Miss Sparkle, Psychopath

Chapters

Act I: Chapter 1
Act I: Chapter 2
Act I: Chapter 3
Act I: Chapter 4
Act I: Chapter 5
Act I: Chapter 6
Act I: Chapter 7
Act I: Chapter 8
Act II: Chapter 1
Act II: Chapter 2
Act II: Chapter 3
Act II: Chapter 4
Act II: Chapter 5
Act II: Chapter 6
Act II: Chapter 7
Act II: Chapter 8
Epilogue

Act I: Chapter 1

Rarity's curls swayed gently as she pranced away from the market. The morning was off to a wonderful start; in addition to purchasing her usual cereals, fruits and vegetables, she'd arrived at Sugarcube Corner just as a baker's dozen of Pinkie Pie's new orange-pomegranate oatmeal muffins were leaving the oven.

The only drawback, of course, was that Pinkie Pie had decided to accompany her back to Carousel Boutique. The mare had been up and baking since an hour before dawn, and she was brimming with the wakeful energy Rarity was so sorely lacking. She loved Pinkie Pie dearly, of course, but in the early hours of the morning their friendship tended to be... tenuous.

“...But then she was like, 'Pinkie, you can't mix pomegranate seeds and orange juice! They cost more than you make in an hour!' and I was like, 'well, just charge extra!'”

That she did, Rarity thought with a frown. She kept up her jaunty stride in spite of her sluggishness and irritation, because that was what Ponyville demanded of a mare like her. Her sagging saddlebags tugged at her sides with every step.

Pinkie hopped along beside her, her frizzy mane and tail bobbing in syncopated time. “But then I gave Mrs. Cake one of the muffins and she was absolutely positively blown away!” the filly squealed. She was so excited she seemed fit to burst.

In fact, Rarity almost expected her to. “I know, Pinkie,” she muttered. “I was there...”

“They looked sooo good. I might just buy one myself when I get back. I've never tried one before. You'll have to tell me how good they are!”

Rarity's breakfast had been very light, and her little chat with Pinkie wasn't doing her any favors. A growling stomach was rather unbecoming, after all. Her mind dove once more into her bags, where a half-dozen of the very muffins Pinkie was going on about waited. However, those muffins were meant for her brunch with Sweetie Belle, so once more she ignored them.

“I'll be sure to,” she agreed. “But what is it that you needed from me at the Boutique?”

“Oh, nothing much,” Pinkie said casually. “I was just hoping you could design matching Hearts and Hooves Day outfits for Pound and Pumpkin...”

That certainly perked her up. “Could I?” she said excitedly. The possibilities immediately began to parade through her mind. After all, this was Ponyville's most adorable pair of twins Pinkie was talking about!

“...and Gummy,” Pinkie concluded.

Rarity's smile melted. “And Gummy?” she repeated, appalled.

“Yep!”

“Your pet alligator.”

“Yep!”

“I... I can't see why not.” Aside from the fact that the twins' and Gummy's palettes didn't match up at all... and the fact that Hearts and Hooves Day was a day for cute pairs, not a pair and their alligator friend... She would usually be more willing to consider the idea - if nothing else, Gummy was certainly an adorable little creature in his own way - but the idea simply struck her as an unthinkable breach of holiday fashion protocol. It was one of her best friends asking, though, so consider it she did. “What did you have in mind?” she tried, hoping that this time, at least, Pinkie's ideas could be called 'outlandish' and 'exotic' and not, well, 'horrifying' as usual.

Luckily, she was saved from Pinkie's wild imagination by a rather commonplace noise from a rather unexpected place. Everypony knew that Ponyville's librarian and her number-one assistant were out of town for the week. After all, it wasn't every day a friend or neighbor was called upon to visit the Princesses in Canterlot, even if that friend was Twilight Sparkle. Rarity herself had seen them off at the station seven days past, and the train upon which they would return from Canterlot wasn't due at the station for two or three more hours. In fact, it said so on the note pinned to the library's front door.

So why would somepony be knocking at the door to the library at this hour?

She wandered around to the front of the tree that housed the building; the chipper baker followed, chattering all the way. The mare waiting at the door was the last pony she'd expected to see there. “Applejack, was that you knocking?” she asked.

Their orange-pelted friend knelt to peer under the door. “It weren't me.”

“Good morning, girls,” a soft voice called from overhead.

“Hi Fluttershy!” Pinkie called back. “What're you girls doing at the library? You know it's still closed, right?”

“Yeah,” Applejack said absently as she tilted her head for a better view, “but I swear I can hear somepony inside.” The brim of her hat bent against the front step and it flopped to the ground. AJ glared at it.

With a delicate gust of wind a pale yellow pegasus touched down beside the farmer and brushed her long pink locks from her face. “The windows and balcony doors are all locked,” Fluttershy reported. “I don't know how anypony could have gotten in.”

“Through the front door, silly!” Pinkie Pie bounced over to the door and turned the knob.

AJ watched her with all the patience a farmer could muster. “We tried that, Pinkie.”

The filly stared intently at the door with a hoof pressed to her chin. “Huh. Well, I'm stumped.”

Applejack plopped her hat back onto her straw-colored mane and wandered to one of the side windows. “If they didn't use the door or the windows, how in the hay did they get in?” she asked.

Rarity met her there and peered about. The library was dimly lit by the morning sun; unless somepony was hiding among the bookshelves, the building was empty. “Are you quite sure somepony is inside?”

Somepony knocked three times.

“Pinkie Pie, even if somepony is inside, they aren't going to answer the door.”

Pinkie eyed her from the stoop, where she stood with her ear to the keyhole. “That wasn't me.”

Rarity looked from her to the window and back. “Are you sure?”

Applejack shook her head. “Me neither.”

“It wasn't me,” Fluttershy agreed. “So that means...”

“The library is being visited by the ghost of a pony that needs to borrow a book?” Pinkie supplied.

AJ facehoofed. “Well, you tell your ghost friend to read the sign on the door,” she said blandly, pointing a hoof at the door-length scroll covered in the clean and crisp calligraphy of the library's own Twilight Sparkle. “As if anypony could miss it,” she chuckled.

“Maybe she can't read!”

“Then what would she need a book for?”

“Maybe she can't read Equestrian,” the pink pony corrected herself.

“Pinkie Pie, there is no ghost,” Rarity scoffed. “Girls, we should do something. For all we know, the pony inside could be an overlooked visitor who has been locked in the library all week!”

“Oh no,” Fluttershy said nervously. “The poor thing must be hungry.”

“Hungry enough to develop a taste for pony flesh?”

Rarity simply pointed to a clump of grass two yards away. With a self-conscious grin Pinkie Pie bounced to the spot and plopped down on her haunches, sitting silent and perfectly still with her eyes pointed straight ahead. “Thank you. Now, does anypony know where Twilight keeps her spare key these days? The last I knew, it was buried precisely two inches deep in the second flowerpot from the left, behind the magenta hydrangea.”

“Nah, she moved it to a string tied around this little branch above the bay window,” Applejack argued. “Or was that the one before?”

“I thought it was under the smallest root poking up from the eastern point of the library.” Fluttershy glanced at the other two mares. “Angel found it there when we were playing hide-and-seek last month.”

“Angel plays hide-and-seek?” the farmer said incredulously. “I never thought I'd see that bunny play a game like that.”

“Well, he was hiding and I was seeking,” she allowed. “I suppose it wasn't actually a game.”

Pinkie raised a hoof.

Rarity looked up from the flowerpots, which, it seems, had been reorganized once again. “Yes, Pinkie?”

“We could just use mine,” she said, waving a familiar key in hoof.

The other mares nodded and moved on without question. “Now, we don't know what to expect when we open that door,” Applejack began. “Could be a burglar, or it could be somepony that got overlooked, like Rarity said.”

“Or it could be the product of a magical experiment gone wrong!” Pinkie said excitedly.

“We should be ready for anything, just in case.”

Fluttershy whimpered. “I'll be right behind you,” she said bravely. True to her word, she took a step back.

Key in hoof, Applejack approached the door. Rarity was at her side, her lips set in a determined frown and her horn alight with a blue aura. “Alright, girls. Here goes.”

The door swung open and three and a half ponies strode, bounced and crawled purposefully into the library. Fluttershy peered from side to side with a nervous frown before she finally left the warmth of Ponyville and closed the door behind her. “Um...” she called. “Um, h-hello?”

Three quick knocks sent her running back to the door.

“Where did it come from?” AJ said quickly. “I know it was down here somewhere.”

“I'm going to look in Twilight's room,” Fluttershy squeaked as she buzzed between her friends.

“I don't think it came from upstairs,” Rarity called after her.

“I know!”

Applejack shook her head. “Hey!” she shouted to whoever was listening. “We ain't gonna hurt you. Come on out.”

Somepony started rapping at a door.

As one the three mares swiveled toward the sound. “Is that...?”

“Yep,” Applejack agreed hesitantly.

“The basement,” Pinkie nodded. A muffled shout reached their ears from beyond the basement's threshold. “Isn't that where Twilight does her experiments?”

Applejack took a deep breath. “I sure hope you're wrong, Pinkie Pie,” she said. “Do you have a key for that too?” After a long few seconds of jingling the filly hoofed her a little cast iron rod. Applejack smirked as she crossed the room. “One of these days you'll have to tell us where you get all these.” The smirk didn't last for long; the aura of apprehension filling the room grew with each step she took toward the basement door.

“If it really is a burglar, I'll be ready for him,” Rarity assured her.

“Be careful, Applejack,” Pinkie said in a hoarse whisper. “It probably has sharp teeth.”

Rarity cocked an eyebrow at her. “You have no idea what Twilight really does down here, do you?”

Pinkie shrugged.

“Ready, Rare?”

She lowered her horn. “Ready!”

Applejack slid the key into the lock and twisted it; the pins of the lock fell back with a loud clack. Applejack stepped back and tried to look friendly. “It's unlocked,” she called. “Come on out.”

The door swung slowly inward. An eye wrapped in old white bandage was the first thing to appear around the door, but it was immediately followed by the rest of the pony, who sauntered confidently from the top of the basement steps as if nothing were out of the ordinary.

“Thanks, girls!” Rainbow Dash sighed.

“Rainbow Dash!” Rarity gasped. “Where have you been?”

“Oh my goodness, it's Rainbow Dash!” Pinkie squealed as she bounced in for a quick hug. “This is better than anything I could've imagined!”

Applejack stepped forward and grabbed her friend's head, turning it this way and that. “What happened to your eye?”

“Noth–”

A little yellow bullet took Rainbow around the withers, knocking the wind from her chest. “Rainbow Dash! We've been so worried,” Fluttershy said excitedly. “Have you been down here the whole time?”

The other pegasus pried her hooves away. “Yeah, yeah, good to see you too,” she muttered, but her attention was elsewhere. “Have you girls seen Miss Sparkle?”

“Who?”

“What in the hay?”

“Um...”

“Twilight's still in Canterlot, silly!” Pinkie beamed.

The pegasus frowned. “She said she'd only be gone for a week!”

“Her train won't get here until half past noon,” Rarity said slowly.

“What time is it now?”

“It's only ten, sugarcube.”

“Oh,” she muttered. “I guess I should have stayed in the basement, but it's kinda hard to tell time down there.”

“What'd you do to your head?” Applejack said softly. “Did you have another accident?”

“Omigosh!” Pinkie gasped. “Did you black out in mid-dive and hit the ground so hard you broke your head open and died so Twilight had to drag you down into her basement and put you back together again and strap you to the table and wait for a big thunderstorm and then lift your body up to the clouds through a big hole in the roof so you'd get zapped by lightning to restart your brain?”

“Um...”

The four of them stared at the excitable earth pony, who stared back in terror at the thought.

“What?” Rainbow finally asked, her head tilted to one side.

“Pinkie Pie, that's crazy talk,” AJ said dismissively. “You can't fix dead.”

“Ponyville hasn't had a big storm since last month,” Fluttershy added.

“But can you remember what really happened, Rainbow Dash?” Rarity asked. “A head injury is no laughing matter, and if Twilight has been keeping you down in her basement for two weeks...”

“Pinkie's right about one thing,” Rainbow said as she flew to a nearby couch. “Miss Sparkle did have to fix my head.”

“I was close!” Pinkie said with a smile.

“So did you hurt yourself flying again?” asked Applejack.

“And why didn't Twilight tell anypony you'd been hurt?” Fluttershy added.

Rarity had more pressing issues on her mind. “Rainbow Dash...”

The pegasus looked over her shoulder at her.

“Why are you calling her Miss Sparkle?”

Her expression shifted to an easy smile. “'Cause she told me to.”

Three muzzles dropped open.

“So... what do you mean when you say she fixed your head?” she continued. “You're not talking about your eye injury, are you?”

“No,” Rainbow laughed. “I mean my brain. Miss Sparkle had to go in there and fix a bunch of stuff that wasn't working right.”

Rarity's white-furred cheeks somehow looked paler with every word. “Such as?” she pressed.

“Well... I never used to listen when she told me to do something, and now I know better!”

The unicorn's eyes widened. “No.”

The pegasus floated off of the couch and threw her hooves wide. “And now I can be the best marefriend ever, just like she wanted!”

“No!” she yelped, pupils dilated in horror. Fluttershy fell back a step. Applejack could only stare.

“Um, Rainbow?” Pinkie said slowly. “You don't love Twilight. Why do you want to be her fillyfriend?”

“But I do love Miss Sparkle,” the weather pony argued. “She made me better.”

“She couldn't have,” Rarity whimpered. “Not our Twilight!”

Rainbow's eyes narrowed. “What, you think she's not strong enough to fix a pony like me?” she said aggressively. She closed the distance between them. “You don't know how good she is with her magic! Hay, she could take you blindfolded!”

“I've heard enough,” Rarity said sharply.

The pegasus's wings snapped to her sides and she fell indelicately to the floor. “Hey!” she barked. “Let go of me!”

Rarity shook her head. Her horn glowed a soft blue against her pale fur. She shook out her mane and turned to her friends to take charge of the situation. “Girls, this can't wait for Twilight. We have to take her to the hospital,” she said. “Applejack?”

AJ nodded. “Sorry 'bout this, Rainbow.” She set her shoulders and allowed Rarity to levitate the hoodwinked pegasus onto her back.

“I can't leave the library!” Rainbow yelled. “Miss Sparkle said–”

“'Miss Sparkle' didn't say anything of the sort,” Rarity said certainly. “Twilight would never do something like this to her friends. Now, calm down and keep quiet. We don't want you to hurt yourself any more than you already are.”

“Come on, I'm not a foal,” her friend whined. “I can walk!”

“Until we know the extent of the damage, we shouldn't take any chances,” she said firmly. “After all, we don't know how you injured your eye, or the extent of other injuries you might have.”

The pegasus writhed on her friend's back, but Applejack continued to move as if unburdened.“My eye's fine,” Rainbow insisted. “Better, even! Let me down!”

“Oh, I do hope it's not as bad as it seems,” Rarity breathed as they wound their way to the door.

“Who could have done this to Rainbow?” Fluttershy wondered.

“I don't know, Fluttershy.” She tried to swallow a lump in her throat. “That train can't come quickly enough...”

Act I: Chapter 2

Tick.

Rarity glared up at the clock.

Tick, tick...

According to its arms, it had only been two minutes since she'd last checked it. She was sure it was lying.

The mares' conversation hadn't lasted long. Rainbow Dash was quite positive that Twilight Sparkle was behind her condition. She'd told them so proudly, as if she was simply bragging about a new stunt. Her four friends had tried to find another culprit, but every villainous power they'd faced in the past was unlikely to be involved. Even their go-to troublemakers - Discord, the chimeric lord of chaos, and Chrysalis, queen of the vicious changeling race - weren't realistic possibilities.

Tick.

Every sign pointed to one pony.

“Rainbow Dash?” called a disinterested nurse's aide.

A rolling tide of five ponies surged toward the door.

“Wait!” the filly said hurriedly, throwing up her hooves to hold back ponies twice her size. “We can't have that many of you back here.”

Pinkie hopped past her. “But we have to help Rainbow Dash!” she squealed on the way through the door.

“I don't think...” The little aide sighed and brushed her dark curls out of her eyes. “Applejack, bring her on in. Can the rest of you just wait out here?”

“Of course,” Fluttershy said quickly. “We don't want to get in the anypony's way, do we?”

Rarity scowled.

“Great. This way, Applejack.”

As soon as the door between them closed and Rarity's magic winked out, the pegasus on the farmer's back began to stir.

“Rainbow,” AJ warned.

“I said I'm fine,” she growled. “You shouldn't have taken me here in the first place. I was supposed to stay in the library!”

“If you don't settle yourself down I'm gonna tie you there,” the sturdy mare threatened. “It's only a short walk. You can deal with it until we get to your room.”

The filly looked up at the two adults with mingling professionalism and uncertainty. “Should I get a wheelchair?”

“I got it!” Pinkie offered, and before anypony could object she zoomed off the way they'd come.

With Pinkie Pie gone, Applejack took the opportunity to lean close to the little filly. “Look, do you have a unicorn on staff that specializes in, you know, brain stuff?” she asked quietly. “We're going to need somepony with a lot of talent here.”

“What's wrong with her this time?” she asked with a roll of the eyes.

“Somepony put a spell on her. Her head's all kinds of messed up.”

The aide cocked her head and glanced at Rainbow Dash. “What do you mean, messed up?”

“Hey!” their charge said loudly. “I'm right here!”

Applejack ignored her. “I'm thinking maybe she drank a love potion or something.”

“Do they still make those?” the aide asked. “Not that I'm curious or anything.”

“Incoming wheelchair!”

Something hit Applejack's legs, sending her rearing into the air to keep her balance. Rainbow Dash slid from her back to be deposited neatly into the chair. Pinkie stood behind it with hooves on handles, looking quite proud of herself.

“Pinkie!” AJ barked as she straightened her hat. “You can't do that here. This is a hospital!”

“Um... Her room is right here,” the aide said. She gestured to the open door on their right.

The farmer glared at the party pony, who smiled back as she wheeled her friend past.

Without being prompted Rainbow Dash flew from the chair to the waiting bed. “Let's get this over with,” she muttered. “I have to get back to the library before Miss Sparkle comes back.”

AJ shuddered. “Don't worry, RD,” she assured her, “we'll get you right as rain in no time.”

“I'll let the nurses know where you are,” the aide said as she excused herself.

“Thanks, Nursery Rhyme!”

After the filly left nopony spoke; the air grew stale and tense as the three friends waited, and Rainbow Dash's occasional venomous glares only made matters worse. Thankfully it was no time at all before the door snapped open once more. “Look who it is,” the nurse said with a patronizing smile as she stepped into the room. She nudged the door shut with a bump of her powder blue flank. “Welcome back, Rainbow Dash.”

“Morning, Tenderheart,” Applejack greeted her.

The mare nodded to her as she trotted up to the table. “I was wondering whether you'd turn up here. The nurses and I have a bet riding on what you'd be in for.” Rainbow glowered at her.

“Come on, RD.” Applejack gave her a good-natured elbow to the ribs. “You know she don't mean nothing by it.” Her friend scowled and crossed her hooves.

“So, Rainbow, it seems you're back due to yet another head injury.” She sighed. “And I was hoping for a wing,” she said wistfully. “Looks like Snowheart wins the pot.”

“How many times do I have to say it? My head's fine,” she argued.

“That's not what it looks like.” The nurse shook her mint-green mane out of her eyes and leaned closer to inspect the pegasus's bandages. “What did you do to your eye? Did you scratch it on a tree branch while you were flying around?”

Rainbow growled. “My eye's fine!” she insisted.

“Well, by the look of this bandage it's been weeping. I don't want to take any chances. How long has it been since you got injured, and since you last changed the bandage?”

“I'm not injured, okay? I'm just keeping it safe.”

The nurse stared coolly at her. “And the bandage?”

Her patient shrugged, unhelpful as always. “Um... Four days, maybe. It takes me a while to do it right by myself.”

Tenderheart cringed. “Let's just get that off. We don't want the eye to get infected, do we?” She stretcher her hooves toward the weather pony's head.

Rainbow jerked her head back.

The nurse wasn't having it. “Rainbow, we've been through this plenty of times,” she said firmly. “Just let me do my job and you'll be back to your tricks in–”

She slapped her hoof away. “Miss Sparkle said no!”

Tenderheart sighed and put on her best firm-doctor expression. “Rainb...” A moment later the words registered. “Wait. What?”

Rainbow crossed her arms in front of her chest and glared down at her opponent. “Miss Sparkle said don't touch!” she repeated.

“Who is Miss Sparkle?” she said, looking askance at the two earth ponies. “Is that- Is that Twilight Sparkle?”

“Don't call her that,” Rainbow insisted. “She said to call her Miss Sparkle from now on, okay?”

Tenderheart turned anxiously to the two mares. “Do you know anything about this?”

“That's why we're here,” Applejack replied. “I'm not really sure what's going on with her, but I'm sure there's a good reason.”

“Yeah!” Pinkie agreed brightly. “It's not like Twilight would go bonkers and stick Rainbow Dash in her basement and hypnotize her into being her slave forever.”

“Right!” her companion nodded.

“And even if she did, she wouldn't make Rainbow call her Miss Sparkle like she's some kind of businessmare. Now that's silly!”

Applejack's eyes tightened.

“Or a teacher?” Tenderheart supplied.

The smile fled her muzzle. She chewed her lip. “Right...”

“Hey!” Rainbow shouted. “Are we done? I have someplace to be!”

“Well, I'm sorry, Applejack, but we don't have any unicorns on call at the moment. I think we'll need to transfer her to Canterlot.”

“We don't need to go to Canterlot,” Pinkie reminded them. “Canterlot is coming to us! Twilight will be back in just a couple of hours.”

“Oh no!” Rainbow Dash leaped off of the bed.

“Where do you think you're going?” Tenderheart exclaimed.

Rainbow Dash pushed her aside. “I have to make sure that basement is spotless before she gets back!” She buzzed toward the door.

AJ caught her tail in her teeth and jerked her back. “Oh no you don't!” she exclaimed through clenched teeth. “You're staying put 'til we can figure out what's wrong with you!”

Rainbow spun and wove her hooves in her tail. “Bite me!” She gave the strands a jerk.

Applejack's jaw didn't give an inch. “Long as I have to,” she said with a snarky wink.

“Hey Rainbow Dash, wanna see a cool trick?” Pinkie asked suddenly. “Look at Tenderheart!”

Rainbow swiveled her nose toward the nurse, who stared back motionless. “Pinkie, she's not doing anything. What kind of a distraction is that?”

Light shone into her right eye; unaccustomed to the sudden glare, she was left blinded. Rainbow cried out and covered it with her hoof. “Ow! Darn it, Pinkie!”

Pinkie Pie bounced away with the bandages in hoof and struck a pose. “Ta-daaa!”

Applejack took the opportunity to tackle her friend. “Why don't you just cooperate, you stubborn mule?” she said as she clambered atop the pegasus.

“No offense!” Pinkie called, just in case.

Tenderheart crept over, watching for sudden movements and flailing limbs. She was used to Rainbow's and Applejack's behavior on these visits. “Let me see it.”

“No!”

Applejack straddled the pegasus's hips and pried her hoof from her eye. The cheek and lower eyelid were damp and crusted, but at least it didn't look unhealthy on the outside. “Come on, RD, you know you've been beat,” AJ gloated as she forced Rainbow's left hoof away as well. “Pony up.”

“No!”

“Rainbow...”

“Miss Sparkle said nopony can see it yet!”

Alarm bells went off in the back of Applejack's skull.

“Well, she didn't mean us,” Pinkie Pie reasoned. “We're her friends! We share everything!”

She sighed inwardly at the pink pony's quick wit. “That's right,” AJ agreed. “She's always wanting to show us some new experiment or another!”

“I'm not an experiment,” Rainbow said glumly. “I'm her marefriend.”

“So she'd be even more excited to show off for her friends.”

“Yeah! So what did she do?” Pinkie pestered her. “Did she give you night vision? Or super eagle-eye vision?”

“Twilight cast a spell on your eyes?” Nurse Tenderheart yelped. “Doesn't she know how dangerous that is?”

“Miss Sparkle said that's too dangerous,” the pegasus reminded her with a smug grin for the nurse. “We asked her that months ago, remember?”

“Ooh! Or x-ray vision?”

Rainbow would have facehoofed if she'd had a free hoof, but both were still in the farmer's grip. “Look. Even I don't know what she did.”

“Come on, Rainbow,” Applejack coaxed her. “Give us a peek. We just want to make sure everything's working like it should.”

“But I think it was supposed to be a surprise,” she said uncertainly. “I think she wanted to be here when I showed everypony.”

“Please?”

Rainbow fidgeted and bit her lip; her good eye looked for the door.

“The sooner you show us, the sooner we can get back to the library,” Applejack said reasonably. “Alright?”

“Oh...” RD sighed. “Fine. But you can't spoil it for anypony else.” She opened her eye. “How does it look?” she said with an apprehensive smile.

The two friends stared at it, one in quiet surprise and the other in open-mouthed shock. Nurse Tenderheart slowly rose up between them, and when she saw it her eyebrows shot up.

“What'd she do?” Rainbow asked excitedly. “I know she did something, but she wouldn't tell me what. Come on, how awesome is it?”

“Um... Rainbow Dash,” the nurse began, but she didn't know how to say it. She pointed to the little mirror standing on her desk. The pegasus jumped upright – Applejack clambered off to let her – and zipped over to it.

“I don't even know how to take that,” Applejack muttered. “Is that...?”

Rainbow squealed in excitement. “Omigosh omigosh omigosh! Do you girls see that?” Rainbow exclaimed. “It's like she gave me a little piece of herself! You know what that means? She wants me to be perfect, like her!” She reached her hooves around Pinkie Pie and shook her. “I told you she loves me!”

Pinkie stared back with her head cocked to one side. “Even if Twilight did go bonkers and stick Rainbow Dash in her basement,” the usually-bouncy earth pony said slowly, “and hypnotize her and make her call her Miss Sparkle like she's a teacher or something, there's no way she'd even think of maybe coloring her eye violet like hers like... like a sign of ownership.”

“No.” The word could have been agreement or denial.

Pinkie's lip quivered. “No, that doesn't sound like her at all...”

Act I: Chapter 3

“And...” She signed yet another document with a flourish. “There!”

Twilight Sparkle, student, librarian, and protégée of Princess Celestia herself, stretched her aching back and looked happily upon the stack of checklists she'd wormed her way through thus far. She had with her lists of books from each of the libraries of Canterlot, each detailing the volumes they were willing to part with due to lack of interest, poor condition, or an unnecessary number of copies, and she was determined to make the most of them. “Exactly one hundred pages sorted through and signed,” she grinned. “This is going to be easier than I thought!”

“Well. I'm glad you're having fun,” her assistant muttered. The little whelp shifted his weight to his other side. “I'm bored and hungry and I think my legs are falling asleep.”

“Sounds like a certain dragon is getting cranky,” the unicorn said with a chuckle. Her attention was already on page one hundred one. “Why don't you take a nap?”

“I did!” Spike complained. “Didn't you even notice?”

The unicorn glanced over at him, surprise evident on her features, before her quill quickly resumed its journey down the page. “Of course I did,” she lied, but her features had softened. “I'm sorry, Spike, but I can't play with you right now. I have another one hundred twenty-eight...” She trailed off as a berry-colored aura surrounded her horn and the page, and she levitated it to rest squarely atop the second stack. “One hundred twenty-seven pages to sort through and I'd like to get through as much as I can before we reach Ponyville.”

Her companion sighed. “Yeah, I know... Wait. Isn't that–”

“Next stop: Ponyville!” somepony shouted from the front of their car. The stallion tipped his hat at the pair with a familiar smile. “You'll be wanting to pack your papers away, Miss Twilight. We'll be home in just a minute.”

She was crushed.

“I thought this area looked familiar,” Spike grinned victoriously.

Twilight nodded her thanks to the steward as the dragon pulled a few saddlebags from beneath their seat. She separated the taller stack into two of them and tenderly placed the unread parchment in the third, which she slung onto her back. “Well, there's always tomorrow,” she muttered. “I certainly won't be able to finish it today.”

“Do you think Pinkie has a welcome-back party planned?” he asked hopefully as he picked up the other two bags.

“I'm sure she does.” Twilight smiled faintly at the thought of indulging in some of her favorite foods and games. “She's never passed on the opportunity before!”

The shrill grinding of brakes put an end to their conversation as the train coasted to a stop. When it was finally over Spike jumped to his feet and made his way to the side door with Twilight hot on his heels.

“Hi, girls!” Twilight said happily as she strode into the midday sun.

Nopony waited for them.

She frowned. “Um... Girls?” she muttered, glancing from side to side. A few ponies looked at her as they walked or ran past, but none of them were the friends she'd expected. A blush crept onto her cheeks. “I could have sworn they said they'd meet me at the station.”

“Huh,” was all her companion had to say.

She had known better than to expect all of her friends, but she had expected at least Fluttershy or Pinkie Pie to be there for her.

“Do you think something happened?” he asked. He sounded more curious than nervous.

“I don't know, Spike,” the unicorn replied. “This isn't like them.” With a final glance around the station she trotted briskly away in the direction of her home.

After all, she couldn't dawdle. She was needed back at the library.

Spike followed her at a jog, the two saddlebags bouncing on his shoulders. The whelp was used to the exercise and kept up without breaking a sweat. “Maybe they're helping Applejack raise another barn and they lost track of time?” he reasoned.

“Maybe.”

If that pinched brow was any indicator, the thought wasn't enough to put her at ease. “Or... Or maybe they're waiting for us at the library. Maybe Pinkie wanted to have a surprise party this time.”

Twilight shook her head. “It's not a surprise if we expect it!”

“That's never stopped her before,” the drake reminded her.

She trotted on in silence, chewing the inside of her cheek as she pondered the possibilities. “You know what, Spike?” she said finally. “That does sound like Pinkie Pie. Maybe she thinks I'll be surprised because I don't expect her to do something that obvious.”

Spike smiled at her as the library's top branches broke the skyline. “She's got you there.”

“If that's the case, I hope I remembered to tell them where I started hiding the spare key last month.”

Her assistant, who knew all about Pinkie Pie's surprisingly large collection of keys, kept his mouth shut.

They were almost there before it registered. Twilight had to stop and stare in case it was just a trick of the light. “Spike,” she said slowly, “if you were hosting a surprise party, would you leave the lights on?” Her horn began to glow.

He peered up at the window. “That wouldn't be much of a surp– Oof!”

His guardian turned to find the dragon and both saddlebags sprawled out across the road. Papers scattered across the path from their open mouths. “Spike!” she said crossly. “I told you to be careful!”

“Don't worry, I got it!” he said hastily as he jumped to his feet and began scooping the sheets into a pile. “At least it isn't windy...”

She shook her head. “What am I going to do with you?” she said as she approached the front door, leaving him to his work. She pulled a large bronze key from her saddlebag as she went and made to unlock the door, but there was no familiar clack of shifting pins. Somepony had gone inside and left the door unlocked. At least her note was still tacked to the door, else there was no telling how many ponies might have come in.

She stepped delicately over the threshold. Her hoofsteps seemed eerily loud in the silent library. “Girls?”she said to nopony in particular.

“Omigosh, you're back!”

At the sound of a familiar voice Twilight found the tension dissipating from her shoulders. “Hi, Rainbow Dash!” she called. She turned away and levitated her bag onto the table. “I'm glad you're–”

Only some quick hoofwork kept her from hitting the floor as the pegasus cannoned into her. “Rainbow, be careful!” she admonished her friend. As she looked up she noticed that she and Rainbow were not alone.

“I'm sorry, Miss Sparkle,” she said. She nuzzled the unicorn's chest. “I'm just so happy you're finally back!”

“Well, I...” Her jaw dropped.

Rainbow Dash's eyes had met her own.

Twilight's horn lit up and her power enveloped the pegasus's head. “Rainbow Dash, what happened to your eye?” she asked.

She flinched and fell to her knees. “I'm sorry, Miss Sparkle. They made me do it!” she said quickly.

“Who?”

“Them!” she exclaimed, pointing a hoof and a wing at the three ponies behind her.

“Girls?” Twilight cocked her head at them. “What happened?”

Fluttershy was hiding in an oversized maroon armchair that stood facing away from the pair, only the very tip of her tail visible as it occasionally twitched in and out of view. Pinkie Pie tapped her hooves on the floor and looked at the ceiling, the bookshelves, the other ponies, but could never seem to gather the courage to look toward Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle. Only one pony looked her in the eye; Applejack shifted on the rug in the center of the room and tried to find the words. “This is gonna sound mighty crazy, Twilight...”

The librarian jumped as somepony pushed a shoulder against hers and guided her to the couch. “Dear,” Rarity said firmly, “we need to have a talk about Rainbow Dash.”

The pegasus in question forced herself between the two unicorns to walk Twilight to her seat; she cast a glare at the intruding mare, but Rarity just rolled her eyes and allowed it. “I've made us a snack,” she said brightly, a plate of wheat crackers and lightly-seasoned almond butter hummus following in her wake. “It has been quite a morning for us all, and I don't think anypony has eaten well.”

Pinkie's stomach concurred loudly. “Do you have any more of those muffins?” she asked hopefully.

“I'm sorry, that was all I had,” Rarity apologized, as if the sweets-obsessed filly hadn't eaten Twilight's share along with her own. She rested the plate upon the little table around which the six ponies were placed and ushered Twilight and Rainbow Dash onto the couch. She then sat directly across from them in an armchair much like Fluttershy's and took a deep breath.

“Twilight,” she said, “I'm afraid Rainbow Dash is under the influence of a magic spell.”

The other unicorn nodded and turned to study the pegasus at her side. Twilight's ears fell back as she looked her over. Her posture was a touch on the submissive side, a startling difference from the pegasus's usual swagger. Each breath she took was short and shallow, and judging by the pulsing in her neck her heart rate and blood pressure were up. The most noticeable change was, of course, the eye. “Violet,” she muttered.

“Don't you recognize it?” Rarity urged her. “It's a very familiar shade, is it not?”

“I guess so,” Twilight conceded.

“I think it's cool,” Rainbow said defensively.

Her unicorn ignored her. “What do you know about it, Rarity?”

“It's your eye color, dear. Rainbow's new eye color matches yours perfectly.”

Twilight turned to the other unicorn with her mouth open to speak but was interrupted by a glimpse into the compact makeup mirror the fashionista held between them. Her own face stared back at her, and her own eyes. She turned back to Rainbow Dash to see it there as well. “But what does it mean?” she asked after a moment's thought. “How is it even possible?”

“We found her in your basement,” the other unicorn continued. “She has been telling us all about your efforts to brainwash her over the last two weeks.”

“What?!” She began to tremble all over, a full-body tremor that made her teeth click.

Her friend gave her a level stare. “Twilight, explain.”

“You have to call her Miss Sparkle!” Rainbow Dash stage-whispered, her eyes scanning Twi's face for approval. The corner of Rarity's left eye twitched.

She shook her head in denial, but Rainbow was looking at her like... like a colt looks at his fillyfriend. “I... I can't,” Twilight stammered. “I don't know what's gotten into her. I don't know how she got into my basement. There's nothing down there that could do something like this to a pony. Somepony must have done this to her and then brought her down there.” She peered over her shoulder at the front door. “I knew I should have moved the spare key before I left!” she muttered in exasperation.

Rarity frowned at the pegasus before her. “Twilight, are you sure this was no accident?”

“No way was this an accident!” Dash cut in. “Miss Sparkle fixed me all by herself!”

“But why did you tell me they did it?” the mare in question asked, exasperated. She turned to their four friends with forelegs akimbo. “Isn't that what she said when I came in?”

“No, Twilight, I'm afraid there has been some miscommunication,” Rarity clarified. “We didn't cast this spell. We only removed the bandage hiding the physical effects, which she is convinced was against your wishes.”

“I'm sorry, Miss Sparkle!” Rainbow whined. “They wouldn't let me go back to the library unless I showed them and I had to get back in time to clean up. I just had to!”

“Rainbow Dash , did you just say you wanted to clean up?”

Her pegasus beamed. “Yep! It's just how you left it!”

Twilight's brow furrowed. “As if I wasn't worried before... A spell that can alter her behavioral patterns that much must be some very strong magic.” Annoyance flickered beneath her friend's prismatic mane for a fraction of a second.

“But who would've done something like that to RD?” Applejack asked.

“I don't know. I checked on a few loose ends before I left Canterlot. There were no fluctuations in the strength of the spell we placed upon Discord, and the Princesses say their troops haven't noticed any serious movement among the changelings.” She scowled. “I would say it was somepony we haven't met before, but this feels like a personal attack.”

“So you think it's somepony we've faced before,” Rarity said slowly. “That doesn't leave us many possibilities.”

“None, if you ask me,” Applejack agreed. “The only magical ponies we know who'd have a grudge are dead, turned to stone, or that Trixie filly that keeps coming back for more.”

“Oh, please,” Rarity scoffed. “Unless that braggart has managed to get her hooves on another magical artifact, I think we are safe to ignore her.”

Twilight was staring off into the distance with her chin resting on a hoof. “I don't know, Rarity,” she said. “I don't think we can afford to ignore any possible leads, even if that lead is the Great and Powerful Trixie.”

“She's not as great and powerful as you, Miss Sparkle,” Rainbow said helpfully.

Deep in the cushions of her armchair, Fluttershy blushed.

“Rainbow Dash, will you stop making passes at Twilight for a moment?” Rarity asked politely. “You're making Fluttershy uncomfortable.”

“She ain't the only one,” AJ muttered.

“You're really definitely not her fillyfriend, Dashie,” Pinkie added. “Just ask her.”

“I am too!” the pegasus insisted. She rolled onto her back and burrowed her head into Twilight's lap, to the unicorn's apparent discomfort. “I'm her little Rainbow!”

Pinkie laughed. “Little? You're not a filly anymore. You're almost as big as she is!”

“But my brain isn't. Miss Sparkle says I have a little brain and I need her help to be an intelligent and mature pony like her.”

A collective gasp sounded throughout the room. “Twilight!” Pinkie exclaimed. “You should be ashamed of yourself!”

“Gosh darnit, Pinkie Pie, why don't you think before you talk for once! Twi wouldn't say nothing like that,” Applejack argued. “It must have been somepony pretending to be her.”

“Applejack's right,” the librarian exclaimed defensively. “Come on, girls, you know I love you just the way you are!” She smiled at Pinkie, and the trusting earth pony immediately smiled back.

After a moment of warmth had passed, Rarity cleared her throat. “That, of course, implies that you do think us inferior in certain aspects and only tolerate our behavior because we are your friends.”

The group fell silent as Twilight tried to come up with a response to that.

An armchair rustled as somepony dug their way out of it. “That wasn't fair, Rarity,” Fluttershy said firmly. “You shouldn't take your frustration out on Twilight. Today hasn't been easy for you, but just imagine how she must feel!”

The pale unicorn met her eye for a brief moment, aghast at being called to account, but there was no denying that she was in the wrong. “You're right, Fluttershy, as always,” she sighed. “I'm sorry, Twilight. I didn't mean what I said. After all, we all have our faults, hm?”

“I suppose,” Twilight mumbled. A blue hoof stretched upward and stroked her shoulder. A smile began to appear on her muzzle, but the realization of who was comforting her and why made it falter. “Rainbow Dash, what really happened to you?” she asked. “All I've heard so far is what didn't. Has she told you what happened?” she asked the girls. They nodded uncomfortably.

Rainbow cleared her throat. “Um... don't you remember?” she asked hesitantly. “Is this a test?”

She applied hoof to face with vigor. “No,” she replied. “Nopony's told me the details yet. I want you to tell me everything you remember.”

“Okay...” The pegasus's ears fell back. “You brought me down to the basement, and then I blacked out. When I woke up you were telling me...” She blushed. “You know, what a good girl I was, and all that. And how you were gonna fix me.” Twilight's expression didn't change, but her cheek began to twitch. “You know, make me into the perfect marefriend and stuff. I was a little nervous at first, but the second time I woke up I felt a lot better. I don't know what you did exactly, but there was a lot of magic involved. You looked so awesome, standing there with your eyes closed and your horn glowing like that...” Rainbow beamed up at her, and her cheeks were noticeably pink. “Then I went back to sleep. It took, like, maybe a week to do everything and... and run a-all the tests...” Her hesitation went unnoticed by the entranced mares around her. “After that you wrapped my eye up and told me not to touch it. Then you went to Canterlot and I stayed down here until this morning, like you asked.” The pegasus's eyes meandered off toward her scalp as she thought over her words, but ultimately they slid back to meet Twilight's and crinkled happily at the corners. “Did I get everything?”

The twitch of her cheek had become something of a dance. “Rainbow Dash,” she said furiously. Her friend shrank into herself and pulled her hooves up to her chest as she stared up at the mage's ire. “None of that actually happened. All of that is nothing but false memories implanted in you by whatever spell you're under.”

Rainbow's eyes were watering. “But Miss Sparkle, you were so proud of me,” she whispered.

“I am not proud of you and I am not Miss Sparkle!” Twilight shouted. She leaped to her hooves and bared her teeth at their friends. “Girls, we've got work to do. We're going to find whoever did this and make them rue the day they hurt Rainbow Dash!”

Rarity grinned. “That's the spirit, Twilight!” she exclaimed.

“When I find 'em, they're in for a world of pain,” Applejack promised.

Fluttershy nodded. “For Rainbow Dash,” she said proudly.

“Great!” Pinkie beamed. She hopped into the air, her excitement too strong for gravity to contain. “So where do we start?”

“I have no idea!”

The mood went flat. “Not even a little one?” the party pony asked from midair. She fell heavily to her hooves.

Twilight was already pacing back and forth. “How can a pony do something like this?” she muttered. Rainbow watched her nervously from the sofa. “How could they strip away a pony's free will? Who could want so desperately to ruin my reputation that they'd be willing to destroy Rainbow Dash to do it?”

As Rarity watched her friend wear a groove into her floor she began to ponder. There were only so many wizards in Ponyville and Canterlot, and finding one that disliked Twilight that much was a difficult proposition. Her friend was loved by most of their neighbors; whether it was her friendly and helpful attitude, her tendency to know everything about anything, or even simply the adorable face she made when faced with a difficult question, it seemed everypony in town had something nice to say about Twilight Sparkle. Rarity couldn't be certain if it was the same in Canterlot, but her place at the Princesses' side was likely enough to deter behavior such as this. That left her with so few suspects:

Nightmare Moon was gone for good. Sombra had been destroyed almost a year prior. Discord and Queen Chrysalis were accounted for. Who else could be to blame? Trixie?

Well, that was outrageous. The chances of that self-important filly finding not one but two ancient artifacts of power were simply astronomical, and she wasn't nearly powerful enough to do something like this without one.

In fact, Rarity only knew one pony who could have been strong enough to perform a feat such as this.

“Twilight...”

“Yes, Rarity?” She didn't stop moving.

“What...” She paused. “What are the symptoms telling you?” she asked. “Do you recognize anything about this magic?

“I can recognize a lot of familiar details about the type of magic used, but taken as a whole it's unlike any enchantment I've ever seen,” she said. “I've read about spells that attract, enamor, or enthrall.” She snagged a cracker from the platter and deftly scooped some hummus onto it as she passed. “I've read about enchantments based in the theories of hypnotism or chemical reaction within the brain. I've even seen one that renders the target a puppet for the caster to command as they see fit! None of them look like this!”

“Are you sure it ain't a love potion?” AJ asked.

The snack hesitated on the way to her mouth. “I've never seen one in action,” she admitted, “but where would she have gotten one?”

Rainbow Dash dipped low as she crossed the unicorn's path and stroked a wing beneath her chin. “I don't need a potion to make my love for you real!” she said with a winning smile.

Twilight jumped away as if electrocuted and dropped her cracker onto the rug, splattering hummus across the fibers. “Rainbow!” she sputtered. “Just – Just go sit somewhere and stop...” Her lips struggled with the word. “Flirting.”

Her face fell, but the pegasus immediately lifted her hooves and fluttered back onto her sofa. “Sorry, Miss Sparkle,” she muttered.

Twilight watched her go. “Oh my goodness,” she breathed as Rainbow settled herself upon it. “She actually did it. She didn't even argue.”

Rainbow's frown turned upside-down.

“Don't look so pleased, Twilight,” Rarity muttered. “You know it's only because of that horrible spell.”

“I know that,” she replied, affronted. “I just... I expected another argument.”

“I'd never argue with you, Miss Sparkle,” Rainbow insisted with a duck of her head.

Twilight spun to face her.“No more!” she raged. “I'm not going to put up with this any longer! You can't keep acting like this. What are our friends supposed to think?” Rarity nodded.

She glanced over at Rarity. “Um... How do you want me to act?”

“I want you to be yourself,” Twilight growled.

“I'm trying!” A bead of sweat traveled along her temple. “I don't know what myself is anymore.” She turned her head away and rested it on the edge of the couch, her eyes on nothing in particular. “Please, Miss Sparkle, can't you tell me what I'm supposed to do?” she pleaded.

“Rainbow, stop this!"

She immediately shut her mouth and turned her attention to the object of her affection.

“Tell them it wasn't me!”

“It wasn't her,” she said immediately.

“Tell us why you're like this.”

“Because you fixed my brain with your magic!” she said with a toothy grin.

Twilight growled deep in her throat. “I did not!”

Their friends' heads swung from one to the other as though they were watching a tennis match. “Well Rainbow, did she or didn't she?” Applejack asked.

“It wasn't her,” she repeated with that same expectant smile.

Twilight threw up her hooves.

Rarity's blue aura lifted a cracker to her mouth. “You're not making your case, Twilight,” she said.

“She don't have to!” the farmer exclaimed. “Don't even start talking like Twi could've done this sort of thing.”

“I didn't say that I thought she did,” the unicorn said smoothly, but her eyes remained on Twilight. “I'm simply telling you that news like this won't be kept a secret for long. Somepony will start asking questions that we don't have answers to, and if Twilight fails to satisfy the authorities I'm afraid they'll get the wrong idea.”

“How could I have been the one to do this?” Twilight exclaimed. “I've been in Canterlot for a week! I have an alibi!”

“But Rainbow was missing before you left,” her friend insisted.

“She was not!” Twilight pointed a hoof at Rainbow Dash, who jumped to attention. “She told me she was going to Cloudsdale for two weeks. Ask anypony there; I'm sure they'll have seen her!”

“Rainbow told you that?” Rarity asked.

“And she didn't tell anypony else?” AJ added.

Twilight looked from one to the other uncertainly. “I'm sure she did,” she said uncertainly. “Didn't anypony ask the weather team?”

“They've been complaining the whole time,” Applejack replied.

Twilight's eyes hit the floor. “Well, you know Rainbow...”

“Yeah, which is why we weren't worried the first few days.”

“But as the days passed, her absence grew more difficult to ignore...”

“And now it looks like we have all kinds of reasons to be worried!” Pinkie concluded.

“Girls, please!” Twilight interrupted. “There's no need to panic. Bring her down to the basement; we'll run a few tests and I'll soon find the reason for her behavior.”

A blue hoof shot into the air. “B-But Miss Sparkle...”

“What now, Rainbow Dash?” she growled.

The hoof lowered shakily as her pegasus shuffled her wings. “You said we wouldn't play with the machines anymore,” she said finally.

Twilight sighed. “We're just going to run a few simple tests.”

“What do you think you'll find?” Rarity asked.

“Well, she's obviously under some kind of enchantment.” Twilight walked toward the basement and beckoned for the pegasus to follow. “If I can find the cause, we can counter it and hopefully Rainbow Dash will be able to tell us what really happened.”

Suddenly Fluttershy rose out of her armchair and into the air to settle beside the other pegasus. “Oh, Rainbow, what's wrong?”

Rainbow was trembling so hard her teeth chattered. She shook her head at the other pegasus and slid onto the floor. Her legs moved in quick jerks as she walked slowly toward the other girls.

“Tell me what's wrong, Rainbow,” Twilight said softly.

Rainbow Dash swallowed. “D-do we... d'we have to play with the machines?” she stammered, her eyes glistening. “They hurt my head!”

Pinkie gripped her around the withers in a tight, safe hug as Fluttershy stroked her mane with a hoof. “It's okay, Rainbow,” the soft-spoken pegasus promised. “Twilight won't hurt you.”

“It's Miss Sparkle,” she whispered.

“Don't worry, Rainbow Dash,” Twi said soothingly. “It shouldn't take more than an hour. After that we should be able to find out what really happened to you.”

The fearless Rainbow Dash began to hyperventilate.

Act I: Chapter 4

Six mares descended into the basement. Most were hesitant to take each step, as though wondering what terrible knowledge awaited them at the bottom. They expected blood spatter, or an assault by a mad spellcaster. They expected to find great ritual circles carved into the floor.

What they had not expected was for the basement to be brightly lit, cheerful, and tidy, or as tidy as one could expect from Rainbow Dash.

“Look, Miss Sparkle!” she said excitedly as she zipped around the room. “I made my bed...” An examination table much like those in Ponyville's hospital stood near the corner, made up neatly with a pillow and a thick blanket. “I didn't leave garbage lying around like I used to...” Aside from some crumbs, the countertops were clear of food and clutter. “I even organized my books!” A pile of Daring Do novels sat in a crooked pile next to the head of the makeshift bed, atop a well-loved algebra textbook that looked to have gathered a week's dust. Rainbow Dash landed beside the volumes and pranced around her bed. “Did I do a good job?” she asked happily. “I did, didn't I?”

Twilight frowned.

Rainbow immediately froze in place and stared around the room. “Oh, ponyfeathers. What did I forget?”

“How could somepony set this up without anypony noticing?” the unicorn said thoughtfully.

Her pegasus smiled, but it was a hair too wide to be natural. “Well, maybe 'they' are just that smart,” she replied.

A pink wave of magic wiped the crumbs from her counters into a nearby bin before her addled friend could spot them.

“This is quite... cozy,” Rarity said from the stairwell. “However did you put this together, Rainbow Dash?”

“It was like this when I got here.” She bounced onto the bed and rested her head on her hooves. “Miss Sparkle said I deserved to have my own room.” She eyed Twilight, but her gaze shifted for a moment to the equipment on the far wall. “I... She said I was being really good when I left. Isn't that right, Miss Sparkle?”

Twilight shook her head and walked toward her machines.

“Didn't you say that?” her once-confident friend said hurriedly. “Didn't you say I deserved a reward when you got back?”

The wispier of the two pegasi fluttered to her side. “Don't be scared, Rainbow Dash,” she cooed. “I think we're only using one machine today and I'm sure it won't hurt at all.”

“Yeah,” Pinkie agreed as Twilight began flicking switches and checking joints on one of the smaller machines. “I remember that one. It's like getting your vision checked at the doctor's, only cooler!”

“But– But I don't want the headaches to come back,” Rainbow whined. She trembled as a low hum began to reverberate from the walls. “These machines hurt so bad!”

The pink filly smiled. “Nuh-uh, silly-willy. That one wasn't bad at all.”

“Rainbow Dash, can you get down from there, please?” Twilight called. “It's time to start the first test.”

“Oh,” Fluttershy muttered. “I'm sorry. I thought... How many tests are there?”

“As many as it takes!” the unicorn said with determination.

The prismatic pony lowered her forehooves to the floor, then stumbled as she pulled her back legs down behind her. “Please...”

“Come on, Rainbow Dash.” Twilight pointed to the cream-colored metal framework, or more specifically to the black plastic stirrup sitting just higher than Rainbow's head. “Just stand there and place your chin here. This machine and I will do the rest.”

“Come on, Dashie, you can do it!” Pinkie cheered.

Applejack crinkled her nose. “Jeez, RD, you ain't never been scared of a little check-up before.”

“This is totally different,” she whimpered as she slowly approached the machine. It was of an intimidating height to the little pegasus, and that muted color scheme reminded her of the nurse's office at flight camp.

“Come on, Rainbow,” Twilight repeated, eyes fixed on hers. She tapped the equipment's top gently. “Up in the chinrest.”

“Yes, Miss Sparkle,” she acquiesced. After a long, deep breath she bolted toward it and threw her forelegs onto its top. She lowered her chin into place with only a second's hesitation. The machine felt colder than ice to Rainbow's hypersensitive skin.

“Good,” her unicorn smiled. Rainbow tried to smile back but only managed a twisted grimace. “Now, I'm going to check for interactions between the magic and specific parts of your brain, specifically the cerebral cortex, basal ganglia and hippocampus.”

Gales of laughter interrupted her train of thought. “The dangly whatnow?” Pinkie giggled.

Twilight snorted in frustration. “I said 'basal'– Never mind.” Using a pair of twist handles she adjusted two of the machine's arms until they rested snugly against her subject's temples. “Comfortable?” she asked.

“No,” Rainbow whined.

Twilight leaned her head back to look her friend in the eyes. “Are you just saying that because you don't want me to turn this machine on?”

She lowered her gaze to the floor. “Y-Yeah...”

“Well, I'm sorry, but we have to do this.” She swung a pair of large black arms into their places in front of the pegasus's face and adjusted little glass-tipped fixtures upon their ball joints until each was pointed at the center of an eye. “Okay. Ready?”

The patient bit her lip and shivered. “I don't know!”

“Is she going to be okay?” asked Fluttershy.

“Yes, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash is going to be fine!” Twilight groaned. “Can we just get on with it?” She glared at the other ponies around the room. “Any objections? No?” Applejack shook her head. “Good.”

Rainbow squeezed her eyes shut and bared her teeth in fear. “But I love you,” she choked out.

“I love you too, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight said softly, but even from her lips the words of comfort sounded hollow to the pegasus. “That's why we have to run these tests. They won't hurt you.” With that she gripped a large red lever in her horn's glow. “Three... Open your eyes, Rainbow Dash.” The lids pried themselves apart, revealing cerise and violet and a pale bloodshot pink. “Two...”

A low weeping filled the room. Everypony froze.

“Rainbow Dash?” Pinkie said quietly. “Are you okay?”

“She's not okay,” Fluttershy whimpered.

Rainbow stood bare before them for the first time, her ever-stoic facade ripped away by her fear. She stood before them with her hooves gripping the sides of the framework tightly and her wings tucked close to her body. She stood with ears low and tears tracking lines down her cheeks and neck, her brightly-colored tail tucked limply against her thigh. Her lips were drawn back until they pinched and creased her eyes at the outer corners. The unpracticed wail was low-pitched, an endless shaking moan that cut through five mares like a bonesaw, tearing into their very cores and placing within each of them a piece of her sorrow.

Twilight stared up at her, and she stared right back. Neither moved.

Somepony shuffled their hooves and scratched the back of her head. “Look, I can't... Twilight?” It took the unicorn a second to tear her gaze away and look to the pony calling for her attention. Applejack looked at her flatly. “No machines today, Twi.” She turned away and trotted toward her friend, who sagged limply in the machine's grip like a sackcloth doll. Her music didn't subside.

“But we have to know!” Twilight insisted. Her magic made no move to lower the lever.

“Isn't there something else you can do?” Rarity pleaded, her voice trembling with emotion. “This is positively heartbreaking!”

“But what if her fear is a side effect of the spell?” she tried. “What if this was their plan all along?”

Five pairs of wide and damp eyes gazed soulfully at the unicorn at the lever. After a moment she lowered her head and the glow dissipated. “I guess we could... we could try a deep thaumatic reading,” Twilight offered. “It won't give us the kind of results we could get from this test, though.”

Applejack twisted the handle above Rainbow's left temple until it pulled away from her coat. “Any result is good enough for me.”

She shook her head. “Come on down, Rainbow Dash,” she muttered. With conflicting emotions she watched the pegasus pull her head from the chinrest and collapse onto her friend's muscular shoulder, sniffling and blinking furiously. “I still feel as though we're playing into their hooves...”

“So what?” Applejack gave her friend's back a few tender pats.

“It's worthwhile just to ease Rainbow Dash's suffering,” Rarity added. Her horn began to glow with its blue light. “After all, it's not as though we're helpless without these machines, is it?”

“No, I guess we're not,” the other unicorn agreed with a relieved smile.

“Well then, Rainbow Dash,” Rarity said professionally, “I'm going to delve into your mind. This may feel strange at first–”

Rainbow pushed away from Applejack to stand proudly upon her own four hooves. “Yeah, yeah,” the pegasus said smoothly, scrubbing her hoof across her cheek to hide the dampness. “Go for it, Rarity. I'm not scared of a little test.”

AJ chuckled and wrapped a foreleg around her withers. “Yup, she's still our Rainbow.” The prismatic pony smiled back; the fire had returned to her eyes.

Rarity shook her mane and allowed herself a little smile. “I'm happy to hear it. Now, sit down, hold still, and don't panic.”

Rainbow trotted toward her, making sure to pass close to Twilight on the way. “Thanks, Miss Sparkle,” she whispered.

“What for?”

She paused in mid-stride. “For changing your mind,” she said. “Thanks for listening.”

Twilight smiled. “You're welcome, Rainbow Dash.” She gestured toward the waiting unicorn. “Please, have a seat.”

The two ponies sat on their haunches and faced each other, eyes closed. Rainbow cracked hers open to glance about for Twilight, then settled herself with a sigh of contentment. The air around them seemed to fill with tension and an atmospheric static charge as Rarity's aura grew brighter and bridged the gap between her horn and her patient's forehead; its intensity darkened the area around them as its color clashed with the white and orange rays from the lamps around them.

Suddenly Rarity's calm smile twisted. “Hm,” she muttered.

“What'd you find?” Pinkie whispered loudly.

“Shh.” Her head tilted to the left as if she was trying to see something from another angle. “Hm... That's...” The light faded away, returning the pegasus's coat to its usual sky-blue hue, and Rarity's eyes sprang open. “It's so strong,” she breathed.

“What'd you find?” Twilight said excitedly.

“There is certainly a hypnotic enchantment upon her,” Rarity said slowly. “I could feel it... such strong feelings of love and need... The eye... It was connected to the rest. It's the same spell.” She shivered. “I couldn't tell if it is the focus of the spell or not. The details were rather hazy.”

Rainbow Dash laughed in her face. “Jeez, Rarity, tell us something we don't know!” she jeered.

The unicorn gave her a pink-cheeked frown. “I'm sorry, Rainbow Dash,” she said defensively, “but I didn't expect your mind to be such a mess!”

Twilight trotted forth and plopped down beside the other unicorn. “Let me try!” she offered, unable to keep the enthusiasm from her voice.

“You are the more experienced of us,” Rarity mused. “Perhaps your connection to the spell could help as well.”

“It's possible,” Twilight agreed. “Ready, Rainbow?”

“Ready!” her pegasus grinned.

With that she fired up her horn and immediately delved in.

Compared to the other ponies whose minds and bodies she'd delved into – her brother, a few courtiers, Princess Celestia – Rainbow Dash was muddier than a shallow pond after a heavy rain. Undeterred, Twilight allowed her mind's eye to sink deeper and deeper. She soon realized that the fog she forged through wasn't like that of the average pony. It was a greasy sheen of emotion that coated Rainbow's thoughts, and Twilight could feel a sharp but comforting warmth radiating from it. “So this is what it feels like,” she sighed. Beside her, Rarity smirked. “It feels wonderful.”

“It's just an enchantment, Twilight,” her friend reminded her.

“I know,” she muttered. “That doesn't make it any less exhilarating.” A pair of hooves found her own and she clasped them tightly. “Come closer...”

Twilight pushed herself deeper into Rainbow Dash. Her experience with the procedure gave her the scaffolding to formulate a map of Rainbow Dash's mind and body, and soon she began to reach familiar territory. Masses and constructs began to solidify in the darkness as she built the world around her, taking shape according to Twilight's own subconscious preconstructions. She orbited with rapt fascination around a giant eyeball complete with an optic nerve that disappeared down into the darkness, but when she finally reached its top she found herself looking down upon the huge cerise ring of Rainbow Dash's own iris. Disappointed, she floated off toward the place she knew the other eye would be waiting.

She'd predicted it correctly; another sphere appeared beneath her hooves in no time at all. She didn't bother with her filly's games this time. As she scaled the orb she felt the void around her warming, driving her to quicken her pace.

Soon she arrived at the summit. This high, she knew that the spell's heat should have been uncomfortable, even excruciating. Twilight ignored it and looked down upon another pink iris, but this time something was different.

The fog was thickest here. She could see through it clearly, but still it clouded her vision. “What is this feeling?” she wondered aloud. “Why is it so foggy here?”

Twilight blinked down at the eye. It winked back like a camera's shutter. Twilight giggled and stroked its surface. “It's not violet...”

As if in response to her words, pockmarks appeared in its surface and gushed forth a viscous purple oil. She recoiled with a shriek of delight.

“Twilight, focus!” she heard somepony say.

She reached out a hoof and poked the goop. It was so hot... “Rainbow Dash?”

“Rarity,” said Rarity.

“Rarity!” The gravity of the situation rushed back to her, leaving her shamed and uncertain. “I'm at the eye,” she stammered, ignoring the heat on her cheeks. “The fog is thick here. I can't make out exactly what the spell is, but I can feel...” She waved her hooves in search of the right word.

“What is it?”

“It's complex,” she said. “It's not an effect the average unicorn would be able to create without a focus or a catalyst.”

“Oh, why can't it ever be easy?” her friend's disembodied voice whined. “Why is it that every time we face a villain I must wind up feeling utterly useless?”

“The eye seems to be oozing something,” Twilight continued. “I can't tell if it's physical, magical or metaphorical. Is it a direct effect of the spell, or is it chemical in origin? If the latter, is it the chemicals of a potion or a more basic chemical reaction caused by the magic spell? What if the entire effect is caused by hundreds of tiny chemical interactions in the brain that–”

“Twilight,” Rarity said loudly. “Twilight, you're rambling again.”

The librarian stopped herself short. “Sorry,” she mumbled. “Um... Hold on. I'm going to try to find the source of the spell.” She stepped forward and fell into the eye.

Down she traveled, through the optic nerve and across its chiasma to the cortex of the occipital lobes. Along the way she passed streams or globules of purple dye, or whatever it was that affected her friend's appearance. “I'm entering the brain,” she said. “It's still warm, but not terribly so...” She crossed the threshold into the frontal lobe.

Heat flashed against her muzzle, making her physical body flinch.

“What was that?” Rarity asked nervously.

The warmth was so welcoming. “It's hot... It's...”

“Can you tell what kind of magic this is?”

“It's glorious...”

“Twilight?” somepony said. She tuned it out.

There was more than warmth here. Lights, flashing lights shimmering and sparkling in the distance...

“Twilight, get out of there,” a voice pleaded. “What if it's tuned to you enough to affect you?”

“Is she going to end up like Rainbow Dash?”

“Calm down, Fluttershy. She know's what she's doing... right?”

“Pull out, Twilight! Pull out!”

They were all just voices.

“It's...”

The warmth was a crystalline nightscape upon the inside of Rainbow's skull, a network of flashing webbing crawling across and through the crannies of her brain.

It was beautiful, it was...

“...O-overwhelming...”

Twilight reached toward the light...

Somepony tapped her horn.

Act I: Chapter 5

Twilight's eyes snapped open out of reflex. The room was bathed in berry juice, the light from her horn nearly drowning out that from the lamps and windows. Her eyes rolled upward to see a hoof upon her horn, a hoof with a pale blue coat. She looked down into Rainbow's multi-colored gaze and let out a long breath. “Oh my stars,” she whimpered. “That was amazing.”

“Twilight, are you alright?” Rarity yelped. “What happened?”

“I saw it,” she breathed. “Rainbow...”

“T-Twilight,” her pegasus replied shakily. “I mean, uh...”

“It's everywhere!” Twilight allowed her spell to die and wiped her cannon across her forehead. “The magic is everywhere! I couldn't see a single part of your mind that wasn't under its influence.”

Rainbow leaned in to grip the unicorn around the barrel and Twilight unconsciously began stroking her shoulders and back. “I know,” she smiled. “Thank you, Miss Sparkle.” Twilight glanced down at her in confusion at the pegasus's words, as well as her own hooves' actions.

“So did you figure anything out, Twilight?” the wispy pegasus asked.

It took her a moment to organize her thoughts. “There's no way this is an average spell,” she said finally. “It's far too strong and far too complicated. Most unicorns couldn't hope to handle this much magic.”

“Most?” Rarity asked. “Could you?”

“Of course...” Twilight blinked. “Maybe.”

The other unicorn shared a look with her demure counterpart. “Who else?”

“I don't know anypony else in Ponyville with this much talent,” she shrugged. “If this is a simple casting, we're looking at a very powerful mage. If it was a ritual we would have seen signs of it. The scope...” She trailed off as Rarity's horn began to glow once more. “What are you doing?”

“I want to see it for myself,” Rarity frowned. Rainbow struggled as the glow surrounded her head once more, but she kept quiet. “I didn't feel the heat you spoke of, or see the–”

The five other ponies stared at Rarity, who sat perfectly still with her mouth half-open.

“Rarity?” Fluttershy asked. “You're not... overwhelmed too, are you?”

The pale pony's mouth closed as slowly as her eyes opened. “Twilight,” she said cautiously. “What did you do?”

The other unicorn shrugged. “I did the same thing you did,” she said. “The only difference was that I have enough experience with delving to see things more clearly.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Then why is the hypnotic effect much more prominent now than it was just a minute ago, hm?”

“What? It can't be!” Her horn flared to life.

“Don't,” Rarity barked. “Whatever you did, it made everything worse. I could feel it before I'd even entered!”

“But all I did was...”

“Rainbow Dash, tell me how you feel,” she said angrily. “What's changed?”

“I feel fine, Rarity,” she muttered, burrowing deeper into Twilight's side. “Jeez.”

“She looks pretty clingy to me,” Pinkie said. “Is that normal? I mean, it's normal for me, but I don't think it's normal for Dashie.”

“It's not,” Rarity snarled. “Something strengthened this spell and now she's even worse off than before.”

“What could have done that?” Applejack asked. “I don't see anypony using magic here but you two.”

“And it certainly wasn't me,” she declared with finality. “Where does that leave us?”

Twilight's mouth dropped open in shock. “I didn't do this!” she argued. “Even if I did, it was an accident.”

“Magical effects such as this are no accident, Twilight. The difference I felt was far too much to have been an accidental leak,” Rarity insisted.

“Wait, Rarity, it didn't have to be her!” Applejack exclaimed. “I bet there are plenty of ways it could've happened.”

“Maybe the enchantment just gets stronger over time!” the pink pony suggested.

“A spell cannot feed off of itself, Pinkie Pie,” Rarity argued. “The power has to come from somewhere... The unicorn who cast the spell, for instance.” She looked askance at Twilight. “I did not strengthen this spell, Twilight. What else could it have been?”

“Maybe it feeds off of Rainbow Dash?” Fluttershy tried.

“But she's as energetic as ever.”

Twilight's hoof gripped her friend's fur. “Then...” It wasn't under the control of a spellcaster, or at least not a mortal one. She wasn't wearing any magical artifacts. There were no potions in her basement that would cause this kind of effect. What else could it have been? She could give them no answer but... “I... I don't know.”

“Twilight...” The pale unicorn's lips compressed into little more than a faint line. “I want to believe you, Twilight, but if it turns out you did this to Rainbow Dash, so help me...”

“Rarity!"” Twilight exclaimed in horror. “You can't possibly think I'm behind this!”

The other mare drew back and stared at the floor, ashamed to even entertain the idea. “I'm trying to think of another culprit, Twilight, but you must admit that the facts are not on your side.”

“Shoot, I know Twilight didn't do it,” AJ said confidently. “She's been our friend forever, it feels like. I think we'd know if she were like that. Right, Twi?”

“This is nothing short of the best frame job in the history of Equestria!” Pinkie Pie agreed.

Their moment of solidarity was followed on Rarity's part by a moment of hesitation. “Quite,” the unicorn muttered. She didn't sound convinced, but she forced a smile for Twilight's sake. “Well, Twilight, if you were set up by somepony–”

“Or something,” Pinkie added.

“–then they must have left a clue behind. The six of us will be sure to find it.”

“Alright! A mystery!” Pinkie pulled a magnifying glass from her back pocket dimension and winked at Rainbow through it. “Since I can't use magic, does that mean I have to be the sidekick this time?” she asked, unable to hide the disappointment in her voice.

“I'm afraid so, Pinkie Pie,” Twilight sighed. “Rarity and I will have to take the lead on this one.”

“No.”

Twilight snarled as the denial bounced along the walls of the basement. “Why not?”

Rarity cleared her throat. “Perhaps we believe you, Twilight, but there does seem to be a conflict of interest here, doesn't there?”

“Rarity,” Twilight began, her voice belying a dangerous level of fury barely held in check.

The other unicorn leaned back on her haunches and held up her forehooves. “All I'm saying is that if there is even a chance that you are behind this, the ponies of Ponyville would not appreciate you heading your own investigation, am I correct?”

“What do we care what they think?” AJ argued. “This is our friend we're talking about here!”

“This isn't a very official investigation,” Fluttershy added.

Rarity's lip curled. “Alright, I'll say it. It's not the rest of Ponyville that concerns me...” Rarity took a deep breath. “I'm not comfortable with it.”

Four ponies glared at her.

AJ scowled. “That was a downright nasty thing to say.”

“She's been one of your best friends for years!” Pinkie agreed.

Fluttershy just looked up at her with those big, sad green eyes. “You don't trust her?”

Rarity stared back at them all with an uncomfortable grimace. “No,” she said finally. “It's not that I don't trust her. I just... I don't trust the situation.” She spun to face her number-one suspect. “Twilight, please don't take this the wrong way. It's not you. I trust you, I do!” she insisted. “But... what if?”

“What if what?” Twilight replied coldly.

“Well, I... I don't know,” Rarity stammered. She let her mind drift away to find those dark thoughts she'd been trying so hard to ignore. “What if you... had a moment of weakness, and then repressed the memory?”

“What?!”

“What if you've snapped under the pressure of being Princess Celestia's protégée and, and the 'you' we know and love is only around sometimes, while at other times she is replaced by somepony like...” Rarity gestured at the air with her hooves... “that?”

“I do not have disassociative identity disorder,” she said heatedly. “I've undergone countless psychiatric evaluations, some of which I conducted myself, and the results of each of them assured me that I am as normal as anypony can be!”

Rarity couldn't hold back a sharp bark of laughter. “Do you expect me to trust the results of tests you conducted upon yourself?” Her eyes were wide with disbelief.

“No,” Twilight muttered. “I expect you to trust me.”

“But I do trust you,” she said hurriedly, but the end of her sentence faded as she paused to think the words over. “At least... I want to trust you.”

Twilight's muzzle crinkled. “You don't?”

“I...” She glanced at each of their friends in turn: stoic Applejack, cynical Rainbow Dash, eclectic Pinkie Pie and sophic Fluttershy. Each stared back with some degree of shock or disdain. “I'm not sure,” she said finally. “Things have never looked so grim, Twilight. I don't know what to think.”

Applejack proudly stuck her shoulder to Twilight's. “Well, I think Twilight's had our backs who knows how many times, and it's only right that we stick by her for this one.”

“Yeah, Rarity!” Pinkie agreed from her other side. “What if it really is the best frame job in the history of Equestria?”

Rainbow jumped up onto her love's back. Her burning eyes said more than any words could have. “I'm with Miss Sparkle, no matter what!” she exclaimed.

“See?” Twilight laughed. “The five of us are able to see through this trick. With the magic of friendship on our side, there's nothing that can stop us!” She closed her eyes and smiled as she basked in the warmth of a sudden group hug.

Rarity touched a hoof to her chin and raised an eyebrow at her friends. “I only see four ponies,” she said thoughtfully.

Five pairs of eyes swiveled to settle upon the forgotten pegasus, who had managed to sneak away and was silently staring up at the window. The pony in question glanced shyly back at them and shuffled her hooves, discomfited by the sudden weight of their stares.

“What do you think, Fluttershy?” the fashionista asked casually. “Do you think it's possible?”

“Um...”

“But Fluttershy,” pleaded the student, “you of all ponies should know I'd never hurt Rainbow Dash.”

“Oh, I do!” she said hastily.

Rarity stepped closer, filling the meek mare's vision. “But surely you have doubts?”

“Of course I do, Rarity,” she agreed.

Twilight pushed her rival aside. “You have no reason to doubt what I've said!” she said angrily. “You know me better than that, Fluttershy. I've always been a good friend to you.”

Fluttershy ducked behind her mane. “I know!” she whined.

“Well, which is it?” Rarity pressed.

Her wings shivered against her sides and once more she eyed the window. “U-um...”

“By Celestia's mane, Fluttershy!” Twilight raged. She trembled with poorly-contained fury. “Rainbow Dash has been enchanted by a pony of great power. What if she's not their only target? What if this is just the beginning?” she asked pointedly. “We can't know for sure how long we have before whoever it is comes back for their next victim. We can't afford to lose the power of the Elements of Harmony now!”

She blinked away a haze of tears. “I love you all so much, but... Oh, Twilight, this looks bad,” she breathed. “I don't know who's right. I wish I could decide, but I just can't...”

Twilight's head drooped to the floor. Applejack gave her a futile pat on the back, but there was only one thing that could make her feel better. “What can I do to convince you that I'm innocent?” she asked softly. “I'll do anything in my power.”

Fluttershy shifted her hooves. “I don't know,” she muttered. “I just want everything to go back to the way it was.”

“Don't we all,” Rarity said sadly. Rainbow cocked her head, suddenly looking pensive.

“Fine.” Twilight straightened her shoulders and turned away. “Mark my words, Fluttershy,” she said, her eyes burning with shame and fury. “Nothing good will come of our strife.”

The pegasus looked away. “We need help,” she squeaked. “We should talk to the Princess.”

Rarity nodded immediately. “That's a great idea. Surely Princess Celestia and Princess Luna will recognize this spell.”

“Good thinking, Fluttershy,” Twilight agreed hollowly. “They'll show you.”

“Then we'll have Spike send for them as soon as we can. I wonder who will volunteer this time, Pinkie Pie,” Rarity said with a smile.

“Good guess!” the pink filly said brightly. She turned and hopped up the stairs one by one. “Oh, Spi-iiike!” she called.

Fluttershy nodded. “But in the meantime I... well. I was hoping that, um...” She looked over at her prismatic counterpart, her childhood friend and occasional savior. “...that Rainbow Dash and I could have a nice, long talk.”

“I'm sure she wouldn't mind, would you, Rainbow Dash?” Twilight asked. Rainbow shook her head and smiled.

“A-alone,” the wispy pegasus clarified.

This time Rainbow Dash shook her head much more violently.

“Just for a little bit?” she tried. “A minute or two?” The more colorful pegasus just glared at her. “Okay,” she acquiesced. “I understand. I'll wait.”

“Rainbow Dash,” Twilight said sharply. Her pegasus immediately turned her attention to Miss Sparkle. “Why don't you want to talk to Fluttershy?”

Rainbow shrugged. “I don't mind talking to her,” she said. “I mean, I like her and all. I just don't think it should be just the two of us.”

“Because?”

“Because I'd rather be with you!” she exclaimed. “I was waiting for you for a whole week and now she wants me to say goodbye again?” She paused to shift her attention, and an angry squint, to Fluttershy. “No way!”

“Rainbow Dash, talk to Fluttershy,” Twilight said firmly. Rainbow's eyes widened; they weren't the only ones. “Tell her anything she wants to know, but try your hardest to separate the truth from the lies.”

“Twilight Sparkle!” Rarity exclaimed breathlessly. “How dare you take advantage of her condition?”

“I want you to answer any questions our four friends have for you to the best of your ability.” Twilight grimaced. “And... And I want you to be careful from now on when you go outside. If anypony asks you to come with them alone, I want you to run it by me first.”

“Hold on there, Twi,” Applejack said hurriedly. “Don't you think you're taking it too far?”

“No, Applejack, I don't,” she spat. “I don't know whether this spell is the extent of the plans this enchanter has for her, but I want to be extra-careful just to be safe,” she explained. “Besides, Rarity and Fluttershy apparently don't feel that that can trust me. This way they know I'm not trying to hide anything.” She turned toward the two prim mares across the room. “There. Does that satisfy you?” she asked bitterly.

Suddenly Rarity was in her face, pushing her backward with a hoof to the shoulder. “This is not a game, Twilight.” Her eyes flashed.

Twilight opened her mouth, but shock made her tongue stumble. “Rainbow Dash, get away from her now!”

Rarity spun to find her muzzle less than an inch from her friend's furious snarl. The dressmaker squealed like a pig and nearly backed into Twilight.

Rainbow took a few steps back as well. “Don't ever treat Miss Sparkle like that,” the pegasus growled, her heterochromatic stare daring the unicorn to defy her. “Do it again and we're gonna have a problem.”

“But Rainbow Dash,” she sputtered.

The pegasus lowered her shoulders into prime pouncing position. “Are we cool, Rarity?”

“I said no!” her reluctant mistress said fiercely. “I don't care what that spell did to you. I will not let it tear the six of us apart, no matter what it does to my reputation. The six of us belong together, for the sake of Equestria!”

Rainbow straightened and scratched at the floor with a hoof. “I wasn't really gonna,” she confessed. “I just wanted to spook her a little.”

“No more,” Twilight demanded. “We are all friends here. I don't want any more drama or infighting than necessary.”

“Look at her, Twilight,” Rarity urged her, her voice trembling with adrenaline and emotion. “You're already controlling her. Why, you're making sure she can't function without you. What am I supposed to think?” she whimpered, her eyes misty. “I never wanted to say this, Twilight, but you are making it very hard for me to trust you!”

“I'm doing everything I can to prove my innocence!” she shouted. “How many times do I have to say it? Give me one good reason for you to believe that I'm the one who did this.”

“Everypony wait!”

A pink pony leaped down the stairs without touching down on a single one and landed heavily on the basement floor. “Look!” Pinkie Pie shrieked. She spun on her forehooves; there on her back was Ponyville's resident baby dragon, who stared at them with two violet eyes.

“Hi, everyone,” he said casually. “What's got Pinkie Pie so excited?”

“Twilight Sparkle!” Rarity shrieked. “You can't have!”

Twilight's vision went hazy.

“Oh no!” Fluttershy wailed.

“Spike!” Applejack cried. “Where did you find him? Did you see anypony else there?”

“No,” Pinkie sobbed. “He was just sitting at the table, eating a salad!”

“That... sounds normal,” Fluttershy said, confused.

Rarity shielded the babe's body with her own. “You monster!” she hissed, eyes wide and teeth bared. “What did you do to him?”

Twilight's lips and tongue felt numb. “I... nuh... no...” Her tail tucked itself between her legs.

“Tell me!”

Black spots danced before her. “No, no...” The world shook and suddenly she felt her gorge rising. “Spike...” There was no stopping it. She expelled the remains of her hummus and crackers onto the cold stone. “F-friends...” A thin rope of saliva dripped down onto the floor. Her legs shook violently; it took every ounce of strength she had not to collapse into her mess. “Why w-won't you let me h-help you?” she sobbed. “You're s'posed to be my friends!”

Warm hooves touched her sides and steered her away. Lost in a gray fog, Twilight let them guide her. Flights of stairs passed beneath her without notice and suddenly she was nestled in soft layers.

She felt somepony kiss her forehead. “Take it easy, Miss Sparkle,” her pegasus whispered. “Don't worry about anything. I'll clean up your mess and come back with some water, okay?”

Twilight squeezed her eyes shut and nodded. The hooves left her; reality soon followed.

Act I: Chapter 6

Three mares stood in formation, staring up at the door through which the two pegasi had led their unicorn and dragon friends.

“What do you think, girls?” asked the pale one. “Do you think she could have?”

“No!” Pinkie swore. “Twilight would never do that!”

“The Twilight we know certainly wouldn't,” Rarity agreed, “but the Twilight we know has always been high-strung, and she has at times been found on the brink of losing her grip on reality.”

“That don't mean it'll ever happen,” Applejack argued.

“Come on, Rarity, you saw what happened when she saw Spike!” Pinkie Pie insisted. “She was really scared.”

“Because of Spike's condition or because of our reaction?” Rarity asked pointedly. “Think about it. Resorting to magic to make Spike eat his vegetables? You have to admit that it does sound like something Twilight would do if she... well, you know.”

“You know, she got used to RD calling her 'Miss Sparkle' awful quick,” AJ said thoughtfully. Rarity's raised eyebrow brought her back down to earth. She shook her head in denial. “No. That don't mean a thing.”

“I just don't know...” Rarity shook her head. “Whatever happens, I promise I will not rest until I get to the bottom of this.”

“Me too. Once she's feeling better I'm gonna have a little chat with Twilight,” she decided. “Maybe she found out something about that spell but she was too out of it to say it outright.”

“Ooh! And I'll see if anypony's seen anything suspicious lately!” Pinkie volunteered. “Everypony knows they can tell good ol' Pinkie Pie anything, even if it sounds silly.”

“Please use some tact,” the unicorn said desperately. “We don't want to spread any rumors before we come to a conclusion.”

“I'll be extra-super-sneaky about it,” she agreed. “Maybe I should dig out my night-vision goggles.”

Rarity shrugged. “Fluttershy is taking care of Spike and she will soon handle Rainbow Dash as well... Then it looks like I have some reading to do. Between Twilight's description and my eye for detail, perhaps I'll be able to find some clues to help us identify the spell!” Rarity said, happy to finally have a plan. “With the four of us working together, we'll be sure to get to the bottom of this.”

“Just you wait, Rare,” Applejack said certainly. “We'll find whoever's really to blame.”

“Yes, of that I'm quite sure,” Rarity agreed. “Even if it is Twilight Sparkle?”

Applejack's expression darkened. “That's not gonna happen.”

“But if it does?” she pushed.

The farmer fixed the unicorn with a frustrated stare and let out a long breath through her nose. “Then we'll cross that bridge when we come to it,” she said finally.

A loud bang made the three of them jump. Rainbow Dash glided down into the basement with a foul look on her face.

“How's she doing, Rainbow?” Applejack asked.

“Like you care,” she snarled as she sped past them toward a stack of buckets of all shapes, sizes and materials.

“We do care, Dashie!” Pinkie argued. “She's our friend, no matter what!”

“Oh, I wouldn't say 'no matter what',” Rarity mumbled below the edge of hearing.

Rainbow Dash buzzed back toward the spigot and began to fill a white plastic tub. “All she's trying to do is help. Can't you see that?”

“I see nothing of the sort,” Rarity seethed.

“Then you're an idiot,” Rainbow countered. Satisfied, she turned off the spigot and tossed a rag into it from a little cubby on the wall. She flew to the center of the floor with the bucket gripped in her teeth and touched down lightly beside 'Miss Sparkle's' mess without even a wrinkle of her nose. “Look at me. I'm happy!” she exclaimed, gesturing at herself with the sopping cloth before wringing it out. “I have a marefriend that loves me, and I love her more than anything in the world.” She smiled fondly as she worked. “I'd do anything for her, Rarity, and that includes dealing with ponies that want to hurt her.”

Rarity's lip peeled back. “Is that a threat, Rainbow Dash?” she asked.

“I'm not trying to threaten you,” she said placatingly. “Miss Sparkle told me not to start anything with you guys 'cause we're all friends, right? But that's the thing. You girls are my friends, so I'm just telling you how it's gonna be, okay?” Satisfied, she took the rag and the bucket to the slop sink in the back corner and washed them and her hooves. “Don't hurt her,” she said. “If you're really my friends, and hers too, then just don't hurt her. That's all I ask.”

“We don't want to,” Applejack said soothingly. “We're gonna do everything we can to make sure of it.”

Pinkie was on the verge of tears. “We'll figure this out, Dashie,” she said certainly. “We always do.”

Rainbow gave Rarity a glance. “You too?” she asked.

“I promise to do whatever I can to stop whomever is behind this,” Rarity said, “no matter what.”

The pegasus glared at her. “And I'll protect her, no matter what.”

Rarity nodded. “Don't you have an ill unicorn to attend to?” she asked primly. “Please, don't let me keep you.”

Rainbow didn't spare her another glance. She sped up the stairs; her blowback might have been angled toward the unicorn intentionally, but maybe it was an accident. Rarity blinked in the wind. The pegasus threw open the door and had to stop short before she collided with the squeaking yellow pony on the other side. “Not now, Fluttershy,” she said angrily as she buzzed past in a huff.

“Okay,” Fluttershy whispered around the scroll in her mouth. “I wasn't ready anyway.” She took the stairs one at a time, not meeting the eyes of the mares at the bottom.

“What happened, Fluttershy?” Rarity asked. “Is that the letter to the Princess? Why did you bring it to us?”

She dropped the scroll to the floor and fell heavily after it, resting her head on her cannons. “Spike couldn't send it,” she mumbled.

“Why not?” asked Pinkie Pie.

“His stomach started to hurt very badly every time he tried,” she said sadly. “Since Spike is... under the weather,” she said with a frown, “we're not going to be able to ask the Princess for help.”

“It seems to me that whoever did this knew us very well, Applejack,” Rarity muttered, frustration evident on her features. “They knew we'd try to contact the Princess and they did this to prevent it.”

“Yeah?” Applejack said, unimpressed. “Well, they didn't know us that well, did they?”

“What do you mean?”

“We don't need Spike,” she said with a determined sneer. “I mean, we can always mail the dang letter.”

“We don't have that much time,” Rarity argued.

Applejack shrugged. “Then we can just go to the castle and tell her ourselves!”

“I'll take the next train to Canterlot,” Pinkie offered. “Just you wait. I'll be back with the Princess in no time!”

“I'm glad that you want to help, Pinkie Pie, but that will take hours!” Rarity complained. “We need her as soon as possible!”

“Then why wait?” she said brightly, snatching the letter from the floor with her teeth. “See you tonight!” She sped up the stairs.

Fluttershy climbed to her hooves. “Will you be okay on your own, Pinkie?” she asked meekly, far too quietly for the other pony to hear.

Her voice echoed faintly down the stairway. “Tell the Cakes I'm not coming back to work today!” she yelled.

Applejack smiled proudly. “Look at that,” she said. “We'll have this sorted out in no time.”

Rarity let out a sigh like a last breath. “I do hope so.” She leaned heavily on Fluttershy's proffered shoulder. “Goodness. When I woke up this morning, I thought the worst thing I'd have to put up with today would be Sweetie Belle's schoolyard gossip,” she laughed mirthlessly.

“Don't worry, Rarity,” Fluttershy said. “It's going to be okay.”

“Of course it will,” Applejack smiled. “But if we want to get this figured out, we'd best get cracking. Fluttershy, have you figured out if Spike's story is anything like Rainbow's?”

“It is,” she replied. “He says Twilight wanted him to act more professionally when he's working in the library, and stop fighting her so much when she tries to make him do something that's good for him. She started the process during her last night in Canterlot and was finished by the time she had to catch the train.”

“That's pretty fast compared to Rainbow's,” she mused. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, I think I am,” Fluttershy nodded. “He said she was very proud of her progress and was so very excited to...” She whined through her nose. “To try it again.”

“Then we have no time to lose!” Rarity pranced toward the stairs. “If she really is going to strike again, we must stop her before it's too late.”

“And if she isn't,” Applejack said forcefully, “then we gotta hurry anyway.” She followed the unicorn with heavy hoofsteps. “Twilight was right. They got RD and Spike. We don't know which of us is gonna be next.”

“I'll speak with Spike again when I've finished with Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy said. “If Twilight really did this, maybe she'd have told him who her next, um, target would be...” She glanced up at Applejack, who was quite noticeably fighting the urge to glare at her. “Not that she would do that,” she amended. “I'm just making sure.”

“Don't let Applejack's hesitation stop you, Fluttershy,” Rarity said from the head of their line. “That is a wise decision.”

Together the trio emerged from the basement for the first time in what felt like forever, but the fond memories of their friendship were left behind. “Yeah? Well, why don't you stop worrying about her 'targets' and think about her for a change?” Applejack said with a scornful grimace.

“I am worried about her, Applejack,” Rarity said coldly. “She is a dear friend, and if she has truly become somepony who would do such a thing, then I am determined to stop her before she destroys every good thing she and the rest of us have achieved together.”

A hoof grabbed her by the shoulder and spun her around. “Then why all the fighting?” she exclaimed. “Why can't you just give her a chance?”

“Because I'm worried about the rest of us too!” Rarity cried. “Have you already forgotten about Spike? Who else would have had time to enchant him?”

“I don't know!” the stubborn farmer shouted back. “He didn't come in with Twilight. Maybe somepony nabbed him outside!”

“Oh, come now, Applejack,” Rarity scoffed. “The process took days in Rainbow's case and at least a night in Spike's. We were only inside for an hour!”

“An hour's plenty of time,” Applejack said uncertainly.

“Not for a spell like this,” she insisted. “This would require hours of preparation and its effect would likely need some time to mature.”

Applejack shook her head. “I don't care what kind of fancy logic you try to pull. I ain't gonna give up on her, Rare. She needs us now more than ever! I ain't gonna throw her to the dogs just 'cause it'd be easier than helping her.”

“Nor am I!” the unicorn argued. “Fluttershy and I are simply...” She looked past her opponent to see that the mare in question had disappeared. “Fluttershy?”

The pegasus squeaked as she crouched lower on the stairway to the second floor. “Yes, Rarity?”

Upon seeing their meek companion's state, Applejack and Rarity shared a solemn glance. “I'm standing here telling you to stop being so darn mean, and here I am shouting at you,” the farmer muttered. She extended a hoof toward the unicorn. “Want to just agree to disagree and call it a day?”

Rarity looked up the stairs. “I think that would be best,” she sighed, offering her own in turn.

AJ nodded. “Good enough,” she said as they bumped hooves.

The unicorn turned back to her friend on the stairway. “I believe I'll accompany you to Twilight's room,” she decided. “Coming, Applejack?”

Applejack trotted off toward the sofa. “Nah,” she said with a wave of her hoof. “I've got some thinking to do. Just let me know if she's awake.” While Fluttershy assured her that she would, Rarity bit back a relieved sigh. If there was one thing she didn't need, it was Applejack and Rainbow Dash teaming up against her. On their own they were stubborn as mules, but when they got together...

The two mares reached the top of the staircase. Twilight's bedroom was quite familiar to them all, and not a single object looked out of place. Her books were either organized neatly on their shelves, strewn about wherever the absent-minded unicorn had left them when interrupted or, in the case of a certain adventure novel, held tenderly in the hoof of the pegasus on the bed. A half-empty glass of water stood on the nightstand in easy reach of her hooves, as did another blanket in case Rainbow decided her charge was getting chilly.

Twilight was tucked beneath her wing, nose to tail and shivering faintly. Her cheeks were damp but she made not a sound. Occasionally her cutie mark would twitch as her hindleg twitched and kicked. She looked more the victim than the abuser.

“Has she woken up at all yet?” Fluttershy asked as she glided swiftly to her friends' side.

“Not really,” Rainbow whispered. “She started moving around a while ago, but I gave her some water and then she passed out again.”

Rarity found herself frozen to the landing.

The demure pegasus placed her head on the mattress beside Twilight's. “Oh, I hope she'll be okay,” she mumbled.

“She will,” Rainbow replied. “Miss Sparkle's got a lot of guts. She'll be fine.”

“Please don't call her that,” Fluttershy whined. “I don't want to believe she'd do such a terrible thing.”

The unicorn took a step forward. “Nopony wants it to be true,” she whispered.

“You could've fooled me,” Rainbow jabbed. “Everypony else keeps arguing with me, but you believe every word I've said. I think you want it to be true so you can convince everypony how bad she is!”

“I don't want her to be like this!” Rarity exclaimed quietly. “I'm as heartbroken as anypony else. Is it so wrong of me to consider the possibilities?”

“Maybe it is.” Rainbow's wing stretched further over her friend's back. “I don't care what you think. It's good enough for me and Spike and Twilight. What do you care?”

“I want all of my friends to be safe and happy and... and not... broken!”

“We're not broken,” Rainbow said sternly; “we're fixed.” She looked away from the unicorn and stroked Twilight's mane. “You know what? Maybe I'll ask her to fix you next.”

The books atop Twilight's desk chair toppled noisily to the floor as Rarity lifted it into the air. Fluttershy squealed and darted toward the balcony. “Try it!” she snarled.

A faint groan silenced them both. Twilight's head rolled to the side and one of her eyes slowly opened, revealing the violet within. “Is everypony okay?” she asked muzzily.

“We're fine,” Rainbow said, pinning Rarity into place with a glare. “You can go back to sleep.”

Twilight shook her head weakly and lifted it. The other eye opened. “Fluttershy, what are you doing the whole way over there?” she asked. “I promise I won't hurt you–” A click made her look toward the stairs. “Rarity, what are you doing?”

She let the glow around her horn dissipate. “Rainbow Dash wants me to be your next victim,” she spat.

The unicorn stared at her pegasus, who grinned nervously back. “I wasn't threatening her,” Rainbow assured her. “I didn't think she'd try to come after me with a dang chair.”

“Rainbow, that is not acceptable,” Twilight said firmly. “First, I am not the one behind this, so I don't have any power over who the next victim would be. Secondly... You know what?” she said, letting her head sink back down to the mattress. “There's so much wrong with that idea that I don't think even I can get to it all.” Instead she turned her attention to the other mares in the room. “What do you two want?”

“I just wanted to make sure you were okay,” Fluttershy said quickly. She inched along the wall. “I see you're in very capable hooves, so I'll just be going now. I'll be downstairs when Rainbow Dash is ready to talk!” Without a wave or a backward glance she cantered the rest of the way to the stairs and glided down to the main floor.

...which left Rarity alone with the 'couple'. “I also was concerned about you,” she began.

“How so? Were you concerned that I was going to do something while you weren't looking?” Twilight growled. “Were you concerned that I was going to bend Rainbow Dash even further to my will?”

“No!” she cried hastily. “No, I really was worried about you!”

“Yeah, you looked pretty worried when you were gonna throw that chair at me,” Rainbow snickered.

“I wasn't going to throw it at you! That was just in case you started something.”

“Girls, stop fighting.” Rainbow immediately tucked her wings and settled against Twilight's flank. “I won't have it. Rarity, tell me what I have to do to regain your trust.”

The unicorn stared at her in disbelief. “You think you can just... just like that?”

“I'll try my best,” Twilight said confidently.

Rarity shook her head. “Then give me one single shred of evidence proving that you didn't hurt Spike or Rainbow Dash.”

“You know I don't have it.”

“Tell me how it could have been anypony else!”

“You know I don't know that.”

Rarity's eyes were tearing up. “Then tell me why!” she cried. “Why should I believe you? I know you're a good mare, Twilight, one of the best I've ever met, but you have always been fragile and you constantly express your frustration when Rainbow or Spike or... or any of us do something you disagree with!” She rubbed a hoof against her shin. “I don't know, Twilight. You could have been corrupted by dark magic, or maybe you just... cracked, or something. I hope it isn't true, by the Princess's mane I do, but I cannot see one reason why I should believe it to be anything else.”

Twilight stared at her, the only hint of emotion a certain moisture in her eyes. “I have a reason for you,” she said gruffly. “You know me better than that.”

“I wish I did, Twilight,” her friend whimpered. “I wish I did.”

Twilight turned away and burrowed her muzzle beneath Rainbow's shoulder. “Then leave, Rarity,” she said harshly. “Just go home. Lock your doors and board up your windows if you want. I don't care.” Her loud and shuddering breath was muffled in the pegasus's hide. “Just promise me you'll be safe.”

Rarity took a step back, but something about the tableau before her kept her from turning away. Rainbow held Twilight tenderly, eyes closed and pinched and wings stretched over her... It was like a memory long forgotten. Whatever they were, or whatever they thought they were, there was no mistaking the bond of friendship.

“If you'll come with me,” her mouth said suddenly.

Rainbow's eyes snapped open.

“I mean it,” Rarity continued. “If you really want to prove to me that you're not the one behind this, then stay with me at the Boutique.”

Twilight lifted her head from the pegasus's side. “Aren't you worried that I'll attack you if we're alone tonight?”

Rarity shivered at the touch of her cold glare. “I'll lock my door,” she said. “Yours too.”

“No way!” Rainbow snarled. “You can't keep locking us away. Miss Sparkle can do what she wants, when she wants.”

“I'll do it,” Twilight said firmly. Rainbow's head fell into her hooves. “If that's what it takes to convince you of my innocence, then I'll do it.”

Taken aback, she could do nothing but blink. “Alright,” she said finally. “Alright then. Just pack your things. I'll... I'll be expecting you within the next two hours.”

“We'll be there,” Rainbow assured her.

“We?” Rarity asked.

“We?” repeated Twilight.

Rainbow nodded. “We're in this together, Miss Sparkle,” she said proudly. “I'm with you every step of the way.” Twilight beamed brightly.

“Oh, alright then,” Rarity acquiesced. “Just a few necessities, mind you! Aside from that I want you to come right over after your conversations with Fluttershy and Applejack.”

“Applejack wants to see Rainbow as well?” Twilight asked.

“No, Twilight, she wanted to see you.” The unicorn and pegasus blinked at each other. “Don't worry, Twilight,” Rarity said, “she only wants to ask you some questions about what you experienced while delving Rainbow Dash. She is set on proving your innocence.”

Twilight finally managed an honest smile. “I knew she would be,” she said happily. She nuzzled Rainbow's chest with her cheek.

“Then I'll send her up.” Rarity said, leaving them to it. “Remember, two hours at the latest!”

Emotions darted across her features as she approached the main floor: guilt and suspicion, sadness and determination... Every conversation with Twilight Sparkle shed new light on the situation, but was it the light of truth or simply a pretty distraction?

She still hadn't decided by the time she reached the landing. “They ready?” Applejack asked. Rarity nodded, and the farmer stood and trotted toward the stairs the unicorn had vacated. “May as well get this over with, right, Fluttershy?” The pegasus followed uncertainly.

“Good luck, girls,” she said as she left them to their business.

“You too, Rarity,” Fluttershy replied. Applejack grunted.

Rarity tuned them out and went spelunking among the library's many shelves. After so many afternoons spent in Twilight Sparkle's company, she knew her way around the library like the back of her hoof; only a few minutes later she emerged with a staggering pile of hardcover books floating at her shoulder.

“Spike?” she said carefully to the dragon at the desk. He looked very professional, for a change. He'd even put on the famous bedazzled bow tie Rarity had made for him over a year ago; Rarity couldn't help but smile at the sight. “I hear you've become quite the little librarian. Is this true?”

“Of course, Rarity,” he said. “How may I help you?”

It was a strange sight, watching Spike behave like that, strange and rather off-putting. Discomfited though she may have been, she tried not to let any of it show. “Be a dear and sign these out for me,” she said pleasantly. “It seems I have some studying to do.”

Soon she was on her way home, leaving the library's shelves nearly empty of books on magical theory... and criminal psychology.

Two ponies watched her saunter down the path. “Be honest with me,” the unicorn at the window asked the pegasus on the bed. “Do you think I should have said no?”

“I don't like it,” Rainbow admitted. “We're not going to be able to do anything without her breathing down our necks.”

“I know, but she has to learn to trust me again,” Twilight muttered. “She's supposed to be my friend, Rainbow Dash. How can we be friends if we lose our ability to trust one another?” She sighed and chewed her lip as the white unicorn disappeared down the main streets of Ponyville. “Go ahead, Rainbow. Fluttershy is waiting.”

Trust... Never had the word meant so much to her. When Nightmare Moon had reared her head two summers before, she had asked five ponies to believe in her and together they saved the lost Princess Luna from the curse of Nightmare Moon. Even the days before her brother's wedding, when she had suspected and eventually confirmed the sinister intent of Shining Armor's bride-to-be, were foal's play compared to this. Her friends had turned against her, but at least nopony at the wedding had wanted her locked up except for Queen Chrysalis, the mastermind behind the day's events. This time it wasn't as simple as her friends not believing her. The bonds of trust had been shattered.

She knew, though, that it wouldn't last. Her friends always saw the light eventually. No matter what happened, her friends couldn't hate her forever.

Everything was going to be okay.

But first, she had a certain farmer to attend to.

Act I: Chapter 7

Fluttershy watched the first gray haze of sunlight seep through her window. She had crawled so far beneath her covers that her nose peeked out at the foot of her bed. There she had lain all night, hoping beyond hope that any unhappy thoughts would pass over her without her having to face them until the morning. It hadn't worked; thoughts of conspiracy and dreams of blinding pink lights had chased her awake each time her eyes had closed.

She knew she wasn't a strong pony. She sometimes had trouble handling everyday problems, let alone a problem like one of her best friends maybe going crazy and brainwashing other ponies. The pegasus knew one thing for certain, though, and it was that if her friends really needed her, she'd be there to help them however she could. Yet again she found herself thinking over the results of their fruitless investigation:

Pinkie Pie hadn't returned that night. Rarity had wondered aloud if foul play was involved, but she'd decided that it wasn't likely if Twilight had been out cold or talking to Applejack until an hour after the train was scheduled to leave. Maybe the Princesses were just busy, or maybe they would arrive in the morning.

Rarity, for her part, hadn't stopped reading all evening. She had been too busy researching to give the other girls any details, but she said she was making some progress and that's what really mattered. She'd had a busy night ahead of her too, since she had insisted (or demanded) that Twilight and Rainbow Dash stay with her.

Applejack's chat with Twilight had gone as expected. Twilight had said she knew nothing about anything, but she was determined to find out. Applejack had seemed frustrated and confused and soon left to attend to her chores at the orchard. Fluttershy hadn't hoped for much, so at least she couldn't say that she was disappointed.

Her talk with Rainbow Dash, on the other hoof, had brought up some feelings Fluttershy wasn't sure she was ready to face. Rainbow's story was the opposite of Twilight's: it was detailed, it was confident, and it pointed a hoof directly at the unicorn. But what if she was wrong? What if it really was an imposter pretending to be Twilight?

The changelings could look like anypony they wanted to and they had every reason to want Twilight out of the way.

The changelings were south of the Badlands, but then again, what if they weren't? Twilight had said so, but if Twilight was a liar then maybe she was lying about the changelings too...

But if Twilight really was behind this, then it wasn't the changelings she needed to worry about.

She shook herself and gave up that train of thought. “I just don't know what to think anymore,” she mumbled miserably. Her ever-present little companion, Angel Bunny, stirred fitfully in his bed a -few feet away.

With the light of dawn in her eyes, Fluttershy buried her hopes of sinking into slumber. She had obligations to her other friends, after all: feeding and watering, bathing, petting, having nice little chats with them and maybe collecting some eggs from the chickens in return. The animals were her friends too, and she couldn't forget about them just because her pony friends needed help. She yawned widely, stretched her limbs, and trodded down the stairs.

After a few familiar minutes of caring for the animals, Fluttershy was surprised to find herself smiling as she lost herself in her routine. At her cottage there was no reason to fear her neighbors, or wonder if she could trust anypony anymore, or hide behind her hooves and cry... Her home and the grounds around it were a safe place. Nopony could hurt her there.

She was on her way back from the hen house, shivering at the sensation of her feathers and fur ruffling in the cool breeze, when a sharp crack nearly made her drop the basket of eggs she carried. She spun, fearing the worst, but no purple devil waited for her. Instead she saw a familiar stetson-clad farmer trotting past her land into the Everfree Forest, equipped with a large flask, a furious grimace, and enough rope to snare a manticore.

“Oh! Good morning, Applejack!” Fluttershy called. “You scared me.”

Her friend didn't even turn to greet her as she passed.

Fluttershy lifted a hoof to hail her, but it hesitated at shoulder height. “Applejack, are you okay?” she called instead. “Did you sleep well?”

The mare's ears fell back against her mane. “Leave me alone, Fluttershy,” she said tiredly.

The pegasus chewed her lip. Applejack didn't look like she wanted company; maybe she was still angry with her about what she'd said yesterday. Then again, maybe she just needed somepony to talk to. She approached carefully. “Do you want to talk about it?” she tried.

“Nope.”

Fluttershy's nose wrinkled as the wind blew Applejack's scent toward her. She reeked of sweat and apples mostly, but there was no mistaking the pungent undertone. “How much did you drink last night?” she asked.

The earth pony's shoulders tightened at the sound of her friend's disappointment. “A lot,” she said finally.

Fluttershy nodded. “I understand,” she said comfortingly. “Yesterday was–”

“Look, Fluttershy, I've got something I've got to do,” Applejack growled, exasperated. “Just leave me alone for a while, okay?”

Her hooves carried her after the other mare for a few steps. “Are you sure you won't talk to me about it?” she called.

“Sure as sugar, Fluttershy,” she said firmly. “Just go home.”

Her ears wilted as she stared after her. “O...okay?” The mare crossed the treeline without a backward glance. “Okay,” the pegasus said sadly. “Goodbye.”

Applejack just kept walking and soon she was lost between the trees.

Fluttershy had two choices: she could either stand there and watch her friend go, or she could gather her courage and follow. She sighed and turned back to her cabin. “Applejack can take care of herself,” Fluttershy said certainly. “She's a grown mare.”

It took her another hour to finish her chores and two more to satisfy a band of playful mice and raccoons. The numerous times she stopped and stared out the window didn't help.

By the time she and the critters were finally through with their games of tag and hide-and-seek, Fluttershy could no longer ignore the questions that burned in her mind. With a few tender pats and a few firm words she took her leave. The air had warmed considerably in the hours since dawn; its soothing touch eased away the knots in her shoulders as she walked into town and threatened to lull her to sleep on her hooves. It was fighting a losing battle; she was still far too worked up to even consider a nap.

Ponies hailed her from all sides as she wandered through the market: stallkeepers with whom she'd been known to exchange a few words; Mr. Cake, apparently on his way to buy ingredients; a few ponies she was friendly with after caring for their sick or misbehaved pets. Each waving hoof made her sink lower into herself. There was one face she wanted to see more than any other, and it was nowhere to be found. Where was Pinkie Pie? Where were the Princesses?

She plodded off to the one place she could think of that might have answers for her: Golden Oak Library.

The six of them had decided to to leave Twilight's note on the door of the library, since opening it for business would have been rather difficult, given the... um... circumstances. Surely anypony who hadn't read the latest Daring Do novel yet could wait another day or two. If Fluttershy was right, though, the Princesses would go there before they tried any other building. It was worth a try.

Nothing waited for her there but a handful of letters in the mailbox. After a moment's thought she decided that she may as well take them, since her next option would be Carousel Boutique. She sighed as she headed across town for the second time.

An eternity later Fluttershy rang the Boutique's doorbell. She had grown accustomed to its volume, but she still felt bad about causing such a racket. She stood waiting at the front door, shuffling her hooves for a solid minute before she decided to try it again.

Suddenly somepony's colorful head popped out of an upstairs window. “Come on in, Fluttershy!” Rainbow shouted. “I doubt Rarity's gonna wake up. You know how much she likes her beauty sleep!”

Then the Princesses hadn't come to the Boutique either. “I was only bringing the mail,” she almost-shouted back. “I could come back later.”

“What?” her friend asked loudly. “Just come inside!”

She gave the door a nervous glance. “Well, if you think it's okay...” Her hoof gripped the handle, but the door wouldn't give. “It's locked.”

The other pegasus smacked her forehead with a hoof. “Fluttershy, you've got wings!” she shouted in frustration. “Get up here!”

“Okay!” she squeaked. She hopped gracefully into the air, flapping slowly until she reached the upper level of the boutique. “Here's your mail maybe I'll come back later when Rarity wakes up!”

“Come on, Fluttershy, don't be like that!” Rainbow complained. “It's big enough for two ponies to fit through. You'll be fine.”

“But I don't want to enter uninvited!” she insisted.

A devilish grin crept onto her face, one that Fluttershy knew well and didn't trust one bit. “Okay then, I guess I'll just take those letters...” Rainbow Dash extended a hoof.

“Um...” She extended the hoof just far enough for the other pegasus to reach. “Here–”

Rainbow missed the letters, grabbed Fluttershy by the pastern, and yanked her through the window. Fluttershy cried out in panic as she fell atop her friend and her limbs locked around the other mare instinctively.

Twilight was resting on the bed, giggling quietly to herself at the sight. “Well, I suppose that's one way to invite her in.”

She squealed again when the door snapped open, revealing Rarity's bedraggled form standing in the hallway. Her robe hung loosely from her shoulders, her eye shadow was smeared down her cheeks and the left side of her precious mane was a tangled mess.“Rainbow Dash, some of us are trying... Why is the window open?” Rarity barked suddenly. Without waiting for an answer her horn slammed it shut. “Were you trying to leave without me noticing?” she aked Twilight angrily. “Do you think me a fool?”

Twilight simply pointed at the two ponies on the floor.

The drowsy unicorn's eyes finally spotted the tangled pegasi. “Oh.” Rarity blinked away the fog in her eyes. “Good morning, dear. When did you arrive?”

“The front door was locked, so we let Fluttershy in through the window,” Twilight said angrily. “That's why Rainbow Dash was shouting. Not everything we do is part of some megalomaniacal conspiracy.”

An easy smile spread across Rainbow's muzzle. “Yeah, Rarity, chill out,” she laughed.

Rarity blushed. “I'm sorry. I don't mean to overreact, but after a day like yesterday, can you truly blame me?”

“It's okay,” Twilight muttered. “I understand.”

“Twilight, I know that I can be... hasty, at times,” she admitted. “I may have used poor judgment and jumped to conclusions. I'm not saying I've changed my mind, but I promise I'll try to keep an open mind to what you have to say. The other girls were right, after all. You and I have been PFFs for a long time now, and I should give you the benefit of the doubt.”

Twilight smiled weakly. “I guess that's all I can ask for.” Rarity nodded.

In the ensuing silence the mares tapped their hooves and searched for something else, anything else, to talk about. Rainbow rolled her shoulders uncomfortably. “So, uh... So Fluttershy brought us the mail from the library,” Rainbow explained

Her comment reminded the other pegasus to pass the envelopes to Twilight. “Um, yes. But I can come back later if it's a bad time...”

“No, Fluttershy, please stay,” Rarity said kindly. “I was having a difficult time sleeping anyway.” Her houseguests nodded, one with sympathy and one with a roll of her eyes.

“Me too.” Fluttershy hid a dainty yawn behind her hoof. “I didn't sleep a wink.”

“Pinkie Pie!”

The other mares spun toward Twilight, who stared excitedly at one of the letters. “This one's from Pinkie Pie!” she exclaimed.

“How did it get here so quickly?” Rarity asked, looking positively baffled. “She only brought the letter to Canterlot personally because the postal service is so slow!”

“I find it easier to deal with Pinkie if I don't question how she does what she does,” Twilight said. “I think I learned my lesson on that one, don't you?”

Rarity gave her a forced chuckle and a tense smile.

The four of them examined the envelope as Twilight pried it open. It was a generic white rectangle addressed to 'My bestest friends!' in hurried but practiced letters. The return address simply said 'Pinkie'.

Twilight began to read aloud:

Hey girls! I'm in Canterlot. I can't see the Princesses because they're really busy and I don't think anypony told them I'm here but they should be done soon. I wanted to tell the guards about what's going on because then they'd let me see the Princesses sooner, but then I thought maybe it would be bad if everypony heard about it before we figgured out what was really going on. Everypony would go crazy! Right? So I might have to wait until tomorrow. I don't like waiting! Maybe I'll do the whole tourist thing while I'm here. You know, see the sights and waste too many bits on stuff I don't really want.

How are things in Ponyville? Has anypony confessed to ainwashing-bray Ashie-day yet? I still don't think it was Twilight. I should know because I've known her longer than everypony else in Ponyville by at least a few minutes! But if it really was her, then tell her I said she's a really bad pony and I will never ever forgive her. But I really don't think it was her.

Love,

Pinkie Pie

PS. I know I said I don't think it was Twilight, but can you pretty please keep an eye on her for me? Just in case.

PPS. I'm sorry, Twilight! I love you so much. Please don't be mad.

Twilight, whose voice had grown harder and harder as she forged through the second paragraph, glowered at the postscript. “She misspelled 'figured',” she muttered scathingly, but Rarity shushed her with a look. Rainbow's hoof idly stroked her back.

“Wait... This one is also from Pinkie.” Fluttershy said, shuffling through the other five letters. “They all are!”

Rarity stretched out a hoof. “May I?” she asked Twilight.

She made no move to intercept the mail. “Go ahead,” she replied offhand. “They're for all of us, anyway.”

With practiced ease Rarity sliced open all five of the envelopes with her magic and rotated the unfolded documents in and out of her hooves as she skimmed them.

“Nothing... nothing... Oh, look, she met a colt at Donut Joe's and she's... She's getting married?” Twilight shrugged and Rarity, whose lips were moving soundlessly in shock, moved on to the next letter. Before she finished the first line her distress dissipated. “She's not getting married,” she smiled. “Well, at least she's keeping herself entertained!” As she scanned the last letter her smile quickly faded. “But she still hasn't spoken to the Princesses.”

“They know Pinkie Pie,” Twilight mused. “They should have recognized how important the matter was as soon as she arrived.”

“What could be taking them so long?” Fluttershy asked.

“The Princesses were planning to meet with representatives of the neighboring nations to discuss trade agreements,” she explained. “I can understand why that would be important, but can't they ever take a break?”

“Matters of diplomacy can be quite delicate, Twilight,” Rarity explained. “Why, even blinking at the wrong time can ruin their chances for a favorable compromise.”

“I know that,” Twilight said, tapping her hooves together nervously, “but this is important too.”

“Speaking of important matters, so long as I'm...” She tried to hide a huge, graceless yawn behind a hoof. “So long as I'm not going to be getting any sleep, I for one could use a nice, hot bath,” she said, patting at her ruined coiffure with a hoof as she retreated to the hallway. “I shall return shortly to prepare breakfast. Ta-ta!”

The other ponies watched her go. “You know she's gonna fall asleep in the tub, right?”

Twilight stifled a giggle. “We might as well let her. She needs it. Why don't we handle breakfast?”

Soon the lower level of the Boutique was filled with the enticing aroma of an omelette au fromage with asparagus and mushroom. The omelette itself was sliced into quarters and separated onto blue and white china. Twilight thoughtfully pulled a cover from the cupboard and placed it over one of the portions.

“Rainbow Dash, could you check on Rarity?” Twilight asked. “We don't want her eggs to get cold.” Her friend, having finished hers in one minute flat, complied with gusto, leaving the unicorn to chew happily on a particularly crunchy piece of asparagus.

All was as it had been before. Two friends dining together in the midmorning light... At the breakfast table, there was no reason to mistrust your friends or panic at the thought of being alone with them.

“...think Rarity will want to accompany us?”

Fluttershy stared down at her glistening breakfast. She'd carved one bite out of it and the thought of any more made her stomach roil.

“Fluttershy?”

She nearly jumped out of her chair. “Yes, Twilight?” The unicorn's smile fell away. “I'm sorry. I was lost in thought. I'm listening now.”

“Fluttershy,” she asked slowly, “does being alone with me bother you that much?”

“No!” she squeaked. “You're my friend!” She put on a brave smile. “I... I love spending time with you!”

“Then why do you look as though you want to run away?”

She straightened in her chair self-consciously. “I'm... um... I'm just... worried,” she said finally.

“About what I might do?” the unicorn needled her.

“About... Pinkie Pie,” she lied. “And Applejack!”

“Pinkie's fine,” Twilight assured her. “You saw her letters. I know the Princesses will speak to her as soon as their trade negotiations are through. They should be here by this afternoon.”

“I know...”

“And I don't see why you'd be worried about Applejack,” she continued. “She was fine when she went home yesterday. We'll probably see her at the market on the way to the library.” Fluttershy chewed her lip and couldn't quite meet the unicorn's eyes. “Is there something you're not telling me?”

There was no avoiding it. “I saw her this morning. She was headed into the forest.”

Twilight froze. “Did she tell you why she was going into the forest?”

“No! She just said it was something she had to do.”

Twilight's hooves slapped onto the table, startling the anxious pegasus. “And you let her go alone?”

“Um... yes?”

The hooves slid from the tabletop. “What reason could she have to go into the forest? Perhaps she went to talk to Zecora,” Twilight wondered aloud. “If anypony would have heard stories of magic like this, it would be her.” She filled her muzzle with the last of her omelette.

“Should I go and find out?”

Twilight shook her head and swallowed. “If Applejack learns anything she'll come straight here to tell us.”

Fluttershy nodded uncertainly. “Maybe...” But that had been hours ago.

“I'm just glad she's staying productive,” she said. “To be honest, I was expecting her to hit the cider last night.”

The pegasus raised a hoof.

“I'm so sorry, girls!” Rarity's dulcet tones interrupted. The mare swept into the kitchen with a blush and a flourish. “I didn't mean to keep you all waiting.”

“Don't worry about it,” Twilight smiled. She lifted the cover from the remaining plate on the table and slid it toward and empty chair beside her. “I'm sorry we didn't wait for you.”

“Don't be, dear.” She settled herself in Rainbow's seat. “It's my own fault.”

“Done, Miss Sparkle?” Rainbow asked from the doorway.

“Yes, Rainbow, I'm finished.” She lifted their plates into the sink. “Rarity, we would like to go back to the library. We need to check on Spike, and we were hoping to get some more research done. Do you want to come with us?”

Rarity shook her head. “No, Twilight, I...” She studied her fork as she twirled it in the air. “I will trust you. In any case, there are a few books here at the Boutique that require my attention.”

She wasn't prepared for the hug. Her fork clattered to her plate as Twilight's forelegs snaked around her from behind. “Thanks, Rarity,” she said softly.

She reached a hoof back to pat her friend's shoulder. “Goodbye, Twilight. I'll be sure to visit in a few hours.”

“Of course you will,” the other mare sighed as she pulled away. “Come on, Rainbow, let's see if we can find any clues before then.”

Alone with her best friend, Rarity allowed herself a deep and shaky breath. “Goodness,” she whispered. Her hooves were trembling. “I do hope this is over soon.”

“Me too,” Fluttershy muttered. She pushed her plate away. “I'm sorry, Rarity, but I have to go too. I've...”

“Yes, Fluttershy?” the unicorn asked curiously.

The pegasus lowered her eyes. If she broke the tenuous bond Rarity and Twilight still shared, she didn't know if she could take it. “I've, um... I've got something I've got to do.”

Rarity blinked at her. “Why so mysterious, Fluttershy?”

She shook her head as she stood and headed toward the door. “It's nothing... I think. I'll tell you when I get back,” she promised.

“Alright, dear, if that's what you want,” she frowned. “Good luck!”

Handled by horn, cleanup went quickly. In no time at all the breakfast dishes were washed and organized and Rarity was back in her armchair. A large mug of tea sat beside her, a tea specifically chosen to help her stay alert as she forged further into last night's text on disassociative identity disorder.

Within minutes she found herself shaking her head. “I don't know,” she muttered to herself. “Something doesn't feel right.” She snapped it shut and levitated it to the pile beside her chair, only to replace it with another from the stack.

The hour disappeared as she lost herself in the text. Soon she was halfway through the book and her brow was pinched with worry. “Fascinating,” she mumbled. “And... fitting...” She blinked at the pages before her, then lowered the book and stared off into space. “Oh, no.”

Somepony broke the door.

The unicorn threw herself away from the noise with a screech of terror. Her horn flared to life and hefted her teacup into the air.

“Rarity!” a hoarse voice cried from the entrance.

She looked up from the floor to find Fluttershy standing in the doorway. Her chest was heaving and the foam of overexertion had gathered at the corners of her mouth. Her ferrets and songbirds danced around her in agitation and were peppered by tears that fell like gentle rain.

Rarity immediately threw herself to her hooves. “What happened?”

“Applejack,” her friend panted. “The forest.” She jumped backward and spread her wings. “Hurry!”

Act I: Chapter 8

The Everfree Forest sang with birdsong, chattering, and a thunderous crashing through the underbrush. Rarity's hooves dug furrows into the earth as she juked around trees and vaulted over bushes. She broke the treeline and leaped over the brook beside her friend's cottage, too distraught to care when the sticky olive river mud splashed over her fetlocks. Down the path she ran: past her boutique with its door knocked free from its top hinge and the crowd that had gathered there; through the marketplace and the milling masses of startled shoppers calling for apples; on she ran until the library came into sight. A burst of speed and a burst of telekinesis brought her face to face with Twilight Sparkle in the doorway.

Twilight squeaked as she jumped back from the door and held a huge woodbound tome before her like a shield. “Watch out!”

Rarity caught herself on the doorframe and held her chest, but she had enough energy to spear her friend with an icy stare. She glanced around the room. “Where is Rainbow Dash?” she said quietly.

She looked toward the basement. “She stayed up with me all night, so I told her to take a nap while I–”

“Good.” Rarity spun on her hooves. “Come with me!”

Rarity's anxiety was enough to make Twilight drop her book to the floor – though she couldn't suppress a wince at the crack of wood on wood – and follow her into the sunlight.

Twilight chased her friend across the square and through the marketplace. “What's going on?” she asked. “Have the Princesses arrived?” Rarity didn't answer. Soon the town hall came into view, but judging by their angle, they were going to run right past it. “Aren't we meeting them at the town hall?”

Rarity growled low in her throat. “Don't try to play innocent with me!” she panted.

Twilight heard nothing over the sounds of her own exertion. “Aren't we meeting the Princesses?” She put on an extra burst of speed to try and catch her friend's attention. “Rarity, please! Why are we–”

“You know why!”

“That's it!” Twilight stumbled to a halt halfway across the town square. “I'm not going anywhere until you tell me exactly what you want from me.”

Rarity dug her hooves into the dirt; the pebbles within scratched her hooves unheeded as she killed her momentum. She turned back to Twilight Sparkle with bared teeth and a dangerous glint in her eye. A blue light pulled her friend toward her by her bangs. “Run, Celestia damn you,” Rarity snarled, “or I will tie that rope around your neck and drag you behind me!”

Together the unicorns ran, leaving behind them a trail of ponies with a new respect for Rarity's temper.

It didn't take Twilight long to realize their destination. As the pair sped past Fluttershy's cabin her hesitation fell away, replaced with the worry-fueled adrenaline rush that had become so familiar to her. “Applejack?” she asked. “What happened?”

“You tell me,” Rarity wheezed.

Twilight bit back a few choice words. “If you think I did this, then why would you ask for my help in saving her?”

“Because we need you,” she spat sourly. “Your magical ability is much greater than mine. I'll take even a slim chance over none at all.”

“Is it bad?”

Rarity's thighs and shoulders burned from the exertion and the wind of their passage made her blink away tears. She gritted her teeth and kept pushing.

Twilight wasn't so durable. “Wait,” she panted. “Hold on, I can't...”

“You can and... and you will!” She stumbled over a root but managed to keep her balance. “I don't care what you feel for her anymore. If she ever meant anything to you, you–”

There was no saving herself this time. Her hoof slid on the moss beneath her and she tumbled heavily onto her chest. Only Twilight's quick reflexes kept her from trampling the fallen unicorn.

Twilight yelped as she hurdled the poor mare. She skidded to a stop and lit her horn. “I've got you!”

Rarity's eyes widened as she felt bands of magic like iron close around her barrel and lift her from the earth. “No!” she yelped. Cornflower blue magic burst forth from her horn in a dome that pushed Twilight's magic away. She landed unsteadily on her own four hooves. “Don't touch me.”

“I was only trying to help!” Twilight groused.

“I don't want you to help me!” She limped into gear. “Help Applejack!”

Twilight gulped for air, let out a groan of agony, and chased after her.

Rarity zigged and zagged through the forest, trusting instinct to point her in the right direction. “We're almost there,” she called.

“Rarity!” breathed the wind.

Twilight spun to her right. “There!” she cried. She disappeared in a cloud of vapor and reformed halfway to the horizon. “Come on, Rarity!”

“We're over here!”

Another burst brought Twilight to the foot of a young maple tree, and what she saw there was such a shock she forgot to breathe.

Applejack beamed at her from her place within her self-made prison. “Twi! You made it!” she crowed. Her unsettling eyes shone with joy.

Twilight approached with care, shock evident on her features. Applejack was buried from neck to ankle among the layers of rope. Only her right forehoof poked out from the mass, and even that had no fewer than four different lines tightened around it. She recognized the rope itself; she could make out black fibers mixed in among the strands of hemp and jute. It would take ages to tear those pliable plastic fibers apart with her magic. Applejack's breathing was shallow and labored and her hat was nowhere to be found. Most startling of all, her eyes were neither somber violet nor their natural green, but instead streaked through with both.

“Look, Twi,” Applejack beamed. “I don't think even I could get me out of this one!”

After a moment Rarity appeared at her side. She lowered her head and gulped for air. “You see... what it's come to,” she said firmly. Twilight took a shuddering breath and nodded. “Now fix this!” Rarity barked. “If you ever cared for Applejack, you'll get her out of this mess.”

Twilight's horn flared to life. “I will,” she promised. The plant fibers nearest Applejack's head began to split.

Satisfied, Rarity plodded to Fluttershy's side. “Any... Any trouble?” she asked.

“A few older timber wolves tried to get to her,” the pegasus whimpered, though the words were difficult to make out around the knot in her teeth.

“However did you get out of that one?” Rarity breathed. “The Stare?”

“N-no, I...” Fluttershy blushed. “I promised to make them supper for a week.”

Rarity couldn't hold back a high-pitched giggle. “Oh my stars,” she muttered. “Am I the only sane pony here?”

Meanwhile Twilight was focused on splitting the plastic fibers wound throughout the rope. She gritted her teeth as she fought with one such strand, but it stretched and flexed stubbornly in her grip without giving.

“So what do you think, Twi?” Applejack asked casually. Her voice was rough from overuse. “Did a darn good job, didn't I?”

“Oh, Applejack...” Twilight's eyes began to water as she ran the touch of her aura across and under length after length of rope.

Applejack's grin took on a self-impressed slant. “Took every bit of my know-how but I finally tied it so even I can't get myself out, just like you wanted,” she beamed.

“I didn't want this,” Twilight sobbed.

“And look!” she continued. “If you mess with the tension, like fraying the rope or playing with them knots like Fluttershy's been doing, then my weight shifts a bit. The more my weight shifts, the tighter this noose 'round my neck gets!”

Fluttershy yelped and jerked her hooves away in horror.

“Tell you what, it's getting mighty hard for me to breathe!” AJ finished with a laugh.

Twilight gaped at her. “Applejack! How could you do this to yourself?” she cried.

“Give me enough rope and a few weights and I can do just about anything,” she said proudly. “I might be nothing but a simple farmer, but I know my science too!”

“But who knows what could have found you if we hadn't.” Twilight's magic flowed between the lines to find Applejack's neck and, as she'd said, a noose tight enough to leave a mark. “You're lucky the girls found you when they did.”

To Twilight's surprise Applejack lowered her eyes at the thought of rescue. “Look, Twi, I'm sorry about that. I thought Fluttershy would listen to me when I told her not to follow me out here.”

“But AJ, you could have died!”

“Aww, ain't no thing, Twilight,” her friend said tenderly. “I'd do anything for you. You know that.”

“Then tell me...” Twilight carefully slid a line free; a hefty chunk of stone fell to the earth, one end of the rope looped tightly around it. “What happens if I untie this end and try to pull it back through, little by little?”

“Huh,” AJ said thoughtfully. “I don't rightly know.”

“Is it going to hurt you?”

“Probably,” she admitted. “I wound things up so any little tug on it might tighten the line elsewhere. Might pinch the veins in my neck shut, for all I know.”

Twilight looked to the other mares for support. One couldn't watch; the other stared back as if waiting for her to make a mistake. “You said you'd do anything for me, right?”

“That's right, anything!” Applejack agreed with an emphatic nod.

Twilight's brow furrowed. “Well, I want you to help me get you out!”

“Why bother? Hay, you can just kill me now, if you want.”

The rope jerked in her grasp. “Applejack!” she yelped.

Her friend looked down at Twilight from her nest of rope with eyes damp with emotion.

“No!” she said firmly. “I will save you, I promise!”

The only warning the three mares had was a soft choking. AJ smiled at them through her tears as her cheeks grew redder and redder.

“No,” Twilight whispered. She dropped the line and backed away from her handiwork. “No, no, no, no...”

Applejack blinked, sending a droplet cascading over her freckles. “Love you," she mouthed.

A concussive blast knocked Twilight from her hooves. She rolled to a stop a good ten yards away.

Rarity took her place before Applejack, blue eyes and bluer light blazing. Her magic held the rope fast in three places as she followed the twists of the noose. "I will get you for this, Twilight Sparkle," she hissed, teary-eyed and snarling.

"No..." She struggled to stand, but her vision swam and her inner ear couldn't decide which way was up. "Applejack."

"Hgnk..." The farmer ignored her would-be savior; she only had eyes for one pony.

The rope began to loosen inch by creeping inch.

Twi burst into tears as she lost her balance and drove her knee into the dirt. "Applejack!" she wailed.

"Kgk."

"There!" Rarity yells triumphantly. Suddenly the end jerked free, writhed like a tawny snake in her grasp, and crawled backward along itself until the noose began to unravel.

Soon Applejack fell to the earth, her left foreleg still leashed to the tree. She coughed as the air burned her throat. "Gimmit!" Applejack whined as she futilely stretched toward her rope. Her hoof wavered as the world spun around her. She was buried in Fluttershy's mane as the pegasus rushed to cradle her in her hooves.

The rope leaped away toward Twilight, and in no time at all the unicorn was hogtied, blinded and dropped heavily to the ground.

“It was an accident!” she wept, shifting her head on the grass in an attempt to see through the layers of rope. “I swear on my mother's life!”

“As if a pony like you could care about her mother,” Rarity needled her.

“Princess Celestia's, then!”

“You like to think you know everything, don't you, Twilight. Well, do you know what we call a pony like you?” She lowered her head until it was level with Twilight's. “Psychopath,” she hissed. “You are dangerous and not to be trusted.”

“It wasn't me! Rainbow and I were locked in your guest room all night!”

“That's what I had thought as well,” Rarity remarked, “...at first.”

Twilight's muzzle lifted out of the grass. “Then why?”

Instead of answering directly, Rarity turned to Fluttershy. “When did you see Applejack enter the forest?”

A teary teal eye peeked out from between the strands of Fluttershy's mane. “Shortly after dawn.”

“While I was locked in your guest room!”

Rarity ignored her. “Tell me again what Rainbow Dash said to you.”

Fluttershy twitched her wings. “She said, um...”

“Well?” Rarity said impatiently.

She finishd in a whisper. “She said the window was big enough for two ponies to fit through,”

“And how would Rainbow have found that out, Twilight?” Rarity nagged. “Perhaps by climbing through it with you?”

Twilight felt the blood drain from her cheeks. “We never left the Boutique!”

“Then what kept you up all night?”

“I was reading, and we talked,” Twilight whimpered. “That's all we did.”

“I'm sorry, Twilight,” Fluttershy mumbled. “I didn't want to believe it, but I just can't fight it anymore!”

“Don't feel sorry for her, Fluttershy,” Rarity muttered. “Psychopaths are chronic liars and utterly without remorse. Of course it sounds like the truth. She's been practicing for the better part of two decades.”

“Why would I hurt AJ?” Twilight shrilled. “Why would I do it so extravagantly? This isn't like me at all!”

The rope swirled around her muzzle and tugged it shut. It was tight enough to pinch her nostrils.

“No more talking,” Rarity spat. “No struggling, either. If I even catch a glimpse of your aura I won't hesitate to smack you over the head with this rock until it stops, understand?” She hefted the other end of Applejack's rope and the weight held therein.

Twilight pulled in shallow breath after shallow breath, but she could feel herself getting lightheaded. She grunted anxiously through her bonds. It was a waste of oxygen.

“I said, do you understand me?”

She was hyperventilating, she couldn't breathe...

She set her horn alight.

“You... Augh! Fine!” Rarity shrieked. “Have it your way!”

Looser she pulled it, looser...

Rarity pulled it tighter, so tight.

There was no fighting it. The world went dark. The magic faded.

Twilight's hoof twitched as the lavender glow disappated. “Good,” Rarity said faintly. She could hear the blood pumping through her veins; it was strong enough that she wondered if she might burst at the seams like an overstuffed dress form. “Good. Now, don't do that again, or I'll...” She glanced to the rope floating to her left, and the rock swinging slowly at its end. Rarity swung the rock into a tree near the villain's limp form. The unnaturally loud crunch of stone digging into bark made her flinch. “Next time, I'll do it.”

“Twilight...”

Rarity's neck twisted around so quickly she had to endure a moment of vertigo. Applejack was unconscious and Fluttershy was creeping toward Twilight's prone form. "Stay back, Fluttershy," she barked, turning back to the sorceress. “It's not safe.”

“But it looks like she's sleeping.”

Rarity blinked away the fury clouding her vision and stared down at her friend... no, her nemesis. Twilight Sparkle's chest was twitching erratically.

“So she is,” she said. A minor adjustment to the ropes made Twilight gasp.

Fluttershy squeaked at the sudden noise. “W-we should take them back to town now, before she wakes up,” she said nervously.

Twilight's chest found its rhythm.

“Shouldn't we?”

Blue light enveloped the rope around her mouth and freed it from its bonds.

“Do you think we can carry them to my cottage by ourselves?”

Rarity watched her breathe with a distant look on her face.

“Rarity?”

Act II: Chapter 1

The bed was cold. She must not have been there long.

Aside from that, Twilight had no idea where she was. The air smelled familiar, like sweat and stale parchment; the lighting was soft and yet harsh at the same time. She remembered nothing of a trip to any white-walled buildings. In fact, she was supposed to be in the forest... because...

“Welcome back, Twilight,” a white figure said.

“Rarity?”

“Not quite...”

She blinked a few times as her eyes focused. Clarity came slowly to her vision as well as her thoughts. A hat, a hat with... red. “Redheart,” she mumbled.

“Yes, that's me,” the nurse said uneasily. “Hold still.”

Suddenly she was struck with a memory. Twilight struggled to rise against bonds she couldn't see. “Applejack?”

“Easy, Twilight! Just lay back.” Redheart looked into her right eye, then her left. “You were hit very hard. I don't believe you have a serious concussion, but you might experience some dizziness or headaches all the same.”

“She hit me,” the unicorn groaned. “Rarity!”

“Yes, Twilight,” Rarity admitted from the corner of the room. “I did strike you.” Her voice was shaking with emotion. “You tried to strangle Applejack. I am not sorry.”

“I didn't try–”

“We don't have time for this,” Rarity muttered. “Are you sure she's alright?”

“She looks fine to me.” Redheart turned away from her patient. “I'd better check on Applejack.”

“Please,” the unicorn said with a shallow nod. “I'll take it from here.” The nurse nodded to Rarity, frowned nervously at Twilight and then took her leave through a doorway set... set in a wall of steel bars spaced a hoofwidth apart.

“Are we in a holding cell?” Twilight asked incredulously.

“Where else does one keep a criminal?” Rarity sniped.

She watched the nurse leave with a curious expression. She'd been acting strange, Twilight was sure. “What'd you tell her?” she asked the other unicorn.

“Everything.” Rarity showed no remorse. “We can trust her to remain silent until the Princesses arrive, although I'm not sure that it's a necessary precaution any longer.”

“But–”

“I've heard enough of your denials for one day, Twilight Sparkle,” the other unicorn interrupted as she rose from her position on the floor. “Off of the bed. We have to meet the Mayor.”

Her instinct to argue was dashed as light appeared at the end of her tunnel. “The Mayor!” Twilight sang as she hopped from the bed. A sudden wave of dizziness wasn't enough to stay her optimism. “Wonderful! I'm sure she'll understand.”

“Yes, I'm sure she will,” Rarity agreed darkly. “Come along.”

The two unicorns left the cell without looking at each other. Rarity, for her part, simply couldn't. Twilight was too busy staring from side to side, inspecting the other cells. “I recognize this place,” she said finally. “We're in the cells beneath the town hall.”

A sniffle caught her ear and her head twisted to the left. There in the cell was a young orange truant with a flaming red mane and breath like a bottle of cider left open for a week. She was staring up at Twilight as if she was the filly's last hope. “I'm sorry, okay?” she whimpered. “Please let me out.”

Twilight's shoulders slumped. “I'm sorry. I can't.”

The filly's horn sparked fitfully as she chased the two unicorns along the bars. “But my mom'll kill me if she finds out!”

“You should have thought of that before you did... whatever it is that you did,” Rarity said firmly.

“Whad habbed, Dwilighd?”

Twilight jerked at the toneless inquiry and turned slowly to the cell ahead and to the right of them. There a winged charcoal-gray stallion stood staring down at her. There was a thick layer of bandages across his nose. Twilight knew him rather well, and now he'd seen her here, in this place...

She hung her head in shame.

“Don't you have enough to worry about, Thunderlane?” Rarity said sharply. “By the looks of things, that broken nose is the least of your troubles.”

He retreated hastily to his cot. “Sorry,” he mumbled.

“Please?” the filly called pitifully.

They couldn't reach the door soon enough.

Once through, Rarity immediately directed her through another door on her left, “Through here,” she commanded.

Twilight's ears fell. “Can't we do this in the Mayor's office?”

“No, Twilight, we can't,” she said sternly. “Go on.”

Twilight closed her eyes and placed a hoof to her chest. In one smooth motion she pushed out her breath, her foreleg and her negativity. “I can do this,” she encouraged herself in a whisper.

She crossed into the room, one she'd entered a time or two before. This time was very different. The interrogation room was a small chamber sparsely decorated with bookshelves and filing cabinets. A table wide enough for two on either side stood at its center; Twilight's hooves almost took her to the place she had stood those times before.

“The other side, please.”

She circled around the table with trepidation. “You're not going to...?”

“I am,” Rarity confirmed as she shut the door behind her. “Hooves on the table.”

There was no use in fighting. Twilight placed her forehooves delicately on its surface and waited with eyes averted. Two chains lifted from where they dangled beside the legs of the table. The cuffs at their ends swung open and swiftly snapped shut above Twilight's pasterns. “Is this really necessary?” she asked sadly.

“I don't want you escaping,” Rarity said with a waggle of a hoof. “I know you could very well overpower me, but even you would have trouble getting out of those cuffs afterward.”

Twilight let her hooves down. The chains tightened and dug into her flesh, but an hour's discomfort now was better than a sore back later. “I won't fight you, Rarity.”

“How do you know?” Rarity said pointedly. “You may be skilled at this little act, but I've seen you snap before. I don't want you running about if you're going to do something you'll regret.”

“I won't snap!” she insisted.

“Says the psychopath who tried to choke her friend to death not eight hours ago,” Rarity scoffed.

Twilight threw her hooves into the air, or as far as the chains would let her. “I am not a psychopath! If you knew anything about psychopathy, you'd realize that your claim is simply ridiculous!”

“Ridiculous, eh?” Rarity repeated, her eyelids drooping in feigned disinterest. “I think the only one here worthy of ridicule, dear Twilight, is you. You were so proud of yourself for what you did to Rainbow, weren't you?”

“I didn't do anything to her! Somepony else did this and they're trying to frame me!”

“Oh, please,” she scoffed. “I almost fell for your act before, but Applejack's story has torn the wool from my eyes.”

“What?” she asked, elated by the news and crushed by its implications. “Applejack's okay?”

“She's more than okay, no thanks to you and your poorly-hidden attempt at, shall we say, tying up loose ends.” Her mouth twisted in distaste. “For that, Twilight Sparkle, you deserve everything that's coming to you.”

Twilight frowned worriedly. “Can I speak to her?”

“Oh, you will,” Rarity said with a fiendish smile, “but I imagine Redheart's remaining examinations will take some time...”

The door crashed open and bounced off of the wall and the doorway was filled with an angry orange tower of hatred with a shaggy blond lion's mane.

“You heartless, gutless filly!” Applejack howled. She launched herself at her friend, only to be caught by the tail in midair. Twilight jerked away but the chains around her wrists left her no chance to run. The farmer's hooves slammed into the floor and scrabbled for purchase as she tried to force herself onward. “I'm gonna murder you!” she roared, her brilliant emerald eyes burning in their sockets. “See how you like it!"

“Applejack,” Rarity smiled. “Punctual as always.”

Twilight looked up at her friend's writhing fury from behind the weak defense of her hooves. “Applejack, wait!” she begged. "I don't know what you think happened, but I promise I would never have done that to you!"

"Don't you start making excuses now!” she barked, settling onto her hooves and straining to take a forceful step forward. “I broke that spell of yours. You ain't gonna fool me twice."

“Then tell me what you remember,” Twilight pleaded. “If we just talk it over, I'm sure we'll be able to find out the truth!”

“I ain't wasting my breath,” the other mare sneered. “You know what you did and you ain't getting away with it. If Rarity ain't gonna let me at you myself, then I'll just have to wait for the Mayor to do it for me.”

“There's going to be a trial?”

The unicorn in the corner let out a short burst of mirthless laughter. “Of course there will be a trial. Applejack and I respect Equestria's legal system.”

“But the Princesses–”

“Will judge you themselves,” Rarity clarified. “Mayor Mare is simply coming because we need her approval to lock you away until then.”

“No! You don't have to do that!” Twilight yelped. “I can't help you if I'm in prison!”

“Nor can you hurt anypony.”

“I'll stay in the Boutique,” she offered instead. “Lock the doors and windows if you want.”

“I know you can teleport,” Rarity reminded her.

Twilight pushed on. “If I need a book I'll ask Applejack or Fluttershy to get it. You can lock Rainbow and me in separate rooms if you want. We won't even see each other!”

“If we ever find that mare, that is,” Applejack pouted. “Last anypony saw of her was when she barged in here and started yelling at the Mayor.”

“She's missing?” Twilight cried. “Has anypony checked the basement? Was she taken?”

“Nah, she flew off by herself, screaming bloody murder.” Applejack rubbed her neck. “Not before starting a few fights trying to get you out. You really did a number on her, Twi.”

“But whoever hurt the three of you is still out there and they might have Rainbow Dash!”

The crack of Rarity's hoof against the tile silenced her. “That's enough, Twilight. Applejack, Fluttershy and I have seen enough to make our decision. We have to do this, for your sake.”

“Listen to me, Applejack,” Twilight pleaded. “You're the bravest, most stouthearted pony I've ever met. If I was trying to cast a spell this complicated, you would have noticed in plenty of time to stop me!”

“Perhaps she could have, had you not been able to take advantage of her condition.”

Twilight looked from one to the other in confusion. “What condition?”

Applejack glowered at Rarity.

Twilight's mouth fell open. “You did drink last night! I knew it!”

“Don't you go thinking that's your ticket out of here!” the farmer grumbled. “My memory's just fine.”

She fought to hold back a relieved chuckle. “I'm sorry, AJ, but how can we consider you a reliable witness?”

“Look,” she said sternly. “I might have a few black spots from before I passed out, but I remember every little thing after you woke me up.”

“You could be remembering a nightmare!”

“Horseapples!” she swore. “I was so darn blackout drunk I didn't have any dreams!”

“That will not help your case,” Rarity whispered.

Applejack laid her ears back. “Hush, you.”

“Even if they weren't a dream, they could still be false,” Twilight tried. “I'm sure a unicorn with this kind of power over the mind could create and implant false memories.”

Applejack pointed a hoof at her eyes. “Do these look purple to you?” she asked. “I said I broke the spell, and I mean I broke it.” She settled onto her haunches with a little smile of satisfaction. “Everything I feel and everything I remember is real, and I remember you, Twilight. You ain't getting around this one, not after trying to do me in like that.”

Twilight folded her hooves on the tabletop and fell into them. “When is Mayor Mare coming?” she said, her voice low and hopeless. “Hasn't Pinkie come back with the Princesses?”

“I have to know one thing, Twi,” the farmer said suddenly. “Why?”

The unicorn looked up at her friend with one eye. “I don't understand.”

Applejack's glare grew darker. “You know what I mean. How come you didn't just talk to us? Why'd you have to use magic?”

“I di–”

“If you wanted Rainbow to be your fillyfriend, all you had to do was ask her.” Applejack's eyes shone with tears but her cheeks were flushed with fury. “She told me she was kinda into you for a bit there.”

Twilight's head jerked up. She stared at Applejack with disbelief scrawled across her eyes.

“Wouldn't have been too far-fetched for her to say yes to a date,” she muttered. “You didn't even try. You just had to use your magic to solve yet another problem when a little chat would've done just fine.”

“I... She likes me?” she said softly. “Why?”

The earth pony laughed. “Don't matter now, does it?” she said hopelessly. “You broke her. Now you're the only pony she'll ever get to lay eyes on, just like you wanted.”

Twilight licked her lips. “But I don't love Rainbow.”

“Yeah,” Applejack agreed, the words dripping with scorn. “I'd say that's pretty obvious.”

“One doesn't love a toy,” Rarity muttered. “One simply plays with it until they get bored. Is that why you moved on to Spike?” she asked. “Boredom?”

Twilight let her head fall back onto her hooves. “Why am I even talking to you?” she said bitterly. “You won't listen to a word I say.”

“Because they are lies!” she hissed. “I will listen when you feel ready to tell us the truth!”

“I am telling the truth!” Twilight shouted. “If I was going to try to kill Applejack, wouldn't I have done it more quietly?”

“But then we wouldn't know who killed her,” Rarity argued.

“Exactly!”

“And you are too proud a pony to allow that,” she continued. “You love showing off, don't you, 'Miss Sparkle'?”

“You should've seen her laughing,” AJ shuddered. “Creepiest darn thing I ever seen.”

“I'm sure,” her friend agreed. “Well, Twilight, who's laughing now?”

“That's crazy!” their suspect cried.

“Nuh-uh, you are!” Applejack barked.

“Oh, how would you know what really happened?” Twilight snarled. “You were drunk!”

“I am the Element of gosh-darn Honesty!” she roared, flinging spittle over her friend's muzzle. “Truth is what I do!”

“What does that even mean?!”

Applejack's eyes narrowed. “It means I ain't buying none of your lies!”

“Wait!” a firm voice cried from the doorway. “Stop this now!”

The mares froze in place. “Mayor Mare,” Rarity said pleasantly.

Applejack drew back and blew her mane out of her eyes. “Evening, Mayor.”

“Rarity, I could believe this of you, but Applejack!” the earth pony cried. “How can you of all ponies jump to conclusions? Twilight Sparkle has always been one of Ponyville's finest!”

“You kidding?” the farmer yelped. “I ain't jumping to conclusions, Mayor! I broke the spell she had on me. I remember everything!”

The Mayor was taken aback. “What do you remember that could convince me to imprison of one of my most celebrated citizens?”

Applejack threw a hoof at the unicorn chained to the table. “I remember Twi here finding me in the barn and casting a spell on me that made me do what she wanted me to. Didn't Fluttershy tell you what she did to me?”

“You mean sending you into the forest?”

“Hay yeah, and having me tie myself to a tree,” she exclaimed. “And then she had the guts to try and strangle me in front of everypony!” She shuddered at the feeling of ropes tightening around her neck. “I could have died.”

“You very nearly did,” Rarity added.

“See?” Applejack snarled.

“But I didn't do that,” Twi said again. “It was somepony else.”

“No, Twi, it wasn't,” Applejack growled. “I remember it plain as day.”

“But I don't know any magic that can influence a pony's actions like this!” she insisted.

“What about the parasprites?” Rarity said vindictively.

Twilight glowered at her. “I said a pony!”

Applejack silenced her with a deep frown. “Horseapples,” she said again. “You said it was a... a variety of the Want-it Need-it spell.”

Mayor Mare flinched.

“Variation,” Rarity muttered.

“Sounds about right to me,” AJ concluded.

The Mayor wrung her hooves. “Are you quite sure?”

Twilight raised her hooves to her. “That doesn't make any sense!”

“Oh, please,” the other unicorn drawled. “It makes perfect sense. How difficult could it be to take a spell that causes mindless attraction to the object it is cast upon, and turn it into one that causes an only slightly moderated attraction to the caster? It would be child's play for you.”

Twilight opened her mouth, but no sound came out. She couldn't deny that it was possible.

“Mayor Mare, I can prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that Twilight Sparkle is not the mare you think she is,” Rarity said certainly.

Twilight put her head in her hooves and let out a long groan. “Not this again.”

“That mare is nothing short of a dangerous psychopath,” she continued, “and she must be dealt with before she hurts anypony else. Why, if she was free to roam Equestria once more, would you expect her to stop at three victims?”

“If I was a psychopath, how could I be the keystone of the Elements of Harmony?” Twilight argued. “Their power is fueled by the magic of friendship, which is something a psychopath could never feel!”

“I won't argue the fact that you understand friendship, just as I'm sure Applejack understands how an apple tree bears fruit,” she said with a shrug. “That doesn't mean you truly feel them.”

“That's nonsense!” she exclaimed. “The Element wouldn't have chosen me if I hadn't understood friendship as well as I do.”

“Twilight, you'd had no friends at all until less than a day before the Elements appeared to us,” her opponent said victoriously. Twilight's ears drooped. “Obviously the magic isn't that picky. We were simply in the right place at the right time.”

The Mayor looked from one unicorn to another, aghast. “Are you insinuating that the Elements of Harmony could fall into the hands of an evil pony?” she asked nervously.

“I don't know,” Rarity muttered, “and I don't intend to give her a chance to find out.”

Twilight took a moment to organize her thoughts. “But... But Elements notwithstanding, there are plenty of other reasons I couldn't be a psychopath,” she insisted. “A psychopathic mind is different in many ways from that of the average pony. In 'The Cloak of Sanity' by Hervey Hockley - one of the most respected and influential books on the subject, I might add...” She sat comfortably and fell into the calm and careful tones of a lecturer. “...the author asserts that a psychopath shows an absence of nervousness or irrational thinking, traits that she and I do not share if my recent episode with the Want-it Need-it spell is any indication. She's unreliable, untruthful and insincere–”

“Well,” Rarity cut in, “we can't be sure how truthful or sincere you've been with us, can we.”

Her hoof lifted from the floor. “But...”

“Enough of your misleading words, Twilight,” Rarity said firmly. “You've had your say. Now, let me have mine.”

Twi grimaced, but acquiesced.

“It's quite interesting that you brought up Hervey Hockley's work,” she began. “In fact, I was just reading 'A Cloak of Sanity' this morning–”

“'The',” Twilight said bitterly.

“What was that?”

“It's 'The Cloak of Sanity',” she repeated, “not 'A Cloak'.”

Rarity was unimpressed. “I found this list of traits of which you speak,” she said as she lifted a rolled piece of parchment from her bag. “Would you like me to list a few? I assume you already know them.” She tossed her mane and gauged Twilight's reaction out of the corner of her eye. “I assume it was no accident that these were omitted from your defense.”

Twilight studied her hooves.

“Item one: 'A psychopath is a pony of superior intelligence and boasts a charming demeanor in public, but seems much less charming when encountered out of the public eye.” Rarity glanced at the Mayor. “Does that sound like anypony we know?”

“Half of the Royal Canterlot Symphony,” Twilight growled as Mayor Mare stared curiously at her. “A certain seamstress I could mention.”

“What about item seven: 'A psychopath favors antisocial behavior despite having enough positive experiences with social interaction to assuage any fear of being among other ponies.'” she tried. “Oh, and item twelve, a 'surprising dichotomy of apparent generosity and kindness on one side and careless disregard on the other'.”

“My generosity and kindness aren't just 'apparent'!” Twilight barked. “Everything I do is from my heart. I don't do it just to earn the respect of others. I do it because it's right!”

“I doubt you even know what is right or wrong anymore,” Rarity muttered.

A brown hoof slid toward her. “Rarity, please.”

The unicorn glared at the Mayor, but choked back the words. Instead she continued with her case. “Item nine: They show 'pathologic egocentricity' - which I would say is proven by her place at the Princess's side as well as...”

“I earned that!” Twilight yelled crossly. “Do you even know what 'egocentricity' means?”

“...as well as her need to micromanage everypony's lives - and 'an incapacity to feel love for others'.”

Twilight gasped. Two heads swiveled toward her. “How can you say that?” she exclaimed. “How can you say that after everything we've been through?”

“I don't know, 'Miss Sparkle',” the other unicorn hissed. “You tell me. Why, you're the genius here, aren't you?”

“I am,” she snarled. “Does that make me a monster?”

“That's not what made you a monster.” Rarity pointed toward the door. “What you have done to Spike, Applejack and Rainbow Dash... That's what made you a monster.”

“Prove it!” Twilight barked. “I am innocent until proven guilty according to Equestrian law. I don't deserve to be down here in the cells, chained to an interrogation table and... and screamed at by a narcissistic filly with no law degree, no education in the field of psychology–”

“Boo-hoo,” Rarity said dismissively.

Twilight's pupils shrank down to pinpricks. “Don't brush me off!” she roared, her horn flaring to life.

Her prosecutor lowered her horn to match the other unicorn's. “Let it go.” Rarity's eyes were ice chips. “Now.”

The light softened, but did not fade away. “Don't brush me off.”

Suddenly Rarity's forehooves were up on the table, her nose was an inch from Twilight's at most and the room was bathed in a stunning blue glow. Twilight fell back with a gasp. “Unicorns like you are the reason other ponies were suspicious of us in the old days,” she hissed. “We unicorns have a gift, Twilight, but it is not ours to do with as we wish. Magic is a privilege that I will not see abused.” She pulled away and settled herself on spread hooves. “You speak of love, Twilight Sparkle, but you will never understand it like I do,” she snarled righteously. “This isn't about you or me. For the sake of unicorns everywhere, I will tear that horn from your head before I let you hurt anypony else with it!”

Twilight's eyes widened. “I'm not like that,” she whimpered. “I wouldn't hurt anypony.”

“One,” said the frilly, cosmopolitan, defenseless sociolite.“Two.”

Twilight Sparkle collapsed to the table in a sobbing mess. “I didn't hurt anypony!” she shrieked as her forelegs curled against her chest. “I didn't hurt anypony!”

“What you did was far worse than causing pain!” Rarity shrieked back. “You broke Rainbow's mind and you tried to do the same to Applejack! I can't imagine what you put poor Spike through. What was he to you, a test subject?”

A thin line of mucus fell to the table. “I didn't hurt anypony,” she wailed, choking on the words as they came. “I didn't do it!”

“No. Rainbow Dash was the experiment,” Rarity decided. “Spike was the beginning of something worse. Well, Twilight Sparkle, it stops here!”

“I would never hurt Spike,” she moaned. “You have to believe me.”

Rarity spun away from the table. “I can't even look at you anymore,” she told the wall. “You are a repulsive excuse for a mare and I'm sorry I ever called you friend.” She stormed toward the door, threw it open with a telekinetic burst, and sauntered off down the hallway while two guardsmen rushed to take her place.

The Mayor stood to follow her out, but hesitated. Her eyes turned to the filly lying across the table. Despite their history – despite the year or more of heroism and bravery the young mage was known for – she couldn't force herself to offer even a comforting hoof.

Twilight's stomach lurched as she gagged on her sorrow. “It wasn't me!” she sobbed. “Please believe me!”

“I...” The Mayor looked to the two guards, who stared back uncertainly. Finally she shook her head and turned away from the sight. “I have to act in Ponyville's best interest,” she muttered. “Guards, please escort Miss Sparkle to a holding cell.”

“Don't call me that!” she wailed. “I don't want to be Miss Sparkle!”

The guards shared an uncomfortable glance as the stallion unlocked their suspect's cuffs. “Come with us, Miss Sparkle,” the mare said politely.

The young unicorn squeezed her eyes shut as the room lurched beneath her. The two guards were instantly at her sides, supporting her weight with concerned frowns until the wave of dizziness passed. “My name... is Twilight!” she shrieked in the mare's ear. “My name is Twilight!”

,',

Rarity threw open the door to Fluttershy's cottage and collapsed there in the doorway, bawling as even she had never bawled before. Animals scattered to the four winds, chattering and squalling and muting the nervous squeak that echoed down from the second floor.

“I trusted you!” she raged, emphasizing her words with the pounding of a hoof into the floor. “How could you have betrayed us all? What will the Princess think?”

Fluttershy leaped down the stairs to land at her side and quickly swallowed her in the biggest, safest hug she could muster.

“That despicable mare... What's going to happen if she goes free? Our Mayor has as much of a spine as a caterpillar,” she wailed. “An inchworm!”

Fluttershy stroked the elegant coils of her mane. “Well... Twilight is innocent until proven guilty, right?” she said hesitantly.

Rarity threw all of her hatred into a red-eyed grimace. “How much more proof do you need?” she cried. “Even if Rainbow Dash's testimony is unreliable, Applejack's certainly isn't!”

“Um...”

“And my poor baby Spike!” she wept. “Nopony deserves that, especially not a baby!”

Fluttershy's eyes crinkled at the corners. “I know, Rarity, but what if she's telling the truth?”

She bounced off of the doorframe.

Fluttershy looked up from where she lay crumpled on the floor with shock and genuine fear in her eyes. She fought to speak but her tongue would not comply.

“I knew you were a coward, Fluttershy,” Rarity growled, “but this is ridiculous.” She sniffed back her tears. “You cannot run from the facts.”

Fluttershy pulled her hooves up to her chin and looked away. “We don't know for sure,” she whimpered almost silently.

“Look at the facts!” she repeated angrily. “You cannot let your assumed friendship cloud your judgment. If you drop your guard for an instant, you could very well be her next victim.” She spun toward the door and walked face-first into seven feet of growling bear flesh.

Rarity stared up at him coolly. “Harry, you had best step aside. I am not in the mood.” The bear frowned in shame and shifted his bulk out of the doorframe. She passed without another glance.

Harry's shoulders slumped. “Rrmh,” he said dejectedly.

“It's okay, Harry.” The rest of the critters gathered around while Fluttershy picked herself up. “She didn't hurt me, really. She's just mad because I don't want to believe that Twilight could do something this evil. After all, Twilight's been my friend for a very long time and I didn't notice anything unusual about her before she left.” She knelt to scratch the head of a familiar mouse. “Well, nothing more unusual than her usual.” She looked forlornly out the window toward the spire of Ponyville's town hall. “But... But I can't help but think that Rarity is right.”

Act II: Chapter 2

It had been an eternity since she'd been taken to the prison. The walk had been a blur; Twilight remembered nothing but crying, denial, and the warmth of the policemare's shoulder. Applejack had been there with her, possibly to give her the support of a friendly face but probably to protect the citizens of Ponyville if something had gone wrong. Twilight couldn't help but wonder if somepony had spotted her while she was being transported to her new home.

She sighed and went back to staring up at the window. The sun would soon be setting. Orange and violet rays painted the far wall of her cell with a warm glow, but no amount of warmth could remove the chill that had settled over her.

“Nopony believes me.”

Twilight rolled over in her cot. Her eyes traced the pattern of mortar and brick.

“Rarity thinks I'm a psychopath,” she muttered. “I know I'm not. I love my friends. I love them too much to try and change them, no matter how much they irritate me sometimes.”

The light on her wall faded as a cloud slid between her and the sun.

“But what if I have disassociative identity disorder?” she asked herself. “I don't think I do. I don't think there are any holes in my memory. Isn't missing time one of the symptoms of DID?”

No amount of certainty could change the facts, though. Her friends all believed she'd done it. Every detail of the spell could be placed at her hooves. The change of eye color, a signature with as much of a flourish as her own written name, bespoke a pride in her work that Twilight felt often. She was the only pony in the area strong enough to cast a spell like this without weeks of preparation, and if it had been cast upon Spike in an hour's time, who had she to blame? Could she have allowed her dark side to cast it? Could her good side have missed its obvious effects on the train ride home?

“Could I do that to my friends?”

The vast expanse of her knowledge had no answers for her.

The lock on her cell door clacked open as somepony entered, their hoofsteps quiet as a mouse. “Rarity, I presume?” Twilight muttered.

“Miss Sparkle, hurry!” a friendly voice rasped.

Twilight leaped upright and spun to find Rainbow Dash standing just inside the doorway, holding a key ring in her teeth and casting nervous glances behind her. “Rainbow Dash?!” she said incredulously. “How?”

The pegasus shook her head, sending her already mussed mane into further disarray. “You've got to get out of here now!”

“But...”

“Please, Miss Sparkle,” she whimpered. “You're next!”

The unicorn took a few hesitant steps toward the door. “But they'll catch us,” Twilight said uncertainly. “I can't leave now. It'd look suspicious!”

“So would a confession,” Rainbow argued. “Nopony will notice if your eyes change color. Come on!”

Startled by her boldness, Twilight looked carefully into her eyes. Left and right still differed; her violet hue still balanced the pink. “Who told you to free me?” she said quietly.

“Celestia dammit, Miss Sparkle, I'm trying to keep you safe!” she said as loudly as she dared. “I just went to Fluttershy's cottage. She's like Spike.”

Twilight's eyes widened. “What happened?”

“I don't know, but it wasn't you,” Rainbow admitted. “I think they're gonna come after you next. What they did to Fluttershy was... It wasn't pretty,” she said finally. “I think they're getting cocky. That means they're gonna do something big, and I just know they're gonna come after you while you're stuck in here. That means we have to get out of here, and fast!”

“Rainbow, I can't!”

Her pegasus squeezed her eyes shut and took a shaky breath. “Miss Sparkle. I'm not gonna let anything bad happen to you. You said it's not you doing this. I believe you! Okay, so you didn't cast this spell on me and I'm just a sucker. I don't care. All I know is, right now I love you so feathering much and I want you to be safe, okay? I'm gonna find out who did this before they get to you, but I can't do it alone.” She stretched a hoof toward Miss Sparkle. “Please. Come with me.”

Twilight stared slack-jawed at Rainbow's hoof. “You're sure?” she asked quietly.

Rainbow nodded.

The unicorn spared the window one last glance and took her hoof. “Promise me it'll be okay,” she begged.

“I promise, Miss Sparkle,” she smiled. “Everything is gonna be fine.”

Together the two girls left.

Rainbow ducked low as she walked Twilight up the hallway, past cell after empty cell. “Why don't prisons have back doors?” Rainbow complained in a whisper.

Twilight's eyes darted from side to side as the two crawled. “I don't know, so ponies can't escape them so easily?”

Rainbow stretched upward to deposit the key ring on a hook by the door. “Sneaking in was hard enough,” she complained. “Sneaking out's gonna be impossible. Have you tried to teleport?”

“I don't have to try it. I know exactly what would happen,” she whispered. “Every prison in Canterlot is embued with wards to detect teleportation, conjuration, and other magical means of travel. Anypony who tried would set off the alarms and have every policepony in Canterlot on them in seconds.”

Rainbow gave her a look. “This is Ponyville,” she said. “This isn't a unicorn town. Besides, how many unicorns do we have here that can teleport?”

“Um...”

“I can count them on one hoof,” she smiled. “Well, not counting Pumpkin Cake, but she's a baby. Trust me, Miss Sparkle. There aren't gonna be any wards.”

“I don't know,” Twilight said hesitantly. “I'd prefer not to risk it.”

“Well, if you're sure, then we'll just have to do it the hard way.” She pushed the door open just wide enough for them to peer through the crack.

The room was rather open; a couple of desks and a few cubicles didn't grant Rainbow and Twilight many hiding places. “How are we supposed to reach the door?” Twilight hissed.

“I just kinda flew in,” Rainbow shrugged. “There's only one pony here and he kept turning his back on me.”

A great white muzzle appeared in the crack. Rarity's eyes grew as wide as saucers. Her lip drew back as her horn lit up.

“Twilight Sparkle!”

Twilight tackled Rainbow and disappeared with her into the ether.

They fell to the ground in a tangle beside the prison wall. “Rainbow Dash, you'd better hope you're right!” Twilight stammered.

“Um...” Rainbow fidgeted. “Hi there.”

Twilight looked down at her. Rainbow was pinned belly-up beneath her unicorn. Her cheeks were red as roses.

“Sorry!” Twi exclaimed. She clambered to her hooves and pulled the pegasus up with her. “Sorry. Let's keep moving.”

Rainbow just gave her a goofy, toothy grin. “Okay.”

“Where are you?” she heard a shrill voice howl from the opposite side of the building. “You can't hide from me!”

That killed her mood. “Up on the roof,” Rainbow urged her.

Twilight pressed her shoulder to her friend's and concentrated, and with a puff of vapor the two were standing atop the prison. The view of the town spread below them, shining in the dying light, would have been breathtaking on any other occasion but all Twilight could see were places to hide.

“No... No... Too obvious, no...” She trembled as Rarity's voice reached them once more.

“Don't worry, Miss Sparkle,” Rainbow assured her. She threw a hoof around Twilight's shoulder. “We're leagues ahead of her. Come on, there's no time to lose!”

Twilight chuckled in disbelief. “Why are you so bossy all of a sudden?”

Rainbow drew back hastily. “Sorry!” she muttered, scratching the back of her head with a hoof. “I dunno, it just... I just... You needed help, and I thought...”

Twilight forced a smile for her. “Don't worry, Rainbow,” she said. “It's a good sign. Maybe the spell is wearing off.”

The pegasus gave her an uncertain grin. “Maybe. I don't feel any different.”

“You're right about one thing, though,” Twilight said. “We don't have long before Rarity's search turns into a city-wide ponyhunt. We have to act fast if we're going to learn anything.”

“Maybe somepony's seen something,” Rainbow suggested. “Pinkie ended up leaving for Canterlot before she asked around. Should I fly us to the marketplace?”

“We can't risk it.” She climbed gingerly onto Rainbow's back, still surprised that the little pegasus could support her weight. “Besides, I have something more important in mind.”

Rainbow cocked a quizzical eyebrow at her. “What's that?”

Twilight grimaced. “Just promise me you won't hate me afterward.”

,',

The door slammed open for the third time that day. “Fluttershy!” Rarity called. “Fluttershy, where are you?”

She didn't answer.

The ground floor of her cottage was full of creatures that milled about aimlessly or stood and stared off into the distance. Gone was their usual carefree vigor. The air was thick with musk, tea and urine.

Rarity's eyes pinched at the corners, giving her the illusion of crow's feet years too early. “Fluttershy?” she whimpered. “Oh, please, please tell me I'm not too late...”

One by one her friend's critters gathered around her, looking up at her expectantly or with fear in their eyes.

“What happened?” she asked.

A thumping drew her attention to Angel Bunny, who stood at the foot of the stairs wearing the grim mask of death. He pointed up to the second floor.

Rarity brushed past him and took each step delicately. “Fluttershy, dear?” she called. “It's me. I'm here.” Every creak her weight illicited from the old wooden stairs sent shivers down her legs. “Are you alright? What has she done to you?”

She reached the bedroom on the second floor. “I'm...” The room was empty. Even the bed was bare, her friend's few pillows and blankets torn from it and stashed out of sight. Her casually-organized desk was a mess of spilled ink and perfumes and most of its clutter had fallen to the floor. “Fluttershy, are you alright?” she called. “Are you in here?”

The empty bed began to hyperventilate.

“Are you...?” She knelt down and placed her right ear to the floor. The bed blocked the light from both the window and the single candle, leaving anything below hidden in the blackness. Rarity lifted the candle from its holder and placed it sideways on the floor, already regretting her decision before the first melted wax hit the wooden floor. “Fluttershy?”

She found the pillows and blankets. They were mounded up beneath the bed. Rarity reached in and tugged at the throw pillow. “Why in Equestria...”

The cushion came free and a sheet came with it, revealing the source of the noise. A pair of tearful violet eyes peered out at Rarity from behind the wall of padding.

Rarity sagged to the floor, every ounce of her spirit leaving her in a rush. “Oh, Fluttershy,” she sighed. “How could she do this to you of all ponies?”

The pegasus carefully gripped a pillow in her teeth and tried to block the gap in her defenses; Rarity reached a delicate hoof in and pushed it away. Fluttershy looked at her with such hurt in her eyes and began to let a high-pitched, endless whine into the air.

“Rarity's here, honey,” she said tenderly. “Tell me what's wrong.”

The eyes stared unblinking and the keening continued.

“Please?” She reached out a hoof to touch the pegasus, who shrank even further away. “Please, Fluttershy. Talk to me. Talk to Rarity.”

There was no reply.

Rarity blinked away her tears and pulled her head out from under the bed. She glanced around for a moment before she found it amidst the clutter.

Slowly Rarity ducked underneath the bed. “Okay, dea–”

The pillow had been pushed back into place.

Rarity bit back a sigh and pushed it free again. “Okay, dear,” she said again. She slid a wrinkled pad and the sharp end of a pencil through the gap. “Could you write it down for me, please?” she asked.

Those eyes finally looked away to the intruding objects. After a long minute of hesitation Fluttershy reached forward to grip the broken end of the pencil in her teeth, but her eyes returned to Rarity and her teeth began to chatter so violently that she dropped it.

Rarity sighed in defeat and pulled herself out from under the bed again. “I'm here, Fluttershy,” she said sadly. “Whenever you want to talk about it, I'll be here.”

She waited outside her friend's little fortress, her body still but her mind racing...

Twilight had escaped from prison. Twenty minutes later Rarity had left the station to warn her friend and... and she was too late. Twenty minutes! Had she been wrong? Had she underestimated Twilight Sparkle's abilities once again? It wouldn't surprise her. She had to be the Princess's personal student for a reason.

Her ear twitched as it caught a new sound, a faint scratching. Rarity smiled to herself as she listened to the slow and careful strokes of pencil on pad. Whatever it is, she thought proudly, Twilight will not get away with what she's done. Fluttershy is a stronger mare than she could know.

Suddenly the writing stopped, replaced by another shrill whine more soulful than the last. Rarity immediately dropped to the floor and peered in at her friend. “What is it, Fluttershy?” she asked quietly. “Are you finished?”

Fluttershy plugged the hole between them.

Unsure whether to groan or weep, Rarity tugged a few pillows free and tossed them onto the bed. “Can I see it?” she asked.

Fluttershy shook her head violently. Her hooves shook as she held the pad to her chest.

“Please?” Rarity insisted, but there was no reasoning with her. She sighed and lit up her horn. Bathed in the glow of Rarity's magic Fluttershy began to screech and writhe. “It's for your own good,” Rarity insisted. She tugged gently at the pad. “It'll be alright, I promise. I'm just going to borrow this for a little while, alright?” She finally managed to pry it free. The screech became a wail as the pad floated into Rarity's hooves, and Fluttershy forgot herself enough to crawl forward and swipe at it with both hooves.

“Wait, please!” Rarity admonished. She turned her eyes to the pad. The letters were faint and shaky but just legible:

go away

too scary

I don't want my
friends to

The unicorn dropped the pad to the floor, where it immediately disappeared into Fluttershy's grip before she retreated to her fortress on the wall. With the pad and her secret safe, her wailing subsided to huffing, sniffling whine.

Rarity followed the pad to the floor and met her friend's violet eyes with her own. “She won't get you, Fluttershy,” Rarity said determinedly. “I'll make sure of it.” She slid her hooves in and pulled herself under the bed, ignoring the cries of protest. Her hooves and horn cleared away the pitiful leftovers of Fluttershy's wall and Rarity crawled closer to her. “You have nothing to fear.” She reached out a hoof and wrapped it around her friend's withers, then placed the other on her chest. Fluttershy's heart was racing faster than Rainbow Dash at a relay. Rarity cuddled closer and sighed into her fur. “You're safe with me, Fluttershy,” she cooed. Her voice cracked. “You're safe with Rarity.”

The pegasus under the bed trembled and whined.

,',

Rainbow choked and spat out the last of it. “Please,” she moaned. “Miss Sparkle, please...”

“I can't!” The light of Twilight's magic held aloft a long printout from her most infamous machine.

Rainbow stood in its center, all four hooves ensnared in sensor-filled sleeves. A needle had been poked into one of her cannons. A cap full of wires, electrodes and LEDs flickered fitfully as it tried to process the magical signatures found within the pegasus's body and mind. Her cheeks were matted with salt, her chest tuft was matted with vomit, and her brow was deeply furrowed.

The pegasus cried out in agony. “I can't take it anymore!” she wept. “My head's gonna split open!”

“It won't,” her friend assured her. “It's purely psychological.”

“It still hurts like a kick under the tail!” she wailed.

“It will fade.” Her eyes scanned the symbols and numbers flowing past. “I promise it will. We're almost done.”

Rainbow groaned pitifully and her stomach heaved. A string of drool trailed from her chin to her chest.

Twilight lifted a rag to her friend's chin. “Almost done, almost done,” she said softly. “Just a little bit longer...”

A metallic chime sounded throughout the basement. Twilight rushed to pull the needle from Rainbow's foreleg and the cap from her head. “That's it!” Twilight said proudly. “All done!”

Rainbow let her head fall onto her heaving chest, too weak to support herself. “This had better give you some answers,” she muttered weakly.

Twilight pressed a button to unlock her friend's limbs and caught her with her forehooves on the way down. “Easy, Dashie,” she said softly. “Easy does–”

Rainbow retched up some more bile onto her shoulder and coughed loudly. “Everything's dark...”

She fetched the rag from its place at the base of the machine and floated it to its bucket and back. “It will fade,” she promised as she cleaned herself.

“When?”

“I don't know,” she admitted. “Soon.” She laid the pegasus gently on the floor and lifted the far end of the paper to her muzzle. “In the meantime I'll try to figure out what's causing your condition.”

“Sure it wasn't you?” her pegasus asked faintly.

Twilight's eyes roved over the printout, a jumble of numbers and letters with the lines representing Rainbow's vitals in its center. Her body temperature and blood pressure were understandably high, her resperation rate erratic and her pulse rate through the roof. She could place the blame on the inexplicable pain she'd endured during the test. The rest, though...

Quill and inkpot floated to her side and Twilight began to draw a map of Rainbow's condition. She circled numbers and groups of symbols, connecting some with lines and marking others with tiny, abbreviated descriptions. “Overactive substantia nigra, zona incerta and ventral tegmental area,” she muttered to herself. “Extraordinary levels of dopamine production...”

Rainbow's breathing began to slow.

“What's happening in the nucleus accumbens?” she muttered to herself. “The numbers shouldn't be this varied.” She circled the group, labeled it with a question mark and moved on.

“Tw... Miss Sparkle,” Rainbow said weakly. “I'm starting to feel better.”

“Good,” she said distractedly. “I told you it wouldn't last long.”

The pegasus climbed to her hooves. “I'm sorry I couldn't do this yesterday morning. It would have made things a lot easier, huh?”

Twilight snorted. “Hindsight always sees furthest, Rainbow... What is this?”

Rainbow took a few shaky steps toward Twilight, each sturdier than the last. “What's what?” she asked.

“These indicators,” Twilight said with a smile. She pointed her quill at a long section of the parchment that was packed on one side with letters and numbers in an unexpected pattern. “I've never seen them before!” She began to circle the entire group.

“What does that mean?”

“This is your bloodwork, specifically, your tox screen.” She labeled it and began to circle any unfamiliar variables. “It's full of variables I don't recognize!”

Rainbow studied the numbers and letters without comprehending a thing. “Miss Sparkle, are you saying I've been poisoned?”

“We were so caught up in finding a spellcaster that we forgot about any other possibilities. Rainbow Dash, I think this is the work of a potion after all!” She looked at her friend in jubilation. “That means no hours or days of casting and an easy cleanup. It could have been practically anypony!”

Rainbow smiled uncertainly. “Does that mean it couldn't have been you?”

“No,” she admitted. “I don't think that would make or break my case, but I think my arguments would hold more water than Rarity's anyway.” She tore the far end of her printout loose from the machine, flicked the power switch and began to roll the paper into a tight, fat bundle. “We need to get this to Mayor Mare.” Satisfied, she pulled an empty saddlebag from the corner and sped toward the stairs. Rainbow blinked away the last of her headache and kept up with ease.

“Do you think Rarity would have told anypony about us?” Twilight asked.

“I dunno,” Rainbow said helpfully.

They crept into the sunlight. There was no sign of Rarity's supposed ponyhunt. Together they stepped from the front stoop to the square.

A bolt to the shoulder knocked Twilight onto her back.

Rarity stampeded toward them, eyes wide and mane tossing in the wind. “I will destroy you for what you did to her!” she shrieked.

Rainbow zipped past to sweep Rarity up in an aerial tackle and slam her into the wall of the building opposite. A blast of blue magic pushed her away to face the wrath of Rarity's swift kicks. “Run!” she screamed.

“Wait, Rarity! Stop!” Twilight begged. “Listen to me!”

Her friend smashed a hoof into Rainbow's knee and jabbed another between her shoulders.

“Stop!”

She lunged over the pegasus, grinding a hoof into her spine on the way past. “First Spike, and now Fluttershy?” she growled.

“Wait...” Rainbow pushed herself to her hooves, but too slowly.

Her horn began to gather the last of the day's light. “You should never have touched her.”

“Twilight, run!”

Twilight ran.

Act II: Chapter 3

She ran through the night, hoping against hope that Rainbow was alright. She had no time to turn and look; she was spurred on by the blue-white rays of Rarity's magic as they lanced past.

Rarity herself was only a few yards behind. “You won't escape this time, Twlight!” she cried victoriously.

Twilight juked around the well and sprinted into an alley to her left. South she ran, past Davenport's Quills and Sofas, around a statue of a joyful mare in an ornate saddlecloth, past the welcoming facade of Sugarcube Corner. As late as it was, the square was largely empty; Twilight only darted past two ponies on her way through, both of whom had the sense to run screaming from the path of the rampaging white unicorn.

She tried to turn east past the bakery but a bolt of light sent her scurrying away toward the outskirts of town. Rarity growled as she failed to follow her into the alley and ducked into the next.

A few intersections later Twilight turned east - a mistake on her part. Rarity popped out from between two buildings to her left, closer than ever. Twilight teleported toward the horizon in a panic and nearly tripped on a loose cobblestone as she reappeared.

“Give in, Twilight,” her hunter cried.

“Stop casting!” squealed the prey.

Rarity's eyes narrowed. “Only when you stop moving!” She fired off three more bolts, certain that one would find its mark. Two zipped past Twilight's right flank to chip away at the wooden walls beside her. One punched into the espresso-brown coat of a passerby.

Rarity stumbled to a halt, exuding horror and self-loathing from every pore.

The stallion's wings tightened around himself as he fell to his knees. The fur of his chest was lightly scorched and badly ruffled. He squeezed his emerald eyes tightly for a moment and wheezed.

Rarity took a dainty step forward. “No, no, no... I'm sorry!”

The stallion pulled himself to his hooves and stumbled past her down the lane. “Get away from me!” he choked.

“I'm sorry!” she called after him as he spread his wings and shakily took flight. “I didn't mean to!”

A white light flashed behind her. A foggy sphere of energy surrounded Twilight. “Enough!”

A crack like a glacier breaking shattered the tranquility of the night air. Twilight's bubble popped and a white ring of energy erupted from it and raced along the ground, chewing up the dirt and spitting it into the air. Equestria trembled violently; crates piled against the brick walls of the alley tumbled and splintered, spilling seeds and punch and shattered glass along the path. Rarity barely had half a second to shy away before it kicked at her hooves and threw her to the earth.

A blue blur sped down from the rooftops. “Miss Sparkle!” Rainbow shouted. “Are you alright?”

Twilight had gone supercritical. Her eyes glowed bright with a veil of white light, the same light that surrounded her in an aura of terrifying power. “No more violence!” she shouted; her voice echoed along the southern streets of Ponyville. Pink bands of light snapped into place around Rarity's pasterns and neck. Twilight approached, each hoofstep thundering with residual energy. “No more chasing. No more fighting!”

“Let me go!” Rarity wailed. “Don't you cast your spell on me!”

Twilight leaped further than a unicorn could leap, landing squarely atop her writhing captive, nose pressed to nose. “I am the victim here!” she raged. Fury and frustration fell from her eyes into Rarity's.

“Fluttershy is the victim!” Rarity gathered light into her horn. “You will pay dearl–”

Twilight lifted a hoof like a lead weight and smashed it across her friend's muzzle, dispersing the spell into the air with a whimper and a soft crackle. “Leave me alone!” she shrieked

“Are you going to hurt her some more?” Rainbow asked softly.

Twilight glared down at the other mare with confirmation on her tongue. A bubble of blood escaped from Rarity's left nostril; she snorted it back indelicately, leaving a pinkish stain on her lip. She deserved her bloody nose, Twilight knew. After everything Rarity had put her through over the last two days, she deserved much worse than that.

“But Miss Sparkle, you said not to fight,” Rainbow said nervously. “You said we're still friends.”

“Friends don't chase each other through town with the intent of hurting each other,” she spat. “Friends give each other second chances.”

But behind that white veil, a part of her recognized Rainbow's words to be true.

With great effort Twilight pushed until the violence left her. It left her drained and shaking and so angry. Twilight blinked away the magic in her eyes and the haze of lights that surrounded her, white and wine, dissipated into the atmosphere. “Friends give each other second chances, Rarity,” she said. “I'll give you one if you'll do the same for me.”

Rainbow smiled with relief. “See? Rarity's not a bad mare,” she assured Twilight. “She's just an idiot.”

Twilight lifted the saddlebag from her shoulder. “These are the results of the tests I ran on Rainbow Dash.” The bag slammed into Rarity's chest hard enough to elicit a grunt and a terrified moan. “I can't convince you it wasn't me, but maybe this–”

“Twilight, you get off of her right now!” She took her eyes off of Rarity to see Applejack charging toward her from the south.

Rarity's hindlegs curled up against her belly. “You might think me an idiot, Rainbow Dash,” Rarity said quickly, “but I think I'm more intelligent than Miss Sparkle!” She thrust outward, catching Twilight at the waist and flipping the mare over her head. She rolled onto her hooves in time to fire a bolt at the incoming Rainbow Dash, who crashed into the grass with a cry of agony. “Stay where you are!” Rarity shouted. She twisted on her front hooves to find Twilight clambering upright.

“Rainbow!” Twilight screamed.

“We are not friends!” Rarity snarled.

She turned back to Rarity in time to see her back hooves flying toward her head. There was no time to react.

The pegasus smashed into Rarity's flank, knocking her sideways into the dirt, then flipped into a half figure-eight maneuver and rolled upright to sweep up the cringing Twilight Sparkle. With her love safe in her hooves Rainbow Dash soared upward into the southern sky.

“Dang it, Rainbow!” Applejack roared. “Get back here! We're trying to help you!”

Rainbow's eyes darted left and right as she looked down upon the homes and businesses of her neighbors. Candlelight burned brightly from every window. Panicking ponies everywhere ran screaming down the alleyways or huddled together under park benches. “There's nowhere to hide,” Rainbow whimpered.

Her cargo tightened her hooves around her neck. Rainbow felt a dampness against her neck. “East,” Twilight mumbled.

“Are you sure?” she asked hesitantly. “We should... I think we should keep heading south.”

The unicorn's horn ruffled her fur as she shook her head. “East.”

Applejack watched the dot on the horizon change its course. “Huh,” she muttered.

“She had me, Applejack,” Rarity insisted. “I was helpless. If you hadn't intervened, I would have ended up like Rainbow Dash, or worse!”

Applejack ignored her. The past was in the past. She turned her thoughts to the future.

Where were they going?

Well... east.

What lay east?

The unicorn pressed a white hoof delicately to her nose and gave a start at the redness left behind. “Those terrible white eyes... She lost herself, Applejack. I saw it. She was so... so angry!”

Most of Ponyville. The town hall? Fluttershy's place?

Applejack's mouth smiled but her eyes didn't share in the joy.

“Come on, Rarity,” she urged her trembling friend. “You're fine. Let's get you home and plug up that nose.” As the two friends southeast to Carousel Boutique, Applejack's eyes roved leftward, toward the treeline.

At a time like this, there was only one place a pony like Twilight Sparkle would go.

,',

The light of dawn rose for the second time since her world had begun to unravel. It crawled over the Everfree, casting dark streaks like a foal's first watercolor painting through the trees, and over the towers and spires of the castle therein. Just inside one of these towers Rainbow Dash lay nestled in the moldering remains of a wall hanging that once portrayed Luna, Princess of the Night, in her ancient glory. She stirred fitfully in her makeshift bed; she'd been stirring all night. Judging by her murmurs, the revelation that her beloved 'Miss Sparkle' was a false goddess was not sitting well with her.

Twilight left her to her slumber. With any luck Princess Luna would save Rainbow Dash from her nightmares. With any luck she'd save Twilight from her own as well.

She turned to the window and watched the sun take its place above Canterlot. Twilight had seen her mentor, the alicorn Princess Celestia, raise the sun so many times that she almost took the act for granted, but she'd been reminded of the Princess's might many times over the last decade. It was the other reminders – the ones that proved that even the Princess had her limits – that bothered her that morning.

Pinkie had left for Canterlot two days ago. The Princess must have wrapped up her trade negotiations; even if she hadn't, Princess Luna was very capable of handling them alone, though perhaps not quite as capable as her sister. Pinkie Pie had a force of presence that could not be hidden for long. Somepony must have noticed her. Then why had there been no reply?

Could the roots of this conspiracy reach all the way back to Canterlot?

“Dear Princess Celestia,” she whispered to the sun, her lower lip trembling. “I need your guidance. What do I do now?”

The sun beamed back at her, oblivious to her prayer.

“How can I uncover the villain who poisoned my friends?” she asked. “The only clue I have is the chemical mixture found in Rainbow's blood sample, and I can't conduct any research if I'm looking over my shoulder the whole time.”

Her head was throbbing again. At least the dizziness had passed in the night.

She stretched a hoof toward the sun. “Please, Princess. I need you now more than ever,” she begged. “Help me.”

“Don't you move, Twi,” a quiet voice ordered.

The unicorn froze in the window.

“I'm gonna take you back to your cell,” Applejack continued. “Don't fight me.”

“Wait,” she whispered, mindful of her sleeping companion nestled in the tapestry. “You know you don't have any proof.”

“Proof of what? You being guilty?” The mare shuffled closer. “If I can't trust my own head, what can I trust? Not you. You're the one who messed with it in the first place.”

“Did you at least look at the test results I gave Rarity?” she asked. “They don't prove that I'm innocent, but they prove that I'm not the only one who could have done this. It could have been anypony.”

“You talking to me, Miss Sparkle?” Rainbow muttered faintly as she crossed the border into the waking world. She dragged a hoof up her muzzle, peeling her lip back comically, and opened her bleary eyes to see Applejack standing behind her mare. “Oh,” she yawned. “Hey, Applejack.”

Applejack turned and gave her best buddy a condescending smile. “Morning, Rainbow,” she said as if nothing was the matter. “I'm taking Miss Sparkle back to prison. Ain't you gonna fight me for her?”

Rainbow was on her hooves before Twilight could turn toward the other mares. “No fighting!” Twilight shouted. “I don't want anypony else to get hurt.”

Rainbow Dash, torn by indecision, frowned and scraped her hoof across the floor.

“You coming quietly, then?” AJ asked.

“I want to talk to you,” Twilight said instead. “You have a knack for reading ponies, Applejack Can't you put your false memories aside and just talk to me? That way you can decide for yourself whether or not I'm to blame for this.”

“I don't have time for your head games, Twi,” she said angrily. “Are you coming or not?”

Twilight shook her head. “Not until you agree to hear me out.”

Applejack scowled. “Well... Honestly, I don't think I can force you to come if you don't want to,” she muttered as she made herself comfortable on the cold stone floor. “You'd just teleport out of my lasso unless I knocked you out, and I don't know about you but I don't feel up to tussling with you and Rainbow both just yet.” Rainbow's cocky grin resurfaced. “Well? What'd'you want to talk to me about, then?”

Twilight plopped down before her and spread her hooves. “Everything.”

“That's a whole lot,” she laughed mirthlessly.

“Look, Applejack, I know it looks bad but I swear I had nothing to do with any of this.”

“You're the only one who could've done that to Spike.”

“Spike was fine on the train!” she insisted. “He was arguing with me as we pulled up to the station. Does that sound like something he could do now?”

“I don't know,” Applejack shrugged. “Probably not. It don't matter if I don't know if it's true. Got anything better than that?”

Twilight's ears drooped a hair. “Well... I know that everything about Rainbow Dash's state looks bad for me,” she said as the pegasus in question sat beside her, close enough for their flanks to touch. “You found her in my basement, her eye was modified to match my own, she remembers... things that she says I did...”

Applejack nodded. “So do I,” she said blandly, “so don't go telling me her stories are unreliable again.”

“But what if the memories aren't real?” she insisted.

“I broke the spell, Twilight. Everything in my head is mine, not the spell's. Don't you think I'd have lost any fake memories?”

“It's not a spell, Applejack,” Twilight interrupted. “It's a potion. Didn't you read the test results I gave Rarity last night? There were traces of a strange chemical compound in her bloodstream, and that means that she most likely ingested a potion, a poison, or another magical substance.”

“Can't see what that has to do with anything.”

“It means it's no easy task to break free of its effects, and nearly impossible to do so by sheer force of will,” she explained. “Either they break down and wear off over time, like many poisons, or the effects are permanent unless countered with an antidote, like those of many love potions. Unless Rainbow has been dosing herself for the last two weeks, which doesn't seem likely since she hasn't been apart from me for more than a few minutes at a time since I came back to Ponyville, I'd say it's the latter. The fact that the potion stopped working in your case is simply another unexpected variable, just like the fact that your eyes only partially took on my colors. Though I can't begin to say what caused them, I'm certain that these two variables are likely connected and unique to your case.”

Her lecture whizzed right over Applejack's mane. “So?” she said uncertainly.

“And secondly, it means I'm not the only one in Ponyville that could have pulled this off. Anypony can brew a potion with the right ingredients and a bit of practice!”

The farmer shrugged again. “Look, Twi, that's all well and good, but I can't let you walk away from this just 'cause you asked real nice. The stakes are too darn high.” Her shoulders slumped. Twilight suddenly decided that she looked different without her hat... weaker, almost ephemeral. “Look, Twi. We found Fluttershy last night.”

“I know.”

“And we caught Pinkie Pie trying to sneak letters into your mailbox a few hours ago.”

Twilight gasped. “No. She was supposed to be safe in Canterlot...” She crossed her forehooves over her chest and held herself tightly. “I'm too late!”

Rainbow threw a wing around her. “We're not too late, Miss Sparkle,” she said confidently. “Whoever this pony is, we'll find them and we'll stop them. I know you can fix this.”

Applejack gave her friend a bland stare. “It's Twilight, Rainbow Dash. She messed with your head and now she's playing you for a foal.”

“She is not!” the pegasus cried defensively. “You wanna know why I broke her out?”

“Why, so she could do to them two what she did to us?” Applejack asked tiredly. “I heard about what you said to Rarity while Twi was passed out.”

Rainbow had the decency to blush. “No, because I found Fluttershy like that after Miss Sparkle had been in prison all day,” she countered. “I knew whoever's really doing this was gonna come for her, just like I know they'll be coming for you and Rarity too.” She glowered at her friend with the full force of her unsettling multicolored glare. “You'd better find Rarity and go someplace safe before it's too late.”

Applejack didn't even blink. “Rarity knows,” she said. “She and the Mayor are holed up in the town hall while the guards look for you. Hay, I should be in there too, but I wanted to be out here looking since I know how you think.” She shrugged. “Looks like I made the right choice. Guess I should let them know I found you, huh?”

“Please don't,” Twilight begged. “You have your proof now. It couldn't have been me if Fluttershy was attacked while I was still in my cell!”

“Well, I don't know if I should believe you girls,” she said bluntly. “You're the one who keeps calling Rainbow Dash's stories unreliable.”

“But if I'm the pony you think I am, then why haven't I bound you to my will?” Twilight pressed. “I've had all the time in the world to do it and I've spent it all trying to reason with you. Does that sound like psychopathic behavior to you?”

“I don't know, Twi. I ain't never studied psychopathic behavior.” She climbed to her hooves. “I broke free of it last time, so maybe I'm just too strong for you.” She stopped and grinned to herself. “Besides, you can't do it just like that if it's a potion.”

“Please, Applejack, don't tell Rarity yet.” She stretched a hoof toward her friend. “Help us.”

“AJ, I've been your best friend for forever,” Rainbow added. “You can trust me. I swear Twi– Miss Sparkle's telling the truth. She was locked up when Fluttershy got hit and I bet they got Pinkie while she was busy talking to you. It couldn't have been her.”

“Then who could it have been?” she asked. “You expect me to believe Zecora's the one doing all this?”

“That's it!” Twilight's smile lit up the room. “Zecora!”

“Wait a minute,” Rainbow said hastily. “You don't think...”

“No, of course not,” the unicorn laughed. “But we can ask her if she knows anything about the potion being used. She might recognize some of your symptoms!”

Applejack cursed under her breath.

Twilight's smile slid away as she turned back to the earth pony. “Don't you think it's worth a try?” she asked. “Can't you at least let us follow this one lead before you make your decision?”

Her friend grimaced. “Goldang it, why does this have to be so flipping hard?” she spat. “I feel like you're being straight with me, Twi, but I always thought you were.” She raised a hoof to her forehead. “I just don't know if I should trust my gut anymore.”

“Then let us prove it,” Rainbow said confidently. “We'll have this figured out in no time!”

“But it will be much easier with you on our side,” Twilight added. “Do you think you can put aside your preconceptions and help us find the real culprit?”

After a moment's thought Applejack put her hoof down. “I ain't helping you.”

“Figured,” Rainbow grumbled.

“But I ain't gonna stop you, neither.”

Twilight had to fight back sudden tears of joy. “You trust me?” she asked with a crooked smile.

“I sure as hay don't,” her friend said bluntly. “If I trusted you I'd be by your side every step of the way.”

“Then why?”

“'Cause you were one of us, Twi,” she explained. “You've saved everypony's neck so many times I think we all owe you one.” The corners of her muzzle drew slowly upward. “'Sides, you were my friend once. For that, I have to at least give you a chance.”

“A chance is all can I ask for,” Twilight said happily.

“Then where are you gonna go?”

“First we'll visit Zecora, We'll be sure to find answers there. Even if she doesn't know anything, I'm sure she'll have a book on the subject.”

Applejack nodded. “And if that doesn't pan out?”

“South,” Rainbow said suddenly.

Twilight looked at her uncertainly. “Why south?” she asked. “You said it last night too.”

“I'm not sure,” the pegasus replied. “I just... It feels right, like I can almost remember something important.”

“Another memory you don't trust?” Applejack groaned. “Aw, horseapples.”

Twilight frowned. “I'll think about it,” she said noncommitally.

“Well, whatever you do, you come right back when you're done, you hear?” Applejack said firmly. “Run around for too long and I might get antsy.”

Twilight nodded excitedly. “Thank you so much. Come on, Rainbow!”

Applejack watched the two of them canter toward the stairs. Her poker face was holding, but beneath the surface she wasn't so certain. “I'm warning you, Twi!” she called. “If you don't come back, or if I hear of anything like this happening somewhere else, then I'm going to hunt you down and drag you back to Ponyville by the neck.”

“You won't have to.” A determined smile split Twilight's cheeks. “Rainbow and I will be back with a clue or the culprit in no time!”

AJ's brow was still furrowed, and she stared up at Twilight with a force the unicorn had never seen. “I mean it, Twi,” she said firmly. “Dead or alive.”

The corners of her mouth lifted slightly, but judging by that glare, that stance, Applejack was not joking. Twilight swallowed nervously. “I won't let you down, AJ,” she promised. The two mares turned and swiftly trotted down the stairwell.

Applejack watched them go with a twisted grimace. “By Celestia's mane, I hope I'm doing the right thing.” She sighed. “Consarn it, I think I'm gonna need another drink after this.”

,',

“And you just let them go?!” Rarity shrilled. “Why in Equestria would you let them go?”

Applejack wished desperately that she hadn't lost her hat in the Everfree, because she needed something to spin in her hooves. “It seemed like the right thing to do,” she mumbled.

Her jaw hit the floor. “The right thi– Applejack, you stupid, doddering, brainless...”

AJ let her wear herself out. Unlike Rarity, she hadn't gotten a wink of shuteye since she woke up in one of the town's few holding cells and she didn't have the energy to waste getting angry over a friend's hissy fit.

“...thick-skulled, backwoods, stupid bumpkin!” Rarity panted. She threw herself onto a bench and stared furiously at a faint brown stain in the carpet. “The right thing,” she scoffed.

“But she ran those tests on Rainbow.” She popped the saddlebag open with her teeth and pulled free the bundled printout. “I bet you somepony around here can figure out what they mean. Redheart, maybe.”

“Those results are next to useless,” Rarity declared. “They could be nothing but lies and fabrications! She could have fudged the results or misrepresented some of the information therein, and none of us would know the difference!”

“But–”

“Twilight will not escape her fate,” she muttered darkly. “She will stand trial before the Princesses. If they say that she is innocent, then fine! I'll accept that, but I will not accept the word of my prime suspect!”

“She ain't your suspect,” Applejack said angrily. “This ain't your investigation. You don't get to decide if she's guilty.”

“I've already made my decision,” Rarity barked. “I don't care if you disagree with me. I am going to bring Twilight back to Ponyville to stand trial.”

“But if you'll just look at the–”

“Let somepony else waste their time on those numbers!” Rarity yelled peevishly, her blue aura snagging the test results from Applejack's hoof and gesturing animatedly with them. “I will not have the blood of more innocent ponies on my hooves – Oh, will you just leave us alone, Angel!” The bunny hopped back to avoid her attempt to swat him with the bundle.

“Hey!” Applejack cried indignantly. “You be nice to Angel.” She knelt down in front of him. “What's wrong, buddy?” she asked. “Something wrong with Fluttershy?” The bunny shook his head, making his ears flop about cutely. “Problem at the cottage?” she tried just as successfully.

“Well, whatever it is, Angel, it doesn't matter,” Rarity said confidently. “I'm going to find Twilight Sparkle and put an end to this madness.”

Angel slapped a paw over his nose. It twitched irritably.

“Now look, Rare,” Applejack reasoned. “If she does something that stupid I'll be right there with you, but for all we know we could all be falling for some trick.”

“No, Applejack! I am done listening to your whining!”

“Whining?” the farmer cried.

“Yes, whining.”

“Now look, Rare, I ain't on her side either! I just want to make sure we're covering all our bases here.”

Rarity jumped to her hooves and advanced toward her with a snarl. “You... almost... died!” she exclaimed. “Fluttershy has been hiding under her bed since Twilight escaped! Rainbow is in love with her, the poor girl! How much longer do you expect me to wait?”

“'Til the Princesses get here.”

“That's right,” Rarity agreed. “And when they get here, I will make sure Twilight Sparkle is here to stand trial.” She lifted her hoof out of reach of the bunny tugging insistently on her fetlock. “Don't try to stop me.”

Applejack scowled. “Fine,” she snapped. “But you better watch your flank, missy. If you're right, you're hunting somepony you don't want to mess with, and if you're wrong, you might just come back to Ponyville to find things even worse than before you turned your back on us.”

Rarity huffed indignantly. “I'm doing this for Ponyville!”

“Go on, then. Get.” Applejack nodded toward the door. “Go save us from the monster under the bed. I'll stay here and make sure nopony gets us from behind.”

“I will,” Rarity seethed. She raised a hoof before Applejack's muzzle. “And when I come back, you will thank me.”

Angel saluted her as she passed with a roll of his eyes and a little bras d'honneur. He then scampered off in search of a pen.

Act II: Chapter 4

“What do we do now?”

It was empty. Zecora's home wasn't a home at all. Nothing remained of her stay in Ponyville but a discarded book, a broken candle, and a collection of traditional masks hanging from walls and burned-out torches.

“I don't know, Rainbow,” Twilight said faintly. “She didn't tell anypony she was leaving, did she?”

“Not that I heard,” her pegasus replied. She pressed her flank to Twilight's and watched the door. “You think she'd have left on her own?”

Twilight shook her head and walked slowly through the empty chamber, looking left and right at all that used to be. The center of the floor was dark and smooth where Zecora's cauldron had stood. The herbs she had hung from the ceiling to dry had left a spicy but not unpleasant aroma throughout the house, an aroma that stung the eyes with memory.

Twilight had no more tears to shed. “She must have drunk the potion,” she sighed. “Recently, judging by the lack of dust. I hope they only forced her to leave Ponyville.”

“Why leave all the masks, though?” Rainbow asked. “Weren't they supposed to be really important to her?”

“That is rather strange,” she agreed. A dozen masks in varying colors and expressions hung from the few leftover torch stands and the left side of the hut's circular wall.

“Do you think she left them on purpose?” Rainbow asked excitedly. “Zecora might have left us a clue!”

“But what kind of...”

Anger, grief... There wasn't a solemn or joyous mask among them. What's more, even those hanging from the torch stands were facing in the same direction, staring at a fixed point on the wall with their accusatory frowns.

The book on the floor was an amateur's guide to alchemy.

Twilight frowned.

“What's up, Miss Sparkle?” her friend asked anxiously. “Did you figure it out?”

Of course she had. “Come on, Rainbow Dash,” she sighed. “We have to leave before Applejack tells anypony we've gone.”

The pegasus lifted off and fluttered along beside her. “But where are we going?”

Twilight paused to look with the masks toward the far window. Her brow was furrowed in frustration. “South,” she muttered.

Rainbow smiled.

,',

Rarity scowled with determination as she stormed out of her boutique, her back laden with saddlebags full of enough food and water to last her a few days. She heaved the front door upright and slammed it shut, making a mental note to fix that broken hinge when things weren't so hectic.

She marched forth beneath half-hearted decorations. Without Rarity's attention to detail the decorators had missed so many opportunities to brighten this and accentuate that. She grimaced at a particularly offensive cluster of red and pink and white. She imagined that if a signpost could vomit, it would look rather like the mess of thickly-grouped paper chains that hung loosely from one to the other. Still, the decorations were the least of her worries. For the moment, she had more important matters to attend to: a missing zebra, an empty house and a suspect on the run.

She forged through the gossiping crowds that had gathered outside of the town hall for a spontaneous press conference, in which the Mayor was hesitantly trying to explain away the situation that had awoken them the night before. Judging by the cries of her audience, she was only succeeding in convincing everypony that Twilight Sparkle was out to get them – and rightly so, in a certain somepony's opinion. It was time that Ponyville knew the truth of what might lurk in the shadows.

Rarity strode past the crowd and through the double doors behind the Mayor. Busy ponies stopped and stared as she passed them by, each with their own questions about her bags or her destination. Rarity ignored them all, her eyes locked on the one pony she could trust to help her.

“I'm leaving now, Applejack,” she said as she approached. “Are you sure you won't accompany me?”

The farmer didn't look up from the papers she'd been slumped over for the last hour. “You sure I can't change your mind?” she replied hopelessly.

“You can't.”

Applejack sighed. Her eyes traveled down a short list of missing ponies. Some of the names were familiar, some not; a few had been penciled in, a few crossed out. “As much as I want to keep you from sticking your hoof in a hornet's nest, I can't leave Ponyville right now,” she replied. “I've got to keep an eye on Spike and the girls, and on top of that Mayor Mare's gonna need help keeping a handle on things. Thanks to your little fight with Twilight last night, everypony's thinking that Nightmare Moon's come back, or worse!”

“Let them talk,” Rarity said brusquely. “They'll learn the truth when the Princesses arrive.”

“Are you sure you can't wait until the train comes?” she asked, eyes pleading. “The Mayor's putting four of her best ponies on it. We're gonna reach the Princesses this time.”

Rarity shook her head. “If I wait any longer I'll lose them.”

“Well, I'm sorry, Rare,” she said sadly. “If you're gonna do this, you'll have to find somepony else to watch your flank.”

Rarity shrugged and turned her back. “I don't need help.”

“Then what did you come to me for?”

A nervous flick of her tail gave Rarity away.

The crowd outside had disintigrated into clusters. A few ponies stood before the podium, shouting and pleading and denying. Others huddled together and cast nervous glances around the town. Most had split into pairs that held each other with whispered reassurances. She had no time for any of them. Rarity turned south and stepped onto the stone bridge between Ponyville and the wilderness.

A sudden tug on her hindleg nearly made her jump into the river below. She twisted her body away from the intruder and had to spread her legs wide to avoid falling. “Angel!” she panted. “What have we told you about sneaking up on ponies?”

The bunny rolled his eyes and passed her a scroll of parchment as wide as he was tall.

She accepted it curiously. “Who gave this to you?” she asked.

He pointed a paw toward his chest.

“Oh. I'm sorry.” She spun the scroll in her magical grip and began to unroll it. “Well, let's see what we...” Her words trailed off.

Angel cocked an ear and extended a paw with its pad up.

A tear tracked Rarity's day-old mascara across her cheek. “How...” Her face crumpled, and so did the parchment in her grasp. “I said I was sorry!” she sobbed. The balled paper dropped lightly onto the stone as she raced away toward the outskirts of town.

Angel looked from the fleeing unicorn to his crumpled sketch with a frown. It had taken him six tries to get the wings just right, let alone his wavy mane. He raised both paws high in confusion and squeaked his vulgarities at her.

,',

Twilight and Rainbow plodded onward through the marsh. Celestia's sun baked their backs and the morning dew chilled their hooves to numbness as spring peepers and the other little creatures serenaded them from afar.

Twilight strode forth with purpose and vigor, eyes set firmly on the horizon and a faint but determined grin – one that Rainbow knew well from their previous adventures – decorating her muzzle. Rainbow could almost hear the gears turning in her head, churning out theories and plans and who knew what else.

Rainbow Dash, however, found herself unable to focus. Her mind wandered farther with each step, and no matter how hard she tried to reign it in, it wandered over and over toward the same subject. She repeatedly caught herself looking at Miss Sparkle out of the corner of her eye, and more obviously on more than one occasion. Each time she realized her mistake she quickly averted her eyes to the shrubs around her.

But the thoughts kept coming back. She knew she loved Miss Sparkle more than anything in Equestria. No matter whether she'd been the one to fix her or not, Rainbow knew that she had been changed for the better. Miss Sparkle didn't seem to think so, though, so she was trying her hardest to be the mare her unicorn wanted her to be, but it was hard. Every instinct seemed to be the wrong one. Every word made Miss Sparkle angry. Sometimes the only thing that kept Rainbow from fleeing in her confusion was her mule-stubborn pride.

But then, few and far between, there were those moments of warmth: the time Miss Sparkle had thanked Rainbow for taking care of her when she'd been sick on the basement floor, or the time she'd cried in Rainbow's hooves and told her all about the lies Rarity was spreading. Most of all Rainbow appreciated the little things, like a quick thank-you when she fetched something for her or that little smile Miss Sparkle gave her when she said something smart... That simple smile changed everything about her. It stripped away anything cold or awkward or alien and replaced it with the warmth of innocence, a mother's compassion, and an endless capacity for love.

And then there was that one thing she'd done in her sleep...

Twilight cocked her head at her, and suddenly Rainbow Dash realized she'd been staring into her friend's eyes for a good while. She smiled crookedly and tore her eyes away.

“What's the matter, Rainbow Dash?” Twilight asked.

She tried to play it cool, but the words wouldn't come. “Um, Miss Sparkle?” she asked instead. “Do you know what day it is?” Twilight chewed her lip, and just like that Rainbow sensed a wall building between them. “It's Hearts and Hooves Day,” the pegasus continued.

Twilight's stance grew more guarded with each step she took. “So?”

“So, um...” She chuckled nervously. “I was hoping today would be less crazy.” Twilight grunted noncommittally. “I kinda thought we'd spend the day doing normal stuff, like going to Sugarcube Corner for some cupcakes, or... or flying around town...”

“I can't fly,” Twilight muttered darkly. She blushed as she realized how petulant the words made her sound.

“With me, I mean!” Rainbow said hurriedly. “Or we could stay in and read instead. I could get into that. You know, the two of us curled up on the couch with a good book...”

“We're not dating.”

Her friend's harsh tone made the pegasus stop in her tracks. “I... I know that,” she mumbled. “But I think it'd be fun anyway. We might not be special someponies, but we are really good friends, right?”

“Yes, Rainbow,” Twilight sighed. “We're really good friends.”

“And single friends do stuff together on Hearts and Hooves Day too.”

Twilight stopped to rub her forehead. “Rainbow Dash, I know what you're getting at and I have to stop you there. I don't feel for you what you feel for me, okay?”

The pegasus shrank back. “I know!” she whined.

“Then tell me what you want from me,” she ordered. “I can't love you like you want me to.”

Rainbow stammered as the words bounced around on her tongue. She didn't have the right words to explain what she wanted.

“Do you want me to take advantage of you?” she asked. “I can't do that either. I'd never forgive myself.”

All she had ever known was action.

“What do you want from me?”

Rainbow lunged forward on her hooftips like a nervous doe and planted a kiss on Miss Sparkle's lips.

One pair of eyes closed and another opened wide. “Rainbow Dash!” Twilight squeaked, the words muffled by her friend's lips. Rainbow's muzzle parted to accept her words...

Twilight's hooves rose up and forcefully pushed the pegasus away. Rainbow barely caught herself before she hit the ground; when she looked up her ears lay flat against her scalp and self-loathing had turned her eyes to pinpricks.

Twilight stared down at her, eyes wild and mouth agape. “No!” she said roughly. “Bad!” Rainbow flinched as the unicorn raised a hoof to scrub away her friend's saliva. “By the Princess's mane...”

Rainbow danced a few steps away. “I'm sorry!” she whimpered. “I don't know how else to show you.”

Twilight threw her hooves wide, revealing her beet-red cheeks and nose. “How about 'do you want to be my special somepony?'” she exclaimed angrily. “How about 'hey, Twilight, let's make out!'”

Rainbow ducked her head. “I'm sorry, Miss Sparkle. I'm really sorry I did it. Please don't be mad.”

Twilight stalked away from her. “Come on,” she growled. “Let's keep going.”

Her pegasus darted after her.

The two mares walked in silence beneath Celestia's sun, but its heat was nothing compared to Rainbow's burning cheeks. The chill of the morning dew was warmer than Twilight's cold shoulder. The solitude of their journey was too much for Rainbow to take. “I'm really sorry, Miss Sparkle,” Rainbow muttered. “I really feathered up. I didn't mean to make you mad.”

Twilight watched the grass pass between her hooves. “It's fine.”

“I thought it would be okay,” she continued. “I thought you'd be into it.”

“I said it's fine,” she said gruffly.

“Then why aren't you?” she asked, embarrassed to even broach the subject. “Did I do it wrong?”

“I don't know,” Twilight muttered. “I've never done that before.”

“D'you only go for stallions?”

Twilight's frown took on an embarrassed twist. “I don't know!”

Rainbow bit back a growl of frustration. “Come on, Miss Sparkle, work with me!”

Twilight spun back to her friend. “I told you I don't feel that way about you!” she barked.

“But... But you feel something, don't you?” Rainbow pleaded.

Her cheeks flushed. “My feelings for you are entirely platonic,” she said firmly, but her voice trembled a little as she said it.

Rainbow knew what that meant. “I've seen it when you look at me,” she insisted. Her eyes were damp with longing. “I can hear it in your voice. Why won't you just give me a chance?”

“You never...” She clamped her teeth back and whatever she'd intended to say was swallowed back. “I, well, but you... You're imagining it.”

Rainbow pranced a few steps around Twilight. “Is it 'cause I'm not good enough?” she asked. “Is that it?”

Twilight hesitantly shook her head. “Rainbow Dash, you're one of my best friends and I love you very much,” she said soothingly. “I just... I never thought about you girls as anything more than friends until you started... you know, flirting with me in the library.”

“But what did you think then?” she asked hopefully. “Did you think it would be cool to think about me like that?”

“No,” Twilight said stiffly, turning her head to hide a blush. “It made me uncomfortable.”

Rainbow's shoulders slumped.

Twilight sighed. “It's not that you're not good enough...”

Head hanging low, Rainbow looked up hopelessly into Twilight's eyes. “Is it one of the other girls?”

“No!” Twilight exclaimed with a surprised laugh. “There isn't anypony else. It's just that I'm not really comfortable with the idea of trying to find a stable relationship just yet. I've been too busy studying to even consider the possibility of... dating.”

“Well, consider it,” Rainbow begged. “Please. My feelings are real!”

A sudden memory forestalled Twilight's argument and slowed her stride. “Applejack said you had a crush on me once,” she said. “Is that true?”

“Well... yeah,” she replied. “See? I kinda liked you even before you – somepony did this to me. I couldn't figure my feelings out on my own, is all.”

“'Kinda' isn't love,” Twilight argued. “Maybe you just had a passing crush.” It sounded even weirder when she said it out loud. “I'll never understand why.”

Rainbow's muzzle dropped open. “Why not?” she asked. “You're really sweet and smart and you're always pushing yourself and–”

“Anyway,” the unicorn said loudly, blushing furiously at her pegasus's praise, “I might have been tempted to give you a chance if it was really you asking, Rainbow Dash, but it's not. You're under a compulsion, do you understand?” she said firmly. “I'm not the one who did this to you. I don't want you to love me like this. I won't let you do something you might regret when this is over. I am definitely not going to kiss you. Okay?”

Rainbow sank lower and lower with every word, but there was no arguing with Miss Sparkle when she made a decision. She worked some moisture into her mouth. “Okay,” she said simply.

“Okay,” Twilight sighed. “Now that that's over with, we've got a lot of ground to cover if we're going to reach the other side of the bog before noon. We'd better get to it.”

Rainbow nodded, and the two of them proceeded south toward their unknown destination. Rainbow walked without protest beside the object of her desire, casting neither glance nor compliment in her direction. No matter what she felt, Rainbow was determined to see this through for Miss Sparkle's sake and her own.

But she wanted to fly so far away...

Act II: Chapter 5

“What's up, little guy?”

For the umpteenth time that morning Angel unraveled his almost-smooth scroll and held it up for another pony to see.

The mare smiled. “Wow, did you draw that?” she said patronizingly. “That's really good!” Angel slapped his paw against his forehead as she turned to sell her carrots to another customer.

He rolled the sketch up, held it in his teeth and bounced across the market in search of more helpful ponies. After the Mayor's press conference Angel had thought that more ponies would have understood his goal, but most of them brushed him off like they would an irritating foal. He'd learned long ago that being a bunny in a pony town wasn't easy, no matter how intelligent a bunny he was, but he had no choice but to continue his quest. He had to find an answer. Fluttershy was depending on him.

A clopping from behind alerted him of the approach of one of the town's many new couples. An arctic-blue pegasus affectionately bumped noses with her special somepony as they meandered down the street, determined not to let the morning's news ruin their perfect day. The pair reared onto their hindlegs in fright when Angel bounced into their path and held his sketch aloft.

The stallion, a yellow-orange earth pony, recovered first. “Jeez, rabbit!” he exclaimed. “Watch where you're going!”

Angel gave him a flat stare and pointed to the drawing raised over his head.

“Oh look, Caramel, the bunny drew a picture!” the filly smiled. “A good one, too. Where'd you learn to draw like that, bunny?”

Angel ignored her praise. Instead he pointed to himself, lifted a paw to his eyes and peered about as if scanning his surroundings, then pointed toward the picture once more.

“Are you... Are you looking for this pony?” the pegasus asked. Angel nodded happily. She leaned in and narrowed her eyes in thought. “Hey, you know what? Doesn't he look familiar, with those big eyes and the mane like that? That's not a manestyle you see around here very often.”

“Yeah, I think I know who you're talking about,” Caramel agreed. “I haven't seen him around for a while, though.”

The mare's eyes widened and she clapped her hooves over her muzzle. “Oh, no!” she squeaked. “Did Twilight Sparkle get to him too?”

Even his tremendous skill in charades and interprative dance weren't enough to clue them in. After a few fruitless attempts he scampered off in a huff, leaving them to their worry.

Half an hour later he was still wandering the marketplace. He held the drawing high over his head, pointing it at anypony that passed his way. He had almost given up hope of any results when a voice called out to him. “Oh, hey!” a blue-coated unicorn said as she passed by. “Is that Cappuccino?”

Angel spun and held the sketch aloft, bouncing excitedly in place. Finally, a lead!

“Yeah, I think it is!” she continued. “Brown coat, blond mane, star cutie mark?” He grinned widely as he let her know of his quest, but her smile became a frown. “Sorry, little guy, I haven't seen him for a while,” she said apologetically. “He's not really, you know, friendly most of the time.”

Angel shrugged, offered her a paw to bump, then spun and sprinted southeast, still beaming.

“Glad I could help... I think!” the mare called after him.

The bunny burst through the doors of the town hall and weaved through the legs of hurrying ponies. Mares and stallions alike squeaked as he brushed against their fetlocks. Soon his destination came into view, the same destination as earlier that morning. Applejack was still rooted the spot she'd occupied two hours prior, forging through paperwork with very little luck if the frustrated frown she wore was any indication.

He hopped from the floor to a bench and onto the table and thumped his foot a few times.

Applejack gave a start. “What in tarnation– Oh, there you are, Angel!”

He spat the scroll, by now slightly damp and wrinkled on one side, into his paw and once again began to unroll it.

“What's that, Angel?” she asked, obviously pleased to have an excuse to look away from the sheets before her. “You finish that drawing of yours?” He nodded excitedly and passed it to her.

As Applejack looked it over her eyes began to widen. She poked at it with a hoof. “I know you drew this for a reason,” she said, anticipation drawing her eyebrows up. “What is it? Where'd you see him?”

Angel pointed east.

“What's over there?” she asked. She turned from the table and cantered to the window. “The Everf–” She cut herself short with a gasp. “Fluttershy's cottage!” she exclaimed. “You telling me he was...” Applejack's eyes darkened. “Angel, is this the pony that hurt Fluttershy?” she said dangerously.

Without hesitation Angel nodded once more.

Applejack walked back to the table and slammed the picture onto it; the sound rang through the town hall, attracting the eyes and ears of everypony present. “I need more, Angel!” she said as he rolled the sketch and cradled it in his paws. “You got a name?” At his agreement she bit down on the nape of his neck and tossed him onto her back, then bolted toward the center of operations, her mane whipping at Angel's whiskers.

Citizens gathered excitedly around the earth pony. “Somepony give me names and a box of crayons!” she shouted as she slowed to a halt. Angel leaped from her back to the tabletop. “We're looking for a male pegasus.” As a few clerks began to dig through their folders and stacks she turned back to the bunny. “You know anything else about him?”

He borrowed a quill, and quickly sketched a rough star onto the pegasus's flank.

Applejack beamed at him. “We got his cutie mark!” she said confidently. “That narrows it down.”

A little box of eight crayons, a rainbow of colors with the addition of brown and black, landed on the table next to him. He pried it open and went to work, adding rough layers of yellow wax to the mane and tail.

“Now Angel, this is real important,” Applejack said. “Did you see his eyes?”

He nodded as he reached for the brown crayon.

She placed a hoof over his paw and fixed him in place with a stare. “You gotta be a hundred percent sure on this one, Angel,” she said firmly, “'cause it's gonna decide whether he's the one we're looking for or if he's just another poor soul this pony's hurt. Now, were his eyes purple?”

Angel dropped the brown crayon to the tabletop, turned back to the box, and slid free another. It was bright green.

A wicked smile split Applejack's muzzle. “Gotcha,” she hissed.

,',

The two mares rested in the shadows, or at least they lay silently; the air carried a tension that kept their break from being very restful. Rainbow was sprawled out on her back and staring up at the rocky ceiling of their hidden campsite, a little pocket worn into the side of Ghastly Gorge. The tightness in her wings and flanks would not go away no matter how many times she flew out to check their surroundings.

Twilight lay with her forehooves dangling over the edge. A shift in the ambience drew her eyes to the sky; the sun fell gently below the horizon to be replaced by its sister, the moon, mirroring an exchange Twilight knew would be taking place far to the north. In the dying light Twilight gazed into the depths of the gorge. Her eyes traveled over the canyon walls, watching the shadows play over fallen boulders and the mouths of long-abandoned quarray eel tunnels, but her thoughts paid them no mind.

She turned her head just far enough to watch Rainbow Dash out of the corner of her eye. Rainbow had been wearing that same frown since their conversation in the bog. The pegasus scratched idly at in itch hidden in her chest tuft; there wasn't much water left at the bottom of the canyon, certainly not enough to wash away the sweat and grit of the day's travels. The pegasus heaved another sigh as she sought relief.

Twilight didn't need a guidebook to figure out what was eating at Rainbow. Her ears fell back. “Trust me, Rainbow Dash,” she said quietly. Rainbow's ears and eyes swiveled toward the unicorn, but she couldn't gather the gumption to rise. “It's for the best,” Twilight continued. “I know it hurts, but when this is all over, you'll know that my decision was the right one.”

Rainbow rolled onto her side, turning her back to her unicorn. “That doesn't make it hurt any less,” she muttered.

“Look, Rainbow Dash. I don't know what else to say,” she sighed.

“You don't have to say anything else.”

Twilight wasn't so easily deterred. “If we free you from this spell and you still want to try something, then... then I'll think about it,” she offered, “but for now that option has to stay off the table. You understand, don't you?”

Rainbow rolled back, finally facing her friend, though she still seemed unable to meet her eyes. “It's not about that,” she said.

“It's not?” Twilight asked, but the pegasus didn't seem as though she was simply avoiding the subject. “Then talk to me, Rainbow,” she commanded gently. She rose to her hooves and crept toward her friend, mindful of the uneven surface. “It isn't healthy to keep everything bottled up, and in our situation I think it'd be even worse. Why won't you tell me what's on your mind?”

Rainbow shrugged. “I don't want to make you mad.”

“You won't.”

“But if I do?” Rainbow insisted.

Twilight shrugged. “Then I'll talk to you about it,” she said. “We're just two normal ponies having a normal conversation.”

Rainbow shifted onto her elbows. “I don't think I can be that kind of normal around you, Miss–”

“Twilight,” the unicorn interrupted firmly. “My name is Twilight.”

The ensuing silence was broken by a sharp giggle. “You want me to call you that?”

“Yes, Rainbow, I do,” she said. “I never wanted otherwise. I never was 'Miss Sparkle'.”

“I know.” Rainbow smiled uncertainly. “It's still weird, though.”

“I understand that it might be difficult to adjust to, especially since the compulsion might still drive you to do otherwise, but I know you can do it. You've called me by my name before.”

“It was an accident,” Rainbow said hastily.

Twilight placed a hoof on her shoulder. “It shouldn't have to be. Call me Twilight.”

Rainbow looked up into her eyes for a long moment. “Then can you...?”

Twilight waited patiently, but her words wouldn't come. “Can I what?”

“Can you...” Rainbow looked away and studied a hoof. “I want you to call me Dashie,” she said quietly.

Twilight barely stopped a relieved laugh from escaping. “Dashie?” she repeated. “But that's Pinkie's nickname for you. It always sounded to me like something your mom would've called you when you were a filly.”

“It is,” she admitted. “It's what my parents called me when they weren't mad at me for breaking something or getting into trouble.” She kneaded her hooves into the stone and stared off into the distance. “They only called me Rainbow Dash when I did something wrong.”

“But everypony calls you Rainbow Dash now,” Twilight pointed out.

“Yeah, well, you're not everypony,” Rainbow said simply. “I really want you to, you know, be proud of me or something. Whenever you call me that, I'll know I'm doing something right. I won't have to keep worrying about letting you down.”

“Rainbow Dash, you're not letting me down.” Twilight lay down beside her friend and pressed her shoulder to Rainbow's. “This is a terrible situation for both of us, and I know it's not easy for you but I just want you to be yourself!”

“But I've been trying to be myself all along,” Rainbow whimpered, “and you keep getting mad at me.”

“No, Rainbow, I'm not mad at you,” Twilight sighed. “I'm mad at the pony that did this to you.”

“Then you're taking it out on me,” she insisted. The words cut Twilight. “I don't want you to keep yelling at me when I'm trying to be good, okay? It hurts a lot.”

Twilight pulled her closer with a hoof around her ribs, but she couldn't meet Rainbow's eyes. She could feel it in Rainbow's tight shoulders, see it in the little dirt-filled lines on her face. She'd rarely seen Rainbow so depressed. “I'm sorry that I hurt you,” the unicorn said softly, “but some of the things you do hurt me too.”

“I don't mean to.”

“Nor do I, Rainbow Dash.” She folded her hooves in front of her and rested her chin upon them.

Rainbow followed suit. “What do I do that bothers you?” she asked. “I'll stop.”

Twilight took a deep breath as she fought with herself. Part of her wanted to spare Rainbow the truth but even discounting the hypocrisy, she knew it would only add to the tension between them.

“Well,” she began, “I don't like seeing you belittle yourself for my benefit.”

“What do you mean?”

Twilight cocked her head as she thought back. “When you said those things in the library... those things you thought I'd told you about your mind being inferior to mine... that hurt, Rainbow. I thought you'd know by now that I'd never say something so mean to you.”

“It wasn't mean, it was honest!” Rainbow disagreed.

“No, it was mean,” she said. “You're not stupid, Rainbow Dash. You might not be a scholar like me, but you are smart in your own way. You're a quick thinker, a capable strategist... Besides, you're very skilled in some aspects in which I don't excel, like handling social situations. We all have our own strengths, Rainbow, and the fact that yours are different from mine doesn't make them lesser.”

Rainbow lifted her head a little and blinked at Twilight. “You think I'm smart?”

“Yes, Rainbow,” she smiled. “You're just as smart as the rest of us.”

Rainbow smiled back. “Thanks.” The two shared a silent moment of warmth, but soon enough Rainbow had to ruin it. “Well, if that's the worst I've done, I guess I'm not doing too bad!”

Twilight shifted her limbs uncomfortably.

“Is that the worst?” she asked nervously. “What else did I do?”

Twilight shrugged. “It's too late now,” she muttered.

“It's never too late to make up for your mistakes,” Rainbow countered.

Twilight had no reply to that. Left with no other choice, she turned her head away and spoke. “To be honest, Rainbow, you said a lot of things that hurt me over the last few days.”

“Like what?” Rainbow asked innocently.

Twilight frowned. “Rainbow, you managed to convince everypony in town that I was an evil sadist determined to spread my influence over the world. I know it's what you remember, but if you really think that highly of me, why didn't you believe me when I said it was all a lie?”

Rainbow's lips tightened for a moment. “I didn't know you were telling the truth,” she mumbled. “I thought you were just tricking the girls.”

“And you let me!” Twilight barked. Rainbow blanched at the sudden explosion of noise. “Don't you see what kind of pony this potion has turned you into? You're putting the desires of a fictional parody of me before your well-being or that of all of Equestria!”

Rainbow drew her head as far back as she could. “But I did it for you!”

“No, you did it for the pony you thought I was,” she muttered. “You didn't care about my feelings, just 'Miss Sparkle's'. You wanted her to be real. You chose 'Miss Sparkle' over me, Rainbow – everypony did! – and that... that is the worst...”

Her voice broke and with it a dam broke within her, flooding her eyes with tears she didn't know she still had to spare. Her throat tightened until it hurt; her cheeks tightened her lips into a teeth-baring grimace. “My friends abandoned me!”

Rainbow was on her before she could blink, laying a wing and a hoof across her back and crossing Twilight's neck with her own. “I do care,” she said softly. “I'm sorry I couldn't understand. I wasn't thinking. I didn't know they'd hate you because of what you did to me. I never wanted you to lose your friends.”

“I know,” Twilight choked. “I don't... I don't blame you.”

“I just wanted everypony to be as proud of you as I was,” the pegasus explained. “Why couldn't they understand what a great thing this is?”

“They stripped you of the power to choose!” she cried. “You deserve free will!”

“I still have free will,” she countered. “I choose you.”

“You chose me because of a lie!” Now that her feelings had begun to come out, there was no stopping them. “You only like me because of the effects of this potion, but you keep acting like it's real and I'm forced to deal with your affection and politeness and sometimes I wish it was real, but I know it never will be because you are not Rainbow Dash!”

“But Miss...”

“I want the Rainbow Dash who was constantly striving to better herself, not one that's willing to lie pinned beneath the hoof of another mare! I want the Rainbow Dash who would never hurt her friends just because somepony told her to!”

“But...”

“I don't care if she feels that way about me or not,” she sobbed. “I want my old Rainbow back!”

“Twilight?”

The unicorn gasped and choked on a sob.

“I'm sorry,” Rainbow said quietly. “I'll try, okay?”

Twilight rested her cheek against Rainbow's. “You said my name,” she breathed.

“I'm gonna try to remember,” she promised. “I might mess up sometimes, but...”

“But at least you're trying,” Twilight agreed. “That is enough.”

The hoof around Twilight's shoulders began to stroke her ribs. “I don't care if we find the pony who did this to me or not,” Rainbow said eventually. “I swear, if we make it back to Ponyville, I'll fix this. I'll help you be the hero you want to be, no matter what.”

A bead of moisture slid down Twilight's cheek. She was silent for a long time before she found the words. “Thank you, Dashie.”

Rainbow's faint squeal of happiness was reward enough.

Twenty minutes later Twilight found herself alone in the waking world. She had cried herself dry onto Rainbow's shoulder for the third time in as many days and the two rested with their cheeks together and Rainbow's wing stretched over Twilight like a downy blanket. It was a welcome comfort even on a warm and still spring night.

From her place near the wall of their little crevice, Twilight couldn't see the moon. She idly wondered if it could see her. Since Pinkie Pie had been found in Ponyville it was likely that the Mayor had sent somepony else to alert the Princesses to her town's latest catastrophe; in fact, she should have done so as soon as the train from Canterlot came in. With any luck one or both of the Princesses would be in Ponyville soon, if not already, and if Princess Luna knew of her situation, perhaps she would investigate in her own way.

“Luna, walk my dreams tonight,” she whispered. Rainbow snuggled closer and sighed, contentment brightening her features more than any amount of starlight could. Twilight allowed her weight to sag against the pegasus and closed her eyes.

,',

“Sorry to keep you up so late,” Applejack apologized.

A tall and lithe white figure stepped from the back of her chariot. “The hour is no issue,” Princess Celestia assured her. “My guards and I are used to the occasional late night.”

“I and mine as well,” her navy-coated sister agreed from her own. “The night is our realm, after all. We are most eager to resolve the situation.”

The fair alicorn lit her horn and a globe of white light appeared above them, softly illuminating their surroundings. “Has Twilight been found?” she asked.

“No, Princess, she hasn't come back.”

Princess Luna's frown deepened. “We must find her immediately,” she declared. “I am no stranger to the corruption of some magics. I will not allow Twilight Sparkle to suffer the same fate.”

“Wait, Princess!” Applejack said hurriedly. “Things have changed. You're never gonna believe it, but we found out who's behind all this! He's a pegasus named Cappuccino, brown coat, yellow mane, green eyes, star-shaped cutie mark. He brews fancy coffees and teas and that. Looks like he's been branching out into potions.”

“And you know this how?” Luna asked suspiciously.

“Because Angel Bunny saw him!” Applejack grinned. “Cappuccino didn't pay him no mind 'cause he's just a bunny!”

Celestia smiled, and anypony who knew her as well as Applejack did could have seen a tension lift from her shoulders and eyebrows. “I knew my Twilight could never have done this.”

Applejack frowned. “But the thing is, Rarity doesn't know,” she said worriedly. “She went off to find Twilight and Rainbow Dash and bring them back to stand trial, but I'm worried she's gonna do something stupid. She ain't been handling it very well.”

Princess Celestia's smile fell away. “Where did she go?”

“South,” Applejack replied uncertainly. “That's all I know.”

“My stallions will search the forest,” Luna decided. “The darkness will not hinder their keen sight.”

Celestia nodded. “Until they return, Applejack, let us go to the town hall. We must wake the Mayor as well; I will need the two of you to tell me everything you know about the events of the last few days.”

“And I have two ponies and a dragon to attend to,” Luna said sadly.

“Fluttershy's in her cottage – you remember where her cottage is, right?” the farmer asked nervously. “East of town?” Luna nodded impatiently. “And Spike's in the library and Pinkie's... well, we had to move her to the prison.”

“The prison?” the alicorn said, her mouth twisting in distaste. “Has she grown violent?”

“No, she just... She keeps sneaking into ponies' houses and stealing paper and quills,” Applejack mumbled. “We didn't want her getting herself into trouble.”

Luna shook her head, spread her wings and soared off toward the prison.

She swept through the doors, scaring the living daylight out of the solitary watchmare at her post. “Where is Pinkie Pie?” she asked loudly; her nerves had gotten the better of her.

“She's the only one here right now!” the policemare replied hastily. “She's just inside. I wanted to keep a close eye on her.” The Princess nodded her thanks and turned to the door leading to the cells. The mare took a step with her. “Do you... do you want me to come with you?”

“No, thank you,” she said politely. “I would like to keep things between us until I can uncover the root cause of her condition.”

“Well, here...” The mare rounded her desk. “Take this.” She hoofed the Princess a sheet of parchment. “She'll need it.”

Luna studied it in confusion. “The page is blank,” she said.

The mare nodded sadly. “I know. You'll understand.”

Luna frowned and opened the door to the cells.

Immediately a familiar pink pony jumped into view. She wrapped her forehooves around the bars of her cell and gave her Princess a huge smile. “Hi, stranger!” she said happily. “Isn't Canterlot great?”

The Princess's brow furrowed as she closed the door. “Excuse me?”

“I'm really having a lot of fun!” Pinkie continued. Suddenly her eyes lit up and she bounced away to the opposite corner of her cell. When she returned she was balancing a steel mug on her nose. “Want some coffee?” she asked. “Donut Joe's specialty!”

The Princess wrinkled her nose. “Thank you, Pinkie Pie. That is... most gracious of you.” It certainly didn't smell like Donut Joe's. It certainly didn't smell like coffee. She pulled the proffered mug through the bars and sent it floating off toward the main door.

“Oh, I've been so busy,” Pinkie said happily. “I've met all kinds of new ponies and I've been, like, everywhere and seen everything! I have so many letters to write...” Her eyes drifted out of focus. In a flash she slammed into the bars in front of Luna's muzzle.

Luna flinched back in the face of the filly's onslaught, barely out of reach of her swiping hooves. “Calm yourself, Pinkie Pie!” the alicorn commanded, but the filly didn't hear her.

Pinkie's muzzle crinkled in determination. “Gimme!” she demanded. “Gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme...” Her hoof managed to bump the corner of the blank page Luna held and knocked it out of her grasp. It quickly disappeared as Pinkie retreated with it into the recesses of her cell. Soon a crayon appeared from somewhere. “Dear... girls...” she muttered.

“Not yet, Pinkie Pie,” Luna said gently. Her magic lifted the filly from the cold stone floor and pulled her back toward the bars. Page and crayon fell from Pinkie's grasp; her eyes shifted from burning rage to confusion to quiet interest. The princess rested her forehead against the earth pony's, ignoring the icy touch of the iron bars, and closed her eyes. “Where are you?” she muttered.

Princess Luna dove in.

Act II: Chapter 6

Princess Luna landed gracefully before the town hall. “I have done what I could for them,” she said tiredly to her sister. “The dragon shows no improvement, nor does dear Fluttershy, in spite of my attempts to assuage her fears. Pinkie Pie sleeps too deeply; I will not know whether I managed to strip the false visions from her eyes until she wakes.”

Her elder sister sighed. “I was able to find and remove the false memories that plagued Applejack. We may never know whether they took the place of any true memories or if she had drunk too much to remember that night, but at least she is no longer misled.”

“Well done, sister.” Luna's horn began to glow with the cobalt blue of her magic. She spread her hooves and wings and looked up to the sky. “What of the culprit, and the missing Element-bearers?” she asked as her aura crept along the circumference of the moon. “Have my stallions not returned?”

“They have,” Celestia frowned. “They didn't manage to find anypony.”

Luna watched pensively as her moon fell from the sky. “We will need to expand our search beyond the forest,” she advised. “They could have marched as far as Appleloosa by now. The pegasi could be anywhere.”

“Perhaps.” Celestia's light gold aura surrounded her horn. The two alicorns watched as the sun rose from the eastern horizon and took its place at the sky's peak, sharing a moment of silence as the sky shifted from black to orange to blue. “I sent my guards to search along Ghastly Gorge and check all of the inns in Appleloosa half an hour ago,” Celestia said finally. “I'm sure they will find some sign of their passage.”

“I hope that they will,” Luna muttered. “I fear for all of Equestria if this situation cannot be resolved peacefully.”

“Me too, sister.” The elder alicorn stepped close to the younger and the pair tenderly crossed necks. “Me too.”

,',

Rainbow Dash glanced about, left into the canyon and right into the fields, forward and back along the road. “Do you think staying on the road is a good idea?” she asked. “This one goes the whole way to Las Pegasus. It's only a matter of time before somepony comes.”

Twilight smiled. “That's just what I'm waiting for.”

Rainbow cocked her head, her gaze as concerned as it was confused. “Why?”

The unicorn looked south and kept trotting. “Just tell me if you see anypony coming.”

Rainbow nodded her acceptance, but in spite of Twilight's confidence her nervousness only grew.

The road wound along the edge of Ghastly Gorge, far enough to avoid accidents but close enough to make a pony mindful of their speed. Twilight and Rainbow Dash cantered along at a brisk but manageable pace; after the numerous stops they'd made the day before for Twilight's sake, she was determined to pace herself to make their travels more optimal until their journey reached its end.

“How much farther?” Twilight asked suddenly.

Rainbow looked across the fields. “Huh?”

“How much farther south?”

Rainbow shrugged. “I don't know,” she admitted. “I think I'll know it when I see it.”

Twilight frowned. “Are you sure you don't remember anything at all?”

She twisted her neck around suspiciously. “I don't...” Rainbow's hooves faltered. “Huh.”

“What is it, Rainbow Dash?” Twilight asked.

The pegasus nodded behind her. “Well, you were right...”

Twilight jerked and spun, staring backward along the path. There on the horizon was the dark dot that marked a single pony sprinting toward them. “Who is it?” she asked.

“I don't know.” Rainbow held a hoof to her brow and squinted at the dot. “I can't make them out from this far away.”

Twilight tugged at her friend's shoulder and sped from the path. “Come on,” she said as she dove into the brush. “Hide!”

Rainbow followed immediately. “They already saw us!” she said as they nestled toghether in the bushes. “What are we hiding for?”

Twilight peered between the branches and set her horn alight. “They know we're here, which might make them reckless,” she explained quietly. “Even an extra second could cost them everything, especially if I can strike them from behind!”

Rainbow smiled wickedly. “Okay, you hit them first and then I'll fly out and get them while they're distracted!”

“Quickly, though,” Twilight advised. “Hit them and run. I'll keep them off you, you keep them off me. Got it?”

“Loud and clear,” she whispered. “I'll wait for your signal.”

Twilight watched the path with one ear cocked. The sound of racing hoofbeats had grown louder and louder. “Three...” she breathed. “Two...”

The pounding slowed, then stopped.

Twilight bent her neck to try and see through the brush. “One,” she said hesitantly.

“I know you're out there!” Rarity shrieked.

Twilight's breath caught in her throat. She turned to Rainbow Dash, shocked to silence.

“We can't,” the pegasus mouthed. “Can we?” Twilight shook her head and stared through the leaves.

Rarity had walked into her line of sight and was glaring about much as Rainbow had been before. “You can't hide, Twilight Sparkle!” she yelled, bared teeth flashing in the sunlight. “I saw the two of you!”

“What do we do?” Rainbow hissed.

“I-I...” Twilight flinched as Rarity's eyes fell upon their cover, but they soon darted away as she took an uncertain step forward.

“Should we run for it?”

Twilight nodded. “Quietly,” she whispered. A hindleg stretched out behind her and touched down as gently as a snowflake landing upon a drift.

A twig crinkled beneath her hoof.

Rarity's head swiveled toward them. A flare of blue light like a torch in the darkness lashed out toward the brush surrounding them and chewed away each and every one of the leaves that hid them. Twilight and Rainbow Dash fell backward; Twilight lunged to cover the pegasus's hide with her own, but the flame died out before the mares were so much as scorched.

When they uncovered their eyes it was already too late. Rarity stood over them, staring down her nose with a wide smile and wider eyes. “There's nowhere to run, Twilight Sparkle,” she hissed. Her horn glowed a vicious blue, brighter than ever before.

“R-Rarity,” Twilight stammered, “please... Listen to me!”

She lowered her horn, sending sparks flying harmlessly into the grass. “Come back to Ponyville,” Rarity growled. “Now!”

“I can't!” she squeaked.

“You had best cooperate, Twilight,” she advised through gritted teeth. “If you ever want to see the sunlight again, you will cooperate. Things will only get worse once we find Zecora.”

“B-but she was already gone when we got there!” Rainbow shouted. “Whoever did this needed her out of the way.”

“Yes, I'm sure Miss Sparkle did!” Rarity exclaimed venomously.

Rainbow leaped upright and shielded her friend with her body. “Don't call her that!” she said angrily.

“Oh, now you want me to stop?” Rarity smirked. “It's too late to play innocent, Rainbow Dash.”

Sheltered behind her friend, Twilight held her hooves to her temples and rocked. “I know you're hurting, Rarity, but please,” Twilight begged, “calm down and think about this!”

Rarity fixed Rainbow Dash with a stare that would have staggered a weaker pony. “I've thought long and hard, Twilight. You are not acting the way an innocent pony acts. You wouldn't have fled from your prison cell if you'd thought the Princesses would believe you.”

“I only left because I was in danger!” she whined.

She chuckled. “You didn't leave quickly enough.”

“But I couldn't protect myself if the real cuplrit came for me in there and... and I can't prove my innocence if I'm locked away...”

“Stop.” Twilight's mouth snapped shut. A wall of blue force thrust Rainbow Dash to the side, presenting Rarity's prey to her. “I don't care anymore, Twilight,” Rarity said firmly. “Just be quiet and come with me or I will have to get violent.”

Rainbow pushed against the magic until it began to bend. “We can't!”

A manic glint appeared in the unicorn's eye. “I've already beaten you once, Rainbow Dash!” Rarity laughed, her voice shaky and soaring. “Best of three?” Rainbow's wings trembled violently with the urge to launch.

“Don't take the bait!” Twilight cried. “She's trying to separate us!”

“Nonsense,” she disagreed. “I'm only trying to help you, Rainbow Dash.” She turned a furious glare and an accusatory hoof on the other unicorn. “Your mistress is the one I take issue with!” Her twisted smile reappeared as she turned back to Rainbow Dash. “Help me help you, dear. Don't make me force you.”

“We have to keep going,” Rainbow insisted. “I know we'll find the answer if we keep heading south.”

Twilight stretched a hoof toward Rarity. “Come with us. You'll see!”

“No!” she barked. “You come with me!”

Sweat poured down her brow. “Rarity, please.” she said hopelessly.

Rarity spread her hooves. “You're coming whether you like it or not.”

“Oh yeah?” Rainbow sneered. “Says who?”

Rarity's upper lip peeled back as she spun to face the prismatic pegasus once more. The light of her horn flared ever brighter as she swung her head back and gathered the energy for a bolt of arcane fire. “Says justice!”

Twilight leaped. She collided with the unicorn's shoulder and together they disappeared into the ether.

Rainbow took to the air, her muzzle set in the grim frown of determination. A puff of smoke to the north spat the two unicorns into the grass. One tumbled onto the path and the other dove into another cloud only to reappear far to the south. Rarity rolled gracefully onto her hooves and transferred her momentum into a headlong sprint after her. “I tried, Miss Sparkle, but if she wants to do this...” Rainbow Dash growled as she dove into the fray. “Then let's do this!” she screamed.

Twilight called up a dome shield as she ran. She could feel Rarity's fire bounce off of it to strike the plantlife around them, scorching leaves and snapping stems. “Get back he– ugh!” Rainbow Dash bulldozed into her opponent's ribs and sent her rolling into the rough embrace of a stout bush. “You...” Stones and pebbles lifted from the earth, shining in the haze of Rarity's magic. “Take this, you ungrateful dolt!” A rain of sapphires ten yards across sailed upward toward the pegasus.

Rainbow spiraled higher but couldn't avoid half a dozen of the larger pieces. Smooth chunks of limestone threatened to bruise her wings and a piece of shale sliced her deeply beneath her left foreleg. She let out a moan and snarled down at her attacker. “You think that'll stop us?” she cried. “You've got to try harder than that, Rarity!”

The unicorn tore a shrub from the earth and hefted it like a club. “Oh, I will!” She spun to keep an eye on her target and only her swift reflexes saved her from a blow to the head.

Twilight's bludgeon, a hefty stone pulled from the canyon wall, drifted hesitantly to her side. “I don't want to do this, Rarity,” Twilight whimpered. “Just leave us alone and we'll be on our way.”

“Don't even try it!” she said harshly, “or you'll soon be on your way to the Great Beyond!”

Twilight's jaw dropped. “You can't mean that!”

Rarity narrowed her eyes. “I'll do whatever I must to protect Equestria from you.” She lashed out with her makeshift club; Twilight ducked away from the stinging branches only for the trunk to slam her to the earth.

Twilight's aura surrounded it and jerked it out of Rarity's grasp. It went sailing into the canyon. “I'm trying to protect Equestria too,” she insisted as she stood, “from the same madness you've fallen victim to!”

“No more tricks,” she barked roughly. “No more lies!”

Rainbow landed softly beside Twilight. “No more out of you,” she growled as she limped forward. A thin trail of sticky red stained her armpit.

The unicorn growled right back and sent bolt after bolt toward them, a feral snarl upon her muzzle.

Twilight's shield reappeared but days of malnutrition and sleepless nights were wearing on her. She could feel the shield bending and crackling with each blow from her friend's arcane fire. “Rainbow, we have to do something!”

“Like what?” she cried.

“I don't know,” Twilight panted as she retreated from her friend's onslaught. “I don't want to hurt her!”

“I could take her, but it might get messy...” Rainbow glanced behind her and flinched. “Twi, look out!” She'd backed them up against the mouth of the gorge.

“Now I've got you,” Rarity smiled. She finally stopped unleashing her bolts upon the two mares. “Surrender!”

Rainbow looked from one unicorn to another and snarled under her breath. “Don't make us hurt you, Rarity!” she shouted uncertainly.

“You couldn't if you tried,” Rarity exclaimed. “I have too much to lose to allow you to escape now! Good will always triumph over evil!”

Twilight shook her head and the pink dome around them faded. “You've given me no choice, Rarity,” she breathed. Her horn flared noisily and swallowed up the light with a supersonic whine. “Forgive me.”

A pink beam of crackling energy darted forth from Twilight's horn and punched into Rarity's chest. Rarity immediately collapsed into the dirt, convulsing in agony. Her cry rang out over the fields and echoed down into the depths of the canyon for a split second before her throat closed.

Twilight held the spell for a count of five seconds before she released it with a heavy heart. The writhing unicorn's tortured grunting continued for twice as long before it dwindled to sobs of pain.

Rainbow looked from the twitching unicorn to Twilight with mouth gaping open and chest heaving. “What was that?” she asked in amazement.

“S-self-defense,” she said quietly. She trembled from from tip to tail. “Nonlethal.”

Rainbow lifted her front and wrapped Twilight in a hug. After a long moment Twilight hugged her back, albeit half-heartedly. “You did what you had to,” Rainbow said firmly. “You didn't have a choice.”

“We have to go,” Twilight mumbled.

Rainbow nodded. “Come on,” she said with a duck of her head. She took a few steps south. “She'll be alright, won't she?”

A blue beam of force knocked Rainbow head over hooves. She rolled limply to the lip of the gorge, wings twitching.

“Rainbow, no!” Twilight yelped. She darted to her friend's side. Rainbow Dash groaned and rolled onto her left side. Twilight glared at the unicorn in the grass...

She wasn't in the grass. She was a yard away and moving fast.

Rarity's horn sparked fitfully, but she was out of juice. Magic wouldn't save her; magic wouldn't save her friends. There was only one thing she could do.

“For Equestria!” she wept. She leaped into the air.

Twilight ducked and disappeared in a cloud of smoke, reappearing a split second later at Rainbow's other side.

Rarity's eyes widened as she soared through the vapor. Three of her hooves landed heavily on the shale and skidded beneath her; her left foreleg dangled over the canyon. She reared, putting her weight onto her hindlegs, but her momentum was too great.

“No,” she whispered.

The canyon took her into its embrace. She didn't have time to scream.

Twilight stretched a hoof over the canyon. “Rarity!” she shrieked. Her friend reached toward her from yards and yards below as she slid down the sandstone slopes on her belly, her mouth frozen in a shrill yell, until the wall bucked beneath her and sent her tumbling head over hooves into the maw of the earth.

Twilight reached out a shaking hoof as Rainbow Dash writhed and rolled onto her hooves. “A-a...” She took a deep breath, vaulted upward and landed sidesaddle on Rainbow's sore back, one hoof on her shoulder and one on her flank. “After her!” she cried. Rainbow sprang into the air with a groan.

The pegasus dove faster than the eye could follow, her belly mere inches from the rough wall of the canyon. Twilight nearly swallowed her heart as the world turned sideways beneath her, but she swallowed her fear instead and kept her half-closed eyes on the tumbling unicorn below, white and purple and brown and red. Closer and closer they fell, faster and faster; Twilight cried out each time her friend slammed into the rough sandstone as if she herself was the one tumbling to her demise.

“Grab her!” Rainbow cried as they fell to her level.

Twilight swiped at Rarity's body but she was still a pace out of reach. “Closer!”

“I can't!” she screamed, panic evident in her voice. “I'd kill us both!”

The unicorn's hooves kneaded at her friend's taut muscles. “Rarity...” Twilight made up her mind. “Thank you, Dashie,” she whimpered. She pushed with both hooves and soared alone into the canyon.

“Miss Sparkle!”

Twilight glided slowly toward her friend as they plummeted toward the dried-up riverbed. “Please,” she whispered. “Please, Rarity...” She leveled out and stretched toward the other unicorn. “Don't leave me now...”

Her hoof brushed fur. Twilight closed her eyes and focused.

A faint cloud of smoke spread outward across the riverbed.

The two reappeared in midair just a few yards below the lip of the canyon. Rarity almost fell away from her as their descent was reversed into upward motion but Twilight pulled her closer into a tight and tender hug, a hug that spoke volumes; together they disappeared once more.

They tumbled into the brush beside the road to Las Pegasus. Rarity escaped Twilight's grasp and bounced away across the grass. Twilight skidded to a halt on her chin and knees just beside the road. She lay panting among the cool blades, tongue hanging from her mouth and chest heaving as the adrenaline coursed through her, and gasped out a little laugh – a survivor's laugh.

Rainbow's hooves lifted her head from the earth and began brushing the gravel out of the fur on her chin. “Jeez, Miss Sparkle! What were you thinking?” Twilight just groaned. “Well, hay. Good catch,” she cheered. “She's got to believe you now. I mean, you just saved her life!”

Twilight picked herself up and winced as her body told her brain of the three knees she'd scraped raw. She'd miscalculated when accounting for their momentum, but at least Rarity hadn't rolled far. “Is she okay?”

Rainbow gave a start. She hopped into the air and fluttered toward the other unicorn. “Um... She looks...” The pegasus froze. Her hoof reached out, retracted... She fell to her knees and crawled toward her old friend. “Rarity,” she breathed. Rainbow looked up at Twilight with pinched eyes. “She's... alive,” she said finally.

Twilight winced. It was never a good sign when even Rainbow couldn't make light of an injury. “How bad is it?”

“Um... It's bloody,” she said. Her voice was oddly flat. “Her eyes are bruising. Um... Scratch that; her everything's bruising. I think I can see a bone... um, yeah, her left foreleg is definitely broken.”

Twilight took a few tender steps forward.

“So's her left hindleg. Probably some ribs. Must've hit that side pretty hard...”

“How quickly is she losing blood?” Twilight interrupted.

Rainbow glanced up at her with a grim but determined frown. “She's okay for now, but...”

A band of pink magic wove tenderly around Rarity's snapped limbs and squeezed tightly. “My magic will act as a tourniquet.”

“But that won't do her any good,” Rainbow said sadly. “I don't think even you can help her now.”

“I know that!” Twilight snapped. “We need real medical supplies and a real doctor...” Twilight closed her eyes tight. “Rainbow, you have to get help,” she decided.

“What?” her friend exclaimed. “They'll find us!”

“I know,” she said glumly. “We don't have another option.”

Rainbow's frown carried the sorrow of a hundred ponies. “But Miss Sparkle, they won't wait for the Princesses this time.”

The unicorn showed no sign of having heard her. “I'll wait here. Fly back to Po... No. Fly east to Appleloosa as fast as you can and don't come back without a few more pairs of wings and enough rope to lessen the flow of blood to these limbs.”

Rainbow chewed her lip, but her wings carried her up and east in a blaze of color.

Twilight stared down at the prone unicorn lying at her hooves. Rarity was one of her best friends, no matter what she'd said and done, and Twilight was not going to lose her.

“Whatever it takes,” she declared. Her horn flared brightly.

,',

Rainbow lay curled around her unicorn beside the blazing bonfire. She thought it was probably safe to light one this far southwest of the town, and Twilight didn't seem to care one way or the other. “She'll be alright, Miss Sparkle,” Rainbow promised.

Twilight was unable to sleep despite the late hour. She was huddled into herself, nose to tail once again. Her muzzle was buried in her forelegs. “We nearly killed her,” she mumbled dully.

“Hey,” Rainbow said softly. “She knew what she was trying to do. If you hadn't teleported away it would have been both of you.”

“How could it have come to this?” Twilight moaned into her hooves. “First you, then Spike, and Applejack and Fluttershy and Pinkie...” She sucked in a shuddering breath. “And now Rarity. Nopony is safe. I'm the only one left. I'm next.”

“Don't worry, Twilight.” Her hoof ruffled the fur along the unicorn's spine. “I'll protect you.”

“I can't even cry over her,” Twilight said, sounding as exasperated as she did sad. “I don't have it in me. I feel like I've cried more in the last few days than I have since the day I came to Ponyville!”

“It won't be much longer,” Rainbow promised.

“How do you know?” she muttered petulantly.

“You know that pony you were waiting for?” she asked. Twilight nodded. “Well, I... I remember him. He'll help us.”

“Then where is he?” she asked tiredly.

“He's here.”

Twilight's eyes narrowed and her upper lip trembled with fury. “What?” she whispered.

“Hello, girls!” a bright and cheerful voice hailed them.

Act II: Chapter 7

Redheart peered over the dark princess's shoulder at the sickly yellow brew that stood in the center of the mess of herbs and powders before them. “I didn't know you were such a skilled alchemist,” she beamed. “I guess I should have expected that much out of you.”

Luna took the compliment with grace. “With your knowledge of the data and my knowledge of the art, finding the antidote was but a simple task!” She and the nurse shared an eager grin.

Celestia looked on proudly as they organized their ingredients. “You seem confident in your abilities, sister. Don't you think your methods might have become old-fashioned?” she joked.

Luna scoffed. “Save for a few technical improvements, alchemy has remained virtually unchanged for the last millennium.” She smiled widely. “Give me the proper ingredients and I can brew a potion to change the world!”

Celestia chuckled. “I'm sure you could.”

“Princesses!”

Luna jumped. The two sisters turned to the window to see Applejack standing in it, her forehooves on the sill and tears in her eyes. “Somepony just flew in from Appleloosa,” she panted. “Rarity's hurt real bad. He said Rainbow led them to her and Twi was there.”

Celestia's eyes tightened; the canister lifted from the table and a sparkling yellow cork sealed it shut. “I hope that this antidote works, sister,” she said as she stepped out of her shoes. “We no longer have time to test this batch.” She trotted briskly to the door, tossing her peytral onto the table on the way. Applejack met her outside the doorway. The princess's soft yellow magic floated her crown from her head onto Applejack's. “I'll see to Rarity,” she assured Applejack. “This will cure her of the potion's effects and I will do my best to heal the rest.”

“I know you will, Princess,” Applejack said proudly. She tipped her head. “Best of luck.”

Princess Celestia bunched her thighs and sprang high into the air, leaving a trail as bright as any sunrise in her wake.

,',

Twilight sprang upright, forehooves spread and horn glowing fiercely.

“Wait!” Rainbow yelped. She jumped in front of her and placed her hooves on her shoulders. “It's not what you think.” She stared deep into Twilight's eyes. The unicorn stared back; she could see the light of belief in Rainbow's eyes.

But Twilight knew that believing in something doesn't necessarily make it true.

“You're jumpy, I get that,” Rainbow continued tenderly. “But Cappuccino's a good guy. You've probably seen him around town. I've worked with him before – tornado duty and stuff. He did a pretty good job.”

“High praise,” the stranger beamed as he brazenly approached the fire, “coming from the winner of the Best Young Flyer competition a couple of years back.”

Rainbow gave him a cocky smirk in return. “You saw that, huh? Pretty awesome, wasn't it?”

“It certainly was,” he sighed. “It was the most amazing show I've ever seen.” Rainbow blushed and her smile widened.

The stranger, a brown-coated pegasus with an overstuffed burlap saddlebag, stretched a hoof toward Twilight. “My name's Cappuccino. I make drinks.” When Twilight didn't accept his hoof he frowned and dropped it back to the earth. “You know, I've sold my recipes to a few popular locations in Ponyville. You've probably had something of mine.”

The aura around Twilight's horn dimmed but did not dissipate. “Congratulations,” she muttered.

“Twilight, could you please be nice?” Rainbow stage-whispered. “He can help us!”

Twilight frowned. “Why do you think he will?”

“I...” Rainbow's gaze shifted from Twilight to the pegasus on the sidelines. “You'll help us, won't you, Cappuccino?”

Before he could reply Twilight nudged her friend aside to take her place before the newcomer. “Out with it!” she barked. “If you are who you say you are, then how did you find us so quickly? We're in the middle of the San Palomino Desert, for pony's sake!”

“Whoa, Twilight,” he said, lifting his forehooves. To her ears the reaction sounded contrived. “I was in Appleloosa when I saw your friend come in. The guys told us it was you.”

“She did it to herself!” Rainbow said defensively.

“I believe you,” he said placatingly.

“Why were you in Appleloosa?” Twilight pressed.

“Because...” Cappuccino ducked his head and drew a line into the dirt. “Because I was scared,” he muttered. “You weren't the only one who got hurt the night you and that unicorn got into it. Remember, Twilight?”

Enough!

“I remember,” she replied coolly.

“Well, when I heard what she was saying about you after, I figured I'd get out of there until the heat died down,” he continued. “I knew what was really going on. It's obvious to me that she lied about you. I think she's just jealous of your fame and talent–”

Twilight's horn flared. “Don't talk about her like that,” she spat.

He flinched away; a hoof drifted to his chest, drawing her eye to the bruise just visible beneath his coat. “Okay, okay,” he said hurriedly. “I didn't mean anything by it!”

“Get to the point.”

Rainbow shifted uncomfortably. “Miss Sparkle...”

Twilight finally looked away toward her friend. “Not now, Rainbow Dash.”

“Look, I just wanted to help you!” Cappuccino insisted. “Since she's already been dealt with, I want to help show Ponyville what really happened.”

Rainbow smiled. “Sounds good to me!”

“And I brought a little something for us to share,” he added, a hoof darting into his saddlebag. It came free gripping a large glass flask filled to the top with fluid like a weak green tea. “It's an herbal tea I came up with,” he explained. “I always have some on me.”

“Really,” Twilight said blandly.

“I couldn't gather up any food fast enough, but this is just as good! It energizes, invigorates, and promotes good mental health!” He tossed it toward Rainbow, whose quick hooves caught it easily. “Go on, give it a try.”

“Don't drink it.”

Cappuccino's eyes tightened a hair; if she hadn't been watching for it, Twilight would have missed it. “What, you worried I'm gonna poison you?” he said smoothly. “Smell it if you want.” Rainbow popped out the cork and held it to her nose, looking at Twilight all the while. “Soothing, right?” She nodded appreciatively. “Come on, Twilight, why would I hurt you?”

“Don't trust him, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight growled. “You know better.”

“Give it a try, Rainbow,” he said with a benevolent smile. “Go on.”

Rainbow Dash lifted the flask to her lips once more, but hesitated. Her eyes rolled toward the unicorn.

“I said no,” Twilight said firmly, her eyes boring into those of their 'guest'. “Did you really think I wouldn't see it? The masks, the book... I knew Zecora couldn't have left us those hints. Rainbow's insistence only made it more obvious.” She grinned mirthlessly. “It isn't much of a trap if I spring it intentionally, is it?”

“Rainbow Dash, drink the tea.” The pegasus's voice had changed. Gone were the friendly highs and lows; the words were flat and lifeless and stronger than before.

Rainbow's ears swiveled back. “That voice,” she muttered. She pressed her shoulder to Twilight's and her head hung heavily to the earth. “I-I'm so confused...”

“Yes, you know my voice.” The pegasus smiled warmly, but his eyes were cold. “You want to obey it.”

“But Miss Sparkle...” Her elbow gave out, thrusting her cheek into the dirt. Her hindlegs took a step forward but her unresponsive front curled into the ground; she lost her balance and collapsed onto her side on the cracked earth. A splash of thin tea escaped the flask and beaded on her fur. “Ugh... I can't decide!”

“Close your eyes,” he said softly. Rainbow did as she was told; her hooves cradled the bottle to her chest. “Remember my face. Remember Miss Sparkle's face.”

“Dashie.”

Rainbow's eyes popped open.

Twilight stood over here, her muzzle facing Rainbow but her eyes on Cappuccino. “You see my face,” Twilight said. “You know who I am.”

“M-Miss Sparkle,” Rainbow nodded.

She bared her teeth, but there was more at stake than her self-image. “Listen to Miss Sparkle,” Twilight said firmly, though her lips twisted in distaste. “I know what's best.”

In an instant the facade dropped away, revealing the anger bubbling beneath Cappuccino's calm surface. “Don't listen to her!” the pegasus exclaimed harshly. “There is no Miss Sparkle! I made her up!”

“She's real enough to protect Rainbow from you,” Twilight growled.

“Perhaps, Twilight Sparkle, but who will protect you?” he snarled. “Rainbow Dash, force it down her throat.”

“What?!” Rainbow trembled upon the ground and nearly dropped the flask. “Y-you're out of your mind!”

His jaw dropped open. “What did you say to me?” Cappuccino hissed.

“I said no!” she barked. “I would never hurt Miss Sparkle, not even for you!”

“You will do whatever I order you to do!” He lowered his head and pawed at the sand. “You are mine!”

“I'm Miss Sparkle's,” Rainbow said defiantly.

“I am Miss Sparkle!” he roared. She flinched at his fury; her hindlegs scooted her a few inches backward. “I said the words. I wore the mask! You love me!

Rainbow's muzzle crinkled in disgust. “Get out of here, you creep!”

Before anypony could blink Cappuccino darted forward and smashed a hoof into her belly. She groaned as she curled around the wound and her hooves darted downward to protect herself; he snatched the abandoned bottle from her chest on his way past. “I will prove it,” he hissed, pointing the flask toward the pair.

“You won't get the chance,” Twilight snarled. Her horn flared to life once more; Rainbow Dash rolled onto her hooves and staggered to her side. “We're done playing your game, Cappuccino.”

His emerald eyes flashed above a wicked grin. “The game is nearly through.”

Rainbow lifted off and cannoned toward him. She met his hindhooves and was thrown backward into the dirt, rolling and holding her nose.

“Don't move and don't speak!” Cappuccino barked. His eyes narrowed as he lifted his gaze back to the unicorn. “The adults are talking.”

Twilight's horn glowed brighter than the bonfire behind them, fueled by every ounce of her fury. “I'm through with talking,” she hissed. “You've caused her enough pain.”

“Oh?” he asked slowly. “Do you want to see what real pain is?” He lunged toward Rainbow. Twilight ran to meet him.

But he hadn't come closer; it was only a feint. She turned her head toward her friend for a split second. Rainbow's eyes widened as she stared toward Cappuccino.

Twilight turned her head in time for the glass bottle to shatter upon her horn.

She screamed in agony as shards of heavy glass sliced at her horn and scalp. The drink sprayed across her mane and burned her eyes. Twilight fell to the earth and gingerly scraped at her eyelids with a hoof, crying out at her own touch. “Rainbow, help me!”

Her pegasus leaped over her and bared her teeth at Cappuccino. “Don't hurt her!” Rainbow yelled angrily, ignoring the taste of her own blood on her lips.

“Stay back!” he ordered, and she did. When he tried to approach, however, she snapped her teeth at him like a feral dog. He eyed her battle-ready posture and her furious multicolored glare. “Fine,” he said bitterly. “I will have to convince you.”

“Try it, creep,” she dared him, taking a step back toward the fallen unicorn.

“I will not have to try,” he smirked. He spread his wings wide. “I hope that you like following orders as much as Rainbow seems to, Twilight,” he crooned, “because the hypnotoxin will surely reach your brain soon.”

Twilight forced her eyes open. “No,” she whimpered.

He snickered as he floated backward into the sky, wings pumping furiously. “Perhaps I will show you how I make it someday, Rainbow Dash!” he shouted.

Rainbow's eyes tailed him but she couldn't leave Twilight to face her fate alone. “What do we do, Miss Sparkle?” she whimpered. “Can we stop it?”

Twilight blinked the red-tainted tea from her eyes. “He's bluffing!” she assured her. “None of these cuts are deep enough to worry about and most of the potion is in the dirt.”

Rainbow's neck retracted a few inches into her shoulders. “He seems pretty sure you're wrong.”

“What does it matter?” Twilight yelled crossly. She placed a hoof on Rainbow's left shoulder and heaved herself onto her friend's back once more. “We won't give him the chance to find out!”

Rainbow laughed in appreciation of her wounded friend's courage. Her courage was contagious. “Yeah!” she whooped as they zipped up into the atmosphere, leaving a dim trail of red and yellow and purple behind them. Cappuccino jolted backward and darted away. “He's going down!”

Twilight heaved up and down with the rhythm of Rainbow's flexing wing muscles. She hissed as the wind picked more glass out of her bangs and coat. “I can't see him clearly,” she shouted over the wind. “My eyes are tearing up!”

“Then I'll be your eyes,” Rainbow said confidently.

“I don't think...”

“Trust me.”

Twilight blinked at the emotion that surged through her. “I do,” she breathed. “Where is he?”

“Look straight ahead,” she said.

She turned her head and another wave of warmth washed over her. “Rainbow,” she began uneasily.

“We're staring right at him,” Rainbow replied as they leveled out high above the desert. “See him?”

Her fears could wait. “No.” She rubbed tenderly at her lids. “My eyes are full of poison!”

“Well, believe me, it's him,” Rainbow said confidently. She put on an extra burst of speed. “And there's no way he can outfly Rainbow Dash!”

“I can't see anything in this darkness,” Twilight complained.

“Then give us a light!”

Her horn's berry glow immediately grew into a radius around them, but it didn't help her at all. “What do we...”

Cappuccino suddenly flipped and sped toward them, hooves outstretched and teeth bared.

“Duck!” Rainbow yelped. She folded her wings and plummeted downward a few yards.

His hooves barely missed them as he dove past. “On the ground!” he yelled. “Now!”

Twilight turned to fire a few pink missiles in his wake, but her eyes were too blurry for her to aim. “This isn't going to work,” she exclaimed as Rainbow turned sharply to follow him. “We have to–” Her breath left her as Rainbow dove into a roll to avoid his second pass.

“Twilight, jump!” Cappuccino screamed from above.

“Forget the light!” Rainbow yelped as she righted herself. “It's helping him more than us! Can you, like, turn it into a flashlight or something?”

The dome around them became a long and narrow cone emanating from the tip of Twilight's horn.
“Where is he?” She squinted and tried to look over Rainbow's mane.

The pressure on her right shoulder made them veer wildly before Rainbow could correct it. “Stay low!” she yelped. “This is hard enough as it is!”

A flush of shame flooded through Twilight. “Sorry,” she said softly. She lifted her other hoof, moving slowly to avoid throwing off her friend's balance again, and wiped some moisture from her left eye.

“I'll let you know when you're pointing at him, then you start casting. Got it?”

She took a shuddering breath. “Yes, Dashie.” She looked straight ahead into the blackness and let her friend guide her.

Rainbow adjusted their direction with every nudge and twist of Cappuccino's flight pattern. He fought valiantly to keep Twilight's beam from landing on him, but Rainbow was easily the faster and more agile of the two. It was only a matter of time before the light began to track him closely enough. “Go, go, go!” Rainbow exclaimed.

Twilight forced more energy into her horn and through it in the form of little pink thorns, firing blindly but certainly down her beam of light. Cappuccino cried out as the stream flew past just an inch to his right, almost tearing a gash in his saddlebag, and dove toward the earth.

Rainbow laughed as they dove after him, orienting herself and Twilight recklessly. Twilight wrapped her hooves tightly around Rainbow's neck as they tipped onto their right side to follow him into a spiral. “We've got him now!” she cried. “Up a little!”

Twilight closed her useless eyes to keep from succumbing to vertigo. “My up or Equestria's?” she asked harshly.

“Neither!” Rainbow laughed as she righted herself; even Twilight could see the ground passing by almost close enough to scrape her hooves raw. “Straight ahead!”

Cappuccino juked left. “Stop!” Cappuccino cried. “Twilight, stop! I order you to stop!”

“Keep firing, Twilight!” Rainbow cheered. “You can do it!”

Rainbow might have meant the phrase to be simple encouragement, but Twilight took it differently. Her efforts redoubled. Cappuccino flipped backward to sail over their heads, but Rainbow predicted it and followed in a tight backflip of her own.

The pegasus cried out as his left wing suffered a punch that shattered a handful of feathers, but luckily for him it missed his remiges. As he tried to right himself, though, another landed a blow on the side of his head. He fell past the two mares with a sharp yell and fought gravity for control. Rainbow twisted and spiraled into a dive to catch up. “Yes!” Rainbow crowed. “Go Twilight!”

Twilight's body was on fire and she loved it.

Cappuccino's hooves touched down lightly and the friction of his impacts dragged him to the earth. He smashed into the ground chest-first and rolled in a jumble of fur, feathers and burlap. Left with no time or energy to fly, he climbed shakily to his hooves and reached his muzzle into the saddlebag.

“Gonna give up now, Cappuccino?” Rainbow jeered as they approached.

He turned his head away.

“Or do you want to play some more?”

He spun on his back hoof and Rainbow froze in shock. The mares hit the ground hard enough to make Twilight's teeth clack together. Where Cappuccino had been, there stood a purple-muzzled Zebrican monstrosity with bared teeth, squinting eyes, and a pink-streaked mohawk. “Throw her!” it screamed.

Rainbow's hindquarters immediately bucked upward, tossing Twilight roughly from her position. The unicorn let out a squawk and landed hard on her hip.

Cappuccino beamed behind his stolen mask. “Good. Now knock her out.”

Twilight threw her forelegs over her muzzle. “Don't listen, Dashie!” she squeaked.

Rainbow's eyes were locked on the mask. Sweat rolled down her forehead; she chewed her lip and trembled in the face of the mask's fury.

“She is a threat to Miss Sparkle, Rainbow Dash,” Cappuccino growled firmly. “Kick her!”

Twilight rolled onto her forehooves. “Don't listen to him, Dashie–”

“Do it, Rainbow Dash!” he cried over her. “Do it!”

“Don't!”

“Do it!”

With a strangled cry Rainbow pivoted on her forehooves and put the entirety of her weight behind a viscious kick to Twilight's muzzle.

Twilight fell back as if in slow motion. Her left eye focused on Rainbow Dash while her right drifted toward the skyline. The inside of her lip had split in two places and she knew her muzzle would be bleeding almost as badly as Rainbow Dash's before long. She could feel a large piece of a front tooth slide backward into her throat, adding a light cut on her tongue to her list of woes. Most of all she felt a pain greater than any physical wound, the pain of the final link in a long chain of betrayals.

Then she was staring up at the stars and wondering how it had all happened.

She blinked and suddenly Rainbow's muzzle popped into view. The pegasus whimpered shrilly as she looked down into Twilight's unfocused eyes. “I picked the wrong one,” she wept. “I'm sorry, Miss Sparkle!”

“D'you kick me, Dashie?” she whispered. Blood bubbled through the hole left by her broken tooth and dribbled down her cheek.

Rainbow blinked a tear to the earth. “Mhm,” she said weakly.

She disappeared in another instant, tackled to the ground by another pegasus. There was a series of dull thuds that Twilight couldn't place and then the purple zebra rose into her view. It took off its head and turned back into Cappuccino, who smiled so widely it made Twilight sick to her stomach, unless that was the effects of her concussion coming back. “I win,” he said proudly. “You lose.”

Twilight nodded and accepted the darkness.

,',

Her dizziness was back too.

Twilight fought to hold her eye open, but everything was hazy. There was an odd taste on her tongue. Coppery... No, that was the blood. There was something else. Chamomile; herbal tea. It tasted off. That was probably due to the extra ingredients Cappuccino had thrown in.

She opened her other eye as far as she could, which didn't seem to be very far at all, and craned her neck. She found Rainbow three yards to her right; her scalp was bleeding, her eyes were half-shut and her wings fluttered weakly. Cappuccino cradled her upon his lap as he fed her from a plastic bottle. She choked and twitched in his grasp and a trickle of the tea-like potion dribbled down her chin.

Twilight wiped a hoof across her own chin. It was still wet. At least the tea that had spilled from her mouth had washed some of the blood out of her fur.

Cappuccino heard the rustle of fur on fur and turned to her with a wicked smile. “Welcome back, Twilight,” he cooed. “I was hoping to see you again before I had to leave.”

She groaned and let her head fall back. Even the light impact of her skull to the hard-packed ground was like a lightning bolt to the head.

“I have a small favor to ask of you.” He ignored Rainbow's feeble attempts to push herself out of his foreleg's grip, but he pulled the empty bottle away and let her gasp for breath. “Kill yourself.”

Twilight sighed.

“The method is unimportant,” Cappuccino added. “Run until you find a stone column and bring it down upon your head. Bury yourself neck-deep in the sand and burn. I could not care less.” He stood with Rainbow Dash held tenderly in his arms; the pair could have modeled for the cover of one of Rarity's romance novels. “Be certain to finish it quickly.” He hobbled forward a few steps and took to the sky with her.

Twilight raised a hoof into the air. “Dashie!” she wailed faintly.

A few seconds later the pegasus's flight pattern grew erratic. A dark shape dropped loose against the backdrop of the night and soon coalesced into the prismatic form of Rainbow Dash speeding toward her. She landed a few yards away and launched herself into a tight hug around Twilight's neck. “I'm sorry, Miss Sparkle!” she cried. “He got me!”

Twilight held her close and stroked her mane. “He got me too,” she whispered.

Rainbow whimpered into her neck. “I'm so sorry.”

“I-it'll be okay, Rainbow Dash,” she whispered. “The Princesses...” She couldn't finish her sentence. Her last words to Rainbow Dash couldn't be a lie. “I'm sorry too,” she sobbed finally.

“I love you,” she wept. “It's not just the potion, Miss Sparkle, I swear it isn't!”

Twilight squeezed her tightly. “After the week we've had, I don't know what to think anymore,” she mumbled, “but I think...”

A hoof smacked into the back of Rainbow's skull. “Get away from her,” Cappuccino growled as he tugged at her shoulder.

“Don't make her do it!” Rainbow wailed. Her tears stained Twilight's shoulder. “Do whatever you want to me,” she wept, “just don't hurt Twilight!”

“Obey me!” he roared.

Rainbow's sobs rose in pitch. “No!”

His shoulders slowly grew tense. “No?” he said finally, unable to believe his ears.

Twilight's shoulders had tensed as well. Her eyes opened, revealing one in her natural violet and one clad her friend's cerise. She sat up, lowering Rainbow to her lap, and gave him a disbelieving stare. Her horn glowed as pink as her left eye and the aura surrounded Cappuccino's mane. She dragged him slowly forward until their muzzles met. “I don't want to,” she breathed. She searched his eyes for an answer, one after the other. “I won't do it!”

Rainbow gasped and fell away from Twilight. She rolled onto her back and stared from one to the other. Her muzzle split into a smile of exultation.

Cappuccino's mouth worked soundlessly. He swallowed as a victorious smile crept slowly over Twilight's muzzle. “B-but my herbs...”

“I won't follow your orders,” Twilight laughed. The pink haze lifted him from the earth. He struggled to balance on his hindlegs. “I'm already under its effects. I already follow another, and she follows me! You have no power over us!”

“No,” he whimpered. “Rainbow is still mine!”

A prismatic blur knocked Cappuccino free of Twilight's telekinetic grip and began to pummel the tar out of him with a hoarse cry of fury. “You bastard!” she shrilled as her hooves bloodied his cheeks. “You feathering–”

The pink glow pulled Rainbow back by the shoulders. She howled as she flew backward toward Twilight, who gripped her in a tight hug from behind. “Enough, Rainbow Dash,” she said firmly. “He can't hurt you anymore.”

“I can sure as hay hurt him!” she roared.

Twilight's limbs squeezed her reassuringly. “You are better than that.” She glanced at the pegasus on the ground, whose forelegs twitched feebly. “We both are,” she growled.

“I want to kill him,” Rainbow sobbed. “He tried to do it to you! Why should he get to live?”

Twilight spun her in her grasp and the two hugged each other tightly. “Because hurting him wouldn't help anypony, not even you.”

Cappuccino groaned and tried to sit up. Twilight's magic snagged him by the mane again, threw him nose-first into the ground, and dragged him toward her. “We're better than that,” she said self-consciously. Rainbow snickered.

“You think you have won?” Cappuccino snarled. The words were muffled, since his close proximity to the ground kept him from opening his jaw more than a hair. “There is no turning back from here.”

“Shut up, Cappuccino,” Rainbow said tiredly. “Don't make me shut you up.”

“I will have you, Rainbow Dash,” he promised. “Without the Elements of Harmony there is nopony to stop me from taking you.”

Rainbow barked out a laugh. “Wait a minute. You mean that wasn't the point of all this?” she said incredulously. “You mean you came closer than anypony to destroying the Elements of Harmony because you wanted to go out with me?” She blinked away her disbelief. “You're crazy! That's not even a joke. You're feathering nuts.”

“He's a psychopath, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight explained. “They don't think about other ponies the way we do.”

He glowered at Twilight. “What good are other ponies if friends will become enemies with a word?” he snarled. “What good is harmony if it can be shattered by a rumor?”

“No friendship is perfect,” she replied, “but we can trust each other to do the best we can.”

“Is this their best?” he needled her. “Was that white one a good friend when she tried to push you into Ghastly Gorge?”

Twilight flinched, but Rainbow's embrace gave her courage. “She had her reasons,” Twilight said quietly.

Even Rainbow stared incredulously at that. “Rarity nearly killed you!” she cried. “Aren't you even mad?”

Twilight tried to hide the emotions that threatened to bubble to the surface. “Of course I'm angry,” she admitted, “but that doesn't change anything.”

“Your friends abandoned you, Twilight Sparkle!” Cappuccino argued. “You and I, we have no friends!”

Twilight nodded to the pegasus in her hooves. “I have Rainbow Dash.”

Cappuccino growled into the dirt and flared his wings. “She is mine!” he screamed. “I own her!”

“Why me?” Rainbow asked. “Why can't you just get with some other pegasus?”

“They don't deserve my friendship!”

“Oh, and I do?” she growled. “Well, guess what, buddy! You don't deserve mine.”

“I don't want your friendship!” he shrieked. “You are nothing more than my wife! You will stay home and do what you're told and never, ever ask me for more!”

“That's not what friends are for,” she said proudly. “If you want to get that close to anypony, you've got a lot of work ahead of you. Right, Twilight?”

Twilight stared off pensively. “Cappuccino, you're going to prison,” she said. The words were surprisingly sad. “Either that, or you'll be placed in an institution for a long time. You'll have a lot of free time on your hooves.”

“Not if I can help it...” He struggled futilely against Twilight's grip.

“You can't,” Twilight said. “I want you to think about this very carefully, Cappuccino. I don't think you'll be locked away forever, but if you refuse to change, you might be. I don't want that to happen.”

Cappuccino looked up at her as if she were a strange and ugly new species of bog-crawler. “Then leave,” he said simply.

She shook her head. “I'm going to ask that you are placed in an institution where you can get the help you need. In fact, I hope to help you myself. I have learned a lot about friendship in the last two years. If I can share those experiences with you, maybe you can learn something.”

“Do you really think that's a good idea?” Rainbow asked. Her ears lay as flat as Cappuccino's.

“I haven't looked extensively into the subject, but if what I read is correct, a sociopath cannot change who they are,” she said sadly. “However, I have seen proof that a pony like you can learn to function in our society just like anypony else, and gain some form of satisfaction from it. I hope we can show you how.”

“I am through functioning in your society,” Cappuccino said, frustration making him tremble against the earth. “I am through dealing with those stupid ponies! I just want to live with Rainbow Dash in a cloud house in the mountains and sell my recipes for a living.”

“And I wanted to be a princess when I was a filly,” Twilight sighed. “Sometimes our dreams don't come true.”

“At least you have the chance to realize your dreams!” he snapped. “Rainbow Dash never even looked at me until I forced her to!”

“That's 'cause you're a jerk,” Rainbow sassed.

“No dream is worth chasing if it hurts somepony else.” Twilight said firmly. “I don't think you would truly be happy with her.”

“I would,” he muttered. “Her beauty is the only thing that ever brought me happiness.”

“You only wanted her to be your possession, to soothe the feelings of envy and greed in your heart,” she argued. “That isn't true happiness.”

Cappuccino sighed. “Then I will never find true happiness.”

“We'll see, Cappuccino,” she said softly. “We'll see.”

,',

The three of them flew northeast in silence. Twilight rode Rainbow Dash once more; Cappuccino flew just below and in front of them, where Rainbow could easily change his mind if he looked as if he was planning to cause trouble.

Twilight was having a hard time refraining from touching the pegasus beneath her with her hooves, or rubbing a cheek into her fur. Perhaps it was simply relief that she had survived and perhaps it was the potion, but she wanted nothing more than to twist Rainbow's head back in her hooves and... She shook her head. Thoughts like that would get them nowhere until they had a chance to brew an antidote. At least Twilight had thought to tell Rainbow not to ask her to do anything physical with her, because since Twilight and Rainbow were inclined to obey each other, things could easily have grown... awkward.

But in spite of her misgivings, Twilight had to wonder if it was just the potion.

“Dashie?” she said suddenly.

“Yeah, Twilight?”

She took a moment to gather her thoughts. “You... You were my only friend through all of this,” she said finally. “I know it sounds kind of hollow, but I'm glad you stuck by me, even if you were under the influence of hypnotoxin.”

Twilight felt Rainbow shrug beneath her. “I'm sorry I was so stupid in the first place,” she replied. “I nearly got you and AJ killed, I would have left Rarity for dead... Who knows what would have happened to me if not for you.”

“I'm sorry too,” she sighed. “I don't know what I would have done if he'd gotten away with it.”

Rainbow shrugged. She could feel Twilight's hooves and hindlegs tightening around her and she just knew that her friend was dwelling on the possibilities. “Twilight?” she said softly.

The unicorn chuckled as their roles were reversed. “Yeah, Rainbow.” She could tell exactly what Rainbow Dash was going to say next, but maybe she needed to hear it anyway...

“It's over,” Rainbow assured her. “Don't worry about what happened, or what could have happened, 'cause... 'cause tomorrow's a new day, right? We'll just have to make it that much better to make up for the weeks we've had.”

Twilight tried to smile and, to her surprise, it was easier than she'd thought. “You're right, Rainbow. No matter what tomorrow brings, it's going to be a better day.” She burrowed her cheek into Rainbow's neck and tightened her hooves around her. Rainbow's ear flicked as a hot, dry sigh traveled across it. “I can't wait to get back to the library,” she said softly. “It feels like forever since I've slept in my own bed.”

“Don't worry, you'll be back in bed in no time,” Rainbow promised. “I'll fly you the whole way home if I have to.”

“You two are disgusting,” Cappuccino called from below. “Can you not withhold your affection for another hour?”

Rainbow made as if to drop on him, but a humored look from Twilight made her think twice. “I am withholding my affection,” the pegasus muttered.

Twilight laughed in her ear. “Me too, Rainbow,” she admitted.

Rainbow squealed and swung from left to right in jubilation. “You like me, don't you?” she badgered her.

Twilight's care-free grin was short-lived. “I don't know,” she said finally. “I think I did even before I was given the potion, but what if...”

Rainbow frowned. “You're still worried about taking advantage of me, aren't you?” she muttered.

“Yes, Rainbow, I am,” she said. “I don't want to do anything you'll regret when we're cured of the potion's influence.”

“But I wouldn't regret it!” Rainbow said loudly. “I really like you, Twilight. I mean, we were really good friends before all of this happened, and even after I drank the potion I could see how much you really cared about me getting better. And then... Well, after today... You really, really care about me,” Rainbow said forcefully. “A lot.”

Twilight hesitated. “Yes, Rainbow, I do.”

“And I care about you too, a lot.”

Twilight licked her lips. “How much is a lot?” she asked.

“I don't know, but I think even if I'd never taken the potion, the stuff we did together this week... I think it would have convinced me. I mean, it might have just been a crush before, but it never stopped and now it's...” She paused uncertainly.

Twilight blinked. “Are you trying to tell me...”

“Maybe I am, kinda.” Roses blossomed in her cheeks. “I mean, you and me... I could see it. I think we make a good team, don't you? One that could last a long time.” She gave Twilight a nervous smile, but it couldn't hold. “Um... What about you?” Rainbow asked. “You think you might wanna try to, you know, date and stuff? Do the whole marefriends thing?”

“I...” Twilight forced the words down, but there were none to replace them. “I don't know. I want to say yes, but what if it doesn't work out?” she asked.

“I'll take the chance,” Rainbow said confidently.

“But I'm not sure if I can,” Twilight exclaimed. “What if we find the antidote and suddenly we don't like each other like that anymore?”

“Then we'll be best friends,” Rainbow assured her. “Anything that happens in the meantime will just be... memories. Nice memories that we don't have to worry about, because it was just two ponies that really cared about each other doing... um, doing things that...” She blushed. “You know, to show how much they care.”

“I don't know...”

“Dating and stuff,” she added lamely.

Twilight took a deep breath through her nose. “Look, Rainbow, you know I want to, but I... can't. I don't think I'm ready.”

Rainbow seemed to deflate beneath her. “Are you sure?”

Twilight rested her jaw on the top of Rainbow's head and a warm breath from her nostrils blew a tuft of Rainbow's mane into place. “As sure as I can be,” she said softly.

“Then can we still be best friends?” Rainbow said sadly. “I don't want anything weird between us.”

“Of course, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight promised. “Nothing will change that.”

Rainbow rolled her shoulders. “But before you make up your mind, I just wanna say that you said you'd think about it.”

Twilight picked her head up and looked down at Rainbow. “What? When?”

“When we were camped out in the gorge, remember?” Rainbow reminded her.

“I said I'd think about it if you still wanted to try it after we got you better,” she argued.

“I know,” Rainbow muttered, “but will you think about it now anyway?”

Twilight chuckled. “I'm not sure I can think about anything else,” she admitted.

Rainbow smiled. “Then let me know,” she said softly. “I'll be waiting.”

Cappuccino growled to himself. Twilight and Rainbow broke into gales of laughter and kept flying through the night.

Act II: Chapter 8

Even as they soared above the outer limits of Ponyville Twilight could feel it. She could see it in the eyes of those they passed over, hear it in their cries... For the first time since she left for Canterlot, Twilight was truly home.

Friends and neighbors sang out from below and chased them along the ground. Pegasi swarmed around them and unicorns fired sparks into the air, some barely missing Rainbow and Cappuccino as they descended toward the town square. Twilight only had eyes for one pony that zipped toward them from the north.

“Omigoodness, omigoodness, omigoodness...”

Twilight jumped from Rainbow's back only to be knocked to the ground by something hard and soft and fluffy.

“It's Twilight!” Pinkie screamed in her face, her huge blue eyes wet with budding tears. “Twilight's back! And she's poisoned!” She gasped. “But her eye looks like Rainbow's. What does it mean, Rainbow Dash?” she squeaked excitedly.

Rainbow smiled as she swept the filly up in a hug. “It means everything is going to be okay, Pinkie Pie,” she said confidently.

“How did you break the effects of the potion?” Twilight asked as she clambered slowly to her feet. “Has somepony found an antidote?”

Pinkie nodded excitedly. “Oh yeah, Princess Luna and Nurse Redheart and Applejack found one.”

Twilight smile grew wider. “The Princesses are here?”

Pinkie bounced on her hooftips. “You'll never guess what the main ingredient was,” she said, her voice shaking with barely-suppressed mirth. “Applejack's special cider!”

Twilight gawked at her. Rainbow just laughed.

“That explains why my potion failed,” Cappuccino muttered thoughtfully from behind. “Perhaps the alcohol in her bloodstream inhibited her body's absorption of certain chemicals."

Pinkie leaped back in shock. “It's Cappuccino!” she shrieked. “Everypony panic!”

Twilight didn't give the crowd of bystanders a chance to comply. “Don't worry, Pinkie!” she exclaimed. “He can't hurt anypony else.”

Cappuccino gave her a bland stare from the corner of his eye.

“You two have done Equestria a great service,” said the soft yet commanding tones of Princess Celestia.

Twilight spun on her hooves to see the great white alicorn stride through a path in the crowd with a proud little smile, clad in her crown and accessories and the most elegant saddlebag Twilight had ever seen. She dove into the alicorn's waiting embrace. “Princess!” she exclaimed. “I've never been so glad to see you!”

Celestia rested her head on Twilight's shoulder. “I knew you weren't responsible for this, Twilight.”

Twilight snuggled up against her chest. “Thank you,” she whispered. “I knew you'd believe in me.”

“I'm sorry I didn't find out sooner,” she continued. “If ever something like this happens again, do not hesitate to come straight back to Canterlot, no matter what royal duties I might be attending to.”

“I will!” she promised.

“Did you bring Princess Luna's potion?” Pinkie interrupted. “Is there enough left for Dashie and Twilight?”

“Luna is on her way with the antidote,” Celestia replied. “I believe she made more then enough to go around. How many did you poison, Cappuccino?” she asked as she turned to face him.

He blinked his emerald-green eyes and donned an expression of tranquility. “Seven,” he replied instantly.

“And where is Zecora now?” she asked.

The pegasus shrugged. “I sent her home to her native land.”

The princess smiled. “Thank you for your cooperation.”

“Keep my behaviour in mind when deciding my fate,” he reminded her. “It would be unbecoming of a princess to ignore such acts, would it not?”

She raised an eyebrow at him. “That depends upon the sincerity of such acts,” she countered.

Cappuccino frowned. “I can be sincere.”

Twilight placed a hoof on his shoulder and silenced him with a shake of her head. “What are you going to do with him?” she asked the Princess. “Are you going to send him to prison?”

“We'll see, Twilight,” Celestia replied. “I wish to try something first. Leave him with me for now. You have other matters to attend to.” She nodded to her left toward a trio of ponies that approached from the direction of the town hall.

Princess Luna waded through the crowd, her long legs and noble carriage clearing her way with ease. Applejack followed at her left heel, emotions playing across her muzzle as she fought the urge to run past the princess, and the relieved Mayor Mare followed at her right. “Worry not, Twilight Sparkle!” Luna called. “I have the antidote!”

Rainbow buzzed past her to land beside Applejack. “See, Applejack?” she said. “Told you we'd do it!” She raised her hoof for a bump.

Applejack's muzzle crumpled. She swatted the hoof away and threw herself at Rainbow, almost knocking her buddy off of her hooves. “I'm sorry!” she wept. “I should have trusted my gut.”

“It's, uh... It's okay, AJ,” she replied awkwardly. She gave the back of her head a few light pats.

Twilight brushed past the princess to rub Applejack's back. “You have nothing to be sorry for,” she assured her. “You did more than enough when you gave us the chance to track Cappuccino down.”

Applejack spun away from Rainbow and folded Twilight into a bear hug. “I'm so gosh-darn sorry, Twi,” she sobbed. “It seemed so real!”

“It's okay, Applejack.” Rainbow and Pinkie wrapped their hooves around the pair. “We couldn't have done this without you.”

“Yeah, Applejack,” Pinkie said brightly. “Don't be sad now! Everything's finally looking up!”

She sniffed back her tears and nodded. “I know. I'm sorry, girls. I don't mean to be such a wet blanket.”

“You're only wet 'cause you're crying!” Pinkie said helpfully. “I know what'll dry those tears: Milkshakes from Sugarcube Corner!”

“That sounds great right about now,” Rainbow nodded.

Applejack chuckled as she wiped her cheeks. “I don't think now's the time for milkshakes,” she said. “Maybe after all this is over.”

“Yes, there are more important matters at hoof,” Princess Luna reminded them. A pair of vials floated up to Rainbow and Twilight in the princess's sparkling blue aura. “You can worry about the festivities later.”

“And what festivities there will be!” the Mayor crowed. “In light of the events of the last week – and due to our less-than-stellar Hearts and Hooves Day – a repeat of the celebration is hereby scheduled for tomorrow!” A cheer rang out among the bystanders and looky-loos.

Twilight eagerly accepted the potion from her princess. “Ready, Rainbow?” she asked.

Rainbow Dash cocked her head at the vial of thin yellow syrup. “It looks funny,” she complained. “You said this was made from cider?”

“Yup!” Applejack grinned. “So you know there's good stuff in there. Drink up!”

She pried the cork off with her teeth and sniffed it. Her eyes shifted slyly in Applejack's direction. “Smells like oranges.”

“Oranges?” Applejack exclaimed. “You kidding me?”

“Yep!” She tipped it back and downed the entire vial in one go. She instantly regretted it and her muzzle contorted in disgust. “Gah! What's in that thing?” She drew her tongue across her teeth and spat the fluid left behind into the grass. “Eurgh. It tastes like a rotten candied apple!”

“Potions aren't known for their flavor, Rainbow,” Twilight chuckled. She still eyed her own vial with trepidation. She wrinkled her nose in preparation and downed the antidote. It wasn't as bad as Rainbow had made it out to be, but she still made a face.

“Tasty, huh?” Pinkie laughed.

“Ick,” Twilight agreed.

Rainbow stared at her vial. “So how does this thing worgyuh!” A violent tremor shook the vial from her hoof; Luna caught it just before it hit the grass.

“That's how,” Applejack smirked. “Feeling better?”

She folded her wings tight against her sides. “'S cold!” she complained, with another shiver for emphasis. She squeezed her eyes shut, and when she opened them her friends could see lines of pink running through her violet iris.

“You just need time to get used to not being so warm anymore,” Pinkie explained. “It's probably gonna be worse for you 'cause you were the first one he got to.”

“That makes sense,” Twilight agreed as she allowed Luna to take her vial as well.

“How long 'til I get used to it?” she asked unhappily. She rubbed at the irritated eye with the back of a pastern. “I'm gonna be feathering miserable 'til then.”

Suddenly an icy chill spread outward from Twilight's core, up her throat and down her belly. The burning sensation that had beset her faded, leaving her vulnerable to the nippy air of the cool spring evening. Twilight took a few brisk breaths as if she'd been pushed into an icy pond. “Well,” she said uncertainly. Goosebumps made her guardhairs stiffen, giving her coat an extra-fluffy look. “That's... That's invigorating.”

“That's one word for it,” Pinkie agreed. “At least it worked, right?”

“Is it gone?” Rainbow asked hastily. “Is... Is the feeling gone?”

“Mhm.” She shook out her mane and worked her pasterns as she waited for the chill and the sudden sensation of swelling in her left eye to pass. “It's finally over, Rainbow Dash! Soon everything will be back to normal.”

“Yeah.” She rubbed a hoof through her mane and glanced away.

“Isn't that great?” Pinkie asked, as oblivious to her friend's pain as everypony else. “Now we can get back to being friends and hanging out and not worrying about whether we'll live through the night!” She beamed brightly. “Speaking of which, where is Fluttershy?”

“I'm here,” she called from the back of the crowd, smiling widely behind her luxurious pink mane. She placed a hoof between two earth ponies only to retract it with a muttered apology. “I'll be there as soon as I can!”

“Fluttershy!” Rainbow exclaimed. She zipped over to her and gave her a squeeze, one that Fluttershy returned heartily enough to make Rainbow grunt.

“Why is your nose so bloody?” Fluttershy asked immediately, her eyes traveling over the other mare's injuries. “Are you okay? Are you feeling dehydrated?”

“We're fine, Fluttershy,” Rainbow assured her.

“I would like some water,” Cappuccino said politely as he and Princess Celestia rejoined their little group. He was ignored.

“But what about you?” Rainbow continued over him. She lifted Fluttershy from the ground and together the pair flew back to their friends. “You doing okay after what he did?”

She nodded. “I'm okay now.”

“How bad was it?” Twi asked. She glanced back toward Cappuccino, who was standing proudly with a shameless grin. Celestia was pretending not to notice, but her sister radiated disapproval.

Fluttershy blushed faintly. “Princess Luna had to, um... climb under the bed with me and feed me the antidote from a bottle...”

“Were your animal friends able to take care of themselves while you were hiding?”

“Angel Bunny helped,” Fluttershy smiled. “He also did the chores and left food for me too. He's been very kind.”

“Can you even use 'Angel Bunny' and 'kind' in a sentence like that?” Rainbow scoffed.

“Oh, he's really such a sweetheart!” she exclaimed. “After he helped Applejack and the Mayor figure out that Cappuccino was behind–”

“The bunny?” Cappuccino sputtered. “That is what I overlooked?”

Fluttershy grinned self-consciously. “He's so very smart, but nopony seems to notice because he's just a bunny, the poor thing.”

He groaned and hid his face in his forehooves.

“Where is Angel, anyway?” Twilight asked.

“I left him at home. He's still mad at me because he was left to cook supper for the timber wolves all by himself.”

Twilight's eyebrows disappeared under her bangs. “What timber wolves?”

“Well, dang,” Applejack breathed. “I plum forgot about them. They didn't try to eat him, did they?”

Fluttershy smiled shyly. “He can be very persuasive.”

“I'm sorry to interrupt, but there are more important matters to attend to,” said Princess Celestia. “The five of you, Cappuccino and I must pay a visit to Ponyville General. First I want you two to have your injuries looked over. When we are sure that the two of you are well, we will have work to do. I have brought the Elements of Harmony,” she said with a nod toward her saddlebag, “and Cappuccino has agreed to let us try to introduce the concept of harmony to his heart.”

“Oh,” Rainbow said uncertainly. “The Elements of Harmony?”

Celestia looked down upon her with honest confusion in her eyes. “What is the matter, Rainbow Dash?”

“I don't know if that's gonna work right now,” she admitted. “With everything that's happened between me and Twilight and Rarity...”

The Princess nodded. “I understand, Rainbow Dash. I hope that the six of you can look past your differences and reforge your shattered bonds.”

“We've been friends for a long time now, Princess. There ain't no way we can let something like this break us up!” Applejack declared confidently.

“Is Rarity going to be able to wield the Element of Generosity?” Fluttershy asked.

“She is awake and alert,” Celestia assured her. “She is heavily medicated, but it does not seem to be interfering with her mental faculties.” The pegasus sighed with relief.

“But are you sure this will work on Cappuccino?” Twilight pressed. “We've never used them like this before.”

“I believe that they should,” Celestia replied.

To Twilight, that was as good as an admission of uncertainty. She nodded anyway – after all, even a slim chance is better than none at all – and turned to her friends. “Ready, girls?” she asked. Three mares nodded.

“Uh...” Rainbow Dash paused with her hoof lifted from the ground. “I... Hold on. Um...” She chewed her lip as she tried her hardest to meet Twilight's gaze. “Look, girls,” she said finally. “Can you give us a minute?”

“What for?” Applejack asked, concerned. “You still worried it ain't gonna work?”

“We won't know until we try,” Fluttershy reminded her.

The Princess swept past Rainbow and Twilight and trailed her wings lightly over the other girls' backs. “I think we should give these two some space to talk things over,” she said. Luna nodded and followed. The girls trailed them uncertainly, but not without a few backward glances.

“Come on,” Twilight said to Rainbow Dash. “We'll walk and talk.”

Rainbow didn't open her mouth to speak until well after they had escaped the mass of curious citizens that had surrounded them, and when she did she was still unsure of what to say. “You said that it faded,” the pegasus began.

“Of course it did,” Twilight replied.

“Well, mine didn't,” she admitted glumly.

Twilight gasped. “The antidote didn't work?” she cried. “But your eye–”

“No, Twilight, not the potion! Jeez,” she muttered, glaring at her hooves and blushing brightly. “I mean my... feelings.”

Her brow creased between her eyes. She licked her lips. “Oh,” she said simply.

“I still feel the same, pretty much,” Rainbow continued. “I don't need to act like that anymore... but I want to, in some ways at least. I still wanna be your fillyfriend.”

Twilight let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. “You do.”

“Yeah. I told you it was real, didn't I?” she said, her nerves lending an edge to her voice.

“You did.”

“But what about you?” Rainbow asked. “Was any of yours real?”

Twilight stared after the Princesses and chewed her lip.

The silence was too much for Rainbow. She froze in her tracks. “Don't you feel anything?” she pleaded. “Even just a little?”

“I... um...” She stopped and turned to the pegasus and placed a hoof to her chest to still her racing heart. “I... I-I do,” she admitted.

Rainbow grinned and a tension lifted from her shoulders. “Great!” she exclaimed. “So do you wanna be my special somepony, then?”

Twilight averted her eyes.

Rainbow's smile collapsed with her ears. “Don't you?”

She studied the grass before her. “I don't know what I feel,” she muttered. “I've never done this before, Rainbow.”

Frustration made her jaw tighten. “Never done what?” she asked.

“I've never been...” She looked deep into Rainbow's eyes; the hurt she saw in them cut her right back. “I've never been in love with somepony before,” she said, the words flooding out before she could stop them. “I've never felt anything like this. I don't know if it's love or infatuation or something entirely different and it's so, so strong, but I just don't know!”

“Hey,” Rainbow interrupted. “Twilight.” She took a half-step closer. “Are you scared?” Rainbow asked bluntly.

Twilight nodded. “What if I'm wrong?” she asked. “What if I say yes and it turns out I just have a crush and I don't love you for real?”

Rainbow's eyes tightened. “I don't know,” she muttered. “Do you think you do?”

“I know I feel something,” she said. “It feels like what I think love would feel like, if anything I've read is any indication.”

Rainbow couldn't help it. She threw a hoof to her forehead and laughed. “Twilight, I don't know a feathering thing about dating, but I do know you can't learn about love from books!”

“How else could I learn?”

“By trying,” she replied. “You can't just study it. You have to go out and chase it, seize the moment, take a chance, all that stuff... Jeez, I'm starting to sound like Rarity,” she chuckled. “Look. Point is, you never know 'til you try, right? So why not try?”

“Because it could end badly!” Twilight answered honestly. “I don't want to ruin our friendship.”

“You won't!” Rainbow exclaimed. “After everything we've been through, there's no way this could hurt our friendship!”

“Just... Just give me some time to think about it,” she begged. “I need time!”

Rainbow sighed. “Fine,” she said softly. “Yeah. Okay. I can do that.”

“Okay then,” Twilight said slowly. “I'll think about it. Just give me time.” Rainbow nodded glumly and the two walked on in silence.

That silence chased them the whole way to the hospital, where they were momentarily detained by a pair of eager x-ray technicians and a half-dozen nurses bearing sponges, painkillers, and a brace for Twilight's fractured nose. The time flew by without Twilight noticing; her mind was occupied by a few other matters. In no time at all she found herself standing with her friends at the door to Rarity's room.

Twilight stood with her hoof on the handle, but she found herself unable to open it. She stared at her hoof with a pinched brow and a small frown. Her friends waited patiently behind her.

“It'll be okay, Twilight,” Pinkie said. “You don't have to be nervous.”

“You don't know how bad it got at the end,” Rainbow muttered.

“Do too,” she argued. “Rarity told us about it.”

“What did she say?” Twilight said quietly.

Pinkie leaned her head on Twilight's withers. “That she's sorry,” she said. “She didn't know she was acting like that.”

“That's not enough!” Rainbow exclaimed. “She nearly killed Twilight!”

“She meant well,” Twilight muttered defensively.

“She was the one pony who stayed on your case the whole time!” Rainbow growled angrily. “It doesn't matter if she meant well or not. She's–”

“Enough, Rainbow,” Twilight said firmly. She took a deep breath. “We're her friends. We have to remember that.”

Rainbow stomped a hoof and turned away. “Whatever.”

Twilight sighed to herself. At least her hoof had finally stopped shaking. Twilight pressed down and pulled the door open...

She looked absolutely pitiful. Rarity lay back on her hospital bed with a foreleg and a hindleg strung up to the ceiling and most of her body wrapped in bandages, some white and some pink, a few cherry red. Her coat was uneven where it showed and her beautiful mane was marred by a bald patch on her scalp. Her eyes were dull, but they stared right at Twilight as she entered the room. “Hello, Rarity,” Twilight said quietly.

“Welcome back,” she said. The words were delicate as eggshells. Princess Celestia lay a supportive hoof on her shoulder; Rarity winced at her touch. Cappuccino watched disinterestedly from the Princess's other side, where he stood sandwiched between the two alicorns.

Twilight moved to allow the rest of their friends to file into the room. “How are you feeling?” she said, for lack of better things to say.

“I am alive,” she said primly, “which might be more than I deserve.”

“Don't talk like that, Rarity,” Twilight said sadly as the group filed toward her bed. “You don't deserve this any more than the rest of us do.”

For a moment the unicorn lay quiet. “Did I do that?” she asked. Her free hoof rose shakily to gesture toward Twilight's muzzle. “Did I break your tooth?”

“No, that was...” Twilight cleared her throat. “Cappuccino.” Cappuccino's lips twisted, but even he couldn't argue the point. He had wielded the tool.

“Don't worry, Twilight,” she said certainly. “We'll get that tooth fixed as soon as Zecora comes back.”

Twilight kept her hooves planted firmly on the floor in spite of the urge to raise on to her mouth. “Never mind the tooth,” she said self-consciously. “We have a job to do.”

The Princess nodded. “Are you ready, Rarity?” she asked.

She closed her eyes and nodded. “I will try my best,” she muttered.

“We all will,” Applejack said firmly with a glance in Rainbow's direction.

The Princess's saddlebag flipped open; five necklaces and a tiara floated from it, wrapped in Celestia's yellow light. The necklaces, the Elements of Harmony, flew outward to land around their bearer's necks: a zircon balloon to Pinkie Pie's, an orange garnet apple to Applejack's, a rose quartz butterfly to Fluttershy's and a ruby lightning bolt to Rainbow Dash's. Rarity's necklace, adorned with a diamond of clean-cut amethyst, touched down gently. The crown, a golden band with egg-shaped turquoise settings topped with a six-pointed star of rubellite tourmaline, landed softly behind Twilight's horn. “Good luck, girls,” the Princess said softly.

“I have faith in you,” Luna encouraged them. “Be strong.”

Twilight closed her eyes and focused inwardly, calling up the magic of friendship. A white aura slowly surrounded her like a pocket of fog and lifted her from her hooves. Suddenly her eyes snapped open, revealing them to be hidden behind a white wall of the same energy.

Cappuccino recognized that energy. “Wait,” he said nervously. “You said this would be harmless!”

The fog reached out toward her friends. Applejack and Pinkie Pie floated up into the air to lend her their strength. Fluttershy soon followed. Rainbow and Rarity only stared at each other.

“We can do this, girls!” Twilight said confidently.

“You think we can?” Rainbow asked.

“Yes!” she barked. “I'm sure we can rediscover our harmony if we just try!”

“I can't,” Rarity muttered. “I have broken our harmony, Twilight. Nothing is going to fix that.”

As if it understood her words the magic winked out, depositing three mares onto their backsides.

“Interesting,” Cappuccino said quietly. “If not for two simple mistakes I would have succeeded.”

Twilight blinked the magic from her eyes and glared at him. “Don't get any ideas, Cappuccino!” she said angrily. “It's only a temporary setback!”

“And quite a setback at that,” Celestia said sadly. “I'm sorry, Cappuccino, but it seems that intervention by the Elements is no longer an option.”

The stallion shrugged. “I had not expected it to work in any case.”

Twilight frowned nervously. “Princess, could I have a word with you?”

Celestia blinked. “Of course, Twilight.” She followed the unicorn to the far corner of the room.

When Twilight turned to face her, it was with uncertainty and a touch of shame. “Please, Princess, don't send him to prison,” Twilight said quietly. “I know it sounds strange of me to ask, but I truly think that it wouldn't do him any good. He wouldn't learn anything from it.”

“I know,” the Princess murmured. “I have a place for him in Canterlot.”

“An institution?” Celestia nodded. “Then could I visit him sometimes?” she asked. “I've learned a lot about friendship and harmony over the last two years. I hope that my own lessons might help him learn what he needs to learn.”

Celestia smiled. “I wouldn't have it any other way,” she said proudly.

Twilight grinned back. “Thank you. I'll do what I can to help.”

The Princess turned to her sister. “Well, my little ponies, I think it's time for us to leave,” she said. “Perhaps we can try again another time. In the meantime, try to rekindle the bonds you once shared. I know that it will be difficult, but it will be worthwhile in the end.”

“Wait,” Rarity said suddenly. “Twilight, wait, please! I must have a word with you in private.”

“You sure?” Applejack asked. “Can't it wait 'til morning? We don't want you wearing yourself out.”

The unicorn shook her head. “Now, girls, before I lose my courage!” she insisted. Celestia and Luna nodded proudly as they ushered Cappuccino through the door.

“If that's what you want,” Pinkie said. She bounced after the Princesses and their prisoner without hesitation. Applejack and Fluttershy shared a look and followed her out.

Rainbow paused in mid-step. “I'll be right outside, 'kay, Twilight?” she said. “In case you need to talk.”

Twilight ducked her head in acknowledgement. “Thanks, Rainbow.” After one last encouraging smile the door closed behind her.

Rarity grimaced as it swung shut. “By the Princess's mane, this is going to be difficult,” she breathed.

“What did you want to say, Rarity?” she asked uncomfortably. “You don't need to apologize to me.”

“I do,” she insisted. “Twilight...” She stared down at herself and sighed. “I never drank the potion. The Princess delved me, Twilight, and she found not a trace of Cappuccino's influence. Everything I said and did was of my own volition.”

Twilight just stared.

“I was a horrible friend to you. No, not horrible...” She paused and her eyes wandered off into the distance. “Is there a word more horrible than 'horrible'? For surely I am not deserving of such... praise.”

“Rarity...”

“I placed each and every nail in your coffin, and when you escaped it I hunted you down personally to find what I considered justice. I had planned to capture you and return you to Ponyville, but I was ready to kill you with my bare hooves if I had to. I nearly sacrificed my own life to do just that! And now, to find out the truth after sinking so low...” She closed her eyes, blocking out the sight of her friend's concern. She knew that she deserved none of it. “I am despicable. I am an abomination. I truly do deserve this penance, but I know that my pain will soon pass while the pain I inflicted upon your heart will last a lifetime.” She opened her lazy eyes to stare down at her casts and stitches. “This...” She gestured weakly at her state. “This doesn't make us even.”

“I don't want to get even.” She placed a hoof lightly on her friend's shoulder, inwardly relieved when Rarity didn't flinch at her touch. “I just want to be friends again.”

“You deserve better,” the other mare muttered darkly.

“Look, Rarity, I already knew he didn't poison you,” Twilight admitted. “He told the Princess that he'd only poisoned seven of us. First there was Zecora, then Rainbow Dash, then Spike, Pinkie, Applejack, Fluttershy... and then me.”

Rarity's mouth opened, closed, and opened again. “Then... then why are you here?” she asked, her eyes wide with wonder. “Why give me another chance?”

“Because I understand why you felt that you had to do everything you did,” she said softly. “You were only trying to protect your friends and neighbors, and every unicorn in Equestria for that matter. The only thing you did wrong was get fooled by Cappuccino, just like everypony else in Ponyville. And for that...” She leaned down and nuzzled the smoother of Rarity's cheeks. “I forgive you.”

Rarity frowned up at her. “You do not,” she said, her words clipped short by her disbelief. “You can't.”

“I do,” she insisted.

“But I nearly... You must hate me, even if you don't want to admit it to yourself!”

Twilight shook her head. “I don't hate you, Rarity, but that doesn't mean that I'm not angry with you. You hurt me very badly.”

“I know,” she whispered.

“And now you've lied to me and our friends,” she continued. “But Rarity, I don't want to let Cappuccino's plan destroy our friendship. Even if we didn't have the Elements of Harmony to worry about, you're still my PFF and I won't let Cappuccino's horrible plans ruin what we had. I know your intentions were good when you chased us to Ghastly Gorge, and everything before that. Your lie was selfish, and frankly...” She paused to let her anger die down. “All I ask,” she finished, “is that you tell everypony the truth. They'll understand.”

Rarity stared silently as the words washed over her. Her ears lay limply against her sides and her good hoof touched lightly against her chest. “Twilight, you have a beautiful heart,” she said finally. “I'm sorry I can't be as good and kind a pony as you.”

“You're a good mare too, Rarity.” Twilight said. “None of us is perfect; there are times when every one of the six of us needs the support and guidance of our friends to choose right from wrong, or black or white from gray.”

Rarity smiled. “Maybe someday I'll find a prince so understanding. Rainbow Dash is lucky to have caught a princess such as you.”

Twilight's cheeks burned with a heat to rival the glow of Cappuccino's potion. “She didn't catch me!” she exclaimed awkwardly. “The antidote fixed all of that!”

“Oh, darling, you are surely joking,” she mumbled with a knowing smile. “I knew it the moment I saw you two together. Whatever happened out there, it drew the two of you so close together that I don't think you will ever part.”

“But I don't – It's just a crush!” she insisted, but Rarity was staring at her with a strange light in her eyes, as if she knew something that Twilight didn't. “I-isn't it?”

“No it isn't, Twilight,” Rarity said firmly. Her forehoof fell heavily onto Twilight's thigh. “I know you don't have any experience in these matters, so allow me to give you mine.” She looked up into Twilight's eyes with a pleading frown. “It's the least I could do.”

Twilight bared her teeth and glanced toward the door. “I...” Her hoof bounced anxiously on the floor.

“Don't ignore these feelings, Twilight,” Rarity insisted. “Don't resign yourself to years of regret.”

Twilight took a deep breath. “I need help,” she admitted. “Please, tell me what these feelings mean!”

Rarity closed her eyes, sank further into her mattress, and smiled. “You know what they mean,” she said quietly. “Don't be afraid to admit it.”

“But I don't know!” Twilight argued. “I've never been in love before! How am I supposed to handle this?”

Rarity beamed up at her. “There you have it!”

“What?”

“You said you've never been in love before,” she said slyly.

Twilight blinked. “What does that have to...?”

“Twilight,” she interrupted, “what is stopping you from going to Rainbow Dash right now?”

She swept a hoof down the pink stripe in her bangs. It seemed they needed another good brushing soon. “It feels strange, almost wrong, for reality to have become something so close to the lie that started all of this,” she explained. “I almost feel like I'm taking advantage of her.”

“'Almost', Twilight,” she pointed out. “'Almost'. If that were a dealbreaker, we wouldn't be discussing your relationship at all,” Rarity said wisely. “Don't think about the past, Twilight. Instead, think about the future. Can you imagine what life with Rainbow Dash would be like? Where do you see yourselves a few years from now?”

“Um...” She tapped her hooves together. “Ponyville, probably,” she guessed. “I think we'd... um...”

“Go on,” Rarity urged her. “Let your imagination run free.”

“We'd... We'd still live here in Ponyville,” Twilight said more confidently. “Maybe Canterlot. That way Rainbow can be close to Cloudsdale for her training with the Wonderbolts, and I could stay close to the Princesses. I'll help Rainbow optimize her performance so she can be the best flyer Equestria's ever seen! We'd have to live in a home spacious enough for Rainbow to fly through without my personal library and clutter getting in the way, and we'll need a couple of oak trees in the yard for us to nap in...” Unbeknownst to Twilight, she was smiling as she stared out the window at the plains that bordered Ponyville's northern boundary. “We'll have nachos every Thursday. I'll make sure to stock up on zap apple jam every year, since I know how much she loves her peanut butter and zap apple jam sandwiches...”

“I think we both get the point,” Rarity interrupted. “And without her?”

“Oh.” The expression of whimsy disappeared from Twilight's muzzle as she paused to think about it. “I don't know,” she said slowly. “Golden Oak Library, I guess.”

She leveled a bland look at her. “Are you willing to give up on those dreams for 'the library, I guess'?”

Slowly the smile crept back onto Twilight's muzzle. “No...”

“Then don't,” she said simply. “Chase your dream. Go to her and be the best wife you can be.”

“Do you think I...” The weight of her words settled onto Twilight's shoulders, making her flinch. “W-wife?” she stammered. “Isn't it a little too soon to be talking like that?”

“It's never too soon to think about it,” Rarity scoffed. “After all, what would be the point of persuing a relationship if you know the two of you don't have a chance of lasting the year?”

Twilight lowered her eyes to the floor. “To be honest, I have thought about it,” she said finally. “Despite our differences, I think the two of us might...” She trailed off with another blush.

The fashionista gave her a knowing wink backed by all the wisdom a lifetime of beauty magazines could share. “You think so?” she said slyly.

“I don't know,” Twi said hurriedly. “It was just an idle thought.”

Rarity chuckled softly. “Oh, to be so... so blissfully innocent...” Her jaws cracked wide, eliciting a whimper as the raw skin of her left cheek stretched. “I think you're right,” she said thoughtfully. “You know, Twilight, you might find that you and Rainbow Dash aren't so different after all.”

“You think so?” she asked shyly.

“I know so,” Rarity assured her.

Twilight slowly nodded. “I... I think I know it too,” she grinned. “You really think it'll work?”

“What I think is not important, Twilight,” she reminded the unicorn. “All that matters is what you and... and Rainbow...” Another yawn made her groan. “What you two think. But I suppose it truly is time I get some rest,” she said, unable to hide her disappointment. “Visiting hours ended half an hour ago.”

Twilight climbed down from the bed. “Are you sure you don't need anything?” she asked. “Some juice, maybe?”

Rarity shook her head as much as the bandages would allow. “Your understanding is all I needed,” she said softly.

Twilight smiled. “Thank you, Rarity.”

“No, Twilight,” her friend mumbled as she drifted away. “Thank you.”

Twilight left her to her slumber and shut the door on the past. As she turned to see the faces of her friends, friends once more now that this was over and done, she saw joy, relief, contentment... She could imagine she saw the future.

The future looked bright.

“Rainbow Dash?”

The pegasus's ears perked up. “What's up?” She buzzed over the other mares to land before her. “Is everything gonna be okay between you two?” Rainbow asked.

Twilight nodded. Her four friends sighed, relieved. “Did you hear any of that?”

Rainbow shook her head. “I thought you wanted some privacy.”

“I heard it!” Pinkie exclaimed.

“You had your ear to the door the whole time,” Rainbow said accusingly.

The shameless filly giggled without argument. She rubbed her hooves together, rested her elbows on Applejack's back, and let her chin fall into her hooves. “Oh, this is gonna be good!” she said with a dreamy smile.

Everypony's eyes were on Twilight, but hers were on Rainbow Dash. There was no reason for her to be nervous; finally, she knew exactly what to do. “Ask me again,” she said softly.

“What? You mean 'what's up?'” Twilight shook her head. Rainbow's eyes widened and her jaw creaked open. “Then you mean...?” The words as quiet and nervous as a mouse.

Twilight grinned shyly and nodded.

A huge smile lit up Rainbow's muzzle and her hooves danced on the linoleum. “Juvie mob a supper somepony!” she squealed happily.

Twilight snorted and couldn't hold back her laughter. Rainbow blushed furiously, but soon joined her in it. “I mean...” She held a hoof to her mouth and tried to temper her amusement. “I mean do you...”

“Close enough,” Pinkie giggled.

Twilight was laughing too hard to speak. Instead she nodded vigorously and pulled Rainbow into a tight and tender hug. Rainbow's giggles rose in pitch and her shaking turned to trembling.

“Aww,” Pinkie and Applejack chorused. Fluttershy brushed away a tear.

Rainbow clung to her like a life ring as the waves of her emotions threatened to pull her under. Twilight squeezed her right back until her laughter subsided. “I don't know what the future will bring,” she whispered, “but I want to face it with you, Rainbow Dash.”

“Me too,” Rainbow muttered, fighting to keep her voice level in spite of the dampness she left in Twilight's mane. “I love you.”

She squeezed her eyes shut and beamed over Rainbow's shoulder. “I... I love you too.”

Pinkie clapped her hooves. “That was beautiful!” she sighed. Her appreciation was short-lived. She bounced off of her friend's back and pranced across the room. “Well, how about those milkshakes now?” she asked. “My treat!”

Rainbow shook her head. “I'm beat, Pinks,” she sighed. “Rain check?”

“Maybe tomorrow,” Twilight agreed.

“Rain check it is,” Pinkie said. “I understand. I bet you two want to get to bed, huh?” She nudged Applejack with an elbow. “Know what I mean?” she said with a sleazy wink.

Twilight nodded. “That sounds good.” She released Rainbow and the two dropped to their own hooves, but before they'd taken two steps they were glued shoulder to shoulder and flank to flank. “Goodnight, girls!”

“I bet it will be,” Pinkie Pie winked.

If Applejack had still had her hat, she would have thwapped her with it. “You too,” she chuckled.

“Sweet dreams, girls!” Fluttershy added.

“Hey Twilight,” Rainbow said hopefully as she held the door open for her unicorn, “my cloud house is, uh... it's kinda far, you know?”

“Of course you can stay at the library.” she replied. “You don't even have to ask.”

“Called it!” Pinkie crowed. The door muffled Applejack's reply, but it sounded like a doozy.

The couple sauntered slowly down the hallway, blushing brightly at each look they got from the other visitors but unwilling to separate. “So we're dating now,” Twilight said, tasting the phrase on her tongue.

“Yep,” Rainbow replied. “I'm... I'm happy you, um...”

“Me too,” Twilight agreed.

The two shared an awkward silence.

Rainbow peered at her from the corner of her eye. “Um... Okay, before we do anything I just want to ask...”

“What's that?”

“You know, you and me... It isn't going to be like it was when I was sick, is it?” she asked worriedly. “'Cause I'm okay with doing things for you once in a while, but...”

Twilight snickered.

Epilogue

The two staggered through the library's front door for the first time in forever. Rainbow Dash was supporting Twilight's weight, and though she wouldn't admit it Rainbow was grateful for the stability given to her by the body leaning into hers. The library felt empty in Spike's absence - he and a pair of fillies were keeping Rarity's little sister company at her parents' place - but Twilight welcomed the silence. The day had been long and the week longer; the only thing on either of their minds was a good night's sleep.

No, not the only thing. The two sat at the edge of Twilight's little bed and shared an awkward silence. Twi looked backward at the mattress, which was big enough for two if those two were quite comfortable with each other. “Should I pull out a guest mattress?” Twi asked finally.

“No, it's fine,” Rainbow said with a dismissive wave of her hoof. “U-unless you want to, I mean.”

The unicorn shook her head. “I don't mind sharing.”

“Cool.”

The two simply sat, looking at fixtures and their hooves as much as each other.

Rainbow scratched at her scalp. “So, yeah,” she said slowly. “What now?”

“I don't know,” Twilight replied just as uncertainly. “I was sure you'd have some kind of plan.”

“Oh,” she chuckled awkwardly. “Well, Twilight, to be honest...” Her hoof went back to her mane, but this time it was between the two ponies. “I talk a big game, but I've never had a serious fillyfriend before.”

“Don't worry, Rainbow, I've never had one at all,” Twilight laughed.

“Not that I'm nervous or anything,” Rainbow reminded her unicorn.

Twi turned her head to hide a smile. “Of course not. Everypony knows Rainbow 'Danger' Dash isn't afraid of anything.”

Rainbow's lips tightened at Twilight's sarcastic snipe. “Don't rub it in,” she muttered.

Twilight patted her shoulder. “It's okay to be nervous, you know.” Her pegasus nodded, but didn't meet her eyes. “To be honest, I'm so nervous I'm surprised I haven't thrown up yet.”

Rainbow let out a startled laugh. “Ew, Twilight,” she said with a poke to her shoulder. “Way to kill the mood.” But at least she was smiling again.

“I'm serious! I've had these butterflies in my stomach since we sat down. ” Rainbow just shook her head and chuckled. “But since we're on the subject, you know... Well, we're...” She shifted uncomfortably. “Are we serious?” she asked nervously. “I mean, I know we just started dating an hour ago but we've been friends forever, and after the week we've had... Well...” Her muzzle shifted from an anxious frown to an even more anxious smile and back in the space of a second. “Are we?”

“I hope so,” Rainbow said honestly.

“And it's not like we haven't slept together before, anyway,” she continued – Rainbow's cheeks and nose quickly turned beet red as her thoughts ran away with her – “so it shouldn't be weird. The only difference is that we get to sleep in a bed this time instead of on the ground.”

“Yeah.” Up went the hoof. Twilight, ever one to notice a stray detail, paused and looked at her critically. “What?” she asked uncomfortably. “Is there something in my mane? Are the colors all mixed up again?”

“Oh!” Twi said suddenly. “That's why you've been scratching it so much.”

She turned to inspect her flight feathers. “Yep, that's probably why...”

“Would you like me to brush the tangles out of your mane before bed?” Twilight asked eagerly. “You know, so it isn't a big mess when you wake up?”

Rainbow shrank into herself a bit. “I-if you want,” she said with a nervous chuckle.

The hazy pink light of Twilight's magic enveloped the handle of the brush and brought it to bear against the base of her marefriend's scalp. She began to run it along Rainbow's neck in slow, smooth strokes. “Sorry if that sounded... you know... mean. It's not a big mess.”

“You're fine.”

She chuckled again. “You know, I've brushed my friends' manes before, but it's different when it's with your marefriend, isn't it?” she said conversationally. “I wonder why. I mean, it's just brushing your mane. What's the big deal?”

Rainbow grunted. Her eyes were closed and she was wearing a grin of contentment. A loud popping noise put an end to that, though, as the brush snagged on a particularly bad snarl and yanked at her scalp. “Ow! Hey!” she yelped.

Twilight winced. “Sorry,” she muttered with a self-conscious grin.

“It's okay. Just be careful back there, okay?” Rainbow patted her mane. “I might not be as crazy about my mane as Rarity, but I still want it to all be there!”

After a moment Twilight grunted distractedly and the brush resumed its course.

Even Rainbow could tell that something had changed, but she couldn't tell just what that was. “So, uh... Speaking of Rarity, it looks like you patched things up with her,” she tried. “That's good, right?”

The brush dug deeper into her scalp. “Let's not talk about her,” Twilight muttered.

She frowned uncomfortably. “But you seemed okay–”

“Not now, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight barked. “Okay? It's...” She exhaled heavily through her nose. “It's complicated,” she mumbled uncertainly. She tried to focus on the manebrush, but it distracted her enough to allow the words to escape. “I mean, I forgive her, I really do, and I want to be her friend again, but it's going to take some time for everything to get back to...” She sighed. “Can we just talk about happier things for right now?” she pleaded.

“Yeah, of course,” Rainbow said hastily. “I'm just making conversation.”

Twilight patted her hip awkwardly. “I'm sorry I snapped at you.”

“It's cool,” she nodded. “I get it– Ow!” The brush caught in another snarl and jerked her head back. “Watch it, Twi!”

“Sorry! I didn't think it'd be this bad!”

The two lapsed into silence; the only sound to be heard was that of the brush separating strands of the pegasus's prismatic mane into some semblance of order.

Suddenly Rainbow Dash began to laugh.

Twilight frowned at the back of her head. “What's so funny?” she asked.

“You didn't think it'd be this bad,” she chuckled. “We just spent a few days fighting and sleeping in the dirt, that's all!”

Twi couldn't decide whether to be offended or not. If it was a joke, it was a bad one...

But then she got it, and gales of laughter shook her so hard she almost fell off of the bed. She curled up around her fillyfriend and clung to her for support.

Rainbow giggled beneath her weight. “Omigosh, Twilight... You won your first dogfight!”

“By Celestia's mane, how did we make it through the week?” she wondered, giggling madly. She wrapped her forehooves around her marefriend's sides, taking care not to trap her wings or irritate her sore muzzle. “I can't believe we actually did all of that. We could have gotten ourselves killed!”

“Wow, Twi. Just...” Rainbow collapsed sideways and Twilight rolled over her. Latched on as she was, the unicorn ended up laying with her belly against Rainbow's, who was laughing hard enough to shake Twilight. “Omigosh. That was so stupid of us.”

Eventually shock and adrenaline began to fade into relief. “We did it!” Twilight crowed. “I don't know how, but we did it. And you know what? I never could have gone through any of it without you at my side.” She nuzzled Rainbow's cheek with her own. “Thanks for sticking with me.”

Rainbow rubbed a hoof up and down the unicorn's back. “No problem,” she said smoothly, but Twilight could sense an underlying layer to her words, an intensity that Rainbow fought to hide. The hoof tightened around her. “Thanks for not giving up on me.”

“I could never give up on you, Rainbow Dash.”

The pegasus smiled and looked away. After a moment she glanced back at Twilight and saw her staring at her from the corner of her eye. “Here,” Rainbow said awkwardly. She pushed at her fillyfriend's shoulders. “Turn around.”

She raised an eyebrow at her, but Twi did as she was asked. “Why?” she asked slowly. Then she felt the bristles of the hairbrush against her scalp. She let out a little grunt of surprise.

“Sorry if I'm no good,” Rainbow said quickly. “I don't really do this kind of thing.”

“I'm sure it'll be fine,” Twilight assured her as the brush traveled down her neck. “It's not hard.”

“Yeah, maybe not for you,” she muttered. Twilight turned her head just far enough to look at her from the corner of her eye. She was squinting in concentration; she looked as though her tongue would poke through her teeth at any moment. Twi thought she was adorable, but she knew better than to tell Rainbow that.

Suddenly the brush met a clump hidden behind Twi's ear and halted, but Rainbow wasn't having any of it. “Ow,” Twilight said pointedly as her head was jerked backward.

Rainbow gave her a crooked smile and a few more tugs. “Hold on, I'm almost...”

“Ow, ow, ow! Wait!”

Rainbow's hoof darted away from the brush as if it had burned her. It stayed wedged in Twilight's mane.

“No, it's alright,” Twilight said hastily. She levitated the brush away from her scalp and back into Rainbow's hooves. “But when you find a big knot like this one, you have to be careful not to irritate the scalp,” she advised. “Try working it out from the bottom first.”

“Like...” The brush eventually returned to her mane. “Like this?” A series of short, choppy swipes tugged hairs free of the bottom of the knot.

“That's fine.” It only took Rainbow another minute or so to handle the clump, and by the time it was done Twilight was feeling a little sore but content; she was losing herself in the rhythm of the brush's strokes.

“Am I doing alright?” Rainbow asked eventually.

“You're great,” Twi said muzzily.

“'Cause I think I'm about done.” The brush pulled back and Rainbow moved her hooves into Twilight's mane, fluffing it out and checking for missed snarls. “What do you think?”

Twilight lifted a hoof to her mane and smoothed it down. She thought the pegasus had parted her mane around her horn differently than she usually did, but until she saw it in a mirror, who was she to say no? “You did a great job,” Twilight smiled. “Thank you, Dashie.”

Rainbow flinched.

Her eyebrows lifted in confusion. “What's wrong, Rainbow Da...” Twilight's eyes widened as she realized what she'd done. “Oh my goodness,” the unicorn breathed. “I'm so, so sorry! I didn't mean to...”

“It's okay,” her marefriend said casually. She bounced her hooves on her knees, maybe following a rhythm but likely not. “I know you didn't mean it like that.”

“It's just a habit,” she said, her mouth moving of its own volition. “I don't actually want you to be like that, I swear. You don't have to change for me. I like you just the way you are!”

“Yeah,” Rainbow said shortly. She leaned toward Twilight, though not without a moment's hesitation, and wrapped her forelegs around her unicorn's barrel.

Twilight looked down at her marefriend with anxious eyes. “Rainbow Dash, you're shaking.”

Just like that she was off on her own side of the bed. “Am not,” she said angrily. “You are.”

“Is this too weird?” Twilight blurted out.

Rainbow blinked, then blinked again. She fought to hold onto her poker face.

“If it's too weird for you, just say it. I know you went through a lot with me and you must be feeling some mixed emotions right now. That's okay,” Twilight assured her. “To be honest, I expected as much. So if you need some time to... I don't know, see if we can work through them on a more casual level, then I'll accept that.”

Rainbow opened her muzzle to speak, but it came out as a faint squeak. She tried to work some moisture into her mouth. “Twilight, I just wanted you to...” She shook her head.

“What is it, Rainbow Dash?” she asked, concerned. “You can tell me.”

The pegasus's frown took on a sickly twist. “I don't want time. I just want to know that you like me for who I am, n-not who I was then...”

Twilight's heart sank. “Oh, Rainbow. Of course I do! I didn't fall for the Rainbow Dash that Cappuccino gave to me. I fell for the one I knew was buried underneath.”

“I know there's something there,” Rainbow said with a shrug. “I guess I'm just worried you care more about that Rainbow Dash than the real one.”

Twi grabbed her cheeks and spun the pegasus towards her. “Rainbow Dash, I don't want that pegasus and I never will,” she said. “Ever.”

Rainbow's brows drew down. “Why not?”

“Because that Rainbow Dash was too easy,” Twi said bluntly. “She did everything I ever asked as soon as I asked. If I'd have said 'jump', she would have, even if I told her to jump in front of a train. It was hard to watch, Rainbow Dash, and even harder knowing that I had that kind of power over you. To be honest...” Her eyelid twitched and some moisture balanced itself upon her lower lid. “It was terrifying. I might be good at making checklists and coordinating events, but to have that kind of control over a pony?”

“But you're always trying to change me and the girls,” Rainbow argued. Twi's jaw dropped, and Rainbow raised her hooves placatingly. “I'm not saying it like it's a bad thing,” she said. “I'm just saying, wouldn't you take advantage of that just to, I don't know, make Pinkie stop being so random, or make Rarity stop being such a drama queen?”

“No!” The force of her feelings surprised even her. “Why would I take away a key part of what makes my friends who they are?” She took Rainbow Dash's forehoof in both of their own. “An important part of building and maintaining friendships is accepting and growing to love the ways in which other ponies are different. I wouldn't want Pinkie to stop being so random, because then she wouldn't be our Pinkie anymore. If she did change, I would accept it, but that is her choice to make and I know I'd miss that part of her for a long, long time. Nor would I force Rarity to calm down and stop worrying so much, as much as I'd like to sometimes.” Twilight smiled and shook her head. “The same goes for you. If you want to change something about yourself, that is your decision. I cannot and will not make it for you.”

Rainbow put her other hoof atop Twilight's. “But a pony like me... I know I'm crazy and careless and I do really stupid things a lot of the time, and most of them end up in messes that you have to help me clean up. You shouldn't have to deal with that.”

“Rainbow, are you saying you want to be more like that Rainbow Dash?”

The pegasus hesitated. “I... Yeah. If that's what you want.”

“But I want you to be yourself, Rainbow!” she exclaimed. “I'll admit that you can be a pain sometimes, just as I'm sure I can be a bore, or picky, or stubborn, or... or all kinds of things. Everypony has their flaws, Rainbow, but your flaws are outnumbered by the things I love about you.” She smiled as memories of happier times danced through her mind. “You know, your carefree spirit and your tendency to rush ahead without thinking used to irritate me – they still do, sometimes – but now that I know you as well as I do, I can understand those parts of you and I can respect them. When I hear you talking about some new stunt that's probably going to get you killed someday I still get nervous, but I feel something else too.”

A corner of Rainbow's mouth had begun to lift, and her eyes were shining. “What's that?” she asked.

“Pride,” Twilight answered. “You're the gutsiest pony I've ever met. You're also one of the most spontaneous, which has saved me from countless uneventful days at the library. I like the sense of adventure you carry with you. It makes me feel alive!” she said excitedly; her eyes were shining too. “ I know that we'll both have to change a little for this relationship, but neither of us should have to lose part of ourselves to it. If you lost that just so I wouldn't have to worry so much, or if you stopped butting heads with me and made yourself into a doormat, I don't know what I'd do. I'm sure of one thing, though...” She pulled Rainbow's foreleg until the mare slid closer to her, eventually onto her thigh. She was trembling again; Twilight could feel her feathers vibrating against her shoulder. Twilight released her hoof and wrapped her own around her withers. “Even if you end up as boring as me, I'd still love you, Rainbow Dash.”

Rainbow laughed, and with the laughter came tears of joy. “And even if you end up as crazy as me, I'd still love you too, Twilight.”

Neither moved in for a kiss. Neither felt she had to. They were comfortable and they were happy. The two mares held each other for as long as it took for their tears to dry and for longer, and soon they were asleep in each others' hooves.

Tomorrow would be a new day, and Ponyville's newest couple would rise to face it as equals, hoof in hoof.

Author's Note

Well, everypony, that's that. 'Miss Sparkle, Psychopath' has reached its end... well, an ending anyway. At the time I post this epilogue 'Miss Sparkle' has garnered over two hundred fifty likes and three hundred fifty faves and you've all been talking and debating and having a good time... and hay, somepony even drew me some cover art! I never expected that. I suppose a lot of you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

There has been something of a stir, however, about the path I steered this story toward and I promised you an explanation. When the first act led many of you to believe that Twilight was truly the madpony behind the story's events, you expected a grimdark story with a Shyamalan-style plot twist at the end. When I began act two by convincing you that Twilight was innocent, so many of you immediately latched onto the idea that Rarity, her main antagonist, was the culprit, and expected a violent and possibly gruesome finish that might just destroy the Elements of Harmony forever. Then I introduced Cappuccino. The metaphorical shit hit the imaginary fan.

Well, that's not very fair of me. Most of you took it quite well, even those of you who voiced in no uncertain terms your disappointment. I know that it didn't follow your expectations. I never wanted to write you a grimdark tale of corruption or another Megalomaniacal Twilight story. I wanted to write something that caused you to break your faith and then showed you how wrong you were to lose it. I took you to the darkness and then I shattered it... Why? So that you could see the light again. I wanted to show you that even if your faith is broken, even if your world falls from beneath your hooves, there is still hope. Just as Twilight Sparkle found comfort in Rainbow Dash's loyal hooves, I know that in times of trouble a pony can find refuge in the tender grasp of a good friend.

Dear Princess Celestia...

It's a lesson I learned rather recently myself. All through my school days I had three friends or four at a time and I wasn't very close to any of them. I was afraid to ask for anything more, because friendship hurt. I had a friend growing up, a twin brother; to this day I still can't look at him without feeling the bile rise into my throat. I had a friend when I was nine; by ten, they'd ditched me for another group that thought I didn't fit in. I had a friend when I was twelve; I was thirteen when they died. After that I gave up. Two years later I was homeschooled and suicidal, and the year after that I had my first public nervous breakdown.

Then, after a few years passed, I left my parents' place for the first and only time. I took charge of my life; I rented a room and I got a job. I started to find something like friendship with one or two of my coworkers. I talked, I laughed, I climbed buildings and played video games. I don't know how it happened... It all felt so natural. All I know is that one month I was ready to sheathe the sword and the next I couldn't dream of abandoning my new friends like that, nor would I want to! Now I have a little circle of friends that I think of more as family, and I'm happy and in love and just generally having a good time with life.

What am I trying to say here? Same thing as in the story, really. Much like day and night, the darkness is a part of life, and if you live through the night you will, I promise you will, see the daylight again.

I know that many of you won't have gathered anything of the sort from this little story of mine. It's just a TwiDash shipfic, right? Just a botched mystery? Just a contest entry? Well, who says a story has to be just that? No matter what you take from this, though, I hope you enjoyed 'Miss Sparkle', I hope my explanation gave you some kind of appreciation for my choices, and I hope the darkness doesn't last for long. Thanks for reading, everypony.

~Adda le Blue