When Forever Ends

Chapters

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1

She'd done this before. Why couldn't she do it again?

This spell was less complicated than the one Star Swirl the Bearded had left unfinished, for Twilight Sparkle to fix it. The spell she was rewriting now was not a task from Princess Celestia. She had made the decision on her own. She was only trying to fix the spell sending a pony back in time, to make it last longer. It could prove useful in some kind of emergency. Twilight, as a princess, now had easy access to the documents of the Canterlot Archives, including the secure Star Swirl the Bearded wing, and it was no trouble retrieving the instructions for this time traveling spell. But it was way more complicated than she expected, and even after a week she'd only had half of it figured out.

But Twilight was getting somewhere. If her calculations were correct, she was now able to stay in the past for at least three minutes longer than the original spell had allowed. She worried that extending the time length too much would endanger whoever was performing the spell somehow. She knew better than anypony else that magic worked in strange ways. She could end up stuck in some alternate dimension, or stay in the past for much longer than she intended. She could somehow add to the spell so somepony would be able to travel back to the present if they needed to, but she would have to extend the time limit for that to actually have a real point. She'd come up with that idea not long after she returned to Golden Oaks Library late that night with the document, but in the past week she'd been focused on extending the time limit.

She felt somewhat guilty for it. Every day Twilight's friends would check in on her. Twilight had taken a few breaks to spend some time with them, since it would feel wrong if she chose the spell over her friends, but when at home, if not eating or sleeping she was always working on the spell. She'd told her friends what she was doing, of course--they could've easily found out within a week anyway--and a few of them were worried about it.

"A spell like that could easily go wrong if tampered with," Rarity had pointed out.

"I'm not tampering with it," Twilight had argued. "I'm revising it. Extending the time limit in the spell will be useful in certain cases."

"Are you really sure you wanna mess with time?" Applejack asked.

"Yeah, what if you end up rising the dead or something?" Rainbow Dash added.

Twilight sighed. "I'm dedicating all of my time away from you guys to perfecting it so it can't go wrong. I'll test it. Several times."

"We just don't want you to get hurt." Fluttershy had had a firmer voice than usual. It was odd; Twilight knew Fluttershy had concern for her friends' safety, but she'd never stricken her as the overprotective type.

"You were a teensy bit singed when you did the spell last time," Pinkie Pie had reasoned, as if she knew what Twilight was wondering. "We all know that. I mean, what would it do if you changed it?"

After a bit more arguing, Twilight had realized that it was getting late and she had to get back to the library.

In the present, Twilight then realized that she could probably test the spell and be able to stay in the past for about three minutes, before returning against her will. Just then, Spike entered the library. He was holding a book, which was good news; Twilight had sent him to fetch an overdue book from Sweetie Belle.

"Hi, Spike," she greeted him, looking up from the parchment. "Did she say why she hadn't returned it?"

Spike shook his head. "I didn't ask." As he walked over to the appropriate shelf, he asked, "How's the spell going?"

"I was just about to test it," Twilight replied.

"Right now? Are you sure?" Although Spike had been much more enthusiastic about Twilight's project than her other friends, he did not completely lack concern for her safety.

Twilight nodded. "If my calculations are correct, I should be back in the present in about three minutes."

Spike backed up against the wall and nodded in response, probably trying to stay at a safe distance. Twilight glanced at the spell, memorizing it again before closing her eyes and focusing her magical energy.

She had to know when and where, and put all of her focus onto that. Or at least, that's how the spell was supposed to work. She felt the wind around her and sensed the blinding white glow. She began to feel a bit lighter in weight before she she felt all of her senses become null, for a short period of time. She felt the ground again pretty soon. It felt as if she was lying on solid rubble.

But that couldn't be right. Twilight had traveled one week in the past, at midnight, on her balcony. She should be feeling a wooden floor.

Unless the spell went wrong.

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2

Twilight was afraid to open her eyes. Who knew what could happen if the spell went wrong? For all she knew, she could have ended up outside of the time continuum or something. She could be right in the middle of nowhere.

She then heard a voice calling her name from nearby. It was quite familiar. She quickly recognized Spike, who rushed over to her. "Are you okay?"

Twilight nodded, but she kept her eyes tightly shut. She figured it must be the Spike from whatever time period she had teleported herself to. In that case, it shouldn't have been too far in the past or future, since Spike sounded exactly the same as he did in the present.

That was Twilight's theory, until Spike added, "Did the spell go wrong?"

At that, Twilight's eyes flew open. She was lying on her side, and Spike was standing beside her, looking down at her with concern and mild panic in his green eyes. She was afraid to look around her yet. "You came with me?"

Spike nodded. "I guess. This looks nothing like Ponyville."

Twilight pushed herself up to a sitting position and, feeling her rapid heartbeat, scanned over her surroundings. It seemed like the town was just shades of gray. The houses were worn, but not abandoned--Twilight noted that some had lights and voices inside--and any trees were bare. Some of the buildings were destroyed, like the one that Twilight was lying in the rubble of at that moment. Since the surrounding buildings seemed so different she couldn't tell exactly which were destroyed, but if she did nail down the location of her teleporting, the rubble was probably of her library. It was a reasonable conclusion, she realized, now that she noticed a few dead leaves and broken branches scattered around her and Spike.

"Was there a war?" Twilight asked, her voice quiet with fascination.

"There are still ponies living here," Spike told her. "We could ask them what's going on."

"Would they believe us if we said that we're from what could be centuries ago?"

Spike shrugged. "Is it at least worth a shot?"

"I guess." Twilight scanned the area again. "Where should we go first? We have no idea how far into the future or past this is, so we also have no idea if our friends are still alive or not, or even of they've been born."

"We could just wing it."

Twilight nodded. She stood up. She was actually a bit afraid to go to one of the houses, for fear of who might be living there. She could discover something awful just by going inside.

Spike poked her. "You're shaking."

Twilight took a deep breath. "O-okay. Let's go."

They stepped out of the rubble and approached the closest house which had the lights on. Twilight hesitantly knocked on the wooden door, surprisingly still intact. She heard hoofsteps rushing toward the door, which soon creaked open. A stallion was standing there. He looked about twice Twilight's age, and he had dark circles under his eyes. In the dark, Twilight couldn't make out what color he was, but he seemed orange.

"What?" His voice was extremely rough, as if he had eaten a bowl of gravel for breakfast.

Twilight blinked. "Um...how do I put this...I was just wondering--"

The stallion scowled. "I've no business with the poor, 'kay, filly? Why don'tcha hang around with her and beg for money?"

"N-no, that's not--"

He proceeded to slam the door. Twilight glanced down at Spike. "Who is she?"

"Was Sandy giving you trouble?"

They turned around to look further down a street. A mare in a worn, dark lavender cloak was watching them. "Was he talking about you?" Twilight asked.

The mare nodded. "If you could just join me, I'll try to help you out."

Twilight doubted she could, but she gestured for Spike to follow her down the street anyway. As Twilight got closer, she noticed the mare was white, with blue eyes. She was a bit startled by this. I'd ask, but it's a bit too soon.

But the mare's eyes widened as she got a better look of Twilight. She looked over her and Spike for a few moments, then asked, her voice trembling, "W-what are your names?"

"I'm Twilight Sparkle," she introduced herself, though she had a feeling she didn't have much need to say this. "And this is Spike."

The mare stared, then smiled a little, her eyes shimmering. She pulled back the hood of her cloak to reveal her curled, dark violet mane. It was a little unkempt, but not too much. "It's been ten years, Twilight."

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3

"This must be ten years in the future," Twilight said to Spike. That eased her a little bit. She turned back to the mare, whom she was now certain that she was none other than Rarity. "So, um..."

Rarity nodded. "So we were correct after all."

Twilight stared curiously.

Rarity continued. "When Rainbow Dash went over to visit you on that day, she noticed you and Spike had vanished. She told the rest of us to join her and observe it because there was a big singe on the floor beside the table with the parchment."

"So what did you do?" Twilight asked.

"Some of us panicked," Rarity replied, "but after we soothed each other we came to the conclusion that your little time traveling spell went wrong somehow."

"How did you know that I wasn't just gone temporarily?"

Rarity sighed. "I saw a flash from your library, but I knew what was going on then so I didn't check up on you. Therefore, I knew when you cast the spell, and when Rainbow Dash discovered the singe on the floor, it was hours later." She paused. "And it turns out the time you traveled to...was here...?"

"Apparently." Twilight looked down at her hooves. "It's fascinating how what seems like a split second could be as long as a decade."

Rarity had aged. She did not have the appearance of an elder, but her eyes were less vibrant, a more grayish shade of blue, and her voice was slightly deeper. She broke what was about to be a long silence with that voice. "You must be concerned. I haven't seen any of our friends in a while, except Fluttershy, but as far as I know, they are all alive."

Twilight blinked in surprise. "Y-you haven't seen them in a while? What do you mean?"

Rarity gestured to her cloak. "As you can probably tell, I've lost my home. I have to try and scrape up what money I can, so I don't have time for much else. I don't even know where they all are." She hesitated. "I have no clue where Pinkie Pie and Applejack are. I haven't seen them since last year."

"But how did this happen?" Twilight asked. "Surely Ponyville can cope without us around, right?"

"It was a big deal all around Equestria," Rarity told her. "A princess had vanished and it wasn't long before you were presumed dead. And some ponies decided to take advantage of that."

"How?"

A tear leaked out of one of Rarity's eyes. "Let us just say...if you don't count yourself, there are no princesses left in Equestria."

Twilight and Spike gasped. Since Twilight found herself unable to ask, Spike did: "You mean Celestia...and Luna and Cadence--"

"They were killed off, one by one, by invaders. They attacked as soon as they knew we were all too stricken with grief for you to properly defend ourselves. And then they proceeded to ruin us."

Twilight fought her tears. "And all of Equestria is..."

"Ruined. Possibly forever." Rarity sat down. "They're gone now because they accomplished their mission. I don't know why they did it."

Twilight wiped her eyes. "Thank you for talking to me. Do you mind telling me...you were implying you knew where to find Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, so..."

Rarity nodded. "They aren't faring much better than I am, I'm afraid. You won't be able to talk to Rainbow Dash right now; she's in the asylum."

"You mean she's lost her sanity?"

"It's hard to believe that someone like her could be traumatized so badly." Rarity let a tear slide down the edge of her cloak. "You might be ableto see her later, though. Though you won't have much luck getting information out of her."

"And Fluttershy?"

Rarity sighed, and pointed. Twilight turned to see she was pointing toward the house where Twilight had encountered the rude stallion. She glanced back at Rarity. "You're not saying--"

"She has a home, unlike me. And that's it."

Twilight glanced down at Spike, who seemed just as surprised as she was. She sighed and began to approach the house.

"You shouldn't use the door," Spike advised her. "After that encounter, you know?"

Twilight nodded. She decided to approach the one open window instead. There was light coming from the room, so as Twilight approached she was able to clearly see a young gray colt quietly crying on a small, weak-looking bed.

Twilight tapped against the windowsill. "E-excuse me?"

The colt glanced up, his face streaked with a trail of tears from his teal eyes. They were full of fear for a split second, then he seemed to calm down a little. He approached the window. "Y-you should leave. Daddy doesn't like the homeless."

"Don't worry about me," Twilight told him. "Do you happen to know a pony named Fluttershy?"

The colt nodded. "She--" He stopped, looking startled.

Twilight glanced behind her, but no one was there besides Spike, who was watching with curiosity. She glanced back at the colt. "What is it?"

"A-are you a princess?"

Twilight nodded. She was a bit used to this. Back in the present, some young ponies acted as if she was a goddess.

But the colt's reason for his surprise was different than what Twilight thought. "Mommy says princesses don't exist anymore."

Twilight hesitated, then Spike reminded her from behind, "Rarity told us about that, remember?"

"Oh, right." Twilight looked into the colt's eyes with as much seriousness as possible. "Look. I need to find a pony named Fluttershy. I was told she lives here. Do you live here too?"

He nodded. Just then, his bedroom door opened. Twilight saw the same stallion from earlier enter the room. His dark mane was unkempt, and his coat was dark gold. He looked angrily at the colt. "Dusk, didn't I tell you 'bout talking to the homeless?"

Fear filled Dusk's teal eyes, apparently fear that stopped him from replying.

The stallion trotted over to window and looked Twilight in the eye. "Look, filly, we got no business with you. You tryin' to get money out of my son here?" He then glared at Dusk. "And you...you come with me to the living room."

Dusk glanced at Twilight, whispering an apology before his father slammed the window shut. Twilight had to quickly pull her forehooves away. She then glanced back at Spike.

"Should we break in?" he asked.

Twilight nodded. "Fluttershy's in here somewhere, and I'm afraid I know why."

"Is she his mother?" Spike asked.

"Most likely. The colt was young enough to have been born in the past ten years. But why would Fluttershy want to have foals with someone like that?"

"We can ask her when we find her."

Twilight nodded. She shot a beam through the window, which shattered into the bedroom. The beam hit the wall opposite the window and singed it.

She blinked. "I hope Dusk understands." She climbed in through the window, and Spike did the same after she was inside the bedroom. She then walked through the open door and heard voices.

"S-Someone broke in!" This was definitely the voice of Fluttershy. It sounded slightly older, but it was still Fluttershy.

"You tryin' to get me to leave the room?" Dusk's father asked angrily. "I ain't going nowhere till you talk to me!"

"J-just keep our son away!"

"Stop hurting Mommy!" Dusk cried.

Twilight took a few quiet steps closer. She saw Dusk watching his parents, crying again. His father was pinning Fluttershy to the wall.

Fluttershy looked as if she had been beaten several times by her husband, given the bruises scattered on her body. She had a scar across her chest, and her body looked frail, as if she wasn't eating enough. Her discolored eyes had dark circles underneath them, and from them streamed tears. She was the only one who noticed Twilight standing there, but she quickly looked away.

I've been gone for ten years, Twilight reminded herself. She probably thinks I'm an illusion or something.

The stallion quickly took something from the nearby table. As soon as Twilight noticed the silver gleam of a knife, she panicked and shot another beam at him. She put more power and energy in it than her usual beams, enough to knock him out. His knife clattered on the floor as he fell with it.

Both Fluttershy and Dusk glanced over at Twilight, who approached them. She looked at Fluttershy. After a long silence, she said, "Um, hi."

"T-Twilight?" Fluttershy whispered, disbelieving.

Dusk gasped. "Y-you're the princess Mommy was friends with?"

"Yes." Twilight glanced at Spike, who was just now entering the room, then back at Fluttershy. "So...um...how are you...?"

Spike rolled his eyes. "Twilight, you kind of just saw her about to get stabbed by her husband."

"Oh. Right." Twilight hesitated. "Um...well..."

"You time traveled here?" Fluttershy asked softly.

"Yes." Twilight wiped a tear from one of Fluttershy's shocked eyes. "Why did you marry this stallion?"

"He used to be different." She glanced at the unconscious body lying nearby. "He...he helped me. He gives me a home and he gives me food."

"He clearly doesn't give you enough food," Twilight replied, glancing at Fluttershy's frail body.

She nodded, a little sadly. "That's why Pinkie secretly gives me food when Sandy isn't looking."

"Is Sandy your husband?"

"His name is actually Sandstorm. But I've always called him Sandy."

Dusk tugged on Twilight's wing. As she looked down at the colt, he asked, "I-is Daddy dead?"

Twilight looked down at him. "Your father's fine. He's just unconscious."

Dusk tilted his head. "Un-con-shuss...?"

"Sleeping," Twilight corrected herself. She glanced at Fluttershy. "Do you know where Pinkie is? I just want to know if you're all okay."

Fluttershy glanced down at her hooves; she was standing on all fours now. "Well, um...she still lives at the bakery. Or at least, I think she still lives."

Twilight blinked. "Eh?"

"Well, it's just that...I don't want to upset you, but I heard Sandy say there was a murder at Sugarcube Corner."

Twilight gasped. "Who was the victim?"

"He didn't say. But I haven't seen Pinkie since last week, before the incident." Fluttershy's eyes were brimming with tears again as she glanced up at Twilight. "C-could you please check on her, to make sure she's...you know...alive? Besides, I don't want you or Spike to be here when Sandy wakes up."

Twilight nodded. "It's still in the same place, right? The bakery?"

"Yes. Now hurry." Fluttershy glanced at Dusk. "Go back to your room. I'll take care of Daddy."

The colt nodded, glanced at Twilight, and proceeded to obey his mother.

Twilight glanced at Spike. "We should get out of here while we can."

The dragon nodded and hurriedly followed Twilight out of the house.

As they looked for the bakery, Twilight silently hoped that Pinkie wasn't the murder victim.

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4

Sugarcube Corner wasn't exactly in ruins. It looked as if it had been torn down and in the process of reconstruction. The walls were up, giving no view of inside, but it hadn't been decorated yet, and part of the roof seemed to be missing. Twilight had a feeling it never would be finished. Which was kind of depressing.

Twilight approached the door, which had been mostly stripped of its magenta paint, and knocked a few times, exchanging a quick worried glance with Spike. Almost immediately she heard someone stumbling behind the door.

"Ah!" It sounded like the voice of a young filly, slightly younger than Apple Bloom. "I-is it...him?"

"No, if it was him he probably wouldn't knock." This was the voice of a colt of about the same age. "He'd just break the door or something. Like he did with Pinkie's window."

Twilight glanced at the unfinished reconstruction of the building. Pinkie had a window?

"I-I'll open the door." Twilight heard soft hoofsteps approaching the door, which then slowly opened. She saw a bright blue eye looking at her.

The filly opened the door all the way. She was a pale yellow, with a short orange mane parted a little to make way for her horn. Her blue eyes filled with curiosity. "Oh. Um. Hi?"

Twilight smiled a little nervously. "Hi."

"Who are you?" the filly asked. "You don't happen to be...say, a psychopath murderer, do you?"

"No." Twilight tried to refrain from staring at the filly, who looked so familiar somehow. "I heard of a murder here. And I was a little worried."

"Why?" A colt approached the door alongside the filly. He was an extremely pale brown with a short, much darker brown mane and eyes. He looked as familiar as the filly. "I don't know who you are. And I don't think Pumpkin does either."

Twilight blinked. Oh yeah. There were babies living here. She glanced at the colt. "Does your name happen to be Pound?"

The colt gasped. "P-Pumpkin, is she psychic?"

Twilight laughed a little. "No, I just...remember you from ten years ago." It felt odd to say "ten years ago," since ten years hadn't actually passed in Twilight's life. It was just this morning that Pound and Pumpkin were babies.

Pumpkin tilted her head. "Oh. Wow. Okay. So, um, why are you here again?"

Twilight hesitated, then asked, "I came to check on Pinkie Pie."

"You know about her?" Pumpkin asked, raising her eyebrows.

Twilight glanced again at Spike. Is she actually dead?

"Well, um...this is going to sound a bit too straightforward, but...was she the murder victim?"

The twins shook their heads. They suddenly looked sorrowful.

"Then who wa--" Twilight was suddenly struck with realization. "Oh."

"Please don't give us the 'I'm so sorry about your parents' treatment," Pound told her. "It doesn't really help much."

Twilight nodded, trying to reassure herself. It'll be fine. This is only what the future would be like if I disappeared without coming back. So, in reality, they're still alive. I just have to find a way to reverse everything.

She glanced around at the rest of the village. What exactly did happen here, anyway? Surely this isn't because of me?

Spike nudged her to get her attention. "Um, Twilight? She asked you a question."

Twilight glanced back at the twins, who looked like they'd been waiting. "Oh. Sorry. What did you ask?"

"If you felt like coming in," Pumpkin replied. "If you want to actually talk to Pinkie Pie, she's not here right now, so you'll have to wait."

Twilight glanced at Spike, who nodded. "We probably should talk with them anyway."

As they entered the darkened bakery, Twilight asked, "Isn't she worried about the whole murder thing, though?"

The twins shrugged.

"Where is she, anyway?"

"I think she wanted to buy some flour or something," Pound answered. "If she's going to keep giving food to the homeless, she has to be able to keep making it."

"She gives food to the homeless?" Spike asked.

Pumpkin smiled a little. "Yes. It's hard for them to get money so she gives it to them for free."

Twilight glanced around the bakery. It seemed mostly the same. Some of the decorations were missing, as well as the majority of the windows and one of the stairs.

"We should thank that missing stair," Pound said, noticing Twilight observing. "We probably would've all died if we didn't hear the killer stumbling."

"Didn't you say earlier that he broke Pinkie's window?" Twilight asked. "Didn't you wake up to that?"

"I did," Pound answered. "But when I heard him talking to Pinkie, it seemed friendly, so I didn't think much of it. I don't know exactly what they were talking about, though. I think he wanted to give her something." He hesitated. "Yeah, that makes sense. That's probably how he drugged her."

Twilight blinked. "He drugged Pinkie? Why?"

"I don't know how he knew to prepare something to drug somepony with. But Pinkie thinks she was drugged so she wouldn't follow him outside the room."

Twilight nodded. "That makes sense. He probably didn't mean to wake her up, so he drugged her to keep her from finding his real intentions. You'd think he'd just kill her, though."

"Then she'd probably scream and wake everyone else up," Spike pointed out.

"Wow, he really thinks ahead then." Twilight turned back to the twins. "When did she wake up?"

"When we followed the killer downstairs, he took out a knife and tried to stab us. But at the last second..." Pumpkin started crying silently. "...o-our parents ran over and tried to fight him. And we ran to get Pinkie."

"So was she awake then?"

"No. We tried to wake her up, but it didn't work." Pound paused. "I think she was able to say something, though. Somehow. Something like, 'He tricked me.'"

"So what did you do?" Twilight was really curious about the details of the murder now.

"We stayed with her." Pumpkin looked away. "We didn't find out about...that until the killer ran off."

"You mean you went back downstairs after Pinkie woke up?" Twilight asked.

"Yes." Pound sighed. "Which took a few hours."

Twilight paused, thinking of anything else she wanted to ask. Just then, she heard a squeal from the door. She turned and noticed Pinkie, who had somehow opened the door without any of them noticing. She threw her saddlebags aside and ran over to Twilight, embracing her. Twilight held her and glanced at the twins, who took a step back, looking curious.

"T-Twilight!" As Pinkie looked up, Twilight noticed she was crying a little. "Where were you?"

Twilight glanced at Spike, not knowing exactly how to answer. "Um..."

"Everyone thought you were dead! I thought you were dead!"

Twilight stroked her. "J-just calm down."

"You can't just act like you were gone for thirty minutes!"

"Well, um..." Twilight hesitated. "I think I may have gotten the time traveling spell wrong."

Pinkie blinked. "What time traveling spell? What does that have to do with anything?"

"Don't you remember? That's how I was gone for a decade. I was stuck in the time continuum." She hesitated. "I think that's what happened."

"Oh, that." Pinkie glanced at the twins, who were watching awkwardly. She wiped her eyes and pushed herself away from Twilight. "So, does that mean you can't undo it?"

"I don't know. Rarity said I never returned." Twilight glanced upward in thought. "I guess I have to find the solution here."

"Rarity?" Pinkie looked away.

"What's wrong?"

"She doesn't like Rarity," Pumpkin informed Twilight.

"What?" Twilight looked at Pinkie. "Why not?"

Pinkie glanced up at Twilight. "Sh-she hurt Fluttershy. After you left, she hurt her so badly she almost died."

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5

"What?" Twilight stared in surprise. "That makes no sense!"

"Have you seen Fluttershy?" Pinkie asked. "Her husband's abusive! And it's Rarity's fault!"

"How is anything Sandstorm does Rarity's fault?"

Pinkie stood up. "Last year, I saw them talking to each other. And Rarity said, 'Don't be afraid to assert yourself to your wife.'"

"I'm sure she didn't mean anything harmful," Twilight replied. "This is all just a misunderstanding."

"No, it isn't!" Pinkie insisted. "Because when Sandstorm started abusing her, Rarity did nothing about it! She just watches!"

"Rarity told me she hasn't seen you in a year. Is that the only reason you're so mad at her?"

Pinkie glared at her. "She looks like a helpless hobo, but she has something against Fluttershy. She has a reason to hurt her. She just wants revenge. She blames Fluttershy for her homelessness when she was the one to give up her home for her."

Twilight looked over at the twins. "Do you two know if this is true?"

"I don't know a lot about her," Pound replied. "But I think I have seen her tell Pinkie something mean about Fluttershy."

"Like what?"

"That's not important." Pinkie looked at the twins. "Um, you don't have to stay and listen if you don't want to."

"Y-you want us to leave?" Pumpkin asked, looking apologetic.

"It's fine, we'll leave." Pound gestured to Spike. "Should he come with us?"

"No, Spikey's important too." Pinkie smiled a little at Spike. "No offense, but he was missing from existence for ten years too."

The twins proceeded to head upstairs, both of them leaping over the missing stair as if it were instinct by now.

Twilight looked back at Pinkie. "So, um..."

"You didn't give Rarity money, did you?" Pinkie asked suddenly. "Because she uses it for gambling."

Rarity gambling? The mere concept was laughable, but under these circumstances Twilight had to believe Pinkie. After all, Rarity was homeless. Of course she'd try to get extra money. "But it'd be reasonable for her to gamble," Twilight pointed out. "She kind of needs money."

"She cheats. And she gambles with other hobos."

"But what does this have to do with Fluttershy nearly dying?"

Pinkie didn't respond. She didn't look as if she had no answer. Rather, she looked as of she had an answer she didn't want to share. She had a fearful glimmer in her eyes.

Twilight shook her head. "Never mind, okay? I think this is something we should discuss later."

"What happened to Ponyville?" Spike asked suddenly.

Pinkie glanced at him. "It was ruined by invaders. Didn't anyone tell you?"

"Well, Rarity told us that, but it's kind of vague."

Twilight nodded. "Who were they? Are they still here?"

"Apparently they were waiting to attack us. And they said something like, 'You fools are too weakened by grief to defend yourselves.'" When she did her impression, she made her voice as raspy and villainous as possible. "They were kind of right. Even Celestia wouldn't leave her room for a week straight."

Twilight looked away. "So...this is my fault."

Pinkie looked alarmed. "N-no, I didn't mean it like that! You're not the ones who tried to kill everyone!"

"But I somehow messed up the spell and left you all in the dark for an entire decade." Twilight looked at Spike. "And I brought you into this mess."

Spike smiled at her. "You'll figure it out. For now you should probably just get information."

"Information about what?" Pinkie asked. "I don't know anything about the invaders. Other than what one of them looked like."

Twilight tilted her head. "Just one?"

Pinkie nodded. She glanced at the stairs where the twins had gone up. "Did they tell you about the thing that happened last week?"

"Yes." Twilight was somewhat afraid to talk about it with Pinkie. She was afraid of what she would say. She knew that Pinkie had a close bond with Mr. and Mrs. Cake. They were like family to her. It actually surprised Twilight that Pinkie was even able to mention the incident. Although, she's not exactly happy-go-lucky right now. But in a place like this, that's not too surprising.

"The killer was one of the invaders that ruined this place," Pinkie continued. "I know because he came in through my room and woke me up."

"Do you know his motive?"

"No." Pinkie looked away, as if ashamed of herself. "He was posing as some kind of therapist. He said he heard I was depressed and he wanted to help me."

"But doesn't it seem a bit suspicious," Twilight pointed out, "that some stranger would just break into your room in the middle of the night and offer you some antidepressant?"

"He didn't give me an antidepressant. Because I don't have depression."

"Then what was that whole heard-you-were-depressed thing?"

Pinkie hesitated. "Well, I guess I kind of was a little sad because I was thinking about what happened to you ten years ago, but..."

Twilight rolled her eyes. It's kind of like her to be in denial about something like that. But...it is pretty sad. She moved on. "What did he give you, then?"

"What do you think?" Pinkie was still looking really ashamed of herself. "It was a cupcake. Which was really small for some reason."

Twilight blinked. "So this stranger just barged through your window in the middle of the night and offered you a cupcake to ease depression, and you believed him?"

Pinkie's eyes began brimming with tears. "I-I'm sorry! He was really convincing!" She looked sideways at Twilight. "Y-you're not mad at me are you?"

Twilight hesitated. She hasn't seen you for ten years, and she just lost ponies who were essentially her second parents. Go easy on her. "I'm sorry. It's not your fault. How long did it take?"

"To what?"

"The cupcake was drugged, wasn't it?"

"I actually don't remember a lot," Pinkie admitted. "I think after I ate it, I told him that it tasted funny and I asked what flavor it was. But I don't remember what he answered. Probably some snarky comment revealing that the cupcake was drugged." She now looked straight at Twilight. "Why do you want to know?"

"I might need to know," Twilight replied. "Information is always important."

Spike glanced at the door, then back at Pinkie. "No one told us about Applejack."

Pinkie thought for a moment. "It's been a long time since I talked to her. Before she went to prison."

"Wait, what?" Twilight gasped. "What in Equestria would somepony like her get arrested for?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. I don't talk much to any of our old friends anymore. The most I've done is have some occasional conversation with Fluttershy when I sneak food into her saddlebags."

Twilight paused for a moment to get over her surprise. Okay, so Applejack's in prison. She's been in prison. She glanced at Pinkie. Then again, if someone like her can get depression from this mess, then I guess someone like Applejack can commit a crime. As in, physically able to. "Um...you think I'd be able to visit her?"

Pinkie nodded. "Oh, and if you're wondering, I can tell you where to find Rainbow Dash."

"We already know." Twilight took a moment to recall Rarity's words. "She's in the asylum, right? How did she manage to lose her sanity?"

Pinkie's eyes shimmered with sorrow. "I don't know. She's been stuck in there for five years."

Twilight sighed. "It...it doesn't have anything to do with me leaving, does it?"

Pinkie didn't answer.

I take that as a yes. Twilight stretched her forelegs; they were starting to ache from just standing around. "I guess I'll go see Applejack, then. And then I'll try to check up on Rainbow Dash."

"Are you sure?" Pinkie took a few steps toward the stairs. "It's getting kind of late, and you'll probably need somewhere to stay."

"She's right," Twilight said to Spike. "We're probably going to be stuck here for a while. If not for, you know, forever."

Spike sighed. "Twilight, you need to stop being pessimistic."

"I can set things up for you," Pinkie offered. "If you want to stay with one of your friends, I'm the only one you can stay with."

Twilight thought for a moment. She was right again. She and Fluttershy were the only ones with an actual house, and staying with Fluttershy was out of the question.

It broke Twilight's heart when she remembered how helpless Fluttershy looked, pinned to the wall by her husband with tears streaking down from her exhausted eyes. There has to be a way to help her. But for now, I can't. She started heading for the door. "Okay. I guess, if you don't mind. We'll be back after we see Applejack and Rainbow."

Pinkie nodded, smiling. "And I'll be sure to make something for you guys, too. I never want to see somepony starve to death."

"Thanks." Just as she and Spike were about to walk through the door, Twilight turned her head and said, "Oh, Pinkie?"

The pony was just starting upstairs. "What is it?"

"I'm probably going to tick someone off for saying this...but I'm so glad the victim wasn't you."

%i%

6

The prison that Applejack was in was outside of Ponyville, and the asylum was in Canterlot. Seeing both Applejack and Rainbow would probably take a few hours. Twilight just wanted to know why and how Applejack was arrested, and then she would go off to see if Rainbow Dash really was insane.

On the way, Twilight and Spike had to climb over the rubble of a few buildings. No one was living in this area due to the lack of houses. Twilight started wondering the the cottage Fluttershy used to live in was in as bad shape. She'd told Twilight that Sandstorm gave her a home, implying she'd be homeless if not for her husband, so it probably was.

The prison was kind of small. Twilight had never seen it before, which probably meant it was built after she and Spike disappeared. There seemed to be less than a hundred cells, but of course there were still the necessary rooms for eating and labor and such. That's just what Twilight assumed from the size. It was pale gray and worn, but that probably had nothing to do with Ponyville's destruction. It was a prison after all.

"Are we both going in?" Spike asked.

Twilight nodded. "It would be best if we stuck together. From what I can tell, the killer who broke in to Sugarcube Corner is still running around, and we've seen what kind of ponies could be living here now." Surely Sandstorm wasn't the only threat.

It didn't take long to get to the visiting area. Behind the scratched-up glass wall, Applejack was waiting. Her hair wasn't tied like usual, and her hat wasn't on her head. She watched Twilight take a seat on the other side. She didn't gasp in shock or start breaking down crying like the others. Instead she said, "So you're back."

"Um, yup." Twilight glanced nervously down at Spike, trying to think of how to word her questions.

But she didn't need to. Applejack was able to guess. "No, I ain't here 'cause of murder or anything like that. Wanna know why?"

"Why you're locked up?" Twilight nodded. "Yeah, that would be helpful."

Applejack hesitated. "Have ya seen Rarity lately?"

"Yes, but what does she have to do with any of this?" Then she remembered the way Pinkie had held back fearfully when Twilight asked what Rarity did to cause Fluttershy's near death. Perhaps Applejack had been some sort of accomplice?

"Well, uh, there was some sorta incident a year back." Applejack paused and looked away. "I was told not to tell anypony, but..."

"You did what?"

"Sh, Applejack, not so loud. You never know when somepony might be lurking."

The two mares were alone by the side of the road, in an isolated area of Ponyville. Rarity had asked for Applejack to come and do her a favor. The icy wind made the darkened area all the more eerie. But Rarity was used to it. She smiled at Applejack. "This is where I made the deal, you know."

"So let me get this straight." Applejack took a breath. "You hired somepony to hurt her?"

Rarity nodded, a bit too enthusiastically. "This is where I won the money to pay him. Besides, don't you think we could do with a little vengeance?"

"Vengeance? What in the name of--"

The unicorn interrupted her. "Do you honestly believe poor Rainbow Dash ended up in that horrid place by herself?"

Applejack hesitated. "Well, uh, yeah. I mean, now that something so sudden and outta nowhere like that happened to Twi and Spike..."

"I assure you, it has very little to do with that." Rarity's expression grew solemn. "After I gave Fluttershy my home, she took advantage. She let Rainbow Dash stay with her."

"Uh, I know. But just 'cause Rainbow had to be sent to the place from--"

"Oh, no. I have reason." Rarity edged closer to Applejack. "It was Fluttershy who kept reminding her. Fluttershy who kept saying, 'Can we talk about Twilight?' And then...then I watched her go ahead and brutally beat her. It was..." She paused to look away. "It was so shocking."

Applejack blinked. "Heart-o'-gold Fluttershy?"

Rarity looked back at her friend, sadness in her grayish blue eyes. "I promise I'm telling the truth. I have no idea why she did it. But she got away with it."

Applejack sighed. "You...do make a good point. I don't have anythin' to prove ya wrong."

"You believe me?"

"I do. And...I guess I'll help you. Long as it isn't too out-there."

"It's not." The ponies stood up, and Rarity continued. "All you have to do is bring Fluttershy here, and I'll make her confess."

"What's the point o' that?"

"I'll have her write it down. And I'll be able to turn her in." Rarity smiled. "She's quite easy to manipulate. If it doesn't work...well, we'll get there when we get there."

She was a little reluctant to do so, but Applejack brought Fluttershy to Rarity. Fluttershy seemed a bit frightened, but otherwise didn't seem to think much of it. She showed complete friendliness to Rarity as she asked, "You needed to meet me here?"

From under her cloak, Rarity levitated a piece of parchment and a quill and looked meaningfully at Fluttershy.

The pegasus tilted her head. "I don't understand what you're asking of me."

"I know what you did to Rainbow Dash." Rarity pushed the objects closer to Fluttershy. "And I want you to confess. On this."

Fluttershy took a step back. "I don't know what you're talking--" She gasped in realization. "Th-that? That was only for self-defense! She was--"

"Self-defense my plot!" Rarity retorted. "She was no threat whatsoever!"

"No, I swear, she was about to hurt me!"

Suddenly, Rarity slammed Fluttershy onto the pavement. Applejack watched in horror as blood slowly started forming a crimson puddle underneath her. Fortunately, there was no damage to Fluttershy's head. However, she was unable to get up. Shock filled her terrified eyes as she stared at Rarity. "W-why did you push me?"

Suddenly, it felt as if all her common sense was gone and replaced by madness. That simple, unproved reason Rarity had given her dragged Applejack onto the pavement. She was just too panicked, and that one little reason inflated into justification. She almost forgot who she was beating until Rarity shouted, "Applejack, stop! I'll make sure she gets what she needs."

Fluttershy was still conscious, but from Applejack's beating she was bruised. And all Applejack could think to herself was, How did that happen? She couldn't move, frozen by guilt, panic and shock, as Rarity took out something she's never expected.

The moonlight reflected off of the silver blade. Fluttershy tried to pull herself away with her forelegs--she was sitting up--but Rarity, her eyes full of insanity, raised her knife.

It was as if someone filled the two of them with complete madness. Applejack was unable to move, still thinking of whatever possessed her. She even went as far as thinking that Rarity had used her magic to manipulate her like a puppet. And she couldn't do anything but watch. Fluttershy, at the last second, pushed Rarity away, before she suddenly closed her eyes and fell.

Applejack walked over to Fluttershy to check her pulse. Her heart was still beating, almost as quickly as Applejack's. She heard Rarity's knife drop onto the pavement, and Rarity herself approaching. Applejack glanced up at her, and finally a possibility came.

"Was it grief for Twilight?"

Rarity didn't respond. The insanity had left her eyes, which now wandered to the other end of the path. Applejack followed them and noticed someone standing there. As the pony slowly approached, Applejack could see her more clearly, and the tears starting to fill her ice blue eyes, which were fixed upon Rarity.

"What did she do to you?" Pinkie whispered, finally breaking the silence.

Rarity picked up her knife using her levitation again. She stared intently at Pinkie. "If you tell anypony about this incident..." She took a step closer, just behind Fluttershy. "I will not hesitate to use this on one of them."

Applejack had no idea who she was talking about, but apparently Pinkie did, for a frightened look crossed her face. She nodded quickly and looked down at Applejack. "I-is she okay?"

"Alive, if that's what ya mean." Applejack managed to stand up. "But we oughta get her outta here quick."

Pinkie looked at her. "Won't you go to jail?"

Applejack didn't respond. Instead she said, "You go ahead and get Fluttershy to help. I need to stay here for a bit longer."

Looking a little reluctant to leave Applejack alone with Rarity, Pinkie hesitantly lifted Fluttershy onto her back and got out of the area as fast as possible. The two remaining ponies turned to look at each other.

"We are never going to speak of this again," Rarity told her. "But we'll need an excuse."

"I'll take the blame," Applejack offered. "I'll even turn myself in. I wasn' even thinking. It's like I forgot who was lying there."

Rarity sighed. "It seems something as simple as grief can provoke insanity. Maybe I was wrong about Fluttershy. Maybe Rainbow Dash really did drive herself to insanity." She looked Applejack in the eye. "But I was telling the truth when I told you what Fluttershy did to her. But maybe she's not lying either. Maybe it was just self-defense."

Applejack turned. "Think I'll go after Pinkie before she has to explain what happened. This is all gonna work out. Trust me."

Twilight felt something cold fall from her eyes. She stared at Applejack in disbelief. "You're in here...because you attacked her...because of me...?"

Applejack didn't answer. She just looked away.

Twilight tried to keep the tears out of her voice; having them streaming from her eyes was enough. "But Pinkie said she didn't know why you were here."

"Rarity was blackmailing her," Applejack explained. "With what, I dunno."

"If she was being blackmailed, why did she tell me that Rarity had hurt Fluttershy?"

Applejack blinked in surprise for a second, then asked, "What did she say after that?"

"She just said Rarity was mad at Fluttershy for taking her house, or something along those lines. And the abusive relationship thing." Twilight wiped one of her eyes. "I guess it did seem a little petty to have a grudge against Rarity for not wanting to help Fluttershy and gambling."

"She doesn't even gamble anymore, far as I know," Applejack replied. "She stopped after the incident."

Twilight nodded and took a few deep breaths. She tried to go over to herself everything Applejack had just told her about that horrific incident filled with madness. Thank Celestia nopony lost her life. She looked down at Spike, who looked extremely worried about her.

Applejack interrupted her thoughts. "You better run along. Visiting hours are almost done."

Twilight stood up. "Th-thank you for talking with me. And I'm sorry."

"Nothing to be sorry for, sugarcube."

"If I never attempted to test the spell..." Twilight stopped herself before she started crying again. She was reluctant to cry with Spike standing right by her.

When they hurriedly left the building, the moon had risen higher. Spike stopped and pointed out, "If Celestia and Luna aren't around, who's raising the moon?"

"Their spirits must possess the power for them to still do their duty," Twilight replied. "That's the only explanation I can think of."

They continued walking. They had to get to Canterlot as soon as possible. It was time to see Rainbow Dash.

%i%

7

They were getting tired. Maybe it wouldn't have been a bad idea to wait until morning to get to Canterlot. Since the railroad was closed off, Twilight and Spike had to walk there. Oh well. They couldn't turn back now that they were finally in the city.

The first thing Twilight noticed was the castle. It had been boarded up all over, which saddened Twilight. With the princesses gone, the citizens must had seen the castle as pointless, and never entered it again. A strong wind threatened to pull away the planks of wood, but they stayed in place over the windows and doors. Twilight stared at it for a moment longer before she kept moving. She once lived here, so she was able to navigate the quiet streets easily. She knew where the asylum was, too.

It was in an abandoned part of the city. There was nothing except the ivory building itself. It looked very much like an average Canterlot house, but much bigger. Some moss clung to the bottom edge of it, and one of the dark violet doors seemed to have some kind of stain on it. Twilight was using her horn for light, but she still couldn't make out what the stain was. It wasn't important, but it peaked her curiosity that someone would manage to stain a door of all things.

Then they heard someone running toward them. They turned in alarm, and Twilight immediately recognized the two ponies rushing over. One was a pale yellow earthpony, with a familiar pink bow tied in her red mane. The other was a white unicorn with lavender and pink curls. Twilight looked at what she was instantly curious about, and felt a flicker of pride at seeing a blooming white flower on one mare's flank and a couple black musical notes on the other. She looked at their eyes, full of disbelief.

"What are you two doing here?" Twilight asked.

Apple Bloom blinked. "I'd ask ya where the hay ya've been...but that ain't important right now."

"We're looking for Scootaloo," Sweetie Belle informed them. "We came here to visit Rainbow Dash, but we when we left for a few minutes to use the bathroom, we went back and couldn't find her anywhere."

Twilight shook her head. "We just got here. To see Rainbow."

The two mares seemed disappointed.

"She's in room three," Apple Bloom informed her. "We'll just keep looking 'round."

As the girls ran off Twilight pulled open the door with telekinesis. It was quite dark inside. Only one pony was guarding, and he didn't seem to notice the door opening. Since Room Three was on the ground floor, it didn't take long to find it. But Twilight was afraid to open the little window. She glanced at Spike and asked, "Are we really ready for this?"

Spike smiled reassuringly at her. "Even if you can't talk to her, you should at least see how well she is."

Twilight nodded. She slide the white covering aside. Rainbow Dash was lying there near the window, in a white straitjacket. Oddly enough, her mouth wasn't covered. She didn't seem to notice Twilight. She was just absentmindedly brushing the wall with her tail.

Twilight was afraid to speak. If Rainbow noticed her, she would probably assume Twilight was a hallucination. Twilight was afraid of how she'd react to her. But I have to know. If I see her reaction, I might be able to figure out how twisted her perception is. Which could be helpful. Tentatively, Twilight knocked against the iron bars filling the opening. "Um...Rainbow Dash?"

The pegasus looked up with alarm, She stared at Twilight for a few seconds, as if she needed to process what she was seeing. She then used her hind legs to push herself away toward the opposite wall. She seemed to be hurriedly whispering something to herself. Her eyes were full of shock and sorrow.

Twilight sighed sadly. "I-I promise I'm not a hallucination."

Rainbow then spoke clearly and strictly, though her hoarse voice was really shaky. "Go away." But she wasn't looking at Twilight and Spike when she said this. It was almost as if she was giving the order to herself.

"How did you end up here?"

"I'm not coming back!" Rainbow was raising her voice, still speaking to herself.

"Coming back to what?" Twilight asked, a little desperately. "Ponyville?"

Rainbow didn't answer the question, unsurprisingly. She glanced up at Twilight again, then slammed herself against the wall. "W-why aren't you listening? Stop it!" She sounded as if she was crying, but Twilight couldn't see any tears.

Spike tapped her shoulder. When she looked down at him, he said, "I think she wants us to leave."

"Stop it!" Rainbow screamed again. Twilight hurriedly covered the window again, and led Spike back to the hallway. Twilight sat down beside the locked door to the room, which she glanced at and said, "I hope I didn't make it worse."

"Twilight, the hall closet's door's closed."

Twilight glanced down at the door to the hall closet, which she hadn't even noticed before. She looked back at Spike. "And?"

"I saw it when we came in. It was open then." He paused. "Actually, I think somepony was in there. It wasn't really a closet, more like a little room."

Twilight blinked. "How did you notice?"

"I saw them looking at us. The same way everyone else's looked at us." Spike glanced at the door again. "It could've been her."

"Who?"

"Scootaloo. I think Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle found her, though, if the door's closed."

Twilight shrugged and stood up. "Well, it doesn't hurt to check."

They headed down to the closed door. It was unlocked, so Twilight easily turned it open with her magic. She swung open the door, and as soon as she saw what was waiting for her, she didn't attempt to suppress her shriek of terror.

%i%

8

Today I visited Rainbow Dash in the asylum with my friends. She didn't know who I was. I had to watch as that pony, my sister, tried to run away in desperation. She is as good as dead.

The thing is, she left so suddenly. Too suddenly. I can't take this. It's way too much. It might seem petty to you, but to me, once Rainbow Dash was gone, so was my life. Without her, I don't know what to do. So there's only one thing I can do. I don't want to end up in here, but if I keep going on like this, I will. So there are only two choices left: insanity or death.

I'm sorry to whoever may be reading this. I'm sorry that I have such a stupid reason. I'm sorry that Rainbow Dash isn't here anymore.

-Scootaloo

Twilight dropped the note as she stared, too terrified to do anything about the still pegasus hanging from the ceiling in front of her. Her eyes were closed, and her face had dried tears, the last that would ever come from poor Scootaloo's eyes. It was terrible to see, but she couldn't look away. It was just too hard to comprehend. In this place, Scootaloo had grown into a young adult, but because Twilight had never seen her grow, to her, Scootaloo was still a child. Which meant that the corpse in front of her, the first corpse she had ever seen in her life, was of a suicidal child.

And it was all because of her. Scootaloo hung herself because Rainbow Dash was insane, Rainbow Dash was insane because she had thought too much about Twilight's disappearance, and Twilight disappeared because she decided to test her spell. It was somewhat of a good thing that she had accidentally taken Spike with her. Right now, she couldn't be alone. She lowered herself to the ground so she could cling to him. He looked at her with surprise as she kept staring at Scootaloo.

Some other ponies had come, including Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, who were just as shocked as Twilight. They couldn't say anything to each other. There was no sound except for that of Apple Bloom picking up the note to read it.

Suddenly, the guard Twilight had seen earlier pushed through into the cluster. He turned and said, "Everyone run along and do whatever it is you do." He looked at Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. "Except you two. I'll need to talk to you."

Twilight managed to get to her hooves, but it was Spike who had to help pull her away from the scene. They managed to get out of the building before Twilight had to sit down again. "Everything that happened is my fault."

"No it isn't," Spike insisted. "It's not your fault the spell went wrong."

"Yes it is. I was revising it. I revised it incorrectly. And that's why the spell went wrong."

She remembered the moment she was performing the spell. At the last second, she had started panicking a little. That something like this would happen. And she had felt regret, but before she could stop she vanished from Golden Oak Library.

When she was revising the spell, Twilight had crossed out some writing on the bottom. She thought it was insignificant. She thought it was just some meaningless assurance. But now she realized it was written not as a kind message, but as a precaution.

The writing had read "Don't worry."

Pinkie was tired, but she'd decided to stay up until Twilight and Spike got back. They never decided where the two would sleep, so it was probably a good idea to be awake once they got here. Although Pound and Pumpkin had managed to put together a small bed for Spike in their room, so if he was willing he could sleep in there.

But it was nearly midnight and they still hadn't returned. She began to worry frantically. Had they forgotten about her? Why would they? Or maybe they'd found somewhere else to stay and had neglected to tell Pinkie. Which was rather disappointing. At a time like this, she really needed a friend with her. What would she do, then? Try to track them down?

Before she could overthink it any further, she heard a knock at the door. Hoping it was Twilight and Spike, she hurried over to open it. She sighed in relief. "How were they? Did Applejack tell you why she got arrested?" she asked. She didn't really need to ask, but if she did, it would seem more likely that Pinkie knew nothing about the incident last year. She hadn't seen Rarity since then, so maybe she had become less psychopathic, but she didn't want to take any chances.

Twilight hesitated before shaking her head. She and Spike walked in, Pinkie closing the door behind them. She turned to them and said to Spike, "You don't mind sleeping in Pound and Pumpkin's room, do you? There's already an extra bed in there that they set up for you."

"No, it's okay." Spike actually seemed pretty grateful. "Where is it?"

"Go upstairs. First door on your right."

As Spike hurried upstairs, Pinkie turned to Twilight. She realized that the alicorn seemed more exhausted than she was and said, "Are you okay?"

Twilight smiled, but Pinkie could tell it was forced. "I'm fine. I just had to walk a lot, that's all."

Surely something was wrong, but it could wait until morning. Pinkie took a few steps toward the stairs and asked, "Where do you want to sleep?"

Twilight hesitated. "Well, it's still a little hard to process that this morning was actually ten years ago, so I'm a little anxious about that." She blinked and looked away. "So, uh...if it's okay with you..."

Pinkie waited, staring at her curiously.

"I want to stay with you." Twilight looked a little ashamed of this. She glanced at Pinkie nervously.

Frankly, it was a little reassuring. At a time like this, having somepony with her at night would be comforting. So she nodded enthusiastically. "Okay." She headed toward the stairs and gestured for Twilight to follow.

Twilight seemed surprised that Pinkie had agreed so easily. She could see why. The idea of sleeping in the same bed as one of her friends had always been awkward to think about. Somepony could get the wrong idea. But it didn't really matter anymore. After Twilight and Spike disappeared, it'd been pretty hard for Pinkie to be independent. Watching Fluttershy get brutally beaten and finding Mr. and Mrs. Cake murdered didn't help much.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard Twilight fall behind her. She turned, startled, to see Twilight back at the foot of the stairs, lying on her back.

Twilight smiled sheepishly. "I, uh, forgot about that missing stair."

Pinkie giggled and waited for Twilight to get back up before continuing upstairs. The alicorn was careful to step over the gap. She looked up and asked, "How did you manage to lose a stair, anyway?"

"It's not that big of a deal," Pinkie told her. "There was just a little accident a few years ago."

"I still don't see how that would--"

"It involved fireworks," Pinkie added. "Pound accidentally set one off inside the house and managed to destroy only one of the stairs." She turned forward. "Now come on, I'm tired from waiting for you."

Since Sugarcube Corner's reconstruction was never finished, the roof was rather unstable. It was strong enough not to collapse, but it creaked a little in the night breeze. When Pinkie led Twilight to her room, she saw again the broken window from the night of the murder. The opening was covered with cloth, making it quite dark. She headed to her bed and used her teeth to throw the covers forward. When she looked back at Twilight, the alicorn was glancing around the room in wonder.

"There's a hole in your wall," she said.

"I know." Pinkie tilted her head toward the bed. "Aren't you tired?"

The two mares settled under Pinkie's covers. Twilight glanced at her and asked, "Are you sure you're comfortable with this?"

Pinkie nodded, smiling at her before turning away. "Well, good night."

Twilight rested her head on the pillow, but she didn't close her eyes yet. Spike had managed to calm her down from the shock of finding Scootaloo's body, but now the guilt was returning. She had started the chain reaction leading to Scootaloo's suicide. She was a murderer.

Okay, maybe that was a little far-fetched. But nevertheless, Scootaloo died because of her. Because Twilight never returned when traveling to the future.

With that knowledge that destroyed the last glimmer of hope that lay in her heart, she covered her eyes and cried herself silently to sleep.

%i%

9

Someone was shaking her awake.

Quite violently.

Twilight opened her eyes slightly. It was Pinkie, unsurprisingly. She didn't seem to notice Twilight was already awake and kept shaking her. So Twilight blinked and gently pushed her away.

Pinkie only then noticed Twilight's open eyes. She walked back over and said, "You slept really late and I got worried."

Twilight sat up, rubbing her eyes. "How late?"

"It's already twelve thirty."

"That's not too late." Twilight glanced around. The room was still somewhat dark, but some of the sunlight managed to come through the cloth over the broken window. It seemed pretty nice out. Which would definitely be contrasting to Ponyville's state.

Pinkie shrugged. "I got up at five." She turned toward the door. "Just get out of bed."

She seemed pretty urgent for Twilight to get downstairs with her. It could just be how lonely she's been. Or she might want to talk about something. Either way, it was probably best, for Pinkie's sake, that Twilight listened to her.

Once Twilight climbed out, the two of them remade the bed before Pinkie hurried out of the room. Twilight looked after her before she quickly reappeared. "You coming?"

Twilight followed her downstairs, this time careful to step over the gap. She noticed Pound, Pumpkin and Spike already up; the twins were having a conversation and Spike was near the foot at the stairs. He looked like he'd been waiting for them.

"Hi," Twilight greeted him.

Spike waved, but didn't say anything. Twilight suddenly wondered if Spike had told Pinkie about what happened at the prison and the asylum. That would actually kind of make sense, since Pinkie seemed so eager to talk to Twilight.

But apparently Pinkie didn't know, because as they approached the counter she turned and asked, "Are you okay?"

Twilight blinked, having unexpected her to say this. "Why do you ask?"

Pinkie lowered her voice a little. "Well, uh...I think I heard you crying last night."

Twilight glanced back at Spike, who watched curiously. Pound and Pumpkin had stopped speaking and were now watching as well. Twilight looked back at Pinkie and nodded.

"What was that about?"

Twilight hesitated, then looked downward. Well, I guess I'll have to tell her at one point. The longer I keep this hidden, the more she'll be hurt. But... "I'd rather not say in front of children," she replied softly.

"Hey!" Pound protested. "We can handle it!"

"Are you sure?" Pumpkin asked her brother. "I-I mean, she's older than us, so maybe--"

Pound ignored her. "What is it, then?"

Twilight sighed. She really didn't want to say this. She looked back up at Pinkie and said softly, "At the asylum...somepony hung herself."

Pinkie gasped as the twins exchanged confused looks.

"Hung herself?" Pound repeated.

"Pinkie, what does that mean?" Pumpkin asked. "How does someone hang themselves? What does that even mean?"

"Who?" Pinkie asked, looking afraid to know. "Is it somepony we know?"

Twilight glanced back at Spike again, unsure if it was a good idea to tell. He nodded before she turned back and said, "It was Scootaloo. Spike and I found her body."

"H-her body?" Pumpkin repeated. "So is hanging yourself...killing yourself?"

"So you're saying..." Pinkie looked incredibly unsure of how to react. "Scootaloo's...dead?"

"I didn't want to tell you last night because I hadn't quite gotten over the shock yet." Twilight edged a little closer to Pinkie. "And I really didn't want to upset you."

Pinkie nodded without responding. She wasn't looking Twilight in the eye anymore. Twilight doubted she was able to. So she went on. "And when I found her body, when I found out that a young pony died because of me...I wanted to give up."

"You shouldn't give up," Pinkie replied quietly.

"I can't do anything to fix this." Twilight had started crying again. "Equestria is going to be stuck like this forever."

There was a short silence before Pinkie took Twilight's hoof and started pulling her along. She was leading her upstairs. Twilight glanced up, her eyesight blurred, and asked softly, "What are you doing?"

"I want to talk to you."

Spike watched as Pinkie dragged Twilight upstairs. He had no idea what to do at first. Scootaloo's suicide was what finally broke Twilight, he was sure of it. But Spike still had some faith. Twilight had been in hopeless situations before and still managed to find a way. This time, she needed Spike's help.

One of the first thoughts that crossed his mind when thinking about where their friends had ended up was, How could Fluttershy stand someone like that? Maybe now was a good time to find out. Fluttershy said that Sandstorm gave her food and shelter, but that couldn't be the only reason. It would be a good idea to check on her.

As he approached the door, Pound asked, "Hey, where are you going?"

"If anypony asks," he told him and his sister, "tell them I went to Fluttershy's house."

Pumpkin gasped. "Isn't she the one who gets hurt by her husband? You can't go there!"

Spike ignored her warning and walked through the door.

The sunlight seemed dimmer than it did ten years ago. Now that he thought about it, the moonlight the night before seemed a little oddly dimmed as well. Perhaps it had something to do with the apparent deaths of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. Twilight's theory made sense; their spirits still possessed the same magic, and so they were still able to control the sun and moon. Maybe the light was dimmer because they couldn't put as much power into it.

Ponyville was still a wreck. It was somewhat hard to believe that it hadn't been cleaned up in the past ten years. Some buildings were completely destroyed, the rubble lying there. It wouldn't be surprising if some of it hadn't cemented into the ground by this point. The houses that were still up were pretty quiet, despite it being so late in the day. Even Fluttershy's home was lacking the angry shouts of her abusive husband.

As Spike approached the house, he was somewhat afraid to knock on the door. He doubted he would be able to stand up against Sandstorm. Thankfully, he didn't need to, because when he turned around Fluttershy and her son were standing behind him.

Fluttershy smiled weakly. "Hi, Spike." Some of her bruises had faded a little, which was a good sign.

"Where were you?" Spike asked, trying not to be too attentive to her hurt body.

"Sandy's sleeping late, so we got to leave the house for a while." Fluttershy seemed relatively happy about this fact.

"Where's the princess?" Dusk asked.

"Twilight?" Spike hesitated. "Well, uh...she's not exactly mentally stable right now, I don't think."

Fluttershy gasped. "Did something happen?"

Spike nodded. "Twilight saw something really bad last night. She's with Pinkie Pie right now."

"And Pinkie's okay?"

Right, the last time we saw her she thought Pinkie might've been murdered. "I wouldn't say she's completely okay, but she's alive, at least."

Fluttershy sighed with relief, then said quickly and softly, "You better go. I don't want Sandy to hurt you."

"Can I just ask one thing?" It felt a little too straightforward to ask this, but he did anyway. "Why do you stay with him?"

Fluttershy sighed and glanced sadly at her son, who looked pretty confused by the situation. She looked away and said, "He needs me as much as I need him."

%i%

10

"What would he need you for?" Spike asked. "Doing chores?"

"No." Fluttershy hesitated. "Well, yes, but that's not what I meant. He gets angry really easily these days."

"I can tell."

"But he needs somepony to absorb it. Like a lightning rod." Fluttershy didn't show any difficulty telling this to Spike. "Every family needs one. His anger needs somewhere to go. That somewhere has to be either me..." She looked at Dusk again, meaningfully. "...or my son."

Spike understood; it was like Fluttershy to sacrifice her well-being to protect her son from harm. "But can't you just leave?" Spike asked. "You and Dusk? It would be a lot easier."

"We can't." Fluttershy let a tear fall from her eye. "We tried once. A few months ago. And Sandy found us."

"What did he do?"

"Daddy?" Dusk finally spoke up. "Daddy hurt Mommy, and he hurt me."

"He hurt you?" Spike repeated. "How?"

"He made me bleed. And he gave me bruises."

Now that Dusk was crying as well, it was probably a good idea to stop. He looked up at Fluttershy, who looked ready to answer anything else anyway. Instead of asking more about the abusive relationship, he told her, "Twilight and I saw Applejack in prison yesterday."

Fluttershy suddenly looked alarmed. "Sh-she didn't say why, did she?"

He was dangerously close to completely breaking her, especially since she was hurt the most during the incident. He had to lie to her for now. "No. I just wanted to let you know where she is."

"Okay." Fluttershy still seemed a little uncertain, but she bought it anyway. She gently pushed Spike away from the door. "You really should go now. I don't want him to hurt you."

Spike watched as Fluttershy quietly led her son inside the house. Sandstorm needs to get murdered or something.

Once they'd reached Pinkie's room, they sat down on her bed. There was a short silence before Pinkie asked, "Did she leave a note?"

Twilight nodded. "I don't have it."

"You don't need to have it." Pinkie lay down and rolled over on her back. "Applejack said once she had some kind of sickness. I forget what it was called. I think it begins with 'co.'"

Twilight thought for a moment. "Co-dependency?"

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

"It makes sense," Twilight replied. She wiped her eyes dry. "She must've panicked once she saw Rainbow Dash's condition, because Rainbow was who she wanted to be. Had she visited Rainbow before?"

Pinkie shrugged. "I have. Thrice."

There was a short silence before Pinkie sat back up and glanced at Twilight. Her eyes were brimming with sadness.

"What's wrong?" Twilight asked.

"She didn't think I was real. She didn't think any of us were real."

Twilight opened her right wing and wrapped it around Pinkie. "She didn't think Spike and I were real either. We had to leave before she could end up hurting herself."

"We could help Fluttershy get out of her abusive relationship, and we could help Applejack get out of prison to see her sister. We could even help Rarity become less psychopathic." She rested her head against Twilight's body, looking away; Twilight noticed she'd started crying. "But we can't help Rainbow Dash no matter what."

It was true, what Scootaloo had written in her suicide note. Rainbow Dash was as good as dead.

A bit dropped on the concrete path. She didn't know where it had come from, but she gave in to the temptation and picked it up with her light blue telekinesis. It wasn't her fault. She was nearly broke at this point. And starving.

Rarity knew about how Pinkie Pie gave homeless ponies free food, but Rarity was never one of the recipients anymore. To be honest, she didn't want to be. She was afraid to encounter Pinkie or Applejack after the incident last year. She used to get her food by gambling, but because of her guilt, she'd stopped. She tended to get her food from anyone who happened to have extra. She didn't steal it like she had just done with the money. She would just share.

As she was thinking about this, Rarity stopped in her tracks. Sugarcube Corner was standing right in front of her.

Rarity had blackmailed Pinkie, and possibly traumatized her, last year. She was much too afraid to see her again. She quickly backed away, then turned around--and then she was face-to-face with Spike.

"Oh, um...hi," he greeted her awkwardly.

"Hi," Rarity replied anxiously. She kept walking, and gestured for the dragon to follow. He did, but tentatively.

Once Rarity had reached a more comfortable area, she sat down. "Were you looking for me?"

Spike nodded. "Why were you so eager to get away from the bakery?"

Think of an excuse. Think of one now. Why didn't you do it earlier?

But if Rarity had come up with an excuse in those few seconds, it would prove to be useless, as Spike added, "I think I actually know."

Wait. Maybe he's bluffing. "And why would that be?" Rarity asked in the least suspicious way possible.

Spike paused for a few seconds, briefly fooling Rarity into believing she was correct. But then he spoke up again. "Something bad happened last year, right? Something that got Applejack in prison?"

"Who told you this?" Rarity was genuinely curious. It was definitely either Fluttershy, Applejack or Pinkie Pie; they were the only other three ponies that knew. But Rarity had had the nerve to blackmail Pinkie, so she seemed the least likely.

Spike didn't answer. "Were you insane?"

Rarity had to take a moment to realize what exactly Spike was referring to. Then she nodded. "Quite possibly. But I haven't been sent to the asylum. I was able to help myself." She looked away sadly. "Unlike Rainbow Dash."

Seeing Fluttershy bleeding helplessly on the ground in the middle of the night, some of that same crimson blood dripping from her forehooves, was gruesome to even think about. And all it took was a little paranoia and a little grief. Rarity was deeply ashamed for being so weak. "But...who told you?"

"Twilight and I visited Applejack in prison. She explained everything."

Rarity sighed. "Element of Honesty strikes again, I suppose." It still slightly surprised her, though, that Applejack would be willing to share the truth, especially since Applejack had taken part in attacking Fluttershy too. It was for the same reason as Rarity herself, she believed.

Spike paused. He seemed to be pondering over what to say next. Maybe Rarity ought to ask something. She broke the pause by asking, "Have you seen Pinkie?"

Spike glanced up and nodded. "Twilight's with her now. We haven't told her about what Applejack told us yet. Or Fluttershy."

"Did she say anything about me?"

"She still has a grudge against you." Before Rarity could feel disappointment Spike added, "But that's only because she thinks you're still a gambling psychopath. It has been a year."

Rarity's ears perked. "A gambling psychopath? Did she tell you--"

"She didn't tell us what exactly happened, but she did say you hurt Fluttershy."

"That's it?"

He hesitated. "Yeah, I think that's about how much we got out of her."

"Right." Rarity's hood was covering her head; she pushed it off. "Should I go see her?"

"I don't know." Spike glanced back in the direction of the bakery. "She's been pretty upset."

"The murder." Rarity had just remembered. She sometimes watched Fluttershy converse with her husband. Even if it was hurtful, Rarity was too cowardly to go in to help. But the week before she'd heard of a murder at Sugarcube Corner. She'd dismissed it, thinking Sandstorm was lying to frighten Fluttershy, but now it seemed likely to be true after all. "Did it actually happen?" she asked.

Spike nodded, and he decided to proceed to tell her exactly how Pinkie was feeling.

There she was.

The mare he had feared to see for the past decade was right there, in that building.

He had always firmly believed that she wouldn't return. If she returned, she'd surely ruin everything in a matter of time. But as he listened, he realized that she, at the moment, was too emotionally weak to do anything harmful. He had time to plan this out.

Some of his type had stayed here, unlike the others who all returned to their homeland. He was the only one in this particular destroyed village. And for good reason--to make sure all his hard work remained untouched.

This is why he tended to murder young ones. They could grow up to be strong enough to fix everything, and that is what he feared. He had missed his target last time, but this time the mare would be easy to catch.

Once she was gone, as well as any of the young children of this village, he could continue peacefully guarding his art.

The art of destruction. Not just of the village, but of the lives of those who lived in it.

%i%

11

After about only half an hour, Twilight and Pinkie walked back downstairs. Twilight immediately noticed who was missing. "Where's Spike?" she asked the twins, who were sitting closely together in the middle of the floor.

"He said he was going to Fluttershy's," Pumpkin replied, looking worried as she said it.

Before anyone else could react, the door opened and it was Spike who walked in. "Hi," he greeted the twins. He turned to Twilight and Pinkie, who were at the foot of the stairs. "Are you two okay?"

Twilight nodded and approached him. "You went to Fluttershy's?"

"Yeah. Her husband was sleeping late, so I was able to talk to her."

Twilight lowered her voice a little. "You didn't tell her about what Applejack said, did you?"

Spike shook his head, and Twilight was relieved. But apparently Pinkie could still hear her. "Wait, what did she say?"

Twilight decided it'd be best not to respond to the question. Every time she considered it, she told herself, Not yet. She's feeling bad enough as it is. "Did she say anything inportant?" she asked.

Spike thought for a minute. "Um...well, she did say why she stays with her husband."

"But didn't she tell us already?" Twilight remembered what Fluttershy had said--that Sandstorm gave her food and shelter--and Spike was there when she said it.

"Apparently there's more to it."

"There is?" Pinkie was approaching them now, looking quite curious. "What did she say?"

Spike informed them that Fluttershy had referred to herself as a lightning rod to absorb all the anger that Sandstorm needed to let out, and if she wasn't this lightning rod, then her son would be instead. "She says her husband needs her more than she needs him," Spike added.

"You means she agrees to being abused?" Twilight was startled by this fact for a moment, but then she remembered what Applejack had told her and Spike. The incident must have weakened Fluttershy's spirit as well as her body.

Spike nodded in response. There was a pause before Pinkie asked, "What did Applejack say? At the prison?"

Twilight and Spike exchanged an uncertain glance, then Twilight looked over at the twins. Pumpkin was lying down beside her brother on her back, and they were watching them with interest. I wonder if they know. She recalled that Applejack had said that Rarity had blackmailed Pinkie, threatening to use her knife on one of "them." She must mean one of the Cakes, Twilight realized. After all, they're all she's had for quite some time.

"Was it about me?" Pinkie interrupted Twilight's thoughts. "Is that why you're not telling me?"

Pound stood up, facing Twilight. "If you're not telling her just because it will hurt her, then tell her. It can't be worse than what you already said earlier."

Pumpkin nodded, flicking her orange tail. "What could be worse than someone killing herself?"

Twilight tried not to remember the horrific scene. Please don't remind me. She sighed. "You're right. I guess it isn't really too big of a deal." She glanced at Spike again before saying to Pinkie, "Let's just say...I found out why you avoid Rarity."

Pinkie rolled her eyes. "Of course you did. I told you yesterday."

"No, Pinkie. You didn't tell me all of it." Twilight walked away from the door, toward the counter. She always felt awkward when having serious conversations near a door, especially if the door was open like it was now. She turned back toward Pinkie and continued. "But Applejack did. Because she was never blackmailed. She was just told not to tell."

Pinkie took a step back. "W-what do you mean she wasn't blackmailed? What would make you think she was?"

"Well, I only know because she said so. She also said that somepony else was blackmailed instead. And that somepony else is you."

Pinkie looked afraid, but she didn't break down. She kept trying to hide it. "What could Rarity possibly blackmail me with, Twilight?"

Twilight already knew the answer. She pointed at Pound and Pumpkin. "It's because of them."

"W-what?" Pumpkin's blue eyes widened in surprise.

"We have no idea what you're talking about!" Pound protested. "What are you blaming us for?"

"I'm not blaming you for anything," Twilight reassured them. "Unless you count being blamed for being a price."

"A price for what?" Pinkie asked.

"The truth. I know what she did to Fluttershy, and you saw it happen." Twilight didn't to say this, because she was unsure of how it would affect Pinkie, but she felt she had to now. "And Rarity blackmailed you not to tell. If you told anyone about the incident, she would use her knife on them." She gestured to the children.

Pinkie stared at Twilight for a moment. She then looked away. Twilight saw a tear roll down her cheek as she said quietly, "It was so terrible." She looked up again and walked over to Twilight as Spike finally realized the door was open and quietly shut it.

Twilight stroked her fluffy mane and said, "I'm sorry that I had to remind you of the incident."

"Don't be sorry."

"Oh, I forgot to mention..." Spike looked a little embarrassed about interrupting them. "I talked to Rarity too. And I told her that we know."

"She didn't hurt you, did she?" Pinkie asked with concern.

"No. She was actually afraid to encounter you."

Pinkie wiped her eye. "Me? Why?"

"She didn't really say."

Twilight thought for a moment. "Well, it has to have something to do with the incident last year. Maybe she was afraid to hurt you or something?"

At that moment, someone knocked on the door. Pinkie wiped her eyes again, as if to ensure that she wasn't visibly crying, then turned to open it. Once she did show, she squealed a little in fright and backed up toward Twilight, who had to hold her for a moment because she was scrambling and close to falling down. Twilight looked at the visitor and smiled a little. "Hi, Rarity."

Rarity looked a little shyer than usual. She avoided looking at Pinkie Pie. She glanced at Twilight with her grayish-blue eyes and said, "I hope you don't mind me interrupting."

Twilight noticed Pumpkin backing away, and Pound standing protectively in front of her. They must've gotten the whole psychopath-killer-Rarity thing in their heads. She looked back at Rarity. "No, it's okay."

She stepped further in, feeling guilty for doing just that. With her magic she closed the door behind her, and pulled the hood of her cloak off. She then turned to Pinkie, for the first time in the past year. The earthpony looked like she'd just been crying, but Rarity could only see that from the sadness and fear in her ice blue eyes. Pinkie tried backing away further, but Twilight quickly held her hoof and exchanged a meaningful look with her. Pinkie looked back at Rarity. Rarity wasn't willing to break the silence, and Pinkie didn't seem like she wanted to speak either.

Rarity finally said, "It's been a while since I've seen you."

Pinkie simply nodded.

Rarity approached her. "You don't like to remember it, do you?"

She didn't need to clarify what she was referring too. Pinkie didn't need to ask. She answered, "No. I don't."

Rarity raised her hoof and rested it on Pinkie's shoulder. Pinkie flinched, but she didn't try to back away. Rarity smiled a little at her. "I hope you realize that I don't want to hurt anyone. Not anymore."

There was a few moments of silence. They stared at each other as Twilight, Spike, and the twins watched intently. Twilight seemed to be hopeful. Then Pinkie started crying. She didn't audibly sob, but her breath was shaky as she pushed Rarity's hoof away and jumped on her, hugging her tightly. "I-I'm sorry!"

Rarity was crying a little too. "You have nothing to be sorry for."

"I should've talked to you!" She stood up again, and turned to Twilight. "I could've stopped Fluttershy from being hurt. But I didn't."

"It's perfectly reasonable," Twilight replied. She seemed really touched by this reunion between Pinkie and Rarity. "You were too scared."

"Exactly! I'm a coward!" She looked back at Rarity. "You shouldn't blame yourself."

"I started it. I overreacted." Rarity remembered how out if it she had been the year before, and Fluttershy bleeding on the ground in front of her. She blinked, letting a few more tears fall. "But, even if we can't forget...we can at least not mention it."

"That's what I've been doing. But it didn't work."

Rarity smiled down at her. "I trust you enough to try again." She let go of Pinkie and wiped her eyes. Then she had a sudden idea. Something that might help this situation just a little. But Twilight couldn't know. She lowered her voice and whispered, "Can you meet me in an hour near the market? I promise I won't hurt you."

Pinkie stared at her hesitantly. It would be reasonable for her to refuse. After all, the last time Rarity had asked someone to meet her, that someone got brutally beaten. But Pinkie nodded.

Which was good. What Rarity was planning could lift a lot of stress. Besides, it would make up for what happened the year before.

%i%

12

Pinkie figured that Rarity didn't want Twilight to be there, but she still wasn't entirely sure if this was safe. So Twilight agreed to go with her and stay hidden in case something bad happened. The market seemed pretty vacant at this particular time, so if Rarity wanted to murder her, there wouldn't be any witnesses. Except Twilight, but she didn't know about that.

When they got there, though, Rarity didn't seem to be hostile. She didn't have a weapon visible. She didn't notice them, so Twilight quickly jumped into a bush nearby. The rustling alerted Rarity, and she spun around. "What was that?"

Pinkie pretended to be clueless. "What was what?"

Rarity shook her head. "Never mind." She walked over to Pinkie, who started to feel doubt as she added, "I thought you would've brung a knife to defend yourself."

Pinkie backed away. "What are you--"

"Don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you. I just thought you would assume I was planning to." Rarity sighed. "You still think I'm a gambling psychopath, don't you?"

Pinkie nodded. "So, you're not?"

"I stopped gambling after the incident. It's been harder to get money, but I felt putting a stop to gambling would help me a little." Rarity smiled a little. "That's not what I wanted to meet you for, though." She levitated a small bottle from under her cloak. The bottle had a rust-colored liquid inside. "Whatever you do, don't drink this. And make sure no one else does, either."

"Why not?"

"It's poison. I've had it for a while in case it was needed. There is one pony in this town who needs to leave. I'm sure you'll agree."

There was a short silence.

Pinkie tilted her head. "Gonna tell me who?"

Rarity gave her the name. "You're the only one who can help. I'll tell you exactly how."

Fluttershy's husband let her eat more than usual. He'd noticed her slowly starving, apparently. As she finished her dinner, he asked, "Where did you go this morning?"

She gasped. "How'd you--"

"Heard you coming in. When a pony comes in, they musta gone out." He pushed his plate aside. "You and the kid."

There was no point in lying about going out. "We were just going for a walk," she said softly. It was the truth, but she immediately knew her husband wouldn't believe her.

Sandy stood up, anger in his dark eyes. "Don't lie to me!"

"I promise that's what happened!" Fluttershy stood up, her voice raised in fear, and backed away a little.

"Then who were ya talking to?"

"I was talking to little Dusk! Who else?"

Sandy punched her face. It was sudden enough for Fluttershy to fall to the ground, but she quickly got up. "You have to believe me!" she yelled.

The stallion rolled his eyes. "The last time ya 'went for a walk...'"

"I'm telling the truth this time!"

Sandy walked over to her slowly. He didn't hurt her again. He said quietly, "You're my wife. You have to always tell the truth."

Fluttershy nodded.

He continued. "If we don't tell the truth, this little relationship means nothing. Who were you talking to?"

Sandy didn't know who Spike was, at least not by name. Fluttershy pondered how she'd refer to him. "You know that lavender mare you saw yesterday?"

"The dirty little beggar? Yeah, why?" He glared at Fluttershy accusingly. "Were ya talkin' to her?"

"No. I was talking to her little companion."

Before Sandy could respond, there was a knock at the door. Sandy pushed her in the direction of it. Fluttershy stumbled a little, but stayed standing. She walked over to the door to push it open. She sighed with relief. "Hi, Pinkie," she greeted her, quietly so Sandy wouldn't hear.

Pinkie smiled kindly. "I brought you a present. But you can't eat it." She handed her a muffin.

Fluttershy stared at the muffin in confusion. "Why can't I eat it?"

"You have to give it to your husband. You can't eat it, whatever you do." Pinkie backed away a little. "I'll wait outside in case something bad happens."

Fluttershy decided to just trust Pinkie, who closed the door. She turned to her husband and asked, "Who was that?"

"It's for you," Fluttershy said, feeling a little uncertain as she offered Sandy the muffin.

Sandy took the muffin and took a small bite. "Tastes off. What flavor is--" He gasped. "What's in this?"

When the stallion nearly stumbled backward, Fluttershy hurried outside. True to her word, Pinkie was still out there. "Something's wrong with my husband!" she cried. "What's in that muffin?"

Pinkie smiled a little. "Poison. He'll be gone in minutes."

Fluttershy gasped. She never thought that Pinkie Pie, out of everyone she knew, would have the nerve to kill. "W-what?"

"Rarity told me to. She wanted to make up for how she hurt you last year." She glanced through the nearby window. "Spike told us what you said. He doesn't need you for anything other than to hurt you."

Fluttershy still had trouble processing this. "Y-you'll get arrested."

"Then how come he didn't get arrested?"

Fluttershy sighed. "Because he hid the abuse."

Pinkie looked confused for a moment, then said, "I'm not talking about Sandstorm. I'm talking about the guy who killed the Cakes." She glanced at the window again. "Fluttershy, he doesn't love you."

Dusk then ran outside. "Mommy! Daddy's sick! He just fell asleep on the floor!"

Pinkie looked away. "I'm sorry. Rarity said it's the only way to help you escape."

Dusk took a few steps toward Pinkie. "What are you doing here?"

Pinkie smiled a little at the colt. "Your dad can't hurt you anymore." She was honestly unsure how to feel about this. She had helped Fluttershy, but the method seemed wicked to her. Sure, Sandstorm deserved to be poisoned. While she was preparing the muffin back at the bakery, Twilight mentioned that she witnessed Sandstorm try to stab Fluttershy the day before. And it's not like Fluttershy would be homeless now. She and Dusk had the house to themselves. But she realized that despite all he had done to them, Fluttershy and Dusk were still in shock of the incident. Even Pinkie herself found it hard to believe that Sandstorm was dying--possibly already dead, judging by what Dusk had said when he came out--because of her.

Twilight and Spike were heading toward Fluttershy's home. Both of them knew what Pinkie was there for. They wanted to make sure things were okay.

The sun was setting, but there was enough light to guide the way. However, there was not enough light to reveal what was hiding nearby.

Something suddenly grabbed Twilight's hoof. She gasped and tried to pull away, but the grip was strong. Her horn lit up, about to force the grip off of her, but she saw a blade poke out of the darkness. It glinted in the fading sunlight, and Twilight, looking closely, noticed a crimson stain. Spike tried pulling her away, but he wasn't strong enough.

The knife was being levitated by magic. A pale blue aura not unlike Rarity's. But the hoof that was tightly gripping her own was not white, but dark gray. And the voice that spoke was male. "I'm sorry it had to be this way, Twilight Sparkle."

She glanced at Spike and whispered a single word--"Run"--before attempting to fire a beam at her attacker. But the beam only passed him. He'd apparently dodged. For a split second, she could see the station's face. His pale blue eyes were filled with pleasure. Is he insane?

He raised his knife and quickly plunged the blade in her chest.

%i%

13

It hurt a lot more than she thought it would.

Twilight's attacker yanked the knife out of her body. She couldn't help but scream. Getting the weapon pulled out was a lot more pain than having it plunged in. She fell onto the path, unable to keep standing. She glanced around to make sure Spike ran away like she told him to. And he had. Which was good, as it meant he could get help quicker.

Almost immediately after she let out her scream, three ponies appeared, rushing over. Twilight's vision was still clear enough to recognize them--Pinkie, Fluttershy and Dusk. Dusk immediately backed away in fear, as his mother gasped and slowly stroked his dark grayish-blue mane. Pinkie took a few steps closer and lay down beside Twilight. "What happened? Where's Spike?"

"I told him to run. He's probably getting help." It took effort for her to speak. She was hoping that the blade hadn't pierced her heart. "Someone just came out of nowhere and stabbed me."

Pinkie reached out to touch the wound, but Fluttershy quickly whacked her hoof away. "Don't. It might make it worse." She seemed extremely worried as she looked down at Twilight. "Rarity has a cloak, doesn't she? If only she were here to--"

Pinkie pointed to something behind Twilight. "Speak of the Devil."

Twilight was able to turn her head to see Rarity had arrived, looking shocked to see her hurt. Fluttershy stepped over Twilight, careful to avoid physical contact with the stab wound, and grabbed the edge of Rarity's cloak.

"What are you--"

"She needs pressure applied to the wound to stop bleeding," Fluttershy explained before pulling off the dark gray cloak over Rarity's head. She lay down the cloak over Twilight. Since the alicorn was on her back, it was easy for Fluttershy to find the wound. She pressed down on it, causing Twilight to wince. She felt the cloth of Rarity's cloak start to absorb her blood.

"How do you know what to do?" Twilight asked.

"Because I've been stabbed before," Fluttershy replied. "So has Applejack." She didn't say any more about this. Instead she asked, "Does it hurt?"

Twilight nodded.

"I-I'm sorry." She lifted her hoof.

"The hospital. Is it still there?"

"Of course." Fluttershy glanced at Rarity. Twilight figured she was recalling the conflict between them last year. "I think all of us have been there at least once while you were, um, traveling."

"Is she going to sleep?" Dusk's quiet voice asked. He was keeping his distance, fear and uncertainty in his teal eyes.

Pinkie smiled down at him reassuringly. "If she does, she'll wake up." She turned to Twilight. "Right, Twilight? You're not going to die, are you?"

"As long as we get help soon enough, she should be alright." Rarity told her.

Fluttershy stroked Twilight's mane. "Did you see who it was?"

Twilight was losing her consciousness from the blood loss, but she was still able to answer. "No. Just his hoof."

"Was it gray?" Pinkie was standing close to Dusk, who was crying in fear.

Twilight nodded.

"It might take Spike too long to get help," Rarity sighed. "Perhaps we should just bring Twilight to the hospital."

"But then she'll lose more blood as we carry her," Fluttershy protested. "Look, she's already about to faint."

"Then I shall find him," Rarity decided. "He might have a bit of trouble finding Ponyville Hospital."

It was just after Rarity left when Twilight lost her consciousness.

They'd all decided to settle at Sugarcube Corner until the next morning. They'd see Twilight then--she'd made it to the hospital.

Most of them had fallen asleep. Pinkie had told Pound and Pumpkin about the situation when they'd arrived. The twins were up sleeping in their bedroom now, and Spike upstairs as well. The remaining four stayed downstairs. Pinkie had fallen asleep about half an hour ago. Fluttershy was clueless as to how she'd be able to sleep with this big of a burden.

Both Pinkie and Fluttershy were somewhat in denial of Sandy's death. Pinkie still had a lot of trouble believing she'd murdered someone, and Fluttershy had a lot of trouble believing that Pinkie was her husband's killer. They hadn't returned to Fluttershy's home since Sandy was poisoned. It was probably for the best.

Fluttershy still trusted Pinkie. And she was finally believing that Sandy's death was for the better. She realized now that Dusk had been hurt just by seeing his father harm his mother, and even attempt to kill her several times. How did it happen, anyway? she still asked herself. How did he change so dramatically?

Pinkie was softly snoring nearby, and Dusk was resting under Fluttershy's wing. The only pony besides her that was awake was Rarity, on the other side of the room. They were avoiding talking to each other. Fluttershy wasn't used to seeing the white unicorn without her cloak. Looking closer she noticed a faint scar across her side.

When Equestria was invaded, some of them had gotten into fights. Rarity and Rainbow Dash had fought side by side. They had done a pretty good job, even knocking out one and injuring another, until Rarity suffered a severe wound to her side. Fluttershy had been watching the two and had told Rainbow Dash to keep fighting while she got Rarity to help.

Now, in the quiet bakery, Rarity noticed the pegasus staring. Ashamed, she changed her position so that her scar couldn't be seen. Fluttershy felt heat rise to her cheeks and whispered, "Sorry."

Rarity didn't answer at first, then said, "It's fine." After another short silence she added, "You said you've been stabbed before."

"In battle, remember?" There'd been a certain pony whose method was simply stabbing all his enemies with his knife. Fluttershy and Applejack had both been victims. Fluttershy was able to recover easily, but Applejack had been stabbed in the chest, near her heart, just like Twilight.

Rarity nodded. "You fought well. It's a horrible shame we lost."

"I know." Fluttershy paused for a few moments, then asked, "Why did you hurt me?"

"I don't wish to discuss it."

"Please tell me." Fluttershy hated the memory, but wanted to know. "Why?"

"You know perfectly well why." Rarity seemed incredibly apologetic. "I was too unstable. And gambling to scrape up money pulled me further apart."

"Is that why you weren't arrested?" Fluttershy asked.

"No. I wasn't arrested because no one does these days. No one gets caught." Rarity sighed as she glanced at Pinkie's curled-up form on the wooden floor. "The Cakes were killed by the same pony who attacked Twilight, I presume. He never got caught."

"He wants to hurt the rest of us," Fluttershy concluded. "He'll do it any day now."

Rarity nodded. "We must be more careful. I can't seem to sleep, so I could stay up to guard you three. You should go ahead to get some rest, dear."

Fluttershy blinked. "I-I can't sleep."

"You must. You have a child to be strong for."

Fluttershy looked down at Dusk, resting in a comfortable position under her wing. His small breaths rustled his dark blue tail, resting on his muzzle. He looked so peaceful, and Fluttershy's heart burst with love for him. "Okay," she whispered. "I'll try."