Technicolor

CHAPTER THREE

I gazed at the sunset from atop the tower, marveling in the beauty.

It took me two weeks to finally decide to come to this tower, but I was glad I did. I had not gone inside yet, but the view would hold me from that for a while.

From the top, I could see every part of the island, from the trees to lakes to hills. It was all upon me, and all I could do was watch.

“I need to get Twilight and Scale here,” I said. “We could explore the tower’s inside.”

As the sky began to get black, I hopped from the tower and flew back towards the chapel. It was cold, and I shivered as I went. That settled it. It had to be winter.

I arrived a few minutes later, walking in and going straight to the dining hall. Twilight and Scale were already eating, and I joined them.

“You’re back really late,” Scale said.

“I flew to the tower,” I replied, sitting and piling some food on my plate. “I haven’t gone inside yet, but I figured you’d want to check it out with me.”

Twilight nodded eagerly, “I would love to!”

The meal went normally, and I went to bed. I shut the door and fell down onto my bed. I wondered what the inside of the tower had. It probably had some pretty awesome traps, and most likely a ton of spikes or something. That was what everything was like in that time, right?

I fell asleep trying to imagine the most amazing traps ever, and my dreams apparently took that into account.

It was cold as I stepped into the dark entrance. The stone was like an evil, welcoming hand, ushering me inside to show me the horrors within.

Snip

I ducked as the volley of arrows shot over my head.

“Wow,” I said, raising myself up and chuckling nervously. “I’m glad I read all those Daring Do books now.”

I took a few steps forward and my hoof dropped. I fell down, but caught myself with my wings. Just in time, too. The floor had fallen away to a pit of spikes, from which I hovered mere centimeters over.

“Only a few steps in and already two traps?” I asked myself. “That’s ridiculous. Something awesome has to be in here.”

Thirty minutes later, I was standing in a big room, with a large pedestal sitting in the center. I was awed by the size, and I marveled it for a few seconds.

“Echo!” I yelled, and I giggled as the sound bounced around. “Yeah, it worked!”

I approached the pedestal cautiously, and I reached out a hoof to touch the object. I was not sure what it was, but it looked like gold, and that was good enough for me.

I grabbed it, and I jumped back quickly. There was no sound.

“No trap?” I asked in surprise. “Bummer.”

The blade came without a sound, running straight through my stomach. I sat in complete shock as I bled, unable to process what was happening.

“There wasn’t a–sound,” I whispered, looking at the object in my hooves. It was a circle with a star inside, like the one in my eye. “There’s always a sound in the Daring Do books.”

I was dizzy, and my vision was going fuzzy. The feeling of blood flowing down my body was disgusting, and I looked down to see the red river pour around the blade and to the floor.

“Damn it,” I said, grimacing. “Why?”

I did not hear the second blade either as it went through my skull and the floor came to meet my face.

I shot up in a cold sweat. My head was pounding and my stomach hurt just as bad as the dream.

“T–that was intense,” I stammered quietly. “I hope the actual tower isn’t like that.”

I looked out the window to see if the sun was out; it was not. I sighed and flopped back down onto the bed. I was trembling, and I suddenly remember the thing from the dream. The golden circle with the star inside.

What is it? I thought, gazing up. It has to be important.

I closed my eyes and tried to focus. Before I knew it, I had a fallen into a dreamless sleep.

“Dash! Breakfast!”

I got up sluggishly from my slumber. I left my room and got a funny glance from Twilight.

“What?” I asked.

“You’ve got a bad case of... bed-head,” she said, stifling a laugh. “It’s pretty funny.”

I frowned and went to the bathroom, where I checked my reflection.

“Oh, yeah, funny,” I said, rolling my eyes.

“Think of it as payback,” Twilight responded, laughing.

“Payback for what?” I asked, looking at her.

“When we first met,” the unicorn replied, tapping my wing. “You dumped water on me, dried me off with some fancy tornado whirlwind, and it made my hair get messed up. You laughed at me then.”

“Oh!” I said, remembering. “That!”

Twilight chuckled and walked off, “Breakfast is ready whenever you get done!”

I grabbed a brush and straightened out my mane, pulling through the tangles and clumps.

“Stupid bed, messing up my–”

I dropped the brush and fell to my knees. I gasped as the circle reappeared in my eye. My vision drifted in and out of focus, and I became aware of the thunder noise rising from the deep.

“T–Twilight!” I called, twisting my head to look at the door. “Help!”

I heard faint hoofsteps. I passed out without a sound.

My eyes opened and I took a deep, shuddering breath. I was staring at the open sky, the clouds flitting lazily overhead, the wind perfumed with the scent of grass and flowers.

I turned to see Twilight sitting on a hill a short distance away, gazing onto an open field.

“Where are we?” I asked hoarsely.

“Outside of Ponyville,” Twilight replied, looking back at me. “The ship came back while you were unconscious, so we came back.”

“Thanks,” I said, turning back to the sky. “When will we go in? I can fly back home in Cloudsdale.”

“That’s not going to happen,” Twilight said, her voice wavering.

“Why not?” I asked, sitting up.

“Because there is no more Cloudsdale,” she replied, walking to me. “It’s gone.”

“What?!” I exclaimed, trying to stand; I was pushed down. “How?”

“It was attacked, and the damage it sustained caused it to come crashing down,” my friend said, grabbing my shoulder. “All the pegasi now live in Ponyville. Cloudsdale is getting rebuilt, but it will be a long time before the pegasi can live there again.”

I was on pause, frozen in place and unable to speak.

“We need to get back to Ponyville soon,” Twilight said, picking me up. “Then we can get you some water.”

I limped on Twilight as we trekked to Ponyville. I saw Twilight’s library rise from above the hills, but I also saw many ponies around it, looking angry.

“Twilight?” I asked.

“I expected this,” she replied, picking up her speed. “Coming back was not a smart idea without fixing the issue.”

She led me forward, and when she twenty feet off, the crowd noticed and turned, gritting their teeth.

“You said you’d fix it!” one yelled. “Why’d you come back with it still messed up?!”

“Twilight, what are they talking about?” I asked.

The gathering heard me.

“As if you don’t know!” the mass shouted in unison.

“W–what?” I stammered in confusion. “What am I supposed to know?!”

“You should know full well!”

Twilight parted the crowd with her magic and led me to the door. I heard a clattering, and I was hit to the ground by a hard object. I was pummeled by a few more of the objects, and I saw one fly over my head.

They’re throwing rocks at me, I thought.

I heard a grunt of pain and watched Twilight fall next to me. She continued to keep the crowds back, but was unable to catch all of the rocks as well.

“Twilight!’ I cried out, reaching my hoof to her.

She struggled up and lifted me with a second field of magic. She was straining to keep everypony away and keep me up. I could see it.

Her magic usually so strong, I thought. Why is this enough to cause her to strain?

The unicorn pushed forward, hitting the door with a hard shove, forcing it open and bringing us both inside. She dropped me onto the floor and shut the door, locking it.

She panted and ran into the kitchen, where I heard retching sounds.

“Are you okay?” I asked. My throat was a burning sand pit. “And, could you get me some water?”

I listened to a slow dripping noise for a moment, and then it was drowned out by hoofsteps. I heard the clinking of glass and the sound of the tap running.

Twilight returned with one glass in her hoof, which she set by me, then went back and brought out another. I eagerly drank the water, the liquid relief running down my parched throat.

I looked at my friend and saw a line of blood running from her mouth, dripping off her chin in small droplets.

“You’re bleeding,” I said, sitting up.

She wiped the trickle away, “It’s nothing.”

“I know it isn’t,” I replied, leaning against her. “You were struggling to do that magic earlier. You can usually do that with ease. What’s wrong?”

“I can’t tell you,” she said, turning away and pushing me off of her.

“Then if you won’t tell me that, then at least tell me what the entirety of Ponyville was doing outside your house.”

“It’s about the thing I took to the island to fix. I didn’t bring it back repaired as I had promised. But I can’t do everything. They think because my specialty is magic, because I was Celestia’s prize student, because I’m an Element of Harmony, that I can fix the problem.”

“What is the problem?”

Twilight shuddered and took a few deep breaths.

“I can’t do everything,” she whispered, a tear running down her face. “I can’t walk on water, I can’t fly, I can’t even save my friends.”

“What?!” I shouted.

Twilight’s eyes widened and she darted up. She started running, but I flew after her and held her down. Even in my weakened state I was still stronger than her.

“What do you mean you can’t save your friends?!” I yelled. “What happened to them?!”

Twilight only sobbed as I pressed my face onto hers.

“What happened?!”

“I can show you if you want,” my friend replied, looking away. “But I can’t tell you anything specific.”

All of these things she can’t tell me! I thought, letting her go. They all have to do with me! This problem, it has to be me! My friends... it has to have something to do with me! What is wrong with me?!

“When?” I asked, walking to the center of the room.

“Tomorrow,” Twilight replied, staying down on the ground. “After the mob clears up.”

I sighed and sat down. I laid down my head and suddenly came to a realization.

“Where’s Scale?” I asked.

“Hospital,” Twilight said. “He got hurt.”

“Was it the mob or something?”

“Yeah, the mob,” Twilight said.

The room was silent for a while as we sat. As much as I liked to talk, this moment was peaceful, almost serene.

The noise outside continued on, a steady stream of yells and shouts, slowly getting quieter until the noises were sparse and uneven.

“They’ve gone,” Twilight said in a tone of surprise. “Thought they’d stay longer. I guess if that’s how it is we can go to where our friends are.”

She grabbed me off the floor and walked to the door.

“C’mon,” she said, opening it up. “Let’s go.”

We left the house, walking out of the town to Sweet Apple Acres... at least... what was left of it. The barn was nothing more than a set of decaying wood beams, creaking, with splotches of scratched red paint splattered across them. The house was a pile of rubble, some kitchen appliances still standing in the midst of it, dirty and broken.

“What happened?” I asked slowly, looking around.

“The Apples moved away,” Twilight replied, leading me into the dead orchard, not a leaf on the trees. “The farm hasn’t looked good since then.”

The trees gave way to a small hill, on which sat four gravestones, each one already showing signs of age. I was frozen, unable to breathe or speak. My eyes wavered at the sight.

I breathed in deeply, focusing all my mind around one thing. It was a simple enough concept to understand, but believing that it was true was another thing entirely.

Twilight was staring at me with worried eyes, and they were tearful as well.

“W–when did they…?” I managed to ask.

“It was a few months ago,” Twilight replied, putting a hoof on me. “Right before we left for the island.”

“Why didn’t we die?” I asked, taking a shuddering breath.

“Scale came along and helped us,” the unicorn said, sighing. “It was a stroke of incredible fortune for us. It would have been over had he not arrived.”

“What happened to them?” I asked, beginning to sob openly. “How did they die?”

“I can’t tell you,” Twilight whispered, drawing herself into my body. “It hurts to hide it, but you can’t know.”

“Then why tell me that?!” I yelled, tears pouring down my face in a river. I grit my teeth. “Why tell me I can’t know?! Doesn’t that just make it worse?!”

“We messed up!” Twilight yelled, pushing me away. Her eyes were sad and angry as they looked at me. Sad for me, and angry at me. “It was–it was bad! And when you woke up in the chapel, we let it slip that something was wrong!”

I felt a rage build up inside me.

“Why even attempt to tell me anything?!” I yelled back, closing my eyes. The circle was glowing even in the dark, and the rainbow tint began to build up. “If you’re now being so studious about not telling me, why were you not then?!

“WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?! TELL ME?!”

“23 22 14 12 13.”

I fell to the ground as I blacked out, and suddenly, it all made sense. I knew what the numbers meant.

23 22 14 12 13.

A number from hell.

I was walking through the forest. It was cold, and the world around me was pitch black. The trees stretched higher than any I had ever seen, reaching for the heavens with tangled branches.

My eyes flickered for a moment, only enough for me to catch a single frame. I was hitting the Valedictorian, but my eyes were wild, my mouth was foaming.

My eyes widened as I remembered the fight. I had never seen myself from the outside on that day, what everypony else saw me as. But seeing it myself was terrifying.

23 22 14 12 13.

“Maybe you’d like to come with me.”

I turned to see a cloaked figure standing in the dark, hood drawn over his face. I gulped as a skeleton hoof reached out and ushered me to it.

“There is only one chance, take it. You will never receive it again.”

I could not reply; my voice caught in my throat. I did not know if I should say yes or no. The figure beckoned once more.

“I can reveal the secrets your so-called friend keeps from you. I can tell you what has truly happened.”

I still could not speak. I tried my hardest, but only a small rasping noise came out, barely in the shape of a syllable.

“Would you like to speak?”

I nodded, and my throat loosened up.

“I know what I am. 23 22 14 12 13.”

“I want to tell you what really happened. I am aware you know what you are.”

“No. I don’t need to know. Twilight hid it from me for a good reason.”

“Then maybe at a later time.”

The apparition dissolved into dust and blown away on a breeze. The sound of thunder began to rise from the silence, and the circle began to burn into my eye.

23 22 14 12 13.

I opened my eyes to see Scale, standing over me and covered in blood. He looked tired, and I turned my head. There was a knife, a pool of blood. A form slumped in the corner, covered in bandages and red. It was Twilight.

CHAPTER FOUR

“Twilight!” I yelled, trying to get up. I was pushed down by Scale, who looked me in the eyes and shook his head. “W–what happened?!”

I shuddered and tried to clear my head.

“She’s dead,” Scale replied, still keeping me pinned. “There was no hope from the start. I can’t let you live any longer.”

Suddenly the vision came back to me. I knew what I was. I did not want to be that. I just wanted to be normal, but that was not going to happen.

“Then kill me,” I said, relaxing. “23 22 14 12 13. I know what it means now.”

Scale raised his hoof, the knife glinting in the light. He brought it down, and I closed my eyes, preparing for my impending death.

“H–huh?”

I opened my eyes to see my hoof intercepting his, holding the blade inches from my throat.

“It looks like it doesn’t want to die,” Scale said, grimacing. He pushed down with all his might, and the blade drew closer. Almost instantaneously, the fear of death shot into my mind.

I don’t want to die. Not yet.

I pushed back, keeping Scale’s foreleg still. I darted backwards, coming out from under him and tearing me from his grip. Jumping up, I began to circle him.

Except... I never did any of that. My body moved on its own, and I could not control it. Scale followed my circle, watching with close eyes. I leapt forward, dodged a knife thrust, and bit his foreleg.

Blood filled my mouth, and I gagged as my jaw stayed closed. Scale stabbed my chest with the knife, and I bit down harder involuntarily. Scale hacked at my head, leaving small cuts on my neck and taking off locks of my hair.

I let go and backed away. My breaths were deep and shuddering; my vision was becoming blurry.

“Damn it!” Scale yelled, trying to hobble as he examined his foreleg. I had bit deep enough to see bone, and a mess of blood, muscle, and tendon tangled up in the wound.

It somehow gave me a happy feeling.

23 22 14 12 13.

The circle was coming back. My head pounded as I collapsed, trying to focus.

“Scale,” I said, shaking my head. “It’s coming. Run. I can’t control my body.”

Scale came up to me and pressed the knife on my throat.

“It won’t matter,” he said. “I was opposed to keeping you alive from the start, but your friend tried to find a way to fix you. There is no way. You are a monster, and you should die like one.”

He drew the blade quickly through my neck, and I fell down with a soft thump. I twitched as blood streamed from the gash and soaked my fur thoroughly. I heard hoofsteps as Scale left, and my eyes shut. The circle was fading, but there was still a rainbow in my eye.

23 22 14 12 13.

I woke up staring at a corpse. There were five, each one bandaged up to the point of unrecognition. I could not move, and I was bound in place by something. My mouth was wrapped with a piece of cloth, and it was dry and dirty.

Where am I? I thought. Scale killed me, but... ... Is this hell? Eternally wasting away in a space with five others who can’t move?

It was cold all around me, but my body was warm.

It’s already getting on me, I thought. I was shuddering heavily, and I was breathing as deep as I physically could. I’m scared. I’m scared, I’m scared.

I had been scared of cramped, dark spaces ever since I was young. It was an issue that had caused some various problems. I remember when getting in an elevator was the hardest thing, or playing Hide ‘n’ Seek with the other foals always brought me to tears.

I need to get out! I yelled to myself, paranoia gripping me. My eyes were getting watery, and all I could hear was my breath and the blood pounding through my brain. I pulled on the cloth holding me in place and ripped it apart through sheer determination to escape.

I began to claw mercilessly at the ground above me, pushing up towards what I hoped was sunlight. The material changed as I progressed, becoming less difficult to dig through.

My hoof flew through into open air, and I pushed through. I stuck my head out and ripped off the cloth around my mouth. I took deep breaths of the air and laughed. I was lightheaded and dizzy; the digging had taken its toll. I collapsed on the ground and fell asleep, my breathing becoming even and normal.

A hoof pushed my side, and I opened my eyes. A pony was standing over me, eyes concerned.

“Are you okay?” he asked, stepping back a bit. “You were sleeping in a hole in front of some graves. I thought you were a body snatcher at first, but then I realized: ‘Why would a body snatcher fall asleep at the place where he was snatching a body?’”

I sighed and pulled the rest of my body out of the hole. My head hurt like a giant ton of bricks were dropped on it, and I winced.

“I’m sorry,” I mumbled, still in a daze. “There was a problem.”

“Were you burying somepony and you got tired?”

“Huh?”

I suddenly fell down and coughed. My throat was burning, and I began to retch violently.

“Are you okay?” the stallion asked, leaning in cautiously.

I stopped and collapsed, “Yeah. I’m fine.”

“Do you need a place to stay?” he asked, helping me up.

“I–I don’t know,” I replied, allowing him to hold my shoulder. “Where is it?”

“At the farm near here,” he said, leading me down the slope. “Our family just moved in.”

We walked through the dead trees silently, and it was not long before the home loomed into existence. It was in the stages of being rebuilt, a basic structure standing in the cleared rubble.

“Where are you staying right now if that’s still being built?” I asked, looking at the stallion.

“We have a friend here in Ponyville,” he replied with a smile. “He’s taken us in while the work is done.”

“That’s nice of him,” I said, thinking back to my friends. My dead friends. “You know what, I haven’t thanked you for helping me. Thanks.”

“No problem,” he responded. “I was only checking out the land and I found you. And speaking of you, what’s your name?”

“Rainbow Dash,” I said, a breeze pushing back my mane. I realized how messy it was now from Scale’s slashing. “What’s yours?”

“I’m Rainfall,” he said. “You’ll get to meet the rest of the family soon. They’re at the house, watching.”

He led me to the construction, and I saw the silhouettes of three ponies around it, watching the workers build. Two looked older–definitely the parents–and one was smaller and had a filly’s shape.

“You have a sister?” I asked, squinting.

“Yeah,” Rainfall replied, chuckling. “She’s only a year younger than me, but she’s annoying.”

“That’s how any younger sibling is,” I said, looking back to my childhood.

“You have one?”

“Yeah. She was three years younger. I don’t know where she is now, though. I haven’t gone to visit my family in a long time, and she’ll have gone through university by now.”

“Sounds pretty sad.”

“It was,” I said, sighing. “Not anymore. I don’t have time to be sad.” I hopped a bit and laughed. “Now I don’t have time to mope and dope! I’ve got a life to live!”

Rainfall laughed. We were close to the other ponies now, so Rainfall called out, “Hey guys!”

The three turned and saw me. Their eyes widened and they sprinted forward. Rainfall set me down, and I was surrounded by the group.

“Who’s this?” the father asked curiously. “Where’d she come from?”

“Her name’s Rainbow Dash,” Rainfall replied, walking around to his mother. “I found her digging in a grave out there or something.”

“Digging in a grave?” the sister said with a snort. “Brother, you meet fillies in the strangest ways.”

“So, you’re the ones taking over this farm?” I asked, remembering Applejack.

“Not taking over, per say,” the mother replied with a nervous smile. “Just living here since the rest of Ponyville is full. We’re not farmers.”

“Oh,” I said, turning my eyes to the sky. “I would’ve liked this place to have been taken over by more farmers. I need some apples to look at again. At the very least, there would’ve been cider. Maybe not my friend, but cider all the same.”

“The ponies who used to live here were your friends?” the sister asked.

“Yeah, now they’re buried out where Rainfall over here found me.”

“If they’re your friends, why were you trying to dig–” the sister began, but was silenced by the father.

“She doesn’t have to say anything,” he said, smiling nicely. “But she is awfully dirty. Why don’t we go back to the house and give her some food, water, and a bath?”

“Really?” I asked, hopping up, but quickly falling back down. My legs were still weak.

They took me from the farm into the main center of Ponyville. I remembered what had happened earlier, so I kept my head down and tried my best to cover myself with Rainfall’s family.

“Hey there, Rose!” I heard the mother yell. We stopped, and I held my breath as the ponies conversed.

Please don’t look at me, please don’t look at me, I thought, closing my eyes and biting my lip.

“Who’s that?” I heard Rose ask. “It looks like—you!”

I opened my eyes to see Rose looking at me with extreme hatred. The support from the family dropped, and I fell onto the ground, my head clacking hard against the stone.

“What does she mean?” Rainfall asked.

A crowd of ponies had gathered, and they began yelling vehemently, venom dripping from their words.

“Scale said he killed you!” Rose yelled. “Why are you not dead?!”

“Stop, please!” I yelled, hearing the nightmarish thunder come up from the silence. “Please!”

The insults began to grow worse, and I heard the scraping of stones. The volley hit me, and I sobbed as blood began to run from the wounds.

“PLEASE, STOP!” I yelled just as the circle began to burn. Everypony fell silent, and the circle began to recede. “Just stop! I know what I did, but I can’t do anything about it! I wasn’t in control of myself then, so why do you hit me now when I’m defenseless and unable to hurt you?!”

“Because it’s much easier to hit you now then when you were destroying Ponyville!” a voice screamed.

I struggled up, my legs shaking. I flapped my wings and flew off, heading towards the library. The crowd did not follow, and I went inside without a problem. I went into the kitchen and grabbed a glass. I filled it with water and drank it, exhaling in relief.

I grit my teeth and sobbed, trying to keep myself from slipping in. I heard the door open, and I dropped my glass in shock. It shattered on the floor, and I turned my head to see Rainfall come in.

“We saw you go and–”

I ran past him and up the stairs into Twilight’s room. I curled up on the bed and pulled the blanket over myself. Hoofsteps followed me, and the covers were thrown off.

Rainfall watched me with sad eyes. Mine were puffy from crying, and some lone tears were on my cheeks.

“Why are they angry at you?” he asked, wrapping his hoof around me.

“I don’t want to tell you,” I muttered, looking away. “I destroyed a lot of Ponyville and brought down Cloudsdale. That’s all I can say.”

“How?” Rainfall asked. “You don’t seem like that kind of pony.”

“The outside has nothing to do with it,” I said. “You can tell me all you want! I know what I did, and I know what it cost other ponies and myself! I can’t even call myself an Element anymore, not now.”

“Element?” Rainfall asked, cocking his head to the side. “As in Element of Harmony?”

“Yeah, those things. Fat lot of help they turned out to be.”

“You’re an Element of Harmony?”

“Yes, I am. Please stop. I can’t take any more ponies staring at me anymore.”

“But that’s so cool!!”

Rainfall was hopping up and down.

“The six elements, combining to make a giant blast of energy that obliterates all the bad guys! Yeah!”

“It seems word of us gets around pretty fast,” I said with a smirk. “You seemed to pretty tough earlier, but now I can say that you’re still just growing up.”

“I can say the same about you. Seemed pretty strong when I found you, and now you’re crying.”

“Friends are a different matter,” I replied with a frown. “You try losing all of your loved ones and tell me how you feel. But I guess sometimes I can’t be the strong one. I’ve got to let it all out sometimes.

“So, kid, why’d you decide to come help me? I destroyed Ponyville. I’m not exactly the pony you should be going to comfort. You should be chuckin’ rocks and yelling death threats or something.”

“Because I’m stubborn and it’ll take a long time for me to change my opinion on a pony.”

I smiled and stood up.

“Just like a certain somepony I used to know.”

“Who?”

“Unicorn who used to own this place. She’s gone now, but she’s still alive in my heart. Uh... you know what? Forget that last sentence. Too sappy.”

Rainfall picked up one of the books lying on the floor, “Dark Magic. Weird thing to read.”

“Huh? Why was she reading up on dark magic? She hasn’t had to use it since Sombra. Let me see.”

I grabbed the book from Rainfall and looked at the page it was on.

Uses of Dark Magic for Returning a Pony to a Normal State

My eyes widened and I skimmed the page frantically.

“Rainfall, you know anypony involved in the Equestrian War with the griffons?”

Rainfall was quiet for a moment, his head cocked to the side.

“There was somepony out in the countryside who was. We met him while traveling here.”

“Can you take me to him?”

“I guess,” he replied, shrugging. “But first you’ll have to go to my friend’s house and get cleaned up.”

“No,” I said defiantly, shaking my head vigorously. “He’s probably one of the ponies who will attack me.”

“He doesn’t seem like one,” Rainfall replied. “He’s nice all the time.”

“Fine,” I sighed. “Let me get on a cloak though.”

I draped myself in a tan cloak and followed Rainfall down the street, where a simple house sat between two similar houses. He led me in, and inside was his family, who saw me and froze.

“Hey, guys,” Rainfall said with a smile. “Rainbow just needs to get cleaned up and then she’ll be going somewhere.”

“Why are you doing this for her?” Rainfall’s mom asked. “She destroyed Ponyville! We heard all about it from the locals.”

“She was nice to us when we met her, and I don’t see how she could have destroyed Ponyville,” Rainfall responded, leading me down the hall. “Here’s the bathroom.”

I went in and quickly started the shower. I wanted to be out of here as soon as possible. When the water was warm enough I stepped in. I let the water run over me and sighed. The water going down my face was like tears.

I washed my mane and body, removing all of the dirt and grime. I turned off the shower and stepped out. I dried myself with a towel and looked in the mirror.

“Damn it, Scale,” I whispered, pulling down a lock of my mane. “You just had to go for the hair. Messing up the one part of me that I would totally go to a salon for. This hair is what makes me look cool.”

I stepped out of the bathroom without bothering to brush it, and stepped straight into somepony.

“Sorry,” I said, moving aside.

“It’s al–”

“What’s wro–?”

We made eye contact and looked each other down. It was him. Scale. He was the friend Rainfall was talking about.

“You!” I yelled. “Wha–?!”

“How are you still alive?! I– I slit your throat!”

I tackled him and growled, “You bastard! You buried me alive!”

“I did not!” Scale yelled back, pushing me off of him. “You were dead! I checked! And you bit my arm!”

He held up his foreleg and let me see the mess of bandages on it. I pushed him down again.

“What’s going on?!”

Rainfall’s father ran in to see me on top of Scale, both of us shoving our faces together.

“Uh... is this a bad time?” he asked.

“What?!” I asked. “You think we were– we were not!”

“Yeah!” Scale yelled. “I would never be with her! Not this monster!”

“Watch where you throw those words, mane ripper!” I yelled back. “You messed up my unique asset!”

“Wait, so did he–?” Rainfall’s dad asked in shock.

“No!” I yelled. “He tore up my friggin’ mane! My rainbow mane!”

“You deserve it for attacking me!” Scale yelled. “And how come your wounds healed?!”

I looked down and realized they were gone. I had not even thought about it since waking up.

“I don’t know!’ I yelled. “Look, I have somewhere to be, and even though I really want to punch your face in, I don’t have time to do that!”

I ran down the hall, running into Rainfall, who was coming to check on the noise.

“What’s going on down th–?”

I grabbed him and ran outside.

“Time to go!” I yelled, taking flight, holding a struggling Rainfall.

“This is kidnapping!” he yelled angrily, flailing madly.

“Hardly seems to rank on my list of crimes!” I said. “Of course, if you want to be freed so bad, I could always drop you.”

“No!” Rainfall yelled. “I’m good!”

“That’s what I thought,” I replied with a smirk.