to come out of the hole in the wall, but she did not come. Fluttershy knocked on the wall and called out again, but there was no answer. She turned back to where Sammy was under the couch. "Sammy, have you seen Fiona? She's not in her home right now. Oh, I hope she didn't run away or get lost." Fluttershy had a rather horrifying thought and asked, "Sammy, why are you hiding? Please come out and show yourself."

Sammy stuck his forked tongue out, sensing the air and then slowly crawled his way into plain sight.

What Fluttershy saw horrified her. There, she saw that Sammy had a small bulge in his belly.

Fluttershy felt great sadness and anger at the same time. She knew that Sammy had wanted to eat her by his behavior whenever Fiona was around. "Why did you eat Fiona!?" Fluttershy demanded to know.

The serpent stared up at her with his beady little eyes and stuck his forked tongue out as he communicated with her.

"Sammy, No! I don't care how tempting she was to eat. She was pregnant and was supposed to give birth soon! I told you that I was coming home earlier today to feed you! Do you want to go out and live on your own so you can catch your own wild mice? I don't think you would survive with your special needs. I do not allow my critters to eat other critters that I am caring for and you know this rule!"

Sammy looked down at the floor with shame. He knew he had screwed up big time no matter how delicious Fiona appeared to him. He looked back up for a second and apologized

"Well, I just can't trust you anymore, Sammy. You knew Fiona was special and yet you ate her anyway. I just don't know what I'm going to do with you."

Sammy slid back under the couch full of shame and regret that he hurt his master's feelings greatly.

Fluttershy stared at the little hole in the wall and wept for the loss of her special friend she was taking care of and for all those unborn babies she was carrying. She was deeply hurt and needed some time away from her cottage, but she knew that she couldn't stay out too long. She had other animals to feed and take care of, but right now she needed to get away and find a place of comfort, however, she could not trust Sammy to be alone by himself after what he did.

Fluttershy got out a small cage and opened it. "Sammy, in!" she commanded.

Sammy absolutely hated being in a cage, but he knew that he deserved way worse. He obediently slithered into the cage and Fluttershy latched it shut.

"Now, you think about what you have done and I'll be back later," she said as she placed the cage on a table. Fluttershy walked quickly to the door and headed out. She had no idea where she was going, she just kept walking and following the trails that her mind felt she should go down. Fluttershy kept walking until she found herself at the end of the trail she chose. It was raining lightly and Ponyville was expecting storms all throughout the week. She listened to the pitter-patter sound of raindrops against the earth and her hooves were all muddy from the puddles that were scattered about the ground. She ended up right in front of Sweet Apple Acres and she could see Big Macintosh carrying heavy supplies into a small shack nearby. Fluttershy looked down at the ground and began talking to herself. "Oh, I really want to go talk to Big Macintosh, but he looks so busy and kind of grumpy and I'd feel so wrong for intruding on his property without his permission. Fluttershy felt the urge to turn back and go home but she was very hurt and she was not doing a very good job when it came to keeping in touch with Big Mac. Fluttershy gulped and walked onto the farm towards the little shack that Big Macintosh went into. She said a silent prayer hoping that he wouldn't be angry that she came without warning while he was working. Fluttershy made it to the shack and peeked inside. There she saw Big Macintosh leaning over in one of the corners of the shack. This was the place that Granny Smith used to have open as a bar, but now it was being used as a tool shed. Fluttershy stared nervously at the red stallion for a while and then inched her way closely behind him. She hesitated again as if she still was not sure if she should be bothering him. Fluttershy took a deep breath and said as softly as she could, "Excuse me."

Big Macintosh nearly jumped out of his fur coat and quickly turned around, startled and afraid. "My Goodness!" He calmed down, taking several deep breaths when he realized it was Fluttershy.

"I'm so, so sorry, Big Mac. Was I, uh, too loud?"

"I just didn't expect anypony to be in here. The last pony that startled me that badly was Pinkie Pie. I swear, I just don't understand how there can be nothin' 'round me and all of the sudden she's poppin' out of trees and barrels."

"She's quite the big bang," Fluttershy assured.

Big Macintosh shook his head quickly trying to forget about the oddness of Pinkie Pie and focused back on Fluttershy. "Um, pardon me, but what are ya doin' out here anyway? I thought ya had a ton of animal critter friends that needed to be taken care of. It's kind of really muddy out there with all this rain and Princess Celestia sent out warnings about the weather."

"Well, why exactly are you working in this poor weather, if you don't mind me asking?" Fluttershy asked.

"Because there's always work to be done 'round the farm, especially now that we're down a pony."

"Down a pony?" Fluttershy asked.

"E-yup! Granny Smith found out that ya'll ain't goin' to the supposedly right kind of church, so she kicked A.J. off the farm fer good until she comes back to Mass."

"Oh, dear!" Fluttershy said. "Where did she go? Maybe I can find her and take her into my cottage since she did rebuild it after all. I just hardly have any room with all of my sick critter friends."

Big Macintosh shrugged. "I have no idea, but I'm thinkin' bout leavin' the farm as well and findin' new work, but I just don't know where to go. I never thought Granny Smith would ever do such a thing. Talk about unity in Christ."

"Fluttershy looked at the floor with sadness. "Well, maybe I can help you out on the farm. I'm sure I can sacrifice some time away from my animal friends."

Big Macintosh shook his head no. "Nope. I reckon ya don't understand how strong A.J. is. I appreciate the offer, but I don't need to see ya with a broken back. However, there is one thing ya could definitely help me with."

"What would that be?" the timid mare asked.

"Follow me." Big Macintosh said as he grabbed the bucket and proceeded to the back of the room.

Fluttershy nervously followed Big Macintosh while taking notice of the bar stand where she had first met Applejack. Some nasty memories came back to her, but she knew Applejack was a great friend and was not like that anymore. Flutterhy's ears perked up when Big Macintosh stopped and she heard the tiniest of little cries nearby.

Big Macintosh got low and moved a shovel aside to reveal a cluster of baby mice laying in a neatly made nest of hay. "I don't know what to do with them."

Fluttershy gasped and got down low near them. "Oh, my goodness! I think these are..." The animal expert studied each mouse carefully and then finished her sentence. "Why, these are Fiona's babies!"

"Excuse me?" Big Mac asked.

"Fiona was a weak mouse that I was taking care of. She came to me because she felt that she couldn't survive much longer in the Everfree forest. She often told me that she was afraid and was planning to have her babies somewhere else since there wasn't enough room in my cottage and she was very afraid of my snake, Sammy." Fluttershy continued to study the mice for a moment then continued. "I just can't believe that she'd travel all the way here just to have her babies. I guess she felt that this was a safe place and she knew that well....I talked about how safe I felt around you and how much I liked to come visit you. I guess she wanted to make sure that her babies had a place where they would be one hundred percent safe from any danger that may be lurking around."

Big Macintosh looked at the bucket he had brought over and then looked back at the mice. "So, what do you want to do with them?"

"Well, we keep them here safe and sound and..." Fluttershy was interrupted by Big Mac.

"Fluttershy, you do know that these are rodents and us farmers kind of consider them to be pests."

"They aren't pests at all," Fluttershy assured him. "They are just helpless babies and I think Fiona helped us find a new way to bond together."

"How is that so?" Big Mac asked.

"We're going to keep them here and perhaps we can shelter and feed them until they're big and strong enough to go out on their own."

Big Macintosh was rather unsure about this idea, but when he saw the joy and excitement in Fluttershy's eyes, he couldn't help but agree. "Okay, Fluttershy. We can keep them here. I just don't know how I can help you with this."

"Oh, don't worry, I'll do all the work. I just want you to stop by when I come over so you can watch them grow and spend some time with me."

That thought was incredibly sweet in Big Mac's mind. Between their very busy schedules and how hard both of them worked, it was very arduous for them to keep in touch, let alone date. At least this gave them a new chance to get together, even if it was for a short amount of time since now they were one hard working pony short on the farm.

Fluttershy looked into Big Mac's eyes and smiled. She was so happy that he was so understanding about all of this. Her emotions were giving her rather crazy ideas that she'd never thought she'd ever try to do, but she licked her lips and leaned in forward to kiss him.

Big Macintosh's heart raced as she drew near. He'd never thought this moment would happen considering how shy she was.

Right before they were going to kiss a loud voice shouted into the shed. It was Granny Smith. "Big Macintosh! Get yer flank out here and help me fix this busted water chute. That dern storm broke it again!"

The loud voice startled Fluttershy. She pulled back and let out an "Eeep!"

"Big Macintosh?" Granny Smith called out. "What was that high pitched sound?"

"I think I stepped on a mouse, Granny," Big Macintosh said. "I'm comin'." Big Mac turned to Fluttershy and sighed. "I'm sorry, but I must go. Ya can stay here and make these lil' critters comfy while I go help Granny. Just try not to be seen. The last thing she needs to know is that I'm with a mare from the wrong denomination."

Fluttershy nodded her head Okay. She was going to gather some materials to make a blanket to keep them warm in this cold tool shed.

It hasn't even been a few days without Applejack and Big Macintosh was already sick of this. He grumbled some words of disapproval and left Fluttershy alone to take care of the baby mice. He had the feeling that either Applejack would come back or things would break out into a war zone.

A Blessing or a Curse?

Pinkie Pie woke up feeling great. The sun was shining brightly from outside her window and she was happier than usual. She went downstairs and began to feel a rush of excitement that seemed to ripple through her fur coat and the closer she got to the front door, the greater and more intense the feeling. Curious as to what this strange sensation meant, she stepped closer to the door and was about to go out when suddenly, she heard two voices call out in unison from behind her. Pinkie turned around to see Mister and Misses Cake with deeply concerned looks on their faces.

"Don't go out, please," Mister Cake said.

Pinkie Pie looked confused, "But I feel so good and I feel like something great is about to happen to me if I go outside."

"It's not what it seems," Misses Cake said. "We are here to help you and only want the best for you."

Pinkie didn't understand. She looked at the door and felt a another sudden surge of excitement and pleasure, she then looked back to them for a moment and those feelings in her mind diminished. "But I don't want to stay here. I want to see what's outside."

"Please listen to us," Mister Cake said. "It's not what it seems to you in your mind, you just have to trust us so that we can get you good help. You are in such great danger and you do not realize it. I can't force you to stay, you have that choice to make, but know that we aren't saying this to be mean. We are only trying to help because we care about you."

Pinkie Pie put her two front hooves to her head and closed her eyes shut tightly. Even though she had no idea what Mister and Misses Cake were talking about, their warnings somehow made her feel like they were speaking the truth, but she still didn't want to listen because she felt so good every time she thought about leaving. It was torturous deciding what to do, but she made up her mind. "I just can't help it!" she cried out. "I need to go see what's outside that door!" Pinkie turned her back on the Cakes and stepped out of Sugar Cube corner. To her surprise, a royal red carpet was laid at the doorstep of her home that seemed to stretch for miles and miles. What was even stranger, was that it seemed that the entire town of Ponyville was standing in front of her house lined up on both sides of the carpet. A large rainbow arched over her house which seemed to follow the long stretch of carpet.

A group of Pegasus ponies unleashed confetti from the air onto Pinkie Pie.

"Happy Birthday!" the entire town shouted all at once to her.

Pinkie could feel the fur on her back stand up from the overwhelming feelings of excitement and adrenaline which made her heart pound faster. She had no idea it was her birthday and often forgot about it because she was so focused on trying to memorize every single birthday date for each pony in Ponyville. "It's my birthday!? Yippee!" the pink pony exclaimed and then hopped down the carpet waving and saying hi to each pony as she passed.

The ponies smiled and every single pony shouted words of encouragement and great cheer as she bounced by. They waved back at her with happy and enthusiastic faces which made Pinkie giggle furiously and made her feel even happier and more energetic.

Pinkie Pie wondered why on earth the Cakes didn't want her to experience this. For this day already seemed like the greatest day of her life and she had never felt so ecstatic and high, but it seemed quite odd that ponies were starting to become less and less enthusiastic and happy as she went on down the carpet. The rainbow in the sky appeared to fade away with each bounce she took down the carpet and even the carpet she was skipping down was becoming raggedy and worn out with tears in it. Storm clouds from both sides began to slowly close in, blocking out part of the sun. It was literally as if her moving forward was making everything darker and scary.

Pinkie began to slow down and her bouncing and playful spirit was sapped out of her when she saw that the faces of the ponies had turned into looks of scorn and strong disapproval. Her smile faded from her face when she greeted the ponies, but talking to them made them look colder and angrier. They refused to smile or say hello back. Pinkie put her head low to the ground and continued walking, occasionally glancing at the faces of the angry ponies that all stared her down. She had no idea how long following this carpet would last, but she kept on going feeling very frightened and uncertain about what was happening. She stopped when a rotten apple hit the side of her face.

"You're the worst party pony I have ever seen," a voice in the crowd shouted.

"I.....I am?" Pinkie Pie asked.

"You're not even funny and all your friends just pretend to like you."

"Wow," Pinkie said. "That's a little harsh."

"Kill yourself!" another voice yelled out.

"Pinkie Pie stopped walking for a moment and asked out loud, "You want me to end my life?"

"You cause more harm than good, in fact, you don't do any good in this world at all. Think of all the mistakes you have made and compare yourself to all the other ponies you know! You are worthless!"

"Jesus doesn't love you and neither do we," another voice chimed in.

That did it. Pinkie couldn't stand it anymore and tried to run back to where the ponies were being nice and saying wonderful things about her, but as she retreated, there was a fog in the air that seemed to make her struggle for air more and more as she traveled through it. She stopped when she heard a loud bang of thunder and a howl that seemed to be within close range. There in the distance, she could see two bright glowing eyes through the fog. It was a timberwolf. A creature from the Everfree forest that even the most bravest of ponies feared. Pinkie tried to push her way through the crowds, but they acted like a wall and shoved her back. She had no choice but to run away down the path where she no longer wanted to go down. She ran as fast as she could and didn't look back, but she could see the ponies on the side in her peripheral vision. Their faces and bodies were starting to decay and they continued to say horrible things to her and kept throwing things at her. She often had to dodge and duck under the objects that were being thrown at her. "Please make it stop!" Pinkie shouted as she closed her eyes while running. She could hear the loud thudding sound of the timberwolf's paws pounding against the ground, getting closer and closer to her. Her hoof struck something hard and she took a tumble across the carpet. She looked up to see that five ponies were standing in a straight line further away, but it was hard to see who they were because the fog was getting thicker and it was now dark out. Pinkie Pie got up when she heard the howling again and became terrified that the ponies standing on both sides of the completely torn carpet were now skeletons. They tried to reach out and grab her while moaning in agony and regret. Tears streamed down her face as she desperately wished that this terror would end. "Help!" she cried out and ran as fast as her legs would carry her. As the skeletons touched her as she ran by, they slowly turned to ashes. Pinkie Pie made it to the end of the trail where there was no more carpet left and all around her were mounds of ashes and sounds of remorseful moaning. She turned around when she smelled that familiar stench of the timberwolf's breath and couldn't move because she was stunned with fear that the timberwolf had caught up with her and was ready to devour her.

The beast opened its jaws and snapped at the terrified, sobbing pony.

Pinkie Pie closed her eyes and screamed, but after a few moments, she opened up her eyes and realized that the timberwolf was not there any longer. It was as if the creature faded away in the fog somehow.

Pinkie sat there gasping for air, her mind still panicking. Many voices called out her name in unison from behind her.

"Pinkie Pie."

Before Pinkie Pie could turn around, her mind had already registered what ponies those voices belonged to. "Twilight? Rarity? Applejack? Fluttershy? Dashie? Where are all of you? Help me!"

The darkness faded away under the light of the moon and revealed her friends in a circle around her with Rainbow Dash dressed in a Shadowbolt's uniform.

"My best friends! Please make the terrors end! I don't want to be alone and die. Am I going to be safe here?"

"You'll be safe," Applejack assured.

"Thank goodness! You wouldn't believe what happened to me and I can't even explain it. Ponies kept telling me that I am worthless and that I should kill myself because no one really likes me. I know those are all lies and that my sisters in Christ would never say anything like that to me," Pinkie said.

"Well, that's not a lie," Twilight said. "We are tired of putting up with you and God doesn't love you."

"Wait, what?" Pinkie asked. "I thought you said that Jesus loved me and died for me."

"Jesus loved and died for the elect only and you are not among the elect in my opinion," Twilight said.

"I thought you told me that you didn't believe in limited atonement and said that it was a heresy just like modalism!" Pinkie exclaimed.

"I changed my theological stance and I have come to realize that it's true. Christ has died for us and not you. You have proven yourself to not be a true Christian by the way you behave and you have no good works to show for you salvation. You are as filthy and useless as the dirty rags mentioned in the Bible."

"No," Pinkie said as she put her head down. "No one likes me anymore. What do I do now?"

"You have to accept your fate," Rainbow Dash said. She flapped her wings causing the fog to disappear, revealing that they were all standing deep inside the Everfree forest. There were trees with scary faces and black vines with large thorns surrounding them all.

"Party time is over," Rarity said. "And life will gladly go on without a single memory of you in this world." She turned to Fluttershy and said, "Do it now."

Fluttershy let out an animal call and out from the mouths of the trees, swarms of upside down cupcakes with spider legs came out and began to scuttle quickly over to Pinkie Pie.

"Hey! I thought Applejack said I was safe here!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed.

"I don't care 'bout tellin' the truth when it comes to somepony like yerself. Ya had yer fair share of gigglin' at the ghostly, now it's time fer the ghostly to giggle at you!"

Thick black vines with large thorns sprung from the earth and ensnared Pinkie Pie, attempting to pull her down to the earth. She tried to fight it, but the vines were overpowering and she was soon on her back, completely helpless.

The spider-like cupcakes focused their beady red glowing eyes on their pink target and leaped onto her. The icing on them turned out to be drills and they began drilling themselves deep into her body and into her bones. Pinkie Pie screamed in terror and took one last look at her friends. They were laughing and were enjoying watching her torment without a care in the world. Pinkie Pie looked at her body that was covered with these odd creatures that covered her like swarms of ticks on a dog. She tried to move, but she could not because the vines were so strong and the thorns kept tearing deeper into her flesh. Two of the spider-like creatures climbed onto her face and drilled into her eyes, causing her to lose her vision. She couldn't see, but somehow she was not dead and was still suffering greatly. She thought that perhaps she may have died and she was now suffering in eternal torment. She didn't know, but she kept struggling.

Pinkie Pie bucked her back legs hard as she paddled her front legs in her sleep. She was having intense nightmares again. She shot up out of bed and began clutching at her chest hoping that her heartbeat would slow down. Pinkie closed her eyes for a moment and let out a soft moan from the mental anguish. Her nightmares were continuing to get more vivid and intense. She opened up her eyes, looked at the clock and realized that it was still way too early for her to get up. It was the weekend anyway and she had off from work so she tried to go back to sleep, but her mind began racing with all kinds of thoughts that were utterly random and often horrific.

Pinkie tossed and turned in her bed desperately trying to fall back asleep, but it was of no use. For the first time ever in her life she felt wide awake after only getting a few hours of sleep. It was like a miracle to her and she did not understand why she suddenly did not have the need for normal sleep hours. Pinkie Pie figured that she just must not need that much sleep any longer. That thought was soon forgotten when all of the sudden she felt as if she couldn't breathe. She began to inhale and exhale as deeply as she could, but no matter how hard she tried, she felt as if somepony in the room had turned the oxygen off somehow or she felt that maybe she was becoming retarded and forgot how to breathe. Either way, she became afraid and ran over to the window and opened it. She stuck her head out and gasped for air, but that did little to no good. Pinkie Pie pulled her head back inside and laid down on the floor, curled up in a ball gasping for air.

"This is it, I'm going to die, aren't I? I'm either going to suffocate to death or I'm going to have a heart attack." She put her hoof back over her chest and felt the pounding of her heart beat faster and harder.

Eventually, she was able to recover and feel in her mind that she was breathing easier again. Her heart was still beating rapidly, but the intensity of the pounding in her chest had slowed down a bit now that she felt a little better. Pinkie Pie took a few more deep breaths just to make sure that she was Okay. "Wow! That was the craziest Pinkie sense I've ever experienced! I wonder what it meant." Pinkie Pie put her hoof to her chin and was deep in thought about that bizarre incident. She had no idea what was going on, but her mind began racing with thoughts again. These thoughts that flooded through her mind mainly consisted of all kinds of ludicrous predictions and outcomes about her future that would end in some kind of tragic and horrible manner. She tried to think about ways to stop it and remembered that Dashie told her that she often liked to exercise when she was stressed out. Pinkie Pie still had that gym membership that she wasn't exactly taking advantage of. She looked back at her bed for a moment and then looked back out the window. Was the gym open this early in the morning? She wasn't even sure if Applejack was awake yet. Still, she felt the need to get out and get moving or else something horrible would happen to her.

Pinkie raced down the stairs. She grabbed an apple from a bowl in the kitchen, her gym membership ID which was attached to a light blue coiled plastic cord that she would wear around her neck, and a water bottle from the fridge. Pinkie Pie made it outside and began to head to the gym. She wasn't hungry right now, but she took bites of her apple anyway. She felt very lost and confused in her mind, yet she hadn't been able to think about so many things at once. Those thoughts were interrupted when her hoof got caught on a tree root sticking above the ground. She didn't fall, but she lost her balance and the half eaten apple fell into a mud puddle. Pinkie Pie suddenly felt an overwhelming rage take over her mind and her coat for a very brief moment turned crimson red. She suddenly had an intense urge to kill herself and she looked around her environment for any kind of object to put an end to her life. She did not see any, but several seconds later, she calmed down a little bit. She wasn't so angry about almost tripping, she was more angry that she didn't get to finish her apple. Normally, this would not be a big deal to her, but it drove her mind into some kind of frenzied rage for a short period of time. Pinkie Pie looked around to see if anypony had seen her. Obviously, it was way too early in the morning for most ponies to be out since the sun had not risen yet. She was a little bit spooked and unsure why she suddenly got that angry. She used to be more prone to depression rather than rage and this was starting to become more frequent and more intense each time these anger breakouts happened over what seemed to be the littlest and most insignificant things. She began to wonder and worry if she'd truly hurt or kill herself the next time that happened. It was a very agonizing experience that she didn't want to ever feel again. She was also worried that her anger might lead her to hurting somepony else since she seemed to lose sense of reality in her mind whenever that happened.

Pinkie Pie snapped out of her trance of thoughts and continued on her way. She could now begin to see the sun rising in the distance as she approached the gym.

There was another very large pony waiting at the doors. He had his face pressed against the glass window door like a filly or colt desperately waiting for the toy or candy shop to open. He was shaking a large bottle and carried a ten pound jug of whey protein powder on his back.

Pinkie Pie trotted up to the stallion. "Hey, is the gym going to open any time soon?"

The stallion turned around and said, "She should be here any moment!"

"Oh, glad to hear that Snowflake," Pinkie Pie said.

The white stallion became a little ticked off. "My name is no longer Snowflake!"

"It's not? How come?" Pinkie asked.

"Because I realized that my special lifting strength is in my biceps. From this day on, you shall refer to me none other than Bulk Biceps."

Pinkie Pie scratched her head. "Uh, Okay." Pinkie looked rather confused until she thought of something. She perked up and said, "Hey! In Biblical times, it was common for pony's names to change after a dramatic event in their lives. Did you know that?"

"Yeah, that's great," Bulk Biceps said as he continued to wait to get inside the gym.

Around the corner, a familiar white unicorn with dark shades appeared with keys around her neck and was using her magic to levitate a cup of coffee. "You guys are early today, huh?" Vinyl Scratch asked.

Bulk Bicep's eyes lit up as she inserted the key into the slot. He became a little panicked when he realized that Pinkie would be in the gym with him as well. He looked at her and said, "Don't you dare try to steal my machines or break my normal routine. I come here extra early now because I want to make sure that nopony interrupts my rhythm and flow during my workouts. Do you understand me?"

Pink felt extreme anxiety, awkwardness, and depression as she listened to him rant about not letting her interrupt his routine. She didn't say a word back to him, but when he was finished scolding her, she watched him turn and walk into the gym. It was then that the anxiety turned into a combination of fear and rage. Fear because she didn't know what to think or how to respond to a pony like that and also rage because she no longer could stand being talked to like that, especially by a stranger who she didn't know too well. Her heart was racing very fast again, yet she was very determined to attempt to work out since Twilight had also recommended exercise in the past to stay healthy. The last thing she needed was to become diabetic again and in her mind, all sorts of fears including that was a possibility. She shook her head quickly in an attempt to escape the bewildering thoughts and entered the gym. The sound of the glass door closing behind her startled her as all of her senses including her hearing became so much more sensitive.

Pinkie had never been here when it was so quiet. The music wasn't on yet and she had no idea where to start. She walked passed several machines, looking at each one until she saw her most favorite of all. The pectoral and deltoid machine, or as she liked to call it, the hugging machine. The moment she sat down on it, the lights in the gym flickered on. She looked up at them for a moment and couldn't help but feel better. She turned around and placed the pin into a weight set that was more reasonable for her and then put her two front hooves against the handles and began to work out.

She wasn't quite sure how she had all of this energy or how she was this wide awake at this early hour in the morning without any sugar or caffeine. Pinkie Pie could sometimes be a late sleeper and her mind could not figure out what was going on. She couldn't tell if she was being blessed or cursed during this time or if she was just having really crazy new Pinkie senses that she could not understand yet.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The sound of the metal bars clamoring against each other echoed throughout the nearly empty gym as Pinkie did each repetition with a trillion thoughts racing through her mind at once, most of them making her more anxious and fearful. The muscle burn in her pectorals made her slow down and the struggle to continue made her forget about her thoughts until she had to eventually stop. It had been a while since she had been here and she remembered when she used to come here with her friends. She didn't expect herself to be able to do what she used to do strength and stamina wise, but then again, she felt that working out as hard as she could right now was as if her life literally depended on it today.

Pinkie got off the machine and a sudden loud blast of dub-step music overtook the entire gym. It only sounded so loud because the gym was so empty and no other ponies were making noises except for Bulk Biceps. Pinkie Pie looked over at the desk and saw Vinyl Scratch watching and smiling at her. Pinkie Pie's troubles seemed to be instantly forgotten and she returned and even bigger grin back to Vinyl. "Love the beats, Vinyl!"

Vinyl Scratch was so pleased when anypony gave a compliment about the music that was played during her shift since she was the creator of it. "Thanks, Pinkie! You're looking pretty fly on that Pectoral fly machine yourself."

"Thanks!" Pinkie Pie said as she giggled madly before she happily bounced on over to the next machine. Her attitude completely spun around and now she was so happy and bubbly because Vinyl Scratch was nice to her. It made her forget about her rage and fear experiences. Her mind was now super charged and she felt even more energetic and motivated to try harder.

Pinkie Pie continued down the line of the machines. She had done a lot by now and had been there for about an hour. Currently, she was waiting for Bulk Biceps to finish his work out on the shoulder press machine. When he got off, he got down on the floor and began doing push ups.

Pinkie Pie figured that he was finished using the machine since he was doing another workout. She plopped her flank down on the seat, adjusted the weight, and then began doing a few reps.

The machine made a slight squeaking noise when she did one of her reps.

Bulk Biceps heard this and instantly turned around. He was horrified that Pinkie was on the machine. "Excuse me, but I'm still using this machine!"

"But you got off and were doing another exercise," Pinkie said feeling confused.

"I do a few reps on here and then do some push ups and get back on. I was clearly not done with it and you need to get off now! You don't even know how to do the reps correctly!"

"Hold on, please. I just want to get five really short reps in, it won't take long," Pinkie pleaded. She had waited a long time for this machine and hoped that he might let her have a few more seconds on it before hogging it to himself again.

"GET OFF NOW!"

Pinkie Pie jumped out of the seat and was shocked that he wouldn't let her finish. She watched him get back on the machine and listened to him grumble as he had to reach for the pin and reset the amount of weight that he had originally put in. He then went back down on the floor and continued to do his push ups. By the time he would be done, Pinkie would have been finished and off the machine long ago.

Bulk wasn't exactly a nasty pony outside of the gym, but he was so very driven and routine oriented that he couldn't stand when others would get in his way when it came to lifting. He was also one of those types of ponies who would try to lift a very heavy weight while only doing about half or less of the actual repetition. His pride was shattered from the time that Applejack showed him up and made him look like a fool in front of his friend and he hoped that one day he could find Applejack and out lift her. Being beaten by a pony, especially a mare at something he does best was not something he took very easily.

Pinkie Pie felt the rage boil up in her again. She was just seconds away from saying something nasty or off color to the over-sized white Pegasus. She didn't know what to do and she certainly wasn't going to spend any more time waiting. The thought of reporting him to Vinyl Scratch didn't cross her mind because she was so mad. Pinkie Pie felt that she should leave and she stomped her way loudly to the door. On her way over, she almost pushed over a small orange filly with a pink tail and mane that was wearing boxing gloves around her neck. The little pony was Scootaloo coming for her boxing lessons that Rainbow Dash signed her up for and Pinkie Pie didn't seem to notice her, nor did Scootaloo recognize Pinkie for one very obvious reason.

Vinyl Scratch also became very confused when she saw Pinkie walking by. She took off her sunglasses and studied this strange new mare. To her, it looked like Pinkie Pie, but with a totally different colored coat. She figured that perhaps not having enough coffee was making her see things differently.

Outside, Pinkie Pie fumed with anger. She couldn't stand what had happened and being criticized put her over the edge. She may not have been able to do every machine that she liked, but her body was tired enough from what she did. She couldn't figure out why she was all of the sudden so sensitive to every little thing and why her mind could not rest no matter what she did. Was she demon possessed? She didn't know, but now that the anger was slowing fading away, she remembered how ecstatic she was when Vinyl Scratch complimented her. She felt like she was high, full of energy and had overwhelmingly positive motivation at that time. It was unreal how fast her mood could change within a matter of seconds and right now, she was still a little bit on the high side thanks to those ridiculously bright gym lights and the loud dub-step music, but there was also that nagging extreme agitation and lingering anger that she had from that incident with Bulk Biceps.

By the time she got home, her coat was restored back to its normal pink color, and when she walked inside, she was met by Mister and Misses Cake having some breakfast together.

"Pinkie?" Mister Cake asked. "How on earth are you up this early? Was your favorite comedy show moved to an earlier hour or something?

"Nope! I'm just having a super good day and got up early and went to the gym!"

"Well, I'm very glad to hear that! It looks like you're still out of breath from your workout!"

"Pinkie Pie looked down at her chest and noticed that it was rising and falling quite rapidly. She wasn't tired from the workout and tried to understand why she was breathing like that. It suddenly hit her that she believed that she was suffocating again. "Actually, I think we might need to turn up the oxygen in this room," she replied. "I'm going to head upstairs now."

Mister and Misses Cake watched Pinkie Pie bounce up the stairs and then stared at each other with confusion.

"Turn the oxygen up in this room?" Mister Cake asked out loud.

"You know she sometimes doesn't know what she's talking about when she gets hyper. I bet she had one too many cookies this morning," Misses Cake replied.

In her room, Pinkie Pie watched nervously as her chest rose and fell. She felt that maybe it would be a good idea to take a bath to help her relax, with Gummy of course.

Pinkie Pie stuck her leg under the bed and waited. Sure enough, she felt something clasp down onto her front leg. She pulled her leg out and Gummy was attached to it. This made her cheer up a bit more and she forgot about the feeling of a lack of oxygen in the house. A smile crept onto Pinkie's face as she stared at her pet. She loved Gummy. Heck, she threw pre and after birthday parties for him because he was so special to her. Pinkie Pie rushed into the bathroom and turned the tub faucet on. She unlatched Gummy from her leg and placed him on the ledge of the tub. He waddled over to a bar of soap and chomped down on it. His taste buds quickly made him spit it out leaving a trail of bubbles floating in the air.

Pinkie Pie stuck her front leg in the water and swished it around. She felt that it was perhaps just a little too warm for her and Gummy, so she turned the knob slightly to the right for a moment. Pinkie Pie became agitated when she felt that the water was now too cool. She saw that the tub was starting to overflow with water and she couldn't fill it anymore without ruining the floor.

Pinkie Pie let out a groan in agony and plunged her head into the water and pulled out the plug with her teeth, letting all the water quickly drain. "It just doesn't feel right," she muttered under her breath. She put the plug back in the tub and started over again. She still couldn't get it to be the temperature she wanted since every time she tried to add a little more colder water, it ended up being too cold in her opinion.

Pinkie Pie had no idea why she was so agitated again or why on earth this was such a big deal that she get the water temperature just right for her and Gummy. It was almost as if Gummy were Rarity's pet cat and needed everything to be exactly right no matter what. Pinkie Pie attempted to adjust the temperature of the water again, but it was just slightly too warm in her opinion. She zipped downstairs and took out a tray of ice cubes. She placed a few ice cubes in the tub and watched them melt. Pinkie Pie stuck her front leg in the tub. "That feels better for now, I guess." She climbed into the tub and laid back with a mighty sigh. She noticed Gummy waddling over to her on the ledge of the tub and grabbed him with her two front hooves. She brought the tiny alligator closer to her face and stared at him. "Why am I so different, Gummy? she asked. "Why did it matter so much? You don't care how hot or cold the water is, do you? Why am I so sensitive to every single little thing?"

Gummy's eyes blinked out of sync.

Pinkie Pie sighed once more and dropped in another ice cube. No matter how hard she tried to make things feel right, it didn't matter. Something always felt a little off and it bugged her to no end. The only pony who she knew that could be like this was Rarity, and not even she would behaved in a manner like this unless it involved a stallion she was interested in or her dress work. Even Twilight could be a bit OCD at times and she had one very bad instance of OCD, but Pinkie was like this every day now. She was afraid how it would effect her work if she was making such a big fuss over this and couldn't figure out why. She continued to stare at her pet alligator and asked, "Why do things feel so ridiculously good and then in a blink of an eye, everything feels horribly wrong and then I get so angry and sad? Why does my mind never stop thinking so many thoughts? I don't even know how I'm going to sleep tonight. Do I even need sleep anymore, Gummy?"

Gummy's eyes blinked out of sync again. He then started getting antsy in her hooves, trying to indicate what he wanted.

Pinkie Pie was no animal communication expert like Fluttershy, but she knew what he wanted. She brought him close to her head and the alligator opened his mouth wide and then gladly latched onto her ear with his mouth. This is where he enjoyed staying and he loved the feeling of biting her ear the most. Pinkie reached over for her bubble bath bottle and a yellow rubber ducky. She emptied the bottle into the water and tossed it aside. She hoped that maybe something would make her smile once more.

Pinkie Pie sat there in the tub twirling her front hoof around in the water as her mind once again started to race with all kinds of thoughts, ideas and occasionally tragic and horrific ends to her life in the worst imaginable ways to her. It seemed that her mind was always racing and over-analyzing things no matter what kind of mood she was in. If taking a bubble bath with her pet and a rubber ducky wasn't going to calm her down, then she had no idea what else would. Pinkie Pie felt what she thought was sweat dripping down her face, but she was crying and was oblivious to it. She wiped the tears from her chin and decided that maybe it was time to get out of the bath. She pulled the plug out and stepped onto the hoof towel on the floor. She walked over to the mirror and wiped the fog off of it with her hoof. She looked and studied herself. "Who are you?" she asked out loud. She stood there and continued to stare as if almost expecting her reflection in the mirror to respond to her question. After staring for a while, she felt a deep hurt about herself and she could no longer bear to see her image any longer. Pinkie Pie put her head down low and walked back into her room. She unlatched Gummy from her ear and placed him on her pillow.

Pinkie began thinking about what she might be able to do to calm herself down and thought that maybe reading would help. There she saw her Bible on her desk, the Amplified version. She had no idea why this was her favorite version. She just thought amplified sounded so much more cool. Pinkie Pie grabbed the book and plopped herself belly down on her bed. She opened it up to a random page and began reading through the Psalms. Pinkie raced through the words as she found herself turning page after page. She couldn't believe how fast she was reading. After turning three pages, she tried to remember what she read but her mind was completely blank, so she went back and re-read everything again. Once more she had no idea what she was reading. Pinkie Pie closed the book and threw it against the wall in frustration. She noticed that on the side of the bed, there was a magazine she was subscribed to for her baking ideas. Obviously, the Bible was too much for Pinkie's mind to handle right now. As much as she didn't want to admit this, she needed a teacher like Twilight to walk her through it. The thought angered her because her heart was becoming bitter and she did not want to be with her sisters in Christ anymore. She wanted to do this life with Jesus alone and she had no idea how damaging and poor that idea was. Pinkie Pie flipped through the pages and began reading an article on how to make cupcakes even tastier. The article was only a few paragraphs long and she hoped that she could do better reading this instead. It was easy reading but for her, she strained in concentration to stay focused and attempted to slowly read each word, but her eyes kept reading so fast and she couldn't slow down or focus. She soon realized that she was skipping over entire sentences. Pinkie Pie shoved the magazine off her bed and began to ponder about why she felt so different. She knew that she had bad A.D.D., but this was taking it to a whole new level. Pinkie Pie's mind continued to run into overdrive and her heart began to beat a little faster. She almost forgot that she represented the element of laughter and that she was Ponyville's party pony. That's when the idea hit her, it was time to have some fun for once.

Pinkie Pie grabbed Gummy and headed downstairs. She set him down on a stool and tied balloons to it but, there was something wrong. She needed to have friends over for the party and even though deep down inside she desperately wanted to see her friends again, she was angry with them because she felt that Rainbow Dash had rejected her. It was time for plan B. Pinkie Pie got the strangest sense of deja vu as she pulled out Madame Le Flour, Rocky, Mister Turnip, and Sir Lintsalot. Pinkie Pie brought out cake and tea for her imaginary friends. She felt accomplished when she looked around at the set up. She turned to Gummy and said, "Happy Two hundred and Twenty six point four days until your birthday!" Pinkie Pie giggled madly for a moment and then stopped. The smile on her face gradually turned into a frown. She felt empty inside. No, this wasn't going to work. Pinkie Pie let out a grunt in disapproval and knocked everything off the table. She had enough of this and her agitation sky rocketed. "Jesus bucking Christ," she thought to herself. Pinkie held her breath for a moment and thought about those three things that went through her mind. She suddenly felt guilty and afraid. Guilty for thinking such a terrible phrase and afraid because something like that would has never crossed her mind in the past and she wasn't sure if God would punish her for thinking such an awful thing.

She did something that she should have done a while ago. She got down prone on the floor and prayed. "Dear Jesus, I first need to say that I'm sorry for what I thought. I didn't plan to think that, it just happened. Please don't punish me for that. I know it was really wrong of me to think that, but it's just so hard to control my thoughts right now. I don't know what's happening to me, but I think there might be a demon inside of me, yet at times I feel so sharp and good that I don't even know if I want to change at all. Maybe if you could please let me feel more high and super duper happy more often, that would be great. Sometimes, I just can't take these sad and angry moments and I feel like I'm going to hurt myself. I don't know why I hate You sometimes and it feels like I'm going to become the next anti-Christ. It's so scary and no matter how sad I get, my mind and heart are always racing. I just want the suffering to end, but I really don't mind the boost of energy that I sometimes have. I hope you understand. Just You and I will get through this together because my friends don't care about me anymore. In Jesus' name I pray, amen." Pinkie Pie felt convicted about that last thing she said. She truly wasn't sure if her friends loved her or not and decided to tell that lie over and over in her head until she believed it was true because she was so hurt and felt alienated.

Pinkie Pie laid there on the floor with her eyes still closed, her mind gushing with fears of death and sadistic torture that she imagined she may face. She had never felt so agitated and was sweating from the suffering she was going through. The thought crossed her mind for a moment about asking the Cakes to take her to the hospital, but she was very afraid of what they might do to her. She decided that she'd simply lay there on the wooden floor until the suffering would go away. She wanted to die right now, but at the same time she was absolutely terrified of death, especially since she was now unsure if she was going to be going to Hell or not. Pinkie Pie had assumed that these horrible feelings would pass, but little did she know that she was putting her own life and perhaps even the lives of others in danger by not seeking help. She remembered a song that she used to sing as a filly that had always brought a smile to her face. She sung it often when she was sad and needed comfort. Her voice cracked a bit as she began to softly sing to herself as the tears streamed down her cheeks. "With Jesus in the boat you can smile through the storm, smile through the storm, smile through the storm. With Jesus in the boat you can smile through the storm. When you're sailing hoooome." Singing that song made no difference to her now even though it was one of her most favorite songs as a filly. She felt cold, alone, and as if God was no longer with her.

Still Loyal, Even When it Hurts

Rainbow Dash looked out the window, waiting for Soarin' to get home. She wondered why he was acting so strangely and why he continued to refuse to talk to her about what was going on with him and that new mare. She sat at the dining room table with her front hoof resting up against her cheek. She was still upset about this situation and also bored. Rainbow Dash may have current limitations because of pain and exhaustion, but she was a pony who at heart would always love adventure, thrills and even learned to enjoy romance.

Rainbow Dash sat there with her food served on her plate, waiting patiently. Her ears perked up when she heard the front door open and watched as her husband stepped in looking tired as usual.

Without hesitating, Soarin' came to the table. He was hungry as usual and couldn't wait to eat. "Hi, sweetie! How are you?"

Rainbow Dash didn't make eye contact with him. She simply pushed the entire pot with one hoof over to him. "Here," she said in the most apathetic tone of voice. "You must be quite hungry."

Soarin' perked up when he saw all that she had left for him. "Hungry as a horse!" he exclaimed and then drove his face into the pot.

Rainbow Dash took a few bites of her food and then watched her spouse go to town on that big pot of food.

Soarin' picked his head up. He was chewing loudly and his eyes were closed with pleasure. He swallowed greatly and said, "You sure get better at making dinner every single day, Dash." Soarin' opened his eyes to see that Dash still had her head resting up against her hoof. The smile from his face slowly faded away and he now looked concerned. "Hey, Dash?"

Rainbow Dash looked at him and sighed. "What?"

Soarin' lit up with the biggest smile. "Smile, kid. I love you."

Rainbow Dash stared at him without any amusement. "I wish I could, but I can't right now. When are you going to tell me what you're up to?"

Soarin' took a few more huge bites of food and said with a mouthful, "Dash, I already told you. If I told you, it would absolutely ruin everything."

"I don't think it really matters at this point, Soarin'."

"Very soon you'll see what this is all about. Don't you like surprises like your friend, Pinkie Pie?"

"Honestly, not in this situation. No, I don't." Rainbow answered.

"I just need a little bit more time, why don't you hang out with your filly friends tonight and make it a girl's night out? I really need to be alone for what I'm planning."

Rainbow Dash was getting extremely agitated at this moment. She slammed her hoof down on the table and shouted out, "Because I want to be with you and you won't spend any time with me other than to eat and sleep with!"

Soarin' put his hooves up in defense as if to block those last few words that she spoke. "Whoa there. Easy, tiger." He slowly put his hoof on top of Rainbow's hoof on the table and continued. "Listen, I promise we're going to spend plenty of time together. Honestly, it's much more of the fact that Spitfire has me working overtime rather than what I'm doing on the side. I just had this idea a while ago and I have to go through with it since I've already invested so much time into this. Don't forget, the word of the Lord says that it's good for wives to submit to their husbands, as to the Lord."

Rainbow Dash freed her hoof from his and replied, "And right under that passage it says for husbands to love their wives unconditionally, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her." Rainbow decided that it would be wise to give in to his wish and go see what her friends were up to since Soarin' wanted to do whatever he was up to. She didn't want to argue anymore with him or risk having their marriage fall apart. She got up and walked next to Soarin' who was now licking the pot, trying to scrape every last bit of morsel that he could with his tongue. Rainbow Dash stared at him for a moment and then put her head down on his shoulder and closed her eyes. "Soarin, I don't know what you're doing, but do know that I'll always love you and will remain loyal to you no matter what. Communication is the most important aspect of any relationship and leaving me in the dark without any answers hurts so much. I fear that a lack of communication will eventually destroy any relationship."

Soarin' stopped licking the pot and turned to her. He gave her one giant lick across the side of her face. "And I'll always love you too, most delicious pie in the sky of my eyes. Don't you worry about a thing. Soon, the veil shall be lifted and you'll understand. It will be so worth it. I promise!"

Rainbow Dash wiped the side of her face with her front leg. "Gee, thanks for the lick."

Soarin'' giggled and got up out of his seat. "You go have a fun night out with your gal pals. Make sure to stay out for at least three hours because I really need the time. Don't come back early either."

Rainbow sighed. She found herself sighing a lot these days. "Yeah, have fun, I guess. See you later."

Soarin' watched as she exited the house and then proceeded to the bedroom for what he had planned.

Outside, Rainbow Dash felt the need for some comfort, so she decided to visit her best friend, Applejack.

Rainbow Dash searched the farm for her friend but could not find her. She only saw Big Macintosh in the distance plowing the fields. Rainbow Dash trotted over to him and stared at him for a moment as he was now hunched over and breathing heavily.

"Hey, Big Macintosh!"

"Gah!" Big Macintosh cried out.

"Jeez," Rainbow Dash said. "A bit jumpy?"

"I'm under a lot of stress right now and I don't appreciate it when ponies sneak up on me like that."

"Why? Where's Applejack to help you out?"

"Gone fer good it looks like," Big Mac replied. "I might be leavin' too."

"But why? This is her passion."

"Cause Granny and Applejack got into a little argument over attendin' Mass. I reckon ya better git before Granny anathematizes you too."

"Any idea where she went?"

"Big Macintosh shook his head no. "Nope, but I reckon that perhaps she went to see cousin Braeburn. It's the only other place that I'd go to if I got kicked off the farm."

A voice from behind the barn called out, "Big Macintosh! I need yer help!"

"Gah! That's Granny again." Big Mac turned to Dash and said, "Ya better git before she finds ya here and I git into more trouble."

Rainbow Dash nodded her head Okay. "Thanks for the heads up on A.J.. Hopefully, she's okay and everything can be resolved soon. See you later."

Big Macintosh watched as Rainbow Dash zipped off. It was going to be another long day and he figured that sooner or later, either Apple Bloom or Granny was going to get hurt while attempting to do Applejack's chores.

Rainbow Dash thought about where she was going. She thought about going all the way to Appleloosa to see if Applejack were there, but she couldn't travel that far with her pain and fatigue. She decided that she should go check on their group leader, Twilight and let her know what was going on with Applejack.

Rainbow Dash was surprised to find that the library was closed at this hour. She knocked on the door and was greeted by Spike.

"Oh. Hi, Rainbow. What can I do for you?" Spike asked.

"I have got to talk with Twilight. Something terrible has happened!"

"Oh, well, I was told not to let anypony bother her, but I assume she wouldn't mind if it's an emergency." Spike stepped back allowing Rainbow Dash to enter.

There she saw Twilight hunched over some books and writing down some notes. She hurried over and sat down in front of her. She sat there staring at her friend, waiting for her to take notice, but Twilight was so absorbed in her studies that she did not notice her. "Eh-hem!"

Twilight looked up from her book. "Rainbow Dash? What brings you here?'

"Twi! You won't believe what happened to A.J.. I just came back from Sweet Apple Acres and Big Macintosh told me that..."

Twilight finished her sentence. "That Granny Smith excommunicated her from the family for being friends with me. I already know."

"What?" Rainbow Dash asked. "How did you know?"

"Because Applejack came to me and is currently staying here."

"Wow, really? May I go talk to her and see how she's doing?" Rainbow asked.

"I don't think that's a good idea. She requested that she be left alone and has been crying a lot up there. She's in agony right now. Not just over the fact that Granny disowned her, but more so that she now believes that Catholicism teaches that all Protestants who reject Catholic cannon go straight to Hell. She's really confused about salvation and if she's going to heaven or not because of all this. It's almost like she's leaning towards Pascal's wager with her thinking right now. I haven't had much time to talk with her because I'm so busy preparing for this very important event that's coming up soon."

"Event?" Rainbow asked.

"It came up by surprise. Princess Celestia is holding a debate at the Grand Galloping Gala since the secular movement asked for one and well, guess who she decided to pick for the side defending religion for this event? Me."

"You honestly don't sound too happy to be doing this, Twi. I thought you loved theology, science and spreading the good news." Rainbow said.

"It's not so great when you're tired," Twilight said as she used her magic and took a big gulp of coffee and then put it aside. "I don't think I slept at all last night. This whole thing came a bit unexpected and I have to gather materials fast. I'm going up against a well known Atheist that has quite a following."

"What's the debate topic on?" Rainbow asked.

"It's about your typical religious debate, but also why religion is good for Equestria and more importantly, why specifically Christianity."

"What are you reading about in that book?" Rainbow asked.

"Oh, I'm reading about the multi-verse theory," Twilight answered.

"What's that about and what do you think you'll most likely be talking about at the debate and how do you think you'll respond?"

"It's basically the Atheist's version of the God of the gaps argument. It's even more ludicrous when they claim that there are an infinite amount of universes. I feel like we'll be discussing how the universe came into being and evolution. I think it's foolish to logically and scientifically assert that the universe created itself from nothing. This is what the atheistic position proposes, yet if science and logic tells us anything, out of nothing comes nothing. The universe did not appear out of nowhere like a rabbit from a magician's hat and life does not arise from dead matter. If there's anything science tells us, it's that life does not arise spontaneously. Ever. That means something created life in this universe. How about we all consider the God that rose from the dead? The only way I can possibly imagine nothing coming from nothing is if they somehow changed the definition of what the word nothing truly means. Rainbow, did you know the universe is so complex and if any of the basic values of the universe and relationships of nature were altered in just the slightest way, our universe would not exist and neither would we? I'm sure evolution will be brought up and as for evolution, one of main problems with evolution is the assertion that we are not the culmination or apex of God's creation, but are still a work in progress, in fact, every creature or plant that God created and said was 'very good' would still be a work in progress, evolving to some yet unknown apex. Evolution raises many more questions than it answers as regards to theology. The theory of evolution makes God look like Doctor Frankenstein rather than a benevolent Creator and while technically it may be compatible with the Bible, there are still so many questions left unanswered. Evolution can't explain how unconscious life transformed itself into conscious life, or give an explanation for our rationality, or morality."

"So how does something like the big bang theory fit into scripture?" Rainbow asked.

"It's rather interesting," Twilight said. "Prior to the big bang, there were no laws of physics and the laws of physics can not explain the big bang since the big bang produced the laws of physics. Nothing can be discovered about what happened before the big bang since time itself did not yet exist. Galaxies flung apart and the universe is constantly expanding. Now, as to answer how this all ties in with the Bible. The universe was created in a burst of light about fifteen billion years ago. Our sun and our planet came into existence billions of years later. Therefor, light did precede the sun and the earth. We can look in the book of Genesis for connections to the big bang theory." Twilight opened up a Bible and showed Dash. She used her magic to temporarily highlight the verses for her to read. "Go on, read it."

Rainbow Dash began to read out loud. "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, Let there be light, and there was light." Rainbow Dash stopped reading where the last word was highlighted. "That's really fascinating."

Twilight used her magic to highlight another section for Rainbow to read. "What I highlighted here is what refers to the formation of the sun and earth. Day and night in which we experience as a result of earth's rotation. This was all created much later than the universe itself." Twilight tapped her hoof on the table. "Continue reading what I highlighted."

Rainbow focused on the next section. "God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness. God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day." She picked her head up from the book and seemed to be deep in thought about making all of these connections.

"If there's one thing we need to remember, it's that God is not natural, but supernatural," Twilight said.

"I would have never considered any of this on my own," Rainbow said.

Twilight paused for a moment and looked into Rainbow Dash's eyes. "You know, the more I talk to Atheists who are militant in their faith, the more I really begin to believe that's it's truly like a religion. Heck, they have literal Atheist churches across Equestria. If you don't want to worship God, you will find somepony or something else to worship. The amount of time and money you invest into something most is usually a great indicator of what your God is or will become."

"Or as they say, Atheism being a religion is like not collecting books is a hobby," Rainbow said.

"No, not really," Twilight said. "But both not collecting books being labeled as a hobby and evangelical type door to door Atheism are equally ridiculous to me. I sometimes can't comprehend why God is such a big deal to them when they believe for certain that He doesn't exist, or as they like to put it sometimes, there is no good enough reason to believe. It seems absurd to me when so many of them talk about something they don't believe in almost incessantly to the point where God tends to be more of a common conversation for them than compared to actual believers in God. It makes me sad that they give such high praise to their leaders and call each other 'brights' which implies that the religious are dumb and they like to pretend that Christians are a hindrance to science. It seems that they have forgotten that our greatest thinkers and scientists of the early days were Christians. I just don't get what drives them to be so zealous about converting other pony's beliefs that gives them great hope and meaning to move on in life in comparison to a belief that basically renders what we do in life as meaningless and bleak since all life will eventually be destroyed when our star, the sun will not remain in its current state like it is now. It's almost as if many of them can't allow others to be happy and content in their religion and I can speculate why many are like this, but I don't have the time to keep rambling on about this. I'm not sure what points are going to be brought up during this debate, I can just be assured that it's not going to be easy for me regardless of what topics get brought up."

Rainbow Dash looked confused. "Well, don't work too hard, Twi! You'll win this debate easily knowing how much of an egg head you are and I'm reminded that the Bible says that the fool says in his heart that there is no God." She paused for a moment and then asked, "We're still on for Bible study, right?"

Twilight shook her head no. "I'm sorry, but I recently had to quit because of what's been going on. I sent a letter out to all of you, but I take it that you haven't gotten it yet."

Rainbow Dash was shocked and her heart sunk deep within her chest. "But.....but....where are we going to go for study?"

Twilight Sparkle flipped a page that she was looking at in her book and answered, "You can always find some other pony. I'm not the only Christian in Equestria you know."

Rainbow Dash was taken aback by how indifferent Twilight sounded. "It's just not going to be the same without you teaching, Twi."

"Well, I'm awfully sorry, but I do not have any more time to keep doing this. It seems that I've made quite a name for myself out here and Princess Celestia hasn't helped matters much by selecting me for this debate, but how could I say no to the Princesses's request?"

Rainbow Dash looked at her blood shot eyes. "Don't you think you could just take a break or go on vacation for a bit? I mean, I really don't see why you have to cut something out that's been such an important part of our lives and routine."

"Because I spend a lot of time these days with ponies of other beliefs, mainly Atheists and Agnostics whom I love very much and while I understand this is something that is very important for our friendship, priorities must take place. You girls have been with me for a long time. Why don't you try to have a study without me and see how it goes? Just remember the Old Testament has to be read in light of the New Testament. It's not really that hard." Twilight looked out the window and said, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few and I've got to do what I've got to do."

Rainbow Dash thought about that for a moment. "Gosh, I'm sorry for sounding selfish. I really didn't think about that and I'm just going to miss having the best and most interesting teacher ever. I'm not trying to sound like a cutie mark kisser, but you really are the best teacher and you're so much fun. I remember how you could spend hours talking about a single passage in the Bible and giving your philosophical input on it without making anything sound boring."

Twilight Sparkle gave a weak smile. "Thanks, Dash. I appreciate that."

Rainbow Dash looked and noticed eight large empty cups around her. "What are you drinking so much of?'

Twilight looked down at her cup and replied. "It's called Christian liquid crack. It seems that the good Lord Himself demanded that all the churches serve massive amounts of this drug every Sunday at church."

"Do you mean caffeine from coffee?" Rainbow asked. "It is kind of odd how much coffee Christians drink.

"Yep, I need to stop. It's been ruining my sleep pattern and has been making me piss half the day away. I think I'm hooked on this new cult called Coffeeanity."

"Not even I drank that stuff as a Wonderbolt," Rainbow said. "I always preferred white tea anyway."

"I hear you." Twilight pushed aside the book she was currently reading and opened up another. "Soooooo. How's married life?"

Rainbow Dash blinked for a few moments as she processed Twilight's question in her mind. She was so upset and concerned about Applejack and Princess Celestia's big debate event that she forgot about the one major issue that she specifically wanted to talk to Twilight about. "Oh boy. Not Good, Twi. Not good at all." Rainbow's mood and posture sunk when she thought about it.

Twilight cocked an eyebrow. "What's the problem? You two have just been married. You worked so hard to get this stallion and now you're not happy?"

Rainbow Dash put her head down even lower. "I don't know what to say, Twi. We had everything going well and all of the sudden he wants to spend absolutely no time with me unless it has to do with food or well, yeah, you know the other thing he wants I'm sure."

"Sounds like a typical stallion. Food and bed."

"He used to be so romantic and spend every second he possibly could with me. Today, he practically forced me out of the house and told me to spend some time with my gal pals."

"What's his reason for it?" Twilight asked.

"I don't know since he only tells me so much. He says that he's working on something, but the most infuriating thing is that I saw him going up to this house and giving this mare a bag of bits. I had never seen her before and I assume that she must be new in town. When I asked him what that was all about, he started babbling nonsense."

"Oh, really?" Twilight asked.

"Yeah, I mean, he tells me not to worry about it, but how can I seriously not worry after what we have went through together with our past? I know that a ponies behaviors of the past makes a good indication of what they may do in the future, but I seriously believed that this stallion really gave his life to Christ and was committed to only me. I'm so confused, but I don't even care what he's doing with that other mare behind closed doors. I'd never leave him regardless, but I am left in the dark with no answers."

"I'm so sorry to hear that, but I commend you for your extreme loyalty to him, no matter what. Although he must have said something to you about the matters when you asked. What did he say when you confronted him?"

"He said that he can't tell me at this moment, but somehow, this is all going to be some kind of surprise and that he's doing it for me. He makes absolutely no sense to me right now."

"Hmmm. I see," Twilight said. "I understand that thoughts of the past would be a painful reminder, but here's a super crazy idea. Why not just wait a bit and see what happens?"

"That's what he keeps telling me to do, but he's been so busy working overtime with the Wonderbolts and I just want to do something with him, yet he won't allow me to spend any time with him. He always insists that I go out and have fun, but I see that you have absolutely no time to hang out with me and I'm sure A.J. doesn't want to do anything fun either right now. I'm also a bit leery of Pinkie at the moment and I'm sure Rarity and Fluttershy are busy as well."

"I really can't do much right now. I'm very busy gathering materials for my presentation and I need some time alone to think. I'm having a hard enough time keeping Applejack sane and reminding her that she's not the cursed anathema. I think I should probably go check on her soon, although I don't know how I'm going to feed her with the amount of food that she eats."

"Boy, I feel really bad for her. I never knew that Granny Smith felt that way. I guess I'll leave you alone to study since you feel that you need to study diligently to win this debate." Rainbow Dash got up and headed over to the door. She turned around and said, "And please tell Applejack that she can see me at any time she desires. I really hate to see a pony as good and honest as her suffer."

"I most certainly will, Rainbow. Take care of yourself and I hope to hear some good news about your relationship with Soarin'."

"Thanks, Twi. I'd wish you well on the debate, but I already know that you don't need it. You're going to win it easily."

Twilight laughed. "I really appreciate that, but knowing how fast Ponyville is turning secular and that I probably won't have the crowd advantage, I'm pretty sure I have a very good chance at losing. I don't even want to do this debate, honestly. I'll see you later though."

Rainbow Dash left the library and walked around town a bit to kill time before heading back home.

Life Without Applejack

Granny Smith stood there like an overlord looking down upon Big Macintosh who was busily working the fields. "Faster, Big Mac!" she yelled from out her window. "We got a lot of work to do today, and I'm takin' Apple Bloom to mass soon."

Big Macintosh angrily looked up at the window for a moment as he continued to plow the fields. He only paused for a moment to wipe the sweat from his brow during this very humid day. He was overworked, starving and was in very much need of a shower and a hearty meal.

Granny Smith walked out of her room and went down the hall to Apple Bloom's room. She stepped inside and watched Apple Bloom who was sound asleep in her bed. She looked so innocent to Granny sleeping so peacefully. Granny came over and shook her gently. "Wake up, Apple Bloom. We've got to git to mass and ya got to go today since ya didn't go yesterday with Big Mac." She pulled the covers off her body.

Apple Bloom opened her blood shot eyes. "M-m-mass?" she asked. "But Granny, I'm so tired. I need a few more hours of sleep. Can't we just go next week?" Apple Bloom turned her back to Granny and pulled the covers up onto herself. "I don't even want to go anymore without Applejack. Mass used to be fun and now it's more like a chore."

Granny felt angry that she missed Applejack and dared even mention her name in front of her. She looked around and saw a glass of water on Apple Bloom's nightstand. She took it and dumped the water onto her head.

"Hey!" Apple Bloom shot up, looking distressed. "Why can't ya let me git a lil' more sleep? Ya call me in sick at school all the time so I can work more on the farm, so why can't ya just let me skip mass for one single week?"

"Because ya need to go! Ferget school when we have so much work to do on the farm, and don't ya dare bring up Applejack again to me. She is not clean, nor is she a member of this family. She is the wicked and cursed anathema."

"B-b-but I miss her."

Granny Smith took out an apple and showed it to Apple Bloom. "See this apple here?"

Apple Bloom nodded her head yes innocently.

"This apple represents Applejack. She looks good on the outside, but when you have a look at who she really is..." Granny Smith put the apple on her night stand and crushed it open with her hoof.

Apple Bloom saw the worms thrashing their bodies around that were inside of the apple.

"You'll find that there the Devil's worms have gotten into her and that she is rotten to the core."

"I don't believe that," Apple Bloom said. "Applejack is a good, honest pony who doesn't do any bad. I don't want to go to mass anymore and I'd rather go back to school. I miss my big sister and want her back."

Granny was starting to lose her patience. She pulled the covers completely off her body and grabbed her back legs. She then pulled Apple Bloom forcefully out of the bed and dropped her to the floor.

Apple Bloom's head hit the wooden edge of her bed. She sat there a bit stunned as she rubbed the back of her head.

"Do you have any fear of the Lord!?" Granny asked.

"Granny, I don't know what kind of message yer tryin' to git across to me, but Applejack told me that God isn't the kind of God that watches us from the sky with a baseball bat, waiting to hit ponies who mess up in the slightest bit. I don't think we are to fear the Lord in the same way that ya might be thinkin' 'bout."

"Ya don't want to go to mass anymore and ya still love your rebellious sister who has received the spirit of Jezebel. Do ya know just how painful purgatory is? God is goin' to whip ya so hard and burn ya because of yer sins."

"I truly don't think God is goin' to hurt me, Granny. Applejack told me that Jesus likes to comfort His little ones like that of a mother bird stretching her wings over her young."

"You're becomin' like Applejack and I clearly see that I have done a poor job in raising ya. You have turned out to be a mistake and if you have no fear in the Lord, then I shall put it into you." Granny Smith straightened up her posture. "Now, are you goin' to come to mass or suffer the consequences of not going?"

"I don't want to go to mass," Apple Bloom said.

"I will show you what Hell is like then. Let's go." Granny grabbed Apple Bloom by her ear and tugged.

"Ouch! Granny, stop! Just leave me alone! I spend all day workin' and even often missin' school to work and I just wanna skip one week of mass 'cause I'm so tired. Please let me rest!"

"Quit yer belly achin'!"

Granny dragged her outside and went into the barn. She let go of Apple Bloom and walked over to a chest where she opened it up and began searching through it.

"Granny, I just wanna go back to bed. What are ya going' to do to me?" Apple Bloom nervously asked.

"What I should have done years ago," Granny answered. The old mare pulled out a whip and gave it one good flick against the ground. "Found this old gem after all these years."

Apple Bloom gulped. "What are ya goin' to do with that?"

"I'm goin' to give ya just a small taste of what Purgatory is like. Now, put your two hooves against that wall."

"But..."

"Do it now or I'll double the whippin'!"

Apple Bloom did so. She had no idea what in the world was about to happen, but she sensed that it wasn't going to be a very pleasant experience. Her body was overworked and all she wanted was a little bit more rest. She noticed that there was a rusty bucket full of nails and a large wooden board that seemed to be filled with empty nail holes, and next to the board, was an old hammer. Apple Bloom wondered what the significance of those objects were.

"Father, forgive her of her many sins," Granny said and then whipped Apple Bloom across her back.

There was a sharp pain that went shooting through Apple Bloom's body. "Hey!" Apple Bloom's eyes went wide when she realized just how much that hurt. She turned her head and looked at Granny Smith with tears in her eyes. "Granny, I'll go to mass, just please don't hit me again, that really hurts!"

"Keep those hooves against the wall," Granny commanded. "You'll get seven whips since seven is a complete and holy number." Granny whipped her once more and said, "Back in my day, the nuns used to hit us in order to get us to pay better attention in Catlick school. Ya kids these days have it too easy!" She whipped her again even harder across her back. "If ya have no fear of God, then I will literally beat it into you. They did this to me plenty of times when I was out of line back in the good old days."

"Granny! Stop!" Apple Bloom began to clench her teeth in agony.

"Silence, or I'll add another seven more whippins!" Granny whipped her so hard that she tore the flesh open on her back.

Apple Bloom bit her tongue in order to hold back her screams.

Granny whipped her over her open wound which amplified the pain even more. "Five!"

Apple Bloom's face turned red as she held her breath.

"When we're done, yer gonna learn to respect and appreciate yer elders!" The whip cracked against her back once more. "Six!"

Apple Bloom's entire body began to shake violently. She couldn't take anymore of this.

"Hold still now! One more to help make ya clean again." Granny gave her one last whip as hard as she could. "Seven!"

Apple Bloom fell to the ground. Her body couldn't physically take the punishment anymore. She tried to get up and run but her back hurt so much that she couldn't move.

"Feel sorry yet?" Granny asked and then crossed herself with her hoof. She tossed the whip aside and waited for an answer.

Apple Bloom didn't answer. She simply lay there weeping over her wounds.

"I guess ya not scared enough yet. Ya know, we are pure in all that we do, even on the farm. We are not only organic, but we are the only farm in Ponyville that is one hundred percent pesticide free. We do not allow any impurities on our farm or within our family." Granny left the barn for a moment and then came back with a heated cattle brander. She showed it to Apple Bloom. "See this here? Ya had yer fair share of whippin' in our little experience with purgatory, now it's time to experience the burning. God is also not only goin' to whip ya, but he's also goin' to burn ya and nothing hurts more than fire. Granny exposed the tip of the cattle brander against Apple Blooms flank.

Apple Bloom squirmed and let out a shriek in pain. "Granny! Please! Don't do it!"

"Oh, did that hurt? Ya know, I could give ya yer cutie mark by burnin' ya with this thing. Let me ask ya, do ya still love Applejack even though she is wicked at heart?"

Apple Bloom wanted the suffering to end, but she could not tell a lie about how she felt about her big sister. She closed her eyes and yelled out. "I love Applejack more than any other pony in my family! Please don't burn me!"

"I commend you for yer honesty, but ya still must suffer and be burned for yer sins."

Granny Smith slowly brought the prod closer to her and watched the glowing tip of the rod.

Apple Bloom screamed in terror.

"What the buck is goin' on in here!?"

Granny Smith became startled and dropped the brander. She turned and saw Big Macintosh at the entrance of the barn.

Big Macintosh walked over to Apple Bloom and noticed her bleeding back. He saw the whip and the cattle brander on the floor. "What in the hay did ya do to Apple Bloom!?"

"I was just tryin' to teach her some discipline and give her a taste of what purgatory is like."

"NO!" Big Macintosh yelled so loud the entire barn seemed to tremble. "Were you seriously goin' to burn her with that cattle prod!?"

"Granny Smith guiltily looked at the rod on the floor. "Well, not really. I just wanted to get her to go back to mass and try to make her realize how scary Hell is."

"You are out of yer buckin' mind! Do ya realize that I can have you arrested for filly abuse? Just look at how torn up her back is!"

Granny noticed that Apple Bloom was quite hurt and a bit bloody. "Well, my folk and the nuns at school did it to me wen I was a filly in order to straighten me out. I just don't want to see her sin and go down the same road that Applejack went down. Applejack gave into her sin and ain't comin' back to the farm. The last thing I want to happen is Apple Bloom followin' in her rebellious hoof steps. I only did it 'cause I care 'bout her and the Bible says to not withhold discipline from a child; if you strike him with a rod, he will not die."

"Granny, yer insane. Yer absolutely off yer rocker! Tearing open the back of a little filly and threatening to burn her! Shame on you and shame on how you try to portray God to her!" Big Macintosh paused to examine her wounds. "I swear, if ya hurt her in anyway again, I'm takin' her off the farm and we're goin' to find Applejack and leave this place for good!" Big Mac looked down at Apple Bloom who was still crying from being whipped and also from the heated argument. "Come on, Apple Bloom. Let's get ya cleaned up and help heal those wounds."

Apple Bloom tried to get up, but her back hurt so much that she fell back down.

"Cripes," Big Mac muttered. He scooped her up and placed her on his back. He looked at Granny sternly and said, "Don't touch her again!"

Granny watched him walk out with Apple Bloom. "Dag nab it! Now I can't go to mass 'cause Big Macintosh has to take care of Apple Bloom and no one is workin' on the farm." Granny left the barn and walked over to where there were many barrels full of apples that Big Macintosh was supposed to bring in. She walked over to the one with the smallest amount of apples in them and stared at it for a moment. She sighed and said to herself. "Yer not that old. Just believe that ya can do it. These apples ain't gonna bring themselves in." She strategically positioned herself in a way that would make picking up the barrel easier. Her joints popped as she struggled to pick it up and was just barely able to put it on her back. She looked down at her legs that were shaking heavily and she couldn't get herself to take a single step forward. Her back was not strong enough to support such weight and her legs gave out from beneath her. "Help!" The helpless mare shouted. She began to struggle to breathe and felt that she would soon pass out. Granny called out yet again, but nopony was around. She began to pray. "Dear God, please spare me from death today. I don't want to die now. I'll do anythin'."

"Granny? Did I hear ya call fer help?" A voice called out from behind her.

Granny tried to call out, but could not speak because the weight was so crushing on top of her frail body.

Big Mac came around the corner of the house and saw what had happened. "Granny!" He instantly rushed over and took the barrel off her back. "What in tar-nation are ya doin' liiftin' barrels like that!? Do you want to get yerself killed!?"

Granny Smith struggled to pick herself up from off the ground and leaned back against the side of the house. "Just git me some Aspirin and an ice pack fer my back. I know I done wrong."

Big Mac went inside and retrieved a bottle of Aspirin and and ice pack. He came back outside and gave them to his Grandma. "Why, Granny? Ya know yer in no shape to lift somethin' like that."

"Granny took two pills of Aspirin and swallowed them before she put the ice pack on her back. "I did it 'cause ya had to take care of Apple Bloom and no one was workin' the farm."

"And I still didn't finish takin' care of her 'cause I heard ya callin' out fer help."

"Well, everyday seems to get harder and harder on the farm and we have to push ourselves a bit more because..."

Big Mac cut her off. "No! No more of this extra work because you have disowned Applejack. We need her back on the farm and if ya don't get her soon, then I'm walkin' off this farm with Apple Bloom to find her and perhaps we'll start a new farm elsewhere or go live with cousin Braeburn."

"No." Granny said with sorrow in her voice. She realized that she had to accept defeat and that the farm would not be able to stay in business without Applejack. "I'll go git her myself. Just give me a little time fer my back to heal up."

"Are ya goin' to be okay with yer back?"

"Yes, I'll be fine. Just go inside and take care of Apple Bloom before ya head out to town to sell some apples."

Big Macintosh looked down at her and said, "And don't ya ferget to bring A.J. back or I'm seriously leavin' this place fer good with Apple Bloom. Don't ya ferget it." He turned and walked away leaving Granny to think about her actions.

Granny put her front hooves to her eyes in grief and shame. "Dear Lord I have sinned greatly. Fergive me Father, fer I have become hateful in my heart."

Surviving With Twilight

Applejack awoke in bed early. It seemed that despite the fact that she had not worked in days, her body was so used to waking up at the exact minute precisely at five O' clock in the morning even though there were no roosters to wake her up. Applejack looked over at Twilight who was sleeping across the room in another bed. She thought about trying to go back to sleep, but she was wide awake now. It also didn't help that she was still afraid of Granny's preaching and she was still very much torn over being rejected by the very mare who for the most part, raised her up as a filly. With no work to do, she felt lazy and to her, missing a few days of work like this felt like not having worked in years.

Applejack got out of bed and walked over to the window. She put her hoof against the glass and stayed there waiting for the sun to rise. As the light filled up the room, she turned back to Twilight as if expecting her to be out of bed and ready to take on the day with her. She didn't understand how a pony could sleep so long. What was considered to be so late in her eyes, was a problem for her because now she was very hungry. She didn't want to wake Twilight because she had been tired for quite a long time now from her studies, so she decided to do the next best thing.

Applejack crept over and looked down at Spike. She looked up at Twilight for a moment and then stared at the little round device that Twilight needed to go to sleep every night. Applejack couldn't figure out why a pony would need actual noise to sleep. In her mind, the best way to sleep was by hard physical labor followed by peace and quiet; not noise. She grabbed the tip of Spike's bed with her teeth and dragged him to the other side of the room. Whatever sounds that were made did not disturb Twilight, as the little round sleep machine provided plenty of white noise for her. Applejack tapped Spike a few times with her hoof. "Psst. Spike, I'm hungry. Aren't ya'll gonna get up soon?"

The baby dragon sat up and rubbed his eyes. "What are you waking me up for? This had better be important."

"Uh, it kinda is. I hate to bother ya and everythin' but I'm super hungry. What can I have to eat here?"

Spike had been feeling quite grumpy ever since he had more chores to do thanks to Twilight being so busy. He sat there and thought about the situation. "Fine. I'll make an early breakfast, but I'm going to need an extra long nap later and I better not be disturbed." Spike got out of his bed and headed over to the stairs. "Come on, I can make some French toast for you."

Applejack quickly followed the dragon downstairs who was stumbling around from being so exhausted.

Twilight Sparkle turned over to the other side of the bed. Her bladder was full yet again, but she tried to ignore it since she had gone to the bathroom at least five times in the middle of the night. Twilight attempted to go back to sleep and ignore her desire to empty her bladder until something much greater distracted her. Her nostrils twitched and she opened up her eyes. "What on earth was Spike cooking down there?" she thought to herself. Whatever it was, it smelled heavenly and it didn't help that she was hungry. She got out of bed and walked down the stairs to see that Applejack was pigging out on breakfast and Spike was eating with her at the table that was cluttered with notes, books, and quills. This was the only place that she could keep her materials without making a mess in the library.

Spike noticed her and said, "Good morning, Twilight. Care for some French toast and eggs? It's such a nice day that I thought I'd open the windows and enjoy some fresh air as we eat."

"Mornin', sugar cube," Applejack said and then took a large bite of her breakfast. "I wish I had a dragon to make me food like this."

"There is nothing good about mornings when you don't sleep well. My insomnia and weak bladder is kicking my flank, but yes, I'd love to have some breakfast right after I use the bathroom." She looked at the portion size of breakfast that Spike was safeguarding for her so that Applejack would not eat everything on the table. "You've done well, Spike. You've done real good and please be careful and try not to make a mess. Those are very important books and notes I have on the table." Twilight turned and was about to walk away and then turned back and added, "I don't mean to terrify you, but you do know that there's a good probability that not all the ingredients used to make that French toast are not one hundred percent organic, right?"

Applejack swallowed and laughed nervously. "I guess beggars can't be choosers."

Twilight laughed and turned to leave.

Spike watched her walk away and then took the plate of French toast that he had been saving for her. It was probably cold by now and Spike loved to go the distance and get everything just right for his master, teacher, and in many ways, his mom. Spike turned to the side with the plate and said, "Hey A.J., watch this." Spike proudly closed his eyes and blew out fire on the plate to heat her breakfast up, but at that exact moment, a gust of wind blew in causing the flames to shoot over to Applejack.

Applejack shielded her face with her front leg from the flames. "Hey!" she cried out. "Ya almost burned me."

Spike, having realized that something went wrong, opened his eyes and looked at Applejack. She was okay, but he started to panic when he saw that a large pile of papers had caught fire. He dropped the plate of food on the floor in a panic and stamped out the fire that was on the table.

"I really hope that wasn't anythin' important," Applejack said. "I reckon it's a bit dangerous blowin' fire like that with all this clutter on the table."

"Oh, it's probably just some notes that Twilight doesn't need anymore he said as he swept away the ashes from the table. Spike dropped the ashes under the table when he heard Twilight walking back in.

Twilight walked on over to the table and sat down. "You know what? Before I eat, I'd like to first write down a really important point in my debate presentation that had been on my mind last night. Twilight sniffed the air. "What is that burning smell?"

"Um, I think I might have burned some breakfast by accident," Spike answered.

Twilight shrugged and began searching through the massive mounds of papers and books. She began getting desperate after searching for a bit. "I don't understand. I left my most important papers for the whole debate right on top so that I could find it easily this morning."

A drop of sweat hit the floor that fell from Spike's head. "Oh boy. Oh boy." he whispered to himself.

Twilight found what was left of the burnt front cover of what was her entire paper that she spent weeks preparing. All that work was destroyed and she had nothing. Twilight couldn't help but feel angry. She had admonished them to be extra careful around this table and now she had nothing to bring to the debate. "What did I tell you about being careful around this table, Spike? I hope you know that was my entire debate paper that was burned." Twilight let go of the burnt paper and it slowly wafted to the ground.

Spike's eyes followed it until it hit the ground and broke into pieces. "Um, I screwed up big time, didn't I? I tried to warm up your plate and even looked away from the table as I heated it up, but I think the wind blew my flames the wrong way."

"I have nothing now for this debate. The countless hours I spent on that paper, gone! I'd tell Princess Celestia that I can't make it, but I already promised. I'm screwed, Spike. Totally screwed."

"I'm so sorry, Twilight. You'll still knock 'em dead knowing how smart you are, right?" he asked.

"I heard that this stallion isn't some random uneducated pony, Spike. I'm going to sound like a bumbling idiot even more so without any notes in front of me at all."

Spike couldn't think of anything else to say. "I'm sorry," he repeated with his head bowed down low. "Am I still going to be able to come watch you?"

Twilight, in a bitter mood sat down on the floor. "No, I need you to watch the library while I'm there and to also take care of Applejack."

Applejack thought about asking if she could attend the event, since she was originally invited before, but seeing the look on her friend's face told her that now might be the time to stay out of this mess.

"Well, at least I can get in a good meal before I try to scrape together whatever resources I can for this debate." Twilight looked around for her plate. "You did save me something, right?"

This was not one of Spike's better days. "I dropped it on the floor when I tried to put out the flames." He put his claws nervously together. "I can make something for you. Hold on, just one second!" Spike ran over and opened up the cabinet. He panicked as he moved things around looking for something that would be reasonable to make for breakfast. He accidentally knocked over a large bag of rice that wasn't sealed quite right. It spilled out like a waterfall onto the the kitchen floor. "Oh, boy."

"Ungh! You know what? Forget about breakfast! I'll get some money and grab some grub at a diner or something before you ruin something else!" Twilight Sparkle grabbed some money off the counter and headed out of the kitchen. She glared back at Spike in anger one last time before leaving.

The words hurt Spike very much. He felt like an utter screw up that was unworthy of forgiveness. He not only ruined Twilight's debate and her breakfast, but he also made a gigantic mess in the kitchen.

Applejack stared at Spike awkwardly as she sat in utter silence. She had never in her life saw Twilight get that snappy before nor did she understand the high pressure and stress that preparing for such a major event was like. "Um, I'm awfully sorry that today ain't goin' well for ya. Reminds me of the times when we got into fights at Sweet Apple Acres back when I, um, when I actually had a family." Applejack continued to stare at the heart broken dragon. "Mind if I help ya clean up that mess?"

Spike lost control of his emotions. He sat on the floor and wept. For the first time ever, he felt very deeply rejected and nothing hurt him more than to make Twilight disappointed. He also couldn't stand that he kept saying that he was sorry and she did not forgive him.

Applejack got out of her seat and walked over to Spike. "I'm sorry that Twilight is bein' a bit on the grumpy side. She's probably just havin' a bad day or somethin'. Ya know us mares can get grumpy at least once a month. Heck, I get grumpy if I don't get enough done on the farm or work on buildin' somethin'."

"No," Spike said. "I don't think you understand just how hard she has worked for this debate. She has never done this before and has spent entire nights staying up reading and writing. Her work is different from what you do. You work mostly with your body, Twilight works mostly with her mind. Both can be very tiring and stressful." Spike picked up a book from the table and showed Applejack.

"What in tarnations am I lookin' at?" she asked. "What is that jumble of stuff that runs down the entire page? Some kinda alien writin'?"

"That's one of Twilight's math problems that she likes to work on. She'll sometimes spend days working on some of these longer ones."

Applejack scratched her head with her hoof in confusion. "Wait, I don't even see any numbers in this fancy equation. How do you do math without numbers?"

"And that proves my point," Spike said as he tossed the book aside. "There are more complex things to think about and solve than addition and subtraction." Spike sighed and picked up a dust broom and pan. He began cleaning up the mess on the floor.

"Mind if I help?" Applejack asked. "I am the work pony and I haven't done much 'round here to help."

"No, it's fine. I made this mess and I should be the one responsible to clean it up."

Applejack stared at the floor where the french toast and eggs were next to the scattered pieces of the broken dish. "Ya know, it is a sin to waste food. May I at least clean up this mess by myself?"

"You're seriously not going to eat that off the dirty floor, are you? That would be disgusting."

Applejack stared at Spike as if she was waiting for his approval.

"Ungh. Fine. Have your way," Spike said and then continued to sweep. "Just be careful not to eat any of the broken fragments from that plate."

Applejack instantly drove her face to the floor and practically inhaled the food off the floor like a vacuum cleaner. She picked her head up and said, "So I guess I'll be upstairs if ya need me." She waited for Spike to reply but he didn't. She could tell that he was really bothered by what had happened. "If it makes ya feel any better, that breakfast ya made was darn tootin' good." She hoped maybe that compliment would get a smile from him, but he continued to sweep the floor without a response. "Okay, I'll leave ya alone. Sorry yer not havin' a good day." Applejack walked upstairs and plopped herself down on the bed that she had been sleeping in for several nights. She put both her hooves to her cheeks and stared out the window.

Applejack was getting worried that perhaps her Sisters in Christ group was coming to an end. It seemed that everypony was having some major problems in their lives. Twilight had told her something crazy about Soarin' acting strange around Rainbow Dash with another mare. Rarity had been having problems raising her kid, Pinkie Pie had gone off her rocker, Fluttershy had been a no show, and was having problems with her critters, and of course, she had no more family except for her sisters in Christ, which now seemed to be breaking apart because of life's problems that seemed to be overwhelming everypony. It had never occurred to Applejack that she had finally found something that seemed more important than sticking with her family and that was her love for her Sister's in Christ. She stared out the window and watched the ponies going along their merry way across Ponyville. "It just ain't right," Applejack whispered to herself. Applejack began to worry about her life, her family, and her friends. She leaned her forehead against the window and closed her eyes. "Dear God, it feels like a sin that I'm not workin', and ya know that I fear 'bout becomin' lazy since anypony who is not willin' to work will not get to eat and I'm reminded that the hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops. Ya know that I love to eat and I don't think I could ever go a day without missin' a meal. I'm so grateful that Twilight is hospitable and was more than willin' to take me in. It's things like that which shows me that Twilight is a good pony and not a deceptive heretic, like Granny Smith thinks she is. I wanted to go to the church that she worships at because I felt that mine was boring and I felt that most of the ponies there were just goin' through the motions without really carin' bout intimacy or learnin' more 'bout You. I also have a special bond between Twilight and the rest of my gal pals and I want to worship with them; It just feels right and I can't explain it any better. I hope ya understand and will continue to provide fer me even though I'm not workin'. I pray fer endurance fer myself and my friends goin' through rough times. I also pray for my lil' sis', Apple Bloom and my brother, Big Macintosh. I hope they are doin' well and I miss them very much. I always knew that Granny would be upset if she ever found out that my friends weren't Catlick, but golly, I didn't expect to be kicked off the farm and out of the family. I hope ya can do somethin' 'bout it. I can't be bummin' off of Twilight like this fer long and I'm sure she can't afford to feed me like she has been. Thank ya fer providin' fer me like this. Ya put Twi and my friends in my life for a good reason even if some trouble would come 'cause of it. Anyway, I should go downstairs and see if I can help and cheer Spike up. Please make a way so that I might be able to work back on the farm again and that Granny can understand that my friends are good ponies. In Jesus name I pray, amen."

Applejack opened her eyes and stared out the window for one last moment before heading back downstairs. She had something fun in mind that she and Spike could do together. "Spike? Spike?" Spiiiiiiike?" Applejack looked around the room, but Spike was gone. She walked over to the table where there was a note.

The note read, "Dear Applejack, you can help me out by watching the library and making sure that ponies can check out some books if they want. I left to go to a shop to get some doughnuts with extra sprinkles. I'll be back later."

"Extra sprinkles? Poor feller must be feelin' really sad. Um, I guess I can just stay here and watch the library." Applejack took a seat at the table and waited. It was still very early and not one pony had showed up yet.

Applejack's ears perked up when she heard knocking at the door and she was a bit confused why somepony would knock on a library door when they were open. Applejack got up and opened the door. She was shocked to see Granny Smith. She was even more shocked to see that Granny Smith had her back taped up and she was using a walker. "Granny! What happened? Are ya alright?"

"Well, I wouldn't be standin' here if I wasn't, but yes, I am fine. I hurt my back tryin' to lift somethin' that was too heavy." Granny Smith perked up and looked into Applejack's eyes. "Now listen here, I reckon I was a tad bit harsh on ya and I realize that it may have been wrong fer me to kick ya off the farm like that. I'd like to make an apology 'bout what I did and said to ya. Yer welcome to come back to the farm when ya want. I don't want to see ya go hungry out here."

Applejack's eyes scanned Granny Smith's entire body and then she looked back into her eyes. Applejack knew she was lying because she could tell that a pony was lying by listening to their voice, observing their body posture, and looking into their eyes. It was one reason why she never lost a game of poker before. Applejack frowned and said, "Yer hidn' somethin' from me. Ya just want me to come back on the farm because ya realized that ya can't keep the farm runnin' without me."

Granny Smith looked at the ground with guilt. "I guess I can't hide anythin' from ya. Yes, I can't find another pony who is willin' to do even half of what ya did on a daily basis on the farm. So would ya come back fer the family? I make the best organic food fer ya and ya can eat 'til yer heart's content. I'm sure yer friend hasn't been able to make food as good as I do anyway."

Applejack thought about the matters and said, "Actually, I have been treated and fed very well here, but I'll only come back under one condition."

"What condition would that be?"

"Ya accept me fer who I am and ya best better respect my gal pals including Twilight. No more of this hatin' on Protestants business, ya hear?"

Granny Smith was bothered very much by this, but there was nothing she could do about it. "Fine. I won't say another word about yer friends, but would ya at least come back to mass and talk with the priest? There was a Bible verse that made me think of ya. Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow is the road that leads to life, and only a few find it."

Applejack stomped her hoof on the ground. "Why don't ya just talk to Twi. She isn't mean and she'd be more than willin' to explain why she doesn't follow the traditions of the Catlick church."

"Fine, let me speak to her now," Granny said.

"Well, she ain't here right now, but ya need to talk to her when she has the time."

"Why don't ya bring her to mass so she can speak with Father Hay Scratch or one of the Sisters, or is she one of those Protestants that would refuse to even step hoof inside a Catlick church?" Granny asked.

"If she has time, I'm sure she'd be more than willin' to talk to Father Hay Scratch, but ya gotta understand that this pony is busy and spends most of her free time helpin' others who come to the library and have questions 'bout scripture. She also has a very big debate comin' up soon."

Granny Smith stroked the tip of her chin. "Ah, yes. I heard 'bout that recently. It was written on the front page of the newspaper that a major debate was takin' place at the Grand Galloping Gala and Princess Celestia is hostin' it."

"So maybe we can set up a little date sometime and we can all be united under Christ like we should be, right?" Applejack asked.

"Yes, but ya must understand that I can never accept any theology other than the one true and most holy church that has never made any error throughout its existence," Granny said.

"Well that's fine. Just as long as ya except me fer who I am and respect my friends, we'll be just fine and dandy. Tell ya what, when Spike or Twilight gets back, we can go home and get the farm and our family life back to what it once was. How are Big Macintosh and Apple Bloom doing?"

"Apple Bloom can't sleep anymore at night and Big Macintosh, well...." Granny paused for a moment. "When he threatened to walk off the farm and go find other work unless you came home again, I had no other choice but to come and get ya. And yes, before ya tell me how shallow that is, I already told ya that yer sect of Christianity will be tolerated. I just don't understand how ya can be a part of one of these sects that split and make different denominations over the most absurd reasons, like deciding what color the church carpet should be."

"I understand. Why don't ya come on inside and sit down for a bit. Ya don't look like yer in any shape to be walkin' 'round anyway. Besides, Spike left me a note that I need to watch the library. I'm sure he'll be back after he indulges in doughnuts and then we can git back home. I can't wait to see Big Macintosh and Apple Bloom again. I can't tell ya how much I missed them."

Granny Smith agreed and stepped inside. She wasn't happy right now and she thought that perhaps the way she treated Applejack before would literally scare the hell into her, but she realized that the tactic had failed and she'd have to tolerate her new beliefs if she were to keep the Apple family united and the farm running. "Again, I'm so sorry fer how I treated ya. I just worry so much and I don't want ya to go to Hell fer makin' a poor choice."

"Granny, I got good news fer ya. I can't go to Hell! It's literally impossible fer me based upon what the Word of God says," Applejack said as she walked over to a table near the window and sat down.

Granny Smith sat down with her and asked, "Don't ya miss mass? Don't ya still think the Catlick church is wonderful?"

"Honestly," Applejack said. "I kind of think a few things about it are rather frightening."

"Like?" Granny asked.

"Well, I kind of find ex cathedra to be one of the most terrifying and dangerous ideas of any religion. The Catlick church says jump, we all say how high. There's also the Eucharist that concerns me as well as..."

Granny interrupted her "And it's not terrifying when every single Protestant can interpret the Bible on their own?"

Applejack bowed her head. "I suppose there have been some terrible interpretations, but I find it far more scary when one pony can speak the words out of God's own mouth over matters and literally control everypony."

"It is necessary and it has to be that way no matter what. We can't accept sola scriptura as the answer. I just hope that yer not listenin' to talented ear-ticklin' heretical preachers like Seedy Jakes or Joel Oatsteen."

Applejack sighed. She didn't know what else to say at this point since Granny would never change her mind no matter what, and she didn't want to start saying things that she didn't have much understanding about.

Granny Smith sat there with Applejack in awkward silence for the most part, with the occasional discussion about the farm and the weather. Granny wanted to get Applejack home soon because Big Macintosh had threatened her that he would leave if she weren't back by a certain time today. Granny's eyes scanned the various books on the shelves that were probably all heretical in her mind. She was about to ask if Applejack was hungry until she was interrupted by the door opening.

In stepped Spike with his claws clutching at his belly and he was mumbling something under his breath. He was surprised to see that Granny Smith was there.

"Hey, Spike," Applejack said. "Would ya mind if I go home since Granny and I have everythin' settled?"

Spike was in so much stomach pain that he just waved his claw and grunted. "Yeah, that's fine. Just go and I'll watch the library."

"Er, you don't look so good, fella. Did ya have one too many doughnuts?" Applejack asked.

"Perhaps," the dragon said. "Just go. I"ll be fine."

"Okay, sugar cube. Just make sure to tell Twilight that I said thanks fer all her help and all. I really appreciate it. Granny also wants to talk to Twilight about theology and Mass."

Spike curled up into a ball on the floor. "Yeah, will do. See you later."

Applejack and Granny made there way out, leaving Spike alone on the floor. He laid there fully regretting just how many doughnuts he had consumed because he was upset.

Within a few moments, Twilight came back into the library and found her dragon curled up in a ball. "Spike?"

Spike rocked himself slowly, "Twilight?" he asked. He was so focused on his stomach pain that he did not hear her enter. "Twilight? You're home already?"

"Yes, Spike. Are you Okay? "

"I think I had one too many doughnuts, but I'm fine."

"Spike, listen. I need to apologize for being a bit snappy. You did a right thing wrong, and I can't stay mad at you for that."

"But I'm not supposed to use fire around your books, remember?"

"Yes, but to be fair, I shouldn't have had all my work cluttered on the kitchen table. It's my fault for not making more room on my dresser upstairs. I was lazy and unorganized. I also said some things that were rather harsh. There's scripture about being slow to anger and I wasn't very patient. Do you forgive me, Spike?"

Spike couldn't believe that she was apologizing to him. The words shocked him and he turned over to face her. "I, uh, yes. I forgive you." Spike thought about this situation for a moment. "But what about all that work you did? It's gone now."

"Well, perhaps I can cram in some more time and sloppily write some notes down from the things I have highlighted in the books that I was reading, but other than that, there isn't anything that can be done. I have a feeling I'm going to make our Christian Princess look horrible. I'm supposed to be defending the faith and representing her in some ways. I just hope I don't get banished from Ponyville for screwing up too badly. She chose me to do this for a reason and I just wish I had more time to prepare for it. I guess the secular movement demanded that she do one of these events fast. I'm sure this event is going to be recorded too." Twilight sighed and looked down at the floor for a moment. Her mind had been so focused on Spike that she forgot the most obvious thing that was missing from the library. She picked her head back up and asked, "Where's Applejack?"

Spike got up off the floor, still clutching his belly. "Granny Smith came back and took Applejack back to Sweet Apple Acres. I don't know much about the details, but I think Applejack and Granny are okay with each other again. Applejack wanted me to tell you that she said thanks for taking care of her and everything and that Granny wants to talk to you about Mass or something."

"That's odd," Twilight said. "From what Applejack told me, it seemed that Granny was Hell bent on keeping her away from the farm until she converts back to Catholicism. I was wondering what path she was eventually going to choose. I guess she chose to go back to Mass and be Catholic." Twilight thought about the situation for a moment and concluded, "I guess if it means being united with her family then it's worth it. It will be a bit sad that she won't be attending worship with her gal pals as she likes to call us."

"Actually, she didn't mention anything about that. Perhaps Granny Smith came and accepted Applejack for what she believes and who she chooses to hang out with. Could you imagine Sweet Apple Acres without Applejack's labor? How could they find a pony who could even do half of what Applejack does in a day's work? She's absolutely irreplaceable."

"She is irreplaceable to me as a friend as well," Twilight said. "Whatever she decided to do, we'll still be there for her. I'm sure I'll see her again soon as well as our other friends. I did send them that letter about the date and time of the event."

Spike put his claws nervously together. "D-d-do you think I might be able to come and see it too? I'll leave the pom-poms I got from Pinkie Pie at home and will try keep my cheering to a minimum."

"You know, now that I think about it, would it really hurt to keep this library closed for one day? Besides, I'm sure most of the ponies who know me and come here will be at the event." Twilight patted Spike on the head with her hoof. "Of course you can come. I need every little bit of morale boost I can possibly get for this."

"I wouldn't want to miss this for the world," Spike said.

"Thanks, Spike. That means a lot to me." Twilight looked at a pile of books on a nearby table. "I guess if I'm going to attempt to salvage any vital information, now is the time to do it."

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Spike asked.

"Hmmmm." Twilight said as she thought to herself. "Actually, yeah. I think it's time for some coffeeanity. I could use a boost right now."

"Really? Again? You do know that you have been thriving off this stuff. What are you up to, eight cups a day? Maybe it's time that you stop drinking it for a little while."

Twilight sat down at the table with a book. "I can quit any time I'd like, Spike, but just not right now." She then winked at him and watched him walk into the kitchen. She opened up a book that was heavily highlighted and began writing down notes. It was painfully hard to start over again, but there was still determination in her heart to try again. She had already made a promise and it was too late to change anything about this situation.

Home Again

Applejack was back home with Granny Smith; they were standing outside together looking at the farm under the moonlight.

"Welp," Applejack said as she took note of their small tomato garden by the house. "Looks like no one has been tendin' to the farm in years. Just look at all those pesky weeds that are stranglin' the life out of our tomato plants. It's a shame that ya'll didn't keep up with the weed pullin' since we don't use any chemicals on this farm. There's so much work to be done here; it's kind of amazing that Iv'e only been gone fer a few days and yet this farm looks like a mess."

"And that's why we need ya here," Granny said. "Ya put in more work than ten strong stallions."

Applejack circled around the house as she walked with Granny. "And how is Apple Bloom doin'? May I go see her?"

Apple Bloom opened up her eyes and her ears perked up when she heard the voice of her sister from outside. She heard about the possibility of Applejack coming back so she had left her window open a crack just in case she might hear her big sister enter the house. She was given orders to sleep for the rest of the night, but the excitement was so great and she felt butterflies in her tummy just from hearing her big sister's voice again.

Applejack put her hoof on the door and turned to look at granny.

Granny Smith put her hoof up feeling concerned. "Well, she has been restin' up a bit from an injury and I commanded her to wait until tomorrow to see ya cause she's got school early and..."

Granny Smith was cutoff when the door flew open and Apple Bloom jumped and wrapped her front legs around Applejack's neck.

"Applejack! You're back!" the little filly screamed with delight.

Applejack was a bit shocked to get this much of a reaction out of her sister. "Calm down, sugar cube. I reckon it's a bit late and ya should be in bed by now. Heck, it's probably past my bed time."

Apple Bloom sniffed her mane and said, "Ya don't have your familiar Applejack smell anymore. You smell......different."

"Yeah, well, I have been with Twilight fer a while and maybe her shampoo stole my signature farm scent from my mane." Applejack walked inside the house followed by Granny who was looking extremely agitated that Apple Bloom had disobeyed her orders. "Welp, it sure feels good to be home again. Where's Big Macintosh?"

"Sleeping," Granny quietly said.

Applejack looked down at her sister who was still clinging to her neck as if she were hanging on for her life. "Um, hey, I take it that yer really happy to see me and I'm thankful fer that and everythin', but it is late and we all should be in bed by now. I'm sure my sleep pattern is a bit screwy since Twilight tends to wake up at the crack of noon sometimes and there weren't any roosters around to git us up. Come on now, let go of my neck."

Apple Bloom was hesitant at first but she dropped down to the floor.

Applejack's eyes widened when she saw that her back looked as if a tractor had run over her body. "What in the hay happened to yer back!?"

Apple Bloom looked at Applejack and then quickly over to Granny Smith with a worried look on her face.

Granny stared at her angrily as if she were silently screaming at her to remain quiet.

"Um, I'll be okay. I'm fine, really," Apple Bloom said as she lowered her head and ears.

Applejack looked suspiciously at Granny as if she had any input about Apple Bloom's back.

Granny stuttered for a moment and said, "I-I-I think it's time fer bed. I gotta git some sleep and git up before ya'll do so I can make breakfast fer the family. Good night." Granny Smith quickly retreated to her bedroom and slammed the door shut.

Applejack could hear her locking the door. She looked down at Apple Bloom and asked, "So what happened to yer back?"

"Um, I got hurt a bit." The little filly looked around and asked, "Would you mind puttin' me to bed? I don't feel very well."

Applejack sighed. "Sure, kiddo. I can do that fer ya."

Applejack followed Apple Bloom into her room and tucked her into bed. "I know yer gettin' to be a bit too old fer this, but how would ya like me to read ya a bed time story that our parents used to read to me?"

"Actually, I just wanted you to come up here so I can feel safe. Ya see, I been havin' bad dreams and I'm afraid that God is goin' to punish me in Purgatory fer not bein' perfect."

Applejack perked up. "The traumatizing memories of what her mother did to her in the barn with that whip came into her mind. She also thought about what her father did with the board that was once full of nails. "Why are ya terrified of God beatin' ya and sendin' ya off to Purgatory?" Applejack asked with great concern.

"'Cause I'm not perfect and it makes God angry."

Applejack thought about her injury and eyed the little filly suspiciously. "So tell me what happened to yer back."

"I already told ya, I got hurt and it's not a big deal; I'll be healed up in no time."

"Tell me what happened! I demand to know! Did Granny Smith hurt ya in someway and told ya that yer soul is gonna suffer in Purgatory?"

"I can't tell ya because I'm tryin' to be more like you!" Apple Bloom cried out with tears in her eyes.

"I don't understand," Applejack said.

"I promised that I wouldn't tell ya what happened because I was told that if ya knew, then you'd never come back again. I know yer really big on honesty and I thought that it'd be wrong to break my word. What should I do? Break my word and tell you what happened, or keep my promise?"

Applejack's eyes widened and she felt droplets of sweat dripping down the sides of her face; she took her hat off and fanned herself. She desperately wanted to know what happened to Apple Bloom, but Applejack was all about honesty and felt conflicted.

"Applejack?"

Applejack blinked her eyes several times and snapped out of her trance like stare. "Ya gotta keep to your word!" she blurted out. "Ya'll know that I'm a mare of my word and that lyin' is especially bothersome to me. If ya said that ya wouldn't tell me what happened, then you need to stay true to yer promise." Applejack sighed and looked down at the floor.

"It's okay, Sis," Apple Bloom said. "I want to do the right thing, but can you make a promise to me so that this won't ever happen again?"

"Uh, what promise do ya want me to make?"

"That you'll never leave the farm again or at least never leave me like that again until I'm all grown up and strong like yerself."

Applejack thought about that request and smiled. "Sure, sugar cube. If anythin' crazy like that happens again, then I'm takin' ya off the farm and we'll find a new place together, especially if yer gettin' hurt by doin' chores that ya shouldn't be doin'. I think Granny has learned her lesson, but I ain't gonna leave my lil' sis behind again. I'm sorry that happened and I didn't know ya felt so strongly about me bein' here with ya'll."

"Are ya kiddin' me!?" Apple Bloom shouted. "Yer the best Apple member in the entire family!"

Applejack put her hoof to her heart. "Golly, thanks fer thinkin' so highly of me."

Apple Bloom stared into her sister's eyes. "So do ya think ya can make that promise fer me?"

Applejack chuckled and rubbed her hoof into her sister's mane. "Yea, I can make and keep that promise fer ya." Applejack's smile turned into a frown when she thought about Apple Bloom asking if God was angry with her. "I'd still like to find out how ya got hurt. If Granny did anythin' to ya, I'd be so mad that I don't know what I'd do."

"Wait, Applejack," Apple Bloom said looking worried.

"S'matter, Sis?"

"Please don't ask her about anythin' like that."

"Why the heck not?" Applejack asked.

"Because I know it will only lead to more anger and separation in the family, and bein' a member in the Apple family, I have seen that bein' together is a major trait when it comes to bein' an Apple as well as workin' hard. I don't wanna see ya go again, so will ya promise not to bother Granny 'bout what happened?"

Applejack stared into her little sister's sad, worried eyes. "Yeah, I guess so, but if ya ever get hurt again, will you promise to tell me 'bout it?"

Apple Bloom nodded her head yes innocently.

Applejack had the intuition that Granny had hurt her when she first saw her back, and the questions Apple Bloom asked only seemed to confirm that feeling. "Shucks, I know Granny was raised to be strict and Iv'e had my fair share of beatin's, but I don't think it's the right thing to do. It may have straightened me out in some ways back when I was bein' disciplined so hard before, but I still think it's wrong to be good out of fear from bein' hit rather than bein' good out of love. God wants ya to obey out of love, not fear. Love is what ultimately changed my heart and our pops showed me that which is why I strive to be honest and to always tell the truth. " Applejack eyed Apple Bloom and added, "Git the gist?"

Apple Bloom shrugged.

There was silence for a moment until the ticking of Apple Bloom's clock on her nightstand reminded Applejack about checking the time. "Good golly, Miss Molly! I got distracted and fergot 'bout the time. I really can't stay awake much longer, especially if I'm gonna be workin' the farm early tomorrow mornin'."

Apple Bloom pulled the covers up to her chin and stared at her sister. "Do ya have to go now, Sis?"

Applejack felt bad that Apple Bloom had gone through a really bad time because she wasn't there for her and she had no idea just how much her little sister appreciated her until tonight. The orange earth pony perked up and said, "Well, I could still read ya those stories Mom used to read me about all the Catlick saints at bed time if ya want me to do that fer ya. I'd have to make it rather snappy since it's so late."

"Well, I was just wonderin' if ya could sleep with me tonight since I have been havin' nightmares ever since ya left."

"Aw, hay. Ya know that yer a bit too old fer that." Applejack thought about matters and added, "See, that's the kind of stuff ya can only do when yer young, otherwise you'll end up bein' a funny filly. My friend Pinkie Pie is a bit coo-coo and still to this day asks if we can take naps together. I don't really understand her and I think she's got a few screws loose in her head if ya know what I mean. I one time had to sleep with my friend Rarity in the same bed at Twilight's place and that wasn't the most pleasant experience either. Ya should git to bed now before it gets any later; ya do have school tomorrow. How has school been goin' anyway?"

Apple Bloom gulped. "I haven't been goin' cause Granny needed me to work on the farm."

"Sheesh! Figures," Applejack said. "Ya don't have to worry 'bout that now since I'm back." Applejack sighed and adjusted her hat. "I'm off to bed now; I'll see ya tomorrow mornin' fer breakfast." Applejack got up and walked over to the door. "Good night, sugar cube." As she was about to flick the light switch off, Apple Bloom spoke.

"Wait."

"What now?"

"Are ya sure that ya can keep yer promise fer me?" Apple Bloom asked.

"Hah! Do ya have any idea who yer talkin' to!? I represent the element of honesty and I'll willingly go to the grave if my honesty depends on it! Don't ya worry yer little head; relax and git some sleep! Yer big sister is gonna do her best to make things better!" Applejack watched as Apple Bloom laid back down against her pillow and closed her eyes. "Goodnight," Applejack softly said and then shut the lights out. She closed the door and headed over to her room. Despite not working in a while, she was tired and she assumed that was because waking up later in the day threw off her sleep cycle. Applejack walked over to the window in her room and looked at the bright full moon. "It's good to be back, I guess. Lord, ya know I love my friends and yet my family is equally just as important. I never thought I'd see the day where I'd give up my family fer my friends, but they really do mean that much to me and I love them. I'm not the brightest bulb, nor am I smart like Twilight, but ultimately, I want us to be united together under You, and I hope that we may be graciously guided to the church that is most true if it matters so much to You. As smart as Twi is, she may not always be right, but golly, I love her to death and I want the best fer our group. Fer now, I'm not gonna fret or worry 'bout it. I was scared enough as it is, but I believe you'll make a way and guide us to what is ultimately true." Applejack sighed as she stared at the bright moon. "Thank ya Jesus. Every single life matters in this world. Amen." Applejack closed the drapes and laid down in bed. There had been so much drama going on, but she trusted that God would somehow make a way through all this chaos.

Scootaloo's Scuffle

Scootaloo was at her desk listening to her teacher talk about the history of Ponyville. She sat there with her one hoof holding her head up and her other hoof was tapping against her desk as her right hind leg shook with anticipation while she was waiting for lunch. She was hungry and she couldn't wait for school to end so that she could practice her tricks on her scooter and maybe get to see her favorite pony, Rainbow Dash. All she had to do was make it through the last half of the school day after lunch.

The school bell finally rang signifying that it was lunch time.

Miss Cheerilee perked up and smiled. "Alright, my little ponies. It's lunch time and since it's such a gorgeous day today, I think we should all eat outside. Does that sound like fun?"

The fillies and colts cheered with excitement.

Miss Cheerilee was one of those awesome teachers that did fun things like field trips, lunch outside, and extended playtime without sacrificing the learning experiences.

Scootaloo couldn't wait to get outside in the sunlight, but she was a little sad that Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle just so happened to be out sick today since both of them had recently caught the measles. Scootaloo remembered how much fun she had when she caught the measles and how all the adults pampered her and gave her lots of soup as if she were suffering greatly even though the experience wasn't that bad going through it. The orange filly ran over to her cubbyhole, grabbed her lunch and ran out the door that Miss Cheerilee was holding open for them. She was a filly that loved to be outside and had an adventurous heart like her hero, Rainbow Dash.

Outside, Scootaloo looked for a place to enjoy her lunch. She felt a little lonely when looking at all the other fillies and colts sitting around the playground, talking and getting their lunches out together. She wanted to be away from everypony because of two classmates who made her life a nightmare whenever they possibly could. They were getting more physically and verbally abusive with her every time she saw them. Without Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom with her, she knew that she was bound to be even more of a target to bully than she normally was. Even when she was near their teacher, they still somehow managed to do things to her without getting caught. Scootaloo looked around a bit and found a log under a tree, next to a bush that was a bit further away from the play area. At least she could have some peace and quiet where she could think to herself. Scootaloo ran over to the tree with her lunch and sat down on the log. She noticed that there were large stones that surrounded this area and appeared as if they were arranged here by some other pony. On each rock were words of encouragement and quotes to inspire those who came here. There were wood chips that covered the ground underneath the tree and there were planted flowers where honey bees were busy buzzing around. It was quite a peaceful and relaxing place to be. In this little area, she remembered that some students came to this spot to read. She began taking out her lunch and nibbling on a carrot, when suddenly, a baby bunny appeared from out from under a bush before her. Scootaloo blinked several times as she studied the little rabbit.

The bunny got a little bit closer and sat down in front of Scootaloo. Its eyes locked on the carrot and its nose twitched several times.

Scootaloo looked at her carrot and then back at the bunny. "Would you like the rest of my carrot?" Scootaloo asked out loud. She very slowly placed the carrot down in front of the innocent little bunny and watched it cautiously move over to it and began to nibble. Scootaloo's eyes opened wide and she grinned. "Maybe I can get my cutie mark in taking care of animals just like Fluttershy does." She put her hoof out slowly and softly touched the bunny.

Surprisingly, the bunny did not flinch or run a way but stayed there content with Scootaloo and the carrot.

"Wow, this is so awesome! Fluttershy was right all along when she told me to appreciate God's beauty and work in nature," Scootaloo said as she pet the bunny a few more times before taking her hoof back. She smiled again and had her eyes focused on the little creature. Her face was close to the bunny and her attention was so drawn on the creature that she had no idea that two ponies were behind her, watching what she was doing. Her contentment and peace, bonding with this bunny was shattered when a hoof that seemed to come out of nowhere came crashing down onto the bunny.

Scootaloo cried out and jumped back. There stood her worst nightmares, Diamond Tiara and her follower, Silver Spoon.

Scootaloo looked back down at the bunny that was still alive and twitching underneath Diamond Tiara's hoof. Shock and anger flooded Scootaloo's mind. "Hey! Why would you hurt a defenseless little bunny like that?"

Diamond Tiara looked down at the suffering little bunny and then twisted her hoof into its neck, killing it. "Because we're going to have a little fun with this bunny and you, chicken!"

Scootaloo backed herself up against the tree. "Why can't you two just leave me alone? Why did you have to kill that bunny?"

"Because we're going to feed it to you," Diamond Tiara said. "You're a poor filthy filly who gets free milk and meals at lunch so we're going to do good and make it our mission to feed the poor today."

The two bullies approached her and when they got close enough, Diamond Tiara put her hoof on Scootaloo's shoulder, but Scootaloo shoved her away.

"Leave me alone! Miss Cheerilee is going to suspend you both when I tell her what you did."

"Don't be a tattle tale, blank flank," Diamond Tiara said and then swung her hoof at Scootaloo's face.

Scootaloo ducked under the attack, but the tip of Diamond's hoof clipped the top of Scootalloo's head.

Scootaloo felt that it was time to fight back. She drove her body forward and all those boxing lessons she took made her react instinctively. Her hoof connected to Diamond's chest, knocking her back.

Both bullies were shocked that Scootaloo would ever attempt to fight back like that.

Scootaloo stood on her hind legs and put both of her front hooves to her face, ready to pummel either bully if they dared get close enough again.

Silver Spoon watched her friend gasp for air for a moment and then turned back to Scootaloo. "So you want to play tough, chicken?" She lunged after Scootaloo with her hoof intended for Scootaloo's face, but Scootaloo, being quick and agile, easily dodged the aggressor and turned her back to the attacker. With one mighty buck to the ribs of Silver Spoon, Scootaloo sent her back next to her fallen friend.

The attackers were both afraid, but they were determined to humiliate her even more now that Scootaloo had the guts to fight back like that. It was obvious that neither bully would be able to take her one on one like that.

Both fillies looked at each other for a moment and then lunged at her simultaneously.

Scootaloo felt confused and overwhelmed as she didn't know who to target first. She swung her hoof at the target that she felt was slightly closer. Her hoof landed hard against Silver Spoon's face, breaking her glasses and sending them flying off her head.

Diamond Tiara tackled Scootaloo to the ground and struggled to contain the fighting filly. Scootaloo was squirming around and bucking as hard as she could in hopes to shake the attacker off of her.

"Help me out here, Silver Spoon," Diamond Tiara called out as she continued to struggle to hold the bucking filly down. She tried to hit Scootaloo a few times with her hoof but missed and hit the ground.

Silver Spoon looked around and found a large rock next to her. She picked it up and slammed it as forcefully as she could against Scootaloo's head.

The pain was so great that Scootaloo was stunned and didn't holler out in pain. Her body gave up the fight as she lay there completely stunned and in too much pain to move. Her eyes were shut tightly and her face scrunched up in agony.

Diamond Tiara fully pinned the injured filly to the ground. Now was their chance to humiliate Scootaloo.

Silver Spoon grabbed the limp bunny and gave it to her partner.

Diamond put the bunny near Scootaloo's mouth. "Eat it!" she demanded.

Scootaloo opened up her teary eyes and slowly turned her head away.

Diamond Tiara began slamming her hoof as hard as she could into Scootaloo's face in order to force her to open her mouth. There was a sadistic smile on Diamond's face each time she watched Scootaloo's head hit the ground with every shot to the head that she gave the defenseless filly. "As my Daddy always tells me, It's better to give than to receive," Diamond said as she continued to pummel her victim.

Scootaloo began to lose consciousness and her mouth opened.

Diamond proceeded to place the bunny into her mouth until a mighty force knocked her and Silver Spoon off their hooves and slammed them into the tree.

The two fillies sat there stunned and hurt for a moment. As their blurry vision began to clear, they saw a furious looking mare staring down at them. It was a pony who they both feared very much.

"If you've got a problem with Scoots, then you have a big problem with me!" the cyan mare said.

"R-r-rainbow Dash!" Diamond Tiara cried out. "You have no right to bully and shove us around like that! You're an adult mare and we're just little fillies. We're going to get you arrested for hurting us like that! When I tell my Dad what you did, he's going to have you put in jail!"

"You just leave Scootaloo alone from now on! Don't you ever put a hoof on her again. Do you understand me!?" Rainbow Dash raised her hoof at them as if she were going to strike them.

This terrified the two bullies and they ran away quickly.

Rainbow Dash watched them flee and then turned to her most favorite filly. She had no idea just how bad she looked until now. She saw the bruised and swollen face, the nasty gash on her forehead that was bleeding from getting hit with the rock, and how horrible her coat looked after getting roughed up so badly. "Dear God, what on earth did they do to you?" Rainbow Dash said as she put her hoof to her mouth in shock and approached the fallen filly. She put her hoof on Scootaloo's shoulder and moved her very gently, afraid that she may have broken some bones and might accidentally hurt her even more. "Scoots, please talk to me and tell me you're okay."

Scootaloo opened her eyes and despite the discomfort and pain she was in, she still smiled a bit when she saw her hero standing above her.

"Scoots, I'm so sorry that I didn't think to come by earlier. Are you okay? I think I need to take you to the hospital."

Scootaloo put her hoof to her forehead and closed her eyes tightly from the pain. She looked at her hoof and saw the blood on it, but she couldn't act hurt in front of her hero even though she was in tremendous pain. "I'm fine, really," Scootaloo said in a voice that quivered slightly. Scootaloo slowly sat up, her head continuously shaking from the pain. She stared at Rainbow Dash for a moment as if she were in a trance and was unsure what had just happened.

"Scoots? Talk to me."

Scootaloo, feeling dizzy, lost her balance and fell into Rainbow Dash. She wrapped her front legs around Rainbow Dash in an attempt to not only keep her balance, but more so because she wanted to hug her hero. After feeling stable on her hooves again, she buried her head in Rainbow's chest. "I love you, Rainbow Dash. You saved me. You really are like my guardian angel."

Rainbow Dash put her wing around the battered filly. "Hey, Scootaloo, I think we should go tell your teacher about what just happened."

Scootaloo picked her head up and shook her head no. "I just want to stay here with you for a while. I feel safe with you."

Rainbow Dash noticed the stained blood on her cyan colored coat. "We can stay here for a little bit, but we need to tell the teacher about what happened soon, and I mean very soon."

Scootaloo looked up at Rainbow with sad eyes. "You won't think that I'm a wimp for telling the teacher, do you?"

"Of course not," Rainbow Dash replied.

Scootaloo looked over at the tree and then tugged at Rainbow's hoof. "Come here first."

Rainbow Dash felt like they should go see the teacher now, but she obeyed and followed her. Scootaloo took her to the tree where she was attacked and sat down with Rainbow Dash. The two ponies stayed there looking at the playground and Scootaloo was making some observations as Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon pushed and harassed a little colt around.

Scootaloo watched the incident for a moment and then noticed that her teacher was being distracted by Pip Squeak. He was showing her his new collection of rocks.

"I don't get it," Scootaloo said. "It's like what just happened makes not a difference in the world to them. Look at how they continue to bully other ponies as if their incident with me never took place. I heard Diamond goes to church every Sunday and Silver Spoon's family takes her to some kind of temple every week and yet they still act like jerks."

"Yeah, I kind of already knew that," Rainbow said with a sigh.

"Where did you hear about that?"

"Everypony knows about Diamond's Dad, Filthy Rich. It's no secret that he takes her to church just to build his reputation and uses religion in order to get more money for his business, although I don't know how he has any kind of reputation with his daughter getting into trouble nearly all the time. It's really sad and I'm sorry that they take their misery out on you."

"But if they go to worship God, why aren't they better ponies?" Scootaloo asked.

"Because they obviously care nothing about what's being taught there. Going to church doesn't make you a Christian and I wouldn't be surprised if Diamond's Dad forces her to go anyway."

"Yeah," Scootaloo said. "I'm just amazed how everypony says that hatred is a learned process. I really don't think it is when I see Filthy Rich interact with Diamond Tiara. Every time I see him around the playground, he's always encouraging her to share more and be nicer to the other fillies and colts. It's like every time a new classmate comes into the school, they make it their mission to interrogate and terrorize them. Do you really believe hatred and selfishness is a learned process, Rainbow?"

"Nope. I've even seen Rarity's baby hit her when he doesn't get what he wants. You are wise beyond your years and your observations are correct. We all have a selfish sin issue and we are prone to being prejudice and hateful towards others who are different than us. It's like tribalism on the playgrounds from what you have told me. They don't have the peace that Christ gives us, Scoots. I have a feeling the love of money might have quite a bit to do with why their family is notoriously known for being dysfunctional.

Scootaloo sighed. "You know, Silver Spoon used to actually be a somewhat decent pony until she became friends with Diamond Tiara."

"And the Bible tells us not to be yoked together with the wicked and dark."

"I still don't hate them," Scootaloo said. "Want to pray for them now?"

Rainbow Dash looked at Scootaloo's head that was still gushing with blood. "You know, Scoots, that's an awfully nice thing for you to want to do and we can do that later, but let me ask you, how do you feel?"

Scootaloo couldn't admit in front of her hero that she was in a world of pain right now, so she admitted to something else that was true. "Very tired."

"Yeah, I don't want you to bleed out on me, kid. We are going to tell your teacher now."

Scootaloo looked upset now. "Are you sure that I won't be a wimp if we tell her what happened?"

"Not at all and I think you're one tough cookie. We need to tell her so that we can end their bullying and torment, not just to you, but to others as well."

Scootaloo felt comforted and got up, but just that slight movement made the pain in her head that much worse.

Rainbow Dash noticed her holding her head in agony and scooped her up in her hooves. "Let me take you there."

Scootaloo was going to object and say she felt fine, but she felt so good and secure being held by her hero that she decided not to say anything.

Rainbow Dash zipped over to Miss Cheerilee who was still being occupied by Pip Squeak. "Eh-hem! You may really want to keep a better eye on your students!"

Miss Cheerilee turned around and became aghast when she saw how busted up Scootaloo was. She put her hoof to her mouth in shock. "My goodness! What happened!?"

Rainbow Dash looked angrily over at the two bullies that were harassing another school mate. "She was attacked by those two over there. You really should watch your students better so stuff like this doesn't happen."

Miss Cheerliee felt awful. She knew that Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were trouble makers, but she didn't know just how bad they were until now. It also didn't help that Pip Squeak constantly fought for her attention whenever he had the chance. She got closer and studied the wounds on Scootaloo's body closely. "Scootaloo needs to get stitches in her forehead right now. I can get a pony to take her to the hospital."

"No need, I'll take her myself," Rainbow said.

"That's fine," Miss Cheerilee said. "You'd better leave now though. That gash is nasty on her forehead. In the meantime, I'm going to deal with Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. I may have to expel them for this." The teacher looked down at Scootaloo and said, "I'm so sorry I wasn't paying attention to you, Scootaloo. This is all my fault."

Scootaloo gave a weak smile and said, "It's fine, Ms. Cheeriliee. Knowing them, they'd find a way to try to hurt me regardless if it was on school time or not. I still think you're a great teacher."

Even hearing those words didn't make Miss Cheerilee feel any better because she felt so badly for being a poor supervisor and that this incident may cause her to lose her job. All she could do was smile at the injured filly. "Thank you, Scootaloo. You need to get going now. Please feel better."

Rainbow Dash hugged Scootaloo close to her chest as if she were her own little filly. "Come on kid, let's get you stitched up." Rainbow Dash spread her wings and took off.

Miss Cheerilee watched the couple dash off. She had no idea who that cyan colored mare was, she had seen her sometimes lurking around the school playground and talking to Scootaloo before. Perhaps she was a family member. Miss Cheerilee had the intuition that she could trust Rainbow Dash to take good care of Scootaloo. Her thoughts ceased when she turned and saw the two trouble makers bothering other ponies. She walked behind the two and stomped her hoof in anger on the ground making a loud thudding sound that startled the bullies.

They both turned to see their teacher angrily staring down at them. They knew they were in trouble, but they didn't care because Diamond's Daddy seemed to be able to get them out of any kind of trouble since he was so wealthy and was deeply involved in the town's politics.

Scootaloo looked down from the air and felt disoriented. "Rainbow Dash, I don't want to get stitches, I'll be fine."

"No, you need them."

"How about we make a deal?" Scootaloo asked with a smile.

"What's the catch?" Rainbow asked.

"I get to hang out with you for the rest of the day."

Rainbow Dash smirked. "I think that can be arranged."

Rainbow Dash made it to the hospital very fast and Scootaloo was instantly taken by Nurse Redhat when she saw the wound on her head.

After Rainbow Dash took care of speaking with the receptionist, she paced inside the waiting room. She felt a little guilty even though It wasn't her fault that she didn't get there earlier to prevent this whole mess that poor Scootaloo found herself in. Her whole business in being there in the first place was just to surprise Scootaloo to make her happy. She spent the whole time thinking of ideas that could cheer up the filly as she continued to pace around the room. Maybe she could take her to a theme park and go on rides, or maybe they could take a trip to the beach and visit her most favorite arcade. She didn't know what the best route would be, but she'd figure out a way to cheer her up. If only she had Pinkie Pie's abilities when it came to this. "Pinkie Pie," Rainbow Dash thought to herself. "I wonder how that mare is doing." She remembered how she was getting a bit more wacky than usual. Perhaps it was just a phase she was going through. She just never knew with Pinkie and neither did anypony else. She walked over to the window and stared outside, contemplating about what to do.

About a half hour later she heard a voice. "All done now. She was a brave little filly."

Rainbow Dash turned to see Nurse Redhat smiling and Scootaloo sucking on a lollipop.

There was a large band aid on Scootaloo's forehead covering the stitches.

"How many stitches did she need?" Rainbow asked.

"About twenty. She was really busted open!" the Nurse replied. "You might want to give her some rest and aspirin when she gets home. You can bring her back in two weeks to get the stitches removed."

Scootaloo was exhausted. She lost a lot of blood and didn't realize how pain could make you feel so sleepy. She walked over to Dash and leaned her aching head on Rainbow's chest. "Let's go to your house, Dash. You promised."

"Wait? My house?" Rainbow Dash thought to herself. "Scoots, you do remember that you attended my wedding and I don't live alone anymore, right? Are you sure you want to hang out with me and Soarin'?"

Scootaloo smiled. "Two Wonderbolts are better than one!"

Rainbow Dash almost patted her on the head but realized that probably wouldn't be a good idea at the moment. She scooped her up in her front legs and looked at the nurse. "Thanks for all your help, I'm so glad that she'll be okay," Rainbow Dash said. "I'll make sure that she rests and I'll have her back in two weeks. Take care." Rainbow Dash turned and left the hospital and was on her way back home. "So this is what you really want, kid? You don't want to go anywhere special or see a movie? You just want to chill with me and Soarin'?"

"Yes," Scootaloo said. "I don't think a movie would be very good for my head anyway."

"That's quite true." Rainbow Dash hoped that Soarin' wouldn't mind the special guest that would be staying for the day. She still didn't know what his deal was, nor really cared at this moment since she had already made a special promise to Scootaloo.

On their way home, Rainbow Dash's curiosity got the better of her and she asked, "So what exactly did they do to you in order to get twenty stitches?"

"I tried to fight them off but they came at me at the same time and managed to pin me to the ground. All I remember was being held down by Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon threw down a really large rock on my head."

"They stoned you and yet you wanted to pray and show them love?"

"Yes," Scootaloo answered her. "I remember how you never gave up hope for Risk Taker and Emerald Envy even though they hated you so much and hurt you very badly. You always told me to pray for my enemies."

Rainbow Dash felt so good to hear this. She was such a terrible role model and Christian with her arrogance and boasting in the past. Leaving a good impact on this little filly was extremely important to her. "You know, Paul got stoned by ponies who were angry with his preaching about Christ, yet he still got back up and went in to preach some more, which is a miracle because stoning in Biblical times was always intended to kill. Paul must have been one bloody mess for them to think that he was truly dead. I just can't help but think of that story and what happened to you. You've got a heart of gold, Scoots."

"Do you think it's going to hurt getting the stitches removed?" Scootaloo asked.

"It shouldn't, but you're going to have one wicked looking Scootascar on your head when they do come out," Rainbow answered.

"Oh? Is that bad?" Scootaloo asked.

"Nah, if anything, it's going to make you look more tough and rugged," Rainbow answered.

Thinking about looking more tough and rugged was something Scootaloo wanted to hear because she was picked on so frequently. Those words kept her content and silent the rest of the way to Rainbow's and Soarin's house.

Rainbow Dash made it home safely and tried to open the door but it was locked and she didn't have the keys to get in. Rainbow Dash knocked on the door loud enough for Soarin' to hear but hoping not loud enough to bother Scootaloo.

Scootaloo winced in pain at the sound of her knocking at the door.

"Sorry about that," Rainbow whispered to Scootaloo when she noticed how uncomfortable she looked.

Soarin' heard the knocking and called out, "Just give me a moment, I'll be right there."

Rainbow Dash looked at Scootaloo and then put her ear to the door. She could hear all kinds of scuffling and strange sounds. "I forgot to mention that Soarin' has been up to something and I have no idea what he's doing."

Scootaloo was unsure of what to say.

The door had opened and Soarin' peeked his head out with an awkward smile. "Hey Dash, you're home a bit earlier than I expected."

Rainbow Dash cleared her throat. "We have a special visitor for today."

Soarin' looked down and noticed Scootaloo. "Whoa, what happened to her?"

"She got into a little skirmish with some bullies at school. Are you going to let us in or what?" Rainbow asked, sounding rather impatient and slightly annoyed.

"Most certainly!" Soarin' said as he opened the door and stepped back.

The two ponies stepped inside and Rainbow closed the door.

Rainbow Dash looked at the clock and realized how late it was. "Goodness! We were at the hospital for quite a long time. It will be dinner time soon. What would you like me to make, Soarin'?"

"Why don't you take a break and we can order some pizza?" Soarin' suggested.

"Ungh. We ate so much pizza back when we still had Bible study." Rainbow Dash thought for a moment and then looked at Scootaloo. "What do you want to eat, Scoots? I'm really not that much of a good cook, but you make the call."

"Pizza!" Scootaloo said with excitement, her voice cracking like Sweetie Belle's. Pizza was a food that she almost never got to eat.

Rainbow Dash smiled at her enthusiasm. "Alright, I'll go pick up a pizza. Now, do you want to come with me or wait here with Soarin'?

Scootaloo looked back and forth between Soarin' and Dash. "Actually," she said. "Would you mind if I stay here because my head still really hurts and flying around with you isn't helping me feel any better."

Rainbow Dash looked up at Soarin', still wondering what his deal was about all his secrecy. "Yeah, you can stay with him. There's some aspirin in the medicine cabinet, Soarin'. The nurse said to give her some when she gets home. Oh, yeah, and I need some bits."

Soarin' gave her a bag full of bits for the pizza that he picked up from the table next to him.

She took the bag and looked at Scootaloo. She looked unusually happy. The smile on the filly's face made her smile a bit as well. "Alright, you two, I'm going to go out and I'll try not to be too long." Rainbow Dash felt a little odd for some reason and felt the need to ask the same question once more. "Are you sure you don't want to come with me, Scoots?"

"Yeah, I really don't feel good and I want to spend a little time with your other half as well. You won't be that long, right?" Scootaloo asked.

Rainbow Dash shook her head no. "I won't be back here in ten seconds flat, but I won't be very long either. I just hope you won't be bored."

Scootaloo looked up at Soarin'. "Bored? How do I get bored with one of the two greatest Wonderbolts of all time!?" Scootaloo grabbed onto Soarin's front leg. "You two are the coolest!"

Soarin' smiled awkwardly at Dash. "You'd better go get that pizza before it gets any later."

Rainbow Dash stared at Scootaloo and was surprised how attached she was to Soarin'. Scootaloo didn't know him that well and she had no idea how well Soarin' did with kids, but she figured she was over thinking everything too much. Scootaloo was hungry, she was hungry, and Soarin', well, Soarin' was always implied as hungry. Rainbow Dash winked at Scootaloo and then left.

About a half hour later, Rainbow Dash got home with the pizza. She wanted to make sure that Scootaloo was okay and having a good time with her spouse. It felt like torture having to smell good pizza while flying with it back home when hungry. If she had sent Soarin' to get the pizza, he probably would have eaten everything mid flight. Soarin' had very little self control when it came to eating. Rainbow Dash walked into the house quickly and found Soarin' with his back turned to her, sitting on their special gaming bean bag chair and playing a video game. She scanned the room looking for Scootaloo but did not see her. Soarin' was supposed to be watching and cheering up Scootaloo and here he was playing games and Scootaloo was no where to be found. "Where the heck is Scootaloo?" Rainbow Dash asked.

Soarin' put the tip of his hoof up to his mouth. "Shhhh." He then went back to playing his game.

Rainbow Dash was a bit ticked. "You know, I thought maybe you could watch her and cheer her up instead of playing a video game while I was out."

"Shhhh," Soarin' whispered again, his eyes still locked on the screen.

Rainbow Dash angrily walked over and put the pizzas down on the table. "I was hoping that you might...." Rainbow Dash turned and saw Scootaloo curled up in a ball on Soarin's chest, sleeping with a gaming controller in between her hooves."

"Shhh," Soarin' whispered once more.

Rainbow Dash put her hoof to her heart. She hadn't seen anything so adorable before. She quietly walked over and got low to the floor. "She fell asleep? I wasn't gone that long, was I?"

Scootaloo was lulled to sleep between the clicking of buttons and the near constant sounds of Soarin's stomach rumbling.

Soarin' shook his head no. "Shortly after you left, she started to break down in tears because she said the pain was becoming unbearable, so I gave her some aspirin. When she began to feel better, she wanted to play a game with me and she climbed onto me and we started playing until she fell asleep. You wouldn't believe how much she wouldn't stop talking about the two of us as if we were the only thing that interested her. She kept saying that she wished we were her parents."

The thought that Scootaloo told Soarin' that she wished she was their parents was very heartwarming. Rainbow Dash always envisioned Scootaloo as her very own daughter and she had no idea that she liked Soarin' or felt this secure with him.

"Where does this filly live anyway?" Soarin' asked.

"She stays at an orphanage and I would rather not discuss this in front of her in case she wakes up. It's a rather heartbreaking story."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," Soarin' said. "I guess we should wake her up now."

Before Soarin' was able to put his hoof on the sleeping filly to gently shake her, his stomach growled so loudly that it woke her up.

Scootaloo yawned and was still out of it. "Dad? Mom?" she asked out loud.

"It's time to eat, Scootaloo," Soarin' said. "Aren't you hungry?"

Scootaloo opened up her eyes and blinked a few times. "I fell asleep?" She asked.

"You were out like a light," Rainbow Dash said.

"Wow, pain makes you super tired," Scootaloo admitted.

"Tell me about it," Rainbow Dash said. She looked at the boxes of pizza on the table and then back at the giant comfy bean bag chair. "You know what? That little set up looks a heck of a lot more comfy than sitting at the table."

Rainbow Dash went over and brought back the boxes of pizza. She then zipped into the kitchen and came back with one of her most favorite drink for each pony, grape juice. She sat on the left side of Scootaloo and rubbed her two front hooves together. "Let's dig in!" Rainbow Dash opened a box and gave Scootaloo a slice.

The orange filly took a bite and watched Soarin' chow down. Scootaloo started giggling. "Wow, he likes to eat really fast."

"Oh, don't mind him. Although, if you don't finish your food fast enough he tends to beg like a dog for more. Isn't that right, Soarin'?" Rainbow asked.

"What?" Soarin' asked with a mouthful of pizza. "I can't hear you over the deliciousness of this pizza!"

"Or more like you can't hear me because you chew so loudly."

Soarin' drove his face back into the pizza box and continued to consume his pie very quickly.

Scootaloo laughed again. She sat there perfectly content, squished in between the two ponies on the voluminous bean bag chair. She felt like she was in Heaven. A place where she felt that she could never get sad or upset and a place where she felt unconditionally loved and accepted for who she was. She came here not knowing Soarin' that well, but had high expectations that she would like him simply because Rainbow Dash did, and Scootaloo typically had great interest in anything that Rainbow Dash found appealing, so therefore Soarin' was instantly awesome in her eyes.

It wasn't long until all three ponies sat there with bellies full of pizza

Rainbow Dash nudged Scootaloo. "Up for a treat, Scoots? I have a giant gourmet chocolate chip cookie with your name on it."

Scootaloo was full, but how could she say no? She hardly got any treats where she lived. "Okay," she simply said.

Rainbow Dash went into the kitchen and retrieved the cookie. "You're lucky Soarin' didn't find this first," she said and then gave the treat to the little filly.

Scootaloo looked at the cookie and then back to Rainbow Dash and Soarin'. "What about you, Rainbow? And what about Soarin'? Doesn't he deserve a special treat too?"

"Yeah! Don't I deserve a special treat too!?" Soarin' repeated.

"Not really. Soarin' hasn't been a very good boy lately and doesn't deserve a special treat," Rainbow said as she looked at him suspiciously.

"What!?" Scootaloo asked. "I don't believe that. Soarin' is so nice and he's fun and he made me feel so safe and special today. He deserves a treat too!" Scootaloo then hugged the side of Soarin' in hopes to prove to Rainbow Dash that he was a good pony and deserved a special treat as well.

"Yeah! I do," Soarin' said and then stuck his tongue out at Rainbow in a playful manner.

Scootaloo let go of him and began breaking the cookie up into pieces.

"What are you doing?" Rainbow asked.

Scootaloo gave parts of her cookie to both Soarin' and Rainbow Dash. "Not too many ponies are this nice to me and share so much. I just wanted to give back a little bit since you both deserve it too."

"That's really sweet of you, Scoots. You didn't have to do that." Rainbow said.

"I don't think I could have finished it all on my own anyway." Scootaloo chomped down on her treat and then asked. "Would it be okay if I stayed over for the night? I don't think the ponies looking after me would care if I'm gone for only a single night."

Rainbow Dash bit her lower lip when she thought about the possible negative consequences of giving into her wish. "Scoots, I hate to break your heart, but I can't let that happen. In fact, we really need to get you back home now. I bet they are already worried and searching for you, especially with what happened today. I would imagine that Miss Cheerilee has probably written quite an extensive report and I'm sure they have lots of questions for you and that those two bullies are going to have to face extreme consequences for what they did to you. I can have you come over another day though. I just need to get you back because I could get into big trouble for keeping you out too late."

Scootaloo's lower lip began to quiver. "But I don't care what happens to Diamond Tiara or Silver Spoon. I'm just so happy right now and I don't want to go back. Scootaloo put her two front hooves together and begged. "Please, please, please, let me stay with you both for tonight." She looked back at Soarin' and then to Rainbow Dash hoping one of them would say yes.

As much as Rainbow Dash wanted to give in, she had to be responsible. "I'm sorry, Scootaloo, but we have to go. I promise to make something special happen for you."

Scootaloo began to cry because she was so upset that she had to leave. "Like what?" she asked.

Rainbow Dash put her hoof to her chin and thought about the situation. "I don't know exactly, but I promise I'll do something super special for you if you come with me now."

Scootaloo hugged Soarin' good bye. "Thanks for having me over today. I'm going to miss you."

Soarin' patted her on the head gently. He hadn't seen a filly so obsessive and overly attached like this one. Perhaps she really did get no love where she was from. "Thanks for coming over, I hope to see you again. Feel better."

Scootaloo let go of him and walked over to the door with her head down low. "I'm ready; let's go home."

Rainbow Dash picked the filly up and said goodbye to Soarin' before leaving. She was sure that she'd have a lot of questions to answer about today's incident as well since she was involved in it.

Sure enough, when they got there, the police were there waiting for Scootaloo in order to question her and Rainbow Dash. It was a long night of questions and it seemed like there was going to be some major penalties facing the fillies that hurt her.

Rainbow Dash hadn't been under so much questioning in all her life and it exhausted her, although they were rather understanding and let her go early since she was quite well known by most ponies. She had spent the rest of the day there and it was time for Scootaloo to go to bed.

Rainbow Dash walked Scootaloo over to her bed. She yawned as she watched her crawl into the bed and get cozy under the blankets. "Good night, kid." Rainbow turned to leave until she heard Scootaloo call out.

"Wait."

Rainbow turned around. "What's up?" she asked.

"You promised me something extra special that you'd do for me. What are you planning on doing?" the orange filly asked with curiosity.

Rainbow stood there stunned a bit. The truth was that she had not a clue in the world what special thing she would do for her and it bothered her very much. "I honestly don't know at this moment, but don't worry, I'm sure I'll think of something soon. Maybe you can help me out and pray that it will be something extra, extra special."

"I will," Scootaloo said.

Rainbow smiled. "Good night, kid. See you soon."

"Good night," Scootaloo said. She watched Rainbow Dash flick off the light and gently close the door. Scootaloo put her two front hooves to her head and prayed. "Dear God, today was really crazy, but Rainbow Dash said that I should pray for my extra special wish and I just really, really, really want her to be my Mom and Soarin' to be my Dad. I was really sad that they wouldn't let me stay overnight at their house, but I understand why that couldn't happen now. Please, please, if there's only one thing in my life that I wish to come true, it's that I want to be adopted by them and soon. In Jesus's name I pray, amen." Scootaloo fell asleep very fast after that prayer. It was a long stressful day and her body needed lots of rest and healing.

Song of Soarin'

Rainbow Dash came home after a rough day and things were not going the way she had planned. She had enough of not being able to spend much time with her spouse since for some reason, he didn't want to be with her unless it involved food or the bed. Long gone were the days when he was romantic and did things for her like risking his life to pick rare, colorful flowers in the Everfree forest, or spending some time with her by the lake that was so special to her. She was looking around for some professional help and thought that maybe seeing a counselor would be the best route. Rainbow Dash was frustrated by the lack of communication and was fed up. She was going to let him know that today, big time and the bad day she was having was the tipping point on that decision. Rainbow slammed the door and called out, "Soarin'! I've seriously reached my boiling point and I'm here to tell you that I've had enough and..." Before Rainbow Dash could finish her sentence, Soarin' raced out and scooped her up in his hooves with a great big smile. He pushed her up against the wall and kissed her for quite a while. Rainbow Dash blinked her eyes several times in disbelief as she stared at him. "What's going on? I'm so confused."

Soarin' reached out and placed a blind fold over her eyes.

"Hey!" Rainbow Dash cried out. "What are you doing to me?"

"Can you see anything?" Soarin' asked.

Rainbow Dash moved her head around. "Uh, no."

"Perfect," Soarin' said and then kissed her on the cheek before flying her into another room.

"Where are you taking me?" Rainbow asked.

"Don't peek," Soarin' commanded.

"Okay?" Rainbow Dash said in the most unsure voice. Her mind was racing and she was a little bit afraid by this sudden change in Soarin'. She felt him place her down on what most likely was the bed. She wasn't going to ask any more questions, although she wasn't a major fan of surprises like Pinkie Pie was. Her ears perked up as she heard Soarin' pulling something out from under the bed that sounded quite heavy as it bumped against one of the legs of the bed. "What on earth is he doing?" Rainbow Dash thought to herself. She then heard the sound of something snapping, like a mouse trap going off. She heard more odd sounds and had no idea what they were.

"You can take the blind fold off now, Dash."

Rainbow Dash did so and she was in awe when she saw that the bed was covered with roses and there were candles lit all around the room. She couldn't see Soarin', but she heard a sweet sound of harmony.

Soarin' stepped into view and sat down on the floor below Dash. The light from the candles flickering showed his face, but she also saw what had made that warm and heavenly sound. He had an acoustic guitar and started strumming it again.

Rainbow Dash laid on her side and put her hoof to her cheek, holding her head up. She didn't expect this, but there was an awesome smile on her face, as she was quite interested in how this would all play out. She sighed one great breath and her eyes closed half way in sheer pleasure.

Soarin' cleared his throat and began to sing as he played the acoustic guitar.

"Rainbow Dash. Faster than the speed of light.

Tough as they come, never afraid to fight.

With blazing speed she zips past others in a rainbow blur.

The fastest pony in Equestria, no one can keep up with her.

A loyal friend and a great companion.

Sonic rainbooms over grand canyons.

She is my wife who came into my broken life and became my rainbow.

For what exact reason she did this, I do not know.

I'm just a lucky stallion who doesn't deserve her but wanted to try

to please her some way before I die.

For I want to love her like Christ loves the Church.

A love that cannot be measured by its worth.

A pony who stays true, whether life stays sunny or the rain starts pourin'

I'm so happy to have her as mine, my heart keeps soarin'.

She is the pony whom I'll never let go.

So I wrote this song to tell her so."

Rainbow Dash put both of her hooves to her mouth and giggled. She thought this just may have been the most adorable thing that he's done yet, but she also couldn't help but laugh at just how off key his singing was.

Soarin' changed the chord progression and he began the chorus.

"Rainbow, rainbow, my rainbow in the sky.

The pie of my eye and loyal by my side.

My angel on the cloud who stands out from the crowd.

Not a day goes by where I forget the magic of her heart,

adventurous and thrilling, loving and willing.

This mare is mine and she is my jewel that sparkles and shines, no matter what troubles the day may bring.

A faithful wife that I get to take under my wing and I sing for our relationship with Christ as our King."

He continued to play and sing until he put the guitar down.

Rainbow Dash clopped her hooves loudly with delight.

"It's not over yet," he said as he picked up another guitar and flicked a switch that lit up a small red light on the amp. "You might appreciate this better than the acoustic guitar." Soarin' went into a loud, crunchy sounding guitar solo.

Rainbow watched and listened as the guitar wailed through the bending of strings and the fast hammer-ons and pull-offs that he performed. The solo had a mixture of slow, emotional beauty and fast technical moments of playing. It was long and it followed the chord progression that he used when he was singing.

Soarin' hit the last note and let it ring out as he stretched his right front leg out and bowed.

Rainbow Dash squealed with delight and put both her hooves to his head and kissed him on his snout.

"Was it good enough?" Soarin' asked as he leaned the guitar against the desk next to the bed. "I tried so hard when it came to putting this all together."

"Good enough!?" Rainbow Dash asked. "That's got to be the sweetest and greatest thing you have ever thought of. I never knew you could play the guitar so well! I loved it! Come up here!" Rainbow Dash said as she patted her hoof on the bed.

Soarin' came up and sat down next to her on the bed. "How was my singing though? Be honest."

Rainbow Dash giggled. "Well, let's just say that you sounded slightly off key, but in many ways, it made the whole experience that much more adorable. Where did you learn to play the guitar like that?"

"Oh, well that was the entire secret that I didn't want you to know about until now. I never played guitar before until I recently found out that this new mare in town was giving music lessons and it's always something that I wanted to try. I wanted to find some way to make you happy because you're suffering and let's face it, even if you weren't suffering, you still deserve something like this because you really are that special to me."

Rainbow Dash put her hoof up in the air and was about to say something, but she suddenly felt guilty about how she assumed that Soarin' was up to no good. She put her head back down and could no longer look him in the eyes. "Aw, horse apples. Way to make me feel bad for not trusting you." Rainbow Dash put her hooves to her head. "I thought that perhaps you weren't being faithful to me because you may feel that I'm boring to you. I'm not exactly in the best shape of my life and I was worried because of our past. I don't like to bring up bad things from the past, but I couldn't help but think of that one time when you did stray from me. Now I see that I was really wrong to jump to conclusions. I'm so sorry, Soarin'. I made a horrible assumption. Please forgive me."

Soarin' put his front leg around her. "Hey, I understand why you would think that and I tried to assure you the best I could. I love you and I was planning a surprise for you like this for a long time. I know you told me that you don't like surprises, but wasn't it worth the wait?"

Rainbow Dash picked her head up and smiled. "It really was and I'm so thankful for the song that you wrote for me. I couldn't imagine how much work that was for you. Thank you."

"So how about a smile, kid?" Soarin' asked as he gave her a playful punch on her jaw.

Rainbow Dash beamed with a smile and hugged Soarin' tightly. "You are the best possible pony for me. I don't even know what to say right now, but thank you. You are my Dino-Soarin'!"

"So, why don't we do something special tonight? I still have a box of fireworks upstairs and we could always set some off for fun tonight by that lake."

Rainbow Dash smirked and then pushed Soarin' on his back. She pinned him to the bed with her hoof on his chest. "Actually, I was thinking about setting off some other fireworks that I had in mind."

"Oh really?" Soarin' asked with an awkward smile.

"Yeah, and you totally earned an endless amount of wife points for today."

"Wife points?" Soarin' asked. "What do I use those for?"

"You can unlock special favors with these points that you acquire," Rainbow said as she slowly rubbed her hoof in circles on his chest.

"What kind of favors?" Soarin' asked, slowly catching on to this little game.

Rainbow Dash closed her eyes halfway in a seductive manner and answered him. "Anything your heart desires me to do."

"I think I might have to agree that your idea of setting off fireworks might be a bit more fun than what I had in mind. I think I'd like to spend these wife points now."

Dash's Decision

It was the weekend and Rainbow Dash and Soarin' sat outside together at their favorite spot. The spot where she often came to where her life changed dramatically. She also came here whenever she wanted to get her deepest thoughts and concerns across to Soarin'.

Soarin' looked at his mate with a bit of concern as she stared at her reflection in the lake. "You wanted to tell me something?"

Rainbow Dash snapped out of her trance, yet kept her eyes focused on the little ripples in the water. "Yes," she said. "Remember how I told you that I was preparing for having our first foal sometime soon?"

"Yes. Did you bring me here to tell me that you're ready?"

Rainbow Dash bit her lower lip. "Not exactly. Remember how ecstatic Scootaloo was when we brought her over and how well she bonded with the two of us? Remember how devastated she was when I had to take her back?"

"I do," Soarin' answered.

"Well, there's this horrible nagging feeling going on in the back of my mind." Rainbow Dash straightened her posture and continued. "Scootaloo seemed traumatized when I had to leave her at the orphanage. I told her that I'd do something super special for her and told her to pray for something that she really wished would come true."

"What do you think you'll do for her?" Soarin' asked.

Rainbow Dash stopped staring at the lake and looked straight into Soarin's eyes. "I think we should adopt her. How do you feel about that?"

Soarin' looked surprised and blinked several times as he thought about it. "You want to adopt her?"

Rainbow Dash's eyes began to scan his whole body, nervously. She was afraid that he might say no to this idea. "Well, yes. You should have heard all the nice things she said about you when I took her home. She really likes you, I mean, really likes you a lot! The orphanage she stays at isn't awful, but it's not exactly the nicest place to live either. What do you think?"

"I'm up for it," Soarin' said and then smiled. "How could I say no to such a good little filly like her?"

"Yes!" Rainbow Dash closed her eyes in utter contentment and hugged her husband. "Thank you so much! This is going to be so exciting starting our new life together with Scoots and I know she wants us to be her parents so badly. I think it's the right thing to do considering that we as Christians should reach out and adopt." Rainbow Dash let go of Soarin' and giggled. "We should make this a super secret surprise for her and..."

"Like the surprise I worked on for you?" Soarin' asked with a wink.

"Hey, hey, I said I was sorry for how I mistrusted you and yes, that was the best surprise you've ever done." Rainbow Dash admitted.

"This stallion hopes to give you more surprises because you're worth it."

"Aw, hey," Dash said. "No need to make me any more mushier than you've already made me. Although I'm pretty sure just about every pony knows that you somehow found the romantic side of me."

"But are we still planning for our own foals, or is that not going to happen now?" Soarin' asked. "Either way, I just want to make you happy."

"I don't know anymore. Maybe. I can't help but realize that there are more ponies out there like Scoots who need loving parents and a good home. It's not good that they don't have a family," Rainbow said. "This just seems like a greater priority and we can see what kind of parents we make with Scoots. I'm really, really, excited about this idea. Aren't you?"

"I still don't know much about her, but isn't she the one who attends school with the other earth ponies and unicorns?"

"Yes, that's her," Rainbow Dash answered.

"Isn't she a bit young to be in school on the ground? I mean, she looks as if she should still be in flight school."

"That's another thing," Rainbow said. "There's a really good chance that she'll never fly since she was born with a disability."

"Aw, that really sucks," Soarin' replied. "She's such a nice little filly too. Things like that just make me want to adopt her even more. I guess we're going to have to make sure that one of us will be always available to fly her up to our house."

Rainbow Dash looked back towards home and then back to Soarin'. "Do you want to go now and see if we can start filling out the paper work? I think they know me quite well by now over at the orphanage. They tell me that Scootaloo talks about me practically all day there."

"Sure! I hope that this will work out for the little one."

"Oh, it will. You have no idea just how much Scootaloo would want this to come true." Rainbow Dash got up and was filled with so much excitement that the pain in her body didn't seem to exist at the moment. "Want to race to the orphanage? It's not that far from here."

"A race? If you're up for it. I'm really happy to see you get some of your zest back. Go on, I'll give you a head start and I'll follow."

Rainbow Dash smirked and then took off with a leap.

Soarin' followed behind her. He was quite impressed with her speed. For somepony who suffered with a lot of pain and had been resting nearly every single day, she was still extremely fast. It made his heart glad to see her like this because this is what she truly loved in life, to be fast, adventurous and extreme. He caught up with her mid flight and raced by her side. He took a look over at her face for a moment. There he saw her game face, her serious and competitive face. The face that said, I want to win and I'll do whatever it takes. Soarin' decided that he'd let her win the race, but passed her for a brief moment just so that it wouldn't be obvious that he was throwing the race.

As they neared the orphanage, he slowed up a little bit, allowing Dash to touch the ground first.

Rainbow Dash stood there hunched over gasping for air.

Soarin' landed and stood beside her. "Are you alright, Dash?" he asked with concern.

Rainbow Dash waved her hoof at him as if to signal that she was going to be okay. She continued to gasp for air as her lungs intensely burned. A few seconds later she was able to catch her breath a little better. "Wow," she said, still gasping for air. "I can't believe that I beat you! I still have it in me, Soarin'! I still have it in me!"

Soarin' smiled and rubbed his hoof through her mane. "You sure do, Dash. There's no way that I could ever steal your thunder! As they say, you can't keep a good mare down."

"I'm a sweaty mess," Rainbow Dash said when she noticed the little pools of sweat on the ground that dripped off her body. "I don't have a towel either. Would you mind helping me out? I don't think they'd appreciate it if I came in there sopping wet."

Soarin' hovered mid air and flapped his wings as hard as he could.

Rainbow Dash closed her eyes as the breeze blew through her mane. Getting fanned off was quite enjoyable after pushing herself like that.

Soarin' came back down to the ground and stretched his wings out. "All better?"

Rainbow Dash took her front leg and wiped her brow. "Yeah, thank you very much for that. I remember my signature move to get other ponies dry called the rainblow dryer, although I think I've messed up their manes and tails with it more times than I can remember. That was one trick Rarity never allowed me to try on her." Rainbow Dash took a step towards the door and then stopped when she realized her pain flare up. "Hey Soarin', I think I regret everything I have just done with this race. Oh boy, am I going to get punished for this tomorrow. I didn't realize how much this would hurt."

"I'm sorry, Dash. Tell you what, I'll make it up to you at home with a nice massage in the bath."

Even though Rainbow Dash felt a flood of aches and pains throughout her body, she still managed to smile at him. "I think I'll gladly take that offer, thanks."

The two ponies entered the door and were instantly greeted by one of the workers who Rainbow Dash hadn't seen before. She was a white mare with a simple home as a picture for her cutie mark. "Welcome to Ponyville's orphanage! How may I..." the mare paused for a moment. "Say, you look really familiar for some reason. You're....Rainbow Dash?"

"Hey! Yeah, how did you know?" Rainbow asked.

"There's this little orange filly I take care of and check on quite often named Scootaloo. That pony can literally talk non-stop about you. She has posters and pictures of you in her room. Whenever I talk with her, it seems our conversations always ends up about you and she always shares her pictures of you with me."

Rainbow Dash giggled. "Yeah, that sounds like her alright."

"Have you come to visit her today? She's been acting very depressed lately and doesn't want to leave her room to bond with the other fillies and colts."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Is she still here?" Rainbow asked.

"Yes. In fact, she's in her room right now. Shall I go get her? I'm sure that she'd be thrilled to have a special visitor like yourself."

Rainbow Dash put her hoof up. "No, please. We didn't come to specifically visit her today."

"Oh, I'm sorry. What may I help you with then?"

"We want this to be a really big surprise for her. We want to adopt her and not let her know about it if that's possible. Do you think we can manage this?"

The mare perked up instantly with a big smile. "That can most definitely be arranged and I think that would be a wonderful surprise!"

"That's great," Rainbow said. "Although I don't think neither I nor my husband Soarin' have the slightest clue about the process of going through with an adoption. I'm sure that you just don't allow anypony to come in here, sign a document and walk out with a filly or colt, right?"

The mare laughed. "Honestly, yes, it will take some time, but it's not that bad. We do have to carry out background checks and everything, but I'm sure it will all go by in a breeze. We also have many other fillies and colts who are just as needy for a home as Scootaloo. They all need love. Would you be interested in adopting any more?"

Rainbow Dash looked at Soarin' for a moment and then back to her. "You know, that might interest us later on, but we are newly wed and we would like to take things slowly and see how well we do with Scootalo first."

"Completely understandable. Let me get my supervisor and we'll get you both started!"

Rainbow Dash looked at Soarin' and said, "Wait until Twilight and my other friends hear about this. They are going to be so surprised!" Something in the back of her mind tried to make some kind of connection with Twilight that seemed very important but she could not figure it out. Rainbow Dash quickly forgot about matters when the supervisor stepped out to greet them.

Twilight Talks

Princess Celestia walked up the stairs to the balcony where royalty sat to watch plays. At the top of the stairs, there were two curtains that the guards held open for her to enter through. There she saw Princess Luna with her two front hooves resting on top of a golden railing that acted as a decorative safety precaution. She turned and saw Princess Cadence who was holding her head up with her two hooves against her cheeks. Luna and Cadence were both wearing fancy dresses; Celestia was not wearing any attire. Celestia walked over and took a seat in-between the other two princesses. She noticed that there was a microphone for her to speak into that was attached to the railing and there was a rope that was hanging from the ceiling. "Hello, my sister. Is that microphone off?" Clestia asked quietly.

"Welcome," Princess Luna said. "It is indeed off and you can turn it on if you wish to say something."

"Well, it's nice to see you both here," Celestia said as she quickly examined each princess. "Why the fancy dresses?"

"Cadence and I have a grand party to attend to after this debate," Luna answered. "We shall be gone for most of the night."

"I see," Celestia said. "I sure hope you both have fun." Celestia looked over at Cadence and asked, "Aren't you excited to see Twilight? I am so proud of her and I cannot wait to hear her speak."

Princess Cadence didn't make eye contact with her. "I don't really want to be here, nor do I think that this event is a good idea."

"Why not?" Celestia asked. "I thought you loved Twilight."

"She's a good pony, but I sense that she'll say something extremely controversial that will get many upset."

Princess Celestia looked confused. "Well, that sometimes happens with debates when you state your opinions."

"Yeah, I get that," Cadence said. "But I was with Twilight ever since she was a little filly, and judging from the way her parents raised her, I think she might say something that's extremely upsetting if a certain topic gets brought up. I'll tell you right now, I feel that her parents raised her in a very dangerous way, especially since they used the Bible in support of their decision to refuse life saving medicine."

Celestia put her hoof to her chin and thought about what Cadence might be referring to. "I have a feeling that I might know what you're hinting at, but I guess we'll just have to wait and find out if she actually talks about that topic."

Cadence sighed. "You can't go anywhere without hearing about it. If there's one thing I know about her, it's that she will not stop talking about a certain topic until the pony she's talking to actually understands what she's trying to get across to them."

"That's why we have a moderator," Celestia said with a wink.

Cadence put her hoof to her forehead and shook her head no from side to side. "I just don't see anything good coming out of this debate, and I'm afraid that it's going to get really messy from here. I know this has been requested for quite a while, but..." Cadence's words trailed off for a moment. She spoke louder and said, "I just don't think choosing Twilight was a very wise decision when it comes to speaking abut various controversial topics that have already divided our ponies so greatly. Twilight's beliefs are far too radical for an event like this."

"Relax," Celestia said. "I know that sensitive topics are going to get brought up, but this is what everypony has asked for and I think this is a great opportunity for Twilight to make herself known and to tell us about what she stands for and what she thinks is ultimately right. I do hope that she will one day become a great princess." Celestia looked at Cadence as if expecting her to reply, but the pink alicorn simply sat there with a frown on her face.

A voice from behind her startled Princess Celestia. "Eh-hem, your majesty. Would you care for some fine wine and a scone?"

The princess turned and saw a servant dressed in a tuxedo with a silver platter that held glasses of different assortments of wine and a few scones. She leaned over and sniffed a few glasses of wine before making her decision. "I think I'll have the glass of red wine, sir."

"A wise decision," the stallion said as he used his magic to levitate the glass of wine onto the table in front of her. "And would you fancy a scone, Princess?"

"Oh dear," Celstia said as she perked up. "Why surely, kind sir. Thank you."

"It is my enjoyment to serve others, "the stallion said as he placed the scone next to her glass of wine. He then extended his front leg out that was holding the tray and bowed. "Do enjoy this event."

"Please, no need to bow, but I must say how impressive your manners are."

"Thank you," the stallion said as he picked his head up. "If you desire anything else, simply pull that rope next to you and I will return."

Celestia nodded her head and turned her focus back to the other princesses. She took note that her sister had a glass of wine and a pile of scones while Princess Cadence had a half eaten scone on her table with five glasses of wine; two of them already empty. Celestia leaned over and looked down at the audience. It was quite an impressive thing to see from this bird's eye view because every seat seemed to be taken throughout this massive auditorium. It was certainly a good turn out and she wished that Twilight would do well. She turned and looked at her sister. "Do you think Twilight might be nervous? I can't recall her doing anything like this before."

Luna let out a chuckle. "The better question to ask is who wouldn't be nervous in front of an audience of this magnitude?"

"Fair point," Celestia said. "How much time is left until it starts?"

Luna awkwardly looked above at a clock hanging on the wall. "Just a few more minutes until we start. I shall update them on how much time is left."

"Celestia tilted the microphone over to her sister. "Shall I turn the microphone on?" she asked.

"I don't need that," Luna said with a smirk. Princess Luna stood up and spoke in her traditional royal Canterlot voice. "Five minutes until the debate will start!" Her voice boomed through the auditorium as if she were speaking through a microphone.

Twilight Sparkle stopped pacing around backstage and took a deep breath before she opened up the red curtains and peeked her head out. She saw her parents directly in the front row; they waved at her and smiled. Twilight awkwardly waved back with a smile that spoke of uncertainty. She scanned the huge auditorium for her friends, but could not find them. They were supposed to be here sitting in the front row where there were five empty seats specifically reserved for them. Her heart was sad that it seemed like her friends were not going to show up. "How can they not be here by now?" Twilight thought to herself. "Did they forget?" Twilight's thoughts were interrupted when she heard a loud horn go off.

"Yeah! Whoo-hoo! Go Twilight! Knock 'em dead with the love of Jesus!" Spike cheered as he waved a giant yellow foam hand with the number one on the index finger. During his cheering, he accidentally smacked a pony upside the head with the foam hand. Other ponies sitting next to him stared at him with annoyance. Spike slid down his seat and blushed when he realized that perhaps this kind of cheering was not proper at an event like this. He knew that Twilight was discouraged about this whole situation, but he wanted nothing more than to show her how much he cared and appreciated a pony like her.

"Put that silly thing away!" the pony who got whacked with the foam demanded. "You'll take someone's eye out, kid."

Spike sighed and obediently took off the foam hand. He slid it under his seat and then crossed his arms as he looked down at the floor.

Twilight face-hoofed and then disappeared behind the curtains. She grabbed her cup of coffee off a table nearby with her magic and took one final chug of the bitter tasting liquid before setting it aside. She was so shaky that even when using her magic, the cup was shaking unsteadily in the air and fell to the floor when she tried to place it on the table. She was a nervous wreck and consuming coffee wasn't going to help her with her jitters, but she had to keep her mind sharp. This was her first time doing something like this and no matter how many ponies she spoke to in the past about topics like this, a crowd this size that would be judging her every movement and word made her feel sick to her stomach. On top of all this, she was being watched by the Princesses which added more pressure on her because in many ways, she was representing what the Princesses stood for and Princess Celestia chose her out of many possible choices when it came to well known ponies who studied apologetics. She just hoped that she wouldn't have to interrupt the debate in order to use the bathroom since she found herself frequently running back, sometimes within minutes of previously going. Twilight looked down at her notes on the table. Because she had become a bit obsessive and compulsive about rewriting her notes and opening statement in an attempt to get it as perfectly as she could before, she scrapped the writings that she had rewritten entirely. She reduced herself to using flash cards because none of her writings were satisfying to her anymore as she could not make up her mind about how to write her words in a way that sounded perfect to her. This alone was going to hurt her in this debate because the flash cards simply had a few written words or sentences on each one. It wasn't a very scholarly thing to do, but it was better than nothing. She used her magic and flipped through each card as she tried to remember the connection between some of the single words she wrote and how she wanted to expound upon them. Her memory was blank and many of these cards made no sense to her at this moment. She felt as if she were trying to read Pinkie Pie's notes and attempting to figure out her bizarre drawings that she drew on her notes. "This is so sloppy, what am I going to do or say? I can't recapitulate so many of these points," Twilight said as she bit her lower lip and placed the cards back down.

"The debate will now start, please welcome and cheer for our debaters," Princess Celestia said as she spoke into a microphone.

Twilight felt the panic and fear overtake her mind. She began to take some deep breaths. "This is going to be disastrous," she muttered under her breath.

"Are we ready, Miss Sparkle?" A voice with a strong yet charming accent from behind her asked.

Twilight turned and saw her opponent, Hoofty Cuffs. He was dressed in a tux and his dirty blonde mane was gelled over in such a fancy manner that made it look like he put way too much effort into it. His brown eyes matched the color of his coat and he had a white stripe of fur going down the center of his snout. He was a bit on the chunky side and his cutie mark was a book with two cuff links on each side. For such a pugnacious name was even represented by his own cutie mark.

Twilight grabbed her flash cards and walked over to him. "I guess so. Um, best wishes out there, Mister Cuffs."

"And to you as well." The stallion opened up the curtain enough for her to enter through. He bowed and gestured his front leg for her to pass. "Ladies first."

"Why, thank you," Twilight said as she ducked down and passed through.

"Tis my pleasure," the stallion said and then followed her out before proceeding to his podium.

The crowds cheered for the two on stage. Twilight's parents stood on their hooves as they stomped on the floor in great approval.

Twilight Sparkle suddenly became a bit lightheaded and clumsily tripped over her own legs. She fell and landed face first on the stage. The flash cards she was carrying scattered across the stage floor all around her.

Some laughter could be heard in the crowds.

Twilight quickly picked herself back up. Her face was bright red with embarrassment and she used her magic to pile the cards back into a stack. The only problem was that the cards were now completely out of order from how she had originally organized them. She put her head down and trotted quickly over to her podium on the right side of the stage. Twilight picked her head up and glanced at the five seats reserved for her friends and not a single one was occupied. "They truly forgot about me," Twilight whispered to herself. "I can't believe they forgot. I don't even want to be here. Why does this have to happen?"

"Twilight," Princess Celestia said as she spoke into her microphone. "The microphones are on; please remain silent until we are ready to start."

An even greater sense of fear and embarrassment overwhelmed her mind. "Oh," Twilight awkwardly said into the mic on the podium. "I'm so sorry," she quietly added. Princess Celestia's statement made Twilight's face turn bright red with embarrassment once again and she held her breath as she thought about what she had just previously said. She whispered it so quietly to herself and she prayed that the Princesses simply heard mumbling and didn't hear her just complain about being here. Twilight focused on the little sign that said exit in red letters above the two giant doors. She stared at it wishing that her friends would either enter through that door at any moment or if she could simply cast a very advanced invisibility spell and walk through the center aisle undetected and leave this building.

A pony walked up onto the stage and sat down at a table where there were two clocks on each side and a microphone in the middle. The pony had a yellow coat and green eyes. His cutie mark was a picture of a microphone and his tail and mane was a dark shade of blue. The pony tapped the microphone to make sure that it was on. He looked over at Twilight and said, "Talk about breaking a leg. Are you alright, Miss Sparkle?"

Some more laughter in the crowds could be heard.

Twilight Sparkle nodded her head yes, sheepishly.

The pony turned his attention back to the crowd. "Greetings! I am your moderator for tonight and I'd first like to point out that I'm Agnostic, so I can really care less who wins this. And yes, I am a legitimate Agnostic and not a soft Atheist or as they say, an Atheist without any balls." He let out a chuckle and continued. "My job is to be fair and make sure that each speaker has a set time to speak and I will give them a two minute warning before time runs out. They may have an additional thirty seconds to finish up the points they are making if time runs out and that's it! I'd also like to mention that Princess Celestia has prepared a wonderful snack for all of us to enjoy as we watch the debate. Scones will be served to all of you as the servants make their way down the aisles with the fancy cookies. Without further ado, let's hear our opening statement from Hoofty Cuffs, our Atheist debater!"

The crowd cheered shortly for a moment.

The stallion shuffled his papers around on the podium and rolled up his two cuff links on his hooves. He put on his reading glasses and spoke. "Well now. I understand that this debate supposedly covers a lot of random topics, so I shall first start off with saying that I believe God exists." He looked around the audience and was content that everypony remained quiet after that remark. Feeling satisfied that he had his audience captivated, he then continued. "I believe God exists purely in the minds of others. I am here to tell you all that religion is a poison in the world and has brought us more harm than good. In fact, I'd argue that religion has brought no good into this world and Christianity has been a major hindrance in helping us develop a better society. I don't have to tell any of you to open a book that is littered with contradictions like the Bible and see how much of an awful tyrant the God of the Bible is. He is jealous, He is genocidal, and He is evil. He commits genocide against his own and He floods the earth drowning everyone including little fillies and colts. We have no evidence for God and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that there is no God in this world by simply taking a walk into a hospital for fillies and colts who are dying of terrible cancers and other diseases. Why do so many of them die? Why do newborns die and are never given a shot at life? I thought God said that children were precious, yet in the book of Psalms, it says blessed or happy shall he be who takes your little ones and dashes them against the rock!" the stallion slammed his hoof against the podium. "Can you all imagine how twisted and sick this God is to permit such a terrible thing for His own ponies to do? And on top of that, He blesses them and makes them feel happy. I'd like you all to imagine religious fanatical nuts grabbing your fillies and colts and smashing their helpless torn open bodies against rocks, covered in their own blood as they scream out in agony and the ponies doing this horrific killing are smiling sadistic grins and are blessed! If this does not make you sick to your stomachs, then you are part of the problem with our society! It is totally acceptable to kill innocent little fillies and colts in such a manner like this, but you hypocritical Christians and other religious folks freak out when the secular society would like to make abortions legal again for the sake of saving more lives. Let me remind you all that the Bible is also used to support horrific things like slavery. This is acceptable, yet there are so many cherry picking Christians or what I like to call, buffet Christians who pick and choose what they want to follow in the Bible. How many times do I see ponies going out to eat and ordering shellfish? The Bible makes it very clear that shellfish is to be avoided or wearing clothing that is made of certain fabrics like cotton. The Bible promotes bigotry against homosexuals by calling homosexual practices an abomination to the Lord." The stallion tapped his hoof against the edge of the podium. "To prove my point about how absurd this God is, let's do a little experiment. I want everypony to think of two ponies having hot sex together. It doesn't matter if it's two stallions or two mares going at it, just think about whatever pleases you." He paused for a moment as he looked at the faces in the audience. "Did you all think of that? If you did, then you are normal because that is natural to think about what I have just said. However, this brutal God that Twilight follows punishes us for thought crimes. You can be sent to Hell for thinking about something which is absurd, because we should be judged by our actions and not our thoughts! Yes, my ponies, thought crime is a real thing according to religions like the one that Twilight follows, and I'd like to say something about Twilight. She is an Atheist."

Twilight Sparkle looked over and cocked an eyebrow at such an odd statement.

The stallion continued, "She is an Atheist when it comes to outdated Gods like Zeus, Anubis, Athena, Poseidon, Ares, and so on and so forth. All I am asking her tonight is to cut one more false God out of her life and join me into living life logically for the first time."

Many ponies in the audience applauded for a brief moment.

"Religion encourages us to burn witches and heretics at the stake, but Atheism takes us into logical reasoning and real science. We secular ponies are tired of being plagued by Christianity! We hate being ruled by a tyrant who takes away our freedoms and is corrupting our society because she is bound to a book that is illogical and immoral. Let's not forget that she destroyed an abortion clinic and turned a strip club into a church after she banished a very well known pop-star, Sapphire Shores for running such a place like that."

Princess Celestia closed her eyes and bowed her head partly in anger and partly in sadness. A tear drop fell from her eye and landed on the floor. It hurt her to hear this kind of criticism in front of such a large gathering. She always seemed to be getting negative criticism of all kinds through letters sent to her. For she was not a perfect Princess, but she tried to be as good and as fair to everypony. All she wanted to hear from Sapphire Shores was a simple apology and Sapphire literally asked her to send her away to the Everfree forest and she granted her that wish. She believed that all ponies had the right to life no matter how young or old they are and she would have had the same belief if she was faced with a concentration camp instead of an abortion clinic. To be belittled like that when there were secular rulers like King Sombra who enslaved his ponies and ruled with an iron hoof hurt her very much. The near constant gossip and slander about her was starting to get under her fur coat. She opened up her eyes and picked her head up when he began to speak again.

"I believe the world would be a better place without religion and I believe my opponent cannot give me one good reason to believe that God exists or why religion, especially Christianity, is good for our society. The Bible says that God is not the author of confusion, yet I cannot think of another book that has caused more confusion and division in society more than the Bible. And it's a shame because Christians are supposed to be united over this book, yet they bicker and cut each other off because of different interpretations. It is common knowledge that ponies like Twilight in ancient times invented stories about various gods creating the earth and ponies because they lacked the scientific knowledge necessary to comprehend the origins of the universe. I have a bit of shocking news for her, we are not living in those times anymore. Scientific progress has helped us to understand these things so it is no longer necessary to fool ourselves into thinking that some silly God created us." The stallion shuffled his papers on the podium and smiled smugly. "Thank you."

The crowd cheered in approval and many ponies stomped their hooves for him.

The moderator spoke into the microphone. "Miss Sparkle, you're up."

Twilight Sparkle stopped scribbling down some notes and picked her head up when she noticed the lights from above her were now shining down upon her. She leaned over and spoke into the microphone that was attached to the top of the podium. "First of all, I'd like to thank the Princesses for holding this event and I'd also like to thank all of you for coming." She pointed her hoof in the air and said, "I'd like to start off by saying that...."

Some laughter could be heard in the crowds.

Twilight heard this and became confused. She looked at her front leg and realized that it was shaking with great intensity. Twilight looked at the crowd and felt a wave of nausea and panic overtake her. She began to perspire and feel a sense of dread overtake her mind because she was so nervous. She put her other front leg on top of the one that was shaking, but that did no good because now both of her front legs seemed to have this strange tremor. "I-I-I want to s-s-say that f-f-for..." Twilight stuttered into the microphone which made her more uneasy. She took one last look at the crowd before her eyesight became filled with little black dots with rainbow colors in them which started to cluster until she could no longer see anything. "Help," Twilight said before grabbing onto her Bible on the podium and passing out on the stage.

Princess Celestia stood on her hooves, looking down from the balcony with great concern.

Spike and Twilight's parents were also just seconds from running up onto the stage to see if she was okay.

Her opponent and the moderator were already standing over her. The moderator splashed some cold water onto her face and that seemed to make her at least open up her eyes again.

Twilight took some deep breaths before rolling onto her belly.

Princess Celestia turned her microphone back on and spoke into it. "Twilight, you may go home if you are not feeling well."

Twilight spoke to the moderator, "Would you please hand the microphone to me down here?"

The moderator did so and she spoke into it. "I'm very sorry everypony. I am okay and I will stay and talk. I would just like a pillow for me to lay on because I'm having trouble standing and also a cup of tea might be helpful. I'd also like to request that the lights be turned off above me, thank you."

A pony from below the stage handed the moderator a cup of tea and a pillow for Twilight to lay on.

Twilight laid on the pillow and was laying on an angle so that she couldn't see much of the crowd. She put the steaming cup of tea down by her side and tried to regain her thoughts.

The ponies in charge of the lights turned them off, but the moment they did that, a light even brighter beamed down upon the lavender mare. Twilight was oblivious to this mysterious light and had no idea that anything was shining down upon her.

Hoofty Cuffs grabbed the microphone from his podium and spoke. "Excuse me, but she asked for the lights to be turned off, not make them brighter!"

One of the ponies operating the lights signaled with his hooves that they were all turned off.

The moderator and Hoofty looked up at the lights and sure enough, they appeared to be off, yet there was this unexplained light that was cast down upon Twilight.

"It must be some kind of reflection," Hoofty said.

While under this light, Twilight was not bothered so much by the crowd and felt more calm and better able to think. "I seem to be slightly nervous and I apologize because I have never spoken in front of a crowd of this magnitude. I also would not like to be timed, so if he wants to give statements and ask me questions, I would be more comfortable with that. I need something a bit more casual and less nerve racking."

"Fair enough," her opponent said. "I just request that I get a cup of tea and a pillow as well because that looks quite comfy. We don't have to have any debate tonight; let's just talk and go over some great concerns I have with religion and our Christian ruler. I'll even allow you to do most of the talking if you wish so I don't overwhelm you with my logic and reasoning. I understand that this is your first time speaking in public and it's pretty obvious that you're not ready for something like this. I've also heard some things about you, so maybe we can take this time to hear all about your passions and beliefs as well."

One of the ponies from below the stage handed the moderator another pillow and a cup of tea to be handed to Hoofty Cuffs.

Her opponent set himself up across from her but moved himself a little bit further back when he realized how bothersome and bright that strange light was shining down upon her. "So, my dear. Let's start off with something basic. Do tell me what evidence you have for this God of yours."

"Flying Spaghetti Monster!" Somepony in the crowd shouted.

"The answer is forty-two!" Another pony yelled.

"The answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything," Twilight said. "That's a great and hilarious book series that I have at my library."

The audience became louder and continued shouting random phrases.

"How about we have some manners and allow her to speak?" the stallion politely suggested to the crowd.

Twilight rubbed the side of her head that hurt from the fall. "Well, there is good evidence for God. When something is contingent, we seek a reason for why it exists. Everything that exists contingently has a reason for its existence. The universe exists contingently, therefore the universe has a reason for its existence and if the universe exists, then it has to be necessary. If the universe has a reason for its existence then that reason is God. God is a necessary being because God explains His own existence. God's nature and what He is, is simply existence itself. If you..."

Her opponent cut her off and shook his hoof in the air as if he were shooing away a pesky fly. "Yes, we all know that argument, it's old and unimpressive. Give us something better to think about."

Twilight felt that it was a bit rude to be cut off like that, but he was kind enough to not make this debate so intimidating for her so she moved on to another example. "Let's take the argument from motion for example. A thing moves because something else moves it. You don't see things move by themselves or else you get spooked and call ghost busters. It's normal to think about this. So what moved the things causing the movement? Something else, but what moved that? This is a chain reaction and cannot be infinite. Something that moves others without itself being moved by anything; an unmoved mover. We can't explain the motion in the universe with an infinite number of movers, each borrowing something from something else. This is where God comes in and you can't give to creation what you don't already have. Since something cannot come from nothing, it follows that the universe began to exist from a material state of nothing, it would have a cause. Any cause that created space and time cannot be bound by the things it created, so the first cause would have to be immaterial, eternal and extremely powerful because it brought being from non-being." Twilight Sparkle tapped her hoof against the wooden stage and continued. "I can link this point to my next one. One reason to believe the past is not infinite is because the past is formed one day at a time, but you can't form an infinite past one day at a time because no one can count to infinity, as hard as we tried when we were little colts and fillies. No matter how many days transpire in an infinite past, today could never happen because there would always be an infinite number of yesterdays taking place before today. But today did in fact happen, therefore it makes sense to say that the past is not infinite but finite and thus the universe began to exist. We also have compelling scientific evidence for the beginning of the universe. According to the second law of thermodynamics, an enclosed system, matter and energy tend towards disorder. If the past were infinite, then the level of disorder in our universe would be at its maximum level and life could not exist. A finite past best explains why the universe has reached maximum disorder. Even if a universe existed prior to the big bang in something called the multi-verse, any expanding universe must have a past boundary. Along with being immaterial, eternal and powerful, this first cause must also be personal because an impersonal eternal force cannot choose to make a non-eternal universe. Any appropriate name for a first cause with these attributes would be God. I can provide a great example and..."

Hoofty Cuffs put his hoof in the air. "That's enough. Not an impressive argument and again, this is all from old textbooks."

"Um, just because these are arguments from old textbooks doesn't mean that they are automatically wrong. What about the argument from fine tuning? If you adjusted the values of the constants or conditions related to the basic laws of nature, even by a fraction of a fraction of a percent, we would not have a life permitting universe. An example would be called the cosmological constant which is the strength of vacuum energy in deep space. It's represented by the Greek letter lambda and it's fine tuned to the one hundred twentieth. That's a one followed by one hundred twenty zeros. To put that into perspective, a one followed by eighty zeros are the number of atoms or what are called bariums in the entire universe. If this constant were not finely tuned, we would either have a lifeless universe that's smaller than an atom or a massive universe that only contains hydrogen. Other finely tuned features of our universe include the strong nuclear force, the strength of gravity and the low level of disorder at the beginning of our universe. Even big name Atheistic scientists admit that this fine tuning exists. So what explains these finely tuned constants and conditions? If you wouldn't accept a poker player getting ten royal flushes in a row by chance alone, then you shouldn't accept getting far more improbable constants by chance alone either. If you think we can get them by chance alone, I will gladly play poker with you after the debate."

Some ponies in the crowd briefly laughed at that statement.

Twilight continued. "We should also reject the idea that the laws of nature are necessary or that the constants and conditions have to be this way. That's because we can develop scientific models where the constants and conditions are different which implies they aren't necessary; string theorists for example do this all the time. The best explanation for a universe that is fine tuned to produce intelligent life, is an intelligent creator who wanted to make other intelligent beings, or what we call, God."

Hoofty had his head down and was busy searching through his notes about fine tuning while Twilight was talking. He picked his head back up when he found the point he wanted to make when she first started talking about this topic. "Rubbish!" Hoofty said. "You Christians are so silly to speak of turning these supposed dials slightly and destroying all life, but you fail to acknowledge the fact that we might be able to sustain life if we turn a dial one way while simultaneously turning another dial at the same time in order to keep everything balanced; sort of like riding a bicycle if you were to imagine."

Ponies began cheering for Hoofty's remark.

Twilight wondered if he actually cared at all about what she had just previously said. "Would you like me to reply to that?" Twilight asked.

"No," Hoofty said. "I already know what you would argue next; let's hear something better."

"Let's talk about objective moral truths. Most Atheists say that they can be moral without believing in God, and this is a true statement. Atheists can follow personal or cultural codes of morality without believing in God. However, without God, certain objective moral truths cannot exist. Moral facts are bizarre because every other natural fact in the world like the facts of biology or astronomy only tell me the way the world is; it doesn't tell me the way the world or even my own life ought to be. But a universal moral law grounded in a transcendent and perfectly good law giver explains why I am obligated, even at great personal costs to do what's objectively right. It also explains why there is an objective right or an objective good at all and that these qualify as immaterial moral facts that govern our universe. This is where it gets tricky for Atheists who say that..."

The stallion waved his hoof in the air as if brushing off everything that she had said. "Nonsense, this and all of your arguments are old reasoning from textbooks. Let me ask you, what kind of pony would follow such a wasteful God who allowed so many species to die out and sat there and watched with indifference?"

"Wasteful?" Twilight asked. "When you have unlimited resources as God, there is no such thing as waste."

"Why are there so many variants of the Bible? Which one is the true interpretation?"

"Take your pick," Twilight said. "Ninety nine percent of variants don't impact the text."

"Why do you Christians cherry pick Bible verses and eat and wear the things that are forbidden? Apparently, you ponies obviously love to skip over the book of Leviticus."

"This is probably the most common question I hear," Twilight said. "Apparently, many of you tend to skip over reading the Bible in its entirety. For one example, If you look in the book of Acts, the Bible makes it quite clear that we can eat the once forbidden foods. You see, there is the moral law which is found in the ten commandments like you shall have no other gods, don't murder, don't commit adultery and so on. The ceremonial law is found mostly in the book of Leviticus that the Israelite ponies were required to observe; things like don't eat pork or shellfish. The Bible also teaches that the moral law and the ceremonial law have two very different purposes. Look at Romans five for example. The purpose of the moral law is to show us our sins so that we can see our need for Christ and His mercy, and because all of us are sinners who need to have our sins set before us in order to see our need for Christ, then the moral law still applies to us today. When we look at Exodus Nineteen, things with the ceremonial law are quite different. The purpose of the ceremonial law was to mark the Israelites as the ponies from whom the messiah was going to come. The ceremonial law formed the way the Israelites worshiped, ate, worked, dressed and practiced justice. This was God's way of reminding the Israelites that the savior of the world would come from them. So when our savior came in the person of Jesus, then the purpose of the ceremonial law was then fulfilled. After Jesus died and rose again, it was no longer necessary to follow the ceremonial law. This is why in Acts, God tells Peter that the food is clean, and that the gentiles who didn't follow the ceremonial law were welcomed into the Christian faith. So the reason that Christians can eat things that were once forbidden isn't because we cherry pick but because doing so would make us Judaizers, and the Bible very clearly tells us that we are now free to eat these things. You'll notice that some of the things forbidden in the ceremonial law is also forbidden by the moral law, and because of that, when the ceremonial law was fulfilled, we were no longer required to punish this stuff according to the ceremonial law, but the stuff itself still remains sinful. Why? Because the moral law remains. This is made very clear when the Apostle Paul tells Christians that while they are now free to eat the once unclean foods, they are none the less forbidden from taking part in sexual immortality. This is also why we don't stone ponies for sexual immoralities. Think about Jesus rescuing the mare who was caught in the act of adultery." Twilight opened up her Bible and found the passage almost immediately. "Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, but early the next morning He was back again at the Temple. A crowd soon gathered, and He sat down and taught them. As he was speaking, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a mare who had been caught in the act of adultery. They put her in front of the crowd. Teacher, they said to Jesus, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say? They were trying to trap Him into saying something they could use against Him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his hoof. They kept demanding an answer, so He stood up again and said, All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone! Then He stooped down again and wrote in the dust. When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the mare. Then Jesus stood up again and said to the mare, Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you? No, Lord, she said. And Jesus said, Neither do I. Go and sin no more.” Twilight closed the book and looked at Hoofty who appeared to be greatly agitated.

"Don't read me silly fairy tales like that again! Don't even open that Bible once more; I don't want to hear it!"

Twilight looked concerned. "But you're criticizing my faith and calling me a hypocrite because you think that I only read what I find appealing in the Bible. I'm sorry, but it just seems that you're the one who goes about nitpicking when it comes to scriptures. I was only trying to clear up some common misunderstandings; I apologize and I won't open it up again."

Hoofty's breathing became calmer again and he did not look so enraged anymore. For he passionately hated hearing ponies read from that book unless it was being read to somehow attack Christians. He took a deep breath and continued. "How do you feel about Galileo being charged with heresy by Christians and being locked up in a dungeon and tortured to death?"

"That's a very widely misunderstood topic," Twilight answered. "He was never charged with heresy, locked in a dungeon or tortured to death. He was simply under house arrest and he died a peaceful death of natural causes."

"Right," the stallion said. Feeling that there was some truth to her reply, he decided to move on to another part of the debate. "Perhaps we should move on and talk about a more important and vital topic in this debate. Let's discuss why Christianity is a plague to Ponyville and why we need to replace the Princesses with secular rulers. Let's start off by talking about something serious, like mares who are dying left and right thanks to Princess Celestia refusing to allow medical access to those who need abortions. Whenever laws like this are passed, the wealthy will always find ways to get abortions, leaving paupers to suffer from having botched abortions which are incredibly life threatening to the mare. Truly you agree that this law needs to be gone, right, Miss Sparkle?"

Some ponies yelled out, "Down with Celestia! Celestia sucks! Crucify Celestia!" Other ponies began talking loudly in the audience.

Twilight Sparkle spoke to the crowd in an aggravated tone of voice. "You know, the princess didn't need to hold this debate in the first place. Whoever yelled out those words should be ashamed of yourselves. I expected the audience to be of a more mature level, but many of you are proving me wrong on that."

The audience became so silent that a pin drop could be heard.

"Now, as for Princess Celestia's law against abortion, I agree with her and support her fully. Generally, when a law is passed, it should discourage ponies from breaking it and the princess does not want any blood on her hooves by allowing such an act to be legal." Twilight Sparkle looked at her opponent. "Since we are on a new topic, would you agree that the unborn are actual ponies?"

"How can I not?" answered her opponent. "They are complete living organisms and it is a scientific fact that life begins at conception, but that shouldn't matter because in a perfect world there are no unwanted pregnancies, especially when there are no health or financial related issues."

"Good, at least we can agree on that. If it's wrong to kill a two year old, then how much more wrong would it be to kill someone younger than that? If you truly believe that the fetus inside the mother is a real developing pony, then there shouldn't be an issue if a mare lacks enough resources to raise a new foal and decides that maybe she doesn't like one of her already born foals and would rather terminate that pony instead of the one she is carrying inside of her. Maybe the pony already born has some kind of disability and is hard for her to take care of so she'd rather eliminate him or her and see if this new pony is easier to raise. Would we allow that in society? Of course not. We don't kill unwanted born ponies, so why should we get rid of unwanted unborn ponies? In the same sense that it would be immoral for a mare to hire an assassin to take out an unwanted husband for whatever reason, we should also feel the same way about the lives of the unborn. I believe that all ponies have the right to life no matter what their age is and abortions not only end the life of one, but also scar another for the rest of their life, and I'm speaking about the mother. It's not healthy mentally or physically since having abortions done are well known to cause cancer and even death."

"But what if she's been raped? Surely you'd allow for abortions if it was a family member of yours or your own daughter. Giving birth is dangerous and destroys a mare's body and figure."

Twilight Sparkle sighed. "Getting an abortion performed won't make a mare un-raped and killing the foal will only add more hurt in a mare's life. The decision for a mare to abort leaves her scarred for life and we need to strive for non-violent solutions for unwanted pregnancies. We don't kill the rapist who did wrong so why would we kill an innocent little foal who has done absolutely no wrong at all? Princess Celestia forbids the death penalty because it's wrong since so many innocent ponies die because of it and the word of God says that vengeance is the Lord's. I have a very close friend who was raped and she decided to be brave and do the right thing, which was giving birth and raising the foal on her own. Her body was not destroyed nor disfigured in any way either; she is just as beautiful as she was before."

"And let me remind you all that these scumbag ponies in jail for rape and murder in this land are being fed and taken care of thanks to Princess Celestia stealing our hard earned money through us paying taxes."

Many ponies began to cheer and shout for a moment.

"Let me ask you, Twilight. If there was a mob demanding that a suspected murderer or rapist was handed over to them or they would kill hundreds, would you give that pony over or not?"

"Not a chance," Twilight said. "I'd never allow that to happen and mob mentality is foolish and dangerous. Princess Celestia is a mare of peace and there was a time when this land was in great chaos, where millions upon millions were dying horrible, violent deaths until she came to power. The Princess has killed zero ponies and yet she is ridiculed and mocked like no other leader that we have had in the past because mocking them would be a death sentence for all of you. When it comes to abortions, it makes my heart sad because we view the husband or father as this sort of phantom figure who gets no say when it comes to wanting to keep the foal. I notice that most couples who do not want their foal call him or her a fetus, as if they think that word means the foal is just a simple clump of cells that can't develop into anything special, yet when a couple is happy for their unborn foal, they always call him or her their baby or foal." Twilight looked at the crowd and added, "I'd like to remind all of you that you are not a mistake by the way you came into this world and I'm sure that there are some of you here tonight who were conceived by rape."

"Thank you, Twilight!" some pony in the crowd shouted.

Hoofty rolled up one of his cuff links that was starting to slide down his front leg. "Well, in most abortions performed, the fetus can't feel pain and viability must be put into consideration. If the foal can't survive outside of the womb, then it can be killed."

"But there are ponies born disabled where they can't feel pain," Twilight said. "Are you suggesting that those ponies aren't viable as well? What is the womb for?"

"Well, uh, it is for creating new life."

"And sustaining it," Twilight said. "Just because a fetus can't survive outside of the womb shouldn't matter. If a pony were to take a foal and dump it into the ocean or leave it in a harsh environment that's too hot or too cold, that foal isn't going to survive. Much in the same way, a fetus can't survive outside of the womb like you're talking about because the womb is its environment that it needs to survive in. No pony should be allowed to use their body to hurt somepony else and in the sense of abortions, it's not just your body and it shouldn't be a choice. Your body is being shared by two living beings; yourself and your foal or foals. What do we say when somepony has a miscarriage and the couple are mourning the loss of their foal? We say that we're sorry and we try to comfort them, but think about how awkward it is when somepony asks how somepony else's unborn foal is doing and they reply that they had an abortion. How does one reply to that? Do you say I'm sorry that your foal has died because you chose to do something that would kill it? How abortions are carried out is incredibly sickening to watch and it's quite odd how clumps of cells magically become intact livers and hearts once it's time for that doctor to harvest that baby for cash by selling his or her organs to the highest bidder."

Hoofty Cuffs was starting to become a little impatient at this point. "But you are a hypocrite in the sense that all you care about is the unborn. Go look at other lands across Equestria and there are ponies starving or dying from fighting, yet no Christian cares about them. You are pro-birth, not pro-life."

"Well, sir. Princess Celestia, Luna, and Cadence as well as many churches and other religious organizations make it their mission to help all around the world. We need to be concerned with both, but I'm afraid if we visit some culture and tell them to stop killing others or their own, they may point a hoof back and say, well in your land, so many ponies are killed by abortions. Why not clean your own house before you dare tell me how to clean mine?"

The stallion brushed his mane back away from his eyes. "The bottom line is that whenever laws are passed, either the mother will have all the rights or the fetus will have them all. I don't understand how you could allow so much suffering by not aborting a fetus with genetic defects or not granting somepony the right to death and allowing them to suffer for the rest of their lives."

"It's not a black and white thing like you're trying to make it sound and don't we all have to give up some rights when raising foals? We can't drink or smoke during pregnancy or when we are around our born foals. We have to make sure that the fillies and colts are being taught if home schooled, as well as being taken good care of in general. I think it's important to remember that if you're not mature enough to raise a filly or colt, then you shouldn't be partaking in an act that brings new life into this world."

Some cheering could be heard from the audience for Twilight.

Twilight put her hoof up in the air to signal for the crowd to be silent. "Now let me give my input on his second statement. We do not have a right to end our lives or to willingly allow someone else to end our life for us. Many ponies now speak of such a thing, but without the proper understanding of the terminology they use. A right is a moral claim. We do not have a claim on death, but rather, death has a claim on us. We do not decide when our life will end, any more than we decided when it began. Much less does somepony else like a relative, a doctor, or a legislator decide when our life will end. I'd like to remind everypony that none of us is the master over life and death. One thing that we do have a right to is proper care and it is never care in any sense of the idea to terminate life, even if that life is full of suffering. We have no right to terminate life, and the core evil of euthanasia is that an individual or group of ponies think they have the right to put somepony else to death. Killing anypony is not a very nice concept, so to make it more acceptable, they start toying around with the vocabulary. For example, they say that the one who is incurably ill or comatose is a vegetable. A vegetable? Really? What kind? A stalk of celery? A carrot? A string-bean? This kind of degrading name calling is similar to the topic we were just talking about when it comes to wanting an abortion and calling the unwanted unborn child a simple clump of cells. No matter what the ailment he or she suffers from, a pony is always a pony, and always has a right to life which nopony, of any philosophical, political or religious persuasion is ever able to take away. In fact, it is precisely when life is afflicted by weakness and illness that it is all the more deserving of our care. Advocates of euthanasia see the ill only as a burden and it is my prayer that God may forgive and have mercy on them. Central to their utterly false philosophy is the notion that some lives are not worth living. These lives, they maintain, are more trouble than they are worth. They have too much suffering, and are too much of a burden on the resources of society." Twilight put her hoof to her chin for a moment as she thought to herself. "You know, if we were talking about a chariot, or a typewriter, or some other thing, we could say that when enough things go wrong with it, it becomes more trouble than it's worth. Repairs would be too costly, too involved, so it's better to just throw it out and get a new one. This same logic cannot be applied to ponies because a pony is never more trouble than he or she is worth. Notice, I do not use the pronoun it to refer to a pony. The reason for that is because a pony is not a thing, an it, or some kind of object whose value is to be calculated on some kind of economic cost or benefit analysis scale. A pony is worth more than the entire physical universe! Think about that for a moment. A pony's life is of infinite value, and this remains true no matter how small, weak, uncommunicative, disabled, diseased, or unproductive some may be in the eyes of a materialistic, consumerist society like ours may often be sometimes." Twilight reached her hoof out and continued. "Life is the most basic gift of a loving God. A gift over which we have stewardship but not absolute dominion. Seeing these things reminds me of the ancients that practiced these horrible crimes against God, such as exposure and abandonment of foals, the disabled and the elderly. I thank the Lord that we have a kind, caring leader like Princess Celestia who shoots down these laws that many want to see get passed. Arbitrarily deciding that one's life is worthless because of one's circumstances would push the door wide open to full deprecation of the right to life. Such a proposal can only seek to diminish the advance and progress of medical science as well. Why work on treating anything when we can just flip the kill switch? Putting this right into the hooves of the Government is also horrifying, because how many governments actually seem to care about life to begin with? I also have a friend who suffers from debilitating pain and chronic fatigue. She can sometimes spend up to twenty hours in bed and can't be active depending on the severity of her flare ups. To think for a moment that her life might be deemed as useless and too unproductive angers me because she is irreplaceable as a friend to me and she makes my heart glad whenever I get to see her. She has also shattered just about every single Wonderbolt record and you can find her name in the history book of the Wonderbolts. Rainbow Dash."

"Yes, yes," the stallion said as he shifted his weight around on the pillow. "Although I wasn't quite finished with the topic of abortion and preventing unwanted pregnancies. I hope you can at least accept the fact that contraception and education needs to be available to all. Does your religion allow for contraception and how do you feel about contraception, Miss Sparkle?"

"Well, personally, I don't exactly like the idea of contraception, but I agree that education should be provided and it should be available as long as the type of contraception being used does no damage to the fetus, or the mare or stallion. That would include chemicals or so-called enhancements that disrupt hormones and are toxic to their bodies. As far as a plain old latex condom, I don't have many issues with this, and I would agree that contraception is very effective when it comes to preventing diseases and pregnancy, but I think it's important to remember that it's never one hundred percent guaranteed."

"I'd like to ask one more question before moving on to another topic about how religion is poisoning our society and taking away our freedoms. Would you allow an abortion if the mare's life was endangered? This is why abortion has to be a necessary evil just like how sometimes war is. It's complicated and I don't see too many of us getting uptight about schools being bombed."

"I'd first like to point out that the overwhelming majority of abortions performed are social in the sense that some may want them done to fit into that prom dress, or they believe that they aren't ready to raise a foal, or they feel like they lack the funds, or maybe they don't want to raise a filly but would rather have a colt. After all, many like to point out that the mare population compared to the stallion population is quite dramatic in terms of size where we live. In this case, abortions aren't about choice, but rather about escaping the consequences of your choices by taking all choices away from another pony. I would like to imagine that if the unborn are truly ponies just like you and I, and we already concluded earlier that they are, then I would hope that the mother would be willing to give up her life for the foal and if the fetus has to be removed from the womb for whatever complication, then at least give him or her some kind of chance to live and not just kill them. We now have technology that allows us to perform surgery inside of the womb to save the foal. This procedure is extremely rare, but what would be the purpose in doing something like this if the unborn were not real foals? After all, we tend to freak out about unborn animals that are listed as endangered species, claiming that we're destroying life by harming their unborn babies, yet we don't seem to give much thought about our own unborn species since many like to use the excuse that we're such a burden to this world and are so environmentally destructive. Yes, I believe that protecting species that are endangered is a very important thing, but I do think our priorities are skewed. And sure war is complicated! It's confusing when ponies are fighting and trying to kill us, but when has a defenseless and helpless fetus ever tried to kill someone? Also, we do get uptight when we hear about schools getting bombed and when innocent civilians are dying during war. This is why we call such acts war crimes; we discourage these sort of things."

Hoofty Cuffs rested his face against his hoof, looking rather bored now. "You would be willing to give up your life for a tiny fetus?"

"A good parent should always be willing to give up everything for their foal, even their life whether that foal is born or unborn. I would do so without hesitation. Heroes in books and movies often sacrifice everything to save; we love and crave to hear these kinds of stories, so I would hope that we may recognize the mothers who die for their children in reality as heroes too."

Hoofty Cuffs slammed his hoof down on the stage. "Well, you're only one mare out of many who would disagree with that. I find it sickening how certain denominations preach that you can't use something so simple like a condom and then these religious ponies start multiplying like rabbits and eventually start putting their own foals up for adoption since they can't afford to raise them. It makes me more angry when so many of you Christians want to criticize gay couples for adopting and claiming that it's damaging to the foal to have two mothers or two fathers. Look at Jesus, He had two dads and he came out alright!"

"Oooooooh!" a pony shouted out in the crowd. Many others started applauding for that statement.

Twilight frowned. "First of all, that statement about Jesus having two fathers is incredibly ignorant in the way you are trying to compare it to. Secondly, I agree and am sometimes ashamed by how so many Christians choose not to adopt when there are so many fillies and colts in need of homes. I do feel that more Christians should be open to adopting and I hope that might be a change I will see in the future."

"Speaking of gay couples adopting, why are you Christians so bigoted against homosexuals and refuse to allow them to marry? Do you realize how hard we fight for equality and yet Celestia's laws keep holding us back? Did we not learn anything from the civil rights movement?"

"I really don't think you ought to be comparing gay marriage to the civil rights movements for very obvious reasons and these are some points I believe what marriage should be. Marriage must be between a male and a female, they must not be related, they both must be adults and..."

The stallion cut her off, "Why male and female!? You do realize that your bigotry encourages ponies to refuse services to gays like something as simple as baking a pretend wedding cake just for fun."

"Because if I open my idea for one perverted idea of marriage, then I have to be open to other perversions and that would be the start of degrading marriage. Marriage is a holy and sacred union in which the government should never have any business in. The right to private business owners refusing to take part in something that would be considered offensive or degrading should be protected. We wouldn't think twice about a member of the Klan getting rejected after going into a cleaner shop to get their robe cleaned by perhaps a Jewish cleaner. A big problem about this is how the media tends to report only Christian business owners who may be refusing certain services that would be controversial. No one is denying services like serving food because a customer is gay, and it's kind of silly that one would want a gay wedding cake just for giggles or to make others mad since gay marriage isn't legal as of now. Freedom of the press doesn't always mean fair reporting and Christians tend to get all of the backlash and bullying because we're called to turn the other cheek. If you're not careful, the newspapers will having you hating the ponies who are being oppressed and loving the ponies who are doing the oppressing. Think about all of the Christian business owners who gave up their business because of death threats from the LGBT community, yet we never once hear any carping about a Muslim baker refusing to provide certain services for others. Ponies around the world are too busy running around with protest signs about a Christian owned business not wanting to do something very specific that's bothersome to them like providing contraception for their employees or making something that would be considered degrading to their religious values when ponies of different sexual orientations are being killed daily by Islamic radicals in horrible ways over in the East. I'd just like to know where our priorities are and where the backlash over that is."

A few ponies in the crowd cheered for that statement.

Twilight noticed the little teacup on the saucer next to her and picked it up. "Gay marriage is something you'll never see me marching in the streets against, yet you'll also never see me marching for it. In other words, there are far more important issues that are worth fighting for and it wouldn't be the end of the world to me if gay marriage did happen to get legalized over here."

"Fair enough," the stallion said. "But just because there are other issues greater than this still does not negate the fact that this is okay and that this will only fuel hate and discrimination for others."

Twilight put the cup to her lips and took a sip. The taste of honey and mint melange tea was delightful to her taste buds.

"I hope you can at least agree that ponies don't actually choose their sexual orientation, unless you're one of those Christians who like to defy things that are already scientifically proven."

"I talk to a lot of ponies around town, and truthfully, I have come across at least a couple of ponies who admit they have had sexual relationships with the same sex simply for the experience, not because they are gay. However, I do agree that nopony can help who or even what they are attracted to. This is not an issue to me. No one can control this, but ponies can completely control their sexual urges. Just because some may be gay, bi, asexual, straight, or classify themselves as something else, does not mean they can't control who they sleep with. Many times, straight Christian couples sin by having premarital sex or lusting after somepony.

"So you said, that ponies cannot in anyway control who or what they are sexually attracted to? What about gender identity?" Hoofty asked.

"That's pretty much what I said," Twilight answered. "I talk to a lot of ponies who struggle with all kinds of sexually immoral desires and they come to me for advice. I have a bit of a group therapy open from time to time for those who ask for it. Ponies are making way too much of a big deal over this topic of gender identity. A common view point is that no one choices their sexual orientation or gender identity but everyone choices their lifestyle and expression. Some will point out that females have two X chromosomes while males have an X and a Y chromosome, and then they'll ask why we began to think that gender is based upon what you think and not by what kind of chromosomes you have. Now, I know that the meaning of words can sometimes be altered in response to change in usage, and that ponies are going a bit batty with the word gender, and that even chromosomes can get slightly more complex in extremely rare cases with abnormalities, but hear me out on this. I don't think we need to make things so overly complicated, and there are certain things I absolutely do not want to see. I'm actually okay with the many demands that there be unisex bathrooms available, but the only concern I have is that if we are going to give into the demands of transgender ponies when it comes to using any bathroom they feel like going into, then I'd like to know what we're going to do when they demand that they use whatever gym or work locker-room they feel like going into where there basically is no privacy when it comes to showering with others or undressing in front of others. I'm a member of a gym, and I would certainly feel quite awkward shampooing my tail in the shower while standing close next to two stallions who are scrubbing their, uh, parts while having to listen to them loudly talk about dude stuff. Are we going to set up locking shower stalls and changing stalls so that everyone feels safe and happy? That would be quite inconvenient, and even if we did that, it is still an invitation for unwanted harassment be it sexual or not. I understand the argument that creepers are still going to creep, and that there are those who would behave, but I can't find myself agreeing or being comftorable with a situation like that even if this isn't exactly a black or white issue. I also can't imagine how unfair it would be for female athletes who are forced to compete with other males who wish to compete as females. Now, regarding children, I do think it's damaging to the child if we allow them to choose if they are a boy or a girl based upon their feelings. That's not appropriate or healthy, but what I'm totally not okay with is when ponies take things to extremes, like allowing children to have surgeries or getting them injections to make them appear more like the opposite sex. There are ponies out there who want to hack off their genitals because they believe that they are somehow supposed to be the opposite sex, or we have ponies who have mental disorders like BIID, which stands for body integrity identity disorder, and is similar to GID, gender identity disorder. Some ponies literally want to cause harm to themselves in order to become a paraplegic, and they are more than willing to pay money for doctors to do this. Think about the stories of ponies who get their wings chopped off or their unicorn horns surgically removed because they believe that they are destined to be earth ponies. One of the most common things I hear from ponies like this is that they'll use the excuse that they can't fly or use their magic as well as others in order to believe that they were born as the wrong type of pony. Yeah, this is not okay, and choosing your species is also now a thing theses days thanks to the idea that we can make up an endless amount of gender identities. Are you a pony who wants to be a cat? Cool. How about a pony that wants to be a transgender seahorse? Go right ahead. It seems that this generation is so sensitive about being criticized or labeled, yet they make up tons of labels for themselves or others and they criticize anyone who doesn't approve of it. Want to know something neat? I have a dragon that lives with me, and he's a pretty awesome little guy. He has been around ponies ever since the time when he was hatched and he has lived with me all of his life. He practices friendship and does very feminine things. His whole life would be shamed by dragon culture, but ask him what he thinks he is. Today's generation would probably expect him to admit that he'd say he's a female equine, but nope. He'll tell you that he's a boy and that he's a dragon. Some dragons are labeled as greedy, violent, and selfish; others aren't, but that still doesn't change what they fundamentally are. The same thing applies to stallions who are great care givers and raise babies, and mares who are great in the workforce. Gender is becoming a meaningless term based on arbitrary standards which seems kind of pointless to have gender in the first place. Why not just call ponies by what their actual biological sex is so we can at least have an objective definition? I actually heard someone claim that their gender identity is a veggieburger. Who is to take something like that seriously? Or what about ponies who base their gender on what day it is or what the weather is like? Come on now. These are things I also don't want to see happen no matter how passionately some ponies believe that their warped fantasies are somehow supposed to become a reality. Most Atheist ponies are quick to say that reading the Bible to a child or raising them to be Christian is abuse which is quite silly, but look at what is going on in this world with raising kids today; they are more confused and damaged than ever before."

"Galatians three twenty eight!" a pony shouted out.

"Huh?" Twilight asked as she and Hoofty looked at the audience.

"Read it! The verse is transgender!"

"Uhhhh, I don't have to open my Bible to recall that very popular verse. The verse says that there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for you are all one in Christ. You are completely taking this verse out of context and it might help to read what is said before it, which may give you a bit more clarity. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. The verse you brought up is a continuation of the proof that all Christians are in the fullest sense, children of God. In other words, there are no inequalities or exceptions. All are Christians no matter their sex, status, or race. We all stand on the same footing before God. God loves transgender ponies just as much as he loves everyone else, but we can't be twisting scripture to our liking." Twilight looked at Hoofty and asked, "What do you think about this topic, Mister Cuffs?"

"I agree that this whole gender identity crisis is silly, but even if there were more of these gender-neutral washrooms, you know, and kind of already mentioned, that others will still insist that they will be able go to whichever bathroom they feel like going to, especially since nearly all of these family restrooms you mentioned are simply one small room with no stalls and a locking door. This is the day and age where everyone wants to party and potty together." Hoofty looked at Twilight and said, "Twilight, did you know that I was once trapped inside a female body?"

"Wait, what?" Twilight asked as she stared at him with uncertainty.

"I was, until my mother gave birth."

"I feel like I should have seen that one coming," Twilight said as she brought her eyes back to the teacup next to her.

"Yes, but anyway, you did mention genital mutilation before, so wouldn't you agree that circumcision is wrong? What would you do if you had a son?"

"I would agree that it should be an independent decision to be made as an adult."

"Wow, really? I thought it wouldn't matter to you since the baby won't even remember it happening anyway, and that some Christians do it based on religious beliefs."

"We already had that discussion before when we talked about the ceremonial law, but I will say that I don't agree with it being practiced today even if the pony will not remember. While I am interested in learning about all kinds of things, I have to admit that this is really not a topic that I'm comfortable talking about in front of an entire audience since I'm obviously not a male, but it is known that the foreskin does have important functions. A foreskin is not a birth defect; it is a birthright, and if I had a son, I would not allow him to be circumcised regardless of what the CDC says. The reasoning for this practice is rarely religious, but check out the CDC's guidelines to see what I mean. Female circumcision is also a thing too, but I don't hear it being discussed too much because it's mainly a cultural thing that's not an issue over here even though it has harmed the lives of hundreds of millions of mares that are alive today. Just because someone won't know something or even notice something different that's done to them even as an adult doesn't make it okay."

"Like what?" Hoofty asked.

Twilight Sparkle thought to herself for a moment. "Like, let's say for instance that someone is going to get some kind of surgery done and when that pony is unconscious from the anesthesia, the doctor comes in and molests the patient. When the patient recovers, he or she will not know what happened since there was no psychical harm done to their body. Is this morally wrong? I sure as heck would hope that you would agree."

"Fair point, but on the topic of sexuality, you do believe that pedophiles can't control their feelings even if they identify themselves as Christians, correct?"

"Scientific evidence shows that they cannot help how they feel."

"Great!" Hoofty said. "So that's where we get all our Catholic priests. Statistics show that you're four times more likely to get molested in the Catholic church than any other religious organization."

"Wow," Twilight said as she held her teacup. That was really low and unnecessary."

"My dear, the truth hurts sometimes, doesn't it? As they say, a silver medalist and a priest have one thing in common." Hoofty looked at Twilight and continued. "Do you know what they have in common, Twilight?"

The expression on Twilight's face made her look extremely uncertain and even a little confused. "Um, I don't think now is the time for levity, Mister Cuffs," Twilight answered. "We're supposed to be having serious discussions."

"They both came in a little behind," Hoofty said with a smirk on his face.

Some laughter could be heard from the audience.

Twilight opened her mouth as if she were about to say something, but she simply shook her head slowly from side to side in disbelief. She was tempted to use her magic to summon her newspaper from her kitchen table and whack Hoofty on his snout with it for what he just said.

"Are all churches good, Twilight?"

The question surprised Twilight. "Huh? What kind of question is that? Is this some kind of ploy? There is only one church and Christ is the head of it. What are you trying to get me to say?"

"Well, there are lots of denominations out there and I was just wondering if the folks over at Westboro are going to Heaven."

"Westboro?" Twilight asked.

"The God hates fags church," Hoofty answered sounding slightly annoyed.

"Oh, them," Twilight said sounding disappointed. "It's not my job to judge who gets into Heaven and who doesn't. As Christians, we are to judge righteously, but that's one judgement that I have no say in, and I'm thankful for that."

"But they believe in Jesus as their savior, so they must be Christians. They're called to be the way they are based upon the same book that you read."

"But if Christians are called to be anything, it's to be holy, and if Christians are called to do anything, it's to love and share the good news. I am sad to say that I just don't see any of that going on over there."

"Then wouldn't you like to have them silenced?" Hoofty asked. "They protest at funerals and hate just about anyone who doesn't share the same opinions. To me, they seem dangerous like all religious ponies, but I would imagine that to you, they are radical Christians like how there are radical Muslims. Don't you consider them to be your enemy?"

"As much as I can't stand them, they have the right to freedom of speech. The fact that a tiny hate group like them exists doesn't make me nearly as sad as how much attention they get. I especially can't stand it when ponies confuse their beliefs with mine. As for them being dangerous, let me know when they actually physically harm someone. From what I see, they are all bark and no bite. In some ways, I do feel sorry for them, especially for those who are young and are raised to to be hateful and fearful of others. The goal is to pray for them and not return hate for hate. They are not my enemy; my enemy is Satan, and if Christ is not the center focus of the church, then the church will fall apart."

"Fascinating," Hoofty said. The stallion scratched the white fur on his snout with his hoof as he thought about his next topic that he would like to talk about. "My biggest concern is over Princess Celestia's refusal to make sure that every foal is given the protection they need through vaccination and not allow diseases to spread through un-vaccinated ponies. There have been some measles and chickenpox outbreaks recently and this is a huge concern for many. Would you agree that a change needs to be made in order to achieve herd immunity? Religious fanatics are getting in the way of science once again and ponies are refusing to vaccinate based upon so called religious morals. Foals, fillies, and colts are suffering because of misguided religions and you have everypony flipping out because of autism, which has been proven that there are no connections between vaccinations and autism."

Twilight Sparkle almost dropped the teacup in shock after listening to his words. She carefully placed it back on the saucer and pushed it aside. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on for a moment," Twilight said. "I find this very amusing since you're complaining about religions poisoning everything and taking away our freedoms, but you ignore something important like the freedom to choose or deny medical treatments for themselves or their fillies and colts. If you actually believe in the theory of herd immunity, then you shouldn't be acting like everypony needs to be vaccinated in the first place. Let's also not act like only the religious try to avoid vaccines either. There are medical and philosophical exemptions aside from the religious exemption and there are plenty of non-religious ponies who do not wish to vaccinate. There are also some religious ponies who strongly support vaccines despite the risks. If we have any rights, surely one of them is the freedom to decide what is injected into our bodies. I can't think of a more horrifying idea than having the government mandate vaccines and using force to inject us without allowing us to make our own informed decisions, especially when the outcome of vaccinating can lead to serious health complications. I may not be pro-choice for abortions, but I am certainly pro-choice for vaccinations."

The crowds became enraged with Twilight. "Booo! Anti-vaxxer! Anti-Science! Foal abuser! Quack! Hypocrite! Medical heretic! Disease spreader! God damn tree hugging hippie! Radical! Conspiracy theorist!" ponies from the audience began shouting in anger.

Hoofty smiled when he heard the crowd's reaction. For he knew that ponies who did not support mandatory vaccinations were looked down upon. His new goal was to keep her talking about this topic for as long as possible in hopes to gain more favor from the audience. "Oh, this should be interesting. Why can't we all just get vaccinated, Twilight? What's the problem?"

"Methylation," Twilight said.

"I beg your pardon?" Hoofty asked.

"If you have the MTHFR genetic mutation, you should not ever receive a vaccine. Those who have poor methylation will have an adverse reaction to vaccines. If you can't take the time to understand the importance of methylation, then you have no right to demand anyone to just get vaccinated. This is how I know that you have not researched vaccines enough to even take you seriously. At least forty percent of the population has some genetic mutations called MTHFR that affect their ability to process toxins from the body."

More ponies in the audience began to get upset and shout out insults at Twilight.

"Well, Miss Sparkle, the Christian science pony, why not give us some more details about the horrible dangers that these scientifically proven safe and effective vaccines don't have."

The audience continued to mock and laugh at Twilight. For her to be known to have a strong interest in science and yet be opposed to forced vaccination was like a huge joke to them.

Twilight sighed. "I guess this is the point in the discussion where I lose all favor, isn't it?" Twilight shifted her weight around on the pillow and spoke again. "Alright, I'm going to give my input about why it is important to have the freedom to not only avoid vaccinating ourselves, but keeping our little ones safe from vaccines as well. I feel that we first need to educate ourselves about what is injected into our bodies and into our foal's bodies. It really upsets me when ponies say that documented neuro-immune toxins such as mercury, aluminum, formaldehyde, MSG, and polysorbate eighty, which is an emulsifier, are elements and perceived toxins because it is very misleading. Assuming that one hundred percent of the population has the ability to dispose of these toxins at the same rate is absurd. Now, let's talk about fillies and colts getting sick with things like chickenpox, whooping cough, measles and other childhood illnesses. It was only a few decades ago, when they were considered a normal part of childhood, with no long term health issues. In fact, it has been widely understood until scare mongering and misinformation took over, that catching these illnesses as a filly or colt and fighting through them benefited the pony with strengthened immunity, not only for the particular virus or bacterial infection, but for other, similar viruses and bacteria to be encountered in the future. We have traded for what most were benign childhood illnesses which conferred natural immunity for long term to life and instead we now have epidemics of childhood cancers of the brain, blood, and bone, and epidemics of chronic autoimmune diseases such as allergies and asthma. We also frequently see things like type one diabetes, lupus, degenerative diseases of bone and cartilage, ischemia, hyperactivity, behavioral and learning problems, tics, hearing loss, sleep disorders, language delay, coordination disorders, chronic infections, especially in the ears, and so on thanks to vaccines. Think about how crazy it is that parents often times have to be deathly afraid of a peanut or other normal foods that are so import and healthy to eat. It makes me sad when I see these often times overweight and malnourished ponies walking around with five different colored allergy hoof bands around their hooves in order to signify what food ingredients they can't have. Allergies this extreme never existed back then and it's no wonder why so many of these ponies are unhealthy because they often can't get the vital nutrients they need since natural foods have become the enemy to the body. So many food products might contain peanut dust or trace amounts since they are processed in a place where nuts are. I can't believe that when you pick up a bag of peanuts, there's a warning label that says, warning: contains nuts. This also ties into the most obvious result of vaccine damage. It's called gastrointestinal damage and that's when the child’s gut is permanently damaged. He or she is no longer able to absorb nutrients necessary to produce neurotransmitters which are required for proper brain function and that leads to all sorts nasty side effects like mood swings, sleep difficulties, learning disabilities and so on. And even if the topic of vaccines and autism debate will not go away, there is no debating that vaccines can cause serious brain damage. It is also kind of amusing to note that if you read the package insert for the vaccine Tripedia or the original MMR vaccine, it actually lists adverse events reported which includes autism and SIDS, sudden infant death syndrome. If you have any grandparents, I dare you to ask them about how they feel when the media goes berserk and cries epidemic over one or two small outbreaks of measles when back in the old days, ponies used to gather around together and have measles, whooping cough, and chicken pox parties so they could get the infections over with. Did you know that the natural chicken pox infection lowers rates of a certain brain cancer called glioma? And the vaccine targets different proteins so it will not give you this protection. So, when ponies are terrified and use fear tactics when it comes to something like chicken pox, let’s talk about something that is really serious, like, say for instance, shingles. In the past, when little ones were allowed to catch chickenpox, older fillies and colts in their teens and adults who were around those ponies received a natural booster to their immunity against the varicella virus. That’s why shingles used to be an old pony's disease because it was typically only seen in ponies of quite advanced age since they were the ones who were no longer caring for fillies and colts when they were sick, and their immunity was not boosted as a result. Thanks to the vaccine, we now have epidemics of shingles in teens and young adults. Shingles is exponentially more dangerous for young adults than chickenpox ever was for ponies, but it gave the vaccine manufacturers another excuse to develop a product from which to benefit. More money for them and more vaccines for us. With proper care and nutrition, no one should be deathly afraid of these common illnesses. Many may try to argue that they'd rather raise a gifted pony with something like a mild case of Asperger's syndrome than a pony who could become infected with the measles, but let's be real here. For every pony with a mild mental disability, how many more can you find that smear poop on the walls, buck, bite, and hit others, or pull their own mane out? It's so rude to tell other parents that their pony's disabilities are a gift when the parent's life is miserable and taking care of their kid is exhausting and expensive. Some may be afraid of a mild disease like the measles, but go talk to a parent who vaccinated their kid and watched them regress and developed horrible mental disorders and compare the outcomes of having a child who needs to be dependent for the rest of their life compared to someone who catches a mild illness like the measles before being so quick to judge. We need to stop fighting so hard and let the body do what it's meant to do even when parents and doctors are terrified of something so simple like a fever. Trying to stop a mild fever when you're sick is like trying to stop your attack dog from saving your life when an intruder breaks into your house with the intent to kill you; it's like forcing a shut down of the sprinkler system during a fire in a building. Fevers might not be fun to go through, but they serve a great importance."

"Until the fever gets so high that your kid gets brain damage," Hoofty said.

"With a fever, most doctors and parents seem to instantly worry about heart or brain damage, but a fever cannot cause brain or heart damage unless it reaches one hundred seven point six degrees Fahrenheit, forty two degrees Celsius, and stays there for an extended period of time. Some authorities, however, say that fever is still highly unlikely to cause brain damage in a previously healthy child. During most infections, the brain keeps body temperature at or below one hundred four degrees Fahrenheit, forty degrees Celsius. So in nearly all cases, you don’t need to be afraid that your child’s temperature is going to continue to rise above that point. See, our bodies know to literally cook the bugs that come when our immune system is suppressed. The viral core molecule of RNA cannot reproduce if the body temperature is above one hundred one degrees. We rush right to the store and give kids drugs when they have a runny nose or perfectly normal fever. I'm even more horrified when the foal starts crying a few hours later after vaccination and Tylenol is given to them because that should be such an obvious never since that can be extremely dangerous and can very likely further the damage that vaccines have already done. Why do we do this? Because we think everything is a major, scary problem in life and the products we use are safe because we see happy, healthy looking ponies who jump-rope and skip in the advertisements of the drug products we buy. Don't fight your fever, it's your friend and our bodies know how to deal with these now feared diseases and illnesses."

"And what about polio!? Is that now a not feared disease to you, too? We completely eradicated that terrible disease thanks to the vaccine!"

Twilight Sparkle shook her head no from side to side. "That's another thing I'm really tired of is the topic of polio. We need to understand the disease and the supposed eradication by the vaccine. Polio is still with us. For approximately ninety five percent of ponies who get polio will have no symptoms and four to eight percent will have minor symptoms which may include fever, fatigue, nausea, headache, stiffness, and pain in the limbs which resolves completely; fewer than one percent of polio cases result in permanent paralysis of the limbs in usually the back legs of those paralyzed, and five to ten percent of that one percent actually die when the paralysis strikes the respiratory muscles. Nobody is tested for polio when they have a viral bug. The paralytic polio scare of the past was concentrated in the summer months and in areas of this land where fillies and colts were swimming in rivers, lakes and streams contaminated with dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane from run-off of farming operations. We'll abbreviate that long name and simply call it DDT. If you research DDT poisoning, you will see that the symptoms of paralytic polio are identical. DDT is a highly lethal poison for all species of animals, but scientists back in those times said that it was not only nontoxic, but safe for us in any quantity. It was even said that it would make us healthier, so ponies put it on drawers, sprinkled it on windowsills, covered their children's lunchboxes with it, and put it directly on sandwiches. They also put it in water to rinse clothes, they put it on bedding, mattresses and painted it on the walls of children's rooms. You could even purchase wallpaper with DDT already inside it. This stuff was literally everywhere, and it should come to us as no surprise that the well-to-do had such a problem with polio. There were many other problems during that time including arsenic and lead poisoning, the rise in feeding our infants with synthetic liquid trash called infant formula, diets high in processed foods including refined sugar and white flour, alcohol, tobacco, antibiotics, vaccines, as well as the popular surgery during that time of removing healthy tonsils which dramatically raised the risk of getting the most serious form of polio called bulbar poliomyelitis. The eradication of polio was not accomplished by the vaccine contrary to popular medical myth belief. The numbers actually went up after the vaccine came out because it was a live virus and it caused polio in those who received it. This is still happening in other lands, where three different types of vaccine-induced polio have been identified, many from the Sabin vaccine. Over here, what happened was that they changed the diagnostic criteria, which meant that approximately ninety five percent of those cases that would have previously been diagnosed as polio were now reclassified as other diseases, including Guillain-Barre syndrome and meningitis which was yet another reason to develop more vaccines and rake in the money. Changing the diagnostic criteria always happens whenever there is a massive campaign to vaccinate. Poliomyelitis was also hidden behind other names like transverse myelitis, viral or aseptic meningitis, Chronic fatigue syndrome, AFP, enteroviral encephalopathy, traumatic neuritis, Reye's syndrome, and so much more could have been diagnosed as polio in the past. Parents actually asked the hospital for a polio diagnosis because the March of Dimes paid for treatment of paralytic polio. The current inactivated polio vaccine that we use today does not even stop transmission of the virus, meaning that you can't make an argument that it can be used to protect the public health in anyway since it does not prevent you from getting polio and spreading it to others. My friends, this is all just smoke and mirrors."

"So what you're saying is that they have renamed polio multiple times?" Hoofty asked. "I swear, what you say keeps getting more bizarre by the second. What source do you get this nonsense from that almost one hundred percent of polio cases are asymptomatic?"

"That source of information comes from the Communicable Disease Center, or what they are now referred to as, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Yes, ninety five percent of the time polio is asymptomatic and presents itself as the flu. It has never been eradicated, they just keep changing the name so that you think it has been. The practice among doctors prior to nineteen fifty four was to diagnose all ponies who experienced even short-term paralysis with polio; short term is defined as twenty four hours. When the Salk vaccine was released, the diagnostic criteria became much more strict. If there was no residual paralysis sixty days after onset, then the disease was then not to be called paralytic polio. This adjustment was a huge game changer because most ponies who experienced paralysis recovered prior to that cutoff time. Let's not forget about the cancer causing simian virus forty as well as the AIDS virus that we were exposed to thanks to the next improved polio vaccine. They swore to us that everything was perfectly safe with the improved polio vaccine despite their previous lies about having a safe polio vaccine before, and the only thing larger than the pile of broken medical promises, is the pile of broken and dead bodies. The polio vaccine was originally worked on by a quack named Doctor Salk, and the vaccine was experimented on fillies and colts in orphanages and churches since parental signatures were not required. As a result, the polio vaccine gave forty thousand ponies polio; hundreds were severely paralyzed and some of them died. Of course, all injuries and deaths were under-reported by the same authorities who orchestrated the atrocity. This is called the Cutter incident, and many pro-vaccine doctors will admit that this incident was a fiasco like many other vaccine blunders such as the huge failure of the swine flu vaccine. The worst part about the entire incident was that scientists knew in advance that there were major problems with this vaccine, yet they were quickly subdued. Mister Salk testified before a senate subcommittee that since nineteen sixty one, nearly all polio outbreaks were caused by the oral polio vaccine. Vaccine inventors are the same as drug makers; they both make claims that their version of the drug or vaccine is superior to their competitors in hopes to sell more. The wild polio virus was never the big paralyzing killer that the public was led to believe. It took decades for the medical community to accept that they had been incorrectly treating polio and were responsible for much of the residual paralyses, deformities, and stiffness that would not go away. If you want to hear an amazing story of a mare who was despised by the medical authorities yet did great work in rehabilitating those with paralytic polio, then please read about Sister Elizabeth Kenny."

"And the iron lungs? Where are they now?" Hoofty asked. "That's proof that we don't have them anymore because of the vaccine."

Twilight sighed at his reasoning. "One of the most common tactics ponies use to prove that the polio vaccines were a success is to show you old black and white video clips or pictures of all those children in iron lungs. They were rather terrifying to see; eight hundred pound tube-like machines with paralyzed patients helplessly laying inside. It certainly has a horror movie, torture chamber-like feel to it and it was the worst nightmare for any concerned parent during that time. The machine was simply used to administer prolonged artificial respiration by means of mechanical pumps. In the old clips and photos, you can see what looks like row upon row of these machines. It's made to appear as if every city had thousands of children in iron lung machines, and that ponies were being permanently paralyzed or dying from polio just about everywhere. From the statistics I gave you just a moment ago which comes directly from the CDC, this was not the case. So, where are all those iron lung machines? We've still got plenty of them. Except, of course, technology has improved, and we don't refer to them as iron lungs. They're now called positive airflow ventilation or CPAP, continuous positive airway pressure machines. They're vastly more portable devices, and they're not nearly so scary looking as those old iron lungs, but they're everywhere in hospitals, ambulances, homes and so on. We are indeed still suffering from polio-like paralysis, but as I said before, they now prefer to call it Guillain-Barre Syndrome or the more aggressive form, Acute Flaccid Paralysis. The CPAP industry is booming big time over here and the polio vaccine is a massive fraud."

Hoofty appeared to be deep in thought for a moment. "Wait a second."

"Hm?" Twilight said.

The stallion began laughing. "I just realized that you said something incredibly contradictory about your little rant on the polio vaccine."

"Oh, do tell," Twilight said.

"As we know, Doctor Salk was behind the first injectable polio vaccine which contained inactivated, or killed strains of the polio virus."

"Mmmhmmm," Twilight replied politely.

"You said that there was this big incident gave thousands of ponies polio because of the Salk vaccine."

"That's correct," Twilight admitted.

"So, how can that happen if it's inactivated!? See, you don't even know what you're talking about. Should we be surprised that you say contradictory things when you base your entire life off of a religious book that is filled with contradictions?"

Twilight smirked. "What if I told you that what I said is still true?"

"Yeah, you go on and explain that," Hoofty said. "Let's see you wiggle out of this one."

"The polio virus that Doctor Salk supposedly killed with formalin or formaldehyde was not always actually killed; they sometimes only appeared to be killed. So when this virus appeared to be inactivated right after it was made, it would sometimes resurrect in the vial, and the formaldehyde didn't kill off all the polio viruses in these vaccines which led to live polio viruses being injected. Of course, disaster soon followed shortly after this. Cutter Laboratories was not the only manufacture of the Salk IPV; Wyeth Laboratories also produced a defective Salk vaccine that caused paralysis, and other pharmaceutical companies are believed to have done this as well, but only Cutter's vaccine was actually recalled. That means that tens of millions of doses of improperly inactivated Salk vaccine were sold and injected into little ones all around the world until the nineteen sixties when the live oral Sabin vaccine replaced Salk's IPV. Guess what? Still to this day, it is causing polio all over the world and is mainly used in poorer areas because it is incredibly cheap to produce compared to our polio vaccine. Later on, a modified inactivated Salk vaccine was reintroduced in the nineteen nineties which is what we currently use."

Hoofty Cuffs looked beyond disappointed that what she said wasn't a mistake earlier.

Twilight continued. "We only praise a quack like Doctor Salk because we're not taught about the whole story when it comes to history, and while all vaccines cause harm and many have the potential to even kill, some vaccines are far more dangerous than others."

"And why don't you name us one of the more harmful vaccines," Hoofty suggested. "You're already on a roll with this, so let's keep it going."

"There's one that comes to mind called Gardasil and that vaccine seems like it's a direct attack on the female population, and now apparently, the pony papillomavirus vaccine is recommended for males as well. The vaccine is a complete nightmare and so many little fillies and mares died from receiving this shot that was supposed to protect them from dying and thousands upon thousands of health complaints were filed because of it. Many of those deaths were from blood-clots which is the most common diagnosis in Gardasil related deaths and some healthy ponies even died within just a few hours after getting injected with no negative medical history. This was a time when vaccine manufactures were playing fear games and spewing propaganda when they were claiming that a lack of vaccination would lead to cancer. Many vaccine advocates and lobbyists were fighting for this vaccine to be mandated for little fillies to be able to go to school. It's not about protecting our little ones as the companies would like you to believe, it's about politics and greed since by the time when most fillies need the supposed protection the most, the vaccine has lost its effectiveness long ago. That's why it's silly that they were shooting up fillies as young as six years old. Their target age group was nine years old, but even then it's still too young and ridiculous to even consider vaccinating little fillies with an STD vaccine. Yes, I called it an STD vaccine because in most cases, cervical cancer is the result of sexually transmitted disease, specifically PPV. Many only reacted differently to it because they kept hearing about cancer, and some even viewed it as some kind of safe sex vaccine. If you wouldn't get your nine year old daughter a syphilis vaccine, if that actually existed, then you most certainly wouldn't want to get her the Gardasil vaccine. This vaccine is one of the dumbest and most dangerous vaccines ever made and it gave many a false sense of security since there are over one hundred different viral strains that can cause PPV, yet very few of these strains actually contribute to cancer or cause genital warts and almost all of them clear up on their own, usually within one to two years. If someone has previously been exposed to the PPV strains contained in the vaccine prior to injection, then Gardasil actually increases the risk of precancerous lesions by nearly fifty percent and does not provide any protection. Many of these ponies suffered from premature menopause from the vaccine, and if you look at some of the listed side effects alone and see that that the vaccine causes fainting, vomiting, seizures, convulsions, paralysis, Guillain-Barre syndrome, bell's palsy, anaphylactic shock, comas, and even death, then why on earth would anypony even think about considering getting this vaccine even if they do truly believe that vaccines aren't a pseudo science. Let's face it, those little fillies who first got the shot were the guinea pigs for the vaccine makers. They were the test lab rats and the vaccine manufacturers got away with literal murder of young, Innocent fillies and mares who do not get to come back again, they are gone forever. If there is anything worse than a group of ponies who are openly committed to causing harm among others, it's a group of ponies who dress up as wolves in sheep clothing and pretend that they're on your side and for your health when it reality, they are ruining lives for profit and not taking any blame. That is what makes me sick to my stomach and I hope that many of you may start to rethink vaccines and take the time to educate yourselves because while you can decide to vaccinate at any time, you can never decide to un-vaccinate. Cervical cancer has declined by ninety-five percent over the past sixty years because of pap smears. If you're truly worried about cervical cancer, there are some things you can do to fight it. PPV cancer is very slow growing, so you can get a pap smear every three to five years, get adequate amounts of vitamin D, don't smoke, consume a diet rich in antioxidants with high micro-nutrients that includes beta-carotene, foods rich in iodine, selenium and folic acid. Avoid immuno suppressing circumstances like taking drugs, staying up all night, and not eating properly, and most importantly, don't be a slut. Most of this is really common sense."

"And I assume that you get all of these horrible cases from reading up on the program VAERS, the vaccine adverse event reporting system. I hope you know that it's a horrible system where a pony can get a vaccine and then later bang their hoof on a hammer and go crying out that they had an adverse reaction to the vaccine that caused them to have pain in their hoof and it will be documented. Who is to even takes such nonsense seriously?"

"The system is there for a reason," Twilight said. "It may not be one hundred percent perfect, but the example you gave is simply ridiculous. There is no reason why somepony would report something that silly unless they are trying to cause trouble in the first place. No one knows a child better than the mother and those who vaccinate usually go to get their vaccines with the utmost confidence that their shots are going to make them healthier. Only one to ten percent of adverse reactions ever get reported by doctors. If there is one thing that gets totally overlooked when it comes vaccine damage, it's the damage that happens over time. Not all vaccine reactions happen shortly and some can take years to develop. Vaccines have been linked to cancer, diabetes, Parkinson's, arthritis, MS, Tourette's, autoimmune disorders, Alzheimer's, and so much more. The common toxins found in vaccines can get lodged in the vital organs and fester for years, causing all kinds of health problems over time which is probably why there has never been any long term studies done on vaccines."

The stallion leaned his hoof against his face and said, "And I suppose that you anti-vaxxers get all your facts from misguided celebrities instead of real doctors, huh?"

"Not at all, and you act like there aren't scientists or real doctors who speak out against vaccinations. Heck, even many expert doctors who advocate for vaccines speak out against certain ones and warn the public that we are being over vaccinated. The amount of vaccines given has increased dramatically over time. Compare it to just a few decades ago when ponies were given no more than four vaccines. Now a days, ponies receive anywhere from thirty-seven to fifty vaccines and that number continues to grow. You would be surprised how little your average doctor actually knows about vaccines. In fact, it wasn't that long ago until doctors were given special guides on how to use fear tactics on parents who were smart enough to do some studying on vaccines and wanted to avoid vaccinating their kids. Most doctors aren't taught about how vaccines are made or what’s in them. They are taught how to give them according to the schedule. Most nurses have never even seen a vaccine manufacturer’s insert unless they are showed by a patient. If there are any doctors out there who understand vaccines well, it's surprisingly holistic chiropractors. You would be surprised how much more they know about health issues and nutrition than just simply knowing how to adjust bones in your back. I have a lot of respect for many holistic chiropractors and I have talked to some in person. Many are really on their 'A' game when it comes to true medicine and knowledge about vaccines. Your typical doc in the box is like a walking encyclopedia when it comes to knowing his or her pharmaceutical drugs, but usually lacks much knowledge when it comes to topics like this. So how about before we get all hysterical about a few incidents of chickenpox or measles happening today, we actually take a break from listening to the media that attempts to pump us full of fear and do some research while we are really still able to think for ourselves about the diseases vaccines are supposed to prevent, and about the vaccines themselves, so we can do a cost-benefit analysis for our own families? As part of that research, how about we consider our families medical histories, and especially consider if we have autoimmune diseases in first or second degree relatives, which indicates there is something about our immune systems that may lead our ponies to respond differently than the norm when they are injected with adjuvants designed to ramp up the immune system? And how about we stop to consider that within the world of medicine, there is not a single thing that is safe or effective for one hundred percent of the population? And let’s think about how it doesn't make sense to apply a complex medical procedure of receiving seven to eight vaccines at their two month well visit, which has never been studied for synergistic effects between the vaccines or their ingredients, to one hundred percent of the foal population and expect that there won’t be at least a percentage of those foals that will have serious adverse effects. How about the fact that the EPA's safe limit for aluminium being injected into an eight pound foal is twenty-five micro-grams, yet the Hepatitis B vaccine is given within hours of birth and contains at least two-hundred-fifty micro-grams of aluminum. Most parents who spend hours researching safety issues when it comes to products or medicine for their foals are usually the same ones who are up all night spending countless hours researching vaccines. It is rude to assert that all ponies base their information off of a misinformed celebrity, and I can name plenty of of big time celebrities who encourage vaccinations. Just because somepony who may not have high credentials and may be misguided about something doesn't automatically mean that whatever side or view they are defending is wrong. You certainly wouldn't reject Atheism because a newly converted Atheist pony might say things that might make your side look foolish. You'll find foolish talk on both sides of any issue regardless of whatever side is more right or wrong."

"Okay, listen. I'm not a vaccine expert, but I am fairly certain that some of the things you claim are bogus. There's nothing to be afraid of when it comes to vaccinating. Heck, I usually get my flu shot every year and I'm perfectly healthy. There's absolutely nothing wrong with me at all!"

Twilight looked at his double chin for a moment and then looked down at his large sagging gut. "Yeah," Twilight said sounding apathetic. "You sure do look like you're the prime example of what it means to be healthy."

Hoofty smiled greatly and believed that she was serious about her comment. "Why thank you. I get compliments all the time from my doctor about how perfect my health is."

Twilight simply rolled her eyes at his response.

Hoofty suddenly began coughing loudly for a moment. His cough sounded deeply congested.

"Um, are you okay, Mister Cuffs?" Twilight asked. "You sound like you're about to cough up a lung."

Hoofty waved his hoof in the air as if to signal that he was fine. "No worries, Iv'e simply had this cough ever since I was a colt," he said in-between coughs. "Sometimes I get this cough after getting my flu shot which I got yesterday; it's just a harmless side effect." Hoofty continued to cough loudly. His inhaler for his asthma fell out of his pocket during his coughing fit.

"Shot today; sick tomorrow," Twilight said. "Some pony want to at least give him a bottle of water?"

One of the ponies from below the stage rolled a bottle of water over to Hoofty.

Hoofty Cuffs picked it up and opened it. He took a few sips and then placed it aside. "Thank you for the water, I must have simply needed a few sips of it. All I must be having is a natural immune response from the vaccine. It's obviously making my immune system healthier for this year's flu season. Have you ever had the flu? It's a terrible thing. Sometimes I get it shortly after my vaccine because I didn't vaccinate soon enough." Hoofty noticed his inhaler on the stage floor. He picked it up and put it back into his pocket.

"No, sir. I have never had the flu, nor the shot. They pick the most predominant strains of influenza to predict what will happen during next year's flu season. They often guess the wrong strains, but even if they did guess correctly, strains shift and drift throughout the year. So, by about three months later after you got your vaccine which somehow happened to be the right strains, the virus strains that are circulating around by that time would have changed and renders any protection that you might have had as useless. Flu shots also contain high levels of thimerosal which is a mercury containing organic compound."

Hoofty took a few deep breaths before thinking about what he wanted to ask next. "I would like to know where religion comes in for avoiding vaccination. Earlier, you said that ponies can use religion in order to avoid vaccinating, so let's hear what you have to say for all those Christians opting out of getting their shots."

"Before I answer that, I'd just like to make a point since we were previously discussing abortions tonight. Isn't it interesting that when ponies chant it's my body, it's my choice for abortions, ponies listen and agree with that statement which doesn't make sense in the first place, but when a pony who uses that same phrase when it comes to vaccinations, that phrase makes complete sense and yet that pony is ridiculed and mocked. We can somehow try to justify the end of an innocent life with that phrase, yet we can't accept it when somepony who reads and understands the risks and failures of vaccines and chooses not to have them. In fact, without abortions, we wouldn't have some of the twisted concoctions that we now have today when it comes to vaccines.

"Wait a second," Hoofty said. "Abortions have been illegal for the longest time now. How are little foals being aborted for vaccines when it's now illegal?"

"There was a time needed when making a vaccine, such as the rubella vaccine, required the killing of many baby fetuses. This is still desired to do for future medical experiments and I'm sure that you're aware that sacrificing lives to make medicine, or as I should call it for what it really is, modern day witchcraft, is a big no-no from my religion. Of course, with the making of vaccines, the cells reproduce themselves, so there is no immediate need to abort additional fetuses to sustain the culture supply, but older cell lines will have to eventually be replaced because the older those cell lines are, the more tumorigenic they become, which means that more abortions will have to be required again. Viruses are then collected from the diploid cell cultures and then processed further to produce the vaccine itself. Christians may not want vaccines because of this reason alone since abortions go against our morals. Scriptures say things like in the book of Timothy that parents have every legal right and by religious beliefs to make decisions on behalf of their ponies, and not the state. In the book of first Corinthians, the Bible says, do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. Vaccine ingredients are toxic and extremely controversial. Injecting your body with damaging ingredients would not be honoring God with your body. As Christians, we are supposed to follow our conscience. According to the Catholic church, the definition of moral conscience is discussed in the catechism, which states that conscience is a judgment of reason whereby the person recognizes the moral quality of a concrete act that he is going to perform, is in the process of performing or has already completed. In all he says and does, man is obliged to follow faithfully what he knows to be just and right. It is by the judgment of his conscience that man perceives and recognizes the prescription of the divine law. The Catholic church also strongly warns that a person must always obey the certain judgment of his conscience. If he were deliberately to act against it, he would condemn himself. For Protestants, prayer for guidance is central to many of these denominations, and there are plenty of Bible verses that affirm the need for Christians to have faith in God and be guided by scripture, and follow their conscience. The book of Timothy says that the aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. One of my favorite verses I quote often is found in the book of Mark, Jesus said that it is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. Why would we give all these unnecessary medical treatments to a perfectly healthy newborn which can make them very sick or even kill them? After all, some of Jesus's most hated sins are hypocrisy and the harming of children. I think that's self explanatory."

"Why!?" Hoofty asked. "Because they're one hundred percent necessary and doctors say that they're safe and effective! Why can't you simply accept the fact that vaccines work? Do you even understand how vaccines work?"

"You have to define working first. There exists not one single ingredient in a vaccine that boosts the overall health of a population. We don't have a vaccine for every disease and not every disease is as dangerous as most think, so we must have another ability to fight diseases than only memory immunity which is what vaccines are supposed to give us in our blood. Vaccines are an attempt to target antibody levels, but antibody levels does not correlate very well to the amount of protection from disease, and if you have high antibody levels and get a vaccine, then your likelihood of having a negative reaction is much higher. No one has figured out how to tell for certain who has immunity by looking at antibody levels. Ponies without antibodies can be completely protected from clinical illness by cellular immunity, and If you don't know, there are branches of our immune system. We already have a line of defense called innate immunity. This refers to nonspecific defense mechanisms that come into play immediately or within hours of an antigen's appearance in the body. These mechanisms include physical barriers such as skin, chemicals in the blood called cytokines, and immune system cells that attack foreign cells in the body. This aspect of immunity is present regardless of vaccination and is extremely dependent on essential nutrients. And of course, we should know humoral immunity by now, which is also called the antibody-mediated beta cellularis immune system. It is the aspect of immunity that is mediated by macromolecules found in extracellular fluids such as secreted antibodies, complement proteins and certain antimicrobial peptides. It's actually very common for ponies to not respond to certain vaccines like tetanus or rubella. There are better ways of combating diseases and making our immune systems more resilient than getting shots. In case I didn't explain this well before, vaccines are an attempt to expose the body to a benign form of a disease so that the body can respond as if it were infected with the disease without getting sick, and then it can hopefully have memory of that infection for the future if it is exposed to the actual natural infection. Would you agree with that definition, Mister Cuffs?"

"Yeah, I guess that sounds reasonably accurate," Hoofty said feeling rather disappointed. "But I will still stand by the fact that vaccines are ultimately safe and that genetics are to blame for everything."

"Good," Twilight said. "They can only say that the vaccine is safe in relation to the condition of you when you're given it. You can have a disease that they don't know about like an immunoglobulin deficiency, or cancer, or a mitochondrial disease, or a genetic disorder. When you get the vaccine, it can trigger a problem and then they will blame you because you had this preexisting condition and not necessarily is it a problem of the vaccine to them. There's also this thing called epigenetic alternations which is not a gene mutation, but a gene activation. We used to think that our genes are our destiny and still to this day, many like to blame nearly everything on genetics, but we now know that only a small percent of our genes dictates what happens to us. Our destiny is about what those genes are told to do, and what they're told to do has so much to do with what we're exposed to. Smoking, vaccines or even eating certain things will change this profile. Vaccination, as I hope you may all know, has been a disaster on the immune system that not only causes many chronic illnesses, but actually changes our genetic code which is a horrifying thought. If I may try to paint an image for you with words, I'll attempt to briefly explain this. When we think about cells, imagine the cell as a ball and think of the genes on the inside of the ball. On the outside of the ball, there are about two-thousand receptors that respond to what's happening in the broth that the cell is bathed in, so depending on what's hitting the outside of the cell be it in the instance of vaccines like aluminum, formaldehyde, or the tetanus toxoid, we will see different signals go into the cell and different instructions will be given to the genes which will make protein. We see epigenetic alterations resulting in the up-regulation of genes that are associated with things like, genetic disorders, cardiovascular disease, cell death, gastrointestinal disease, immunological disease, developmental disorders, connective tissue disorders, metabolic dysfunction, energy production problems, cell signaling problems, and so on. So, When doctors say that vaccines are safe and effective, they really mean to say GRAS, or generally recognized as safe and not one hundred percent safe. Good luck attempting to sue a company from a product or medical procedure that has already been given its GRAS label blessing by the Bureau of Chemistry or as they like to now be called, the Food and Drug Administration. Their job is to shield and protect the chemical companies from being sued by ponies who have been injured or killed by the products that they have approved of, and to also go after those who make unapproved FDA claims, even if those claims are truthful. It is important to note that all drugs and medical technologies are considered unavoidably unsafe. I'd also like to recommend that you go and witness the horrific abuse done to animals when it comes to making these vaccines and do not read the sugar coated stories. I have tried to observe what happens to the animals myself but couldn't bear to watch for very long. If you have any compassion for animals like my friend Fluttershy, then you'll specifically want to avoid supporting the cruel and unspeakable torture that these animals go through by refusing to vaccinate. God gave us amazing immune systems for a reason and no prophecy in the Bible ever says that ponies will eventually need to come up with vaccines to save us all or else our entire species will die off because God forgot to complete our immune systems. The Bible I know and read says that we are wonderfully made."

"Alright, you made somewhat of a good point even though your overall view of medical science is incredibly disappointing and upsetting. What about the theory of herd immunity and the fact that the most well known doctors believe that this is our only way of eradicating diseases? You can't disagree with that."

"That's simply a myth and if you want to point your hoof at me and tell me that I get my arguments from old textbooks, I'd like to point back and say that the theory of herd immunity is an incredibly outdated concept from old medical textbooks and yet doctors still cling to this idea just like how some doctors still preach in the flawed belief of the lipid hypothesis. When we look at things like the vaccination campaign for measles in this land from a while back, the Equestrian Public Health Service planned to vaccinate over fifty five percent of the population, and it announced that it fully expected to eradicate measles in only a few years. When they failed in their mission, the Public Health Service came up with vaccination rate figures of seventy percent to seventy five percent as the way to ensure herd immunity. When eradication was still not achieved at those rates, public health officials continued to raise the rates to eighty percent to eighty five percent, and ultimately to ninety percent. The rate is currently up to ninety five percent to achieve herd immunity, but as we see with the continual outbreaks, even at ninety five percent we still do not have full immunity. We have seen other lands with higher vaccination rates going well above this. Some have vaccination rates above ninety nine percent, but there are also still measles as well as other outbreaks there. So if we are advocating for one hundred percent, what will we all do or say when there are still outbreaks? We have gone from herd immunity which was originally promised to be achieved at fifty five percent to herd immunity that is clearly not achieved at ninety five percent or above ninety nine percent. At what point will the public health officials have to confront the possibility that herd immunity may not be the best theory on which to base vaccination policy? Especially since most of these vaccines lose their effectiveness between two to ten years after being given. There was a time when getting vaccinated was once believed to provide immunity for the rest of one's life. I find it amusing how angry ponies get when a little one might not be vaccinated, but how many adult ponies seriously keep up to date with their vaccines? We seem to treat non-vaccinated fillies and colts like they are biological terrorists but what is the difference between a non-vaccinated filly or colt and an adult pony who may have had their shots when they were young, but the effects of the supposed protection are completely gone now? In my eyes, diseases and outbreaks are going to happen regardless of what crazy policies happen and basing your luck on getting a shot is not the best or healthiest way to go about matters since we see countless times of vaccines not only failing to provide protection, but also severely damaging individuals who get them, or even giving the disease to the victim who gets vaccinated against the same disease that they don't want. As I said before, In the real world of medicine, there is never such a thing as a one size horseshoe fits all treatment anyway. There's also a little thing called medical freedom that gets in the way of achieving a one hundred percent vaccination rate as well. I wouldn't be surprised if that freedom gets completely ignored some day as we continue to see an onslaught of anti-medical and anti-religious freedoms in this land. We are trying to be herded, but it seems like it's certainly not towards immunity. For the only thing vaccines have ever truly eradicated is a healthy immune system. I know at least as long as Princess Celestia is still Princess, she will respect those who want the best for their families and allow them to be free from the devastating effects of vaccines. If you really want to protect the herd, you can start by not vaccinating and eating nutritiously instead. Poor nutrition alone can very well be the reason why outbreaks of disease happen."

Hoofty Cuffs smacked his hoof on top of his other hoof to emphasize. "But it's logical and agreed upon by most doctors."

"Why?" Twilight asked. "Why do ponies keep parroting what they hear about herd immunity? Herd immunity, like the way you're thinking of, is a hilariously bad concept that assumes that the vaccinated are immune to the diseases for which they've been vaccinated, and they cannot carry the diseases for which they are vaccinated and immune from. Lastly, because most of the ponies are vaccinated, other ponies around them can't catch the disease. A good analogy for vaccine herd immunity is that if ninety five percent of ponies in a building are wearing hard hats when the ceiling falls in, the five percent are protected. This is the kind of silly logic that ponies in the pro-vaccination community swear by and I'm not impressed at all by how they think. I think we should all be thinking and asking important questions like, why are newborn foals vaccinated on their first day of life against a disease that is primarily transmitted sexually and by needles in drug users? Pregnant mares are already tested for STDs prior to birth so there's no reason to give it to an infant. Why are foals given vaccines to produce antibodies when they do not produce antibodies until after the age of three to six months? They get the required antibodies from breastfeeding. Why does the medical establishment tell parents to delay breast feeding and get more vaccines when breast feeding foals produce higher levels of antibodies? Why aren't vaccine manufacturers held responsible when their product injures your child? Why would these companies need to be protected from the effects of such wonderful products? Why are vaccine manufacturers allowed to reduce antigens and insert cheap and toxic additives that aggravate the injection site? Why is it that if vaccines are so great, that they often have to be forced on nurses or doctors who try to avoid them or the fact that well over fifty percent of health professionals avoid the flu shot like the plague? Why is it that the more wealthy and educated a family is, the less likely they are to vaccinate? Ponies in Canterlot have a very low vaccination rate with very little incidents of disease. Why is it that..."

"Enough!" Hoofty cried out. I think as long as we can agree that the un-vaccinated should stay locked in their homes and not be allowed to dwell with the vaccinated population, most of us would be very happy with that. We don't need families being biological terrorists to society. Isn't it bad enough that the un-vaccinated are causing the outbreaks of measles?"

Twilight Sparkle stomped her hoof against the stage. She felt slightly angry that Hoofty cared nothing for what she had previously stated. "Really!? I have a little news for you. The non-vaccinated do not cause measles outbreaks; the measles causes outbreaks of measles. I find it sad that you would still think the non-vaccinated are biological terrorists when in many instances, the vaccinated can spread diseases to the non-vaccinated and vaccinated alike. For one example, the FDA's own research suggests that individuals immunized with an acellular pertussis vaccine may still become infected with the bacteria without always getting sick and are able to spread infection to others, including young infants who are susceptible to the pertussis disease. This is why we see so many outbreaks of whooping cough among heavily vaccinated towns and it's not because maybe some non-vaccinated pony came within a certain proximity and caused the whole town to get sick, but because vaccines are known to fail and spread diseases. Did you know that after a pony gets vaccinated with a vaccine that contains a live virus, they can spread the disease for a month or more? They are the ones who should be quarantined in order to protect the public from the spread of diseases; we should not be going on witch hunts and terrorizing or discriminating against the non-vaccinated because of vaccine failures. Besides, It is a logical fallacy to believe that you have immunity after receiving your shots and then suddenly feel threatened by some non-vaccinated pony who isn't even carrying any diseases. The vaccinated are incredibly dangerous to those who have weakened immune systems. In fact, you can't donate blood or visit somepony with cancer in the hospital if you recently had certain vaccines because you can very well be responsible for their death. Infection from vaccines happens with other vaccines like the rotavirus vaccine, the oral polio vaccine, the flu-nasal vaccine, the measles vaccine, the chickenpox vaccine, and the rubella vaccine. Check the vaccine package inserts if you don't believe what I'm saying. Doctors will sometimes write up cases like an actual infection of the measles in a vaccinated individual as a measles like condition, or something else that resembles the measles, or they will assume it is the wild virus, but we now have the scientific methods to find out whether it is wild or the vaccine strain. Most of the time, cases of measles in the vaccinated are not counted or even recognized because the illness that comes with vaccine measles is incorrectly assumed to be less harmful than the natural measles. Did you know that the measles virus can infect and not manifest any rash at all? The virus itself does not cause any rash. Pretty crazy, huh? In cases of whooping cough, a nagging cough in children and adults may be the only symptom. Most do not seek any medical care for a persistent cough. If they do go to a doctor, their illness is not diagnosed as whooping cough, simply because the medical community perceives it to be a childhood disease that is not longer an issues thanks to vaccines. Doctors will never consider actual cases of whooping cough in vaccinated children or in adults, and no official statistics reflect on the true amount of circulating whooping cough in ponies of all ages. There has also been a mutation in the bacteria circulating thanks to the vaccine. We not only see vaccines failing to provide the immunity they claim to provide, but also causing the spread of diseases and I'm sure these facts won't phase many of you tonight. The non-vaccinated will always be the scapegoats for whatever problems vaccines may cause in society and Princess Celestia only keeps this medical procedure because the overwhelming majority of you beg for it. That's fine and everything, but don't for a second dare think that you have the right to bully other parents around because they want to raise their foals properly and build up their immune system naturally. I think it's also important that we remember that just because a certain disease may exist before the vaccine is made doesn't mean an outbreak or major epidemic is always happening with that said disease."

"Do clarify," Hoofty said as he scratched his chin with his hoof. He peeked at the audience and was satisfied to see that many of them still looked shocked and disgusted by Twilight's stance on vaccines.

"What I am saying is that when a major epidemic happens and the vaccine is introduced right at the very end of it, the vaccine should not be given praise for eliminating the disease when the outbreak or epidemic has already ended or has at least significantly declined to the point where the outbreak is almost gone. This is usually because of better sanitation practices and the best way to prevent diseases and epidemics is to practice good sanitation, eat foods that are highly nutritious and live healthy lifestyles. I think it's time that we listen to both sides of the story and make our own intelligent conclusions based upon un-biased studies and facts. I am not anti-science here. What I am against is when parents who do not know or understand the risks and failures of vaccines end up taking their foal to the doctor to get their shots believing that they are making their foal's immune system stronger and then suddenly watch the infant go into a seizure or die shortly after. These incidents are very real and are not exaggerated by the parents who are in deep regret about their decision. The courts have paid out billions upon billions of bits to families who lost loved ones from vaccine related fatalities or injuries and yet they are mocked among the pro-vaccination movement despite their loss and many of them still remain pro-vaccination. I would love to invite you to my library where I have a wealth of written peer reviewed studies about vaccinations and the real dangers they possess. It's crazy when you think about it. Vaccine related injures and deaths became so common that the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program had to be established. An actual court where ponies go to get compensation for vaccine failures and all the money that goes to the victims is paid by us through taxes."

"You're kidding me, right? A vaccine court?"

"No, I'm not. A special vaccine court also known as the Office of Special Masters of the Equestrian Court of Federal Claims had to be set up to shield Big Pharma from liability and responsibility. You cannot sue a vaccine manufacturer who made something that injured or killed somepony, nor can you sue the FDA who approved the drug or vaccine. It's kind of sad to say that the only true immunity these vaccine companies have are not against diseases, but against lawsuits. Many families never think to sue because they believe their or their pony's injuries are not connected to getting the injections even though the injuries often happen shortly after getting the shots. Parents trust their pediatricians and doctors, so they don't report any adverse reactions from the vaccines and believe in the fabricated stories that doctors tell them. Even when presented with evidence of vaccine related damage later on, many sadly refuse to acknowledge any of it because it would be too much of a guilt trip for them so they continue to stay left in the dark. Most ponies I have talked to don't really want to hear the truth anyway; what they really want is constant reassurance that what they believe is the truth no matter how damaging it may be, and they will go to great lengths to block out hearing anything that challenges their beliefs in the slightest bit. Some of the techno-babble I have heard preached from doctors is so ridiculous that it would even make an expert in techno-babble like Mister Spock blush. As I said before, nearly all deaths and injuries due to vaccines do not get reported by doctors and there are many thousands of cases thrown out because they hire good lawyers to fight grieving families. No matter how much money a family might get if they are lucky to get any, no amount of money can ever replace the hurt or the life of a lost loved one."

"And who knows just how many nutty parents try to take their damaged children to these courts for things in which had nothing to do with any vaccines. So many parents are so delusional and will blame vaccines for just about anything that goes wrong with their kids."

"Hold on a second," Twilight said. "First of all, you already kind of brought this topic up before when you mentioned the VAERS system, and secondly, no one knows the child better than the mother and I have heard of cases where loving mothers get sent to court because they shook their child gently when their foal wasn't acting right because of a vaccine injury. The courts unjustly ruled that the mother was responsible for harming her kid by violently shaking the child despite the fact that she gently shook him and that he had been severely harmed by the doctor. The horrible damage from vaccines are used as faulty proof that the parent was abusive and thus the confused parent wonders why they are being sent to jail for shaken baby syndrome when they were being gentle with their foal. For a doctor to blame the mother for the damage that he did to the foal is such a cop-out and a shameful way to avoid the responsibility of admitting the truth."

"Well, why don't you go talk to a doctor if you think you know so much more than they do?" Hoofty asked.

"Because it's the most arduous thing in the world to get someone to understand something, when their entire salary depends on them not understanding it."

"And did you go to school, Miss Sparkle? Do you have a medical degree that says you're qualified to say the things that you're saying tonight?"

Twilight looked rather annoyed at his question. "I have went to school, but it certainly wasn't for a medical degree. I'd rather not pay for an education that simply indoctrinates you with misinformation and lies. I seek after the truth and you don't need a degree of any kind to do your own personal research, Mister Cuffs."

"Right, and I suppose you are one of the crazy religious fanatics who thinks that fillies and colts can't be taken away from their nutty parents for medical treatments when they have something extremely serious like cancer and the parents believe that prayer will save their little ones as they slowly die a terrible death; they refuse chemo and rely on God so to speak."

"I do," Twilight said. "But not in the sense that you're thinking of because I believe that prayer without doing anything about something serious like cancer is pretty crazy. There are many options for treating cancers that do not aggressively attack the body and leave the individual weaker, sicker and even more susceptible to other diseases as well as getting a much worse form of cancer again later on in their life. Medical foalnapping is a big no-no as well as forced vaccinations and the parent's rights need to be respected as well as thinking about the well-being of the pony suffering. There are plenty of non-invasive, safe and way more effective treatments for cancer that work with the body and not against it. If you don't know, the logic behind chemo goes something like this. Cancer cells are weaker than all of the other cells in the body so if you insert a poison, the cancer cells should die first. What's fundamentally flawed about this is that this will also weaken all of the healthy cells dramatically, leaving you vulnerable and susceptible to pretty much everything and anything that comes along as well as drastically increasing your chances of getting cancer again in the same place or in a different area of your body. There have been cases of ponies who had immunity to tetanus, but lost it and developed tetanus as a result of a weakened immune system due to the chemo. Chemo is also known to make patients retarded since chemo penetrates the blood-brain barrier. Isn't your brain an important organ? Some doctors actually give vaccines to those on chemo which is incredibly stupid and very dangerous. Of course, they give out cookie cut studies and totally biased statistics in an attempt to make the public believe that without conventional medical treatments, you're guaranteed to die without their perverted ways of treatments whether it's chemo, vaccines, surgery, pharmaceuticals and so on. Yes, it's true and sad that once in a while families will refuse to do anything but pray and their filly or colt dies, but in no way should we punish parents who are actually trying to do everything in their power to heal their little ones without submitting to the horrors of conventional medical treatments which almost always kills them first before any cancer can. Ponies getting cancer was almost unheard of and was considered a medical oddity back then and now you can't talk to someone without hearing a story about someone suffering with cancer." Twilight paused and added, "And it's not because of better diagnosing. Cancer is actually a normal part of life and a healthy immune system eliminates cancer cells at the same rate that they are created."

Hoofty Cuffs shook his head in disbelief. "Hundreds of years of scientific research and you act like doctors simply want to kill us. We have wonderful pharmaceutical companies as well as cancer and disease research organizations working hard to find a cure and all you can do is brush it all off like it's nonsense. Shame on you! I proudly support and donate regularly to disease research organizations because I want ponies to actually have a better life! You should know that I would not be here if it were not for the twelve different kinds of medications that I have to take daily so that I don't die."

Ponies in the audience stomped their hooves in approval.

"A dozen different medications every day and you're proud that you're fully vaccinated and think that you're in tiptop shape? My goodness, just think about what you just said and try to understand where I'm coming from. The companies and doctors don't want to kill, that would totally ruin their profit. They want to give us treatments that make us sick so that we may be fully dependent on the system in order to keep us coming back to the doctor so that we can be given additional treatments and drugs that have a horrible snowball effect on our health. The pharmaceutical industry never creates cures, they only seek to create customers for life. It is even ridiculous to say that we have a health care system. We don't have that; what we have is a disease creation and management system. For you can't profit off of a healthy pony. Look up how much money these vaccine and drug companies make, you'd be surprised. They want us sick, but not sick enough so that we can't fully function or work in society and by the time our premature deaths happen because of their treatments, they have already banked enough money from us and we are usually already useless to them because we are so sick and can't work enough to pay them anymore by that time anyway. It's especially sad when they are so filthy rich yet when a family wants to take their pony for chemo yet can't afford it, they won't do it and force the family to beg for family and friend donations so they can make sure they milk every single penny from the parents before they poison their pony with chemo. It's really sick and very greedy." Twilight paused for a moment and thought to herself before continuing. "Have you ever had one of those very old, stubborn grandparents who threw a hissy fit every time a family member suggested that he or she go to the doctor when they were sick but yet they refused? Yeah, that's actually a great indication as to why they lived so long in the first place since they avoided the doctor like the plague. The one important thing to note is that death by doctors is so common that they actually coined a word for it. Iatrogenic. Currently, doctors are the third leading cause of death and it's no wonder why that is when they give out vaccines, drugs and antibiotics like candy and they do pointless screenings that are often harmful as well as unnecessary butchery or as they like to call it, surgery. Even looking back at history and remembering how careless and arrogant doctors were when midwifery was abandoned and obstetricians took over who used unnecessary invasive birthing techniques; they caused millions of agonizing deaths to mothers by infecting them with puerperal fever, also called childbed fever because they refused to wash their medical instruments and their hooves. Doctors would often go from touching infected corpses in the cadaver dissection lab, to the maternity ward, where they delivered foals without any hoofwashing. What's really amazing is that there were two doctors who tried to help stop this problem and get doctors to wash their hooves, but they were mocked and ignored. Doctor Holmes and Doctor Semmelweis were their names. Both doctors ended up leaving the medical practice after watching so many mares die because their advice was not taken, and they were personally attacked. And poor Doctor Semmelweis was deceived into entering an insane asylum. He tried to escape, but he was severely beaten by the guards. A gangrenous wound to his body which was probably caused by the beating, ultimately led to his death two weeks later. How crazy is it that a doctor who simply wanted to save lives by the millions simply by washing hooves was seen as a lunatic and ended up in the loony-bin where he was killed? Doctors still kill in great numbers today and the numbers are astounding when you look at how many ponies die because of doctor prescribed drugs compared to ponies using street drugs. Even realizing how many millions of ponies will die this year due to antibiotic resistance alone should be enough to greatly concern you. No disease or cancer research organization wants to find a cure either. The ponies behind these organizations are getting money in by the carriage-loads and cancer is a huge money maker. If anything, they may come up with something else toxic and invasive that still harms the patient, but in no way would they ever want to find a cure to cut their funds because the only thing they are racing to is not to find a cure, but to the bank with all that donated money since they turned down the best and most accurate cancer treatments that are completely safe and noninvasive. I find it a bit ironic how so many companies sport the cancer ribbon on their products yet the products contain ingredients that causes cancer in the first place. There's also the embarrassing fact that..."

"What other best and most accurate cancer treatments?" Hoofty asked. "You said there is no such thing as a one size fits all in medicine."

"That's correct," Twilight said. "There is no one hundred percent cancer cure, but the good treatments out there have astounding results and some may be more favorable than other ones for certain cancers."

"Really? Name me some. Let's hear just how big of a quack you really are."

"Much of the treatments have to do with diet and if you want to know some treatments, there's the Budwig Protocol, the Hoxsey Regimen, Vitamin C therapy, Vitamin B-17 from bitter almonds, Essiac tea, Gerson therapy and Oxygen/Ozone therapy just to name a few. Twilight looked over at Hoofty and added, "You're welcome to stop by my library and read the books I have on these."

Hoofty began laughing. "You really are a quack and I already heard of some of those treatments from reading Wikipedia and Snopes articles. I think just about every one you named was proven to show no signs of curing any cancer. I heard Budwig was one of the biggest failures."

"Doing scientific research by reading Wikipedia articles that are heavily edited and rewritten frequently though unicorn magic is not very impressive. When it comes to sources, you shouldn't be a one trick pony when it comes to gathering information only from Wikipedia or extremely biased and misinforming Snopes articles. Those are some older treatments of the past and some of them can be safely combined together in order to be more effective. The only exception to an unsafe treatment would be laetrile because it may be damaging in certain situations, like those with kidney or liver cancers since it can place additional stress on these organs. Speaking of Doctor Budwig, I'll quote from her. I have the answer to cancer, but doctors won't listen. They come here and observe my methods and are impressed. Then they want to make a special deal so they can take it home and make a lot of money. I won't do it, so I'm blackballed wherever I go. End quote. There are a few true, good doctors who actually cared for their patients and they should be recognized. There are reports that she did not just cure specific or rare cancers, but cured all kinds of cancers quickly, easily, cheaply, and permanently. She used non-toxic ingredients which had no adverse effects and her medicine made her patients much stronger and healthier. She treated some of the worst terminal cases of cancer and many tried to demonize her and make fraudulent things up about her and her treatments just like all the other supposed quacks out there. Basically, when ponies were told by medical doctors that they were completely un-treatable and were so unhealthy that they wouldn't even bother to attempt to help them, they went to Doctor Budwig and other doctors like her. It disgusts me when doctors dare tell patients that they only have so much time to live as a means to dishearten them in order to get them to comply with their treatments. They are not God, nor do they know when someone will ultimately pass. It is even worse when doctors get caught taking advantage of their patients by putting them through chemo when the patients don't even have cancer to begin with. The stallion who won the Nobel Prize for discovering cancer even said himself that no disease or cancer can survive in an alkaline environment. When it comes to these modern day cancer treatments, I always Imagine two doctors sitting in a room while looking over their patient. One doctor arrogantly says, see, we did it! The cancer is gone and scientific progress moves on! The other doctor looks at the patient and says, yes, the cancer is gone, but so is the patient."

"But you can't give me any accurate cures these days that are agreed upon by the medical establishment."

"Actually, yes I can, and even if those treatments are vilified by the medical establishment, I'd prefer to go with a treatment plan like the true, original Budwig diet over any conventional cancer treatment if I truly did have cancer," Twilight said. "It is also important to note that a diet like the Budwig protocol is excellent for healthy ponies to do and is proven to greatly prevent cancer from happening in the first place."

"So what's the cure that the medical establishment agrees on?" Hoofty asked.

"Cannabis."

"I knew it!" Hoofty said.

"You knew what?" Twilight asked.

"You're nothing but a weed smoking hippie!"

"No," Twilight said. "I don't support smoking anything, but cannabis has been medically proven to kill tumor cells and cure colorectal, testicular, pancreatic, and uterine cancers. The medicine has been shown to also cure throat and mouth cancers, skin, breast, lung, prostate, blood, liver, and brain cancers. Basically, all cancers in general and it has so many other important medical and non-medical uses as well. There are plenty of official peer reviewed medical studies on this and I have them. It's only controversial because it's such an effective medicine."

"Even if what you say is true, I hate it when ponies keep saying that they want weed to stay legal because of some medical benefits and they only use that as an excuse to get high. This is why it should be banned."

"You really like banning things, don't you?" Twilight asked. "Princess Celestia refuses to ban a plant. Now, how silly would it be if she actually did ban it?"

"One of the very first things that your God did in the Bible did was making a plant illegal," Hoofty answered. "Marijuana is the called the gateway drug for a reason."

Some ponies in the audience laughed at that comment.

"I don't like it when ponies get high either, and I find ponies who are high to be about as equally annoying as ponies who are dunk. I would actually argue that marijuana isn't the gateway drug, but alcohol is. However, if there are treatments that cure many cancers, then how can we not support them? We know why so many doctors tend to look down upon treatments like cannabis because it would rob the big companies they get kickbacks from of billions of bits from their lucrative cancer industry, so they deny its effectiveness even though the medical studies out there prove it as being a cheap, safe, natural and effective cure, including treatments for well over one hundred other separate diseases and illnesses. There's no reason for us to be silent about its many wonderful medical uses, not just an effective weapon against cancer, but for so many other health related issues as well. Heck, I consume hemp for its high nutritional value, and even if the plant were illegal here, wouldn't you rather be illegally alive rather than legally dead? Why not stop over my library and read the scientific studies I have?"

"Because I'm sure that all of your scientific studies are old frauds that have been retracted, and the doctors behind the studies had to give up their profession because of their quackery."

"That's not true," Twilight said. "I have hundreds of scientific studies and none of them have been retracted."

"Yet!" Hoofty added."

Twilight sighed. "Have you ever read articles from Pubmed? I have so many important studies and I wish you would at least try reading a few of these studies that I have whether it's about vaccines, cancer, or something else. It might interest you that there are quite a few well known studies that have been up for decades, and are still confirmed as true to this day if you're so concerned about the more recent studies getting retracted."

"I think I'll pass on that offer and will continue to support the scientific research that suggests you know nothing about what you preach. You are simply making a fool of yourself tonight, and it seems that the longer you talk, the more radical and defiant you seem to become. Nopony here wants to hear your excuses to allow lazy, unemployed ponies to sit on their flanks and smoke weed all day, and I'm sure that there are some ponies with us tonight who have or have had cancer and are deeply offended and hurt by your callousness and indifference towards those suffering with cancer and other health issues."

A few ponies in the audience clopped their hooves together in support of Hoofty's remark.

Twilight lowered her ears; she was sad that he and other ponies in the audience felt that way since she truly did care and had a love and passion for helping others heal and be well through learning. "I just find it sad how many of us point our hooves at God and yell at Him for all this disease and cancer in our world when in fact, so many of us are born healthy and are given treatments that make us sick and gives us cancers. Our diets and life styles are a far more of a major problem when it comes to illness than genetics. The problem of diseases is on us, not God, and it seems that most ponies who criticize and talk about God the most are the ones who don't even believe in Him."

Hoofty brushed his wavy hair out of his eyes. "Rubbish! Your God kills thousands of religious ponies in other lands from supposedly harmless diseases like the measles and polio. You fail to mention what goes on across the seas because they aren't privileged like us and do not have enough vaccines in order to survive! So much for you claiming that these common diseases are harmless!"

"Really?" Twilight asked. "Are you seriously bringing me back to this topic again? It's almost like you're trying to keep me talking about vaccines and diseases for as long as possible." Twilight looked extremely agitated and said, "Look, when you hear about thousands of ponies dying from measles in other lands, there's something to be said about that. I get really tired of it when ponies continue to bring up death statistics from places where there is extremely poor sanitation and very little access to clean water and nutritious foods. How about you give me some recent death statistics from ponies who get the measles or polio where we live? As I said before, with proper care and nutrition, diseases like the measles should not be of a major concern. Ponies are dying in poor lands because they do not get proper care or good nutrition so it's no wonder that happens. These ponies need better sanitation practices, clean water and healthy food in which they do not have access to. Instead, they get vaccines and still die from poor conditions or the vaccines themselves. If you aren't healthy to begin with and do not receive proper rest and care, the common cold can kill you too, and I certainly hope that we don't start fear mongering over that as well. If you ever bring up a case of somepony dying from something like the measles where we live, then I would like to know some things about that pony. I'd like to know how many vaccines that pony had beforehand. Was the pony fed with the milk from his or her mother or a wet nurse? Did the pony get antibiotics? Did the pony get treated with vitamins A and C? When foals get pertussis, milk stops and formulas start. Antibiotics are given which napalms the bowel, and they're laid on their backs. These treatments lead to negative outcomes. Historically, there has always been times of ridiculous beliefs and practices. Did you know that there used to be a widespread belief that getting wet caused illness? There was a fear of bathing that persisted through the Dark Ages. Fillydelphia almost passed an ordinance forbidding wintertime bathing and a decade after that, Horseton did outlaw bathing, except by medical directive. Even if that law was not widely enforced, it does illustrate the Equestrian resistance to bathing as late as the mid eighteen hundreds. That's one example, and I feel like I haven't talked much about the results of good sanitation since there's so much to say about it. Here are some things to know about the early decline in infectious diseases. When it comes to stopping diseases around the world, we should not be giving praise to vaccines, but rather be thankful for sanitation workers and plumbing. Have you ever heard the expression, you're so poor that you don't have a pot to piss in, nor a window to throw it out of? Before plumbing was widely used, your typical home contained very simplistic things like a washbowl, a washstand, and pitcher. Ponies back in those days also relieved themselves by going to the bathroom in a commode or chamber pot. Pony waste was dumped into the street or anywhere that was convenient. This complete lack of sanitation in urban areas filled with rats and other vermin provided a very suitable environment to spread disease. The Black Plague was one of the worst and most devastating pandemics where millions upon millions died, and while the disease may not be entirely eradicated, pony infection has become a rarity. The last plague epidemic here was in the early nineteen hundreds." Twilight paused and looked at the crowd for a moment as if expecting them to appreciate what she said.

There was silence for a moment until a pony coughed in the crowd.

"Okay, let's move on to yet another example," Twilight said. "Let's take a look at Cholera. Remember when the majority of ponies used town pumps and communal wells to get their drinking water? Waste disposal was still far from adequate and most ponies dumped animal waste and raw sewage into open pits called cesspools, or directly into the Manes river. Unfortunately for these ponies, the great Manes river was the main source of drinking water for most in that area. In case you didn't know, cholera spreads very easily through contaminated water and food. It kills swiftly and often proves fatal within just mere hours of the first symptoms of diarrhea or vomiting. Tens of thousands of lives were lost because of poor sanitation, and one time, there were more than five hundred fatal cases of cholera in only ten days. Doctors in those times believed that bad vapors were to blame for the epidemic and there was one pony who defied the doctor's wisdom and investigated matters himself. He realized that biological waste in the drinking water was to blame for the epidemic and he was able to trace the cholera outbreak to the Broad Street pump. He then persuaded the town officials to remove the pump handle, and the cholera outbreak ended abruptly. Later on after some more investigating, the outbreak was eventually traced back to a mare cleaning a dirty diaper in the well. Once he was able to convince authorities, he was then regarded as the father of epidemiology. It is sad to me that we seem to have forgotten this stallion's name. Does anypony here know who I am talking about?" Twilight waited for an answer, but there was only silence. She sighed and said, "His name is Doctor Snow, and I'm pretty sure ponies first looked at him as if he were crazy when he suggested that the doctors were wrong much like how Doctor Holmes and Doctor Semmelweis were looked at as insane for trying to get doctors to wash their hooves in order to prevent the spread of diseases that contributed to millions of unnecessary deaths. I also feel that many of you are looking at me tonight as if I'm crazy for preaching that vaccines harmful."

Still, the crowds did not seem to be impressed.

Twilight spoke a little louder. "Do you realize that hundreds of millions of ponies still don't have a toilet? In some rural areas, open defecation is still more common than attempting to dispose of pony excrement in a more sanitary fashion, such as burying it. There have been some minimal efforts to improve sanitation, but they pale in comparison to the fanatical efforts to vaccinate. So many billions of bits has been spent in this vaccination public health campaign, and in some parts of of this world, fillies and colts have received as many as thirty doses of the oral polio vaccine before their fifth birthday. Organizations like the Equestrian Health Organization, and GAVI, the vaccine alliance have been passionately pushing vaccines on ponies who still do not have access to clean drinking water or the sanitary means to dispose of their waste. The current polio vaccine campaign is extremely controversial due to the high rate of vaccine injury and death. The numbers are really shocking when it comes to cases of NPAFP, a non-polio acute flaccid paralysis, among those vaccinated. NPAFP is a disease that is clinically indistinguishable from polio and twice as deadly that is caused by the live, weakened polio viruses in the vaccine. Incidences of the disease rose and fell with the number of doses of the vaccine administered and in one just year alone, there were at least fifty three thousand ponies who received this from the polio vaccine in only one poverty stricken area of this world. To call this disease anything other than polio is simply insanity and a total lie. Now here is the real catastrophe in all of this mess. It would actually be far less expensive in cost and way more effective to ameliorate these poor pony's water infrastructure, so we can improve their sanitation and hygiene which would save so many lives and drastically reduce the amount of diseases going on. I often times feel that the only reason why that doesn't happen is because these poor ponies are simply test subjects in the eyes of the pharmaceutical industry, and that population reduction is a long term goal." Twilight looked at her opponent as if he were going to respond with his own input.

Hoofty simply sat there looking unimpressed.

Of course to Twilight, that meant to push on. She was one of those ponies that would talk until she either passed out from exhaustion, or the ponies she was talking to understood what she was saying. "Remember the terrible outbreaks of dysentery in refugee camps in nineteen ninety four? Sanitation was atrocious; the refugees had their bowel movements openly in common areas. Pony feces built up in the same areas where the refugees drew water that was used for drinking and cooking. Heavy rain flooded the area and dysentery became a nightmare. It was killing two thousand ponies a day at its peak. I'm sure that most of you are well aware that refugee camps have always been a haven for diseases related to terrible sanitation, but once we brought in purified water and encouraged ponies to use outhouses and latrines for defecation, the incidences of dysentery fell dramatically." Twilight looked at the audience once more to see if anyone appeared to be even a little interested in what she was preaching. She was trying so hard to keep this discussion as simple as possible in order for everyone to understand.

Only a few seemed to appear as if they were deep in thought, the rest simply didn't seem to care or looked slightly agitated by her words.

"How about I mention the problems during the industrial revolution? The industrial revolution spurred rapid population growth and certain city's water infrastructure wasn’t designed to handle such a sharp rise in population. During that time, ponies were dealing with many different diseases, but it had particularly high rates of typhoid fever. The source of the speedy increase in disease was traced to the city’s water and sanitation. The majority of the city’s sewage was directed to the rivers, which flowed right back into the main lake which provided the city’s drinking water. This, of course, contaminated the pony's drinking water and created a vicious cycle of disease. It took numerous years to rectify the problem, but in the early nineteen hundreds, the cities modernized their water infrastructure. The ponies were able to reverse the flow of several streams and rivers, and as a result of this, cases of typhoid fever and all other infectious diseases plummeted which had nothing to do with any vaccines. Let's not forget that in this land, there has been no widespread vaccination for typhoid fever and even though a vaccine for scarlet fever was created, it was such a failure due to the high rate of serious adverse reactions that were often fatal on the nurses who were the test subjects that it never made it to the public and was discontinued. So technically, you can't use the decline of deaths as an excuse and say that scarlet fever is no longer a big time killer anymore because we had a vaccine for it. Many ponies died from both of those diseases in the past and we don't have vaccines for many other diseases including syphilis." Twilight paused for a moment and added, "Although, I'm sure there might be some ludicrous reason for vaccine manufactures to re-create a vaccine for scarlet fever in the future as well since there are hundreds of more vaccines being worked on." Twilight thought to herself for a short moment until she perked up when she remembered the most obvious disease to use for her example. "And what about scurvy? That used to be a big time killer, and death by scurvy was a slow, horrific death full of suffering. We have no vaccine for that and the reason we don't hear about scurvy today is because of vitamin C, which is a vitamin that is sadly looked upon almost as worthless by most doctors. The recommended daily value isn't just enough to keep scurvy away, it's literally just enough to keep us alive! Our immune systems can't function without it; our skin skin needs it; a bone fracture won't heal without it and doctors shrug it off and call ponies quacks who use it to treat and prevent diseases. See, we aren't afraid of those diseases and the death rates from diseases like polio, measles, whooping cough and diphtheria were practically gone in this land by the time the vaccines were introduced. We're talking about a decline in death rates from diseases like the measles by well over ninety-nine percent prior to the public introduction of the vaccine.

"Well, no duh, Twilight. Ever hear of another great medical invention called antibiotics?" Hoofty asked.

"Sorry, but like vaccines, antibiotics are not to be given praise for the great decline in deaths from diseases. I hear a lot of ponies claim that antibiotics are one of the greatest medical inventions of all time, but the first true antibiotic, penicillin, was discovered, not invented. Even conventional medicine today acknowledges that antibiotics do not necessarily decrease the severity of the disease, and when they are given, they are given in hopes to decrease the length of contagion and are believed to be effective in improving the course of the disease if started early. However, some studies are now showing that antibiotic treatment actually prolongs the illness. I think it's important to note that while these examples I have provided are so few out of all the other examples I could give that comes to my mind, they are so important to know and understand. Sanitation saves lives, not vaccines. None of this is new information, and even Moses taught sanitation. He made many rules for encampments, and the ancients created elaborate systems of aqueducts, baths, and drainage. When the mighty empire crumbled, sanitation became a lost art. Civilization paid the price when plague after plague struck areas of dense population. Smallpox continued to infect populations until plumbing infrastructure became commonplace. Although, sanitation ended this disease, the smallpox vaccine takes the credit. Because this discussion is supposed to be religious, I'll throw in a very important verse that would save millions of lives if ponies just simply read the Bible. In the book of Deuteronomy, it says that you shall have a place outside the camp, and you shall go out to it. And you shall have a trowel with your tools, and when you sit down outside, you shall dig a hole with it and turn back and cover up your excrement. It should come to us as no shock that we have horrible diseases that are claiming millions of lives when ponies are literally swimming and bathing in fecal matter as well as drinking it. The poor ponies are caught between horrible death rates from both diseases and vaccines and it's a damn shame that nopony seems to want to acknowledge the real problem. We can give them clean water without using chemicals like chlorine which is a crippler and killer or fluoride which is a poison. I'd also like to bet that if and when these poor ponies actually do get everything that they need in order to improve sanitation and rid their land of devastating diseases, the vaccines will once again steal the spotlight and mighty praise and adoration will be given to the pharmaceutical industry once again. It is so important that we understand the history of disease outbreaks and how they were truly stopped so we can prevent horrific outbreaks from happening again. We were able to improve the quality of life and lower disease outbreaks dramatically simply by having clean water, a sewage system, improving our water infrastructure, improvements in wound care, and improving our diets. It is sad that the medical establishment and vaccine fanatics have created this re-imagined history of how vaccines have saved us all from dying and have told that lie over and over until it became the truth to the masses. I'd encourage you all to please read more on this topic; there are plenty of books out there and I have many well written books in my library. Please pardon my language, but if we can't get these ponies to get their shit together literally and figuratively, then we aren't going to see any improvement."

"Twilight Sparkle! Watch your mouth, young lady!" Twilight's mother accidentally yelled out. Her reaction was almost like instinct.

Twilight looked sheepishly over to her mother in the front row. "Sorry, Mom. I was just making sure that you were still awake." She then laughed a bit.

Some ponies in the crowd laughed with her.

Twilight's face had a more serious look once more. "Let me make this crystal clear, Princess Celestia makes it her mission to feed the poor and provide them with better living conditions because she is called to love thy neighbor which would include places far away so this doesn't happen. Vaccines are never the answer and it's wrong to use them to experiment on and or sterilize populations. Ponies only cling to the idea that we need vaccines because they put their full trust in a corrupt system. Top doctors who advocate that we all get vaccinated are puppets of the pharmaceutical industry and it's all about the money since getting vaccinated often leads to a lifetime supply of more and more pharmaceuticals given all the way from the cradle to the grave. It also doesn't help when the media starts trying to strike fear into our hearts. There was a time when the measles was viewed as not being a very big deal until the marketing for the vaccine came out. It is so much easier to fool ponies than to convince them that they have been fooled and there are so many other examples of horrible preaching from doctors and politicians besides vaccines."

"Oh, really?" Hoofty asked. "How about you provide me with one."

"Sure," Twilight said. "For one example, remember the days when you were looked at as a total idiot if you dare suggested that cigarette smoking causes cancer since the leading doctors in the field of cancer research insisted that smoking doesn't cause cancer? Yeah, ponies believed that was safe back then and much of the public refuses to acknowledge any possible dangers with vaccination since the medical establishment is worshiped as a god and doctors are like our high priests who can't possibly be wrong. Bloodletting used to be a standard medical procedure. DDT was created to combat disease carrying parasprites and was said to be completely harmless to ponies and pets. It was actually advertised as so safe that you could eat it without any negative consequences. Mercury fillings were supposed to be completely safe, agent orange was claimed to not cause cancer at one point in time when it was used in an attempt to fight the overgrowth of the Everfree forest. Asbestos, BPA, thalidomine, glysophate, arsenic, lead, and diethylstibestrol were also said to be safe. The list goes on and on. By the way, you can thank our oppressive Christian ruler for banning such wonderful poisons like agent orange and DDT. Our world surely suffers greatly without them being used anymore," Twilight said sarcastically. "We only created super-weeds that are herbicide resistant and found many ponies to have horrible birth defects and deformities from the spraying. Speaking of the Everfree forest, think about all of the horrible genetically modified monsters we created in laboratories and let loose in the wild only to have our creations come back to bite us in the flank for tampering with nature. You know, I'm sure most of you are aware of mercury being used in medicine, but let me take the time to explain one of my most favorite examples which I mentioned before. Arsenic. Arsenic was not just considered safe to be exposed to, but it was also considered safe enough to be used as literal medicine. It was considered potent, effective, safe, and that it generally agrees very well with children. When the polio epidemics were increasing, so was the use of arsenic in household, medical, and agricultural products. For instance, Paris Green and Scheele's Green were dyes that were used over in the east and even here. Did you know that arsenic was used to treat lung problems? Doctors would prescribe arsenic added to tobacco to be smoked. It was also used to treat cholera on the basis that a greater poison would destroy a lesser poison, and this wasn't some kind of homeopathic remedy, this was the actual chemical arsenic. Dentists used arsenous acid to kill nerve endings in decayed teeth. Even the Equestrian Medical Association approved of arsenic poisons in medicine. In nineteen thirty nine, the EMA lent its seal of acceptance to a drug called tryparsamide, which was an arsenic medicine manufactured by Mereck under license from the Rockerfeller Institute for medical research. This drug was used to counter the effect of syphilis often with a hundred or more injections in a single patient. But you know, listen to the medical professionals because I'm the quack."

"But you have to admit, genetically engineered foods are helping the world. We may not be at that point where we can do it well with animals yet, but we're getting there. Did you know that farmers have been creating GMOs for thousands of years?"

"Correction, farmers have been practicing hybridization by using cross-pollination. With GMOs, the plant's DNA is mixed with the DNA of another plant, or an unrelated plant species, or the DNA of an animal or bacteria. That doesn't happen naturally and can only happen in the lab. Genetically engineered foods are not safe and this abomination has not significantly increased our crop yields according to the Equestira Department of Agriculture and controlled comparative studies. Remember terminator technology which refers to plants that have been genetically modified to render sterile seeds at harvest so you have to buy the seeds over and over? Tell me, why would something like that be created if it wasn't solely for greed? The motive of Monsanto is not to feed the world, but to take over the world's food supply. There is nothing wrong with saving your seeds, and some GMO crops even have lower yield than non-GMO. Over ninety percent of our genetically engineered foods are created to withstand being sprayed with Monsanto's glyphosate herbicide called Roundup. This is a powerful synthetic antibiotic that blocks mineral absorption. Glyphosate herbicides are also endocrine disruptors and mitochondrial toxins. They have been linked to birth defects and even the World Health Organization cautions us by labeling it as a probable cause of cancer. We have many studies that show that GMOs cause organ damage, accelerated signs of aging, immune system problems, hormone imbalance, reproductive damage, developmental problems, cancer, and premature death. There are thousands of healthcare practitioners who encourage their patients to stop consuming GMO foods. Many who ate these foods for a while and stopped had major improvements in their health when it came to problems associated with things like digestive disorders, obesity, diabetes, kidney disease, allergies, infertility, chronic pain, inflammation, and focus and behavioral problems. The biotech industry doesn't plan to stop and is preparing to create GMO versions of literally all commercial seeds as well as livestock, fish, grass, trees, flowers, and even pets. We have no idea just how horrible the long term damaging effects will be because of this. This is something that will be catastrophic for our health and the environment if left unchecked, and I trust that Princess Celestia will further look into this and put restrictions on GMO foods. It was practically a nightmare to get them labeled because Monsanto fought hard and claimed that it would somehow confuse consumers. We have the right to know what we put into our bodies, especially if it's food that is soaked in poison. GMOs require farmers to buy more pesticides, not less, and GMO foods are banned in many parts of this world because the majority demanded it. It's just a shame that we aren't there yet even though there are many hundreds of scientists who are against GMOs. We have enough organic food to feed the world many times over. It is just a shame that some go hungry because we are incredibly wasteful with our food and so much of it simply goes into the trash instead of using it to feed the homeless. What would help is a law that would force grocery stores to send its nearly expired food to shelters instead of dumpsters. I hope our princesses would eventually agree with that idea. Come to think of it, I'm reminded about my other two friends, Applejack and Pinkie Pie. Have you heard of their names, Mister Cuffs?"

"Applejack sounds familiar," Hoofty said. "She has something to do with Sweet Apple Acres, I think."

"That's right. She helps run Ponyville's greatest farm and it's not only organic, but is also the only one hundred percent pesticide free farm that I know of. She, like Pinkie Pie, are hard working earth ponies when it comes to feeding others and Sweet Apple Acres generously donates huge amounts of food every year to the needy. Her yields are as huge as her giving heart. The idea of tampering with nature to such extremes shouldn't be about could we do it, but should we do it. I think the should we be doing it should be analyzed a bit more carefully. God did not make mistakes with our food and I'd much rather eat the food naturally made for us than eating it from a mad scientist who creates it in a lab. We don't need these chemicals that makes us sick."

"Did you know that everypony who consumes the deadly chemical dihydrogen monoxide is one hundred percent guaranteed to die?" Hoofty asked. "This is the same chemical found in vaccines, common household cleaner products, and is sprayed on genetically engineered crops. How come you didn't mention it before?"

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Yeah, water is really scary," Twilight said un-enthusiastically.

"Darn it! That usually tricks everypony I know who is terrified of chemicals."

"You're going to have to try much harder than that. What is your deal with me and not liking that I encourage others to be healthy and make their own educated decisions anyway?"

"I just find it absurd that your attitude seems to say that the un-vaccinated cannot get sick in anyway. Healthy ponies get sick too and you make it sound like the vaccinated are the only sick ponies when that's simply not true."

"Sure," Twilight said. "The non-vaccinated can get sick, but when they do, they recover so much faster than the vaccinated and they are far less likely to get sick in the first place. It would be wonderful if we actually had a fair, unbiased study that compared vaccinated individuals to the non-vaccinated so we can see how fast both groups recover from illness and also compare their overall health in general."

"But they do have those studies out already. Haven't you read them? I actually saw a study in the newspaper that said ponies are starting to spread out the timing of when they get their vaccines to be safer. That's kind of a smart thing to do."

"It's kind of funny that you seem to market vaccines as if no harm can be done, yet you now make it sound like there is an actual danger that's causing ponies who vaccinate to attempt to try spreading their vaccine shots out to see if they'll make it through their shots unscathed. I'm sorry, but I thought that the top pro-vaccinating doctors, like Doctor Paul Proffit, said that it was safe to give even a newborn foal ten thousand or one hundred thousand vaccines at any one time. I also thought that according to most vaccine supporters, spreading the shots out greatly puts the herd at risk. It's a shame that they don't understand that the concept of herd immunity was originally taken from cattle who acquired immunity from natural infection, not vaccines. Spreading the shots out to make them less dangerous is so negligible and many ponies out there die from simply taking one vaccine alone without having any negative medical history. This is one reason why they combined the MMR shot, and they are combining many more so that if an adverse reaction does occur, then they won't be able to pinpoint which vaccine was actually responsible for causing that adverse reaction. It's really amazing that no one seems to care when healthy ponies get sick or die from vaccines, but if God forbid someone who has horrible health to begin with dies from a disease like the measles in some poor land overseas, it's the end of the world for everypony. And then pro-health ponies avoiding vaccines are shamed and blamed as if somehow their beliefs and lifestyles are responsible for the death of somepony who has no access to the healthy things that we have access to. As for the so called studies out there comparing vaccinated individuals to non-vaccinated ones, the studies I have seen did not deserve my time to read."

"Why?" Hoofty asked. "Afraid that you might be proven wrong?"

"Because I always ask two questions before I read a study of any kind. Number one. Who is doing the study? And number two. Who is funding it? I can know from the start that some studies are not even worth the time to read based upon those two questions. In case I didn't mention this before with these vaccine studies, controls are done with one getting the vaccine, and the other getting a different vaccine. That's now how it's supposed to work; one should get the drug and the other should get the placebo. I just find it amazing when parents claim that their kids are fine and have suffered no adverse reactions to vaccines when their kids have things like eczema, asthma, chronic ear infections and seizures. They think their kids are fine and healthy, but what they see as acceptable when it comes to healthy based upon what they're told by the doctor and what is truly healthy is about as different as night and day. No one needs to suffer or die from such a useless and damaging medical procedure. What we actually need is a study that compares the vaccinated to the non-vaccinated and follow up on these ponies for at least fifty years. There seems to be no desire for a study like this to happen."

"Look," Hoofty Cuffs said. "The bottom line is that if anyone dies from vaccines, they have to die for the greater good. What is worse, a few hundred or thousand ponies dying from vaccines each year, or billions dying from diseases that could have been easily prevented by vaccination? We can't risk bringing any major epidemics back and for crying out loud, a can of tuna supposedly has about as much mercury as a vaccine does. There's also aluminum in our foods, and I heard that it's not only harmless, but it's actually essential for life."

"No," Twilight sternly said. "No one has to die from vaccines for an imaginary greater good. I already gave you the real reasons why so many died of diseases and yet you still do not acknowledge the simple fact that sanitation saves, not vaccines. You know, your thinking reminds me of the times back when ponies used to sacrifice their own to please their pagan gods or else they believed that disasters would happen in this world. We are very much repeating that same kind of dangerous thinking when it comes to vaccines because as I said before, the medical establishment is very much treated like a religion and whatever advice they give seems to be taken as infallible as if they are always speaking ex cathedra. Vaccine companies making these vaccines are literal murderers. How? Because they know through statistics that an average of ponies will die each year and yet they still give out the product anyway. If you give out a product that you know is going to kill even just one pony and yet you do it anyway, that is murder and the only reason they get away with it is because they provide warnings on vaccine manufacturer inserts which no one really seems to read anyway. They claim that if ponies weren't to vaccinate, then a catastrophe would eventually happen, and to them, the only truly catastrophic thing that would happen if ponies were not vaccinating anymore would be the amount of money that the pharmaceutical industry would lose and the realization from the public that ponies would be so much better off without vaccines and so many other medical treatments. There are very well documented cases of large communities suffering with diseases and when they stopped vaccinating despite them being warned that all hell would break loose if they refused to vaccinate, the communities got much healthier and diseases fell dramatically. Many truly believe that if we don't shoot up our bodies with harmful ingredients that makes our immune systems overreact and may cause death, then somehow, we'll bring back unspeakably horrible plagues that will wipe out over ninety nine percent of the population! If we simply just scraped this ridiculous idea that we need vaccines as well as so many other unnecessary medical practices and avoid them, I promise that we would be so much healthier, more intelligent, and we would see dramatic drops in all kinds of health related problems. If we took away the fear and propaganda that the media and medical community tries to pump us with and told the truth about matters like this, then what kind of pony would want to gamble with their foal's or their own health to such an extreme extent anyway? Many may laugh and mock those poor ponies who suffered greatly and had their lives destroyed by vaccines over supposedly small risks, but when it happens to you or a loved one, the risks don't matter at all."

Twilight paused for a moment. "And don't you dare bring up that silly argument about the mercury in a can of tuna, or those other similar examples that are not just petty, but completely irrelevant to the topic of vaccinating, like the naturally occurring formaldehyde in organic pears, or the aluminum in some foods. Please, I'd encourage you to go back to middle school and take a class in science again in case you didn't pay attention the first time. It's such basic knowledge to know the difference between injection and ingestion, one goes to the bloodstream, the other to the gastrointestinal tract. If you still can't figure out why injecting vaccine ingredients like mercury or aluminum into your body is far more of a concern than eating tuna from a can, then I'd like to invite you over to my library and give you a basic understanding of science from textbooks written so that a little filly could comprehend. Vaccine enthusiasts and pushers know that vaccine toxins are extremely dangerous, so they have to play around with wording so that what they say is technically true, but misleading in order to hoodwink someone who isn't as aware of the dangers of injecting something like aluminum into their bodies. Now, on that topic of aluminum, according to the CDC, aluminum is poorly absorbed following either oral or inhalation exposure and is essentially not absorbed dermally. Approximately one point five percent to two percent of inhaled aluminum is absorbed, and Ingested aluminum only absorbs at a rate of about zero point zero one percent to no more than five percent, but the average rate of absorption is about zero point zero three percent for most of us and it does not cross the blood-brain barrier; since vaccines bypass the digestive system entirely, they are not filtered out like they would be through digestion and thus absorb completely at one hundred percent. And if you know anything about aluminum, it builds up in the bones and brain and can be toxic to the body and its organs. The decision to put aluminum into vaccines was made back in the nineteen thirties. I don't believe that it's ever okay to inject any amount of aluminum into anypony, but let's actually play by the CDC and FDA's own rules and see what they have to say when it comes to their studies and interpretation of a safe amount of aluminum to eat or inject. According to the FDA, an eight pound foal can safely eat eighteen micro-grams of aluminum, and that same foal can only safely absorb zero point nine micro-grams. A one hundred fifty pound adult can safely consume three hundred forty one micro-grams of aluminum, but can only safely absorb seventeen micro-grams of aluminum. You do the math according to the CDC's vaccine schedule and see what an abomination it is that they can't follow their own safety limits since the amount of aluminum given through vaccinations goes so far above these limits; perhaps the EPA can help them out and simply fix the problem of the safety limit by raising the numbers of the limit when they realize there is a big problem, just like how they fix the problems when it comes to allowing more toxins in our food and water. Aluminum certainly can cause neurological harm and overdosing can be fatal, especially in patients with weak kidneys or kidney disorders, or in premature foals. The constant pushing of fluoride in products including drinking water actually increases the bioavailability of aluminum and allows it to cross the blood-brain barrier which is why Alzheimer's patients have record high levels of aluminum in their brains. What's even more disturbing is that teething in foals creates a histamine release which also opens the blood-brain barrier and allows vaccine preservatives to cross into the brain. Even though aluminium is environmentally abundant, it is not essential for life. It's recognized as a neuro-toxin that inhibits more than two hundred biologically important functions and causes various adverse effects in plants and animals. Despite what propagandists say, there currently is no known biological benefit for aluminum in the body. It's only used in vaccines to get a better immune response, and as much as you're not going to like hearing this, the more aluminum that's given to babies and the earlier it's given, the higher the risk for neurological damage. As we see other lands across Equestria begin to change their vaccine program to mimic ours, the number of their children with extreme neurological problems go up dramatically. Aluminum is attracted to the brain, it accumulates in arteries, it's very pro-inflammatory, it's pathological and toxic to genes. Even if you inject aluminum intravenously, it's still better than it being injected into the muscle. So if you go by this wonderful logic that just because you can consume something safely therefore it's okay to inject, then you've got a lot of learning to do, mister. I could give you so many good examples about why that thinking cannot work with everything, but let's take my favorite example. Snake venom can safely be consumed and used as medicine, but what happens when you inject it? You see, that faulty logic cannot be used for everything obviously. The argument that just because aluminum is already in our bodies means that it's safe to be injected can be countered by using the example of injecting bile in your body. It's already inside our bodies, but you wouldn't want to inject bile into your muscle or else major problems would occur. Learn about that and learn about original antigenic sin and ADE which are different aspects of a similar phenomenon. They both apply to vaccines as well as infections and can lead the immune system astray, crippling the innate ability to fight disease upon exposure and rendering the victim more susceptible. The truth is that the more scientists learn about the immune system, the more they realize their profound lack of understanding. We haven't even breached the tip of the iceberg in the study of immunology."

Hoofty stared at the floor without any interest as he listened to her.

Twilight continued. "It is insanity when you realize that if some random pony were to inject a few poisons from a vaccine into your foal's body without your permission, then they would be immediately tossed into jail for foal abuse. However, if somepony in a white lab coat has the same shot with some live viruses, foreign proteins, and a few more horrific ingredients added, calls it an immunization shot and lies to you about the effectiveness of the product as he or she pressures you to get your foal injected with it, then behold, the pony injecting the poison is hailed as a hero in town, even at the expense of the foal's life. Just imagine how much worse things would be if nopony has any say in matters anymore. Involuntary medical treatments have no place in a free society. At least when I was a filly growing up, I used to see my friends playing the circle, circle, dot, dot, now I got my cooties shot game. It's sad to say that when it comes to protection, that's about as effective as the protection that some vaccines provide and at least the cooties shot does no harm. There is absolutely nothing in a vaccine that makes us healthier and some vaccines do not enter the body in the same way as a natural infection does. For instance, measles is inhaled, but the vaccine is injected. That means that it has an exposure to the nervous system much more rapidly through injection than it would through the normal inhalation and processing of the lymphatic system. You're also getting a concoction of various chemicals that wreak havoc on the body through vaccinating than when you catch the wild measles virus that grants you permanent immunity unlike the vaccine." Twilight sighed. "You have got to love the modern marvels of medical science these days. And don't get me wrong, I love science just like how I love religion, because to me, they are very synergistic, but when we see bad science being practiced, we should call it out rather than embracing it no matter how much funding and support it gets. We should also have the same attitude towards bad religion being practiced as well. The scientific method used to look like this; step one, observe natural phenomena. Step two, formulate hypothesis. Step three, test hypothesis by means of rigorous experimentation. Step four, establish theory based upon repeated validation of results. Step five, modify hypothesis and test again if needed. Science these days now involves carefully crafting and rigging the experiments in order to get the desired results, writing algorithms to automatically adjust data in order to meet corporate expectations, publishing papers and pretending that you used that scientific method, hiding data and refusing to honor the freedom of information act requests, and lastly, pillory real scientists and arrogantly claim that the science is now settled. Science should never be settled; we must always be willing to re-examine assumptions and models, but the status quo can only be over turned by greater and more detailed evidence. I have quoted quite a few sources from the CDC and the FDA tonight and I'd just like to know that if you won't always accept what they say when it comes to science, then what exactly is it that you accept as a pro-vaccine pony like yourself? You see, I do have a problem with ponies trying to force unnecessary, harmful medical treatments for profit and lying about statistics as well as hiding facts from the public just as I have a problem with religions that cause harm to others."

Hoofty looked rather unimpressed. He was beginning to get sick of how long Twilight could talk about this topic even if he was baiting her into continuing to talk more about it. "It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize that all religions cause harm to others." Hoofty then began mumbling something that could not be understood.

Twilight looked over to Hoofty Cuffs. "Mister Cuffs?" she asked.

"Yes, Twilight."

"May I ask you a question, sir?"

"You won't like the answer," Hoofty replied.

"That's not the point," Twilight said with a little giggle. "Do you know when the first attempt at preventing smallpox with a practice known as variolation happened over here in the western world?"

"Variolation? It's called vaccination or inoculation, and our great father of vaccination, Edward Jenner invented it by using cow pox, or something."

"Well, Mister Jenner does come later on, but the first attempt at preventing smallpox in the west began with Lady Mary Wortley Montagu in seventeen seventeen. She returned from the east with this practice of taking a small amount of material from a pony smallpox lesion and scratching it into the skin of another pony. This is a practice that can not only kill you, but can also spread disease easily. Now, Edward Jenner knew that using pox material directly from cows was initially disagreeable to ponies, so he created the pony cowpox vaccine, but the method still first utilized disease material from an animal. Think about how insane this stallion was to take little fillies and colts and inoculating them with raw pus. I hope you're aware that the procedure followed by rubbing pox pustular lymph from the pock of an inoculated pony to a cut in the front leg of the next pony recipient and was termed, front leg to front leg vaccination. Jaundice and syphilis were very well known to happen due to this procedure. Another method of inoculation was placing numerous pony pox scabs into a container, fill it with water, and shake. The resultant pus was used as vaccine material for one entire town. Doctors would look at the front leg of a pony and considered them immune simply by observing the scar of vaccination after developing a blister at the site of inoculation. You can't help but laugh that their logic. Their belief was that multiple sites with scars was some kind of way to try to justify that they had the best protection possible; about five scars showed a typically good front leg. This practice of wounding up the front leg with more than one site continued in various parts of Equestria until nineteen seventy five. Isn't it obvious that many other diseases from the vaccinated were spread by this way? Sadly, this method was used for about one hundred years until it was outlawed in eighteen ninety eight. There are reports that Mister Jenner's son became very ill with neurological brain damage after being vaccinated several times. His son died at the age of twenty one from tuberculosis which kills a large percentage of those who are immune compromised. In the late seventeen hundreds, many serious infections and deaths occurred after the inception of smallpox vaccines. There was no such thing as cold-chain refrigeration. Needles were reused from pony to pony, and there was almost no consciousness of sterility. When it was so obvious that that the smallpox vaccine failed to prevent disease, the medical profession attempted to justify vaccination by claiming that if one was to acquire smallpox after vaccination, then it would be a milder disease than those who didn't vaccinate. Prior to this, they claimed that you had perfect protection from smallpox for life if you vaccinated. History repeats itself when horrible vaccines that were also claimed to provide immunity for life are now looked at as a joke among many vaccine supporters like pertussis and influenza. The argument that one who vaccinates will suffer less if they acquire the disease that they've been vaccinated for is complete nonsense. Folks, one of my biggest points in this discussion is that you don't even have to know any science when it comes to understanding that vaccines are not only a scam, but a disaster to our health. And while it's still important to know the science, history alone will tell you that vaccinations are one of the greatest delusions of all time."

"Twilight, Why not go play around rusted metal, cut yourself and get tetanus if you're so confident you can live without vaccines?"

The audience delightfully applauded his remark.

Twilight waited for the applause to die down and replied, "Why not allow me to inject you with all the diseases into your body that you already have supposed immunity from? I have been cut on rusted metal several times in the past and have never had tetanus because I know how to take care of cuts and wounds and I understand about tetanus. Now that you brought it up, let's talk a little bit about wound care. The first thing we're trained to do when there is a wound is to stop the bleeding, but unless you have severed an artery, you shouldn't stop the bleeding. You are supposed to let the wound bleed for about one minute because you want it to flush from the inside out. So what should be done is that you first let the wound bleed, then you clean the wound from dirt, splinters, dead tissue, or any foreign matter. If you have a deep splinter, you have to cut into the skin and remove it. Many times, ponies leave the tip of the splinter in, so you really have to open the wound up to make sure that it's all gone as unpleasant as that sounds. After that, I would recommend gently flushing the wound with water or salt water; Colloidal silver is also excellent for wound treatment and can be taken internally for immune support. Another problem I see is the use of hydrogen peroxide for wound care. It's great for sterilizing wounds and has other good uses, but if it's a tetanus prone injury, then it can kill cells. And guess what tetanus loves to live in? You guessed it. Dead cells. Hydrogen peroxide is great for a graze on the skin, but it is not be used for deep wounds because you can continue killing cells. Of course, monitor the wound and if it gets worse, then get help, or if for some reason you can't clean or get to the wound, get help. I also use steri-strips for large wounds because stitches totally seal the wound up and anything trapped underneath that wound can be dangerous. Steri-strips are nice since they don't leave a nasty looking scar like how stitches do and it's more convenient. Anyway, my parents never vaccinated me because they did their homework and wanted the best for me, and I have also had the measles as a filly. I didn't die, nor did I go blind, nor did I go deaf, nor did I develop pneumonia, nor did I have any serious swelling of the brain that gave me permanent brain damage. My parents took good care of me and gave me the proper nutrition and rest that my body needed. The whole experience was not bad at all and I even remember walking home from school when I was sick with the measles, along with my other friends who also had it. We had panic over the measles when I was growing up because we had the vaccine for it, but it is especially crazy now a days. If somepony came to school with a common childhood illness, then the whole school would probably be shut down and there would be panic, blaming, misinformation, and hate; the four main ingredients used to create a zealous pro-vaccine parent. I had most, if not all of the common childhood diseases from the past, and I'm fine. I was allowed to play in dirt, I was not bathed every day, and I had lots of sunshine as a little filly; I was a totally normal, happy, healthy kid growing up. I caught these diseases naturally because I played with my sick friends. I gave them friendship; they gave me chickenpox. It was a win-win situation, and because of that, I now truly help protect the herd far better than you could ever protect anyone with your vaccines. You see, the entire difference between us is that you will demand that ponies vaccinate simply because the majority does it and you will follow any advice as long as it's coming from a pony in a white lab coat that supports vaccines, and I, on the other hoof, will not make demands, but instead, will encourage everyone to educate themselves about vaccinations and will humbly and peacefully allow ponies to make their own informed decisions without having to cause a dramatic scene over the slightest disagreement."

"You got extremely lucky and you're fortunate to be alive. It's just too bad that they don't have a vaccine made for stupidity yet. I'm sure many of the ponies in the audience would like to give you a double dose of that vaccine if it existed."

Many ponies cheered for that statement. For no matter how much evidence and truth Twilight provided, the crowds had already came in with overly biased minds that refused to think any other way.

Twilight smirked. "And I bet if they did come out with a vaccine to protect against stupidity, I'm sure that one of the main side effects would be brain damage just like how it is with so many other vaccines. Perhaps we should have a vaccine against coincidence, because every time a parent says that their foal developed a reaction after vaccinating, the parent is told it's a coincidence even when the reaction the foal had is listed in the physician's desk reference. The physician knows this and still says that it's simply a coincidence. It gets really ridiculous when we look at statistics and see that we are the wealthiest land in Equestria and have the best medical technologies yet our infant mortality rate is disturbingly high. Even other lands that do not fare nearly as well as we do have a much greater success with healthy birthing and lower rates of SIDS than us. Of course it's a coincidence to most. The more that doctors help, the more that they hurt."

"And your point?" Hoofty asked.

"My point is that it's no wonder why some ponies are starting to not want to go to the hospital to give birth these days, especially when it comes to unnecessary cesarean sections being performed, not to mention the ridiculous price it costs to simply give birth in a hospital."

"Goodness, yet another thing to scare ponies away from. Go on, we might as well hear it," Hoofty said.

"Well, birthing is a natural thing after all, not a disease and there are so many things that doctors do wrong when it comes to helping ponies give birth like injecting the mother with Oxytocin which is a hormone from a cow's brain that increases the risk of neurological damages in colts by at least thirty percent, so you know it epigenetically changes something in the baby. Or how about other standard medical practices like the premature separation between baby and placenta called cord clamping. A natural birth without medical intervention would include delivering the placenta attached to the baby and allowing it to transfer all its nutrients and blood into the baby before it separates from baby. Up to forty percent of that infant's blood is left behind; the foal can become seriously damaged by this practice alone, and one of the main reasons it's done is because it's simply convenient for the doctor. A hospital is no place for a healthy or sick pony; even if you give a healthy, natural birth in a hospital, your child is more likely to suffer with allergies because of colonization by hospital flora such as Clostridium difficile, so where you choose to give birth matters much more than you think. It's really amazing when we look at just how much we have destroyed our health, even when it comes to dental health."

"Are dentists bad, Twilight?" Hoofty asked with a smirk.

"It depends on what they practice," Twilight said. "Fluoride treatments and root canals should be an obvious no due to the negative impacts they have on our health. Ponies from poor places who do not have access to dental care or even brush their teeth are often found to have far superior dental health than us simply because of their diets. Did you know that teeth can even remineralize if given the proper diet? You can thank the Rockerfeller foundation for bribing the medical schools and destroying all that was once taught in favor of the horrific perversions we now see being practiced all over the entire world when it comes to orthodox medicine. On the topic of dentistry, I'd recommend to read about the long forgotten work of Doctor Weston A. Price."

"So, I would like to know if you consider yourself to be one of those lunatics who would vehemently support home births with midwives rather than go to the hospital. You do realize that you miss out on the vitamin K shot which would put the foal at an even greater risk. However, knowing you, I bet that you'd make ridiculous reasons why we should also avoid something so simple and healthy like the vitamin K shot."

"You are aware that you can buy vitamin K in liquid form and give it to infants, right? There actually is a problem with the synthetic vitamin K shot that the doctors give which is loaded with toxic preservatives and the shot can also include aluminum. So, here's the reason why it's given and I'll provide a little food for thought about the procedure. The primary concern is for permanent neurological damage if an infant has intracranial bleeding, which is quite rare in general. Although, Infants exposed to drugs or alcohol through any means are especially at risk, and babies born from mothers on anti-epileptic medications are at a very high risk. The intracranial bleeding is caused by liver disease that usually goes un-diagnosed until bleeding occurs. In addition to intracranial bleeding, and a generalized lack of healthy clotting, jaundice is usually present. What's nice about delayed removal of the cord is that it allows stem cells to go in and clear up any problems from within the brain or else where. Unfortunately, the vitamin K shot that hospitals give has been found to increase the risk of developing childhood leukemia. Studies disagree on the exact risk percentage, but even ten or twenty percent is too many avoidable sick and or dead children. Vitamin K shots can also cause other unwanted side effects in infants, particularly those that are premature and formulas are supplemented with unnaturally high levels of vitamin K. Injections are provided to all infants, including those intended for formula feeding, but most formulas includes twice the allowance of vitamin K for infants. There isn't enough scientific information to determine a recommended dietary allowance for vitamin K, so daily adequate intake recommendations have been formed instead. You can purchase vitamin K drops to administer at home and mothers can supplement themselves with vitamin K because it does transfer through breast milk. Most parents who do their reading on vitamin K don't do the shot or the drops at all. It's kind of silly to note that most warn against mega dosing vitamins in adults, yet no one even bothers to ask questions about mega dosing a synthetic vitamin to an infant who is just a few hours old. When researches determined that giving the shot at birth worked to virtually eliminate hemorrhaging, that pretty much ended the thought process. It always seems that when new technology is created or a new medical procedure happens, it tends to eliminate one problem while creating many more. I think we need to do a bit more investigating and understand why infants are more or less universally born with low levels of vitamin K. Can we really categorize it as a true deficiency state if we are almost all born with supposedly low levels? Perhaps there's a fundamental biological reason why that is and we just don't know yet. I can give you some explanations as to why this might be, but how much do you really want me to talk about this topic? I'm certainly not going to panic over parents opting out of the vitamin K shot and I'm certainly against it when physicians vilify breastfeeding which is the best thing you can do for your child. The milk for the foal is a continuation of maternal immunity in the uterus. It's vitally important for exclusive breastfeeding for six months and up to two years, and the reason for this is to keep the baby in an anti-inflammatory state. Everything from conception to at least one year of age is trying to keep that baby's immune system anti-inflammatory. The placenta, stem cells, the amniotic fluid, all those things are programmed to keep that baby free from inflammation. Mother's milk is deadly to pneumococcal bacteria, cancer cells, and it does this all without causing any inflammation. It's amazing that this happens and scientists are still trying to learn more. Scientists are also trying to take advantage of a certain chemical in breast milk to kill cancer cells. I'd also like to mention that formulas will make the microbes in that baby's intestines totally different. Only one bottle will change their intestines for at least two weeks."

"Okay, Miss Sparkle. Let's hear where autism comes from? Let me guess, vaccines, right?"

"Well, autism is usually more than just vaccination because you have to look at the immune system of a child in its entirety. I do feel that other things like antibiotics, pesticides, and acetaminophen can all be roads that lead to autism as well. Life is so fascinating to me when we talk about topics like this because what we know is amazing yet we only know so little. Did you know that the immune system begins to grow just days after conception? Even the mother's immune system contributes to autism risk in a foal. For instance, what we call maternal immune activation has a contribution to things like schizophrenia, depression, and autism in foals and adults. It matters not if the mother's immune system was stimulated by a virus, or bacteria, or something like a war, or of course, a vaccine. It's maternal immune activation, and it's completely irrelevant what caused it, so obviously, a lot of inflammation in the mother changes how that baby's brain develops. The process of how a brain grows normally doesn't happen in those with autism. We find larger brains with tons of inflammation in the brain; their immune systems do not function properly, and their bowels are abnormal. It really makes you wonder just how bad it is for both the mother and her baby when they are now recommending vaccines during pregnancy."

Hoofty Cuffs looked over at her with serious concern and asked, "Twilight, do you honestly believe that vaccinating is foal abuse?"

Twilight let out a rather weak laugh. "You know, when I sometimes compare the different kinds of abuse out there, I can't help but compare a vaccine pusher to a sexual predator. Both usually involve penetrating the body of young pony, both use piss poor reasoning and made up science in claiming that it's healthy for the victim, both leave a pony damaged, many times the damage cannot be undone in either situation, both think that what they're doing is fine as long as they have consent from the individual. The only difference is that one is simply for money and control, while the other is purely for sexual gratification. Vaccines are no doubt a form of abuse, and a form of violence and control. It's like medical rape without consent of the individual, and scaring ponies into saying yes is still wrong."

That last sentence she spoke caused Hoofty to become filled with anger. "That is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. You're so pure that it makes me sick to my stomach," Hoofty said in an aggravated tone of voice. "You are a scam and a danger to society! You should be locked up and not allowed to speak in public like this again. You are simply a buffoon!"

"Judging from the tone of your voice, you make the word pure sound as if it were a bad thing," Twilight replied. "It's rather nice to know that this discussion has now been degraded to petty insults. It kind of speaks volumes on your lack of maturity when it comes to having a grown up discussion about serious matters like this, doesn't it?"

Hoofty blinked his eyes a few times when he realized that his anger was getting the better of him and he probably shouldn't have reacted like that in front of such a large crowd. "I guess we'll simply disagree and move on now. Enough of this medical mish-mash. You wasted enough time talking about vaccines anyway. So let me ask you this, why is it that you would rather have faith in a religion rather than being a logical Atheist?"

"Excuse you, sir!" Twilight said feeling that his remark was somewhat appalling. "You were the one who wanted me to keep talking about that topic and I just simply answered your questions and responded to your comments. As for your question, I will say that while it takes faith to be a Christian, it takes more faith to be an Atheist, and I just don't have enough faith to be one."

"Right," Hoofty said. "Why don't you give me an explanation from my opening statement about God ignoring our suffering and allowing so much death and havoc in this world? It seems like you conveniently dodged that statement and don't want to reply to it because you don't have a good enough answer."

"I have no problems replying to anything that you stated before and I'll happily provide you with an answer," Twilight said. "Since God is infinite in knowledge and power, God can use our present pain and suffering to achieve greater goods. Goods like the existence of free will, the development of virtues like courage and compassion you can't have without negative things and a universe with regular laws where free creatures can flourish. God can also redeem our suffering and compensate His children with eternal life. Under your world view, those who suffer and die are forever lost. Under theism, a perfectly good God can vanquish evil, reunite families and redeem all of our sufferings at the end of time. God knows all and sees the beginning all the way to the end. We can't. I mean, let's face it, all of us are going to die at some point in time and God has the right to take lives. It's also good to note that we often observe lots of good happening that wouldn't normally happen after tragedies or disasters strike. Ponies begin to act much more lovingly towards others and they are more likely to give in order to relieve the suffering and grief. Let me ask you a question since I seem to be doing all the talking here. Do you believe in free will?"

"Well, of course not."

Twilight cocked an eyebrow.

Hoofty Cuffs continued. "And that's simply because I was never given the choice to decide whether I wanted free will or not."

Some laughter could be heard in the crowd.

"Do you at least believe Jesus was real and existed here on earth?" Twilight asked.

"No."

"You do realize that the overwhelming majority of historians acknowledge that Jesus is real and there are currently no more than five historians who deny His existence."

"Yes, but there are well written books out there that have indisputable evidence that He never existed. These books were written by ponies far more intelligent than either of us."

"Really?" Twilight curiously asked. "I happen to love books. How about you provide me with some of the names of these books so I can look into them?"

Hoofty felt nervous because he said something that he didn't have much knowledge about. He awkwardly looked away from her and ran his hoof through his mane for a moment before turning back to her. "Well, I, uh, don't exactly remember the names of the books off hoof, but they're very well written and I do know they exist."

"I see," Twilight said. "Why don't we talk about how bizarre it is when big time Atheist preachers insist that they refuse to believe anything without verifiable evidence, yet they are more than willing to put their faith in anything without verifiable evidence as long as that thing can be used to attack or mock the gospel, like when they claim absurdities that Jesus is nothing but plagiarized hogwash that was stolen from the God, Horus, or some other mythological God. Or how we talk about how each year I hear Atheists talking about the the wife of Jesus. It seems that every year that document gets brought up that says that Jesus had a wife named Mary."

"But that old document is real and proves that the Bible is a fallacy since it claims different things than what the Bible says."

"No, that document was a forgery written a very long time ago after Jesus was born by non-Christians who had political and theological motivation for challenging the historic teachings of the Christian faith. Jesus is married to His bride, the church. So what you're advocating here is that if there is conflicting information about two different documents that say different things about someone, I should buy into the propaganda rather than believing in the document that was written by the ponies who actually knew Jesus. In other words, you're telling me that the discovery of that document which was written several hundred years later by ponies who simply wanted to undermine the truth for personal gain is more viable than what the Bible says about Jesus."

"Well," Hoofty said as he brushed off his shoulder. "To each their own."

"These are the kinds of things that get under my fur. Most Atheist ponies I have talked to try to prove the non-existence of God by systemically ruling out every piece of evidence for the existence of God, simply because that evidence could be used to prove His existence. That's not a very good use of the scientific method. This is something I see all the time, but I guess it shouldn't be of any surprise to me when ponies reject the proof of Christ's resurrection in favor of following lies that let them remain in unbelief. Jesus did say that if they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead. I wish ponies would stop mocking Christians for following a blind faith when there are ponies who seriously buy into baseless stuff like this, so long as it contradicts the word of God, like the Gospel of Thomas or one of the many other Gnostic gospels. Basically, these writings boil down to one thing. Bad fan fiction. How about you talk about the resurrection of Christ?"

Hoofty felt pressured and gulped. The truth was that he was very inexperienced in debating and didn't have much knowledge about the Bible. He was only chosen to be here because of his high charisma among his Atheist followers. He was more involved in political discussions rather than religion.

"Go on," Twilight insisted. "I really do appreciate it that you have been kind enough to let me do all this talking for so long, but I think it should be your turn to do a little talking here."

"Well, the resurrection is nonsense because..." Hoofty paused for a moment.

"Because why?" Twilight asked. "Was it because everyone was hallucinating the exact same vision when Christ rose from the dead and came back to show Himself so that the thousands of ponies in the public could see that He is God? Most hallucinations vary dramatically from pony to pony, yet everyone was in agreement with what happened on that day."

"No, you see, it was, um..." Hoofty thought to himself for a moment. "They made it up. Yeah, they all lied about His resurrection, so they could keep their fairy tale alive and benefit from it."

"Benefit from it!?" Twilight asked. "You mean they benefited from dying horrible deaths from the cruel torture at the hooves of their persecutors? Were the thousands upon thousands of other Christians who were thrown to the savage beasts to be eaten alive or tortured to death for everyone's viewing pleasures lying about their faith too? Was being a Christian during those times supposed to be beneficial when anyone who claimed or was suspected to be a Christian was brutally murdered?"

"I, uh, just have to disagree with that," Hoofty said.

"Well, go on and explain yourself because I certainly want to hear your answer."

"It's just that..." Hoofty paused for a moment as he looked at the crowd and then back to Twilight. "It's just that it's because..."

The moderator cut him off when he realized how much time went by. He was distracted by the scones and wasn't cognizant of how much time was left until now. He quickly grabbed the mic next to him with a bit of panic and fumbled it around before getting a steady grip on it. "I really hate to break this to you, but we are nearly out of time and used up all of our questions and answers time from the audience so, um, how about our concluding thoughts? I honestly think we only have time for one short concluding statement."

Hoofty Cuffs wiped the sweat off his forehead and took a deep breath. He found himself starting to say things he didn't truly have much knowledge about and was saved by the bell.

Some ponies in the crowd were disappointed.

Hoofty Cuffs brushed off his shoulders once more and stood to his legs. "Since my opponent seems so unprepared and has no writings or notes with her, I would like to go first." The stallion walked away from the pillow that he was resting on and brought his notes up to the podium. He placed the microphone in the holder and put on his reading glasses. "Fillies and gentlecolts. I'd like to point out that Twilight has given no good reasons why God exists other than boring old reasoning that leads to circular arguments. She has given no good reasons why religion is good for our society, especially Christianity. In fact, her reasoning made Christianity seem far worse than I expected. I hardly had to do any talking because her own words proved more damaging and humiliating for her than my own brilliant logic and irrefutable arguments. Let us take the time to quickly reanalyze this entire discussion and recapitulate what Twilight has revealed about herself to us. First and foremost, she is anti-science in the fact that she disregards vaccines which are proven to always build up our immunity, and she would rather have little ponies die of horrible diseases like polio once again simply because her Christian faith won't allow for scientific progress like vaccinations. She said that her God can't be outdone with the food we have even though we're working hard on making it superior by adding more vitamins to our GMO foods. Who knows, we may one day be able to add vaccines in GMO foods to save others, or be able to build up the herd's immunity with fly-by aerosol vaccine spraying, unless too many other ponies who use this tree-hugging hippie ideology like her stop our scientific progress. Miss Twilight Sparkle believes that mares who are raped and may very well die from giving birth are worthless and have no rights. She believes ponies have to suffer and live through unspeakable pains in life when they can be gently and painlessly put down through a simple injection, and she believes that it's better to keep a religious tyrant like Princess Celestia who refuses equality among gay ponies who want to marry rather than having a more intelligent secular princess or king ruling over Equestria. She is delusional in the sense that she thinks she can cure cancer with diet and by smoking weed which is actually worse for your lungs than smoking a cigarette. She said that the vitamin K shot is somehow evil and that she'd rather have infants suffer without it and die which is absurd because I thought she was supposed to be pro-life; it's a freaking vitamin, not a vaccine for crying out loud. She believes that giving birth in a dirty home is superior than giving birth in a clean, sterile hospital with a doctor there to make sure that everything goes right. What if the foal has its umbilical cord wrapped around its neck or some other emergency procedure has to take place? Would she simply allow it to die and say, oh look! God must have not wanted this foal to live. Does she even realize how many poor ponies in other lands travel miles and miles to give birth in a hospital? We have doctors who have spent thousands of dollars and years of their life studying only to have such an arrogant and ignorant pony who thinks she knows it all tell us that doctors are simply medical monsters who want to reduce the population. I can't think of anything more disrespectful than calling doctors baby killers when in fact they have saved countless lives; way more than her imaginary friend Jesus will ever do." Hoofy shook his head from side to side in disbelief as he thought about matters. "Holy mother of God. I understand that Christians are not the brightest bunch, but even all of you Christians in the audience have to admit that Miss Sparkle needs psychiatric help and needs to be institutionalized because her ideology is terrifying and extremely dangerous. I understand that freedom is very important to her, but in no way do I think that it's okay to be free to spread diseases to others. She needs to be drugged up until she is compliant with the rest of us and I suspect that she suffers greatly from delusions and ODD, which stands for oppositional defiant disorder. I'm not the one who needs prayer because I'm lost; pray for her because she has a severe mentally disability and she is truly the one who is lost!" Hoofty shouted as he pointed his hoof at her.

Twilight Sparkle rolled her eyes and was rather annoyed at how horribly she was being represented.

"I'd like to ask all of you, why do you follow a God who is obsessed with your private life? Why is it so important to God when it comes to who you have sex with and in what position? Why does this God care so much about your genitals and better yet, why do you need God to be good? Atheists can live perfectly good, moral lives without God and God is simply just a crutch for the weak minded to lean on. If you are so simple minded and morally lost that you need God to tell you that maybe it's wrong to kill or rape, then by all means, believe in God. I do know that religion has caused so much war and strife in this world and most religious ponies say that it's good to die for your faith. Well then, I'd like to propose that some of you may start with yourselves so we can get on with society and move forward. Either do that, or join us and be logical for a single day in your life. I would find it offensive to be called a sheep, so let's all start thinking for ourselves without religious books. I can think for myself and my opponent's mind has been subjugated and sabotaged by such an evil book like the Bible." The stallion looked down at his notes for a moment and then focused back on the audience. "I'd like to add that prayer has been proven to be a fallacy. Did you know that studies have been done where there were two groups of sick ponies and one group received prayer and the other did not. It's funny because the group being prayed for did worse and maybe that is because they were stressed because they expected to get better since they knew that they were being prayed for. Think about how delusional religion makes us when you pick up the newspaper and read about some crazed mare finding an image of Jesus or His mother, Mary on their toast. Let's now give praise the Father, Son, and holy toast! Atheism and science helps send us into deeper unknowns and let's us understand things; religion sends us strapped with bombs into buildings. Let's be rational and think for ourselves for once and let's especially avoid the insanity of Christianity." Hoofty looked over at the lavender mare for a moment and then turned back to the crowd. "I would like to finish with a short poem that I just thought of for Twilight, and it goes a little something like this. God isn't real, Twilight's a quack. Go get your vaccines, before polio comes back." The stallion waved to the ponies. "That is all, thank you."

The crowd cheered loudly.

The moderator grabbed the microphone and turned to Twilight. "Um, you have literally three seconds on the clock to conclude your final statements, Miss Sparkle."

Twilight Sparkle picked up her microphone and said, "Love God; love others."

A few ponies in the crowd, including her parents, stomped their hooves in approval.

"Allllllllrighty, fillies and gentlecolts. I have not a clue in the world how you're going to judge who did better in this debate since it really wasn't a very formal debate, but there are cards and a pen provided on the back of the seats. Simply make a check mark in the box under the pony's name who you thought brought up better points." The stallion grabbed another scone from a silver platter near him. "Goodness, these scones are scrumptious!" he said into the microphone with a mouthful. "We should all say thank you to Princess Celestia for providing such a treat tonight."

Some murmuring could be heard in the crowds as the ponies got out their cards and voted.

"Thank you, Princess," the moderator said after he realized that nopony was going to say thank you for her generous efforts. He then greedily stuffed another scone into his mouth. "So delicious," he said while chewing. The pony swallowed greatly and said, "We have ponies coming down to collect the cards. Please pass them down and if there's a tie, there's a bocce ball court in the next room where we can have them square off against each other and the winner of that wins the debate."

Some ponies in the crowd laughed at the thought of that.

Twilight sat there watching the ponies come down the aisles, collecting the cards which was reminiscent of tithing at church to Twilight. She felt a little bit easier looking at the crowds now that they weren't watching her every move. She hugged her Bible that she was still holding onto against her chest and took a deep breath as she watched the ponies up front take the collected cards and began to tally up the score. Twilight looked around a bit and noticed her parents beaming with bright smiles and waving at her. She smiled back awkwardly and raised her hoof slightly off the floor to acknowledge them.

A pony came up to the moderator and whispered into his ear.

The moderator dropped the scone he was eating and brushed the crumbs off himself. He picked up the microphone and said, "Fillies and Gentlecolts! We have a winner! It was a close battle, but congratulations to Hoofty Cuffs representing our Atheist side! He won by a total of only four votes! Let's please give our debaters a round of applause!"

The audience immediately began applauding.

Twilight Sparkle stood to her hooves with her one front leg still clutching her Bible tightly against her chest. She closed her eyes and bowed her head. Her opponent mimicked her and bowed in front of the crowd as well. He lost his balance for a moment and stumbled around a bit, but he quickly recovered. For he wasn't the most graceful or agile stallion in town.

Many ponies in the audience began cheering.

Her opponent walked over and shook hooves with her before retreating back to his podium to gather his notes.

"I'd like to thank everypony for coming out tonight. It was a great turnout and I hope we all learned some new things tonight. Have a great night!" The moderator turned the mic off and went on over to the platter that had more scones.

Ponies in the audience stood up and began to converse with each other.

Twilight's parents applauded with great enthusiasm once more for their daughter; their eyes were still locked on her. They had taken off from work to make sure that they could make this event because it was so important to them. To them, she was still their baby girl, their pride and joy, and here she was doing something so important like this. Twilight's mother took out a tissue and wiped her eyes. "It's a shame that Shining Armor couldn't be here today. He'd be so proud!"

Twilight Sparkle noticed Spike jumping up and down in an attempt to try to see her while wearing that silly foam hand with the number one finger sticking out. She waved at him briefly before she turned around and walked away with her ears lowered, for she was afraid that Princess Celestia would be very disappointed in her for losing. The moment she began walking away, the light shining down from above her instantly disappeared. Many ponies in the crowd did not notice this since they were already on their way out, but Hoofty Cuffs blinked several times and wasn't sure if his eyes were seeing things correctly or not.

Princess Celestia sat watching the spot where Twilight disappeared behind the curtains. A royal guard appeared from behind her and whispered in her ear. "My Princess, there has been threats and possible attacks planned for you tonight. We don't have that much security to cover for you tonight and I think it would be wise if we leave soon."

Princess Celestia bowed her head and closed her eyes. "Let me speak to Twilight for a moment."

Twilight heard the sounds of the crowds die down and she listened as ponies were shuffling their hooves against the floor as they began making their way out the door. Twilight put her head down and began walking around in circles. A million thoughts seemed to rush into her mind about how she could have said certain things better or brought up more interesting points during the discussion. She felt tormented about the points or facts that she missed bringing up during the discussion because some of the ones she was thinking of now were so important and obvious, yet none of them occurred to her until now. "What a terrible event," Twilight muttered to herself. "Now I know why Rainbow Dash hates losing. Perhaps my points weren't good enough or maybe I just seemed to lack the charisma that my opponent had. Maybe I just didn't explain things well enough or maybe I just repeated some of the same things about vaccines so many times because my opponent couldn't seem to understand anything that I was saying no matter how I tried to say it. Perhaps I should have..." A sudden flash of light shined on the floor in front of her and her horn bumped into something. Twilight looked up to see the Princess looking down upon her. She instantly bowed out of respect. "Please forgive me! I was so ill prepared! All of my work got burned up and I was so nervous and sounded like a stuttering idiot at first. I've never done anything like this before and I..."

Princess Celestia called her name softly. "Twilight."

Twilight became silent for a moment and then picked her head up. "Yes, Princess?"

Princess Celestia saw the tears forming in her eyes. "Thank you for trying. It's all I ever wanted you to do and it means so much to me that you did something that was out of your comfort zone."

"Why? Why me?" Twilight asked. "Moses probably stuttered less than me when I first got onto that stage."

"And look at the things that God did through him. I chose you because I feel that you need to get ready for greater things in you life. You are growing and like how a mother bird pushes her young out of the nest to get them to fly and move on, so I feel it's time that you start venturing out and doing things that make you uncomfortable but will only help you grow. I'd like to challenge you to try to do more things like this and I may ask more from you in the future. Life is sometimes about taking risks and you miss one hundred percent of the shots that you don't take."

"Thank you, Princess. Although, I'd prefer to miss one hundred percent of the shots if they're vaccines we're talking about."

The princess smirked for a moment and then a serious look returned to her face. "I want to tell you how proud I am of you, but I can't stay here for long because there are rumors of a possible assassination attempt on me tonight."

Twilight looked as if she wanted to say something, but she couldn't get the words out of her mouth.

Princess Celestia crouched down to her level and put her hoof to her chin. "I'm not going to be here forever and the death threats I receive daily from written letters from certain groups makes me think that an assassination attempt is a very real possibility. They hate me, Twilight, and they want me to do things that would be morally unacceptable. Their love and tolerance is non-existent for me anymore. I remember the days when I saved them all and I was hailed as a hero. Now, I can't leave my palace or show my face around Ponyville without being called a nasty name."

"You know you're a great leader when they want to kill you for doing the right thing," Twilight said as she bowed her head. "Just like how they killed Jesus and chose to let Barabas go instead."

"And soon you will take my place," Celestia said.

Twilight picked her head up, looking panicked. "What!?"

"I sense the struggle, Twilight. As I said before, I'm not going to be here forever and I am fairly certain that I will be killed sooner than later."

Twilight's emotions started to overwhelm her. "No!" Twilight lunged at the Princess and wrapped her front legs around her body. "I don't ever want to see you go! Especially since you have done so much good in this world and have helped me in so many ways. What are you going to do? Aren't you afraid?"

Princess Celestia extended her wing around Twilight's body. "I truly am afraid for my life everyday, but I remind myself daily that God commands us to not be afraid. I will not do anything differently than I have been doing all along. We all have to say goodbye sooner or later, but only for a brief moment. Everyday is a gift, Twilight, and for everyday that I'm here, I will always try to do my best to love you and make more memories with you. I'm sorry that I haven't been able to spend much time with you or write back. Royal duties can be a pain sometimes even when my sister and I try to make the most fun of it and I have been attending so many meetings to the point where it drains all of my energy. No matter how busy I am, I always take the time to read the letters that you and your friends send me no matter what. You are my favorite student for now and forever and one day, the student will become the teacher. You will sparkle and shine and you will show others the light. For your name already reflects who you are and the word light in Twilight will stand out."

Twilight Sparkle picked her head up and looked into the Princess's eyes. "Thank you for everything that you do. The day that you go will be a great and tragic loss for Ponyville and all of Equestria."

"And will you be ready to take my place when the time comes, Twilight? Would you do it knowing that it would please me greatly?"

Deep down inside, Twilight never wanted to become a princess, but when she heard how important it was to her mentor, she changed her mind instantly. "Yes! Of course I would do it for you, Princess!"

"Thank you, Twilight. At least I can rest assured that a pony such as yourself is willing to take my place."

Twilight couldn't help but smile knowing that the princess was pleased with her.

"Ponyville is starting to erode very quickly. The secular community wants full control over the public sphere and they want to make porn public and the Bible private. Everyday it seems that ponies keep coming to me with cleverly worded bills in an attempt to mislead or hoodwink me into thinking that it's something else that would be for the greater good for Equestria. However, after re-reading the entire proposal several times, I find the real motive of the bill and some of the things I have seen horrify me. It's very disturbing how common it is when I see ponies who want me to pass a law that gives pedophiles the right to have sexual relationships with little ones as long as they have their consent. They become enraged with me and make death threats when I don't give into their perverse ideologies. I give them a choice with things like certain medical treatments even though I see it as no good, but in no way will I ever do something crazy and begin force medicating everypony even when the masses beg for it. There have been wars fought against pony rulers who forced medications on their population. We used to view that as a terribly wicked and despicable thing and I'm not going to become a ruler like that. I remember when I was away and left my sister in charge of making decisions for a while; she allowed for temporary vaccine mandates and sterilization laws for ponies who were viewed as imbeciles. I'll never forget the Supreme Court's ruling while under her influence with Buck versus Bell, and how tragic that case was. I'm sure you remember when they said that the principle that sustains compulsory vaccination is broad enough to cover cutting the fallopian tubes. That quote haunts me to this day and I had to undo those laws and fix that mess. You spoke much about the problems with the organizations that were created to help protect my ponies, but the corruption and misinformation is becoming so great everywhere that I don't know what to do. I certainly don't like the fact that so many medical treatments are so unnecessary and damaging, but Princess Cadence and Princess Luna feel differently about this topic and they feel it's necessary to protect companies from lawsuits. They signed that document due to public pressure and I feel suspicious and believe that Princess Cadence and my sister might be getting kickbacks from some of these companies. I feel like I should overturn this rule no matter how much backlash I may get, but there are so many other problems that need to be addressed besides this." Princess Celestia put her hoof to her head in distress for a moment. "There's just so much wrong right now and I can only look into so many things. It seems that we need to keep reminding ponies about the Hippocratic Oath and Nuremberg Code."

Twilight put her heard down and seemed to be deep in thought.

Celestia put her hoof on her shoulder. "There's so much more I want to tell you, but I need to go. My guards are telling me through their magic that I'm in great danger. I must depart, but I hope to catch up with you sometime later." Celestia leaned in closer and spoke softly to her student. "You are a courageous mare whose heart is destined to help the hurting and you are beyond precious to me."

A flash of bright light lit up the room and Twilight was alone again. Twilight put her head down and closed her eyes. "Please protect her, Jesus." She sat there meditating on the good things of the Lord until she was interrupted.

"Miss Sparkle?"

Twilight opened her eyes and turned to see Hoofty Cuffs behind her. "Um, hi?"

"I came by to say thank you for coming out and I am truly sorry you fainted like that on stage. I would also like to apologize if my words on stage may have come across as a bit too harsh at certain times. I sometimes say things that might be a little bit too strong because I can get a little feisty when discussing topics that I am very passionate about. I am a gentlecolt at heart and never intentionally mean to come off as rude. You also brought up a few very good points during our discussion. May I take such a nice mare out like yourself to dinner? It shall be my treat."

Twilight cocked an eyebrow. "Ummmmm, you now give me a compliment and want to take me out to dinner. I don't know what you're up to, but if you think that flattery is going to get you this flank, then you best better try flattering another mare."

Hoofty stomped his hoof on the stage. "Excuse me, but I am a stallion who is already married to a lovely mare! I do not stoop down to that low level of thinking and that's not how a true gentlecolt thinks anyway! All I wanted to do was to have a small celebration for our first debate together. Aren't you hungry?"

Twilight thought to herself and realized that she was starving at this point. She didn't understand where all this chivalry was coming from but she accepted the offer. "Sure, that's very nice of you, and I'm sorry for making that terrible assumption. I just never know who is trying to be kind from the heart and who is simply trying to hoodwink me into going to bed with them these days. It's sad to say that chivalry seems to be so foreign now and deception is often hidden behind acts of good deeds."

The stallion opened up the curtain with his front leg and bowed. "Thank you, and I am sorry if there are stallions who are pigs out there that have tried to get naughty with you. Apology accepted. Ladies first."

Twilight took a few steps forward and then paused for a moment. "Wait a second."

Hoofty picked his head up and raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Yes?"

"You told me in front of an entire audience that the non-vaccinated should be locked up in their homes permanently so that they can't spread diseases. In case you forgot, I already stated that I am completely non-vaccinated, meaning that I have never had a single shot in my life. Are you sure that you're going to want take me out to dinner and somehow risk getting terrible diseases from me or are you planning on wearing a bio-hazard suit so you're protected from all of the diseases that I don't carry?"

"Well, maybe you are okay in my book because you seem to have some knowledge about diseases so you are one of the lucky ones that perhaps doesn't have any diseases currently. Ponies not vaccinating is something I abhor, but I'll take whatever risks there might be involved just this one time tonight. Now please, I insist that you join me for dinner tonight!" Hoofty Cuffs stomped his hoof and now had a slightly agitated look on his face.

Twilight felt a bit awkward but walked through the curtains. She did a lot of talking, and she could have went on for much longer. She would keep talking so long as someone kept pushing her inner nerd button to keep her going because she had such a passion and care for everyone and she wanted others to learn and enjoy life. She was like Pinkie Pie in the sense that she could talk until she passed out, but just not nearly at the same speeds that her pink friend is capable of. Indeed, It was a long, stressful day filled with all kinds of emotions that left her drained and exhausted. Refueling her body with nutritious food was the best thing that she could do right now, of course, right after she first takes care of something a bit more urgent that was bothering her for the longest time after downing so much coffee. "Um, Hoofty?" Twilight asked.

"Yes?"

"I just have to quickly use the ladies room."

Hoofty took out a golden clock from his pocket that was attached to a chain and looked at it. "It's already past dinner time; please make it extra quick."

Twilight Sparkle quickly left to use the bathroom, but tripped over her legs and fell on her face against the stage-floor. She got up feeling a bit embarrassed and said, "Don't worry about me; I'm fine."

Hoofty slowly put his hoof to his forehead. "I sure hope your God gives you better balance in the afterlife."

Betrayal

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Making Her Wish Come True

The tiring amount of paperwork was done and Rainbow Dash and Soarin' had come to pick up Scootaloo. They also had finished building her bedroom in the house. It was a lot of tedious work, but they made it through. They were currently following the mare who worked and took care of Scootaloo down the halls of the building.

The worker walked them over to her room and paused in front of the door. "So you don't want to bring her home yet, right?" She took note of Soarin' who was dressed up in saddle bags and looked as if he was going on a big adventure.

"That's right," Rainbow Dash said. "We are going to take her out on a special day, bring her back, and then get all her stuff to take home with us. You can leave it to us, we already know her very well. Thanks."

The worker nodded her head okay. "I feel like I should warn you that she's kind of in a bad mood right now. She had a bit of an accident and broke her scooter beyond repair, but I'm sure you two will cheer her up." She paused for a moment and continued. "So I'll leave you two on your own now. I'll try to stick around so I can say one last good bye to Scootaloo when you get back. Have fun with her and congratulations!" The worker smiled and left the two ponies.

Rainbow Dash knocked on the door loudly.

"Go away, I don't want to be bothered right now," the voice said from inside the room.

Rainbow Dash smirked. "Well, okay. I just thought I would come by to give you your special gift, but I can clearly see that you don't want it anymore and I'll just go home. Goodbye."

Scootaloo's ears perked up. She knew that voice so well and there was no other voice like it to her. She quickly got out of bed and tripped across her own legs, landing hard against the wooden floor. She immediately got back up and ran to the door, her little wings buzzing with excitement. "Wait!" she cried out. She opened the door and raced out expecting her to be leaving. She bumped into Soarin's chest and looked up at the two with a worried look. "Please don't leave, I'm sorry I said that! I still want my special gift!" Scootaloo put her two hooves together and begged. "Oh please, oh please, oh please!"

Rainbow Dash grinned and grabbed the little filly. She placed her on Soarin's back and said, "Great! We're going to take you to a place that I think you might like. It's a place that has great value to me and Soarin' as well."

Scootaloo's face beamed with a great smile. Finally, her special gift that she had been waiting and praying for. A day out with her personal hero and Soarin' who had become another pony she liked very much.

The worker who was now sitting at a desk smiled as she watched Soarin' and Rainbow Dash walk out with Scootaloo who was beaming with excitement. There was something about the two that made her feel like they were truly meant to adopt Scootaloo and that they would be the best parents possible specifically for her.

Once the three ponies made it out of the shelter, Scootaloo's curiosity got the better of her. "Where are we going?"

"Nope!" Rainbow said. "I'm not telling you. It's a bit of a distance and we'll be taking some transportation. Hold on to Soarin', he flies pretty fast."

"But not faster than you, right, Rainbow Dash?" Scootaloo asked.

Rainbow Dash looked at Scootaloo with a sly smirk. "Not a chance and I think I already proved that a few days ago anyway." She poked Soarin' in the side. "Right, Soarin'?"

Soarin' smiled awkwardly. He knew that Dash had told him that she had problems with arrogance before he knew her, but he also knew that she had been down in the dumps for far too long. "You sure did, Dash. You beat me with flying colors."

Rainbow Dash grinned. "Come on, let's get going before it gets too late."

The ponies left and traveled to a place in Ponyville where they could hitch a ride to their destination. Many ponies were either entering or getting out of carriages.

Soarin' flagged down a taxi cab.

The two Pegasus ponies pulling the carriage quickly came to their sides. "Where to?" one of them asked.

Soarin' looked at Dash and said, "Maybe you should tell them, since this is supposed to be a surprise."

Rainbow Dash whispered in one of the pony's ears where they wanted to go.

The one pony who heard where Rainbow wanted to go whispered in his partner's ear. They were discussing if they had enough energy to take them that far of a distance.

Rainbow Dash watched them as they discussed matters quietly. "Is everything going to be okay? Will you be able to take us?" Rainbow asked worriedly. All of the other cabs were already occupied and she hoped that they would be able to take them.

"Yes, we can take you. Although I hope you know that it will be a bit on the hefty side in terms of price."

"No worries. This is a special gift for a very special filly," Rainbow said.

One of the ponies lowered the gate for the passengers and gestured for them to step inside. "Hop right in, we'll try to get you there as fast as possible."

The three ponies walked up the lowered gate that acted like a stair case and got inside. The gate then closed and they waited for take off.

As the carriage went airborne, millions of thoughts ran through Scootaloo's mind wondering where they were taking her.

Scootaloo sat down in between Soarin' and Dash. She was very excited but realized that it didn't matter where they ended up going. Just sitting here next to these two ponies was exciting enough for her. "Are we going to stay together for the whole day?"

"Pretty much," Soarin' said. "We'll probably be eating there too. This place has lots of things to do and of course, Rainbow Dash and I have a super special and nostalgic place that we'd like to visit again."

Rainbow Dash smiled. She knew exactly what place he was talking about and couldn't wait to have Scootaloo have some fun in that specific place with them. Rainbow Dash was filled with so much excitement and emotion as she sat there thinking. Even though Scootaloo was technically already adopted, she couldn't wait to go back and officially announce to her that she was their daughter and would be coming home with them. She was already tearful just thinking about the moment when she would tell her the news.

"Rainbow Dash, are you okay?" Scootaloo asked as she stared at her hero. "You look like you're going to cry. What's the matter? We're supposed to have fun today, right?"

Rainbow Dash snapped out of her thoughts and smiled when she looked at Scootaloo. She hugged the little filly and kissed her on her head. "I'm fine. I was just thinking about how special you are to me. You're the best, kid."

Scootaloo was so happy to hear that. She almost didn't know how to respond to such loving words. "Thanks," she said. "I really can't wait to hang out at this super secret place with the two best Wonderbolts of all time."

Rainbow Dash was physically exhausted from all of this preparation and not to mention the stress and work it took to get her adopted, but the excitement for this filly kept her awake. She didn't say much on the rest of the ride there, but Scootaloo kept asking Soarin' questions and he kept her busy with many stories and grand memories of how he and Dash met and how they came together as a couple.

It was a long trip and Rainbow Dash had almost fallen asleep, but the carriage touched down, alerting her that they were finally there.

"I guess we have finally made it," Soarin' said. "That wasn't as long as I thought it would be." Soarin' reached into his bag and pulled out some sunglasses. "Dare I forget to bring these?" he asked and then gave them to Rainbow.

Rainbow Dash grabbed them. She had some sort of odd fascination with wearing sunglasses. "Awe, yea! Good boy, Soarin', You remembered!"

"Good boy? I'm not a dog," Soarin' replied.

"But you're still my pet and I need to feed you lots," Rainbow said.

Scootaloo's back legs were shaking with excitement as she watched the gate drop down.

Rainbow Dash put on her sunglasses and opened up her front legs as if to welcome this place with a hug. "Here we are! Let's get going and have as much fun as possible before it gets too late."

Rainbow Dash guided Scootaloo down the steps and stood there next to her as Soarin' paid the ponies for their service.

Scootaloo looked around at this odd environment. She could hear so many sounds that she had never heard before and she looked at the odd thing that all the ponies were walking on in the distance. "What is that bridge thing those ponies are walking on, Dash?"

"Oh, that's called a boardwalk. Have you ever been to the beach, Scoots?"

Scootaloo shook her head no. "I haven't. This place looks so different and...." Scootaloo inhaled the air deeply into her nostrils. "It smells so.....good and it feels energizing."

"That's the ocean nearby. It does smell nice and it feels pretty revitalizing, I agree."

Soarin' stood next to Scootaloo and asked, "Who is ready for some fun?"

"It's actually her first time at the beach; I think she's going to really enjoy it here." Rainbow looked at the two. "Well, let's not just stand around, let's go have some fun! You are the Princess for today, Scoots. Would you like our carrying service? You pick one of us."

Scootaloo wasn't used to this kind of treatment. She hopped on Rainbow's back and said, "I'll pick you for now. Soarin' can get his turn later. Giddy up!"

Rainbow laughed and said, "Sounds good. Let's get going! I know Soarin' can only go so long without having to pig out on food, which I'm sure he will since he only packed so many protein bars."

"I'm not that bad," Soarin' said and then walked along with Dash to the boardwalk.

Scootaloo put her two front hooves on top of Dash's head and looked around at all the different ponies walking around. Some were carrying surfboards and wearing sunglasses.

"So, what do you want to do first, Scoots? There are rides, games, swimming, food, and all sorts of cool stuff here," Rainbow said.

"They have rides?" Scootaloo asked as her little wings buzzed with excitement on her back.

"They sure do!" Rainbow said. "They have some pretty fast roller coasters here and I bet you'd like to ride them with me, huh?'

"Yeah!" Scootaloo said. "I want to try all the fast rides here." The little filly couldn't wait. The most fun she had was on her scooter, but she didn't have that anymore since it broke. Scootaloo's eyes lit up as they approached the gate to where the rides were. "Wow! This is going to be so much fun!"

"And we should probably come back at night when the lights on the rides light up. It's quite pretty." Rainbow said.

Soarin' walked over and gave the ticket master a large bag of bits. He was then given a giant roll of tickets.

"Wow! Soarin' got you a lot of tickets. I hope you can use them all in one day," Rainbow said.

Scootaloo looked stunned for a moment. "You guys are spending that much money on me? Are you sure you want to do that? Shouldn't you be saving it?"

Rainbow smiled. "Scootaloo, don't worry about the money being spent. Today is a special day and it's okay to splurge once in a while in order to have fun and make great memories. Don't feel bad about it and think of it this way, when we're all old and look back on life, we're going to dwell on the awesome things that happened in life together. We're not going to care how much money is left in the bank."

"I guess that makes sense," Scootaloo said. "I just never saw anypony spend that much money on me. I'll try not to think about it and just have fun. You and Soarin' are going to come on the rides with me, right?" Scootaloo asked.

"Sure!" Rainbow said. "If you want us to. Although many of the rides normally fit two ponies, there are a few rides we can all sit in. Let's ride on a few for now and then save some tickets for tonight when they turn the lights on."

"Come on, let's hit the rides for a while before I get hungry and want some funnel cake," Soarin' said.

Rainbow Dash trotted along with Scootaloo still on her back.

"What's funnel cake?" the filly asked.

"You've never had funnel cake?" Rainbow asked. "I guess you'll find out soon enough."

Rainbow and Soarin' walked over to the biggest and fastest roller coaster on the boardwalk.

"Are you up for tackling this monster, Scoots?" Rainbow asked in a tone of voice that sounded daring.

Scootaloo's eyes widened when she saw how high this coaster was. She watched the ponies blaze by them on the ride and many of them were screaming while keeping their front hooves in the air as it zipped through and went upside down.

"Scoots?"

"Yeah!" Scootaloo said. "That looks so awesome!"

"That's my girl," Rainbow said. Rainbow got some tickets from Soarin' and waited in line.

The ride had ended and the line started moving forward.

Rainbow Dash held out the tickets to the ride operator. "Two, please."

"Hold up," he said. I'm going to need to ask the filly to stand next to this pole right here."

Scootaloo was reluctant but hopped off of Rainbow's back and stood next to the pole.

The ride operator scratched his chin as he looked at her height. "I'm sorry, but this little filly is a bit too small for this ride."

"What!?" Scootaloo cried out. "But I really, really want to go on this one with Rainbow Dash."

"No can do, kid. I have rules to follow. This is our most extreme ride here, however, there are other roller coasters and plenty of other rides that can accommodate her height."

Scootaloo looked at Rainbow Dash with sad eyes and expected her to bargain with the ride operator, but she did not.

"Aw, nuts. I'm sorry, Scoots, but it's for your own safety. We can always come back here another time and ride this when you're a little older." Rainbow Dash looked over and noticed another smaller, but still exciting roller coaster. "Come on, we can try this one over here. I went on this with Soarin' as well and it's really a lot of fun. You'll still like it."

Scootaloo forgot about her disappointment when she heard that it got Rainbow's approval.

They walked over and got in line again. Sure enough, the ride operator measured Scootaloo's height, but this time, she barely made it up to the line.

Scootaloo smiled and was so excited that she could get on a ride with her hero.

Soarin' leaned against the gate with his two front legs resting on top as he watched them get seated and locked in. He watched Rainbow Dash whisper something into Scootaloo's ear and the orange filly giggled as she roughed up her mane. Soarin' couldn't help but smile. He was happy because Rainbow was happy and that was amplified even more by how thrilled Scootaloo was. He kept having to remind himself that she wasn't just a filly that Rainbow Dash would visit from time to time, but was now his daughter. It was kind of crazy how fast all of this happened, but it felt really good to him and he only hoped that she'd be just as ecstatic to pack her things at her former home and move in with them. Soarin' watched the ride move and smiled when he saw Rainbow and Scootaloo both wave to him as they went by. He waved back and whistled at them.

Up, up, and up the coaster slowly went creaking slightly. Once the coaster made it to the top, Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo put their front legs up in the air right before plummeting down the tracks.

"Look at that little filly," Soarin' thought to himself. "It's probably her first ride ever and she's already no barring it like a pro." No bar. No bar. The two words echoed through his mind as if there was some sort of connection with not holding onto the bar of the roller coaster and being here. He stood there with a puzzled look on his face until it hit him. "Holy horse apples!" he thought to himself. "No bar! That's it! My old buddy, Arrow Smash! How could I possibly forget about him? I haven't played In The Hooves Two or Pony it Up in ages! I wonder if I still have it in me and can play as well as I once did. How could I forget about him when I used to specifically come here for those two games?" Knowing Dash and how much she loved those games as well, he was pretty sure that they'd at least stop by that little arcade at the end of the boardwalk since they were talking about it earlier. He hoped that they could get there before they closed since he forgot what times they were open and he was also wishing that all his most favorite games were still there in good condition. Soarin' continued to stand there watching the two have fun on the ride and they would always wave at him whenever they went by. Rainbow hadn't looked this happy and alive to him in a very long time. She was not thrilled about the ride so much as she was just so pleased to see Scootaloo having the time of her life. After the coaster went around three times, Rainbow and Scootaloo found themselves exiting the ride and back with Soarin'.

Scootaloo was practically bouncing up and down, wanting to go try more rides. She loved the wind blowing through her mane and the thrill of it all. The most thrills and fun she had was on her old scooter but that often ended with cuts and bruises. The filly tugged at Rainbow's front leg wanting more fun when she saw that there was a giant tubular water slide that ponies could slide down.

"Do you want to go on this one alone, Scoots?" Rainbow asked. "You'll have more tickets for later."

Scootaloo thought to herself for a moment. "Um, okay, but after this we should find rides that we can all go on together. Soarin' deserves to have some fun too and you're going to have to show me all of the fun things to do here since it's my first time. I love this place already!"

"If you say so. Remember, it's your special day and you can do whatever you want. You're the Princess for today! Now go make a big splash for us!" Rainbow Dash gave her a few tickets for the ride and watched her skip on over to the gate where she got in line. "And our little Princess for life," Rainbow quietly added.

Scootaloo kept looking back and smiling at them each time she moved up the line.

"She's a doll, isn't she?" Rainbow asked. "I think we really made the right choice. I believe we're going to be the best parents possible for her."

"I have to agree with that," Soarin' said. "I like the kid a lot and you're definitely going to be the best mother for her. I mean, remembering the stories you've told me about her, you were always kind of like a big sister or motherly figure to her."

"That's true," Rainbow said as she watched the little filly climb up the stairs to the top of the ride. "Everything just feels so right, like this was all made to happen and I know you're going to be a great father for her as well. I don't think this poor little filly has ever experienced much fun in her life, although I'm sure her best friends, Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom find fun things to do together with her. They do have that Cutie Mark Crusader clubhouse after all."

"Do you think she'd have fun at the arcade where we first bonded together?" Soarin' asked.

"I think she most certainly would and I would love to see that special place again as well. Scootaloo pretty much thinks that anything that gets my awesomeness approval is always good."

The two ponies watched Scootaloo get to the top and then enter the tube. They stomped their hooves in approval when she came out and made a big splash in the pool.

Scootaloo swam over to the edge of the pool and climbed out. She ran over to them and started circling around them while jumping up and down. "That was so much fun! Let's find some rides that we can all go on together before it gets too late."

"Alright, don't you worry," Rainbow said. "We have plenty of time and we will be here all day."

Scootaloo spent a few hours on the rides with Rainbow and Soarin', making sure to try as many as she possibly could with them together. Scootaloo got off a ride with Rainbow and Soarin' that spun around in circles very fast.

"What ride do you want to go on next, Scoots?" Soarin' asked. "You've nearly tried them all."

"Actually," Scootaloo said. "Why don't you show me the other fun things that there are to do here?"

"Sure!" Rainbow said. "Let's not forget there are games where you can win prizes, go on the beach for a swim in the ocean, get some food to eat, have funnel cake, and there's a super awesome arcade all the way at the end of the boardwalk. Come on, let's start walking down the boardwalk and whatever prize you want to win we can try to play."

Scootaloo saw Soarin' sitting on the ground. She climbed up on his back and said, "Okay! Giddy up, Soarin'! Let's go win some prizes!"

Soarin' smiled and walked with Rainbow Dash out of the ride area and onto the boardwalk.

Scootaloo scouted the area as they walked by each booth that had some kind of unique game. They had games like tossing rings around bottles, spin the wheel, knocking over pins with a ball, and they even had that same game where Applejack literally won every single prize where a pony would buck the target and send a weight that would hit the top of the bell. Scootaloo pointed her hoof at a game that looked rather bizarre to her, but she really wanted the prize. "I want to play that one! I want to win that scooter. It's just like the old one I had and loved!"

Soarin' and Rainbow Dash saw the game where a pony would place a rubber frog on the launcher and then hit the target with a mallet to catapult it in the air and hopefully land it on a lily pad that was moving around in circles.

"We can give it a shot," Soarin' said as he walked over and placed a few bits on the counter.

The game pony gave them three green rubber frogs.

Rainbow Dash gave the mallet to Scootaloo who was still standing on Soarin's back since she was a bit too small to reach it on her own. "Give it your best shot, Scoots."

Scootaloo grabbed it and hit the target as hard as she could.

The frog was propelled into the air, but not very far or even close to where the targets were and made a big splash into the water.

"Wow! This game is really hard," Scootaloo said as she looked at Rainbow.

"These games aren't made to be easy, Scoots. You've got two more frogs left to try to land on the lily pads.

Scootaloo hopped off Soarin's back and sat on the table so that she could get closer. She carefully placed the rubber frog on the center of the board and picked up the mallet again. She studied the lily pads that spun around in a circle and carefully attempted to aim for the pad. She hit the target and the frog went flying. Her eyes lit up with excitement as the frog hit the lily pad but fell off. She used her last frog and tried placing it more on the edge of the board and hit the target, but she missed again.

"That's game over. Would you like to try again?" the game pony asked.

Scootaloo looked at Rainbow Dash with sad eyes. "I need help."

"Of course we would," Rainbow said. "We aren't walking away until we win something!" She gave the pony a few more bits and was given three more rubber frogs again. Rainbow Dash placed the frog on the board and then helped hold the mallet with Scootaloo. She gave it one good whack and failed to land the frog on a pad. They went through their round quite quickly without any good results. The closer Rainbow and Scootaloo got to landing a frog on the pad made Scootaloo more desperate to continue trying.

Soarin' saw that perhaps they wouldn't have any success winning at this game. He left a small bag of bits next to Dash. "You keep trying, I think I saw something that I might want to try. I won't be far," Soarin' said and then walked away.

After about five more attempts, they were able to land a frog that stayed on the green lily pad. It almost fell off but seemed to hang there by a thread.

Scootaloo dropped the mallet in excitement. "We did it! We won the scooter, Rainbow!"

"I'm afraid not, little filly," the game pony said. " You need to land all three frogs on the three separate pads in order to win the Scooter." The game pony bent down and picked up a small box of one of their smaller prizes. "You did win our little plastic spider hoof ring though. Congratulations. Choose your color."

Scootaloo's heart sunk deep within her chest. She truly believed that she had won that Scooter and now she felt cheated. She sighed and took a black spider hoof ring.

Rainbow Dash rubbed her hoof in her mane. "Aw, cheer up, Scoots. At least we won something. I'm sorry we couldn't win the scooter."

Scootaloo put the ring around her front hoof. "Yeah, I guess," she said with another sigh. "You'd think after all those bits we spent that we'd at least get some kind of bonus prize."

"They make these games hard for a reason," Rainbow said. "Let's go find Soarin' and see what else we can do."

Scootaloo put her head down in disappointment and followed Rainbow Dash.

They walked a little bit further down until they found him.

"Hey, Scoots. Check it out. Soarin' is trying to win something too."

Scootaloo picked her head up and saw Soarin' pushing some bits across the counter. There were three basketballs on the counter that he had to toss in a basket with a tiny rim, which moved from left to right. He dribbled the ball a bit to get a feel for how inflated it was and took a deep breath before he made his shot. He sunk the first ball in and wiped the sweat off his brow. That was one down. He took the second ball and waited for just the right timing to shoot. He released the ball and watched it soar to the basket. It hit the back of the board and went right in.

The game pony grabbed the microphone and began talking into it in order to attract more ponies to the game. "Fillies and gentlecolts. We have a stallion who is one shot away from winning the ultimate prize. Can he do it? Can he sink this last shot? No pressure, buddy. Give it your best."

"Come on, Soarin'! You can make it!" Rainbow Dash yelled out.

Soarin' looked at Rainbow and Scootaloo for a moment. He gave a wink at them before taking the final ball. He placed it on his snout and sat down. He waited patiently for the right moment. Being a top tier athlete gave him the advantage when it came to specific timings and reactions as well as playing all of those video games. He sprung up and sent the ball flying off of his snout. The ball hit the back of the board and rolled around on the rim several times before eventually falling in.

Rainbow Dash stomped her hooves against the boardwalk and cheered. "That's my stallion! Way to go!"

Other ponies in the crowd watching him started cheering as well also before going over to the same game in hopes that they would win something like he did.

"He did it, Scoots! He got all three balls in!"

"Yeah, that's great," Scootaloo said while looking back at the frog game. "What did he win? Another plastic spider ring?"

"How about a brand new scooter?" Soarin' asked as he showed her the prize he won.

Scootaloo stood there in disbelief. She blinked several times as she stared at the shiny new scooter. This scooter looked way better and more durable than her previous one or the one at that frog game.

Soarin' extended his two front legs holding the scooter and placed it on the boardwalk before her. "It's yours, kid. I hope it's what you wanted."

Scootaloo looked up at Soarin' and stared into his bright green eyes for a moment. She lunged at him with a hug. "You are the best! You and Rainbow Dash are the two best ponies ever! Thank you!"

"D'awww, thanks, kiddo. We love you very much too," Soarin' said as he hugged her back.

"How about you give it a little test ride while Soarin' and I make our way to our favorite arcade?" Rainbow asked.

Scootaloo squealed with delight and got on the scooter. She did a fancy trick on it and then scooted around the two ponies.

"Shouldn't she be wearing a helmet?" Soarin' asked.

"Nah, she'll be okay. She knows how to control that thing quite well," Rainbow said.

"Just as daring as you, Dash. She really is perfect for you," Soarin' said.

Scootaloo skidded to a stop in front of them. "Take me to the best arcade, guys!"

"Alright," Rainbow said. She paused for a moment and realized that Soarin' was right. Even if Scootaloo had a lot of experience riding scooters, she didn't want to see her get hurt and she didn't know why she suddenly felt so extra concerned for her now. "Hey, just be a little more careful riding that scooter without your helmet. We don't want you to get hurt."

"I'll be fine, I promise. I won't do any extra crazy tricks.' Scootaloo kicked off and circled around Rainbow and Soarin' before they began making their way down the boardwalk. She often took some time to do a few tricks or grind down the railing by the benches as she waited for them to catch up.

"I almost forgot how far this boardwalk goes down," Rainbow said. "This arcade is super nostalgic and everything, but do you think Ponyville might open an arcade sometime? It would be nice if something like this place was closer to home."

"As long as they get all of the best rhythm games, I sure would hope so too," Soarin' replied as he watched Scootaloo scoot speedily around the other ponies walking by. "Does she ever get tired?"

"I'm sure she does, but you know that this is a new experience for her. She's never done anything like this before."

Rainbow Dash and Soarin' continued down the boardwalk until they reached their favorite arcade.

The worn out rusty sign at the top with the old fashioned style letters in red spelling out arcade was still there and the cacophony from inside this place filled their ears with contentment. It was such a simple and humble little place that brought fun competitions and tournaments to ponies who loved to game.

Scootaloo stopped in front of it. "Is this the best arcade?" she asked.

"It sure is," Soarin' said as he stared at his two favorite games, still looking in perfect condition. He looked around at all the other games he loved to play and he was relieved that they were all still there, along with some newer games that he hadn't seen before, which looked quite appealing to him.

Scootaloo didn't understand the concept of most of these games. "What game should we try first?" she asked as she got off her scooter and followed the two ponies inside.

"The dance ones," Rainbow said proudly. "I'll show you how to play them! They are personally mine and Soarin's most favorite." Rainbow Dash looked at Soarin'. "Going to join us?"

Soarin' stared at a brand new music game that he had never seen before. "You can teach her how to play and I'll probably join in soon. There's a new game that I'd like to try and it looks pretty neat." Soarin' gave Scootaloo a large bag of bits from out of his saddle bags and watched Scootaloo hop up onto one of the two dance game pads next to each other. He then walked over to this brand new game cabinet. It was a new touch screen game that he had never heard of. As he was reading the instructions on the screen during a demo of the game, a familiar voice startled him.

"Soarin'?"

He turned around and he couldn't believe that his old friend Arrow Smash was here today. "Hey! Long time!"

"Wow! It really is you! I haven't seen you in the longest time. What the hay is going on with you and how come I haven't seen you in so long? You used to stop by here so often for dance games and play with me. Whatever happened to your filly friend?" Arrow Smash asked and then held his hoof out for Soarin'.

Soarin' banged his hoof against his. "Oh, she's here, and she's my wife now."

Arrow Smash looked over at the dance games and saw her. He also took note of the little filly and asked, "Who is the little filly with her?"

"That's our newly adopted daughter, Scootaloo. We actually adopted her today."

"Wow, congrats, bro. How come all the awesome fillies come to you at the arcade? I get crowds when I play, but they just want to see how fast I can go and then they go on their merry way."

Soarin' looked over at Rainbow who was teaching Scootaloo how to read the arrow patterns that made the ponies turn sideways in the game. "Yeah," he said as he looked back to his buddy. I got lucky. I mean extremely lucky with her."

"Well, I'm sure you're going to be a great husband and father. You'd better train the little filly up to be great at rhythm games. Who knows, maybe she'll get a cutie mark in dance games." Arrow Smash looked proudly at his cutie mark for a moment. "Was getting your cutie mark the same feeling?"

"It was at first," Soarin' said. "But something much greater came into my life."

"Your wife?"

"No. Something even better."

Arrow Smash looked confused. "What could be better than that?"

"Jesus," Soarin' simply said. "In fact, I wouldn't know the love of Christ if I never met my wife."

"Oh," Arrow Smash said as he blinked his eyes a few times. "You're religious now."

"Yes. Yes, I love Jesus."

"Oh, well, hey, if it works for you, then I'm happy for you. I just hope that you'll come back and play at this arcade more often."

"I plan to," Soarin' said. "It's just that I've been so busy with work and now I have a wife and a new kid to take care of. Life gets pretty busy, but I will always love this place and will try to come as often as I can."

"Eh, that's kind of what I've been afraid of. Always wanting to get that somepony special but I don't want to sacrifice my skills at the arcade that I worked so hard for. I still haven't gotten that quad star on Vertex Squared on expert doubles mode and I know I'll never get it if I spend any less time playing these games."

"I have to admit, that was my same attitude for quite some time, although, I was never quite as talented as you are with the games here. I realized that there are more important things in life, even if I've had some of the best moments here on these games. Just because these games are your desire, doesn't mean they have to take all of your time from you. I don't think it's really healthy for you when you rage quit every song when you get a single great or even an excellent judgment in the game either. Besides, maybe if you give up some time on these games and try other things, you might perform even better when you come back to it and get that quad star on that specific song and chart since your body might need some rest. You do play those dance games like crazy."

Arrow Smash put his head down. He knew his buddy was right and he was ashamed at how angry he got at the game when he couldn't reach total perfection in terms of score. "Yeah, it just hurts to know that I can't get everything perfect and I just want to be the absolute best I can possibly be before I get too old and slow down. I don't have this cutie mark for nothing you know."

"I think you'll always be great at these games and you also have that cutie mark because you make outstanding step chart edits, but I feel that your attitude and demand for perfection is ruining your experience with many things in life, not just your gaming experience. Having high and or unrealistic expectations always come with devastating feelings when you can't meet your goals. My wife smashed through so many world records in the Wonderbolts and she had a such a passion to be the best Wonderbolt ever. She never got to perform her first show, but she'll always be the best Wonderbolt to me and her records have been recorded in the official book of the Wonderbolts."

"What happened? Why can't she be a Wonderbolt anymore?" Arrow asked.

"She had a tragic crash and it was purposely caused by other ponies who were jealous of her and couldn't bear to see her succeed. One of the two ponies involved was my ex. Rainbow Dash most likely will never be able to perform with the Wonderbolts again because she suffers with chronic pain throughout her body and the pain exhausts her greatly."

"What the buck!? That's terrible! Man, if a pony ever tried to hurt me or especially tried to injure one of my legs, I would literally kill them. Did they ever catch the two that did that to her?"

"Well, one of the two came to us in order to apologize," Soarin' said. "And I think Dash told me something about the other getting caught not too long ago."

"And what does that matter? She ruined your somepony's special life. Did you have that nut punished?" Arrow asked.

"Thinking back to the moment, I didn't take it very well. Deep down inside I wanted to harm that pony and make sure that she got a horrible punishment for what she did. I lashed out at her, but I was stopped by one of Rainbow's friends."

"Why would they stop you?"

Soarin' looked at his lovely wife once more that was now stepping with Scootaloo. "Because we are commanded to forgive others since Jesus has already forgiven us."

"I don't understand that. You hurt some pony and you deserve to get hurt. Her life is now completely ruined because of that."

"Take a look at her now," Soarin' commanded. "Does her life look ruined to you?"

Arrow Smash looked and saw her laughing with Scootaloo as they spun around on the dance pad, following the hold arrows on the screen. "Um, no. Not exactly, but if I wouldn't be able to quad star anything anymore, or even play dance games, I would feel that my life is worthless. She doesn't feel bad that her biggest dream is gone? I find that very hard to believe."

"Oh, she feels bad about it. She doesn't enjoy the fact that she most likely will be suffering with chronic pain and fatigue for the rest of her life, but she's found that her loss in many ways is a good thing," Soarin' said.

"And how is that so?"

"She relies more and more on God and prayer each day and she's become an even more of a lovely wife. She wants to share her passion and compassion for hurt fillies like Scootaloo who do not have a family to take care of them."

"That is quite a touching story. What did she think of the pony who hurt her, yet came for forgiveness?"

"Well, she forgave her and became her friend. She even attended our wedding. Friendship is magic after all."

"I don't know how to respond to that. Is this Jesus pony really that important to you?" Arrow asked.

"Oh, yes. He most certainly is and I thank Him nearly every single day for Dash. If she never showed up in my life like how she did here, I couldn't even begin imagine what my life would be like now."

Arrow Smash looked back once more at Soarin's wife and their daughter and then back to his buddy. "Wow, that's the most touching story I've ever heard, but you know I'm Agnostic and I liked you a lot because you never talked about religion before. Ponies got me angry when they dare used words like calling me lost or blind, but now I don't know what to think after your story."

Soarin' put his hoof up for a moment. "Hey, I was a terrible Christian, if you could even consider me one back then and I didn't understand what the Christian life was really about until Dash helped me out. Christians shouldn't have to go around flaunting their faith in front of others. If you can't tell that I'm a Christian by my love and kindness alone without having to say anything about my faith, then I most likely am failing in my trot with Jesus." Soarin' smiled and added, "I guess you could call me Soarin', the silent evangelist."

Arrow Smash tapped his hoof against Soarin's chest a few times and said, "You, you, you. We need more Christian ponies like you. You're not annoying or arrogant and you don't call me blind or lost."

"Thanks, but I don't think the ponies talking to you meant to sound arrogant or put you down. I can understand why words like that would be upsetting to you, but I like to put my faith in the God of Christianity. I like what the Bible has to offer, even if it makes me feel uncomfortable at times and shows me my many sins. The Bible may hurt you with the truth, but it will never comfort you with a lie, and it all makes sense when I read the scriptures in their entirety and see the good and evil in this world. Faith and doing the will of the Lord pleases God after all and I think you're a good pony who means well."

It had been a very long time that such warm and comforting words softened Arrow's heart. He stared into Soarin's eyes for a moment before giving him a hug.

Soarin' was surprised to find that his old time buddy had given him a hug for the first time. Such affection was not expected by him as it really didn't match up with his past personality. He hugged him back when he heard the fear and deep concern in his voice.

"You know, every day I think about death ever since my Grandma died and I don't want to die. Dying to me is the end of everything and it terrifies me. What terrifies me even more is the idea of burning in torment and misery in Hell, if Hell is indeed real. Do you think your God wants to send me there like all the other Christians tell me He will?"

"Hell was not made for anypony," Soarin' answered.

Arrow Smash let go of Soarin' and stared into his eyes with confusion. "It's not?"

"No, Hell was made for Satan and his demons."

"So why do ponies go to Hell? If I got sent there, I would feel like that would be so unfair. I never killed anypony or anything like that. I find it hard to believe that almost anypony who goes to Hell would find it fair."

"Because Hell is the total absences of God, while Heaven is in the total presence of Him. God is very much in the presence of this world, but God allows us to choose what we want. He loves us enough to let us choose Him or not, and if a pony wishes to shut his heart out from God and never wants to have anything to do with Him, then He grants that wish. He has his hoof held out with a gift for you. It's called the gift of salvation and all you have to do is accept and take it. It's a very simple choice and He wants you to have it so badly, as do I." Soarin' paused for a moment and took out his Bible from his saddle bag. He opened it up and said, "Let me read you an interesting passage about Hell." He cleared his throat and then began reading out loud.

"“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.

“The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’

“But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. And besides all this, between us and you, a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’

“He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’

“Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’

“‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’

“He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”

Soarin' closed the book and put it back into his saddle bag, "Now what do you find interesting about that story?"

"Um, Hell sounds hot?"

"Well, yes, but the pony in Hell never complains once about being put there unfairly. He complains about the suffering and asks that it be diminished. He even begs that his five brothers be admonished about Hell by Lazarus so that they won't experience what he has to, but he never says that it's unfair that he was sent there. I think you're a wonderful pony who means well and you have a good, caring heart, but there are some sin issues in your way that God wants to take care of and cleanse you with the shed blood of Jesus.

"But what about non-believing ponies who live good, sometimes even better lives than Christians?"

Soarin' paused for a moment and thought to himself. He looked and spotted a small store that was across from the arcade that sold sea glass, seashells and polished, painted rocks. Soarin' pointed with his hoof and said, "Do you see that shop across from this arcade?"

Arrow turned and looked. "Yes."

"Now let's say we got you a rock and painted the word salvation on it."

"Where are you going with this?"

"Just give me a moment to explain," Soarin' said. "Now let's say the water in the ocean represents sin and you have one shot to make. The requirement for all ponies to enter Heaven is to stand on the beach and throw that rock all the way across the ocean and hit the land on the other side of water."

"What?! That's impossible," Arrow said as he thought about how crazy that idea sounded.

"That's my point," Soarin' said. "And if you think about it, no matter how impossible it is for a pony to throw a rock that far, some will throw farther than others. The entire goal is not to see who can throw the furthest, the goal is about hitting land on the other side, much like the goal to get into Heaven is to be perfect and not miss the mark, but it's too hard for us and none of us can do that except for the Messiah. He came so that He could bridge that gap that no one could make it over on their own between us and the Father. We needed a Savior because the law was too hard for us to do."

"So I guess you Christians bypass judgement once you're saved?" Arrow asked.

"Everyone will be judged, but the believer will be judged at the Judgement seat of Christ. It is here where we will be given eternal rewards based upon our good deeds. The other judgement type is the great white throne of judgement for non-believers who lived independently of the Lord and that is a place of judgement I wish no one would go to."

"Wow, I want to believe what you believe so badly. I can't even describe how powerful the feeling is, but I'm also terrified of giving my entire life away to something that seems like a cult to me. Will you please pray for me?"

"I most certainly will," Soarin' said.

Arrow Smash looked at his two most favorite dance game with guilt. "Do you think we could hang out together if you're not too busy? I don't have many ponies who I can call my real friends. The most friendship I get here are the crowds coming to watch me which feels quite empty and the more ponies who come into the arcade, the lonelier I feel. I know we live very far away from each other, but I'd be willing to fly over to come hang out. I take it that your wife moved in with you?"

"No, I sold that house and I live with my spouse in Ponyville. I moved into her house because I couldn't let her be far from her friends, especially when they are so important to her and she needs them. She also can't travel that far because of her pain."

"Oh, wow! That's even further away from where I live. I'd still come just to talk to you more and you know what? You seriously are the best friend I've ever had. I really mean that. You are the only pony that put up with my sudden anger outbursts and rage quits when I'd get mad and would just bracket the rest of the songs when I'd get a great while playing In The Hooves Two."

"Well, I understand you also did that to conserve energy for the next song. You're also free to stop by our house at any time even when I'm not around. Dash is wonderful and would be more than happy to talk to you as well."

Arrow Smash looked at Rainbow and saw that she had switched dance games and was teaching the little filly how to play Pony It Up. Her front legs were crossed against the red R shaped bar on the player two's side and she was leaning her weight against it. She was cheering on the little filly and telling her when to turn when the arrow patterns called for it. She kept specifically calling out the M runs for her. Arrow Smash looked at Soarin' again. "Yeah, she seems like a really nice mare." He stood there in thought for a moment and added, "You know what I think I may do?"

"What?" Soarin' asked. "You can tell me anything."

"I think I might sell my own dance game dedicated cabinet that I won in a tournament. It's really bugging me and I feel like even though it's my passion, I've taken it too far and I don't need it."

"That might be a good idea," Soarin' said as he smiled. He could sense that there was a change in his old friend already, not just because of the unexpected hug, but because he was thinking very differently and it made him glad.

"Would you mind if I go say something to your wife for a moment? I have to go home soon and I just want say how much I appreciate her story and I'm amazed by her loyalty. I can see that you have changed so much ever since you started hanging out with her."

Soarin' smiled. "Sure, buddy! I'm so glad to have bumped into you again. You're welcome to come to our house at any time and you'll always be my good pal whether you decide to be a Christian or not. We won't treat you any differently no matter what you decide to choose."

"Thanks, bro. Like I said, you're the only friend who really cared about me. I will most definitely take you up on that offer and will stop by sometime. I hope your God blesses you very much, if He's real. See you soon."

"OK, sounds great! I hope to see you soon too," Soarin' said as he waved goodbye. He watched his friend turn and walk over to Dash where he leaned his two front legs against the player one's bar and began talking to Rainbow Dash. Soarin' turned back to the new game he was interested in and inserted some bits. Today was turning out to be much better than he had expected. He picked out a song that he wanted to play and started tapping his front hooves on the screen. He quickly started to see that this game could become very addicting and would have great potential.

After finishing his round, he plunked some more bits in and continued to play until he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around to see Rainbow Dash. "Oh, hey, Dash. Need more bits?"

"Nah, I just finished talking to your friend. He seems like a really nice fellow. I didn't know you two were that close. I figured you both were an acquaintance or something."

"Yeah, we go back. Way back. We met here in this arcade and used to play very often. What did he talk to you about?"

"He just wanted to hear more about my story and our story of coming together. He seemed to be quite fascinated by it. He also said that he had some anger issues and was hoping to consider talking to us more about Jesus," Rainbow said as she kept her eye on Scootaloo who was standing on a stool and playing another rhythm game with her front hooves that was next to a skeeball machine.

"He wants to visit us and talk more about it. I told him that he could stop by any time if he wanted to. I have hope that his life might get changed around since he was already planning on doing some pretty crazy changes that I thought he'd never consider," Soarin' said.

"He told me how far away he lives. I'm kind of surprised that he would travel that far to Ponyville."

"I think he saw something in us that he wanted, Dash. I think he saw a little bit of the love of Christ and seeking more of Him is worth the travel no matter how far."

"So true," Rainbow said. "I hope we can help him." Rainbow Dash looked at the clock in the room. "Hey, did you see what time it is? Aren't you hungry?"

Soarin' looked at the clock. "Wow! It really is getting late and we haven't eaten dinner yet."

"How on earth did you manage to go all this time without complaining that you're hungry?" Rainbow asked.

"Must have been a miracle!" Soarin' said. He laughed and then added, "Actually, I have been gnawing on a bunch of protein bars through out the day, but I certainly could go for some real dinner. Let's get our little Princess."

Rainbow Dash and Soarin' walked over to where Scootaloo was furiously pounding the keys on the game cabinet with her hooves.

Scootaloo couldn't keep up with the streams of notes and her life bar had depleted fully. The words 'Game Over' flashed on the screen.

"What do you think about going to get some good grub to eat?" Soarin' asked as he put his hoof on Scootaloo's shoulder. "Haven't you played enough games for now? You must be hungry."

Scootaloo put her hoof to her chin in thought. "Well, I am the Princess for today and decide what we do, right?"

"As long as Soarin's stomach doesn't growl too loud. He can get quite grumpy on an empty belly," Rainbow added.

"We can go, but I have just one request."

"What would that be?" Soarin' asked.

"You both have to have a dance off! You and Soarin' didn't play together and I want to watch you both play a full round since you both are the very best!"

Rainbow and Soarin' looked at each other for a moment.

"Alright," Soarin' said. "I really wanted to play the dance games anyway, but that new game had caught my attention and I didn't realize how much time went by anyway."

"Shake hooves first!" Scootaloo demanded as both ponies stepped on the platform.

"Wow, this is serious competition, isn't it, Scoots?" Rainbow Dash asked as she slowly extended her hoof and shook Soarin's hoof.

"It is! This will be the best competition ever," the orange filly exclaimed.

"Couldn't we do routine mode and work as a team in Pony It Up instead of against each other?" Soarin' asked. He was concerned about beating Dash and didn't want her morale to sink any lower than it has been with her fatigue and pain issues.

"No, ultimate face off!" Scoots demanded.

"So are we doing something like the Mareathon mode with the built in modifiers or just the regular game mode?" Soarin' asked.

"I get to pick the songs too and they all have to be played on expert mode!" Scootaloo insisted. "This is for science!"

"Science?" Rainbow Dash asked as she took off her sunglasses and placed them on the side of the cabinet.

"Okay, okay, okay," Soarin' said. "Let's do this." He didn't want to spend any more time since he knew that he'd be very hungry soon enough. He bent down and plunked some bits into the machine. His ears perked up at the sound the machine made each time he put a bit in. It sounded heavenly and nostalgic to him and there was nothing quite like it. He selected the two player mode and scrolled through the list of songs slowly as he waited for her approval.

"That one!" Scootaloo called out.

"While Tha Rekkid Spinz?" Soarin' asked.

"Yeah! That song sounds awesome!"

"It does have a pretty nice beat," Rainbow added.

Soarin' double tapped the green button on the cabinet for their modifier options and selected his speed modifier. He looked at Rainbow's side and noticed she picked overhead. "Not using hallway in this game is heresy, Dash."

"Just trying to be a little different and change the perspective," she said and then locked in her side.

Soarin' did the same and both ponies began to tap their hooves to the beat before the arrows started scrolling up.

Scootaloo's tiny wings buzzed in anticipation as the colorful, flashy arrows started to scroll up the screen, each color representing a different beat of a note. She couldn't wait to see her two favorite ponies in action together.

The four lights on the sides of the marquee began flashing as well as the two circular purple lights on the bottom of the cabinet.

Scootaloo began shadow stepping along with them but went into her own little dance as the excitement and music overtook her. She closed her eyes and smiled as she swayed her body around and stepped randomly. She had no idea what she was doing and looked like a fool, but she didn't care until her head hit one of the back of the bars on the dance game. She didn't realize how fast the song went by because she was having fun and each song was only about two minutes in length. The song had already ended and Scootaloo put her two front hooves on the tip of the metal dance game pads in-between the bars. "So, who won?"

"We actually tied," Rainbow said as she stared at the two tri-stars that moved across the screen.

"Not only that, but we got a full excellent combo and we both got six excellent judgements at the exact same point of the song," Soarin' said as he pointed at the two graphs. "That's really rare." He looked at Dash and gave her a playful punch on her jaw. "Nice job, Dash. I didn't know you still had it in you." He looked at the screen and added, "You rock!"

"Aw, come on, Soarin'. You know that I had all the time in the world to warm up and play with Scootaloo. You haven't played this game in a long time either. I believe the screen said that you rock as well."

"Okay, next song!" Scootaloo demanded as she tapped her hoof loudly against one of the red bars connected to the back of the pads.

"So what are you trying to prove with this?" Rainbow asked.

"Shhh! No talking during this fierce competition and most important experiment! We must go on," Scootaloo said as she pounded her two front hooves against the metal pads.

Rainbow Dash scrolled through the rest of the songs until she reached the end. She then went into the next folder of songs and continued scrolling.

"Stop!" Scootaloo said. "I like this song."

"My Life is so Crazy," Rainbow said. "Alright, let's do this." Rainbow Dash hit the green button on the cab and then spoke softly in Soarin's ear as the song loaded up. At least she's picking nothing but nines so far. I'm tired enough as it is and I'm going to hurt so much tomorrow. I'm not sure who she wants to see win."

The music kicked in and both ponies bobbed their heads to the beat until they began smashing the arrows on the pad together with their hooves.

Scootaloo could feel the thundering steps and the vibrations from the floor that went into her hooves. The vibrations tickled and felt funny to her as she watched the panels light up each time they were stepped on. Within a few moments, she saw the flashing blue fantastic combo on the screen and she studied the faces of the ponies. They were both so focused on the screen and rarely blinked their eyes. Scootaloo could see that they were both trying as hard as they possibly could. She put her hoof to her mouth when they had both hit their first excellent judgment grade. The combo number began flashing orange and a miniature explosion went off behind the combo count number. "So cool!" Scootaloo said. She looked at the song length bar and then down at their hooves, mesmerized by how fast they could step. Even if the song was only an expert nine, Scootaloo had never seen anything so fast before. She had almost went into some kind of trance while watching, but that all ended when the song stopped playing and the vibrations in the floor had ceased.

Rainbow Dash let out a squeal followed by a giggle. "It happened again! We both not only got tri-stars, but the exact same percentage. Ninety nine point seventy five percent!"

"Unbelievable, and we still managed to get the excellent judgments at the same points in the song," Soarin' said as he hit the green button on the cabinet and then scrolled through the song list.

"So this is the final song," Scootaloo said as she listened to each song that scrolled by slowly. "Okay! I want that one."

"This is Rock and Roll," Soarin' said. "I take it that you have a real affinity for DJ Zombie in this game. I never really took you to be a filly who liked techno music.

"It sounds awesome, don't you agree?" Scootaloo asked.

"It does," Rainbow answered. "We're not complaining and you're picking great songs!" Rainbow looked at Soarin' and said over the loud booming bass from the cabinet, "I'm really glad she picked a super easy nine since I don't know how much more I can take. I guess I'll be sleeping good tonight and also most likely throughout the next day." Rainbow Dash went to hit the accept button on the cabinet twice, but she slipped around on the pad. "Um, would you mind trading places with me? I seem to have been sweating a lot and this side of the pad is as slippery as ice now."

Soarin' looked at her side and noticed that there were puddles of sweat on the arrow panels. "You are a sweaty mess even with this industrial fan blowing on us." He looked at her face and added, "You don't look so good. Are you sure you want to finish this round?"

"I'm sorry you don't feel good," Scootaloo said. "You don't have to go on if you don't want to. We can finish my experiment another time."

Rainbow Dash felt horrible inside, but yet she had so much trouble backing down from a challenge and it had been a very long time since she felt competitive. Her nostrils puffed out from the pain in her body and her mind was telling her to continue, but her body was telling her to stop. "Nah, Scoots. I'll do this one last song. She pointed her hoof at her and winked. "For you, kid."

"That's the Rainbow Dash I know and love!" Scootaloo cheered.

Rainbow Dash and Soarin' switched sides and began choosing their modifiers.

Soarin' paused for a moment and slid his hoof against one of the panels. It was slippery but he kept sliding his hoof until he heard some squeaking sounds.

"Ready?" Rainbow asked.

"Ready," Soarin' said as he leaned over and pushed the green button.

The bass began pumping and Soarin' and Rainbow Dash began stepping. They galloped to the shiny blue and green arrows that scrolled up the screen. Scootaloo was very amused at the galloping steps of eighth and sixteenth notes. She kept darting her eyes from the players to the percentage scoring at the top for both players and then back to the combo count that was flashing blue. Scootaloo felt a splash of sweat fall onto the side of her face from Rainbow's mane. She didn't mind, and she began to cheer. "Come on! You can do it!"

The words of Scootaloo were almost drowned out by the music, but both players had heard her and were inspired to focus more.

The ending of the song had come up and the two players focused very carefully in order to hit the last few jumps and steps. They were stepping even when there were no arrows to be stepped on in order to keep near perfect timing.

Rainbow Dash stepped on the last arrow and nearly fell down. She had enough and could not go on any longer. She didn't look up at the screen to see her score because she was exhausted. Her vision became somewhat blurry, but she slowly picked her head back up and stared at the speaker on her side of the cabinet. "Did I win?" she asked in between heavy breaths.

"Look up at the screen and you tell me," Soarin' said.

Rainbow Dash did so and saw the four golden stars. "Oh my gosh," Rainbow said as she took some deep breaths. "Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!" Rainbow continued to struggle for air and then coughed. "A quad star! That's my first ever!" She smiled and looked at Soarin's side. Her mouth hung open in shock. "Double quad star!"

"That's my first one as well," Soarin' said.

Rainbow Dash took some more deep breaths and looked at Scootaloo."But that means we don't have a winner. Who were you cheering for back there, Scoots? I guess your experimental science theory didn't come out right, did it?"

Scootaloo hopped on the dance pads. Her two left legs on the player one's right arrow and her two right legs on the player two's left arrow. "Nope! It came out just as I planned. Twilight Sparkle would be super proud of me!"

"What exactly was your experiment about? How sweaty I could get before I nearly pass out?" Rainbow asked while still trying to catch her breath.

"No. The test was to prove that you're both equally awesome and are both perfect! When I was cheering, it was for the both you. I knew you were both the best and I proved it!"

Soarin' and Rainbow Dash looked at each other and then laughed before they shared a quick kiss over the little filly in celebration of their first quad star in the game.

"Scoots, you are way too adorable and I love how you think," Rainbow Dash said.

"And you both got your first one hundred percent score because of me!" the little filly blurted out.

"You did good, Scoots. I never thought either of us would ever quad star any expert steps," Soarin' said.

"And I have another theory," Scootaloo said.

"What's that?" Rainbow asked.

"That neither you or Soarin' can ever get tired since you're both the best!"

"Oh, well I certainly hope you don't plan to put us through that test," Rainbow said with nervous laughter. "Let's just leave it at me and Soarin' are both equally cool. That's enough science experiments for today I think."

"Even Wonderbolts need to sleep, Scootaloo," Soarin' said. He was about to say something else but then his stomach rumbled loudly and could be heard over the clamor of other games in the background.

"I've heard tummy rumbling before but Soarin's stomach sounds like it's full of thunder. I might have to ask Twilight about that one," Scootaloo said. She looked around for a moment and added. "I'm hungry too, let's eat."

"What do you want to eat?" Rainbow Dash asked. "You can simply follow your nose to wherever the best smell of food takes you."

Scootaloo's nostrils twitched a few times. "Okay, follow me," she said as she picked up her scooter that was leaning against the side of the dance game machine.

Rainbow Dash tried to stand up straight, but her body was so beat up that she struggled greatly.

"Need me to carry you?" Soarin' asked. "You really look like you've had it."

"I think I'll manage," Rainbow said as she leaned over and grabbed her sunglasses from off the side of the cabinet. She pushed them up onto her forehead, like how she was wearing them before and put her head near the large fan to dry off for a moment. "I just really hope we might get a resting period after we eat and maybe chill out on the beach because I've kind of had it after that last round of games. We'd better hurry up and follow her before she gets lost."

"I think we can arrange some swim time as you relax on the beach. What kind of first time visit to the beach would it be without swimming?" Soarin' asked as he followed Dash back outside.

"That sounds really wonderful. We should do that before it gets too late anyway." Rainbow picked up the pace as she tried to keep up with the sniffing Scootaloo. "Wait for us, Scoots!"

They followed her as she scooted on past the other ponies and swayed around them on her scooter.

Scootaloo stopped in front of a place and waited for them to catch up. "What is that smell? it smells so good! Whatever it is, I want to eat it."

"That's the smell of zeppole and I don't think you should eat that alone for dinner even if you are Princess for the day," Soarin' said.

"Can we at least get some for dessert?" Scootaloo asked. She noticed the pies that were sitting on the counter. "I'll have some pizza for dinner."

Rainbow Dash looked away for a moment in slight disgust. "Pizza? Again? Something tells me that ponies living in Ponyville love pizza more than they really should." Rainbow noticed an actual restaurant not much further down. "Would you like something more fancy, Scoots? I know that restaurant just a little bit further down. They serve gourmet food."

Scootaloo had never heard that word before and she didn't really care since she had never smelled anything that was so tempting to eat. This little place had pizza and all kinds of dessert. "I just really want to try the thing that smells so good." The little filly walked away from Rainbow and Soarin' and put her two front hooves on the counter as she looked around at the food.

"It is her special day," Soarin' admitted to Dash.

"Ungh. I guess so, but it's like you give them an inch and they take a mile. I don't mind that much though, she's way too adorable anyway," Rainbow said. "I don't think I've ever seen her this excited in her entire life. I just don't know how you don't ever get sick of pizza either."

Soarin' grinned. "Maybe because pizza is technically a pie and you know that I can never say no to any pies whether they are for dinner or dessert."

"Well, now that makes a lot more sense to me," Rainbow replied. She felt the sudden, intense pain flare ups in her body once more and she felt as if she had a fever even though she did not. "I just want to sit down at this moment. I really don't feel so good."

"You go find a bench for us to sit on so you can rest. I'll come over with the food when it's ready."

"Thanks, if they have anything else other than pizza, well, you know what I like. I just don't feel like pizza again," Rainbow said and then walked over to find a bench.

Rainbow found a bench that other ponies had just gotten off of. She quickly sat down and hunched over as she put her two front hooves to her eyes for a moment. She was tired, but she was also starving at this point. She brought her hooves slowly down her face which tugged at her eye lids. There she saw the ocean in all its beauty. She watched some ponies playing for a moment and then fixated her attention to all the parents having fun with their fillies and colts. She began to wonder if she truly had the energy and patience to raise Scootaloo being that she was in chronic pain and was extremely fatigued so often. This little filly still thought that she somehow was like the old Rainbow Dash and had tons of stamina to go on all day, even though Rainbow Dash had explained to her before that she would be having extra difficulties in life. She knew that no matter how much of a wonderful filly she was, family fights were bound to happen. That was normal, but at this point all she wanted was for this filly to feel safe, secure, and loved for once. She said a quick prayer, asking for strength to get through this day and more importantly, that she'd have what it takes to give Scootaloo the best possible life. This wasn't going to be easy no matter how good Scootaloo was, but she knew that what she was doing was the right thing. She just hoped that she could do it well. Rainbow Dash continued to stare at all of the parents with their kids until a voice startled her.

"Why do you look so sad? I thought today was supposed to be a great day."

She turned and saw Scootaloo looking up at her with innocent eyes. Rainbow Dash smiled and picked her up between her front hooves. She brought her faces close to hers and replied, "Sad? I'm not sad. I was just thinking about how special you are and how much I love you." She put the filly on her lap and tickled her belly. "And Jesus loves you more than you could ever imagine."

Scootaloo giggled and squirmed in her lap until Rainbow Dash lovingly brought her front legs around her and kissed her on top of her head. She rested the side of her face on her mane and closed her eyes as she rocked the little filly gently. "More than you could ever imagine," she said once more. Rainbow Dash realized that Scootaloo's mane had probably not been washed in over a week. She wasn't sure how often they took showers or baths at the place where she was staying or if Scootaloo simply passed up bath time. She didn't let it bother her, especially since she was quite used to the odor of dirty, unwashed mane from Applejack and other interesting farm scents that she could smell from her orange fur coat.

Scootaloo grabbed onto one of her front legs and leaned against her chest as she closed her eyes. She had never experienced such a warm and comforting hug like this before.

They sat there for a while without saying a word until Soarin' interrupted the silence. "D'aaaw. I wish I had a picture of that. I hate to break up such a sweet moment, but we do have food here." He placed the boxes and bags of food on the bench before he took a seat. He looked over and gave Scootaloo a small plate of pizza; she was content to take it without moving an inch away from Rainbow Dash. Soarin' also handed Dash a bag.

Rainbow Dash opened it and was pleasantly surprised to find herself with a hay and eggplant burger covered with onions and garlic. "You're the best Soarin'. I really feel like eating something like this."

"And there's two more in there in case you're still hungry, if not, don't worry, I can eat the rest," he said before opening a box of pizza and devouring it.

The three ponies said nothing as they chowed down and started piling a mound of boxes and bags into a trashcan near them. It had been a bit late for dinner since they were having so much fun which had made them all the more hungry.

Scootaloo held her paper plate out that was stained with a bit of pizza grease to Soarin'. "May I have some more, please?"

"Have as much as you want," Soarin' said as he took the plate and piled on three more slices before giving the plate back to her.

"Wow, that's a lot, thanks," Scootaloo said as she took a nibble of a slice. She noticed the other two boxes of pizza that hadn't been opened yet. "Is he really going to finish those other two boxes?"

"Oh, you'll eventually get used to his eating habits. It doesn't even phase me anymore," Rainbow said. "Even I had more of a voracious appetite when I was training with him. Being a Wonderbolt does make you hungry and the one good thing about it is that he's like my personal garbage disposal for when we have too much food in the fridge. I don't think there has been a day that we have had to throw something out because it went bad. If it's there, he eats it. No questions asked."

"I have another theory," Scootaloo said. "Soarin' never gets full."

"I don't think we need to test that to prove it," Rainbow said as she watched him finish putting another box away. "He's my bottomless pit and I think he's won enough first place trophies in pie eating contests to prove it." Rainbow Dash took one of the three cups from the cardboard holder and sipped through the straw. "Mmmm. Iced tea."

"I guess that dance off made you quite hungry," Soarin' said. "I wasn't sure if you'd be able to eat all three burgers. I got everyone a treat too."

Rainbow Dash put her two front hooves on her belly. "I haven't eaten like this in a very long time. I think I'm done."

"Aw, come on. I got you rocky road ice cream. I know that's your favorite," Soarin' said as he handed her a cup. I paid a little extra for the unicorns to cast that no melting ice cream spell too."

"Eh," Rainbow said. "It is a special day today, isn't it? I just don't like how often junk food makes my pain flare up more and can make me more tired, but I haven't had ice cream in a long time." She took a lick of her ice cream. "In a very long time," she added as her taste buds approved. "Now I remember why they call this stuff a mare's comfort food. No wonder Rarity pigs out on tubs of this when she's not feeling well."

"And for you, Scoots," Soarin' said as he gave her a brown bag before opening up his own bag of treats.

Rainbow Dash and Soarin' watched and waited for Scootaloo's reaction to the sweet and fried treat. They figured that she probably didn't get to try anything like this before.

Scootaloo took a zeppole out and sniffed it a few times before taking a bite. "Wow!" she said as she perked up. "This has to be the exact same thing that God gave the Jews in the Bible to eat, isn't it?"

"What are you talking about?" Soarin' asked.

"This has to be that mana cake."

Rainbow Dash and Soarin' began to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Scootaloo demanded to know. "It really is, isn't it?"

Rainbow Dash rubbed her hoof in the fillies mane. "If you want to call it mana cakes, that's cool, Scoots. I love how you think."

"Try one of these," Soarin' said as he gave her a piece of his funnel cake.

Scootaloo ate it quickly. Never before had she ever had such sublime treats like these and she felt a bit euphoric at this point since the desserts made her feel so good and she was also with her two most favorite ponies. "Can this day get any better?" she asked as she stuffed another zeppole into her mouth.

"You might be surprised what else may happen," Rainbow Dash said.

"Can you tell me?" Scootaloo asked as her wings buzzed in anticipation.

Rainbow Dash had to fight back tears when the thought entered her mind. She was a mare who used to think that crying was wrong and for the weak, but she could tell that she was changing more and more each day and was becoming okay with it. However, she didn't want to cry in front of Scootaloo now. She simply smiled and said, "You'll find out soon enough."

Soarin' finished the last bit of his funnel cake and got up off the bench. He put his two front hooves on the silver railing and asked. "Do you know how to swim, Scootaloo?"

Scootaloo finished cramming the last zeppole in her mouth and said with a mouthful, "A little bit, but not really. I went sort of swimming in a lake with Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom a few times."

"Do you want to go swimming with me? I think it would be a good experience for you," Soarin' said. "I can hold you up if you need me to."

Scootaloo stared at the ocean. She was a very brave little filly, but she heard lots of bad things about swimming in the sea. "Aren't there sharks that are hungry for ponies and I heard there is some kind of vacuum that drags little fillies and colts all the way to the bottom of the ocean? They never come back up, do they?"

"You're more likely to get attacked and killed by a pig than a shark, Scootaloo, and that vacuum that you heard of is called the current. Yes, it looks a little bit strong today and I have been pulled under a few times, but look at it this way, you have a Wonderbolt making sure that you're safe. That's probably better than any life guard on duty," he said with a wink.

"You're right. How could I even question the possibility of danger with two Wonderbolts by my side!" Scootaloo tossed her empty bag into the trash and stood next to Soarin'. She put her two front hooves on the lower railing and inhaled the air as she watched the fillies and colts splashing in the water and having a great time. There was something really energizing and rejuvenating about the air here and she couldn't figure it out, but loved it anyway. She was now very excited about going into the water. "Let's go now!"

Rainbow Dash finished licking her large sized ice cream cup and threw it in the trash. She got up and stretched herself. "Alright. Let's go have some fun on the beach. You're going to really enjoy your first time swimming in the ocean."

Rainbow Dash followed behind Scootaloo and Soarin' as they walked over to the stairs and headed down the wooden steps. Her hooves sunk into the warm sand and It felt good to be back on the beach. She smiled when she noticed Scootaloo playfully romping around in the soft sand next to Soarin'.

Scootaloo looked at the ground as they came across a stretch of sea shells. She listened to the crunching sounds as she stepped over the many shells. Most of them were plain and white, but one specific shell caught her eye. Scootaloo picked the shell up and studied its beauty.

Soarin' paused and looked at the shell as well.

"Hey, Scoots, what did you find? A bit?" Rainbow asked. She came closer when she saw how mesmerized Scootaloo had looked. There she saw a gorgeous sea shell. It had a purple color with some stripes on it, and in the center was what appeared to be a cross that seemed to have formed naturally on it. "What a nice shell you found."

"It's the prettiest thing I've seen," Scootaloo said. "The cross on it reminds me of Jesus."

"Maybe he made that shell just for you to find," Rainbow said. "He wants you to experience his beautiful creations and wants you to know how special you are."

"Can we keep it?" Scootaloo asked.

Rainbow Dash studied the shell and noticed that there was a hole at the top of the shell. "Keep it? Of course you can! That's a special gift just for you. I see that we could probably make some kind of necklace out of this, would you like to wear it? Perhaps our friend Rarity can help us make it into a really nice necklace."

Scootaloo nodded her head yes. "Yes, I would love that. Can you guys keep it safe for me? I don't want to lose it. It's so pretty."

"Sure, give it to me and I can put it in my one of my saddle bags where it will be safe," Soarin' said.

The little filly did so and Soarin' put it in a small compartment of his saddle bag and zipped it up.

Scootaloo stopped when she and Soarin' reached near the edge of the sand where it was wet. She placed her hoof in it as the water came rushing up towards her and splashed up against her chest. She giggled and then said, "It feels so funny to me." She turned around and asked, "Aren't you going to join us too, Rainbow?"

Rainbow really did want to go in, but she was exhausted. "Nah, you have fun with Soarin'. I think I'm going to relax here and watch you both."

"Well in that case, you can stay with my saddles bags as I go for a swim with Scoots," he said as he took them off. He opened one up and took out a towel and placed it on the sand.

"Thanks, Soarin'," she said as she laid down and got comfy. "You both go on and have some fun, I'll be chilling here and watching."

Soarin' looked down at Scootaloo and smiled. "Ready for fun? Let's run in together. Ready? Go!"

Rainbow Dash put her two front legs behind her head and laid back as she watched the two run into the water together. Her sunglasses fell over her eyes and she relaxed her body as the warm sun beamed down on her which helped relax her aching muscles. Nothing felt better than to lay there and feel the water coming up just high enough to splash against her back hooves that were dug into the sand. She watched Soarin' hold Scootaloo closely and each time a wave would come, she would jump over it. She could hear her laughing and having so much fun and even though Soarin' was with her, Rainbow still felt a sense of worry. She remembered that she was afraid of losing her in the crowds at one point earlier before they had dinner. Perhaps this was just the worry of a mother that she was experiencing. She just wanted to know and make sure that Soarin' and Scootaloo were both safe. She looked over at the life guard and read the meter on the side of his post. The sign had a warning message for dangerous tides today. Rainbow Dash started to wonder if perhaps they would be in possible danger and her mind began to worry a little bit more over the possibilities of something tragic happening, but as that happened, her mind also began to drift off to sleep and she quickly fell into a very deep sleep.

Rainbow Dash awoke when she heard a mare scream. She instantly looked over to where Soarin' and Scootaloo were playing. She didn't see them, but she saw that the water was red. She quickly looked around and found some ponies standing around Soarin' who was laying on his back. She noticed the trail of blood and saw that one of his legs was missing. "No!" she said to herself. She got up and ran over to him stumbling several times along the way. "What happened to him?" she yelled out.

"He was bitten by a shark," one of the ponies calmly said.

"What!?" Rainbow Dash asked. "Why are you acting all casual and are just standing around watching him suffer? He's going to bleed out if we don't get him some help." Rainbow Dash looked around frantically. Where's Scootaloo is she okay?"

The life guard slowly got off his post and walked over to her. "She got sucked up by the current and hasn't been seen since. I tried to save her but it was too late. You saw the sign that there were dangerous tides today," he said as he pointed to the sign. "You should have known better and should pay closer attention next time. She's probably long gone by now."

"No! I can't take this! Please tell me that this isn't..." Rainbow Dash felt something hit her head.

"Excuse me, sweetie. Lil' help here?" a voice called out.

Rainbow Dash jolted up, losing her sunglasses off her face. She instantly looked for Soarin' and Scootaloo. There she saw Scootaloo clung to Soarin's neck as he swam through the water. She put her hoof to her heart and sighed. "It was just a bad dream. Thank God it was just a bad dream."

"Excuse me, Miss!"

"Huh?" Rainbow turned and looked at the colorful beach ball next to her. She saw a pony waving at her and she quickly tossed the ball over to him.

"Thank you very much," the pony said as he picked up the ball and headed back to where his friends were.

Rainbow Dash picked up her sunglasses and placed them back on her face. She put her hoof to her head and wiped the sweat off. "I guess moms can worry in their sleep too," she said to herself as she watched Scootaloo and Soarin'. "When I am afraid, I put my trust in You," she whispered to herself. She watched Soarin' come out of the water with Scootaloo still hanging onto him. "Wow, you two are getting out already? Did you have fun?"

"Just getting out?" Soarin' asked. "We have been swimming for nearly an hour and the sun is about to set soon. I take it that you fell asleep. We had a lot of fun, right, Scootaloo?" he asked as he looked back at her.

"I've never experienced anything like that before. The waves felt so funny to me. It was awesome!" Scootaloo said. "I even saw a sting ray and some jelly fish!"

"Wow, I didn't realize I was asleep for that long. I'm so glad that you both had fun." Rainbow Dash looked over at a bunch of rocks that were leading into the ocean. "Should we go and sit on those rocks and watch the sunset? Soarin' and I would always watch it together when we came here."

"Okay," Scootaloo said.

Soarin' began walking along the side of Dash as the waves splashed up against there hooves.

"What's that moving rock? Scootaloo asked.

Soarin' stared at the rocks that they were traveling to. "I have no idea what you're talking about," he said.

"Watch out. You're going to step on it," Scootaloo said.

As Soarin' shuffled his front leg forward, he felt something hard hit his hoof. He looked down and saw what Scootaloo was talking about.

"What is that thing? It looks like some kind of alien," Scootaloo said as she watched the many legs on the creature move around, desperately trying grasp onto something.

"Oh, why that's just a horseshoe crab," Soarin' said. "Pretty neat, huh?"

"Why do they call it a horseshoe crab?" Scootalo asked. "Do horses or ponies wear them on their hooves?"'

"Of course not, silly. They get their name because their arc shaped carapace looks like a horseshoe." Soarin' pointed at the creature and continued. "See its long tail? Watch how she will use it to leverage herself in order to flip over."

Scootaloo watched as the horseshoe crab struggled greatly to flip over, but sure enough the creature did. "That thing is so weird but cool. It kind of looks like a tank. How do you know it's a female anyway and how often do they come out of the water?"

"Females are the bigger ones and she's just out here trying to attract a mate."

"So they are just like ponies," Rainbow said with a laugh.

"What do you mean by that?" Soarin' asked.

"Attracting a mate on the beach? Sounds like what most ponies come here to do as well."

Soarin' sighed. "I can't really argue with that, although I sure found the pony of my dreams here so I can't complain." Soarin' walked over to the rocks and placed his hoof on the slippery rock, testing to see if it would be safe enough to walked on. "We should probably fly to that large rock at the end. I know a few earth ponies and unicorns who aren't as fortunate to have wings when it comes to reaching that spot. A few of them slipped and cracked their heads open or broke the tip of their horns. I heard about some other bad incidents that happened here as well." Soarin' took off from the sand and flew over to a large rock and sat on it next to Dash. "Easy coming off, Scootaloo. These rocks can be very slippery."

Scootaloo carefully got off of Soarin' and sat in between them.

"What do you think of the sunset, Scoots?" Rainbow asked as she put her front leg around her and pointed to the sun with her other leg.

"They usually get me up early enough at the orphanage to see the sunset. I've watched it a few times before breakfast, but I've never seen anything like this before. The sky is so colorful and it's almost like a different world watching it from here. Being with my two most favorite ponies in this kind of environment is one of the best things to ever happen to me!"

"We're so happy that you're enjoying your day. We still have more to do and Rainbow Dash and I have an extra special surprise for you."

"I really can't imagine what other surprises you have for me. I'm just glad that I get a break from Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon."

"Whatever happened to those two that hurt you so badly anyway?" Soarin' asked.

"I really don't know," Scootaloo answered.

"They have been suspended for a long time and will be doing community work," Rainbow said. "I'm glad that no matter how much money Filthy Rich has, he couldn't get them out of trouble this time with it. I still think they deserve to be expelled."

"What's going to happen to Miss Cheerilee?" Scootaloo asked nervously.

Rainbow Dash sighed. "I don't know, squirt. I know you love that teacher so much but I don't know what's going to happen to her. She might be out for some time until this mess gets settled."

"It's not her fault," Scootaloo said. "It's just a shame that some ponies have to ruin such nice things like going outside to play or learn. I hope that she doesn't get taken away because Miss Cheerilee is the best teacher. I don't even want to go back to school if she's not there anymore."

Rainbow Dash noticed that Scootaloo was now getting a bit sad. "Well, let's not think about that right now. Today is your special day and we can talk about that later."

A smile crept onto Scootaloo's face. "Gee, you're right. Even though I'm getting tired and the day is almost over, I have had so much fun and I kind of don't want it to end since it's going to be sad when it's over."

Rainbow Dash put her hoof to the little filly's chest. "But you'll still have the memories to bring home with you and you also have that special seashell as a reminder of this day."

"That's true," the orange filly said and then fixed her attention back onto the sunset. Scootaloo sat in contentment as she watched the sun finish setting and the night time began to start. She thought about how wonderful everything was and even though she had a very traumatic experience with those two bullies, this experience made up for so many things that hurt her in her life. The little filly stared at what seemed to be an endless amount of ocean thinking about life and how blessed she was to have a pony like Rainbow Dash and Soarin' in her life. Those thoughts were interrupted when Rainbow Dash spoke.

"Well, kid, we should start moving now since it's getting dark. We still have yet to use up the rest of those tickets on the rides and we still want to show you some more cool stuff like the aquarium where you can pet sharks and sting rays. Sounds fun?"

Scootaloo nodded her head yes. "That was really the most beautiful thing Iv'e ever experienced," she said. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Soarin' said as he picked her up and placed her on Dash's back. "Dash and I have so many grand memories here and watching the sunset became a tradition for us whenever we came to visit this spot."

Soarin' and Dash took off and landed where they unpacked. They both got everything together and made their way off the beach just as it closed. They visited the aquarium and then finished up their time on the rides at night, with all of the pretty lit lights on the rides. They found themselves exhausted and back in the chariot, headed back home. Of course Rainbow Dash was beyond exhausted right now, but the big announcement was coming up and that was more than enough to keep her awake.

"So, did you enjoy your day?" Rainbow asked. "Was it the best day ever?"

Scootaloo held onto her new scooter and said, "I guess it was the second best day ever."

"Really?" Soarin' asked. "What could have been better than this?"

"The day that Rainbow Dash told me about Jesus."

"I can't argue with that," Rainbow said. "I'll never forget that day either or the day that I accepted Christ."

"Today really was amazing though," Scootaloo said as she thought about all of the wonderful memories. "I can't wait to tell Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle all about this day. I hope they won't be jealous." She pondered for a moment and added, "Have you ever taken Fluttershy to the beach before? I bet she'd find all those weird and unique animals very interesting."

"Oh," Rainbow Dash said with a chuckle. "We try to avoid taking Fluttershy to the beach because she kind of has a problem when it comes to taking new critters in and she got into a bit of trouble the last time she went. I could only imagine the trouble she'd get into if she visited the aquarium and wanted to take all the animals home with her. She'd probably want to bring home all those sharks and sting rays that you got to pet."

"Oh, I guess that makes sense," Scootaloo said. She perked up a bit and said with a more serious tone in her voice. "Thank you again for doing all of this for me. No pony has ever done anything this big for me before and it really means a lot to me. I don't think I'll ever forget how magical this day has been for me."

"Hey, you're so very welcome, Scoots. I already told you that you're a part of our family, literally."

"Literally?" Scootaloo asked. "I guess you're referring to our Sisters in Christ club."

"That too," Rainbow said.

Scootaloo was confused, but was too tired to think about what she really meant. Her day was far more exhausting and exciting than any Cutie Mark Crusader adventure that she had ever been on with her friends.

Back at the orphanage now, Scootaloo walked into her room with her scooter on her back followed by Dash and Soarin'. "Well, I guess it's time to go now. I haven't stayed up this late in a long time and I'm surprised I didn't get in trouble for being out for so long. Thank you so much for a great day," she said as she put her scooter under her bed and then turned around. She was surprised that Soarin' and Dash were both still standing in her room. Scootaloo scratched her head with her hoof and asked, "Don't you both have to go? Isn't it really late?"

Rainbow Dash came closer to Scootaloo and asked, "Did you get everything that you absolutely wanted today?"

Scootaloo put her hoof to her chin and thought about the question. She felt good right now, but there was still that one nagging wish that had not come true. The prayer that she prayed so often. She didn't know if perhaps her biggest heartfelt wish in life was asking for too much. She also didn't want to sound ungrateful by telling them that she had wished for something more. "Yes, it was a great day!"

Rainbow Dash cocked an eyebrow. "But what did you wish for on that night when I asked you to pray and wish for something that you really wanted?"

Scootaloo felt embarrassed and put her head down. "Well, I don't want to sound like a dummy and I'm really afraid to admit it since I already know what the answer is." Scootaloo picked her head up and looked at Rainbow. "Promise you won't get upset or think that I'm a bad filly for wishing what I wished for?"

"Scootaloo, you know that you can share anything with me, as well as Soarin'," Rainbow said.

Scootaloo bit her lower lip. "Well, um, I wished for the one thing that I always wish for every single night." Scootaloo looked at Soarin' and then back to Dash for a moment. "I want to go home and live with you both." She quickly put her head back down and stared at her hooves on the floor as if she expected them both to either laugh or think her wish was too great to ever happen. She stood there feeling very embarrassed about her confession.

"Consider your wish granted," Rainbow said as she slid a document across the floor in front of Scootaloo.

Scootaloo looked at the document and didn't understand. She then looked up when she heard the stomping of hooves in approval. She saw her aide just outside of the doorway who often came by to check on her and take care of her.

"Congratulations, Scootaloo!" her aide said. "You finally got your wish!"

Scootaloo looked down at the document for a moment and then looked back up. "Is that what this document means? I...." Scootaloo closed her eyes tightly and tried to fight back the tears that were already streaming down her face. She took some deep breaths and opened her eyes again. "I have a home and a family now!? With Rainbow Dash and Soarin'!?" she cried out loud. "You're both my....parents?"

Rainbow Dash began to cry herself. She knew that she would get emotional, but seeing the little filly like this quickly brought tears to her own eyes. She remembered how Pinkie Pie always preached that smiling was contagious, and she realized that crying was as well. She sniffled and wiped the tears from her face. She sat down on the floor and opened up her front legs, welcoming her. "Welcome home, Scoots. Welcome home," Rainbow said as tears streamed down her face as well."

Scootaloo raced over and hugged her hero as tightly as she could. "Mom! Mommy! I finally have the mom and dad that I've always been longing for! My dreams and prayers came true! Thank you, Jesus! Thank you!"

"Oh, gosh," Soarin' said as he looked at the aide and began to tear up himself. "I didn't expect her to react like this."

"She's such a good kid and always brought a smile to my face. You wouldn't believe how often she mentioned your names to me," the aide said as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "I love to make the effort to come and watch every single filly and colt get taken home. I'm not on the clock right now, but I wanted to stay around to see this. Out of the hundreds of ponies I have seen get adopted, nothing has been more touching than this particular one. It's like you were both made for her. I am really going to miss her, but she deserves two fine ponies like yourselves."

Rainbow Dash laughed after letting go of the little filly because Scootaloo still remained clung to her body. "Hey, squirt, I take it that you are really grateful, but you can let go of me now. It's pretty late and we still have to pack all of your stuff. We'll have plenty of time for more hugs later if you want, but right now we have to get going."

Scootaloo let go of her hero and looked around her room. "Oh, I just have a few pictures and posters to bring home with us. Let me get them now." Scootaloo raced over and carefully took down her Wonderbolt posters and placed them on the bed. She took out her scooter that she had recently put under her bed along with her helmet. Lastly, she took her favorite picture off of her nightstand next to her lamp. She stared at it and couldn't take her eyes off it. She would look at this picture first thing in the morning and at night right before bed. It was that special picture that Rainbow Dash had taken with her at the Wonderbolt's Academy.

"What are you staring at, Scoots?" Rainbow Dash asked as she walked over and looked at the picture. There she saw herself dressed up in her old Wonderbolt's uniform with her front leg around Scootaloo's neck. She had a grin on her face that made her look daring and ultra confident and Scootaloo was beaming with the greatest smile she had ever seen.

Scootaloo put the picture carefully on her bed and said, "I don't ever want to lose that picture. It's my most very favorite ever. You always look awesome to me, but when I see you wearing that Wonderbolt suit, I can't even describe how much more cool you look to me."

Rainbow Dash laughed. "That is a great picture and I have it in a picture frame as well. Maybe I'll put that suit on once again just for you." Rainbow Dash looked around the room. "So is that it? We have everything?"

Scootaloo nodded her head yes.

Soarin' came over with his saddle bags open and Rainbow Dash began carefully putting her things away along with her scooter. She gave Soarin' a slap on the back, signifying that she was all done. "Alright, kid. Let's go," Rainbow Dash said as she followed Soarin' out the door.

Scootaloo followed closely behind them. She paused to give her aide a hug goodbye. "Thanks for taking care of me."

"Oh, you are such a good filly. It was a pleasure being with you and taking care of you. I have never seen a filly as sweet as you. Please come back and visit me every so often. I'd love to hear how you're doing."

"I will! Thank you for being so kind to me. Take care!" Scootaloo said as she waved goodbye.

The aide smiled greatly as she watched the three leave the building. She knew that no doubt, Scootaloo was going to have an awesome family.

Outside, Rainbow Dash got low on the ground for Scootaloo to climb onto her back. "I can't wait to show you your new room. Soarin' spent a lot of his free time working on it."

Scootaloo hopped on her back and she and Soarin' took off back to their house.

"I still can't believe that this is all happening. Is this some kind of dream, Mom?"

Rainbow Dash laughed. "It's no dream, Scootaloo. This is all very real." She paused for a moment and added. "Me and Soarin' are cool parents though, so you can still call us by our real names whenever you want. I don't think I'll ever get used to being called Mom anyway."

"Coolest parents ever!" Scootaloo shouted. She looked up at the gorgeous night sky and saw a shooting star go by. "I don't need to make another wish, I already got it," Scootaloo thought to herself. "Let some other pony who is not as fortunate have it this time." She was so tired when she got back to the orphanage from this long day, but now, that fatigue was gone and the news shocked her mind. She felt so alive and happy as she held onto the neck of her hero. The wind blowing through her mane was always thrilling to her and she looked down at Ponyville. She couldn't see a single pony in the streets under the dimly lit glow of the street lamps. Scootaloo buried her face into Rainbow's mane and thanked Jesus many times in her mind with all her heart.

When they got home, Soarin' opened up the door and stepped inside. He walked upstairs with Dash and stood in front of a door for a moment before opening it. "I hope you like it. If not, we can change it around for you."

Scootaloo hopped off of Dash's back and walked in. "It's wonderful and....HUGE! This is like ten times bigger than my little room at the orphanage. It's the best room ever! Now I just need to put my posters up and it will be perfect!" Scootaloo opened up Soarin's saddle bag and took out her posters and pictures and placed them on her desk. "Want to help me find a good place for my posters and pictures?" Scootaloo asked.

"Actually, I think it might be a good time to do that tomorrow. It's very late, even for Soarin' and I and I assume that we don't have to keep an actual bedtime schedule for you since you're such a good filly, right?"

Scootaloo zipped over to her new bed and hopped right in. She pulled the covers up to her chin and grinned. "Nope! Good night!"

Rainbow Dash walked over and put her hoof on her shoulder. "That's my good little filly. I love you, kid and I hope you really like it here. I'll see you tomorrow for our first breakfast together as a family. Good night, Scootaloo." Rainbow Dash bent over and kissed the little filly on her forehead.

Scootaloo giggled. "Good night, Mom, I mean, Rainbow Dash! I love my new home and room here."

Rainbow Dash smiled and then left the room.

"Good night, Scootaloo," Soarin' said as he flicked the light switch off.

"Good night, Soarin'!" Scootaloo called out as Soarin' closed the door. The little filly grabbed another pillow that was on the side of her bed next to the wall. She rolled onto her side and squeezed it tightly in between her two front legs. This bed felt so much more comfortable and warmer than that old, stiff bed that she used to sleep on. Her heart was still racing with excitement from being in this brand new environment and she still felt the funny feelings from the force of the waves pushing against her body from swimming in the ocean. She didn't think she'd sleep despite all that she did today, but the warmth and softness of the bed relaxed her and she closed her eyes while drifting away to sleep as her racing heart slowed down. Tomorrow would be the start of a brand new day for her with her family.

We Are Here For Each other

Scootaloo woke up the next morning when she heard her name being called out softly. She opened up her eyes and rolled over to see Soarin' sitting on the floor looking over at her bed.

"Did you want to get up now or sleep later?" he asked.

Scootaloo sat up and hugged Soarin' "Good morning, Daddy!"

It was a little awkward to hear the name Daddy to Soarin'. It would probably take him some time to get used to being called that name. He thought of coming up with his own affectionate name for her, and to him, the color of her coat reminded him of a pumpkin. "Good morning, Pumpkin. Are you hungry?"

Scootalooo let go of Soarin' and her nostrils twitched as she sniffed the air. "Yes. What smells so good?"

"Pancakes," Soarin' answered. "You'd better get downstairs before they all disappear." Dash and, er, I meant your Mother and I are waiting."

"Let's go! I'm starving!" Scootaloo said. She then bounced herself out of her bed and raced downstairs. There she saw the kitchen table with three plates and what seemed like mounds of pancakes that nearly hit the top of the ceiling. "Mom!" Scootaloo cried out. She raced over and hugged Rainbow Dash.

"Hey, Scoots! I'm so glad that you're awake now. We are both very fortunate that I was able to keep Soarin' occupied with snacks because he would have eaten all of these pancakes by himself. It took me a very long time to make this, but I wanted to make something special for all of us on our first day together as a family. Go have a seat. There's a special gift that I had made for you."

Soarin' walked in and sat down at the table. "Try on your new necklace, Scootaloo. It looks really nice."

Scootaloo sat at her seat, in between Soarin' and Rainbow and looked at a sparkling necklace with a sea shell attached. At first she thought that it was a different shell, because it looked much more prettier, but then she saw the cross on the center of the shell.

Rainbow Dash took the necklace and put it around Scootaloo's neck. The two little magnets clicked together and Scootaloo looked down at her new, sparkling necklace.

"What do you think?" Rainbow asked.

"It's absolutely stunning," Scootaloo said as she stared down at it. "But how? How did you make it look so much better and so...." Scootaloo paused for a moment to think of a good word to use to describe what she saw. "Dazzling?"

"I didn't make it like that, Scoots. I simply took it to Rarity and she polished it up carefully and used her magic to make it all sparkly like that. She's pretty generous to take the time out of her busy day to do that for you."

"It really is amazing," Scootaloo said. "I can't wait to show Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom. I'm going to wear it every day because it has so much meaning to me."

"May we eat now?" Soarin' asked. He had his hoof just inches away from the plate that had the most amount of pancakes.

Rainbow Dash pushed over a small plate for Scootaloo and said, "Okay, we can eat." She sat there and watched the two ponies pig out within an instant. She wasn't feeling well, mainly because of what she put her body through at the arcade yesterday and she was exhausted from getting up early to see Rarity so that she could tell her the news and get that necklace made up, but here she was, still able to feel happy and enjoy the start of a brand new life together. No matter what might happen between the three of them, Scootaloo would be always worth it to her.

"Hey! Can we do some more fun and awesome things together, today?" Scootaloo asked with a mouthful of pancakes.

"I think we might be able to manage something," Rainbow said. "But I need a nap soon as I'm not used to being up this early any longer."

"But how come? I thought all Wonderbolts get up early and exercise."

"Eh, Scoots. This Wonderbolt is a little different now a days. Do you remember that talk we had a while ago about our disabilities when you surprised me with that wheelchair that you, Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom decorated for me?"

"Yes, but you're out of that wheelchair and flying again, so everything's all better, right?"

"I'm sorry, Scootaloo, but that's not so. I still have problems, and I hope you may understand that I'm not as outgoing and energetic as I used to be. I need lots of rest these days."

Scootaloo sunk low in her seat. "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. I thought you were all better by now. I'll always think you're the best though and nothing will ever change my mind."

"You're such a sweet kid, Scoots. Thank you for understanding." Rainbow Dash quickly finished her plate and said, "I think I need to take a nap right now, but when I wake up, we most certainly can go to the park and do something fun. Maybe you can play a video game with Soarin' until I wake up." Rainbow Dash got up out of her seat and walked into the bedroom. She fell face first onto her pillow and began to think to herself. She realized right then and there that if she were not suffering with her disabilities, then there would be no way in her mind that she'd ever consider having kids, whether adopted or not because she'd be too busy focusing on being the best Wonderbolt possible. She also realized the tipping point of her decision when it came to adopting Scootaloo. It was because of that traumatic incident with those two bullies that hurt Scootaloo very much. What happened to Scootaloo was terrible, but if that had not happened and her heart was not broken for Scootaloo in such a way, she may not have ended up adopting her, and now was the perfect time for it since Scootaloo would have both a mother and father in her life. It was all pretty crazy and she trusted the Lord to provide good things through some of her most terrible and darkest times. The warmth from the blankets relaxed her achy body and she quickly fell asleep, but that sleep was very soon disturbed when she felt something hit the back of her head. Rainbow Dash reached behind her head and grabbed the strange object. She then picked her head up off the pillow and brought the object in front of her eyes. She blinked a few times when she realized that it was a scroll with a little red ribbon tied around it. Rainbow Dash quickly opened it up and read the letter, "Dear Princess Rainbow Dash, there's no time to explain, but we need you to meet us at the library. Pinkie Pie is in trouble and I'd like all of us to be together for her. Your sister in Christ, Twilight Sparkle."

"Princess Rainbow Dash?" Rainbow thought to herself. "I guess she had written dear Princess so many times that it's engraved into her brain." Rainbow Dash decided not to dwell too much on that and got out of bed. She raced over to the living room where Scootaloo and Soarin' were playing a video game together.

"Up already?" Soarin' asked.

"Ready to go to the park, Mom?" Scootaloo asked.

"Not right now," Rainbow answered. "I just got a letter from Twilight about a rather urgent issue. I have to go visit her but we'll do something when I get back, I promise. You two have fun playing together."

Rainbow Dash left the house and flew down to the ground. She was too tired to fly at this moment since she was in need of a nap, so she decided to walk. She thought about what could be wrong with Pinkie Pie and wondered how she was doing. She hoped that it wasn't anything major or tragic since she recalled just how extra bizarre she was behaving from her last encounter with her.

Upon walking through Ponyville, she saw a familiar looking mare that caught her eye. The mare she was staring at had an amber colored coat and an orange colored mane and tail with a treble cleft for a cutie mark. She was also hammering a sign into the ground which was a large music note that advertised her business. Rainbow Dash knew she had to be somewhere, but she couldn't help but say something to this pony. "Hey there."

The mare turned around and greeted her. "Hi, my name is Melody. Are you interested in taking music lessons?"

"Actually, maybe one day, but you're the pony who I think gave lessons to my husband, Soarin', right?"

"Soarin'?" she asked. "Ah, yes, and you must be his wife he tells me about, Rainbow Dash."

"Yeah, that's me. I was really impressed with what he was able to do and I never knew he had that kind of talent in him. You must be a great teacher since he was able to learn so quickly."

"Soarin' worked very hard and he doesn't have a very good musical ear, but he was desperate to succeed and he kept telling me that you were the main reason why he kept wanting to improve and write his first song. He wrote most of that guitar solo himself, I just helped better it a bit."

"That's really amazing, he did work very hard at home whenever he could. Now I just need to get him singing lessons."

"That can be arranged as well," she said. "He told me that he wrote lyrics to his song, but I never heard him sing."

Rainbow Dash giggled. "Maybe that was for the better, but it was really adorable, regardless."

"Would you be interested in taking a tour of my home or trying out some of the guitars or other instruments? I just recently moved into Ponyville to start up my business."

Rainbow Dash looked toward the direction of Twilight's house for a moment. "Hm, I really should be going. I just wanted to stop by and tell you how impressed I am with Soarin'. I didn't know that you could teach an old dog new tricks."

"One is never too old to learn new things and with enough dedication and passion, you can do anything. Perhaps you both can take lessons together." The mare handed her a card with her information on it. "I don't want you to be late to where ever you have to go, but here's my card and I hope to see you and Soarin' again soon! Have a great day."

Rainbow Dash thanked her and then continued to walk to Twilight's house while thinking about how cool it might be to play guitar with Soarin' and maybe nickname herself, Rainbow Thrash. She turned a corner and was only one block away from Twilight's house when suddenly, a mare swooped down from the air and landed in front of her. It was Risk Taker and she greeted her with a warm hug.

"Rainbow Dash! I have been looking all over for you. How are you doing? How is your pain?"

Rainbow Dash answered, "Hi, Risk, my pain has been really bad lately and I still sleep a lot, but I'm really happy that Soarin' and I decided to adopt a filly that is close to both of our hearts. Her name is Scootaloo and she's had a rather difficult time in her life."

Risk seemed very upset that Rainbow was still suffering with great pain. She would spend long amounts of time in prayer every day for her, hoping and asking that Rainbow would be healed of her pain and would be given more energy. She especially felt bad because she was part of the reason why she was suffering. The orange Pegasus was happy to hear that she decided to adopt and congratulated her on that. "What a wonderful thing to do! I'm sure you'll be a great mother to her."

"I hope so," Rainbow said. She then thought about the news that she read in the paper and brought it up to Risk. "Did you hear that they caught Emerald Envy?"

"I was the one responsible for tracking her down and turning her in. It was quite a battle and she tried to get away, but she couldn't run forever."

"Wow," Rainbow said. "How did you know where to find her?"

"I guess I never told you this before, but Emmy told me she was going to flee to Manehatten in hopes to escape authority right after her plan to get you hurt. I didn't know where exactly she'd be, but I was a close friend of hers at one point and I was able to guess the most realistic place she'd be hiding. The whole thing was insane, and the guards found that she had written plans to hurt others. I'm so glad that she's not a threat to anypony else, but I really hope that she can change." Risk paused for a moment. "Just like me."

"There's always hope," Rainbow answered. "We can't give up representing what is good and showing kindness and compassion." Rainbow Dash became curious about her friend and asked. "So where have you been? I haven't seen you in a while."

"I was wondering the same thing about yourself. I used to see you roaming the streets of Ponyville, but I guess I haven't seen you lately because you're in so much pain and you said that you have been sleeping a lot more. I spend much of time writing friendship letters to Princess Celestia and visiting Manehatten. I started attending church services in that building that was formerly a place called Unbridled. I am considering moving into an apartment near that building."

"Oh, gosh," Rainbow thought to herself. That building used to be the most vile and unmentionable place in that entire city where Rarity once fell victim to money and prostituted herself for riches. "I remember Princess Celestia saying something about that place becoming a church, but why exactly do you want to go there?"

"I feel like that city has the most unbelieving ponies there and I feel called to go and share my story. I'm still going to come visit Ponyville often and talk to you and Twilight, please don't think I'm just going to forget about you."

Rainbow realized that there was a someplace where she had to be and it was kind of an emergency. "That all sounds wonderful and everything, and I'm really glad to bump into you, but I sort of have an emergency and I have to be somewhere."

"Oh, I have to go visit the Princess very soon anyway. I'm just so happy that I got to talk to you again and I'll try to make some time to visit you." Risk turned and was about to leave but turned around and asked, "Hey, Rainbow?"

"Yes?"

"Please feel better, I hate knowing that you're still suffering and I pray everyday for you."

"I don't think I can control that, but I have all the love I need from my husband and from friends like you. It's a little crazy when I think about it, but a lot of good things happened because of my sufferings. Never count out God to take something terrible and use it for good later on."

"Amen," Risk said and then left.

Rainbow Dash continued on her way, hoping that whatever the problem was, it was not major and her spending time talking with Risk wouldn't make matters worse. There she saw in the distance, Twilight's library with all her friends, minus Pinkie, standing in a circle discussing matters in front of Twilight's house.

"Hey girls, I'm here," Rainbow said while making herself a part of the circle.

"Well, it took ya long enough," Applejack said. "I think we all expected ya to be the first one here bein' that yer so fast and everythin'."

"Yeah, well, I got caught up into a conversation on my way here. I know this is an emergency and I'm sorry about being a bit slow. Where's Pinkie anyway? Is everything okay?"

Twilight answered her, "Apparently not. Mister Cake sent me a letter telling me that Pinkie Pie has really spiraled downhill with her mental well being and got into major trouble on the job. He said that he's sending her on her way to me."

"Was there a reason why you sent that letter to me in my bed? I mean, how did you know that I'd happen to be there at that moment?" Rainbow asked.

"Well," Twilight said awkwardly. "I figured you'd be there maybe because of Soarin'. I just hope I didn't interrupt any, um, private business between you two."

"Figures you would think that," Rainbow slyly said. "But thankfully, I was just trying to take a nap. I did think it was quite humorous how you wrote to me as Princess in the letter."

"I did?" Twilight asked.

"She wrote to me as Princess too," Rarity said.

The rest of her friends agreed that they all got letters saying Princess.

"Whoops," Twilight said. "I guess my mind was racing so much when I heard the news that I wasn't thinking very clearly and I usually write to the Princess about serious matters."

Twilight and her friends waited outside for Pinkie without saying much more. They were worried for her and said a prayer together for their troubled friend. When they finished their prayer, they looked and saw her coming towards Twilight's house with her head hanging low. Pinkie walked up within a few feet of them and then stopped.

Her friends waited for her to say something but she did not speak. They simply stared at her awkwardly, but nothing was said.

Twilight looked at her friends nervously and realized that she was probably better off making the first move. Twilight pawed nervously at the ground and then broke the silence. "So, Pinkie. Long time I guess." She waited for a response but there was none. "Um, how are you?"

Pinkie Pie sighed and put her head even lower to the ground, her nose almost touching the dirt. "Fine," she said in a tone of voice that spoke of great apathy.

Twilight continued. "Mister and Misses Cake told me that you were having problems and..."

Pinkie Pie fumed and the anger took over her mind. She picked her head up and shouted, "I'm fine and there are no problems in my life!"

Twilight and her friends stepped back a bit when they noticed that Pinkie's coat had turned from pink to crimson red.

Rarity blinked a few times and asked, "Is Pinkie's coat a completely different color or have I had one too many glasses of wine to drink today?"

"Pinkie's coat is definitely a different color right now," Twilight admitted.

"Huh?" Pinkie looked at her front leg and noticed that the shade of her coat was very different. "It's probably just how the light is reflecting off my coat. You should have probably thought of that since you're supposed to be so smart with your science facts."

Twilight felt a little bit insulted at Pinkie's calloused remark. "Pinkie, that doesn't make sense. Your coat wouldn't turn into a different color just because of the sun light and..."

Pinkie Pie cut her off and her coat became even darker. "Don't you dare tell me that I'm wrong. My coat is fine and you're all delusional." The crazed mare's breathing became very heavy and she looked as if she was about to snap at any moment.

Fluttershy was cowering behind Applejack, afraid of this never before seen Pinkie Pie.

Pinkie Pie fumed at her friends. "You know, I thought my friends really cared about me at first, but I can clearly see that all you are interested in doing is judging me and criticizing everything about me! It's no wonder I left you all in the first place. Maybe I'll just turn and go home now!"

Rainbow Dash stepped forward and was about to say something, but Twilight put her hoof to her side and whispered, "You'd better let me handle this one just to be safe." Twilight looked back to Pinkie who was boiling with rage and animosity. She had about a hundred Bible verses going through her mind about anger, but she decided that perhaps it would be sagacious to not quote any Bible verses because she saw that Pinkie Pie was overly sensitive to the slightest bit of criticism. "I apologize, Pinkie. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings and criticize you in a negative way. Your coat is fine and you look great. It looks like you've been working out quite a bit." Twilight gave the biggest forced smile in hopes to make Pinkie forget about her anger. A soft squeeing sound happened when Twilight smiled. For ponies sometimes made squeeing sounds like that of a rubber ducky being squeezed when they smiled. She was hoping that Pinkie would think that she was trying to be kind, truthful and not sound like a cutie mark kisser.

Pinkie Pie's breathing started to calm down and her coat slowly turned back into the regular pink color. She regained her senses once more and answered, "Thanks, I guess. And yeah, I have been going back to the gym, especially since my usual work out at home ins't working. I used to be able to workout my abs by leaning against my bed and laughing as I watched comedy movies, but they don't make me laugh anymore for some reason." Pinkie paused for a moment and asked, "So what do you want from me?"

"Mister and Misses Cake said that you were coming to visit us today and that perhaps you were...." Twilight Sparkle thought very hard of how she wanted to word this since Pinkie was so easily angered and agitated by how things were worded. "Well, uh, please do not take this in any negative way, but Mister Cake said that you haven't been the same lately and he wanted us to talk to you about it to see if we can help you first before seeking other alternatives."

Pinkie Pie felt a small burst of tension in her body and she was angry since she had already told them that everything was fine, but she could no longer hide the lie that she was living behind because the hurt was too great. "I-I-I get angry sometimes," Pinkie admitted in a remorseful tone of voice. "And so many times, while I'm in the house, the oxygen goes off and I can't breathe, but somehow I don't die. It's really weird."

Twilight's mind attempted to figure out what on earth she meant by turning the oxygen off. "Hmmmm. Anything else? We haven't seen you in such a long time."

"Yeah," Pinkie sighed. "I don't really sleep anymore and my body feels like it's going to shut down, so I've been spending as much time as possible at the gym just to make sure that I don't die since you said that exercise was good for me a while back. I seem to be constantly afraid of dying at any moment and often have random thoughts of terrible ways that I might die, even though I also have frequently brief, but very intense moments where I want to kill myself when I get upset. I also have so much trouble remembering things and I can't read anymore because I don't have any focus. I often feel like I'm becoming dumber and my mind is slowly starting to become erased. It's almost like my mind and body feels like it will..." Pinkie paused for a moment to think of the word she wanted to use. "A trophy?"

"Atrophy!" Twilight said. Twilight's mind began connecting the pieces of information that was given to her. "Do go on, I'm interested in hearing more. Is there anything else odd that's going on in your life that you feel comfortable telling me about?"

"Yeah, I get these really crazy heart races and sometimes it's hard to get settled down for bed. I have to spend at least three to four hours a day exercising strenuously for just a chance of getting some sleep. I also had to go back to the dentist because this filly destroyed all her fillings because I grind my teeth so much. Apparently, I'm not aware of doing it." Pinkie pie looked at Twilight who seemed to be very deep in thought. "What are you thinking about, Twi?"

Twilight blinked a few times when she suddenly realized what Pinkie was going through. "That's it!"

"That's what?" Pinkie asked.

"Pinkie, do you remember how we always used to kind of joke about how you were manic and everything?"

Pinkie Pie nodded her head yes. "Uh-huh."

"Well, I think you have gone into the down side of being manic and it seems like you are describing symptoms of having a mixed state. Remember how I always admonished you that the highs in life you experienced would eventually come crashing down?"

"Yeeeeeeees," Pinkie Pie said sounding slightly annoyed again.

"It sounds like you have finally hit that stage where you need a little help and I know exactly what to do to fix you up!" Twilight said with excitement. "I have been waiting to use this medicine for a long time."

"Since when do you know anything about medicine?" Pinkie asked. "I thought you were supposed to only know about the Bible."

Twilight laughed. "You know that science fascinates me just as much as theology, especially since I used to study and practice chemistry in school. Learning about nearly anything is fun to me. You fit the criteria perfectly from what you have described to me and chances are, if it looks like a duck, if it waddles like a duck, and if it quacks like a duck, then there's a really good chance that it's a duck. In other words, it's really obvious to me what you're going through and rectifying this little problem should be a very simple task for me."

Pinkie Pie frowned. "You can't be an expert at everything, Twilight, and I don't need medicine. I already know what the problem with me is and how to fix it."

"Do tell," Twilight said.

"I'm demon possessed and I'm going to find somepony who can perform an exorcism and get me feeling normal again."

Twilight bit her lip hard. She forgot that Pinkie thought about things quite differently. "Pinkie, I really don't think you are demon possessed. It's really obvious that you're bipolar and have very high anxiety with the heart racing, feelings of suffocating, near constant fear of death, obsessive compulsions with the exercise, rapid mood cycles."

"I'm not bipolar!" Pinkie shouted. "And if I am, it's not that bad. I know that a demon must have entered my mind during my sleep because I have been having bad dreams lately."

Twilight saw that she wasn't going to convince her friend so she decided to make a little deal with her. "Okay, Pinkie, how about this? You let me fix you up a little something special and if that doesn't work, then we can go find somepony who would be willing to perform an exorcism on you. Deal?"

"No!" Pinkie said. "I don't need your help. In fact, God helps those who help themselves!"

Twilight sighed. "You know that quote is no where in the Bible, Pinkie, and the Bible clearly shows us that God helps those who cannot help themselves."

"Well, I don't want it!"

Applejack was getting tired of listening to Pinkie rejecting her friend's help. "Hey, listen, Pinkie! Yer crazy and ya need to shut yer trap and just take the dern medicine that Twilight has fer ya! Quit bein' such a pain in the flank! Ya almost as bad as that time when ya were diabetic and I had to literally drag ya to the farm!"

Twilight wished she had an apple to stuff into Applejack's mouth right now, but she had none. She simply put her hoof to her face and whispered, "Applejack, I really don't think your brutal honesty is wanted right now, perhaps it's best to be silent."

The words from Applejack seemed to pierce through Pinkie Pie's mind and caused her great anguish. Pinkie Pie growled like a rabid dog and her coat rapidly turned back to that dark shade of red. She stared at Applejack with rage and slowly drew her hoof across the ground as a million negative thoughts flooded her mind.

"Perhaps ya just need a good kick in the flank again," Applejack said.

That did it. That last comment sent Pinkie into a frenzied rage and her mind had snapped. Without even thinking, she lunged at what was now her enemy in her mind. Pinkie Pie sunk her hoof into Applejack's left cheek.

Applejack and her friends stood there stunned for a moment that Pinkie would ever do something violent like this, especially to her own friend and sister in Christ.

Pinkie Pie attempted to wrestle Applejack to the ground and surprisingly, she almost knocked her down since she was much stronger from exercising so much, but Applejack was still stronger and managed to push her down to the ground.

Pinkie Pie found herself looking up at Applejack and kicked all four legs up into her chest as hard as she could.

"Stop!" Twilight yelled out. "Stop, Pinkie!"

The other ponies gathered around closer except for Fluttershy, she made sure to keep her distance because she was terrified. The ponies began to shout at the struggling pink mare. They eventually had to pin her legs down to the ground to prevent her from hitting Applejack.

Pinkie tried to move her legs but couldn't, so she resorted to biting Applejack's leg as hard as she could.

"Son of an onion!" Applejack cried out. She shook her leg in an attempt to free herself from the clenched jaws of Pinkie, but doing so only made her bite harder, like a savage wolf. Applejack was surprised at how hard she could bite and didn't expect it to hurt this much. She figured that perhaps Pinkie's jaw was so strong because she could practically talk the legs off an iron pot. "Pinkie Pie, let go, or I'm seriously gonna let ya have it."

The mad mare growled and clamped down even harder.

Applejack couldn't take the pain anymore. She raised her other hoof and slammed it into Pinkie's face but it was not enough to free herself. Applejack hit her again and again and the third hit finally forced Pinkie to let go. Applejack pulled her front leg back and looked at it.

Twilight looked at her friend's leg that was now starting to swell up. "Applejack, you might want to ice that. It looks pretty bad."

"I'll be okay, but golly! Pinkie Pie may be right all along. She must have a demon inside her! I ain't ever seen a pony so out of control before."

Twilight turned back to Pinkie and saw that she was dazed and sobbing softly. Pinkie had never been hit that hard in her life before and Applejack hadn't nearly used as much force as she could have on her.

"What should we do with her," Rainbow asked while still pinning Pinkie down.

Twilight looked at Applejack's leg and then back to Pinkie's face. "I think that two ponies need to come inside and get some ice therapy first. Pinkie looks pretty out of it. Would you carry her in, Rainbow?"

Rainbow was a little bit afraid that she might snap again and bite her, but she obeyed Twilight's request and scooped her up in her front legs.

Twilight followed the other ponies into her home while taking notice of Applejack's limp.

Spike stood there dumbfounded as he looked at Pinkie Pie's bruised face. "What happened?" he asked. "I thought I heard arguing outside as I was cleaning the kitchen."

"No time for questions now, Spike. Pinkie got into a little scuffle with A.J. and we need two ice packs now."

Rainbow Dash set Pinkie down on the floor and then sat next to her.

Rarity, Applejack, and Fluttershy sat down next to the two ponies, but Fluttershy still kept her distance a bit because she was afraid of Pinkie. What she saw traumatized her a bit.

Twilight sighed and said, "Okay, please make sure the library stays in one piece. I'm going to work on something that I have been preparing for a very, very long time. I won't be too long, really." Twilight walked over to a door nearby and ventured down into the basement hoping that Pinkie wouldn't cause anymore trouble. She was also a bit afraid because Pinkie wasn't a normal pony and seemed to defy logic and science. She remembered that one time when she tried to figure out how her Pinkie senses worked, but that only ended in utter failure and acceptance that she couldn't always have an explanation for everything. This new problem seemed to be much more like an easier fix and she only hoped that Pinkie, as odd and sometimes scientifically impossible to explain, would be able to benefit from her solution that she had in mind.

Spike had come back with the ice packs and gave them to the wounded ponies. "So what exactly happened?" he asked with curiosity and concern.

Pinkie Pie dropped the ice pack and lost control over her emotions. This time, her coat was a dark shade of pink and her mane and tail fell flat. "Twilight is going to send me to the pillow room and lock me up for good because I'm the anti-Christ and I don't know why, but I hate you all so much sometimes! Jesus doesn't love me anymore and I'm going to die and go to Hell for what I've done. I'm the worst kind of Christian imaginable and I don't even consider myself a Christian anymore!"

"Whoa, Pinkie," Rainbow said. "Slow down for a moment. I'm so sorry you are having a really difficult time with your emotions, but Twilight is not going to throw you in the looney bin and Jesus certainly still loves you, just like the rest of us."

"But why? Why do I have such agonizing thoughts that do not leave my mind? The words play over and over in my mind that I am the anti-Christ and the thoughts are so strong that it's almost like I can hear it audibly, but I know I'm truly not hearing it. Nothing else makes sense other than that God allowed a demon to enter my mind and take over my body. I'm just so afraid of dying right now and my heart feels like it's going to pound out of my chest. Dashie, don't let me die. I don't want to die right now." Pinkie Pie clung to her friend's body shaking and sobbing.

Rainbow Dash was a bit nervous that Pinkie was still unpredictable and could resort to being violent again, but she hugged her friend regardless. "Pinkie, I do not know why you have these problems. I wish God would take away my psychical pain and other problems in my life, but we all have something broken in us. There's no nice way to put it. We are all broken in some way and just because we may suffer and fail in different areas in our lives doesn't mean that God will love us any more or any less. Even if you truly stepped away and renounced your faith in Christ, we would still love you the same." Rainbow Dash paused for a brief moment and added, "You do know that, right?"

Pinkie Pie picked her head up and smiled. "No, I didn't, or at least I forgot. I thought you hated me, Dashie."

"When did I ever hate you, Pinkie?"

"It all started when I wanted to hang out with you, but you said that you didn't have time and that you had to go shopping instead of spending the day with me. I took that as a made up excuse and believed that you didn't like me anymore."

Rainbow Dash remembered that day. "Honestly, Pinkie, I really did have a busy day and I couldn't hang out with you, but if I knew you were going through this, I would have made sure that I would have spent time with you as soon as I possibly could. You told me that you didn't want to see me again after I told you that I was busy anyway."

Pinkie Pie thought about this for a moment. "You're right, I did say that. And I only said that because I felt so deeply rejected and hurt that you couldn't hang out with me. Again, I don't understand where this anger comes from, but I'm not even angry at this moment. Right now, I'm just terrified and very sad at what I have become. I remember how you warned me before that I was becoming something different and I see that I have become like a monster. I'm so confused and I don't understand anything."

Rainbow Dash picked up the ice pack and put it over Pinkie's swollen eye. "Pinkie, relax. You hit a bump in the road but we're going to be here to help you recover. You don't have to understand anything right now."

"But I feel so bad, what should I do?"

"Right now, I think it's best that you show a little bit of love to Applejack," Rainbow suggested.

Pinkie Pie felt very guilty at this point. This was the second time that she had lashed out at Applejack. "Applejack, you don't have to forgive me, but I'm very sorry. I don't think I can forgive myself. I must have hurt you pretty badly."

Applejack sighed. "Eh, I've been through a heck of a lot worse. I don't know what yer goin' through, but yeah, I forgive ya. Don't feel bad bout it."

"Thanks, Applejack. I don't know what overcame me," Pinkie said. "You're right though, I should have just shut up and listened to Twilight."

"Well, I'm pretty sure Twilight's goin' to figure out what's been causin' ya to tick like that."

The door had opened and Twilight came out hovering a glass bottle and placed it on a table near them. She then went into the kitchen and came back with a glass of water. "Here, Pinkie," Twilight said as she levitated over a capsule and a glass of water. "I made this up for you; It should really help you out."

Pinkie Pie sniffed the pill and then frowned. "But I don't want to take medicine," she admitted. "Why can't you all pray for me right now and ask God to heal my mind?"

"We do pray for you, Pinkie. But praying alone without doing anything else is not a good idea," Twilight said. "It reminds me of the ponies who think they can give out Bibles to the poor without any food or water, as if that deed alone will solve all of their problems in life and make their hunger and thirst go away."

"So you're suggesting that we don't give Bibles to the poor anymore?" Pinkie asked.

"No, don't get me wrong. They do need Bibles, but they also need clothes, food, water and shelter. Similarly, you need prayer and medicine together or else really bad things are bound to happen with you. I have seen and read enough reports from Mister and Misses Cake about your behavior."

"There has to be another way around this rather than drugging me. How do I know that you know what you're doing when it comes to this? You're not a professional Doctor."

"Do you have to be a professional mathematician to know math?" Twilight asked.

"No." Pinkie replied. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Then how do you know that one plus two equals three? Why not say something ridiculous like if you add one and two, you get twelve since those two numbers next to each other would make that number? Why does one plus two equal three, Pinkie?"

Pinkie Pie put her two front hooves to her head in frustration. "Twilight, stop. You're hurting my head. I don't know why it equals three. I guess it's because everyone agrees and that's what my school taught me. I still don't think messing with medication is something you should be doing. Don't treat me like some kind of lab rat that you can test on."

"Pinkie, didn't you get into enough trouble already? The Bible is my top priority of study, but that doesn't mean I can't know anything else aside from that. I used to study chemistry for many years before I took more interest in the scriptures. This won't hurt you. It would be scientifically impossible for this to cause you any harm. In fact, what I put in here might be considered fake homeopathy bull among medical doctors. If I were to hand you over to real medical doctors, they would give you things that would most likely be quite harmful. There are sadly no safe and natural treatments that would be effective for what you suffer with except for one very specific treatment." Twilight looked at the pill briefly and smiled.

"But what's in it?" Pinkie asked. "How do I know you're not secretly angry with me and are going to make me take something that might kill me?"

Twilight was rather disappointed that she was not being trusted. "Amino acids aren't going to kill you. Look, I have L-Tryptophan in here to help calm you down and improve your mood as well as Taurine to help your racing heart, which is also an antioxidant that supports neuro and cardiovascular function. There's also some Lithium which is found in even the purest of natural spring waters and is the most effective weapon we have against many mental disorders."

"Lithium!?" Pinkie Pie shouted out. "That stuff is dangerous! I heard they give that drug out to ponies who are really crazy."

"Didn't you hear me say that it's all natural and found in the purest of spring waters?" Twilight asked.

"Yeah, but arsenic and lead is also natural too," Pinkie said.

Twilight frowned at Pinkie Pie's wise ass remark. She knew that she was afraid and such an ignorant statement only proved how little she knew about medicine. Twilight sat down on the floor and smiled warmly at her skeptical friend. "How about I give you some science facts, and really good reasons to take what I'm offering you?"

Pinkie Pie's anxiety was very high and she put her head down and sighed. She knew that having a scientific discussion with Twilight would leave her feeling confused and overwhelmed since Twilight really enjoyed going deep into discussions like these. It was one reason why Rainbow Dash would playfully call Twilight an egg head sometimes. She began to think of some way out of this conversation, but nothing came to her mind.

Twilight waved her hoof in front of Pinkie's face. "Pinkie? Hello? Would you like to hear what I have to say?"

Pinkie Pie snapped out of her trance-like stare and then slowly nodded her head yes.

Twilight put her hoof back down to the floor and smiled. "Now, what is your major fear about taking lithium?"

"I don't want to take any drugs; they scare me."

"Well, you are in luck because lithium is not a drug."

"It's not?" Pinkie asked.

Twilight shook her head no. "Nope, unless you are going to classify foods, minerals, and vitamins as drugs, then yes, but it's not what you're most likely thinking about , and I can give you a little more insight about why I am so captivated by this widely misunderstood mineral." Twilight cleared her throat. "Let's talk a little bit about this substance first and why I am fascinated by it. Lithium is not a drug as I stated before. It's a mineral that belongs to the same family as sodium and potassium and is one of the most misunderstood minerals in existence. It's used for treatment of OCD, bipolar, schizophrenia, Lyme disease, depression and despite all of these new drugs that come out every year, lithium is still the number one suicide prevention medicine. It protects the brain from dozens of different offensive chemicals and toxins, both synthetic and naturally occurring. Now there is much confusion because other forms of Lithium such as citrate or carbonate are potent forms that gives potentially severe and damaging side effects due to the extremely high doses. They are not well absorbed and thus need to given in much greater doses making them toxic to the body."

A fly buzzed by Pinkie's face, but her attention was locked on Twilight which spoke volumes that Twilight's words had her captivated.

Twilight noticed the serious look on Pinkie's face and how the fly didn't distract her. "Now, you told me before that you have deep concerns that you feel as if you're getting dumber and your mind is slowly being erased over time, correct?"

Pinkie Pie nodded her head yes. "I really believe that I'm going to develop Alzheimer's disease. I keep forgetting so many things, even just seconds after I was told to do something and that makes me feel the need to check things over and over again. It really eats up my time and I feel as if I can never be too certain that I did something right or have everything that I need."

"A good example of what Alzheimer's is really like is not forgetting your keys to the house, but forgetting how to use them to open the door. I understand that forgetfulness is a concern and why you might be afraid of developing Alzheimer's judging from your examples."

"I just don't want to end up forgetting who I am or how to breath," Pinkie said glumly.

"Then it might interest you that healthy ponies take it for anti-aging and brain health. Lithium prevents brain cell death and stimulates production of new brain cells. Back in the old days of medicine, something like that was believed to be impossible and quackery. We have come a long way in understanding the science behind this. The right amount can be healing and the wrong amount can be dangerous. As I said before, therapeutic doses of citrate and carbonate have very low bioavailabilty which means they are poorly absorbed by the body's cells. Pharmaceutical citrate and carbonate lithium can include a whole list of unwanted side effects such as frequent urination, thirst, nausea, hoof tremors, vomiting, and in even worse cases, drowsiness, muscular weakness, poor coordination, ringing in the ears, and blurred vision. Kidney damage and hypothyroid are very likely to occur and that's actually listed as a warning insert on the box or inside the packets. I have even heard cases of ponies who began to have major problems with their vision while taking these forms of lithium."

Pinkie Pie bit her lower lip. "So what form of lithium do you propose I take?"

Twilight closed her eyes proudly and shouted, "Orotate!" Twilight then put her hoof to her mouth when she realized how loud she must have sounded because the inner nerd inside of her was so enthusiastic. In a much softer voice, she continued. "Orotate in a supplement form has a much better bioavailabilty profile as well as greater intracelluar absorbability. Severe depression can be treated by only one hundred and fifty milligrams of orotate compared to nine hundred to one thousand eight hundred milligrams of carbonate or citrtrate. That's a HUGE difference and there's no need to monitor blood levels for toxicity at orotate's dose. And since you mentioned your fear of developing Alzheimer's disease, lithium will improve symptoms of Alzheimer's disease and it may also prevent latent Alzheimer's disease from manifesting. One of the toxins believed to contribute to Alzheimer's is the heavy metal aluminum and orotate will protect the brain from the negative effects of aluminum. This is powerful yet safe stuff.

"That sounds a bit....too good to be true," Pinkie admitted.

"I agree with you! It's a miraculous medicine! Listen, schizophrenia, depression, manic depression, multiple personality disorder and OCD have been disparaged as personality problems or character flaws and are sometimes blamed on the patient as well as many other real disabilities which is horribly wrong and flat out lazy. Many of these mental illnesses are not bizarre personality variances but instead are the result of poisoning with very common toxins found in nature and industrialized society. I'm saving you from the ghastly side effects of brain chemistry altering drugs that have been known to make problems worse and cause other ponies to snap and kill themselves or other ponies. We are talking about ponies who were using common pharmaceutical grade anti-depressants and anti-psychotics, most of them prescribed by a medical doctor and all of them come with warnings about crazy and life threatening problems that can happen because of using these drugs. It's even crazier and more risky when you go to a doctor seeking help and they start throwing in multiple anti-depressants together or combining other drugs with them, which is very common and there have never been any safety studies done for that. I know quite a few ponies who are on up to four different anti-depressants at once and even if the patient feels worse, they will sometimes keep upping the dosage or adding more drugs which causes a snowball effect of health problems." Twilight put her hoof on Pinkie's shoulder and continued. "I don't want that to happen to you and I'm sure that's a road that you don't want to venture down. God forbid if they were to know that you attacked Applejack in the way that you did, they truly would throw you into the pillow room and give you some of the most dangerous mixtures of drugs, and I'm not simply saying that to use fear tactics on you in order to get you to comply with what I want you to take. This is the truth and I want you to be well and safe, both physically and mentally. There are terrible treatment plans in both the mainstream medical practices and also in the alternative medical practices."

PInkie Pie, feeling overwhelmed and confused by all of this information started to cry again.

Twilight wiped a tear away from Pinkie's face and then slowly dragged her hoof down her cheek as she spoke softly to her. "The truth can be so hard to find, but if you look hard enough, you can cut through the nonsense and find what is right and what is good for your mind and body. I know you are afraid, but nopony wants to see you suffer and we are all here together for you, Pinkie. Do you understand me?"

Pinkie Pie sniffled and nodded her head yes.

"I don't mean to be rude and interrupt," Rarity said. "But if this kind of lithium is so good compared to all these pharmaceutical drugs, then how come medical doctors don't use what you're giving Pinkie?"

"This can be a very long discussion topic, but I'll spare you the time and give you the too long; didn't read answer. Everything can be summed up with one simple motive for the big pharmaceutical industry. Money. Doctors are going to give out drugs from the big drug companies because there is much more money to be made and they are trained and pressured to do so without thinking about the consequences of the patient or any better alternatives or traditional medicines that's been used for thousands of years. It's a very sad thing and I think that most doctors truly start off with good intentions, wanting to help ponies, but are eventually forced to give in to a broken system that cares for profit over good health and wellness. I believe some of them want to treat sick ponies with other methods, but can't because doing so would greatly put their profession at risk. You always hear stories about how doctors refuse to take certain treatments for themselves and their families, but have no issues with giving these same controversial treatments to other ponies. I still practice and preach what still should be preached today but is sadly long forgotten among the medical establishment. Thou shall first do no harm and also another statement I think A.J. might strongly agree with, let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine by thy food."

"Amen!" Applejack said. "There's almost never a time when I git sick 'cause I got the best food a pony could ever ask fer! I drink my raw eggs and some apple cider vinegar every mornin'!"

"That's so unkind and terrible," Fluttershy said.

"And I'm sure it wouldn't surprise you that big drug companies torture and destroy countless critters with pointless tests in order to avoid law suits for when ponies get injured or killed by these drugs that still to this day, do not have an effect as powerful or give any potential curing as the stuff we have been using for ages."

Fluttershy could not say anything because the information had upset her so much.

"Soooooo," Twilight said after a brief moment of silence. "Back to what I was preaching before, lithium orotate improves mood, memory, motivation, aggressive feelings, fatigue, headaches, and other mental functions with a tiny amount." Twilight turned to Rainbow and said, "It also may help those with fibromyalgia pain and it is used to help those with viral co-infections." Twilight levitated the pill near her face and smiled as she studied it closely. "I'm really excited to see how this will impact you being that you're Pinkie Pie and everything. I also plan to treat your sleep problems because I know that sleep is usually a huge issue for ponies with mania. Five-Hydroxytryptophan, melatonin, and some other natural supplements come to mind. We need to promote healthy sleep by supporting and maintaining melatonin, GABA, and serotonin levels. I'm also sure we can pick up some good teas like Valerian Root and Passion Flower to help you settle down even more at night. Your circadian rhythm is probably so out of whack." Twilight looked back to Pinkie and asked, "Would you like me to go a bit deeper into the science of this or are you convinced?"

"Uh, I'm good," Pinkie said knowing that Twilight could perhaps talk about this stuff until her jaw fell off.

Twilight smiled as she approached her friend with the medicine "Great! You can take one now."

Pinkie Pie backed up against the wall and dropped the ice pack she was holding. "I'll take it under once circumstance."

"What circumstance would that be?" Twilight asked feeling extremely disappointed that her science talk wasn't enough to overcome Pinkie's fears.

"You all have to take a pill, including Applejack."

"Aw, heck no!" Applejack protested. "I ain't takin' no pill. Is that thing even organic? How do I know that it's safe for me and not Pinkie. Why I ought to..."

Applejack's words were cut short by Twilight. "If this is going to make Pinkie take the medicine, then you'll trust me and take it as well. Did you not hear the wonderful benefits of this supplement? Were you even listening to anything that I said about lithium orotate? It can't hurt you and I wasn't pulling made up facts out of my flank." Twilight smacked her front hoof against the other in order to make an emphasis on what she was saying. "There are hard case studies on the things I said and are proven to be true." Twilight then used her magic and gave Applejack a pill.

"Golly! Pinkie Pie at one time went 'round the town forcin' religion down pony's throats, I'd never guess that she'd be forcin' pills down our throats either, why I can't stand that..."

Applejack's sentence was cut short when Twilight used her magic and stuffed the pill into Applejack's mouth. Applejack was so startled that she accidentally swallowed it. She coughed a few times and when she realized that she had already swallowed the pill, she sat down and said, "Well, I sure hope I don't keel over and die. I never took a pill in my entire life."

Twilight Sparkle shook her head in disappointment after listening to Applejack. She emptied the small bottle and used her magic to levitate another five additional pills and gave the rest of her friends one, including herself. "Look, Applejack took one and she's still standing strong, now the rest of us are going to take one as well." Twilight looked up at the pill that she was holding up with her magic and said, "Thank you Jesus for good, safe, healing medicine. Amen." She then placed the pill onto her hoof and then put it into her mouth. She waited for a brief moment for the rest of her friends to do the same and then she swallowed the pill.

The other ponies weren't so sure about this idea, but they did it for Pinkie and they also trusted Twilight's teachings.

Pinkie Pie looked down at the pill in her hoof for a moment and then looked up to see a glass of water hovering in the air.

"These pills are pretty easy to swallow, but if you need the water, it's right here," Twilight said.

Pinkie Pie shoved the pill into her mouth and then grabbed the water from Twilight and with one mighty gulp, she closed her eyes tightly and swallowed the medicine.

"See, Pinkie," Twilight said. We all took one and we're okay. In fact, I might be taking this little proprietary blend on a regular basis as well. I'd never give anypony anything that would cause any possible harm to them, you can trust me on this. These are veggie based capsules as well."

Pinkie sighed. "I'm sorry that I made everypony else take my medicine. That wasn't right of me."

"Consider that everypony got a healthy treat. A rather expensive one too," Twilight said.

Applejack grunted a few words of disapproval.

"You'll be fine, Applejack. It can only help, if anything," Twilight assured.

"So is that it?" Pinkie Pie asked. "Am I all better now and never have to take another pill again?"

Twilight laughed. "There are no free lunches in medicine, Pinkie and you probably won't notice a change the first time around."

Pinkie Pie looked down disappointed. "Oh, I see."

"Cheer up, Pinkie," Twilight said. "When you start feeling better, you won't even care that you take medicine. In fact, it's so safe that you can take more of these pills if you are having an extra bad day and there are no withdrawal symptoms if you ever miss a dose or choose to stop."

"Wow, this medicine is like a miracle," Pinkie said.

"It really kind of is," Twilight said. "We should be thankful that God gave us good medicine on this earth."

"You know, I'm beginning to feel better already," Pinkie admitted.

"Impossible, unless that's just a placebo effect," Twilight said. "But I'm certainly glad you are feeling better, regardless."

Pinkie Pie had no idea what placebo meant but she didn't want to ask her at the moment. She felt that she had asked enough questions about matters. She decided to break the silence by changing the topic. "So, how is everypony doing? It seems I haven't talked to any of you in a very long time."

"I had a little argument that got me kicked off of the farm for a while, but things are better now," Applejack said.

"I've been having a small crisis with my critters for a while," Fluttershy said.

"I'm having a bit of trouble raising my son," Rarity said.

"And I was stressed to the max about the debate," Twilight said.

"When is that going to happen?" Pinkie Pie asked.

The other four mares wanted to know as well.

"It already happened," Twilight said.

"WHAT!?" her friends shouted in unison.

"Oh, my," Fluttershy said. "Did you forget to tell us when it was going to happen?"

Twilight did not look amused. "I sent letters to you all long ago about the event and included the date, time and location."

"I can't believe I forgot about it," Rarity said. I have been going through so much trouble at home that I didn't even think to check the letter again to make sure what time it was."

"Yeah, same here," Applejack said.

The rest of her friends agreed.

"Wow, we're sorry we didn't come to support you and watch the debate. You did win the debate, right?" Rainbow asked. "I can't imagine another pony being as smart as you."

"Aside from my parents, Spike was the only one to come and cheer me on, and no, I lost the debate." Twilight paused for a moment. "By a total of four votes."

"Ouch," Applejack said. "We're awfully sorry fer fergettin' bout yer big debate. I'm no expert at math, but it sounds like if ya had our support and votes, ya would have won."

Twilight sighed. "Yeah, don't worry about it. I understand that each and everyone of you have been going through some really hard times. It sucks that I didn't win, but as long as you all are still in one piece, I'm happy. I just hope Princess Celestia isn't secretly upset that I lost, although she had some very kind words for me after the debate and she did send me a letter with strong words of encouragement and a video of the debate."

"Wow, can we watch it?" Pinkie asked.

Twilight looked disappointed. "I don't feel like watching it and I have other things to do today. I'm sad that I lost and the whole thing felt like a disaster since I fainted on stage; It wasn't really a very formal debate to begin with anyway. I feel like I could have done better and I had to improvise on so much of the debate because my notes were poorly written since my original works got destroyed. I actually didn't even end up using any of my notes now that I think about it. I know I could have cross examined my opponent more as well, but he seemed to be content to just let me talk most of the time anyway, and by most of the time, I mean nearly all of it. I simply kept responding to questions and comments from him until I was done finished speaking or until he thought that was enough and cut me off. I guess I was also under a bit of stage fright and wasn't thinking very well since there were so many ponies there watching my every move. My opponent was a nice fellow though; he even treated me to dinner afterwards and apologized for mocking me and calling me names for what I represented. He said that he gets uptight and agitated when other ponies don't see eye to eye with him, and I guess that's understandable."

"So maybe we can watch it later when you're feeling better and have more time? I'm sure all of us want to see it, right?" Rarity asked.

The rest of Twilight's friends agreed.

Twilight gave a weak smile. "Okay, we can watch it another time. I promise." Twilight looked at Rainbow Dash and asked, "Has there been anything new with you, Rainbow? You have been very quiet today."

Rainbow Dash couldn't believe that she forgot to tell her friends, aside from Rarity, about the big news since she was so concerned about Pinkie. "Yeah!" Rainbow said as she perked up. "You all wouldn't believe what Soarin' and I decided to do."

Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and Twilight Sparkle looked at her with anticipation. They didn't have the slightest clue about what she was going to say.

"Nopony can guess? Well, I'm really surprised that Pinkie didn't get any crazy senses, but I'm officially a mother!"

Rainbow's friends looked a bit stunned.

"Really?" Twilight glanced at her belly and asked. "You don't look pregnant to me."

"I'm not pregnant," Rainbow said. "We decided to do something better and adopt!"

Pinkie Pie's jaw almost hit the floor. "I knew I had some kind of strange pinkie sense, but it was so dull and hardly noticeable because I think I was so sad and angry. I can't believe that not only did my pinkie senses fail when it came to reminding me about Twilight's big day, but my senses also failed to tell me about this big news. Who is the lucky little filly or colt you decided to adopt?"

"We decided to adopt Scootaloo and we may adopt more ponies in the future," Rainbow proudly said. "We both agree and think that it's more important to adopt and help those who are already in need rather than bringing new life into this world."

"That's a wonderful thing to do, Rainbow," Twilight said. "Congratulations and I think we already know that you're the perfect role model and parent for Scootaloo!" Twilight paused for a moment when she remembered Rainbow's concerns about Soarin'. "So I take it that you and Soarin' are good again for whatever reason that was causing you to be concerned about him?"

"Oh!" Rainbow said. "Yeah, I screwed up. It turns out the mare he was secretly visiting was a music teacher and he spent a lot of time and effort in learning guitar so that he could write me a special song."

"Oh, wow," Twilight said. "That sounds really romantic."

Rarity sighed. "Something like that would be like a dream for me. Although considering my past, I don't think I deserve anything like that anyway, being a single mother and working at that unmentionable place in Manehatten. I guess I'll just stick to reading the Psalms and checking out romantic novels from Twilight's library."

"I'm sure there are good stallions out there who would be interested in you, Rarity. Just give it some time and don't lose hope," Twilight said.

"But what about you?" Rarity asked. "You never seem to care about finding any special stallion for yourself."

"Oh," Twilight said with an awkward smile. "That's because I'm not interested in stallions."

The rest of her friends stared at her as if they perhaps misheard the words that she spoke.

"Um, if you're wondering, I'm not interested in mares either. I'm actually asexual."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Fluttershy curiously asked.

"It means someone who has little to no sex drive or sexual attraction to anyone," Twilight said. "It's pretty rare from what I've heard, but I take a lack of libido as a blessing considering how busy I am with everything and would rather be focused on my studies, and not to mention the counseling I do with so many ponies when it comes to lusting issues."

"So you have no romantic desires?" Rarity asked. "How is that even possible?"

"Well, let's just say it's there but it's very low and it's not important to me anyway. You girls are getting really personal with these questions. The most important relationship in my life is with Jesus and that applies to all of you as well. Not everypony is called to be in a relationship like how you all are thinking. Let's not forget that we worship a stallion who was single throughout his entire life here. I don't mean to discourage anypony when it comes to finding a mate, but I think for me, it's best to stay committed to what I do and be abstinent."

"There's always some pony that can change your mind," Rarity said.

"We'll cross that bridge if we ever get to it," Twilight said with a wink.

Pinkie Pie was deep in thought. "Well, I wasn't thinking like that. When I feel well, I love everypony, no matter if they're mare or stallion and I'd want nothing more than to be in a relationship with every single pony on this earth. All I care about when I'm feeling normal is making friends and cheering up ponies and I'm still not sure what you all are talking about or mean by sex drive or romantic desires. I'm not even sure if I know what those words actually mean."

Applejack hid her face in her hat. "Pinkie, ya made it sound like ya were some kind of funny filly at first, but knowin' how different ya are and everythin', it wouldn't surprise me one bit if ya truly were one. Nor would it surprise me if ya turn out to be bi and not just in the sense of bein' bipolar."

"A funny filly? I think you mean a silly filly, because I used to be really good at being one of those." Pinkie sighed when she realized how bad things were going in her life lately. "Just not at this moment."

"We kind of figured that you'd think that way," Twilight admitted. "Don't worry, we're going to get you back to the good old Pinkie Pie that felt well and exuberant." She was about to change the topic until she heard a sudden knock at the door.

Spike instantly went over to see who it was.

Twilight's ears perked up "Who is it, Spike?"

"Mormons," He answered.

"Crud," Twilight said. " I forgot that I made a special promise that I'd go out with them for lunch today with Spike, but Pinkie Pie needs us to be here for her. I don't know what to do." Twilight looked at Pinkie and asked, "Pinkie Pie, do you need me to stay here with you?"

"Ya made a promise and ya better keep yer word!" Applejack said sternly.

Twilight sighed. "Yes, I suppose that is true, but I asked Pinkie how she feels."

"Um, I think I'll be okay, and you should listen to Applejack since you made a promise and it would be a sin not to keep it," Pinkie admitted.

"Well, that is true, but I don't want to leave you so quickly. Did I at least cover everything you'd like to know about lithium?" Twilight asked.

"I think so," Pinkie answered. She still had a bit of guilt and regret written on her face.

The knocking on the door grew louder and faster.

"Okay! I really need to get going." Twilight paused for a moment and gave Pinkie Pie an innocent kiss on her snout. She spoke to Pinkie in a much softer voice. "Don't ever feel bad for the things you can't help or control and don't ever think that we'll ever give up on you or not love you anymore. It's okay to not be okay in life sometimes."

Applejack distanced herself a bit. She didn't quite understand this filly kissing business and was still unsure about it. Bro-hoofs were enough and even hugging was pushing her levels of comfort, but she didn't say anything because she knew Twilight was sane and she was told that Pinkie Pie was very affectionate.

Twilight put her hoof to her mouth when she realized that she forgot to bring up the extra medicine that she compounded in her little work lab in the basement. "Pinkie, I forgot to bring up more of the medicine and I need to get going now! It's in the basement on the wooden table in an orange bottle. You can't miss it! Remember, it's the orange bottle."

Pinkie Pie watched as Twilight quickly gathered some things and then smiled and winked at her before racing out the door. For the first time in a very long time, she felt loved and accepted and even though her friends had always loved her despite what her mind believed before, they really proved it today, regardless of how obstinate and stubborn she was, which made her heart glad.

Spike grabbed a top hat and followed Twilight out the door before closing it.

"Well, it's been quite an interesting day," Rarity admitted.

"Yeah, and I still ain't happy that I got forced to take medication. I ain't ever taken a pill in my life before.

"Oh, now hush, Applejack," Rarity said. "You know that Twilight is the brains of this group and she gave good reasons why it's safe and healthy."

Applejack took off her hat and scratched her head. "Yeah, I guess. I just hate the idea of takin' a pill and I guess I have a bit of a phobia when it comes to takin' em'. I always thought that pills were fer the sick only and I'm healthy enough because I git all the nutrients I need from my organic farm."

"And that's a good and wise thing to do," Rainbow said. "But sometimes we need to get more of certain nutrients that are hard to get from most foods. Even I, as a Wonderbolt, had to take quite a few supplements to stay in tip top shape. Rhodiola Rosea is just one of the few supplements that comes to mind."

"And what in tar-nations is that?" Applejack asked. "Never heard of a pill called rodeo before."

Rainbow Dash laughed. "I said Rhodiola, not rodeo! it's an adaptogen, a plant that can thrive in very harsh conditions when it comes to cold, wind, intense radiation exposure, drought, and even reduced oxygen from over ten thousand feet into the sub-arctic mountains which might explain much of it's exceptional healing powers. It's popular among athletes and helps with many things other than helping our bodies to adapt to stressful situations. I know that Soarin' takes it everyday before training and I remember learning much about it from Spitfire when I was training with the Wonderbolts."

"Interestin'," Applejack said. "But why do they call it that name?"

"Because it smells like roses when the plant is cut," Rainbow answered.

"Wow!" Pinkie said. "I know that I have seen health food stores that sell all kinds of vitamins and maybe if I buy all the bottles, I'll get super healthy and feel better."

"No, Pinkie," Rainbow answered. "The whole goal is to minimize expenses and it really is best to get whatever you can from food first before considering supplementing. I know you tend to have all or nothing thinking but sometimes it's even harmful to take too many supplements and not all of them are made equally. Some of them are scams and can lead to health problems including cancer. Rhodiola is possibly the safest and most effective herb on the market and the product should contain at least three percent rosavins and one percent saidrosidesl, but let's clear it past Twilight first before we put you on anything else. I'm sure she knows all about it anyway."

"Yer talkin' like Twilight and I'm not sure if should be concerned 'bout that or not," Applejack said.

"Hey, I'm not that smart," Rainbow said. "But I only know some things about this supplement because I learned a lot about it at the Wonderbolt's academy. I kind of had a crash course on it there as well as other supplements that help enhance our performance like D-Ribose. Mixing those two supplements together in a cup of homemade ginger tea is quite a good pick me up."

"So is everything okay now?" Fluttershy asked. "I have to get home and take care of my critters."

"I guess so," Pinkie Pie said. "Thank you all for coming and I'm really sorry about that incident, Applejack. I'm sure you all have important things to take care of."

Applejack got up from the floor and limped over to the door. "E-yup. I got lots of work to do on the farm since my family has been strugglin' without me fer that short while. I already forgave ya before and ya don't need to be apologizin' twice since I forgave ya the first time. Take care of yerself and don't burn any buildin's down in your manic states." Applejack tipped her hat. "Adios!"

The rest of her friends got up and followed Applejack.

Rarity waved good bye in a fashionable manner. "Ta-ta, darling. Do know that we're always here for you."

Fluttershy, still shocked at what happened earlier, calmly said, "Good bye and feel better. Maybe try some yoga to calm your nerves."

Rainbow Dash stood at the door and stared at Pinkie. She knew that Pinkie Pie really looked up to her and was kind of overly attached to her. "If you want to hang out sometime this week, I'll make sure to take some extra time out to have a filly's night out. Sound fun?"

Pinkie Pie smiled and nodded her head yes.

"The door's locked so make sure that you remember to get your pills downstairs before leaving. Remember, Twilight said they are in the orange bottle on the table. Twilight also said you can take more than one pill if you're having a bad time. Would you like me to go down with you to get the medicine?"

"I think I'll manage," Pinkie said. "Thanks for taking time to do something special with me this week. I think I'll take advantage of that."

"Okay, Pinkie. Remember to close the door on your way out, it's already locked. I hope to hear that you'll be feeling much better soon. Twilight is no dummy and she knows what she's doing. Later, sis." Rainbow Dash left the house, leaving the front door ajar.

Pinkie sighed even though she felt so loved by her friends. There was a lot of things on her mind and they were being exaggerated by her imagination and fears. Pinkie walked over to the door that led to the basement. The lights were already on and she descended down the stairs into Twilight's lab. Each step she took let out a creaking sound from the old wooden stairs. Pinkie Pie stood at the bottom of the stairs and looked around. There was the ultrasound machine that Twilight used for Rarity and countless others. Twilight had used this machines for mares who would come to her home regretting their pregnancy and wishing to terminate it. The simple task of being able to show them that there is a foal moving around and playing inside their bodies was enough to change their perspectives and perhaps even save many lives. How Twilight got such an expensive machine like that was unknown, but regardless of how she acquired it, it was being used for good along with a powerful message.

Pinkie Pie looked at her chemistry lab and found the table with an orange bottle of pills under the dimly lit glow of a light bulb that swung slightly back and forth from the ceiling. As Pinkie moved closer to the table, she noticed that there was another orange bottle right next to the one she saw at first. "Wait, what?" Pinkie asked out loud. She studied each bottle carefully and they seemed to be identical so she opened them both up and looked inside. One bottle contained pills that were white and the other bottle contained pills that weren't white. Pinkie tried to remember what the pill looked like when she first took it upstairs, but her mind had already forgotten. She sat there thinking to herself and decided to take the bottle that had many more pills in it since it would last her longer. She headed back over to the stairs and took one last look at all of Twilight's crazy lab works and realized that perhaps Twilight really was a smarty smart pants and knew what she was talking about when it also came to medicine and other things. She thought about how Twilight led their group so well anyway and how diligent and patient she was. Pinkie Pie looked up at a sign above the stairs that read, 'the larger the island of knowledge, the longer the shoreline of mystery.' Pinkie thought about that quote for a moment before she flicked the light switch off and headed back upstairs with her medicine bottle. She was now confident that this medicine would work and she was ready to begin a new and better life with it.

A New Experiment

Twilight Sparkle sat at her kitchen table reading a letter.

"Dear Twilight Sparkle. I don't know what you did to Pinkie Pie, but she has improved dramatically. It seems like a miracle! She said you made her some kind of homemade medicine and the effects are astounding. We are really pleased and are able to keep Pinkie Pie working at our shop. Thanks so much for taking the time to help both her and us in a very difficult situation. We wanted to make sure that she would get safe and good treatment because we really care about her and want the best for her since she's very much like a daughter to us. We'll be sending her back today for a refill. Please let us know if you'd like us to pay you for doing this. We'd be more than happy to pay you for your services! You're a mare that's one in a million. Yours truly, Mister and Misses Cake."

Twilight put the letter down with a smug smile on her face. She knew her faith and science and even though Pinkie Pie was often like a big mystery, she knew that what she gave her was good and safe for anypony.

Spike came into the kitchen with a mound of letters that was stuffed in her mailbox. "Here's the rest of your mail."

Twilight perked up when she saw the mound of envelopes piled on her table. "Holy horse apples!" Twilight used her magic to levitate one of the envelopes from off the top of the pile. "These are all addressed to....me? Am I famous now or something?"

Spike shrugged. "I have no idea what all these letters are about."

Twilight opened the envelope and read the letter silently. "Dear Twilight Sparkle. Our church attended the debate at the Grand Galloping Gala and we just wanted you to know how disappointed we are in your stance on vaccinations. How dare you give yet another reason for the secular society to mock us Christians for being anti-science with your twisted views. Please repent and confess your sins to God for misleading His ponies because we believe that Jesus Christ Himself would choose to vaccinate. I don't know what Princess Celestia sees in you, but you must change or else ponies will be turned off from ever joining the church. We also had three ponies from our church at your debate who are currently going through cheemo and may very well die. What you said on stage hurt their feelings in ways I can't even describe. Yours truly, the ponies from The First Evangelical Lutheran Church of Ponyville."

Twilight put her hoof to her heart. "Wow."

"What's the letter about?" Spike asked.

"How much Christian ponies hated my stance of vaccines. These all must be letters sent to me about the debate." Twilight felt a sense of dread as she opened up multiple letters with her magic. She looked at each one briefly and read out loud some of the negative comments. "You're an abomination. You're a disgrace. Don't even bother to show your face around town again. You're going to bring back polio! You are nothing but the Princess's pet puppet. Go get a real education." Twilight looked at the rest of the mound of letters. "These letters must be mostly hate mail."

Spike noticed that she looked quite upset. "Um, maybe you should not read them right now."

Twilight Sparkle frowned and picked up another envelope. "Surely, somepony out there has something nice to say to me."

Spike reached out as if he were going to take the letter away from her, but he then put his head down and sighed.

Twilight Sparkle read the letter out loud. "Dear Twilight Sparkle, I'm sure you must have gotten a lot of negative feedback on your stance on vaccines, but I just wanted to let you know that you have my full support and I commend you for your bravery in standing up for what is right in a society where lies are preferred over the truth. You see, two of my own foals had severe adverse reactions to vaccines and both of them are not with me anymore because I foolishly chose to vaccinate based upon popular medical opinion without thinking about listening to the other side. I don't talk much about the loss of my children in public because ponies have literally spat on me and have called me a liar and a delusional fool. I may not be a Christian, or a believer in God, but you had my vote at the debate once I saw how much you care for the well-being of everyone and what you said about the medical industry is absolute truth. I never thought I would say this, but God bless you for who you are and what you do. It gives me comfort to know that at least one pony fights for the ones who have been injured and swept under the carpet to be forgotten about. Please let me know if there's anything I can do for you as I would like to talk to you face to face sometime. Yours truly, Autumn Leaves."

"Wow," Twilight said as she stared at the letter in its entirety. "Spike, please take a note for me and remind me to get back to this mare. It may hurt to read a thousand letters filled with loathing about me, but I tell you, even just reading one letter like this makes everything I do worth it."

Spike took the letter and put it aside.

Twilight opened several more letters and read them quickly. They were all negative like the other ones, but there was one odd letter that had letters glued to the paper and they appeared to be snipped out from different articles from magazines. "What on earth is this?" Twilight asked. She then read the letter. "We know who you are and we know where you live. If you dare talk about vaccines in public like that again, we will kill you just as we plan to kill Celesetia. You have been warned." Twilight Sparkle dropped the letter. "Oh my word!" She looked at Spike and said, "Spike! Please report this to the local authorities. I can't believe someone would threaten me like this! It seems like the medical mafia wants me six feet under. As Voltaire once said, to learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize."

Spike took the letter and examined it. "Whoa," he said as his eyes widened. "This looks pretty serious."

Twilight tapped her two front hooves together nervously. "Spike, I'm actually slightly afraid now. All these ponies who come to my library could secretly be keeping tabs on what I do or say. Now I know how Princess Celestia feels."

Even though Spike knew that this was not a good situation to be in, Twilight's confession did make him feel that this was now a good opportunity to be a hero and make her feel safe. After all, he was a fire breathing dragon who truly would do anything to protect Twilight no matter what dangers they might encounter. "Don't worry, Twilight. I will guard you with my life if anyone may try to hurt you. Did you forget that I'm a fierce dragon? I'd defend you for the greater good!" Spike puffed his chest out and put his claws on his sides. He blew out an impressive flame and then looked at Twilight as if expecting that she would feel completely secure now.

Twilight stared at him for a moment. "I appreciate the altruism, Spike, but you have to take threats like this seriously. If I get another letter like this, I might have to move out of Ponyville and find a safe place to live with you. You're just a baby dragon after all."

Twilight heard a knock at the door and nearly jumped out of her seat. "Spike! I'm afraid to see who that is. What should we do?"

Spike puffed his chest out proudly one more. "I'll go answer that door and I'll have my dragon fire breath waiting for any trouble makers."

Twilight looked around and levitated a broom into Spike's claws. "Take this just in case you need to defend yourself."

Spike cocked an eyebrow. "A broom? Really, Twi?"

The knocking at the door became louder and Spike walked over to the door with the broom.

Twilight hid behind the table and had her magic ready to defend herself just to be on the safe side. Her eyes widened as she saw spike put his claw on the door handle. Spike opened the door slightly and the moment he did that, the door flung open and knocked him on his back. It was just Pinkie Pie who came to visit them.

Twilight Sparkle took her hoof and wiped the sweat from her forehead as she sighed a breath of relief.

Pinkie looked down at Spike. "Hi, Spike! Doing a little cleaning?"

Spike picked himself up from off the floor. "Um, sure. Did you drop by to see Twilight?"

Pinkie Pie nodded her head yes quickly. "Uh-huh!"

"She's in the kitchen. I'll be going outside to guard the library," Spike said as he walked out the door with the broom."

"Guard it from what?" Pinkie asked out loud. "An invasion of worms that like to eat books called bookworms?"

Twilight straightened her posture and tried to forget about the horrible letters that she read when she saw Pinkie making her way into the kitchen.

Pinkie Pie came bouncing in the kitchen, full of happiness, but yet not being disruptive or annoying. "Hey, Twi! Your pills changed my world around!"

Twilight Sparkle smiled. "I got a letter from Mister and Misses Cake. I'm so happy to hear that everything is working out for you!"

Pinkie slammed her empty bottle of pills on the table in front of Twilight. "Fill 'er up, filly!"

"Wow, I know I didn't make that many pills for you, but you sure seem to have gone through that bottle very quickly."

"That's because you said I can take more than one if I'm having an extra bad day," Pinkie proudly said. "I know that I can trust you and not have to worry about getting hurt at some pharmacy because after all, the word harm is in pharmacy."

"Right." Twilight pushed her seat back and got up. "Okay, let's do this quickly."

Pinkie Pie playfully hopped down each stair as she followed Twilight into the basement. "It's really amazing," Pinkie said. "I can sleep now without nightmares, I can think and focus better since my brain isn't full of fuzz, and I can even get more oxygen in my house!"

"That's great to hear, Pinkie, but you are starting to sound a bit hyper and manic again. You probably came just in time for another dose." Twilight walked over to her compounding table and took a seat on a stool. "Let's see," Twilight said as she unscrewed the orange bottle on her table in which she thought were the empty capsules inside she used to fill. To her surprise, these were the white pills she made for Pinkie and intended for her to take. "Wait, what?" Twilight asked. She opened up the bottle that Pinkie brought back. It was empty, but the bottle had a sticky note on it that said, 'Capsules.' This was the orange bottle where she stored some of her empty capsules in to fill them up with medicine. Pinkie had never been taking any true medicine except for that first pill that she gave her. Twilight looked up at Pinkie who was busy gawking and laughing at a lava lamp next to her bottles of colloidal silver. "How is this possible?" Twilight muttered to herself. She knew that placebo effects were real, but this was just absurd. The capsules were empty and clear; you could see right through them. How Pinkie Pie didn't realize that these capsules lacked any medicine was beyond her, but this was Pinkie after all. Twilight sat there puzzled, thinking for a moment. From the letter that she read, Pinkie somehow got amazing results from what she was taking, which was air in a capsule. Twilight bit her lip and thought about matters. If taking empty capsules was truly working, then she could save so much more money since getting all this medicine was such a hassle and was quite costly when it came to creating her proprietary blend. She was also still limited on cash since the day Pinkie Pie gave her entire life savings away in a single day and had still been relying on occasional support from her friends. She opened up a draw which stored a large container of empty capsules and put as many as she could fit into the empty bottle that Pinkie had given her. "Sometimes following God isn't always logical either," Twilight said under her breath. "And Pinkie Pie is the most unique case I have ever met. Jesus said to the professional fishermen, cast your nets on the right side of the boat after all, and I'm going to cast my net on the right side this time." Obviously, making these pills up would take longer, so she pretended to work and make sounds as if she were really compounding her medicine.

Pinkie Pie turned to Twilight for a moment and asked, "Are you even working on my pills? You're awfully quiet over there."

Twilight looked around and grabbed a hammer next to her. She began pounding it against the table hoping that Pinkie Pie would somehow believe that using a hammer was used in the process of making her medicine. "Oh, yeah. Working really hard over here! Almost done!" She continued to bang on the table near the bottles causing them to lift off the wooden table slightly.

Feeling satisfied that she thought Twilight was working hard on her medicine, Pinkie Pie went back to gawking at the lava lamp as Twilight continued to pound on the table.

A few seconds later, Twilight put the hammer down and she whistled for a moment to herself before calling Pinkie who was still utterly captivated by that lava lamp. "Pinkie, it's ready."

Pinkie Pie blinked a few times as the words registered in her brain and then bounced joyfully over to Twilight. She didn't realize if she had been staring at that lamp for a few seconds or hours, but she really believed Twilight had finished her medicine. Her breathing was a bit heavier and she had a rather crazed smile on her face.

"Why don't you take one now? You look a bit manic to me," Twilight nervously suggested as she pushed over the bottle.

"Pinkie Pie took the bottle and popped it open. She then put a pill on her hoof and studied it. "I don't know what kind of awesomeness you put into theses pills, but it really works!" She tossed the capsule into her mouth and swallowed it. Right away, her flank hit the floor and she was at perfect attention as if she was one of Princess Celestia's royal guards. Her breathing was calm and while she was still happy, she didn't look as crazed.

"Fascinating," Twilight said as she rubbed her hoof under her chin.

"What's fascinating?" Pinkie asked. "I thought this medicine was supposed to be amazing!"

"What? Oh no, it is. I'm just really surprised," Twilight admitted.

"But why? You're the science pony I thought. Why would anything surprise you? I thought a big part of science was being able to predict a thing that will happen every time."

Twilight made circular motions around the wooden table with her hoof. "Because reasons."

"Reasons?" Pinkie Pie asked. "That doesn't sound like a very super duper smarty smart pants of a typical Twilight answer if you ask me." Pinkie Pie looked at her bottle of pills and then back to Twilight. She frowned and had a look on her face that spoke of deep suspicion. She brought her face so close to Twilight's face that her nose was scrunched up against hers. "You're not tricking me with any Twiley trickery with these pills are you?" Pinkie Pie pushed her nose harder against Twilight's nose causing her to fall off her stool and land hard on her back against the cold cement basement floor. Pinkie Pie's neck stretched down to the ground, her nose still bunched up against Twilight's.

Beads of sweat fell from the sides of Twilight's head. She had no idea what to say at this point as she desperately tried to think of a reasonable response. She gave a nervous little grin and replied. "Um, no?"

Pinkie Pie stared into her eyes with even greater intensity and looked as if she was about to snap at Twilight at any moment. Pinkie Pie suddenly pulled her head back and smiled. "Okie dokie lokie! Thanks, Twi! You're such a doll!" She took her bottle of pills and giggled to herself as she playfully bounced up the stairs.

Twilight Sparkle laid there on her back, stunned by what had just happened. "I hope I'm doing the right thing," she whispered to herself.

Heroes of the Storm

Twilight Sparkle sat at a table with her five friends and Spike with a scroll and a quill in front of her. "I understand that all of us have been through some really tough stuff. I thought that I'd gather you all today for something different. Rather than having our study, I figured we could use this time to write to the Princess about how we have been growing and enduring." Twilight looked around at her friends. "So I guess I can start. Ready Spike?"

"Ready," Spike said as he grabbed the scroll and quill.

"Dear Princess Celestia, I thought that we'd do something different for a change and write to you from all of us on a single friendship note since we are united as one and we have all been going through so much. I learned that while helping others is something I don't ever want to give up doing, sometimes it's needed to take breaks and I can't allow myself to let everypony take my time away, especially when there are more urgent matters to take care of. The harvest is very plentiful, yet the workers are few. I can't do a good job teaching and helping others if I don't take care of myself. Thank you for choosing me for the debate and thank you for the kind words and encouragement before and after the debate. It's wonderful that you are willing to hold events like that so we can inform everypony and have intelligent discussions about religion as well as other matters. I've learned how valuable and unique my friends are and that they are always worth fighting for and helping." Twilight looked at Rainbow Dash to signify that it was her turn.

Rainbow Dash coughed before speaking. "Dear Princess Celestia, this is Dash speaking. A lot of stuff has happened in my life and I'm really happy to announce that I'm a mother because my husband and I decided to adopt. I have realized that so many of the bad and awful things that I have seen and experienced set me up for this idea to take in a new filly into our family and that filly's name is Scootaloo. I have always wanted to take her in as a family member and now it's perfect since she has both a father and mother in her life. We may be deciding to adopt more in the future and I realize that ponies should be more open to taking care of the less fortunate fillies and colts without a family before considering to have their own offspring. I'm reminded of how good it is to adopt when God has chosen to adopt us as His children through Jesus Christ and I often wonder how many of us wouldn't do the will of God if we were somehow able to see the hard stuff in our lives ahead of time." Rainbow Dash looked next to Applejack and waited for her to speak.

Applejack took off her hat. "Eh-hem. Dear Princess Celestia, this here be yer most favorite apple pickin' pony. I reckon that I didn't exactly go through a very fun time when I was homeless and had nothin' to eat 'cause I didn't want to worship Christ in the exact same way my Granny did. I chose to stay with my friends and give up my home and job fer my faith and friends. Thankfully, Twi was a doll and kept me safe and my belly full to the best of her ability, which was probably no easy task, but she managed well. Long story short, Granny accepted me back into the family and is more acceptin' of other denominations now. It feels real good to know that yer friends will always stick up fer ya in more than one way. I know that some denominations have to be more true than others and I'm sure ponies can sit there and knit pick over some things that really aren't that important 'til the cows come home, but what matters most is that Christ be the center focus of the church." Applejack put her hat back on her head and became silent.

Fluttershy put her head down and said, "Um, I don't have much to say, but I learned that sometimes it's really hard to control my critters, especially when I'm away. I had a rather traumatizing experience when one of my critters ate another critter that I thought was still pregnant. It hurt me very much, but I had to make sure that it wouldn't happen again. Sammy is one of my most favorite critters that I'm taking care of and I know it's his natural instinct to eat whatever is tempting to him, but there are still rules to abide by in my cottage. I'm reminded that no matter how wonderful my animal friends are, they still aren't perfect. They sometimes try to fight each other, become territorial and hog all the food I give to themselves. I guess I can't wait for the day when the lion will lay down with the lamb and be at peace with each other. The good news is that the critter that I thought was still pregnant had already given birth at Sweet Apple Acres and I'm now taking care of the babies together with my, um, my friend, Big Macintosh. It's helping me and Big Macintosh get together more often since we were kind of too shy to ever visit each other. Again, what happened wasn't good, but it led to nice things and Big Macintosh is becoming okay with my animal friends now. The incident helped us bond and maybe we will go further in our, um." Fluttershy paused for a moment. "In our relationship, I mean friendship." Fluttershy let out a soft squeak and put her head down.

Applejack raised an eyebrow and placed her hoof onto the table in a rather intimidating manner. "Goin' further in your relationship with my big brother in what way?"

Fluttershy picked her head back up and her face turned beet red. "Just as friends, just as friends was what I meant! I'm so sorry."

"I do believe Fluttershy, is still writing her letter," Spike said.

"No," Fluttershy replied. "I'm done, sorry. You can speak now, Pinkie."

Pinkie Pie put both her front hooves on the table. "Dear Princess Celestia, this is Pinkie. I went through some really crazy stuff and I truly believed that I wasn't a Christian any longer. Something happened to my mind and I kind of lost it. Twilight warned me that one day something like this might happen, but I never wanted to change since it felt so good to feel so high and energetic. She said that she saw certain signs in me and I don't know if maybe she has the spiritual gift or prophecy or not, but I foolishly rejected my friends and went along in life without them. It was about that time when I started to break down and refused to seek help which lead me to getting into big trouble at my job. I still can't explain what was going on with me, but at that time, I believed that I was the anti-Christ and that I would die soon. I spent as much time as I could trying to do things that in my mind would keep me alive longer because I was so fearful of so many things and death being the biggest one. Mister and Misses Cake sent me back to Twilight because they didn't want to send me to the hospital at first. They knew that they would lock me up and even though I hated the idea of going back to see my friends, I'm so glad that it happened because I needed it. I thought that perhaps I could get by in life on my own with prayer alone, but I learned that we are made to be in a community together and we can't isolate ourselves without the consequences of things getting worse and eventually leading to insanity. I can't even begin to tell you how messed up I was without writing a mini novel here, but because Twilight is such a smarty smart pants, she found something natural and safe for me to take and it's helping me so much! She also said that it will help me prevent brain cell death and will regenerate new brain cells so maybe I'll become super smart like her!" Pinkie Pie paused for a moment and added. "I'll also admit that I was super stuck up and obstinate to every single suggestion Twilight gave me at first, but she was very caring and patient with me. What she did for me during that terribly dark time was wonderful and she is still working on getting me happier again without letting me become super manic. I may have sinned greatly and I probably screw up more than any other pony in this group, but I have been shown very good reasons to not give up the faith or give up on myself. I'm so thankful that God put ponies like her and all of my friends in my life because I can be one super crazy bi Pie and not even realize it. Friendship should be magic, not tragic after all. You sometimes just have to be open to new ideas and continue to work on building our relationships with others." Pinkie put her hoof to her chin for a moment, thinking about what to say next. "Now that I think about what happened with my constant fear and desire to do things that might make me live as long as possible because I was terrified of God, death, and Hell even though so many times I wanted to die to end my suffering, I am also reminded of how Satan is desperately trying to grab every soul down into Hell with him because he knows his days are numbered here on earth just like mine and there will be a time when he will be sent into the lake of fire forever with all of his demon buddies. Thankfully, I have come to accept that my soul is safe and that death is not the end of everything but the beginning of a new adventure, one that is perfect and lasts an eternity. I know that Satan can't take me down to Hell because I have God on my side, but I know that he'll at least try to do everything in his power to try to make me lose focus on God in order to keep me from receiving my blessings. I have God as my helper and my Sisters in Christ as my support to make sure that I can live a life that is as pleasing to God as I possibly can regardless of what obstacles and temptations I might find along my path. For I was much like the parable of the lost sheep and have gone astray, but my Master has brought me back and that means it's party time!"

Spike jotted down what he thought was her last few words. He often struggled to keep up with how fast Pinkie spoke.

Pinkie Pie thought to herself for a moment. "Hmmm. There's one last thing I wanted to add." She perked up when she finally remembered. "Oh yeah! Twilight told me that it's okay to say naughty words. You should probably pray for her!"

"Wait, what!?" Twilight shouted as Pinkie's words registered through her mind a few seconds later. "Please tell me you didn't write that down, Spike."

Spike looked at the scroll and then back to Twilight. "Whoops."

Twilight put her hooves over her eyes. "Of course you had to use my spell eraser proof ink. I guess I'll have some explaining to do to Princess Celestia."

Pinkie Pie looked around for a bit and asked, "Should I tell her about a new recipe I learned about making zap jam cookies?"

"No!" Spike shouted. "Next time, I should think a little more ahead of time before I write down what you say."

"Okay, then I'm done," Pinkie said as she took her hooves off the table and smiled.

"It sounds like Pinkie Bi might be a good nickname fer ya," Applejack said.

"Oh? Well, I'm sure we can find a lot of fun nicknames for you too, A.J." Pinkie replied.

"I'd rather not know," Applejack said. "Ya just be quiet and listen to the brains of this group, Twilight." Applejack paused for a moment and added, "Pinkie and the brain. Has a nice ring to it, don't it?"

"Um, Rarity?" Spike asked. "Got anything to add?"

"Hmm?" Rarity asked. "I think I'll pass." Rarity felt bad that while all of her friends had gotten over their dilemmas, she was not satisfied with life at this moment.

"What?" Spike asked. You haven't gotten anything to say to the Princess after everypony else has written something? Come on, you've got to have something to write."

Rarity sighed. "Alright. Dear Princess Celestia, this is Rarity speaking. I don't know what to say or what I have learned because my own personal struggles haven't been resolved like my other friends, but I'm having a hard time taking care of my son and I feel really bad about it. I'm trying harder to be there for him but I didn't expect motherhood to be this time consuming. I'm grateful that my parents help me out, but I feel that they have done too much for me, yet at the same time I really am busy. I know I can do better, I just can't give up and after listening to my friend's struggles. I can only hope that I'll get through my struggles as well."

Spike jotted that down and was about to write something about what he learned, but his claw cramped up causing him to drop the quill on the table.

"Need a helping hoof with writing, Spike?" Twilight asked as she grabbed the quill and scroll with her magic.

Spike rubbed his claw and said, "Well, yeah. I wanted to write something special too, but I kind of wanted it to be private."

"You don't have to be ashamed or feel the need to hide anything from us Spike, we pretty much know everything about you," Twilight said.

"Well, okay," Spike said. "Dear Princess, Celestia. This is Spike and after hearing stories about motherhood, I couldn't help to say that I have learned that Twilight is very much a motherly figure to me and I'm so glad that she is. I make a lot of mistakes and I sometimes get in her way and ruin her work. She gets angry when I do careless things and I don't blame her, but she's so quick to forgive and tells me that when I make mistakes and do something wrong, it's very much so with good intent. I might be different because other dragons in my life have frowned upon the fact that I was raised by a pony, and even though it's something that's not supposed to happen or is normal among dragon culture, I couldn't be more thankful that I somehow ended up with Twilight taking care of me, even if it may ruin my reputation among other dragons. She's a great teacher, friend, and..." Spike paused for a moment and put his head down. "Mother. The things I have learned from her are countless and precious. I may not be a pony, but I am a person just like anyone else and Twilight has shown me this countless times."

Spike picked his head back up and looked at Twilight.

"Wow, Spike," Twilight said. "That was the sweetest compliment I have ever heard from you. I'm so glad that you decided to share that. Thank you, and don't ever be ashamed of how you feel."

"I just thought it was a little too personal, but yeah, that's how I feel and I don't feel ashamed about it. I never realized until today that you are very much my Mom."

"And Angel Bunny will always be my son to me," Fluttershy said.

"Aww, well, I guess that leaves me and A.J. as the only two ponies who aren't like moms," Pinkie said. "Except I do kind of play as a mom when I babysit the Cake's foals."

"Come to think of it, I'm basically the mother figure in Apple Bloom's life bein' that we don't have our parents with us," Applejack said. "We have some really interestin' stories together. One time, I was takin' a nap under a tree and I woke up when I felt water bein' poured out on my head. I opened my eyes and noticed that I was covered in soil and Apple Bloom was waterin' me in hopes that she could grow more of me since I made her so happy in her life. That's one of the cutest stories I can recall from our past. I'm sure you and Scootaloo have some funny stories together," Applejack said as she pointed her hoof at Rainbow.

Rainbow Dash laughed nervously. "Oh, boy, we sure do, and Scoots kind of puts me up a little bit too high in terms of me being her hero, but she's a good kid and means well. I know you don't talk much about your parents, but do you have any memories of them that you'd like to share?"

Applejack thought of some of the very powerful memories of her parent's short stay here on earth. "I reckon I can share my favorite story of my Pops." Applejack took off her hat and continued. "Whenever I was naughty, my Daddy would take me into the barn and he got out a large wooden board where there was a hammer and a bucket of nails. He told me that each time when I was misbehavin' that I should to go up to this large board, grab a nail from the bucket and use the hammer to hammer in a single nail fer each thing that I did wrong. In my mind, that actually sounded a lot more like fun rather than havin' my Momma get out the old cat O' nine tails on my flank and put me through a lil' somethin' that she liked to call Purgatory time, so I did just what he said and the board started to fill up with nails fast. Then I did somethin' really bad and I knew I was in deep trouble. I broke somethin' very special to my parents and I lied about it. That lie was short lived when my Momma found out and my Daddy took me back into the barn. I thought he was gonna kill me and I cried in front of him sayin' that I was sorry and feelin' real bad. Now my Pops was a lot more lovin' and forgivin' than my Mother and what he did to me there left an impact on me still to this day. He walked over to the board and told me to put in another nail. I didn't want to do it, but I obeyed and then he gave me a lecture on how important it is to be honest. After that lecture, he hugged me and told me that he forgave me. He took the board and the hammer and used the end of the hammer to remove each nail from the board until it was completely free of nails. I sat there and watched him the whole time wonderin' why he was doin' that. He put all the nails back into the bucket and I asked him what this was all about. He told me that he had me put a nail in the board because every time I did somethin' wrong, the nail represented my sin and the board represents Christ's body. The removal of the nails from the board represents my sins bein' forgiven and tossed away into the bucket, never to be seen again. The board still shows the holes from where my sins used to be. Still scarred and the damage done, but forgiven and a reminder of Christ's great work on the cross fer me. He also gave me his hat after that incident as a gift and reminder that he won't always be here fer me. From that day on, I stopped lyin' and would strive to always tell the truth." Applejack looked out the window and put her hat back on her head, "I miss my Pops. I don't have many memories of him." Applejack looked at her friends with a puzzled look when she saw there mouths were agape. "S'matter with ya'll?"

Twilight spoke up and said, "That was an awesome story! Wow, and what a great example your father set for you. Those are the kinds of things i love to hear."

The rest of Applejack's friends agreed.

"He was a good stallion and my Mother was a good mare, although she was just not as forgivin' and acceptin' like him. She was more like Granny Smith in many ways. I'm glad ya liked the story. Not long before they passed on, they had Granny come to the farm to take care of Big Macintosh, Apple Bloom and myself."

"I hope you'll tell us some more stories about your parents. You tend to be a bit on the quiet side about that topic. Thank you for opening up," Twilight said.

"It just makes me sad," Applejack replied. "I never really got to say goodbye one last time before they passed on. I think Granny didn't want me to know that they were sufferin' right before their deaths since I was so young. I kind of just wished I could go back in time and say one last goodbye." Applejack suddenly smiled. "Well, accordin' to Granny, I got my crazy heretical gal pals that make me feel so much better." Applejack looked over to Twilight. "Ya still goin' to see Granny and Father Hay Scratch?"

"One thing at a time," Twilight said. "I'm sure we'll eventually get to that. I would simply like to take this day as a day to relax and celebrate my friendship and unity in Christ with you all." Twilight gave the letter to Spike. "Ready to do the honors and send it away?"

"Yeah, sure." Spike took the letter and inhaled the air, but before he sent it away with his magical dragon fire, he was startled by a loud bang followed by a crashing sound in the room.

Everyone turned to see a large brown box on the floor that must have crashed through the roof. A moment later, two eyes peered from above the box, each eye seemed to be fixated on two different objects in the room.

"Derpy?" Fluttershy asked. "Are you okay?"

Derpy sprung up from behind the box and opened it. She brought the box to the table. "I haven't seen my best friends in such a long time!" she said. "I spent all my money and bought this box of muffins to share with my Sisters in Christ. Thanks for making me your seventh member. I hope that someday we can have communion with muffins at church since you told me that Jesus likes muffins too."

"Gee, you're quite welcome, Derpy and thank you for thinking of us like this but you can use the door next time instead of crashing through my roof."

"I'm sorry, sometimes I just get so excited that I don't think ahead of time and get myself into trouble. If you didn't notice, I tend to be a bit on the clumsy side and I don't have much control over it. My parents swear that I became extra clumsy and my eyes became funny looking after they got me some kind of shot."

Twilight Sparkle knew from when she had first met Derpy that she must have had an adverse reaction to a vaccine just by looking at her face. "I'm so sorry to hear that, Derpy. How do you feel about that?"

"My Doctor swears that the shot didn't hurt me so I don't know what to believe anymore!" the cross eyed mare shouted. "Life is confusing enough as it is so I just thank God for muffins and try to be happy in life."

"That's a great attitude to have," Twilight said.

"Gettin' excited and not thinkin' ahead of time before ya git into trouble? Boy, we know somepony exactly like that right now, don't we?" Applejack asked as she looked at Pinkie.

Derpy looked over and noticed Pinkie. "Oh my goodness! Pinkie is here and she's always so much fun to be with." Derpy grabbed a muffin and pushed it over to Pinkie. The happy expression on her face changed when she noticed that Pinkie didn't seem like the Pinkie that Derpy seemed to always envision in her mind. "What's the matter? Did I do something wrong again?"

"No," Pinkie said. "It's kind of hard to explain. I went through something really, really bad and now I'm just going through the, um..." Pinkie Pie thought of the word she was trying to find. "Aftermath of it all?"

"Darn, I know what it feels like to go through something bad in life and then have to solve bad math problems afterwards too."

"I suppose math isn't much fun to do when things are not going well either unless you're Twilight," Pinkie said.

"But you can't be sad!" Derpy said. "You're Pinkie Pie! I thought you couldn't ever be sad!"

Pinkie Pie sighed. "You know, I used to believe that, but even I'm not immune to being sad or hurt. Everypony gets sad sometimes, even me."

Derpy pushed another muffin across the table with her nose to Pinkie. "Then have another muffin! Whenever I feel sad I just keep eating these until I get sick, but I feel so good that it's worth the belly ache."

"You are what you eat," Twilight said.

Derpy's eyes seemed to rotate around as her mind tried to comprehend what that statement meant. "Wow! Science is so cool!"

"Thanks, Derpy. Muffins are a fun food," Pinkie said as she ate one.

"About as fun as you," Derpy said as she brought her attention back to the pink pony. "Nopony puts a smile on my face like you do. It's why I became a Christian in the first place because you are one."

"I appreciate that and everything, but I think it's more important to become a Christian because of Jesus," Pinkie said.

"Yeah! That makes sense too!" Derpy added. The cross eyed mare looked around at the other ponies. "So because Pinkie has been sad, I bet you have all been sad as well."

"When one member suffers, we all suffer," Twilight said. "We all have also had our obstacles to climb over recently, but I think Pinkie had the hardest time by far."

"See? I knew that I needed to see my best friends today! Maybe Jesus gave me that feeling that you all needed to see me so that I could bring muffins and be that mare on a mission to cheer you all up since Pinkie is super sad!" Derpy said. She began taking muffins out of the box and putting them in front of everypony in the room. She threw her two front hooves up in the air in celebration. "Better?"

Twilight smirked. "Jesus loves a warm and giving pony." She bent down and took a bite and the taste of chocolate and almonds overcame her taste buds with delight. "I don't know where you got these muffins, but everything feels much better all of the sudden."

Derpy smiled, having felt that her mission had been completed. She looked around and noticed the scroll by Spike. "Hey! What's that scroll all about?"

"It's our friendship letters to the Princess," Spike said.

"Since I'm a part of your team, may I say something too!?" Derpy asked.

Spike looked at Twilight for a moment as if waiting for her approval because he thought this might not be a good idea.

"Write anything that's on your heart, Derpy," Twilight said before taking another bite of her muffin.

Derpy looked down at her chest and put her hoof over her heart since she was not quite sure what that expression meant. She always got a little bit frightened when she heard that somehow God could see her literal beating heart.

Spike got the quill out and coughed. "What do you want to say, Derpy?"

Derpy almost forgot about the letter and then perked up when she remembered again. "Dear Princess Celestia! I just wanted to say that I'm so happy to be a part of the best group ever and today, I was able to make everypony happy with a surprise visit to cheer everypony up with muffins, and who doesn't love muffins? Even Twilight Sparkle told me that Jesus likes muffins. And, um..." Derpy put her hoof to her chin in thought. "Oh yeah! Pinkie Pie is always the best pony but I learned that sometimes even she gets sad. Twilight Sparkle also used science and proved to me that I am made out of muffins because she told me that I am what I eat, therefore I am the muffin mare. That sounds so cool, but I need to be careful because others might find me tasty since that's what I am made out of. I might need to be careful so that I don't eat myself because that would be terrible! I also believe that you should change our currency from bits to muffins. Perhaps you should make me Princess for a day and I could show you how to make this world a better place. And, um, I think I'm missing something." Derpy perked up with a joyous look and added, "Oh Yeah! Jesus is cool! Yours truly, Derpy Hooves."

Spike jotted all that down and looked to Twilight with an unsure look.

"Go on, Spike. Send it away. Chances are I'll be talking again with her soon anyway," Twilight said. "I'm pretty sure I had at least one conversation with her about Derpy."

"Oh! What did you say about me?" Derpy asked with excitement.

"Oh, just that you're very unique and all kinds of special," Twilight said.

"Wow, Thanks!" Derpy said. "Mark my words, I will one day get to rule Equestria for a day! I really believe it!"

"If you say so, darling," Rarity said feeling a bit concerned about how Derpy thought.

"Yes! It's one of my dreams to get to rule Equestria for a day." Derpy flew over to Pinkie Pie and stood on top of her head. "So who is ready to party with Pinkie and I?"

Pinkie's tail and mane became just a bit more puffy again. "I do! Let's get out those old dance records and put on some music!"

Derpy looked down from her head into her eyes and giggled.

Pinkie looked over to Applejack, "Hey, A.J., are you going to party hard with us or are you going to say no like how you did to Granny Smith's request and have nun of that when it came to going to Mass? Get it? Nun?"

Applejack shook her head in disappointment. "I guess it ain't the normal Pinkie Pie without silly puns like that."

Pinkie Pie laughed and Derpy began laughing with her.

"I have no idea what I'm laughing at!" Derpy said as she couldn't stop laughing.

"I hope you're laughing at my Pinkie pun, but laughter and smiles are contagious as well!"

Twilight observed the two ponies and realized that perhaps these two could be a dangerous combination since they seemed to feed off of each other's personalities. At least Pinkie would need a little bit more Lithium when around Derpy. Twilight looked over at Applejack and felt that she needed to apologize to her, and now would be a good time since Derpy and Pinkie were distracted. "Psst! Applejack."

Applejack looked over. "Yes'm?"

"Could I have a word with you for a brief moment?"

Applejack got up and walked over to Twilight. "What's up?"

"I need to apologize for giving you that pill before. That was a horrible decision on my part and I only did that because I just wanted Pinkie to take her pill. Even though that pill was harmless, it still violates what I personally stand for when it comes to practicing medicine since I didn't have your consent; out of our group, you were the only one who clearly stated that you did not want to take that medicine, and I did not respect that. I did not sleep after that because I felt so horrible on the inside, yet when we were with Pinkie during that time, I did not want to show any signs of the regret I felt because it might scare Pinkie away from taking her medicine. After she had that incident with you, I was under so much pressure and knew that if she did not take that pill, then she'd end up in major trouble. It was wrong for me to control you like that. After all, the opposite of love is not hate, it's control."

"Aw, shucks. After I thought about it later on, I kind of figured that was your reasoning. I understand why ya did that, and even if it was wrong, don't ya feel bad 'bout it now. To be fair, I can be stubborn to the core and not think things out. I should have just trusted ya, but ya'll know how I can be sometimes."

"So do you forgive me? I'm supposed to be better than that, and even though I make many mistakes, that was one mistake that really hurt me on the inside, and I'm sure it hurt you too."

Applejack put her hoof on Twilight's shoulder. "Twi, of course I forgive ya. Given the situation that ya were in with Pinkie, I probably would have done the same thing if I were in yer position. Yer a good pony that means well and wants the best for everypony. I absolutely love ya as my friend and my sister in Christ."

Hearing those words made Twilight tear up. "Thank you, Applejack. That means so much to me," Twilight said as she smiled warmly at her friend. The guilt and burden she felt was removed from her mind and she felt much better about herself."

"Say, what's with you and sleep problems anyway? Ya got a big noise machine in yer room and now ya lost sleep over feelin' bad. Why don't ya come up with some kind of sleep herbal tea and name it somethin' catchy like Twilight Sleep? Ya could make a lot of money sellin' something like that too."

Twilight giggled. "If I was going to make my own tea to sell to others, I'm pretty certain that I would not name it Twilight Sleep."

"Why not? That's, like, the perfect name I can think of."

"Because that was the name of one of the most awful drugs of all time; it was a combination of morphine and scopolamine. The drug was injected and provided pain relief and amnesia for mares who didn't want to experience the pains of giving birth. While they still responded somewhat to pain under the effects of the drug, they did not remember it after delivering their baby. This treatment was once very popular with obstetricians."

Applejack frowned. "Twilight, dear, you read way too many books."

Twilight smirked. "So I have been told. It's kind of what you do when you run a library. Learning is so important to me, and in the book of Hosea, it says that my ponies are destroyed for a lack of knowledge. I am reminded of that verse when I look at so many ponies today and see what ignorance has done to their lives, and the lives around them. It's very heartbreaking to me.

"Hey! What are you two silly fillies talking about over there?" Pinkie shouted. "Come on back over here and join the party!"

"We were just talkin' bout how interestin' ya are, Pinks, until Twi started geekin' out on me. Ya'll know how to make a party fun!" Applejack said. She glanced at Twilight and winked. "We're good, Sugar Cube, we're good. Don't ya feel bad 'bout what happened before," she whispered into Twilight's ear.

Pinkie Pie laughed along with Derpy and began to act silly again.

Rarity, feeling a bit down and guilty that she wasn't home, got up and walked over to the door. "Well, I suppose I should go. I do have an awful lot to do around the house."

Derpy looked a bit sad. "Going already? But I just got here."

"So sorry, dear, but maybe next time I'll stay a bit longer."

Derpy got off of Pinkie's head and flew over to Rarity with a muffin. "Don't forget to take this with you. It will protect you from all of the sad out there."

Rarity forced a smile on her face. "Thank you. Good bye everypony." She quickly left the house and shut the door. As she walked away, she could hear the loud dance music coming from behind her. She put her head down and walked back towards home. She felt bad for leaving the party, but she felt awkward there and wanted to go home. "Everyone overcame their struggles except for me. I had one simple task to achieve and it seems like it's never going to happen no matter how hard I try." Rarity took a bite of the muffin that was given to her and trotted on. "Everyone also had something good to say to the Princess except for me and all I'm doing is complaining right now as I talk to myself. I guess I can be quite good at that sadly. I hope for the same outcome every single day and even if I don't get what I want, I'm going to keep trying to be better."

Back at Carousal Boutique, Rarity walked into her room and put away her jewelry and dresses that were scattered about her room. She thought to herself a moment about spending more time with her foal which was her goal that she wished to fulfill. It was probably time to check on her son anyway and Sweetie Belle would be home soon. She had been trying much harder to spend more time with him even though she had so much to do lately. Rarity got up and walked out to the living room. Just as she turned the corner, she bumped into her mother. "Oh, I'm sorry, I was just going to check on Strong Faith."

"Oh, That's exactly what I came in here to do as well. Aren't you busy with your clothing?" Cookie asked.

Rarity felt awkward. She put her head down and her eyes darted from left to right. "I'm fine. I just...." Rarity didn't know what to say at this point.

Cookie walked over and put her two front hooves on the crib. "I think it's just about time to feed him."

Rarity walked over and stood next to her Mother. She put her two front hooves on top of the crib as well.

"Momma!" The little baby colt shouted.

Rarity sighed and lowered her ears as she turned her head away. She had spent so much time trying to take better care of her son on her own and so many times her mother would be in her way and no matter how hard she tried to bond with her son, he would always go crawling to her mother. The depressive thoughts hit Rarity once again as she figured that he would go crawling after her mother or cry whenever she picked him up just like he always did. She was about to say something to her mother when she felt a tug at her hoof. Rarity opened her eyes wide and looked down at the little colt who was standing on his hind legs and had his tiny two front hooves on her one hoof.

"Momma!" The foal shouted.

Rarity was so surprised by this. She stared at him as if she thought she may be hearing and seeing things.

"That's right," Cookie said. "That is your momma!"

"The foal leaned his head against her hoof and said, "Momma!" once more.

Rarity smiled and scooped him up. She was so happy to finally hear this. "Yes! Yes, I am Momma! Me!" It felt so good to hear that word directed towards her for the first time. Rarity brought him close to her chest and walked over to the window in which she looked out of back to the trail that led to Twilight's house. She thought about the stories of her friend's struggles and focused on how they had all been through difficult times, but they had all made it through and now she felt that she had made it through a difficult moment in her life. All of that regretting and sorrow had instantly disappeared when she had picked him up and she finally felt good about herself again. Even though she felt like going back to the party, she knew that she had to be here for her son. She simply thought of her friends and celebrated with them in her heart as if she were with them all right now. Everything was okay again with herself and her friends and that's all that mattered to her now as well as forever.

The end.

Author's Note

Thank you for reading this story/series. This is normally the place where I say that I'm working on the next story update for this series, but unfortunately, I don't think that will happen. For more information on that, please read my blog that is associated with this story.

A Different Mare Now

Rainbow Dash snored loudly as her back legs twitched under the blankets. She was in a deep sleep and she slept very soundly whenever there was a storm. The near constant sounds of thunder was like white noise to her and her aching muscles from the strong humidity in the air felt relaxed under the warm blankets.

It was days like this when she slept in late, but that sleep was soon disturbed by the ringing of the alarm clock.

Rainbow Dash peeked one eye open and groaned. She turned to the other side and gave one good buck to Soarin's side.

Soarin' jolted up and slammed the top of the alarm clock with his hoof on the table next to him. He then took the two ear plugs out of his ears. He wore these every night because Rainbow Dash was notoriously loud when it came to her snoring, but he couldn't hear the alarm clock ringing so he had to rely on her to wake him up. Soarin' placed the two earplugs on the side of the desk and stretched his limbs. He turned his head back to Rainbow Dash and asked, "Are you going to get up for breakfast, Dash?"

Rainbow Dash yawned and replied, "You know I don't do well on days like this. I'd have breakfast with you, but I'm in too much pain. I hope this whole business of you having to work more hours will end soon. We haven't been able to do much together."

Soarin' watched the blankets rise and fall as Rainbow's breathing became more relaxed again. He felt bad at this moment and thought about making a bigger breakfast and eating in bed with her since she was so tired and in great pain, but he knew on days like this, sitting up in bed to eat was sometimes hard enough for her. He wondered just how long she would have to go through this. Everyday was a struggle for her, but certain days, she was miserable. She could tell him whenever a storm was approaching just by the painful flare ups in her body and she was more accurate than the weather ponies when it came to predicting random storms coming in. Life was quite different now that he was married and he was still getting used to this whole living with another mare thing. Soarin' noticed her left leg twitch under the blankets. For if there was one pony in the world who could fall asleep in ten seconds flat, it was Rainbow Dash. Soarin's vision became blurry for a moment as he went into a trance. He shook his head quickly several times and got out of bed. He couldn't just sit there and watch her all day, he had to get going, especially since he was well known for being a little tardy to work. He enjoyed getting every extra second of sleep that he could possibly get.

"Come on, time to get up," Soarin' said as he forced himself out of the bed and slowly walked over to the door. Before he left the room, he looked back at Dash one last time and sighed. He said a silent prayer wishing that she would soon get over this suffering. Soarin' walked into the kitchen and had his usual four eggs and some toast. As he sat at the table, he began to dwell on their life together. Things were difficult now because he not only had to keep up with performing shows, but he also had to spend extra time training new recruit Wonderbolts. Soarin' looked at the clock in the kitchen and noticed that he was going to be late. He quickly inhaled the rest of his food and hurried to the door. He opened it up and spread his wings for take off, but noticed something on his porch. It was the newspaper. Derpy Hooves must have delivered it early for some reason. Soarin' quickly picked up the paper and tossed it on a small table next to the couch. He flared out his wings once more and left. He had a lot going on in his mind right now about his new life experience with Dash. He was finding that life was not going exactly as planned and he was expecting a bit more of a wild adventure with the fastest pony in all of Equestria, or at least she used to be the fastest. He wondered what he could do during this rather depressing time.

Rainbow Dash woke up several hours later. She opened up one eye and looked at the clock. It was already afternoon yet she did not want to get out of bed, but she knew that she should. She rolled out of bed and hit the floor with a loud thud. The pillow she was sleeping on fell off the bed and landed on her head when the blankets were pulled down. A glass jar also fell down from the side of the desk to the floor next to her. It was her thankful jar. Every night before she went to bed, she would think of the things she was thankful for on each day and would write them down on a piece of paper and then fold them up, and put them in the jar. At the end of the month she would take out all the notes and read them to Soarin' before starting the next month. It was an easy and effective way to help her keep her mood positive when life wasn't going her way.

"That was a bit less graceful than I had anticipated," she said as she freed herself from the tangled blankets that ensnared her body. She got up on all four legs and put her jar of thankfulness back on the desk. She was tough. Maybe not as tough and rugged as her friend, Applejack, but she could endure quite a bit of discomfort. Rainbow Dash made her way over to the kitchen and stared up at the fridge for a moment. She really wanted eggs, but she was too exhausted to bother standing over a frying pan. She had already spent enough early afternoons skipping breakfast and knew that she should try to eat something for breakfast even if it was already lunch time. She walked over and retrieved a box of cereal and a jar of raw milk she bought from Applejack's farm. She made her breakfast and brought her meal over to the couch in the living room. Sitting or laying on anything cushioned was preferred right now. Seeking any kind of comfort and warmth during these bizarre flare ups was needed. Rainbow put her bowl on the leg rest of the couch and shut her eyes tightly. She sat there wondering to herself just how bad this storm was going to be since she hadn't felt this awful with aches and pains in a while. She said a silent prayer hoping that Soarin' wouldn't get caught or hurt flying with this major storm approaching. Without him in her life right now, she would need a ton of support from her friends. It often seemed to her that the hours in a day were cut dramatically short for her because her sleep hours needed to be that much longer and she felt like she was missing out on so much in life because of that. She eventually had to welcome and accept her pain and disabilities no matter how hard she tried to force herself to believe that it was all in her head . She had to accept the fact that she was a different mare now and had serious limitations as to what she could do, which was arduous for her because she used to base much of her self worth upon what she could do in life, especially when it came to sports and physical fitness.

Just before she was about to pick up her bowl, she noticed the newspaper near her. Right there on the front page was an article about how Princess Celestia's guards caught one of the biggest trouble makers in Manehatten, Emerald Envy.

Rainbow Dash read the article, her eyes moving from the left back to the right. "Wow, I can't believe they finally caught her and right in the open too." Rainbow Dash was glad that Emmy wouldn't be a threat to anypony else, but she felt a little angry because of what she did to her since she was still suffering with pain. Rainbow Dash paused for a moment as she fought back the angry thoughts that came into her mind. "No," she said. "You forgave Risk, and you have to forgive her too. Getting angry won't undo the suffering." Rainbow pushed the paper aside and forgave Emmy for what she did to her. This new life was so foreign to her but it didn't matter that she wasn't feeling good and couldn't fly very well, nor was it a big deal that she felt alone because Soarin' had to work more hours for now. She was ultimately loyal to her faith, husband and friends, but right now she just wished for a little relief from her physical anguish. She ate her cereal quickly and thought about what to do next.

Rainbow Dash's body desired more rest, and just as she was about to lay down to go back to sleep, she caught a glimpse of the time on the clock. "Holy horse apples, I'm not going to miss it this time!" Rainbow Dash was in no mood to get up and go outside, but she had been missing out when it came to seeing her friends. Rainbow got off the couch and made her way outside. She looked down from the sky and spread her wings for take off. If she hauled flank, she'd be able to get there just in time. The pain was great in her wings as she took off and flew over to Twilight's place. Flying was difficult at first, but her body adapted as she went on. She knew that tomorrow morning she would pay for this big time with more pain and exhaustion, but her friends were worth seeing despite any extra discomfort that she'd have to go through.

Rainbow touched ground and hurried over to the door. She was surprised that it was left ajar since the library wasn't supposed to be open today. She quickly walked inside and found all her friends, except one key member that leads, Twilight.

Rainbow's friends all looked up at her with surprise.

Pinkie Pie raced over and pinned Rainbow Dash against the wall in a bear hug. "Dashie!" she cried out.

The back of Rainbow's head hit the wall hard. She struggled to breathe as Pinkie's front legs wrapped tighter and tighter around her body like a snake choking the life out of its prey before devouring it.

Pinkie Pie began talking as fast as she possibly could. "Oh, Dashie! How I've missed you so much! You never spend any time with me anymore since you're so busy with Soarin' all day. How many foals have you had yet? Ten, twenty, thirty? The Bible says to be fruitful and multiply and I want to make sure that you do that so that I can have way more birthdays to plan and celebrate!"

Rainbow Dash struggled for air, and somehow managed to speak. "Pinkie, let go! You know I have problems with pain right now."

Pinkie tilted her head in confusion and squeezed even tighter until she heard her friend's bones pop in her back and then let go. "Oh, I forgot about that. Sorry." She then bounced back to where she was seated before with the rest of her friends. "You can join us now. I think."

Rainbow Dash bent over and gasped for air with her head down low. She picked her head up and stared at Pinkie. "Pinkie, You are out of your mind. I know you're crazy and everything, but you're exceeding even that now." Rainbow Dash rubbed the back of her head with her hoof and closed her eyes from the pain.

"Well, I reckon Pinkie was just a tad bit excited to see ya. We haven't seen ya at group in quite a while, Missy," Applejack said "How are ya feelin'? I'm surprised yer even out of bed by now."

Rainbow Dash closed the door quietly and sat down on the floor with her friends. "What's going on? Where's Twilight?" she asked.

Applejack shrugged and replied, "I don't know. We have been waitin' here fer almost half an hour and Twilight has been a no show."

Rainbow Dash grabbed a Bible from the center of the circle and opened it up. The moment she did that, the door opened and in stepped their teacher, Twilight Sparkle.

Twilight walked in with her head low and her eyes spoke of fatigue. She was also carrying a book with her.

Her friends watched her as she walked passed them, not even making any eye contact with them. A piece of paper fell out of the book Twilight was carrying with her and landed next to Pinkie Pie. Twilight took her Bible and plopped herself down on the floor.

"Uh, Twilight," Applejack said with a worried look on her face. "Ya, could at least say hi to us. Ya kinda look like a zombie."

Twilight shook her head from side to side rapidly in an attempt to shake the sleepiness from her mind. She perked up with a weak smile and said, "Oh, I'm really sorry about that. I guess I just need a little extra coffee or something." Twilight noticed Rainbow and said, "It's good to see you back, Rainbow. We haven't seen you here in a while and I'm sure it's hard for you with your pain and everything."

"I don't mean to sound rude, "Rarity said. "But what is causing you to be late to group so often? This is the fifth time that you have been tardy."

"And it's also the fifth time that we don't have any snacks to eat," Applejack said. "I know we come here to study the Bible, but golly, ya can't focus as well when yer tummy is hungry. As Rarity would say, it would tickle my fancy if maybe Spike would make his signature Spikey snacks fer us again."

"It would tickle your fanny?" Pinkie Pie asked. "Wow, that sounds really weird, Applejack."

"I said FANCY! Clean the taters out of yer ears."

"Yeah, but that accent though," Pinkie said.

"I ain't got no accent!" Applejack said defensively.

"Ungh," Twilight moaned. "I'm really sorry how late I have been. To answer Rarity's questions, I have been spending so much time with other ponies who ask of my time and I guess I'm spreading myself too thin here. I apologize for being late again. Let's get started before I have to do anything else." Twilight opened her book to where they had last left off and then looked back up at her friends. "Okay, girls, we have spent a whole lot of time in the book of John and First Corinthians. Before moving on to another book, let's have a little pop quiz. I'll start off with an easy question for a warm up before I get to my special list of questions I made up for all of you. What's the entire purpose of the book of John?" Twilight's eyes scanned her friends as she waited for a response. "Come on, think, everypony. Think."

Rarity's mind was deep in thought. She remembered when they first started reading this book that Twilight had told them the answer to this a long time ago. "Was it because he wanted to show that Jesus was the Christ?" she asked.

"Bingo!" Twilight said with a smile. "The entire purpose of this book was to show that Jesus is indeed the Christ." Twilight looked around again and asked, "Okay, next question. Who can name a messianic prophecy for me?"

"Um," Fluttershy softly spoke. "Not a bone in His body shall be broken."

"That's correct. It was customary for Romans to break legs during crucifixion to hasten their deaths and Jesus died before they could break his legs. This happened to fulfill the scripture that says not a bone in His body shall be broken. Speaking of Jesus's death, the Bible says that between the evenings, meant to the Jews, between three and five O' clock in the afternoon. This is the time when Jesus died, which is the same time as the traditional sacrifice. Truly, He is the lamb of God. Moving on now. Why was it absurd when Jesus told the stallions to cast their nets on the right side of the boat?"

Twilight's friends all looked at each other as if expecting somepony else had the answer.

Applejack scratched her chin with her hoof and frowned. "Is it cause God is always makin' such a big fuss 'bout the right side all the time?"

Twilight giggled. "Nope, It's because boats in those days had a pole that was on the right side in order to dock as well as keeping all their gear on that side. Casting the net over the right side would most likely get the net caught on it and rip the net. These stallions were professional fishers and knew what they were doing. Catching one hundred fifty three large fish would have certainly broke the net, but John mentions that the net didn't break because it shows us that Jesus is the Christ because of this miracle. Nets back then were hoof woven and not that strong."

Applejack looked at her Bible and said, "Gee, I reckon it doesn't say anythin' 'bout the details of those boats in here. That answer feels like it's a bit over kill if ya ask me."

"You've got to do your research about history in other books as well, Applejack," Twilight said. "I know we talked about this before not too long ago. You need to pay better attention."

"Say, what's with God and talkin' 'bout his right hoof anyway? What does He do with his left one?" Applejack asked.

"He takes His left hoof and flicks you on the back of the head when you ask silly questions like that," Twilight answered. "How about asking a good question?"

Applejack looked at her notes where she often wrote down questions. "Um, there are some names that are mentioned at the end of First Corinthians that I never heard of before. Who are these ponies?"

"Now that's a much better question," Twilight said. "Those names are never mentioned anywhere else in the Bible again. These ponies gave their whole lives to the building up of the church and got no recognition for it. This is much like today's churches, because eighty percent of the churches are run by about twenty percent of the ponies who get little to no appreciation for their service. Now how about letting me ask all of you some questions since I'm the one quizzing you?"

Fluttershy spoke up and asked, "But I have a question too."

Twilight sighed knowing that she had a weakness when it came to refusing to answer questions. "Okay, Fluttershy. Shoot."

Why did Paul keep telling the ponies to respect Timothy?"

"It was because Timothy was only about sixteen years of age and was in charge of all the churches in Turkey. At such a young age, many ponies much older than him might not appreciate being told what to do by a teenager. This is why Paul had to remind them many times." Twilight looked over at Rarity and said, "Judging from the worried look on your face, I can only sense that you want to ask something too."

Rarity looked down in her little book of notes and said, "I don't understand why Paul considered himself the least of the Apostles. Was it because of all the Christians he killed in the past?"

"No," Twilight said. "Would anypony else like to help her understand? I don't want to be the answer machine for everything."

"It was because he was teaching after Christ ascended and therefore was never physically with Him like all the other Apostles," Rainbow answered.

"Nice, Rainbow!" Twilight said as her front hooves clopped against each other. Twilight looked at Pinkie Pie who was currently watching a fly buzz around her head. "Eh-hem. Pinkie, I have a question for you."

Pinkie Pie blinked her eyes several times in confusion. "What?" Oh, I'm ready!"

"Name a role of an Apostle for me."

"Well, that's super easy!" Pinkie said cheerfully.

"Oh really?" Twilight asked.

"Yeah!" Pinkie shot back. "The answer is always Jesus!"

"Pinkie, no," Twilight said as she covered her eyes with her hooves for a moment. "Pinkie, that's like theology for a colt or a filly at the age of three years old." Twilight truly had forgotten just how bad Pinkie's learning disabilities are and how hard it is for her to pay attention. "I'll help you out on this one. One of the roles of the Apostle was to establish and build up churches. Jesus is the founder of the church and the Apostles were to build on Him. Paul's preaching was to establish churches and he would not go where this was already being done by another. Do you have anything else that needs to be cleared up?"

"Huh?" Pinkie asked. She pulled out a piece of paper that seemed to have nothing on it but randomly drawn pictures and numbers.

Twilight had a puzzled look on her face as she studied what appeared to be utter nonsense drawn on the paper, but the truth was that Pinkie had a very different learning style and drew pictures by means of remembering stories or what questions to ask. "Um, are you going to ask me something that I can help you with, or are you just going to stare at those smiley faces and rainbows that are drawn on that paper?"

"Shhhh!" Pinkie cautioned. "I am thinking!" A few seconds later, Pinkie had thought of a question to ask. "Okay, so which member of the Trinity is the greatest?"

Twilight Sparkle hit the side of her face with her hoof. "Didn't we already go over this before with you, Pinkie? Perhaps this time you can write it down. Are you ready?"

Pinkie Pie was distracted again and was watching that fly buzz around the room.

"PINKIE!" Twilight shouted.

"What?" Pinkie asked. "Oh yeah, I'm ready!" She grabbed a pencil and put it to the piece of paper. "By the way, we are in a library and you shouldn't yell like that."

Twilight, looking rather annoyed continued. "There is a hierarchy in the Trinity. Father, Son, Spirit. This ranking in order does not mean that one member in the Trinity is lesser or greater than the other. The Son is equal to the Father, but by His choice, He left all that was comfortable and became lower than the Angels in order to save us. It was in this order that the Father sent the Son, and the Son gave us the Holy Spirit and since we are talking about Paul, he makes a big emphasis on the resurrection. The resurrection of Christ was proof of the Father's approval of the sacrifice. Is that clear, Pinkie? No member of the Trinity is greater or lesser, older or younger."

Pinkie Pie finished writing and nodded her head yes.

Twilight looked at the paper and saw nothing but randomness that made no sense in her mind. She wondered if Pinkie picked up a single word that she said. "Anything else?"

"Yeah!" Pinkie said. "Paul says that we can eat the sacrificed food, yet we can't. Which is it? I love to eat all kinds of food, especially sweet foods!"

"Paul does say that we have every right to eat the sacrificed food to idols because there is only one true God, but don't do this if it makes other unbelievers who see this to sin by thinking that you are worshiping their Gods."

"I've got another question," Applejack said. "It ain't fair that Pinkie gets to ask all the questions!"

"You know, I think I was supposed to be the one asking questions here," Twilight said with disappointment.

"Yeah, but ya always ask stuff that makes me think too hard and I don't like that."

"Right, right. Go on," Twilight said.

Applejack looked down at her notes. "Um, what exactly was Jesus's thing with the whole I come to bring a sword deal? I thought He was peaceful. Also, I always hear that our faith isn't the oldest religion in the world and now that we are talking about Paul, why did he say he knew better not to do certain things that were wrong yet did them anyway? Did he not care or somethin'? I also found an error in John and Mark where they have two different answers for the time. Also, how come we have all these religious wars and slavery and..."

Twilight put her hoof out in the air signaling for her to stop. "Hold on a second. That's a lot of questions! First of all, Christ forbade the use of the literal sword. So when He said I came not to bring peace but a sword, His message results in a division of society. The choice to decide for or against Him and He will honor that choice. Let's not forget that Jesus put the ear back on the young pony that had been cut off from the sword by Peter. Second question, I think you're getting things confused with the oldest written religion. It was Jewish culture to share stories orally and not written, so the writings occurred later. Third question, Paul claims that even though he knows something is wrong, he still does it anyway. This is because our will is corrupt. The problem of evil is not of knowledge but a problem of will. The so called error that you mentioned isn't actually an error. John and Mark used different timing methods. One used Jewish and the other used Roman. They actually both equal the same time." Twilight thought to herself for a moment but couldn't remember what else was asked. "What were the last two questions?"

"Religious wars everywhere and slavery."

"Right, that's a topic that can get really out of hoof sometimes and I have a book that would be of very much interest to you in this library. One of the most absurd claims is that religion is the number one cause of war. In the Encyclopedia of Wars, the recorded history of war is documented. Of the one thousand seven hundred sixty three wars presented, only seven percent involved a religious cause. When Islam is subtracted from the equation, that number goes down to three point two percent. In terms of casualties, religious wars account for only two percent of all ponies killed by warfare. This pales in comparison to the number of ponies who have been killed by secular dictators in the twentieth century alone who swore to bring about the utopia by means of slaughtering millions upon millions of innocent religious ponies and destroying all of the religious books in hopes to eradicate religion from the world. We can talk more about those statistics later, but that's another can of worms to open. Let's not forget that one of the reasons that the most savage, powerful and blood thirsty empires had it's warrior spirit crushed and was defeated by Christianity simply because Christians were too peaceful despite the sheer brutality the early followers of Christ went through. Do you all remember the horrible things that Nero did to the Christians?"

"Yeah, but it figures that Islam would be responsible for the most religious wars," Applejack said. "Especially since they started that whole suicide bombin' thing."

"Be careful, Applejack," Twilight cautioned. "That's a bit of an ignorant statement. A group called the Tamil Tigers are the ones who invented suicide bombings, and they are Hindu. I think we need to remember that when we see things like the thirty years war and point our hooves and say they are killing because of religion, we need to take a closer look at what the true, ultimate motive is for fighting in the first place and in that situation, that war was fueled by political contests of power. When we look at the middle east fighting, they're fighting over land, not because of religion, and that land is the Jew's ancestral land. They are not fighting over it because it's holy. We see so many other instances like fighting because of ethnic rivalry or fighting over which group gets to rule what. And just because ponies have fought over religion, doesn't make religion bad." Twilight pointed her hoof at Applejack and asked, "You own lots of land at Sweet Apple Acres, right?"

"Uh-huh. We own so many acres and we keep expandin' when we can," Applejack replied.

"Millions upon millions of ponies have died fighting over owning land. Does this mean that owning land is an evil thing? Of course not. That would be silly to think so, just like how silly it is to think that all religion is evil because some wars have been fought over religion. Sure, some may say that religion helps to fuel the fighting, but the truth is that even without religion in the world, these fights and wars would still be happening and if religion wasn't a factor in finding means to encourage two or more groups to put further distance between them, they would still find some other reasons to not like the opposing side and would continue to belittle each other and think that they are better than the other side. The bottom line is that just because two groups are at war with each other and both sides happen to be religious, doesn't automatically make the war a religious one."

"And what about slavery?" Applejack asked.

"Now, as for slavery, in brief, the slavery in the Bible is incomparably different from the horrific slavery that we know of from not too long ago. Most slaves were indentured servants who swore to pay off their debt or get themselves out of poverty. The law concerning these slaves in the law of Moses were uniquely humanitarian; compare them to the Code of Hammurabi. In the Law of Moses, slaves' debts were to be cancelled completely after seven years unless the slave wanted to stay with the master. That comes from the book of Exodus, and in the book of Deuteronomy, it says, if a slave ever wanted to leave his master, he could, and his master could do nothing about it. Let's not forget that slavery was a all over Equestria and accepted everywhere. It was actually the Christians who were the first group to oppose and start an anti-slavery movement in this land based on one specific verse in the book of Galatians when slavery was horrific. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there stallion nor mare, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. Even the civil rights movement was Christian." Twilight took some very deep breaths. She didn't realize just how fast she was talking.

"One more question, Twi," Applejack said.

"No!" Twilight shouted.

Applejack took off her hat and hid her face behind it, her sad eyes peering out from above the rim of the hat. "Please?" she asked in a sad voice.

"Ungh! Last question and I mean it!"

"I always hear ponies askin' what created God. What would yer answer be?"

"God created time along with the universe. God, outside of the universe does not need a cause like that inside of the universe.
God created time outside of the universe as well." Twilight paused and thought to herself. "You girls seem to be a little bit weak in your knowledge of the Bible and I would be a little concerned how you all might handle criticism of scriptures by skeptics. I think a good verse to keep in mind comes from the book of Peter. But in your hearts, honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect." Twilight perked up and said, "Now, my turn to ask you all the questions I had planned." Twilight put her hoof in the air for a moment and then her mind went blank. "Um, I had forgotten all of the questions I had mentally prepared for all of you. Hold on a second, I know I had a list of very specific questions I wrote down for each and everyone of you." She opened up one of her books looking for the piece of paper where she had made up questions for them but it was missing. She looked through her notebook where she thought she might have put the paper in, but could not find it. "I can't find my quiz questions I had made for you all. I spent a lot of time on it." Twilight looked at Pinkie's note sheet and realized that the paper she had written on was yellow and crumbled a bit like what she took her notes on. She used her magic to levitate it it over to herself. She could barely make out the words, but she saw that this was her quiz sheet ruined by all the chaotic drawings on the paper. "Pinkie! How did you manage to get a hold of this piece of paper?"

"Uh, you dropped it coming in so I figured that you wanted me to take notes, especially since you really wanted me to understand about the Trinity and all," Pinkie said.

Twilight Sparkle gave the paper back to Pinkie. "You'd think that if a pony drops something, then the common and courteous thing to do would be to give it back to them, but then again, I have no idea how your mind thinks. I can't even read what I wrote on the paper."

"So does this mean that we all get a one hundred percent on the quiz and win?" Pinkie cheerfully asked.

Twilight sighed. She was very disappointed that she got so distracted with all of these questions, not to mention her fatigue wasn't helping her at all. "Yeah, I guess so. Next time, I guess I should be a bit more assertive with you all when it comes to asking you questions." Twilight looked around at her friends for a moment and felt very upset that they hadn't been learning that much. It also seemed like none of them were as excited to learn about the Bible these past few studies, which discouraged her from asking if they'd like to start reading their next planned book. She remembered when these girls were on fire when it came to wanting to study the Bible and now that fire inside of them all has seemed to have died down judging from the lack of enthusiasm that Twilight saw in all of them. "So I guess that's it and we are done for today." Twilight Sparkle closed her book and noticed that there were small puddles on the floor next to Pinkie. She looked up at Pinkie and noticed there were tears streaming down her face and she was also grinning madly. "Uh, Pinkie? Are you feeling okay?"

"I think so," Pinkie replied. "I haven't felt so happy and sad all at the same time!"

"Why are you crying?" Twilight asked.

"Probably just another Pinkie sense or somethin'," Applejack butted in.

"I asked her, not you, Applejack," Twilight said.

Pinkie Pie wiped the tears streaming down her face and looked at her wet hooves. "I-I-don't know. I've never experienced anything like this before. I think I'm just happy that Dashie has finally made it to the study again and maybe I'm just sad because it has to all end now, but yet I'm smiling because we finally got to see Dashie again and that makes me so, so happy!"

"I, uh, think there might be some kind of serious underlying problem with you, Pinkie," Twilight suggested.

"Nope!" Pinkie shot back. "How can I have any problems at all when I have my friends?!"

Just then there was a knock at the door. Spike went over and peeked through the peek hole.

Twilight Sparkle gulped. "Who is It today, Spike? Jehovah's witnesses or militant atheists?"

"The latter," Spike replied. "Do you want to talk to them?"

Twilight sighed heavily and said, "No. I need a break. Everypony has been bothering me and I just can't get any rest. I have visitors every single day asking me questions and it seems like everypony in this town makes it their mission to win me over and convert me to their beliefs. I can only give so much of my time away. I'm going to bed. Tell them I can't speak with them today."

Spike nodded and opened the door to tell the two ponies to perhaps stop by another time.

"Wow! Atheism makes me laugh!" Pinkie said.

"Why is that?" Applejack asked.

"Because it's a non-prophet organization. Get it? Non-prophet?"

Applejack felt like giving Pinkie Pie a slap upside the head but she simply sighed and shook her head from side to side. "Only Pinkie would think of somethin' like that."

Twilight got up and headed up the stairs. She paused half way up the stairs and looked down at her friends. "Thanks for coming. I guess I'll see you all next week." She continued up the stairs and entered her room where she could finally close her eyes and recuperate for a short time. It was times like this when she was extra grateful for Spike. Twilight Sparkle looked out the window and saw the two stallions who visited her so often leaving. She felt bad that she didn't want to talk to them, but she was very tired and couldn't even get her thoughts together. She also felt sad about her group today. She felt that perhaps she was a horrible teacher and that maybe she just didn't explain things well to her group and the way Pinkie was behaving, it was almost as if her teaching was boring or ineffective. She closed her eyes and fell onto her bed, face first into the pillow.

Back downstairs, Fluttershy was putting away the Bibles and Pinkie Pie was circling around her friends quickly. "Hey Rarity!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed. "Do you want to hang out and have some fun, fun, fun!?"

Rarity backed up and cringed when she saw that Pinkie was breathing heavily, smiling, and still had tears streaming down her cheeks. She quickly looked to her left and to her right as if she wasn't sure if escaping through the door or the window was the quickest route. "I do think that perhaps you may need to get a bit more normalized and stop making every kind of pun and innuendo at every moment possible. You're getting to be a bit too much and I really should be taking care of my foal. Maybe ask the others."

"Oh, okay. I understand, I guess, but I didn't really make many jokes today yet," Pinkie said. She quickly hopped over to Fluttershy who was organizing some of the books on the shelf and yelled in her ear. "Let's party! May I come over to your cottage? We can have tea parties, chew bubble gum, feed the ducks, and..."

"No. I mean, no thank you, Pinkie Pie," Fluttershy softly interrupted. "I need to take care of Sammy and Angel Bunny. And I need to do it alone."

Pinkie Pie frowned with disappointment and ran over to Applejack. She grabbed her hat and placed it on her own head. She then jumped on Applejack's back and kicked her back hooves into Applejack's side. She threw up her front legs and said, "Giddy up, work pony! I want to help you out with some farm work. Maybe we can plant new crops and pick bananas off the vines together!"

With one mighty buck, Applejack sent Pinkie Pie flying across the room and into a book shelf that knocked down many books around the pink mare. The hat fell off of Pinkie's head and landed next to Applejack. She reached down and grabbed the tip of it with her teeth before lifting her head back up and flipping the hat back onto her head. "I reckon yer talkin' nonsense. Bananas don't grow on vines, they grow on trees. Besides, bananas are blasphemous to me. I don't like them, especially 'cause of their texture and yeller peel. And don't touch my hat again!"

"Fine." Pinkie Pie said. She got up and charged towards the stairs where Twilight went up but was stopped when she felt a tug at her tail.

'Yer not botherin' Twi either," Applejack said with a mouthful of pony tail.

"I don't have to bother her," Pinkie said. "I was just going to take a nap with her so that maybe me taking a nap with her might give her sweet, sugary and pleasant dreams!"

"Uh, I don't think Twi would appreciate that and I think ya need to be alone and chill out. Yer crackin' up, Pinkie. I mean, ya were just grinnin' and cryin' at the same time. I don't know if that's some kind of new and bizarre pinkie sense or not, but golly, yer gettin' weirder and weirder as time goes on. Ya best better get back to Sugar Cube Corner before ya cause any trouble 'round here. I got enough work to get done on the farm. Don't ya dare bother Twi. She clearly needs some time alone."

Pinkie Pie scanned the room of her friends. "Wait a moment," she thought to herself. "Where's Dashie?" Pinkie Pie looked around and noticed the door was ajar and hurried over to it. There she saw Rainbow Dash getting ready for take off. "Wait!" Pinkie cried out. She ran and leaped into the air grabbing a hold of Rainbow Dash before she could take off. The two ponies went tumbling across the ground and landed against a rock. Pinkie Pie stood up on top of Rainbow Dash with one hoof on her chest.

Rainbow Dash looked up at her and gulped. She had a look of extreme worry and fear written on her face.

"Dashie! You spend WAY too much time with Soarin'. It's time you and me have a fillies night out together! What do you say?"

Rainbow Dash looked around as if somepony would come to her aid to get this crazy pink mare off of her. She looked back up at Pinkie hoping that she would get off her soon. "Hey Pinks, I hate to burst your bubble, but I've got to go grocery shopping for Soarin'. This stallion eats like a....like a horse."

Pinkie Pie's coat turned a dark shade of crimson. The sudden boiling of rage overtook her mind and she suddenly felt extremely suicidal. She didn't realize that she was grinding her teeth very hard because of this sudden mental anguish. For if there was any kind of weapon or sharp object nearby, she would have instantly tried to take her life. Never before had she felt this wave of rage and hopelessness.

"Pinkie? Are you feeling okay?" Rainbow asked.

Pinkie's mind was so focused on rage and depression at the same time that she seemed to be in another world.

"Pinkie."

Pinkie Pie felt the boiling rage quickly leave her mind and the sudden gush of wind from the approaching storm against her coat. Her breathing became normal again and her coat was now changing back to it's normal color which brought her senses back to reality.

"Pinkie."

Pinkie Pie felt overwhelmed with sadness at this moment and she looked down at her friend.

A tear drop fell from Pinkie's chin and landed in Rainbow's eye.

Rainbow Dash squirmed a bit. "Hey, Pinkie. I think you need some help. Like, not go home and eat ice cream therapy like Rarity does so often, but like serious help. You look a bit psychotic right now. Maybe you should go speak with Twilight when she's in a better mood."

Pinkie Pie stepped off of her friend and looked away. "I don't need help, Dashie. I have Jesus, remember? He'll fix me if I pray."

Rainbow Dash got up and dusted herself off. "Yeah, but Jesus didn't come to fix all of our problems here or to be our cosmic bell boy. He often uses other ponies to do His will."

"I actually think I don't want to be with you anymore," Pinkie said. "I'll find my own route in life. Clearly, no pony can accept me for who I am."

"It's not who you are, Pinkie, It's what you're becoming. I don't know what else to tell you, but I have to get going. You can stop by my house at any time if you need me. Just don't hurt yourself or anypony else." Having said that, Rainbow Dash took off leaving her friend behind. Rainbow Dash had seen a disturbing change in her friend and Pinkie was like a different mare now. Everypony including herself seemed a bit different to her and not even Twilight seemed to be her usual self which really spoke volumes because aside from some O.C.D. moments, Twilight seemed to be the most stable and level headed member of their group.

Pinkie Pie watched Rainbow Dash fade away into the distance. She once again felt a nearly uncontrollable amount of anger and hatred towards her friends, family and even her faith. She was losing her mind but was in denial. "If God can't solve my problems, then no pony can. I don't need my friends. I only need God and if my friends can't accept me, then I'll be fine on my own," Pinkie said as she left to go home and find something else to do. Pinkie listened to the sound of the wind blowing through the leaves in the trees and the snapping of branches. She looked up at the sky and saw the incoming dark storm clouds which matched her brooding mood. She knew something was going on with her but she was oblivious as to what it could possibly be.

Twilight Sparkle, the Cursed Anathema

Applejack wiped the sweat off her brow. She was finished with her farm chores for today and it was time to get ready to go to Bible study again. She walked inside the barn and grabbed a towel to wipe the sweat off her head.

"Where do ya think yer goin'?" A voice asked her.

"Huh?" Applejack turned around to see Granny Smith looking rather angry at her. "Oh, Hi, Granny! I was just gettin' ready to go see my friend, Twilight!"

"I don't think that's goin' to happen," Granny Smith said.

"Uh, why is that exactly?" Applejack asked.

"Cause ya told me that these new friends ya made all love Jesus and were good ponies."

"Uh, they are," Applejack said as she took off her hat and scratched her head in confusion.

"Nonsense!" Granny Smith shouted. "I read that Twilight is a no good, rotten Protestant that has been gatherin' up a lot of attention in Ponyville! She is the cursed anathema and I'm not allowin' one of my Apple kin to fall victim into heresy! I figured ya were a good Catlick and that you'd find good friends who followed the one and only true church. Not a bunch of terrible Protestants that hold some of the worst interpretations of the truth."

Applejack smiled one great big awkward smile. She could feel the sweat running down the side of her head, but for once, she was not sweating from working, but from how nutty this new conflict was turning out to be. "Hey, Granny, remember the time when I didn't exactly have a very good heart towards certain other ponies and ya'll helped me see through my flaws and encouraged me to change my hateful heart?"

"Yes," Granny replied.

"Well, why can't ya do the same with my friends? I thought we were called to love one another."

"Not when it comes to an Apple family member! I will not tolerate any kind of heresy or false church. I think it's best that ya find some new friends! There's plenty of good young mares and stallions that would make way better friends for ya than Twilight and her little heretical group of followers. When was the last time ya followed any of our traditions in the church?"

Applejack drew her hoof across the dirt nervously. "It's been a while, I guess."

"All Protestants go to Hell, Applejack, unless they are so ignorant and mislead that God, in His grace, can forgive them after a good whippin' and burnin' in Purgatory to remove the wicked stains on their souls. To reject Catlick teachings is to be the anathema and choose Hell. I refuse to allow ya to do that."

"Golly. Talk about free will," Applejack said. She saw the look on Granny's face and realized that now was not a good time to joke around.

"Applejack, there are well over thirty thousand, if not more than one hundred thousand different Protestant sects in this world. We Catlicks are not impressed by their constant splittin' and bickerin'. If they get any more reformed, the next thing ya know there will be gay marriage and screwin' in the streets!"

"Granny, let me ask ya somethin'. How do ya feel about Atheists, Jews or Muslims?"

"It's not my business or concern about what they believe or practice and ya already know that Christianity is the completion of Judaism. The only thing I have against Muslims is when their invasion brought about the Crusades in order to take back the land that was once ours. It's a shame how sloppily things got carried out since the Crusaders had to loot for survival, but the Crusades were an attempt to defeat Muslim imperialism. Without it, Western civilization might have been completely over run by the forces of Islam and that would have been a horrible thing for this world. We Christians were forced to fight and defend ourselves from foreign conquest."

"So let me get this straight. Ya don't hate Muslims. Ya don't hate Atheists, but ya hate different denominations of Christianity.

"That's correct."

"But why!?" Applejack asked.

"Because Protestants are a disgrace to the original holy church and how dare they reject what has been practiced fer thousands of years, not to mention that they also took some scissors and cut out a few books in our Bible. Atheists or Muslims do their own thing and Protestants twist our religion. They don't even give dulia to the saints or hyperdulia to Mary!"

"But I like the church that I attend with my gal pals. They don't seem like drones going through the motions to me and my friend Pinkie Pie gets so excited when we sing praises that she bounces up and down the aisle singin' along with everypony. They also play all kinds of music too. Sometimes even Bluegrass."

"An act like that would get her flank tossed out of our church if your friend were to ever do somethin' like that. That's called distractin' others from worship and I'm sure I also don't need to lecture ya on the importance of Gregorian chants and how this so called modern church worship music is nonsense. I bet ya have crazies who think they are speakin' in tongues and I wouldn't be surprised if none of ya'll wore proper attire like how everypony else does at Mass."

"Now wait just a darn moment!" Applejack said. "Ain't no pony has ever started speakin' in tongues and not once has anypony complained about Pinkie Pie's antics. I know myself that she can be very distractin' and out of control, but I truly believe that God keeps her craziness toned down while in worship because while she is very outgoing and energetic in worship with her bounciness and dancin', she has never done anythin' that would cause trouble during church service. Ponies love when she comes and does her lil' happy dance bouncin' thing and she kind of amplifies the whole worship experience in her own unique way without botherin' others. She's actually kind of adorable when she really gets into the whole experience and ponies come as they are; there is no dress code. My friend, Rarity, has a predilection when it comes to wearin' these fancy, elegant dresses and what not, but nopony is gonna be looked down upon just because they may not have the same style or appear different. That's just silly, Granny. There ain't nothin' wrong with a lil' diversity and uniqueness in the church, even if they might be rockin' mohawks. If there's one thing Twilight taught me, it's to never judge a book by its cover, if ya know what I mean."

"I'm still convinced that the church ya have been attendin' is nothin' but a temporary feel good pick me up that only preaches partial truth and ya need to give yer hyperdulia to Mary, Applejack," Granny said firmly.

Applejack was getting desperate at this moment. "Well, why don't ya come talk to Twi. She's a super nice mare and I'm sure she can explain to ya why she doesn't give dulia to the saints or hyperdulia to Mary and why our Bible has a few less books than yers."

"I don't need her opinion because I already know the truth. Applejack, my dear, I know yer smart enough to know that those foolish fillies are no good for ya. I don't want ya to go to straight to Hell nor spend any time in Purgatory. Come back to Mass. Come back and confess yer sins to the Alter Christus. Make yer decision now. Choose the real church or choose Hell."

Applejack's nervousness was now starting to turn into anger. "If followin' Jesus isn't good enough fer ya, then I choose Hell! My friendship with Twi and the rest of my gal pals are priceless. They love Jesus just as much as any other Catlick in our family. I think we're called to love them just as much, even if they might be different in their worship or doctrine. This whole situation kind of reminds me of the Bible verse Twilight was tellin' me about. Jesus came not to bring peace, but a sword. It all makes sense to me now and I feel like yer demands don't have anythin' to do with bringin' me closer to Jesus, but rather fer fightin' to get me back to yer traditions!"

"Fine," Granny Smith said as she put her hoof up in frustration. "If ya want to be corrupt then that's yer business. However, I will not allow ya to corrupt Apple Bloom, Big Mac, or any other Apple family member with yer new satanic influence. You are never allowed on this farm again until ya come back to the real church and repent of yer sins!"

"But...." Applejack said.

"Good bye!" Granny Smith stormed out of the barn leaving Applejack in total shock.

"Where am I goin' to go now?" Applejack asked out loud. Applejack did the one and most important thing that she could. She got down low and prayed. It wasn't her top priority to find a new place to live, but the very first thing she prayed for was that Granny Smith would learn that Twilight wasn't a bad pony and that perhaps God could soften up Granny's heart. Applejack said her prayer and left the barn. She wanted to say goodbye to sweet little Apple Bloom and her older brother, Big Mac, but she knew Granny wouldn't let her in the house. For Applejack had become the cursed anathema in her eyes. Applejack figured she should go see her wisest friend right now, Twilight Sparkle.

Back inside the house, Granny Smith explained to Big Macintosh what had happened.

"She's what!?" Big Macintosh asked out loud.

"Gone," Granny Smith replied. "And she' ain't comin' back until she's clean again."

Puffs of air came out of Big Macintosh's nostrils. "Ya'll realize what a foolish thing ya done? Ain't no pony works harder than A.J. and I most certainly can't keep up with the farm chores all by myself!"

"Apple Bloom will take her place," Granny Smith said.

"WHAT!? She's still just a filly. Ya can't expect her to do what Applejack does! That's nuts!"

"Sacrifices must be made somewhere. I ain't gonna let Applejack corrupt myself, you, or our innocent little Apple Bloom. This discussion is over!"

Big Macintosh grumbled words of disapproval and headed outside. He was considering leaving the farm, finding Applejack and seeking new work to do.

Upstairs, Apple Bloom was eavesdropping on the heated argument. She was silently crying, not because she had no strength to do what Applejack does on the farm, but because she already missed her big sister, who was even more like a mother to her. The Apple family had hit a few bumps in the road when it came to family drama, but this was a whole new level never experienced before. Without Applejack, the farm and family would suffer greatly and Granny Smith knew this, yet her heart was hardened by her discovery about Twilight Sparkle and her friends. Granny would be praying for Applejack's friends, not that they'd join her system of beliefs, but that they would suffer God's wrath.

When One Member Suffers, We All Suffer

Twilight Sparkle lazily sat back in her chair as she read another one of Mister and Misses Cake's reports about Pinkie's behavior. It was another good report and she didn't understand how this was all playing out so well, but she kept rolling with the punches. Twilight took a sip of her herbal tea and thought about what she could do in her spare time. Perhaps she could work on that math problem that she had been trying to solve for an entire week, or maybe she could create a new and cool idea for her Dungeons and Dragons campaign that she was working on. Twilight continued to ponder about what she could do in her spare time today until there were sudden frantic knocks on her door. Twilight was hoping that she'd get some peace and quite today, but it looked like that wouldn't be happening. Maybe it was more skeptical ponies wanting to question her about her faith or perhaps it was Granny Smith coming to ask her questions in which she had still been waiting for to happen. The knocking on the door grew louder and more impatient. "I'm coming!" she yelled out in a slightly annoyed tone of voice. She wished that Spike was there to answer the door but he was not home at the moment. The thought had suddenly hit her that it might be those terrorists who sent her that letter about assassinating her if she dare spoke of the truth in public again. She paused in fear as she stared at the door. Each loud knock seemed to make the door cave in slightly and it made her heart race with fear and anxiety. Twilight took several deep breaths and quickly prayed that she'd be safe. She slowly opened up the door and there she found Pinkie Pie with her mane and tail flat, and her coat a darker shade of pink. As unpredictable and random Pinkie was, a dark coat and a flat mane and tail always meant the same thing; something is terribly wrong. "Oh boy," Twilight said. "Are you okay? What's the problem?"

"Mister Cake found a mistake!" Pinkie Pie yelled out. Her breathing was heavy and she looked distressed.

"A mistake?" Twilight asked. Twilight took notice of some of the ponies walking outside and staring at them which made her feel a bit uncomfortable. "Why don't you come inside and tell me what's wrong?"

Pinkie Pie did so and put her bottle of pills on a table. "Mister Cake was just checking to see if I had enough pills to make it through the week and he said that these were just empty capsules with nothing in them! I didn't believe him at first, but when he opened them up, there truly was nothing in them! I can't believe one of my best friends would trick me into something like this. It doesn't make sense because I heard you making my pills up when I went down into the basement with you. I know you're not the element of honesty, but I thought Christians should never lie and it just really seems like you lied to me very badly."

Twilight looked into Pinkie's eyes; they looked as if they were going to start crying at any moment. "Well, crap," Twilight muttered to herself.

Pinkie's ears perked up. "And now you're going to use a profane word and add more sin to the lies that you have told me?"

"Um, I actually used that word in order to not use another certain word that I was thinking of. But it can be I suppose, just not always," Twilight said. "Remember the story about eating sacrificed meat to idols?"

"What the hay does eating sacrificed meat to idols have anything to do with cussing?" Pinkie asked.

Twilight frowned. "Never mind, I can explain it later. It's not important right now anyway. What's important is that we talk about this situation."

"So why would you trick me like this? I thought we were all about honesty here, especially Applejack."

Twilight sat down. "Well, I wasn't really lying or trying to trick you, but what happened was that you took the wrong bottle. The bottle you took had a label that said capsules which wasn't the one I intended for you to take. I must have forgotten to put it away, but I mean, it was labeled and you could clearly see through the capsules. I really don't understand how you thought that was supposed to be your medicine, but it was truly working, at least until Mister Cake spoiled the surprise."

"But why would you allow such a thing like that to happen and why did it seem to work?" Pinkie asked.

"Partly because I was fascinated that a pill that wasn't even disguised as a placebo pill was still giving you a positive effect, but mainly because I wanted to save some money since this treatment plan isn't very cheap and we have been helping you with money ever since that day when you gave away your entire life savings. It worked for a while because your mind truly believed that somehow that empty capsule was full of medicine. The very first pill I gave you was white, so I don't know what was going through your mind when you took that bottle."

Pinkie Pie was deep in thought for a moment. "Perhaps I thought that maybe these were made differently or you used your magic to make them look all clear like that. I just figured that you wanted me to take the bottle with more pills. I have never taken any pills in my life so I wasn't sure. I guess I'm just that dumb; I'm sorry."

"Hmmm. You're not dumb, you just think very differently and in ways that I'd never expect. I have to play everything extra safe and simple with you."

"I thought that maybe you didn't love me anymore and were trying to trick me to be mean. I got all freaked out and began having trouble breathing."

'Nonsense," Twilight said. "You're part of our team and we'd never leave any pony behind, especially one that has filled our lives with one of the best medicines of all time."

"What medicine have I ever given you all?" Pinkie asked.

"Laughter," Twilight answered.

"I still make you girls laugh?" Pinkie asked. "I feel like I have been doing a really poor job at that."

"You'll get it back," Twilight said reassuringly. "You don't have that cutie mark for nothing, you know. Sometimes a little bit of levity is needed in our lives and you're the perfect pony when it comes to providing us with playful puns, jokes and random silliness."

"So what do we do now?" Pinkie asked while looking at the bottle.

"We give you the real stuff," Twilight answered. "You were quite the placebo Pie for a while and the placebo effect is real and quite common, especially when doing the golden standard of medical testing, the double blind study."

"What is a placebo pill?" Pinkie asked.

"It's a fake pill that's made to look and even smell like the real one, sometimes, filled with sugar. What's crazy is that sometimes ponies going through the test do better on the fake pills compared to the ponies who are taking the real ones."

"So am I going to do worse on the real stuff?"

"We'll have to try it out and see. The mind is a powerful thing and now that you know that you weren't taking any medicine, the empty capsules you were taking before is obviously not going to work for you anymore, and being that you're discouraged right now might also have an outcome on how the real stuff works."

Pinkie Pie put her head down. "Oh."

At this point, Twilight felt that she owed her an apology, especially when noticing that she still seemed quite sad. "Listen, I'm really sorry that you got freaked out and thought that maybe I didn't care about you, but I hope you understand about the reasoning behind why I chose to do what I did. Are we still cool?"

"Yeah," Pinkie sighed. "I guess we're cool."

"What's that thing called that Rainbow Dash and Applejack do again?" Twilight asked as she put her hoof out? "A bro-hoof?"

"Yeah," Pinkie said and then softly tapped her hoof against hers. Such a simple act put more faith and trust back into her unicorn friend once more.

Twilight smiled for a moment. "Let's get you the real deal so that we can get you calmed down and feeling better." Twilight grabbed Pinkie's bottle and walked over to the basement door.

Pinkie Pie followed her, hoping that she wold get just as good, if not better results from taking the real thing.

Twilight walked over to the table that had the bottle that was originally intended for Pinkie. She put the bottle she was carrying back into a drawer and then opened up the bottle with the real medicine that she made a while ago. She then took out a pill and opened it up, letting some of the powder spread out across the table. "See? This is the real deal."

Pinkie Pie leaned over and smelled the powder for a moment, trying to get a sense of what the real deal smelt like. She looked back up and asked, "So this is really it, huh? How can I be one hundred percent sure that this isn't another trick like some kind of fake powder?"

"Because I'm your friend who cares about you very much and you can either trust me or take the second option which I don't think you would ever want to consider."

"What's the second option?"

"Going to a medical doctor where they are free to treat you as they wish with whatever harmful drugs they might choose and may decide to also lock you up in the pillow room."

"Right," Pinkie said. "I'll stay with you. I just have to try really hard to force my mind to believe that this is the real deal."

Twilight carefully used her magic and put the powder back into the capsule before sealing it. She then used her magic to summon a cup of water and levitated the pill and the cup over to Pinkie. "Go ahead, here's some water if you need it."

Pinkie stared at the pill surrounded by Twilight's magic for a moment. The reflection of the pill could be seen in her eyes as it hovered up and down in the air slightly. Pinkie then jumped towards the pill, snatching it with her mouth and began to chew.

"Er, Pinkie. That's not going to taste good. There's a reason why I put the powder in the capsule."

Pinkie's face twisted with disgust and great regret, but she had to do it. She swallowed the pill and experienced the very unpleasant after taste that it left in her mouth.

"Um, water?" Twilight asked. "That probably didn't taste too good. Why did you do that?"

Pinkie Pie put her hoof up, refusing the water. She stuck her tongue out several times in an attempt to make the bitter and strong taste get off her tongue. "Because I need to know what the real stuff tastes and smells like. I need to do this every time to make sure that my mind knows that it isn't a trick."

"If that's what you need to do to feel better for now, I'm not going to object. Some ponies break capsules open because it is possible that swallowing the powder or mixing it in a drink might help one's body to absorb the medicine slightly better. Hopefully, the actual medicine will kick in after a few weeks and you won't need to keep doing that," Twilight said as she put the water on the table.

"I hope so too," Pinkie said as she put her head down. "I'm worried that I have some kind of permanent chemical imbalance in my brain that may never get fixed, and then I'll need to take anti-depressants for the rest of my life."

"There has never been a single study that favors the monoamine hypothesis when it comes to depression," Twilight answered.

"Say what?" Pinkie asked.

"It's the idea that depression is the result of a certain kind of chemical imbalance in the brain, such as under-activity of serotonin. There's compelling evidence that suggests that antidepressants actually create abnormal states rather than repairing the issue. A good analogy for the use of antidepressants can be compared to drinking alcohol for its dis-inhibiting effects; just because booze can ease one’s social phobia, does not imply that alcohol is an appropriate treatment nor a correcting agent. You don't want to take anti-depressants, and there are plenty of good reasons for that, like the fact that they can lead to chronic illnesses, increased treatments that can make you relapse, chronic brain impairment, a dramatic decrease to your libido, and even decreased benefit from exercise and healthy eating, just to name a few. You can always check out the FDA reporting system called FAERS, which is also referred to as MedWatch; reading some of these real life stories are like that of a horror movie."

"I just want to feel better. Maybe it's not because there's something wrong with my brain, but because I always feel like Satan is attacking me with his crooked claws and and sharp fangs. He's so hideous."

"Crooked claws and sharp fangs? Hideous appearance?" Twilight asked. "Pinkie, I don't think you're describing the Lucifer of the Bible. If anything, he's one of God's most beautiful creations and Satan doesn't want to attack you in the way that you're imagining, but would rather appear to be a friend and deceive you into rebelling against God in clever ways. Satan is the author of confusion, deception, lies and discord. You know that even demons are fallen angels who willingly followed the devil into rebellion against God."

"Hmmm, I guess that makes more sense." After a moment of thinking to herself, she picked her head back up and looked at Twilight. "Listen, can you be ultra honest, I mean like brutally Applejack honest with me?"

"Sometimes brutal Applejack honesty says things that shouldn't be said at certain times," Twilight Sparkle answered.

"Right, but who do you consider to be the weakest and your least favorite out of our Sisters in Christ group? How could it not be me? I'm always getting myself into some kind of trouble and am usually holding the group back in some way."

"Actually, it's funny you ask that and while nothing could ever replace the unique friendship I have with each and everyone of you, I have to say that you're by far my most personal favorite member even if you do tend to get under my coat sometimes."

"Why?"

"Because even though I get frustrated trying to figure you out and am often baffled by how you think, you always make our group more interesting and make me have to be more creative." A smirk appeared on Twilight's face as she continued. "And I can't help but admit, you are the most unique member of our group and you make me smile the most. Think about the elements we represent in our group. We know why Applejack and Rainbow Dash are best friends because honesty and loyalty mix together very well. We know that Rarity and Fluttershy tend to spend the most time together because kindness and generosity are very similar traits. That leaves us together with magic and laughter and both of those elements blend together very well."

"Wow, I didn't know you felt that way about me, especially now because I have been struggling so much. I figured that I'm more of a burden to you all with all these problems in my life. Why do I seem to have the most trouble?"

"We all have problems, Pinkie, but I understand some more than others and that's why we are here for each other. When I am struggling, I like to think of my life as a story being written by God. Have you ever written a story, Pinkie?"

Pinkie Pie shook her head no.

"When I suffer and have conflict in my life, I imagine that God, our great story maker is just writing a more interesting chapter in my life. When we write stories, we need to have some kind of conflict or else the story falls flat and is not interesting, and let's face it, you are an incredibly interesting character with lots of great stories to tell about your life experiences." Twilight thought about matters even more. "You can also think about God being our real life dungeon master like when we play Dungeons and Dragons. God is the game master and no matter how the dice fall, the game plays on. It's kind of interesting to note that we know that awesome stories are told in conflict, but we are unwilling to embrace the potential goodness of the story we are in. When things go wrong in reality, ponies tend to think God is an unjust monster rather than a master storyteller. When we pick up the newspaper, we grieve when we hear about tragedies happening, yet we crave more of it when we read a book or watch a movie."

"How do you define a story," Pinkie asked.

"Basically, a story is a character who wants something and overcomes conflict to get it and death should remind us that the story we are living in has finality. We have a story to live and we can sometimes be unwilling victims rather than grateful participants. If the point of life is identical to the point of a story, then the point of our lives is character transformation."

"Oh," Pinkie said. "So does this mean I have to become different?"

"We actually don't have a choice in that matter."

Pinkie Pie looked confused.

Twilight continued. "We often get stuck into thinking that we are simply one of a kind and that we can't change, but the truth is that we're literally changing all the time! For example, our bodies essentially recreate themselves about every six months. Just about every cell of bone, skin and hair dies and another is directed to its former place. It's pretty amazing when you think about it."

Pinkie Pie put her head down. "But I don't want to change at all. I don't even want to grow older."

"That's actually a normal feeling, Pinkie. We are creatures of habit and it's very hard to get us to change our routines. Sometimes, we have to to be forced to change whether we like it or not. We are designed to seek order and comfort and when we get what we want, we tend to plant ourselves in it even if our comfort really isn't that comfortable, and even if we see and want something better, we will not move and be content where we are. Think about how many ponies stay in an abusive relationship because of this reason alone. We like to know what to expect in life and we like to have a sense of control; this alone can be very damaging. Most of the time we don't really choose to move in life, we have to be forced. Familiarity can be a horrible thing, but thankfully, you're a very unique mare who I don't think will get stuck like so many poor ponies do. You may have been away and alone from everypony for a long time, but you're here now and you're trying to get better. When bad things happen in life, we can either choose to get bitter or better. Just look at Job in the Bible; he responds even before his wealth and health is restored, by saying, all of this is too wonderful for me. Job found contentment and joy, outside the context of comfort, health, or stability."

"So what do you think when ponies say that life is meaningless?" Pinkie asked.

"Well, I wonder if what they really mean is that their lives are meaningless and they are simply projecting their misery onto others. As the saying goes, life without God is like a pencil that is not sharpened, it's pointless. I know you're afraid and fear is actually a double edged sword; it protects us from doing stupid things or getting humiliated, but fear is also a very manipulative emotion that keeps us from achieving what we were ultimately made to do. I'm more than willing to live a better story with you, Pinkie."

Pinkie sighed. "I just want the happy ending of the story of my life to happen; I just want to be okay with all of you again and to meet my dream goals."

"There are no climaxes in our stories. What you're thinking of is like doing a mini-side quest in Dungeons and Dragons. For instance, we may have small victories and get that thing we really wanted like that time when you finally found that really big freaking fire sword in that hidden cave after we defeated that monster. You were searching for that weapon for so long after that wizard we rescued told us about it and where to look for it. When we finally found it, you were ecstatic once you you were finally able to put it in your inventory, but what happened next?"

Pinkie put her head down. "I found out that it was cursed and it caused me to become tired. The longer I carried that sword with me, the less I was able to move my character on the board. I had to eventually abandon it because it was causing me more harm than good." Pinkie looked rather distraught while thinking about it. "I miss that sword so much and I had so much fun with it."

"And that's what happens in life too! Sometimes, we dream to make that sports team, or we may crave to have that dream spouse and eventually get it, but that's not the finality of our life story and it's not the happy ever after ending either. New problems arise and we begin to realize that getting on that sports team and getting injured isn't very fun, or your spouse turns out to be abusive in some way. Our stories and our conflicts keep going on until we die. I think what keeps our group together is the fact that I believe none of us see each other as the ultimate solution for our problems in life. We simply treat each other as any other normal pony, and when others try to think too highly of their friends, they are let down with devastating feelings. We don't view our friendships as the cure all problems in life, and as Applejack puts it, we are just simply gal pals who thirst for the word of God. We even expect to make mistakes and when we do, there's grace among our group."

"They used to teach me in church that we may try to fill the holes in our hearts with sex, drugs, and lots of cupcakes with ice cream, but only Jesus can fill that emptiness. I sometimes feel like Jesus doesn't do that for me anymore."

"Well, to tell you the truth, that's basically a lie that's commonly told to young fillies and colts. When you think about it, it's biblical theological twisted to something like an infomercial. Yes, one day Jesus is going to make things perfect and I'm sure that we're all going to be wearing party hats and eating ice cream cake with Jesus, but not now. The Apostles never said that we'll experience some kind of utopia by following Jesus. Just look at what happened to them. Paul was stoned nearly to death, moved from prison to prison and routinely abused. According to some reports, Peter was crucified upside down. Isn't it hard to imagine how a religion steeped in so much horrific suffering and sacrifice turned into a promise for some kind of earthly euphoria? I do believe that Jesus can make things better, but in no way do I think for a second that He's going to make everything perfect right here and right now; we have to wait a while for that. It really annoys me when I see Christians thinking that they'll bring about the utopia by having everyone go to a church with bright flashy lights, modern praise and worship music, and tons of coffee. Atheists are guilty of their own ideas of what the utopia would be like as well. It's actually damaging to believe in the myth of being able to achieve some kind of perfect society. You remember how I talked about what can happen as a result of ponies trying to bring about the utopia during our last Bible study. Millions of innocent ponies were slaughtered by means of achieving a perfect society that led to more madness. Ponies are even guilty of thinking that they can make their own lives complete. There seems to be this nagging feeling that life could be perfect if only you had this job, or if only you had this spouse and so on. We think we will be made whole by our accomplishments, our social status, or our possessions. We willingly believe that life is no longer beautiful until we get the things that we desire."

"Those are good points, but sometimes you make me think too hard and it hurts my head. I just try to think of that song that we learned as fillies." Pinkie Pie cleared her throat. "With Jesus in the boat you can smile through the storm, smile through the storm, smile through the storm. With Jesus in the boat you can smile through the storm, when you're sailing hooooome."

"It's good to think sometimes, and it's my hope and goal to get the entire group to think more and ask good questions, and that's a great song to think of when you're having problems. I don't think you realize how special you are to me and the whole group. I'm willing to suffer and hurt with you. I want you to know that I'm willing to cry with you and sacrifice everything to make sure that we stay together. I'm willing to give up my life for you, and I pray that we may live the best lives that we can possibly live."

"Wow, you really are the best friend I could possibly have. I know you try to make me think more, but it's so hard when I can't focus on anything. I get so discouraged that when I try to throw parties to cheer myself up, they always end up becoming pity parties and those are no fun at all."

"And that's where I hope the lithium might help in getting you to focus better. I'll also make sure to write back to Mister and Misses Cake about this whole misunderstanding."

"It's such a shame how I was on the verge of committing suicide whenever I got upset," Pinkie admitted.

"And if you're ever tempted to think about ending your life, I'd like to let you know that suicide does not end the chances of life getting worse, suicide eliminates the chances of life ever getting better, and it also greatly hurts other ponies who really do love and care about you. When you think about it, suicide is a very selfish act and I hope you know that you have a lot of ponies who truly cherish you. I'm sure you wouldn't want to hurt us in such a terrible way by taking your life and leaving us in agony and sadness. You represent laughter and happiness to us and that's how we'll always want to remember you. Try to remember that everyday is a gift when you're feeling blue."

Pinkie Pie was deep in thought. "Today is a gift, huh? Is that why they call it the present?"

Twilight giggled. "Sure, Pinkie. Sure."

"I've got another question," Pinkie said. "Do you think God needs me?"

"No."

Pinkie Pie put her head down. "Oh. It's just like that nightmare I had where you told me that Jesus doesn't love me."

"But that's not what you asked," Twilight said. "You asked if God needed you and He doesn't."

Pinkie Pie became more sad. "So I guess he needs ponies who are better, like Rainbow Dash and you."

"No he doesn't."

Pinkie Pie picked her head up and looked confused. "Wait, but Rainbow Dash is like super, super awesome. How can He not need her?"

"Pinkie, as cool as Rainbow Dash is, He doesn't need her, you, me, or anypony. We need Him! We have a great privilege to take part in the doing of God's will, which pleases Him greatly and the Bible makes it clear that if somepony doesn't want to do the Lord's will, then He will find some other pony to do it." Twilight pointed her hoof against Pinkie's chest. "I know you want to bring glory to God deep down inside and while you hit a bump in the road, I believe that you will bounce back and God will use you in awesome ways. Be of good cheer, He loves you and wants the best for you. You just have to listen and put on the armor of righteousness when confronted with evil. You can't go to battle unprepared and the Holy Spirit is here to help you."

"I remember you read us passages about the Holy Spirit leaving some and I'm afraid because I don't want to be left alone or lose my salvation. Is there anything I should do right now? Like start tithing again?"

"That's true," Twilight said. "Although the Spirit operated differently in the Hebrew scriptures like what you're thinking of when He would come on and off ponies sometimes, but in the New Testament, He actually indwells inside believers and it is no longer a temporary thing. You know that the Spirit's work took on a different character after Pentecost. You may be able to think of the Spirit leaving certain ponies in the Old Testament, but that's not how it is these days, ever since the Lord spoke of the coming of the Holy Spirit who would be our helper. As for tithing, I don't think you should partake in that right now since all of us are still helping you regain some money when you gave your entire life savings away to that one stallion. In fact, tithing is by far the laziest and easiest way for a Christian to give back to God. We can come up with other creative ways to give back that are more meaningful and helpful than dropping a few bits into the basket. You're not going to lose your salvation like how Applejack was terrified of losing hers. The Bible says do not be afraid three hundred, sixty five times through out the books. That's a daily reminder everyday throughout the entire year. Fear actually raises cortisol levels and makes our immune systems not function properly. What Bible verse do we quote every time we play Dungeons and Dragons together?

"Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. I think that's from the book of Psalms," Pinkie said.

"That's right, and I hope that you'll be brave and mare enough to remind yourself that you can battle and keep Satan and his demons away from you only with the help of God; It is impossible for us to do so without Him. I'd also like to remind you that you wouldn't be alive if God didn't have a purpose for you. It doesn't matter what age you are; If you're still here, then God still has something for you to do. Most of our worst fears tend to be relational. Many ponies think that life is simply about getting money, acquiring flashy new things and security, but the truth is that it all narrows down to relationships, and your relationship with Jesus is the most important."

There was an awkward silence for a moment as the two ponies stared at each other. Twilight was reminded that she had a busy day ahead of her, but she was willing to give her entire day to helping Pinkie if she needed it.

"So is everything clear? Remember, you can take more than one pill if you feel like you need to. I started you out on what would be considered a very low dose and we can safely increase the dose later if needed."

Pinkie Pie nodded her head yes.

Twilight thought of something else that she could give Pinkie and summoned a pen and a piece of paper. She jotted some things down on the piece of paper and gave it to Pinkie. "I'd also like you to take this and put it somewhere where you can easily find it the next time you're struggling. This will also help you along with the medicine."

Pinkie Pie took the note and read it. "We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance." Pinkie Pie looked confused for a moment. "Where does that quote come from?"

"It comes from God and that's what He wants you to know the next time you are hurting. He's only going to use your pain and experiences to help you grow in the faith."

Pinkie Pie was reminded of what her mind was like when she was suffering and recalled an instance that made her feel very awkward. "Hey, Twi? I'm sure that you're busy and want me to go, but I have to confess something that I think was very wrong."

"What happened?"

"I was getting really agitated and my mind seemed to unintentionally think of something bad."

"It happens," Twilight said.

"No, this was like abominable bad. The kind of bad, bad that sends ponies straight to Hell I think."

"Go on, what did you think?"

Pinkie Pie frowned. "I thought to myself, Jesus bucking Christ as I was having a really bad episode of agitation and fear. I'm a little bit worried that He won't forgive me for that and that you might reject me from our group." Pinkie Pie looked down and rubbed her front leg with her hoof in a guilty manner. "I'm so sorry."

Twilight smiled warmly and asked, "First of all, did you get right with God?"

"It was the very first thing I did after I thought that."

"Then you don't have to worry and be in fear. I hear that phrase quite a bit from some of my secular friends."

"Yeah, but I'm supposed to be better than that since I'm a Christian and have more responsibilities. Don't you think God expects me to do better?"

"Well, yes," Twilight said. "And there are plenty of non-believers who out Jesus many Christians in this world, but my point is that you did the right thing by getting right with God and repenting. You are acting like God can't handle what you said and are forgetting how big He is. He can handle a phrase like that and it's wrong to live in guilt. Guilt comes from the enemy, conviction comes from the Holy Spirit. What you need to do is accept that He has forgiven you and pray for the protection of your mind."

"You took that a lot better than how I was expecting you to react," Pinkie said.

"Well, it's true. It sort of reminds me of ponies who think burning the Bible in public will somehow hurt or destroy God which is an incredibly narrow minded and ignorant view of God and in the same regard, God is not going to be offended over criticism or phrases that some think or say. God is not going to love you any less because you thought that and neither am I. He loves you as if you were the only thing in the universe; He thinks of everyone that way." Twilight paused for a moment and thought to herself. "Kind of like the way you love everyone and want to be their friend no matter who they are."

"But I did some really bad things and I honestly think I'm crazy, Twi. Don't you think I'm crazy?"

Twilight smiled and sighed at just how insecure Pinkie must have been feeling by asking all of these questions. "You just proved to me that you aren't crazy."

"How did I do that?" Pinkie asked.

"Because I have been with ponies who are truly crazy and there is one very common thing they all say; I'm not crazy and everyone else around me is crazy except for me. They stay in denial no matter what they do or say and you know that you need help, but who doesn't in life? None of us are perfect creatures. Besides, Jesus is crazy anyway."

"He is!?" Pinkie asked feeling shocked that Twilight would say something like that.

"He sure is, Pinkie. He's absolutely crazy about you," Twilight said as she took her hoof and tapped Pinkie on her snout. "Boop!"

Pinkie Pie's mane and tail became slightly puffy again and she hugged Twilight.

Twilight almost lost her balance and fell over from the surprise attack hug. "Uh, careful, Pinkie. Please don't break my bones with your ultra violent hugs."

"I think I only reserve those for Dashie," Pinkie said. She giggled and then kissed her friend on her cheek. "Thanks for being here for me when no one else seems to understand me very well. I don't even understand myself very well." She let go of Twilight and smiled.

"You're very welcome, Pinkie; I try to do what I can for you. Thanks for not giving up on us and staying strong. I can't feel or experience what everything is like for you, but I understand that it's very hard for you."

"I guess I'l be seeing you then," Pinkie said as she took the note and the bottle of pills and began to head back up the stairs. She turned around for a moment and said, "Thank you, Twilight. Thank you for everything. I really mean it."

"If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it," Twilight said. "You're welcome and I pray to hear good news."

Pinkie Pie smiled once more and then continued to make her way up the stairs.

Twilight rubbed the side of her cheek from where she had been kissed as she watched her friend depart. She thought about how different Pinkie Pie was from everypony else that she knew. She was by far the most overly affectionate pony and even though her public displays of affection made some of her friends feel uncomfortable, she knew that Pinkie Pie meant well and that's just how she was. She was also painfully oblivious so many times and at some of the most obvious things that were so simple to grasp, yet she could often see things that nopony else could see or understand. She was genuinely unique and while Twilight gave up trying to figure out how her Pinkie senses worked, she would never give up on trying to keep a good friend healthy, be it physically, spiritually or mentally. Twilight looked around her lab a bit before heading towards the stairs. She was thankful that today wouldn't be so stressful and also that because she had been putting limits on how much others could get of her time, she would be more relaxed.